#like to use instead of fan art and doujins

[starlitwishes]

snowtombedstar

LOL it's ok idk why that's such a common issue on my blogs but w/e. anyway I DON'T KNOW.... i will say i don't mind using like, full comics/doujinshi for icons vs standalone fanart, not sure how u feel about that??

((It might be a setting? Riprip))

((Hmmm, mayyybe? it’s a bit of a struggle for me personally orz.))

((I’m just. Gonna melt into a puddle. I’m kind of at a loss as to what to do here orz))

[animehouse-moe]

A Suruga-Ya International Buyer's Guide

As Japan catches up with the times, more and more businesses become aware of the potential in overseas business. Because of that, storefronts like Suruga-Ya end up appearing as options for fans of Japanese only merchandise or items.

I am one such fan of Japanese merch and items, so of course I put in an order (with free shipping on a promo!) in. I've since gotten that order and thought I'd provide a bit of a buyer's guide for people interesting. The buyer's guide will include:

How To Purchase From Them

What You Can Purchase

Sales and Coupons

Warnings and Forewords

Shipping and Packaging

My Shopping Experience

So, without further ado, I'll get to explaining!

How Do You Buy From Suruga-Ya?

Link To The Website Here

There's two ways, the "traditional", and the "new" (how I purchased this order). The traditional is purchasing through their JP/domestic website via a proxy, while the new is shopping via their global website.

Now, it might sound like a no brainer for international people to shop via the global site, but as I'll explain later on there's a few cases/reasons where using a proxy is the more reasonable, and even times cheaper option.

Finding Items

Well, it's no CDJapan, I'll say that. Suruga-Ya's global website is propped up by almost exclusively Machine Translation. That means that the translations for some items can be really weird, like Yuta Okkotsu becoming Yuta Otsubone. Similarly, Jujutsu Kaisen gets translated to Sorcery Fight, and the translation struggles with correctly translating names (specifically those that are hiragana/katakana)

Tips For Better Searches

Limit number of keywords (instead of Yuta Okkotuse, just Yuta)

Search for JP names and literal TLs (e.g Sorcery Fight instead of Jujutsu Kaisen) as well

Search using the JP website, find the desired item, copy the item ID and search on the global site using that (more info later)

What Can You Buy?

The answer to that question is, "pretty much everything under the sun". They carry everything so long as it's not illegal to import/export. Models, figures, tapestries, art books, manga, acrylics, keychains, the list just goes on and on. About the only thing that is very clearly absent is R18 Doujins (regular ones are still available).

One thing that's really nice is that they've created "storefronts" for popular brands/titles. Pokémon, Studio Ghibli, One Piece, and Sailor Moon are just a few of the examples present on the website. It can be really helpful when you're a fan of something specific like that considering how challenging searching for something can be.

Deals and Coupons

This is the big one, the make or break for pricing. Suruga-Ya will, more often than not, have a promotional campaign going on for the global site. In fact, in the last 2 months there's been 5 weekends of free shipping. It's a crazy deal, and about the only way that international people will order from them.

If you want to keep up with promotional material though, they only post it on the website as an announcement, or on their Facebook page.

Warnings and Forewords

Buying from anywhere online comes with a caveat, the price is high, the shipping is slow, so on and so forth. Suruga-Ya is no exception to that and features four aspects that potential buyers should be aware of before making a purchase.

1. Commission Fee

All purchases are subject to a commission fee of 500Yen. Not terrible by any means, but it's an extra couple of bucks on an order that you might not have been aware of initially. To put it in perspective, Buyee takes out a "service fee" every time you make a purchase through their proxy service. It's effectively standard practice for these international orders, and you could argue that it takes the place of "tax" when shopping with them.

2. No Protective Packaging/Package Filler

What you see is what you get. This was all that was in box 1 of my order. It does keep the items from moving around too much during shipping, but it still doesn't do anything to prevent damage or any harm coming to the items. It's especially an issue given that Suruga-Ya's boxes aren't super well fitted to the orders that fill them. I think when ordering cheap stuff like I did it's not a major concern, but for stuff like figures or other delicate items it's an issue. I'm hoping that they'll add a protective packaging option at checkout in the future for that reason.

3. Prices Differ Between Websites

Once more, this is a common practice, and this is why proxy services can be worth it. They're not massive differences, but it certainly begins to accrue as a "foreigner tax". Furthermore, item availability differs between the sites. That is, you can find some things on the JP site, but not the global one. I reached out to customer support regarding that, and they stated that they plan to bring all legally importable/exportable items over to the global site, it's just that it will take time.

4. Items Are Used

For people that have done proxy orders before, that's not any sort of surprise. But for some items it's worth taking note of, especially in terms of price. For example, say that instead of 2,250Yen this art book was more like 2,500Yen. Well, as it turns out, the retail price on Amazon Japan for the art book is a hair over 2,500Yen (2,530). In those cases, buyers may want to look at other options for the item in "new" condition elsewhere if they're wary of used items.

However, "used" in Japan is very different from "used" in somewhere like North America. Night and day, really. Later on I'll show what I got, and hopefully reaffirm buyers that "used" can basically mean "like new" with stuff like art books, and that they're absolutely worth purchasing.

Shipping

It's fast, damn fast at that. With free shipping that's great, but for people looking to save money when there's not an active campaign you might struggle as DHL and EMS are the only shipping options offered by Suruga-Ya. No surface or sea mail to save a good chunk of change, so definitely be aware of the cost of shipping when making an order without a promo to cover the cost somewhat.

Packaging

I got two packages (because I ended up making two orders, also please ignore the weird stretch Tumblr applied to the image), and these are my short form thoughts on it:

Boxes are not sturdy/solid and have caved and dented in a few spots

Items are secure, but not necessarily safe

Box sizes can be too large for some orders, allowing them to move around too much

No reinforcement to corners isn't great

Overall, you get what you pay for, and for free shipping it's not the worst. Certainly not what I'd want to be paying for when paying shipping though.

My Purchases

As per usual, I largely got art books and some JP manga I've been collecting. Though more important than that is the elephant in the room. All of these items are used, but for the vast majority you'd never know. A lot of them came in plastic bags that were sealed, rathe typical of JP items which is really nice. Great condition, no signs of wear, and proper storage, it's hard to really call these things "used" all that often. However, there are exceptions.

Used Items

I received two items that could be considered "used" in the typical sense. The first is some volumes of manga that had yellowed due to age or exposure to direct sunlight, and the other is a crease/bend in the corner of an art book. Neither are severe damages or deal breakers (for me) at their price, but they're things to take note of as not everything will be perfect. Another thing to note though is I have no way of knowing if the damage to the art book was there from the beginning or happened during transit due to lack of protection.

My Experience

Keeping it short, I'll summarize my thoughts on the order from start to finish.

Searching and filtering isn't as easy as it should be

Prices are really good, but lack of description (both in regards to content and condition) can deter potential buyers

Checkout process needs some work (can't get a shipping estimate until you provide a payment method)

Shipping is incredibly quick

Packaging is questionable and cause for concern with more delicate items

Customer service is nice, but accessing them is odd (only through apps like WhatsApp or Line)

Stickers placed directly on books is a massive no-no

Overall, I'd buy from them again with conditions.

Why/When To Buy

There's a few requirements to really make Suruga-Ya worth it. Deals, more specifically free shipping (usually), is a must to make the purchase worthwhile. You could probably get away with paying shipping and getting a good deal if they JP prices weren't cheaper than the global site, but they are. Because of that, the "extra cost" can add up quite quick if there's not a sale or something to offset it. Continuing on the topic of "extra cost", their ability between sites (currently) differs. Because of that, the quantity of items you can order differs as well, which can lead to "smaller" order sizes which can increase the relative cost due to shipping. And lastly, there's no order storage. If the product lists were consistent that wouldn't be an issue, but we're dealing with used items, these things come and go quite frequently. Really want an item but can't fill out a full order? Better hope that the item doesn't sell.

So, all in all, the conditions for buying from the Suruga-Ya global site are:

Deals/free shipping

Enough items to meet reasonable order size to save money (if no free shipping)

Pretty simple, but still important to remember

In The End

If you can field a sizeable order from the global website and there's a deal running, it's probably the best deal you'll find (but still check). If not though, look at buying through the JP site via proxy. There's less stress in maximizing the order, you can sit on the items in warehouse, and you can even combine with other sites. You just won't get free shipping. And I really do have to stress that that's the biggest selling point for buying from the global site. So keep your eyes out for those specials!

[centrally-unplanned]

What was Evangelion? A Collection of Doujinshi Works - Batch 1

Comic Box 1997 End of Evangelion Special Archiving Project - Entry #3

The majority of the rest of the feature involves submissions by ‘fans’ of Evangelion sharing their thoughts on End of Evangelion & Eva as a whole in hybrid art/essay form. I put ‘fans’ in quotation marks because this group is selective; it is almost entirely doujinshi artists or even professionals in the industry. They are certainly lovers of Evangelion; but they are also producers of content that depends on that industry, and have a unique relationship with anime in comparison to the median fan. I think this feature is truly valuable as a sociological sample of how the anime community saw Evangelion, but it is important to note that this sample is not representative.

Since their comments are straightforward, I will not provide an introductory analysis - I will instead provide the page and a translation below. Additionally, I will showcase information about the authors of these pieces; I find these works to be beautiful, hilarious, and/or heartfelt, sometimes created by artists lost to time. Hopefully I can reveal a small piece of lives of the people behind this collective response to Evangelion.

I'll add the first translation here that matches the title image, and the rest will be in the link at the end:

What was Evangelion?

A Collection of Doujinshi Works

Children still worry, love, and continue to live on... and we draw another Evangelion...

“The grace of god has arrived to save us all” by Ao Takegawa

I watched "The End of Evangelion" twice on its opening day. After the second viewing, a person behind me said, "I don't understand," while others in the theater said, "I don't like it," and my sister and I were upset by their words. However, I think this is truly a good thing about Evangelion. If everyone is convinced of the same viewpoint after watching, it's not really Evangelion anymore. There are parts that are extremely appealing and parts that are extremely detestable, and the fact that it doesn't try to explain everything from top to bottom is what makes it great.

I love it. I think that Evangelion is very good at handling the mentality of its characters, and probably would not have reached the eyes and ears of so many people if it had been made in a normal, preachy way. It's interesting even if you only think about the characters without thinking about anything else (laughs); I like that those who want to think about every part of the show can, and those who don't can just enjoy it without thinking too much. So, "What was Evangelion” I think my answer to that question is, "Evangelion was great.” (Laughs) ← am I an idiot?

- Ao Takegawa, 1997.8.5.

Author Info

Ao Takegawa was a member FANATICS (sometimes called FANATICA) doujin circle, and was from what I can gather one of their key artists. They published a very extensive series of doujin around Evangelion - you can see some listings on Mandarake here - which stood out for their soft-pastel art style and inclusion of detailed plots. From what I have seen there is a lot of Kaworu, though they were not restricted to yaoi works.

I unfortunately have been unable to find much more about this author - none of these doujin appear to be scanned, no extant social media presence or discussion of their works, etc. Hopefully someday this doujin series can be rendered more accessible.

See the rest below if you wish of course:

[aesthetic-bastard]

Media Interaction 2023

April

Pleasure Bon Bon - this webcomic was so unexpectedly well written and calling it furry porn would be reductive. The portrayal of the characters' emotions and romantic relationships is impressive, and the world in which the story takes place is well-developed. Also, the women it are all super gay!! I have never interacted with anything before where a love triangle is established but instead of being misogynistic and cliche the two women involved in the triangle end up falling in love with each other and I really adored that.

This webcomic was so good it makes me genuinely disappointed it ended so abruptly due to the author getting into a copyright dispute with the owner of the original website it was hosted on so it kind of just... ends. I have discovered there is a reboot of this webcomic series hosted by the original author on her Patreon and I might check that out at some point.

Gudetama: An Eggcellent Adventure - this series was released on Netflix back in December and I have not seen a single person talk about it. Having watched this series, I found it to be genuinely charming and entertaining enough to watch it all in one sitting. Moreover, it conveyed a very touching overarching message. The mix of CGI and live action is actually very pleasing and enjoyable to look at. I'm surprised that this series isn't getting more attention considering it is available on one of the most accessible streaming services and it features a popular Sanrio character. I strongly suggest giving Gudetama: An Eggcellent Adventure a chance.

Garma Zabi Capture - after months of searching for a listing of this specific doujin second-hand I finally got my hands on a physical copy. Having this doujin is truly precious to me because it was the first one I ever engaged with when I stumbled upon scans of it online. It sparked my interest in collecting fan works as a hobby and also served as a great source of inspiration for my art. With that being said, although the length of this doujin is brief, the artwork is absolutely stunning. It's truly breathtaking! I find the level of intimacy between the characters quite endearing and exactly to my liking. Unfortunately, this fan work concludes with a common cliche where one of the characters wakes up and discovers that it was all just a dream. In addition to that, I thoroughly enjoyed it and am overjoyed to possess a tangible copy.

October Rust -  the fourth studio album by Type O Negative released in 1996. This album is incredibly sexy from start to finish and that is not a word I typically use to sincerely describe anything I listen to I find this album to be truly sensual in a way that is both pleasurable and addictive to listen to, without resorting to misogyny with its lyrical content.

JoJolion - in my opinion, this part of JoJo's Bizare Adventure is on par with Steel Ball Run as the best one. Its story is exceptionally well-crafted, surpassing the previous entries in the series. From the very first volume, I found JoJolion to be highly captivating and enjoyable to read. I found the world-building in this series to be quite impressive. Moreover, I appreciated the unique approach taken in this installment, as there wasn't a clear-cut main antagonist, which added an exciting twist to the franchise. It's refreshing that this part in JoJo didn't revolve around vanquishing a nemesis, but rather breaking free from a hereditary family curse. I also unexpectedly developed a liking for the character designs in JoJolion, despite usually taking time to get used to many of Araki's character designs.

Goodnight Punpun - this was the most miserable thing I have ever read in my entire life I do not think I hate life or hate myself enough to have resonated with anything presented in this manga and reading this was an experience I do not recommend to anyone. I don't think Punpun is bad in the sense that it's atrociously written because it's not. There is good writing in this series and it's very sincere about portraying a lot of the extremely triggering subject matter present throughout the manga and does nothing to romanticize any of the horrible things depicted. Punpun is just so extreme to handle I just don't see myself recommending this to anyone for their own well-being. I'm surprised at the immense popularity of this series, given its triggering content. I wanted to share that when I finished reading this manga series, my partner broke up with me on the same day. It unfortunately made me understand the series' appeal on a personal level. I get it now. I understand why everyone eats this series up like it's hot shit. I get it now...

[freshlybakedspiderbread]

Aghh! touhou. My feelings on it as of this day (and every day forever, i’m sure):

so when it comes to the ‘official’ works themselves, i’ve always been a fan. All the famous and iconic things like the music, the art, the bullet patterns, random new setting and personality insights revealed through manga or weird side-books. Don’t think i’ll ever get tired of it.

But by far the biggest impact that touhou has had on me is simply because of like... its identity and place in doujin culture, i think? A lot of my (and im sure this goes for most fans too) greatest and fond memories relating to this series comes from the fans and the derivative works. The fanart, the fanfiction, comics, music arranges and so on so forth. I’ve used this comparison before, but touhou series is like... a dollhouse? And a big appeal of getting new ‘dolls’ is seeing what fun you can have playing with them for your own stories, or getting glimpses into how they can play off the older dolls.

i waned off touhou for a little while, but now that i think about it, i know exactly the reason why i fell so hard back into it. Its because i realised the most important thing in consuming media to me is wanting to see what kind of idea or theme the creator(s) might have had and seeing it come to fruit for an audience. Because i think making things is like, such an important (maybe -the- most important?) thing for strangers to do to connect to one another!

But like... Getting too attached to a piece of media is always a risky thing to do, you know. Even if it’s something that really affects you, you have to step back and remember its nature as a product (or advert or propaganda or whatever else it might be).

Thus, i’m sure the big reason why i’m so drawn towards ‘fan’ work or derivative work as a whole, whether its drawings or music or writing, is that I always know at the back of my mind that it was a creative someone idea had that they have now shaped for others to see.

and when it’s touhou in particular, I can’t help but want to imagine, even when there’s a language barrier, that me and this other person who has created a thing were inspired by the similar things, and in turn are inspired by others doing the same.*

...But like, it’s all still just another media at the end of the day. No matter how much a certain (or many certain...) works may wrench me to the very soul, i don’t want to just define my very being and existence by this japanese shooter game! I’ve come close to doing just that a few times in the past, before realising just how miserable and pathetic that is. There’s no telling when any of these ultimately material things will just disappear, after all, and I don’t want to be wishing for touhou itself to become my ‘perfect’ thing my whole life. (Although if we could get some more non-evil chinese characters who aren’t meiling, and some more canon dark-skinned characters, it’ll be pretty close!)

so i guess in sum, i love touhou but i might be constantly afraid of investing too much of myself into it as a whole... ‘Stepping away from it’ i know isn’t something that’ll help nor something i want to do, so instead i’m determined to find other things in life i can be just as passionate about (and i don’t just mean other media!)... or at least, ‘decently’ passionate about.

[devintrinidad]

Oh gosh. I’ve seen so much fan art/doujin of 1146 and 3803 interacting as children that I’m now hungry hcs on that au. 

Imagine, it’s not a rule but it’s also not expected to have the future Red Blood Cells interacting with the future defenders of the body. 1146 knows enough about that. But 3803 being 3803 stumbles into him just a week after their first meeting. She’s crying because she’s lost and afraid she’ll be in trouble if she doesn’t get back to her class. But she gets really excited to see her savior again and starts clinging to him. He takes her back and from then on it’s like she imprinted on him. She keeps finding him. But it also helps he lingers near her living quarters and looks for her. He tells her they can meet but she has to be secretive about it. She thinks she’s so clever and sneaky (the Macrophage is totally aware. But as long as 3803 doesn’t neglect her lessons or bother 1146 she’ll allow the friendship to blossom to an extent). 

1146 will tell her to meet him in certain places and the two will play together. He’s fascinated by the cell he’s suppose to protect and thinks she’s amazing with how cheerful and full of hope she is. Sometimes he’ll find her sad and frustrated because she’s the worst in the class. But she says she won’t give up because someday even she might be a cool red blood cell. 

They like to race and play tag despite how much smaller she is, she’s super fast and has a lot if endurance. Enough it sometimes leaves him panting while she’s still giddy and jumping. He likes to show off cool maneuvers he’s learning and even when he messes up she claps like its the most awesome thing she’ll ever see. She’s definitely a good ego boost after a hard day of training. 

She ends up following him to his training area where his friends are and he tries to send her off but she doesn’t understand why she can’t be with him in front of others. The other boys discover quickly this is the cell 1146 tried to save and instantly crowd her. Poking her soft cheeks like she’s a specimen to inspect and pretty excited to see something new. They then ask her to tell the story of 1146 rescuing her since he won’t and she makes 1146 sound more amazing then 1146 thinks he was. 1146 eventually who is his friends off because its a little overwhelming this taller boys are crowding and poking her when she’s so much younger. 2626 notices the teacher coming and 1146 quickly grabs 3803 and runs off to take her back to her area. The other boys cover for him saying he’s probably late because he lost track of time doing his alone training. 1146 comes back late and gets a scolding and extra laps to run (which he’d run anyway). 

When Band cell senpai ‘dies’ 1146 doesn’t meet 3803 for weeks. He throws himself into demanding harsh training to deal with the loss and only meets 3803 by chance when she finds him exhausted and bruised from solo training. He tries to politely brush her off since he can’t play anymore with her. But instead of leaving she hugs him and tells him he can get. He lets loose the tears and at the end 3803 kisses his cheeks because that’s what Macrophage does for her when she cries. 

When 1146 becomes a band cell he gets a bit more loose with meeting with her. Sometimes waiting outside her class, reading philosophy, to see how she did that day. He helps her as best he can with homework and likes taking her to his secret spots for privacy. 

Her red blood cell friends think she’s got a secret fierce side for having a scary aloof band cell boyfriend. But at least she’s less likely to due of a germ attack, maybe.

1146’s friends are super jealous he has a cute doting girlfriend who brings him treats and cheers for him so they wrestle him in 'how dare you’ way. He claims they don’t interact with her so it’s their own faults. They agree, but point out it’s partly his fault because he keeps her to himself. He shrugs over that and muses he’s probably the only gentleman among them anyway (Eosinophil pipes up she doesn’t completely agree or disagree with that statement). 

When 1146 graduates he makes it a habit to swing by every once in awhile to check up on her. She fusses over him if he’s got bruises but he’d rather listen to her talking about her day. On the day he knows 3803 is graduating into a Red blood cell. 1146 gets extra violent and vigilant because her wants her first day to be perfect as possible (she almost gets eaten and killed numerous times but she’s just going to have to get used to that). 

Neither know if they’re dating or not and have asked the other. They always reply Idk. It reaches it’s point where 3803 asks if 1146 will be her boyfriend because she really likes him in a I love you way. He gets pouty because he wanted to ask first. He had already planned a huge extravagant way to ask her and she just asks him out of the blue.  She thinks that’s a bit much, but instead of telling him that she says he can still use it as a way to say yes. He agrees. It takes him 5 cycles because he keeps trying to perfect it before giving up and telling her yes because he was getting impatient about not being her boyfriend. He makes up for it by spoiling her a lot. 

Any thoughts?

~~~

Thoughts? THOUGHTS?

All of this was so cute. 

I think that Eosinophil would definitely like putting pigtails and braids in 3803′s hair. The both of them would have an older sister/young sister relationship and maybe, one day, 3803 brings in 5100 so they can have girl time.

Maybe, a few days before 3803 finally enucleates and becomes a mature red blood cell, the boys challenge her to carry them because, at that point, she should be strong enough to carry packages to and from the body. All of them are surprised when 1146 bets on 3803 to be that strong (let’s just say the WBC squad were making bets on 3803′s strength). All of them are even more surprised when they realize that 3803 can definitely haul them across the body when she wants to.

I also bet that Miss Macrophage and the kind WBC get together and start shipping 1146/3803. They would definitely look into having their classes intermingle with each other to establish rapport and to get rid of the assumption that WBCs are bloodthirsty monsters.

Furthermore, I love the idea that 3803 is a gigantic ball of sunshine that never rests while 1146 is like “You want me to tag you again? You’re so fast!”

Honestly, his kind words were like a boost for 3803 because she doesn’t want to end up dead last of her class. 

And, of course, the WBC squad love playing pranks on each other--provided that they aren’t neglecting their schoolwork. (2001 usually never joins in the pranks because he’s an old man even as a myelocyte and when he pranks people, he goes hard). 

Anyway, thanks for a great read! It was so cute and adorable!

[earthbovndmisfit]

I hope this isn't too weird of a message to send, but doesn't it seem like Jonawagon doujinshi are pretty uncommon? I've only seen maybe 3 posted online & I have a copy of a SpeedJona doujin but aside from those I haven't come across any. Is it like a rare pairing or something? I thought they were fairly popular

It isn’t weird at all, anon! All the opposite actually, cause I love getting asks even if i'm not always around or it sometimes takes me a hot minute to get to them gfjhkjh

This is gonna be long and probs gonna have bits that might sound rant-ish to some, but I hope that’s alright! :'D

For starters, sadly, jonawagon/jonaspeed/speedjona or however you call the ship is quite an underrated ship. This has to do partly with the wrong perceptions some folks have built around it and around the characters as well (that them both and the couple itself are the epitome of "purity" and "innocence", sometimes even labelling them as "boring" as a result even though both characters are far from that, that "it could only be a one-sided thing" on Spw's end despite both showing and sharing a certain bond/closeness towards each other -closeness that sometimes Jonathan didn't show towards anyone else-, etc), partly because of the many timeskips in PB and all the scenes the anime cut out and people wrongly assuming that the main events happened in the span of a few days and thus people dropping the ball on the ship/characters when Jonathan and Speedwagon actually knew each other for as long -sometimes even longer- than other more popular characters/ships in jjba did, partly because neither Jonathan or Speedwagon are as popular as other characters in the franchise as a whole, and also partly because, as sad as it is to say this, the ship lacks a LOT of support, especially from it's own fanbase. While jonawagon is a popular and well liked ship overall (in the sense that even general fans who don't care much about shipping, or those who are still on the fence about mlm ships, or those who just don't actively ship jonawagon actually like and support the ship or the idea of it upon seeing the actual dynamics between the characters and their potential and the fact that the ship can actually coexist with jonaeri without altering the characters/making them ooc, nor altering the story and so on), it still lacks a lot of support from it's fans. I often see most other ships/characters get lots of reblogs and exposure from their fans on literally any and all platforms, helping those ships/characters reach new audiences and gaining more popularity and drawing interest from potential new fans, while jonawagon stuff as well as solo Jonathan or Speedwagon stuff usually only get likes and a few reblogs at most from their fans, which is nice and all, but it doesn't give the artists/writers any exposure nor get those works or the ship any farther than that and just keeps them within part of the already existing fanbase at best, which often times makes the artists/content creators lose interest in continuing to create stuff for the ship/characters. This is also why I always strongly ask -almost beg at this point ngl- for people to support the artists/writers/etc via reblogs!! The ship having a bunch of different names also might have an impact on all of this, as it's not always as 'easy' to tag/find contents if you don't know how to tag/search for it. Jonawagon (normally used in the western parts of the fandom), JonaSpeed/SpeedJona (Western version of the ship's most popular names in Japanese: ジョナスピ/スピジョナ or JonaSupi/SupiJona respectively], SpeedStar (a name that became a bit more popular more recently after a mini jonawagon event in 2019), being the most common ones afaik, asides from the standard JonathanxSpeedwagon/SpeedwagonxJonathan ie and others. In short, Jonathan and Speedwagon as well as jonawagon are quite well liked and even popular to an extent, but they lack a massive amount of support from the fans, which also usually translates into artists and content creators for this ship losing interest in continuing to create new material for it and thus end up not making any more contents.

In regards to doujinshi more specifically, I’m a bit disconnected when it comes to Jojo doujinshi in general, but it seems to be a bit like that for most of the non "crazy popular" Jojo ships if you ask me, which is kinda normal considering the massive amount of characters in the whole series. Putting my experience as example, if it helps, I used to collect doujinshi from one of my previous fandoms, which had a shit ton of them for plenty of it’s ships and it was somewhat easy to acquire hard copies of despite it being an “old anime” basically while most Jojo doujinshi (especially anything that is not parts 3, 4 and 5) seems to be a bit hard to come across regardless of the ship(s) in them, even in auction sites or places like pixiv that sell digital copies if the author puts them up on sale, which is understandable since the aforementioned parts are some of the most popular parts in Japan, where most doujinshi is created, and thus take most of the fandom's interest -authors’ and readers’ alike-, as well as the hype for parts like Phantom Blood being long dead (with it being dead/dormant since the original airing of the anime ended in 2013, and it coming back ocassionally whenever there's a 'special' re-airing of PB in Japan or when events such as the Joestar Radio take place), so maybe my parameters on the whole subject are somewhat disproportionate?

This is also gonna sound all boomer-like, but I’ve also noticed, or it seems to me at least (still in comparison to the doujinshi from my previous fandom), that doujinshi books as we knew them aren’t /as/ common nowadays as they used to be a while back. Even the works themselves don’t seem to be much that way either. For example, doujinshi anthologies used to be a big thing a while back and, while they still exist, they don’t seem to be too common anymore (these worked as "promo books" of sorts for all the artists featured and they also helped lesser known/popular artists and ships to get some exposure to newer audiences). Nowadays such thing still exists, and I actually recall seeing a Jonaspeed/Speedjona anthology being made “recently” (recently as in 2019, if I’m not mistaken? it was published and sold during the mini Jonaspeed event they held at a Jojo con in Japan that year), but they aren’t nearly as common as they used to be, since now most artists can post any samples they want (much more reduced tho, cause you normally get a few pages instead of a full mini story) in places like Twitter or Pixiv. And it’s kinda the same with regular doujinshi. Before, most doujinkas had to publish a book in order to get their stuff out and get some exposure, so they were always working on new stories and making new books to sell and promoing their stuff, sometimes one after the other and even creating multi-volume stories in some cases. Now, thanks to how "easy" it is to get some exposure on social media, it’s much more common to see doujinkas for any ships/characters making short stories (1-4 pages, sometimes more) or just 1 page illustrations instead and posting them on their social media every now and then as a promo for their works. They also still make and sell their books (a few jonawagon artists on twitter do, at least), and these short stories/illustrations serve to boost their works instead, which is not a complain at all cause I think it's amazing tbqh! But this also translates into less stories/doujinshi being created as many of these artists often opt for leaving those stories that years ago would have been their own book or a mini story in a book as a prompt or a short story only.

As for actual jonawagon doujinshi, while it is not as common as say pt 3 doujinshi, there is quite a bunch of it. Some date from 2012-2013 (when the PB anime was originally aired), some are much older than that and some others are much more recent (as there are still some active jonawagon doujinkas around). There are also "fanfic books" that are also considered doujinshi and that seem to be a thing sometimes, but these contain little to no art at all and are usually written 100% in Japanese. The problem here is that not many of them have been scanlated/translated yet, sometimes because they aren't easy to find on sale online, sometimes because re-sellers who do have them set high prices for them plus shipping costs, sometimes because the artists/online shops won't sell stuff overseas, sometimes because those who do own doujinshi copies don't always know how to properly share them (since scanning a doujinshi in high or decent quality without destroying the book can be hard af) among other reasons.

All that said, there is a bunch of jonawagon doujinshi that has been scanned and is available online! but it can be tricky to get sometimes due to the different names this ship can go by and because of the "translations" of said names into different languages (as some doujinshi can only be found in Chinese sites, or Russian ones, and so on for example, so it can take some serious time to figure that out and have a successful search).

In all honesty, anon, I'm a dumdum and I had never thought about doing so in a more public manner until now, since I've already shared my entire jonawagon collection (pics, doujins, etc) with friends who have requested it more privately, but I can upload the doujins I have scans of if anyone's interested?? (I’d post the links where I found most of them but since my hd is pretty much dead and I can’t access Windows or my windows/mozilla profile, I’ve p much lost all my old bookmarks). They were only like... 8 last time I checked (9/10 if you count the Japanese and English versions of the "Joestarsaaaaan" one), but it's something :D Just be aware that some of them are nsfw! and that a couple are either part of a book that has stories from other ships in them (I only have the jonawagon parts tho) or contain other ships implied or openly shown in the jonawagon story.

I also have about 4 more, but the scanlator of one of them openly requested for the file to not be reuploaded, so Idk if it'd be alright to share it? (and they also deactivated their blog, so there's no way to ask them for permission). The other 3 are scans a friend sent to me of their own doujinshi copies, so I also don't know if it would be okay for me to post them?? (i haven't seen this friend in over a year so idk gfhgjkjlkñ). 2 of those 3 are nsfw.

[dhs-yjcc]

Let's Talk About: ✨MANGA✨

This amazing creation dates back to 12th century Japan, and has taken the world by storm since the early 20th century. It comes in a wide variety of genres, from action thrillers, to romance, to even psychological horror. Manga is a beautiful combination of literature, graphic novels and comic books, is generally split into categories based on the target age and gender, and is also a major inspiration source for many animes. Here are a few types of manga and their main target audience:

Kodomo 子供 (Children):

Meant for young children, these manga cover simple themes and stories you'd expect for children under 7 with cute, childlike art and very simple language. Popular examples include Doraemon and Hello Kitty.

Shoujo 少女 (Girls):

Aimed at young girls around 8-14 years of age. The art style of these manga is cute and elegant, with fine lines and colourful screentones, like those seen in Sailor Moon or Fruits Basket. These stories often feature romance and emotional elements, and often revolves around a young everygirl who gets dragged into a crazy situation that involves at least one attractive young man. It can also develop into what is known as a “reverse harem*”, where said men try to court the heroine of the show.

*A reverse harem consists of one female protagonist and three or more male love interests.

Shounen 少年 (boys/youths):

Like its Shoujo counterpart, this type of manga is catered towards adolescent boys, though more people outside this target group read them as well. As such, some shounen may now contain handsome young men and cool female characters to appeal to the female readers. Shounen is usually action-packed, filled with dynamic art and explosive effects, proven by the themes of more well-known shounen such as Attack on Titan and Fullmetal Alchemist.

Doujinshi 同人誌:

Self-published or fan-made manga. Many well known professional manga artists started out as doujinka, including the monumental manga team known as CLAMP. These mangas are often found sold at conventions like Komiket. Though many explore stories or relationships about popular characters from manga, anime, games and even movies or real world celebrities, there are also plenty of original doujin out there.

Certainly many of us have tried to draw some manga and their characters from scratch or memory, but have you perhaps, by chance, gotten stuck over their facial features or hands?

It’s okay! To draw like our mangaka-sama is definitely not easy; it can take up to years of practice to master the many art styles, not to mention the (sometimes) outrageous prices of quality art equipment!

Though if you want to do some simple sketches on pen and paper instead, that’s fine too! There are many step-by-step tutorial videos online to refer to, or if you want to dedicate a bit more, some places do offer manga workshops―be sure to check those prices too!

Manga has become a staple of Japan―everywhere you turn, you can almost always spot a familiar face from a manga series. Restaurants also take on these themes to attract more customers.

We hope you've learnt more about the manga you read!

[askiisoft]

FAN ART FRIDAY: Arts & Crafts, Part 2

(Banner art by @Kazzang3)

In the absence of official Katana ZERO merch (yet!), fans have taken it upon themselves to make some fantastic real-life goods for the game and the various memes it’s spawned. We looked at some of them a while back in FAN ART FRIDAY: Arts & Crafts. A few months and two otaku conventions later, and the amount of real-life fan work has continue to grow.

Let’s have a look!

by @OwOsameOwO

For most kids, a toy that’s missing an arm is the equivalent of those crappy ‘battle-damaged’ action figures lining the bargain bins. But this particular figurine is a labor of love!

Using a combination of generic and home-made parts (Nendroid, from the looks of it), @OwOsameOwO crafted this adorable doll of Leon von Alvensleben over a period of three weeks.

The attention to detail is impeccable. The hair is a custom sculpt, featuring that loose strand on the left identical to his in-game portrait, and given Leon’s unique fashion sense I have to assume the one-armed vest, baggy cargo pants, and pouches were handmade as well. At times the amount of fan love for a bit character like Leon still baffles me, but I can’t deny the sheer love and craftsmanship that went into this custom figure. Top-notch work!

—

by @Kazzang3

Sure, the Murdower Hotel’s got a modern elevator, sentry turrets, and atomizing laser grids, but they still use old-fashioned keys instead of chips or keycards. Thankfully, that gives us this deliciously suggestive Hotel Murdower keychain. This isn’t the only design fans have created (this one emulates the in-game logo more closely), but all of them have the room number “150��� without fail. 

If you’re not sure what that stands for, just...uhh, ask your parents.

—

by @Kazzang3

Superfan @Kazzang3 brings us even more physical goodies with these two Phototok dinosaur plushies, featuring Zero and Fifteen dressed up as Leviathan and Behemoth, respectively. The faces were hand-drawn and sent in to be custom-printed, making each of them one-of-a-kind.

I can just feel their softness from here...now, kiss!

—

by @DokusatsuMurXer

This past week, I headed to Osaka to check out UNLIMITED EX4, a doujin event based on Western media and games. There, I picked up these sweet Katana ZERO goodies, including a Leon keychain, Zero & Fifteen pin badges, and a magnet that turns any fridge into Leon’s cryo-chamber. 

The characters here take on a more SD (super-deformed) chibi look without losing an ounce of charm or seriousness. I particularly love @DokusatsuMurXer’s take on Leon as a perpetually tired yet gleeful maniac in high heels. 

If you’re interested in any of these goods, they’re still in stock here at time of writing. The problem is, I love mine way too much to actually wear them around and risk damaging them...

—

Thanks to all these artists that put time, effort, and money into creating one-of-a-kind fan goods to share with the community; if only I could buy them all up myself. 

Things are getting spookier as we head into the last week of October, so stay tuned next week for a Halloween spooktacular!

[marshmallowgoop]

Kill la Kill Merchandise! (Official and Unofficial)

The pictures I posted the other day of my Kill la Kill collection got me thinking about what I have, where I got it all, and how much everything cost. So, I thought I’d put together a resource that’ll help others (and me!) know what kind of Kill la Kill merchandise is out there.

Warning: This is gonna be long.

Kill la Kill Volume 1 Limited Edition (Blu-ray, DVD, and Soundtrack CD Combo Set)

What it is: The first volume in the five-volume North American Limited Edition Blu-ray set. It came with the first four episodes on Blu-ray and DVD, the Rearrange & Remix Soundtrack CD from Hiroyuki Sawano, six postcards, and a double-sided poster.

Where I bought: I had an Amazon gift card I wanted to use, so I kinda spent more than I should have buying this from Amazon.

How much it cost: $74.98 - $33.44 gift card amount = $41.54

Shipping and other costs: $3.99

The Kill la Kill Fanbook (and Goodies)

What it is: A fan tribute book with over 120 contributors, hosted by Jenna Brown. You can read more about the project here.

The Satsuki/Junketsu version of the book (which I actually received by mistake) came with five postcards of art featured in the book, from artists o0-mu-0u, Gashi-gashi, barachan, ojajebushechkiololo11, and o-8. There were also stickers from artofdiana and a Mako dress-up set from insidematthieu.

Where I bought: Directly from Jenna Brown’s store

How much it cost: Because I really ordered the Ryuko/Senketsu version, I got the Satsuki/Junketsu version for $18.50 instead of the $23.50 that it was meant to cost.

Shipping and other costs: $7.00

Kill la Kill Volume 5 Limited Edition (Blu-ray, DVD, and Bonus DVD Combo Set)

What it is: The fifth volume in the five-volume North American Limited Edition Blu-ray set. It came with episodes 20-24 and the episode 25 OVA on Blu-ray and DVD, the “Kill la Kill Voices” Staff Interviews DVD, two postcards, a Nui card, and a double-sided poster.

Where I bought: Rightstuf

How much it cost: $59.98

Shipping and other costs: None

Kill la Kill Raw In-between Frames

What it is: These didn’t fit in my photos, but they’re three raw in-between frames that were actually used in the production of Kill la Kill! I have a post about these frames here.

Where I bought: Trigger’s online shop

How much it cost: 2,160円

Shipping and other costs: 3,000円 (RIP)

Kill la Kill Volume 3 (Manga, Japanese)

What it is: The third volume of the official Kill la Kill manga, with art by Ryo Akizuki and story by Kazuki Nakashima. I’ve written about this volume of the manga here.

Where I bought: Amazon

How much it cost: $7.46

Shipping and other costs: $3.99

Febri Volume 21

What it is: A magazine featuring 30+ pages of Kill la Kill art, interviews, commentary, etc. I’ve written about the magazine here.

Where I bought: Amazon

How much it cost: $4.36

Shipping and other costs: $3.99

Kill la Kill Volume 2 (Manga, English)

What it is: The second volume of the official Kill la Kill manga, with art by Ryo Akizuki and story by Kazuki Nakashima. I’ve written a bit about this volume of the manga here.

Where I bought: Amazon

How much it cost: I had a gift card, so I technically got it for free. However, the cost would have been $7.13.

Shipping and other costs: None with the gift card, but it would have been $3.99 otherwise

Kill la Kill Volume 1 (Manga, English, Hardcover)

What it is: The first volume of the official Kill la Kill manga, with art by Ryo Akizuki and story by Kazuki Nakashima.

Where I bought: Amazon

How much it cost: I had a gift card, so I technically got it for free. However, the cost would have been $5.99.

Shipping and other costs: See Kill la Kill Volume 3 (Manga, English) below.

Kill la Kill Volume 3 (Manga, English)

What it is: The third volume of the official Kill la Kill manga, with art by Ryo Akizuki and story by Kazuki Nakashima. I’ve written about the translation of this volume here.

Where I bought: Amazon

How much it cost: I had a gift card, so I technically got it for free. However, the cost would have been $9.20

Shipping and other costs: I had a gift card, so this whole order (with the first volume of the manga as well) was technically free. However, there would have been 80 cents of tax without the gift card. Shipping would have been free.

Talking About Composite

What it is: A short book talking about the design choices, special effects, etc. used in Kill la Kill. I’ve written about this book and its sequel here.

Where I bought: Mandarake

How much it cost: 1,000円

Shipping and other costs: 780円

Talking About Composite 2

What it is: Just like the first book, but this one is a bit longer.

Where I bought: Mandarake

How much it cost: 1,000円

Shipping and other costs: 780円

The Complete Script Book

What it is: A book containing the original scripts for every episode of Kill la Kill, plus the scripts of the Drama CDs. There is also commentary included. Since this is one of my favorite Kill la Kill books, I have a whole tag for it on my blog.

Where I bought: Mandarake

How much it cost: 3,000円

Shipping and other costs: See The Art of KLK Vol. 3 below.

The Art of KLK Vol. 3

What it is: Exactly what it says on the tin. Includes concept art and designs from the latter half of the series.

Where I bought: Mandarake

How much it cost: 3,000円

Shipping and other costs: 1,780円 (with The Complete Script Book)

Kamui Bansho: Kill la Kill Official Guidebook

What it is: Probably my favorite book in my Kill la Kill collection: an absolutely amazing guidebook for the series. That I can’t read.

Please, please help me convince publishers to translate this.

I do have a tag on my blog for it, though.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: Purchased in a set with the two Official Setting Materials books (see below) for 5,250円.

Shipping and other costs: See Sushiotan 3 waaaayy down.

Official Setting Materials (Books 1 and 2)

What it is: Books with model sheets, designs, etc. used in the show. The second volume is larger than the first.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: Purchased in a set with the Kamui Bansho (see above) for 5,250円.

Shipping and other costs: See Sushiotan 3 waaaayy down.

Sushiotan

What it is: An absolutely adorable doujin from Kill la Kill character designer Sushio. There are pages and pages of sketches of the cast just chllin’.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: 3,050円

Shipping and other costs: See Sushiotan 3 waaaayy down.

Sushio 4.5

What it is: A very small doujin from Kill la Kill character designer Sushio. There are sketches of frames in the show, organized by character. I have a tag.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: 1,600円

Shipping and other costs: See Sushiotan 3 waaaayy down.

Sushio 4.7

What it is: Same as Sushio 4.5 above. I also have a tag for this one.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: 1,400円

Shipping and other costs: See Sushiotan 3 waaaayy down.

“Gomen ne, Iiko ja Irarenai” Album

What it is: The album for the first ending theme of Kill la Kill. It came with a music disc featuring the song among a couple of others from artist Miku Sawai. There is also a music video DVD.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: 500円

Shipping and other costs: See Sushiotan 3 below.

“Sirius” Album

What it is: The album for the first opening theme of Kill la Kill. It came with a music disc featuring the song among a couple of others from artist Eir Aoi. There is also a music video DVD.

Where I bought: Amazon Japan via From Japan

How much it cost: 698円

Shipping and other costs: See Sushiotan 3 waaaayy down.

Kill la Kill Original Soundtrack

What it is: The original original soundtrack for Kill la Kill, featuring 18 songs.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: 880円

Shipping and other costs: See Sushiotan 3 below.

“ambiguous” Album

What it is: The album for the second opening theme of Kill la Kill. It came with a music disc featuring the song among a couple of others from artist GARNiDELiA. There is also a music video DVD.

Where I bought: Amazon Japan via From Japan

How much it cost: 698円

Shipping and other costs: See Sushiotan 3 just below.

Sushiotan 3

What it is: Like the first Sushiotan, this is a cute fanart book by character designer Sushio with lots of sketches of the cast just chillin’. I have a tag.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: 3,300円

Shipping and other costs: This whole order included everything from the Kamui Bansho to Sushiotan 3. Shipping and other costs totaled a whopping 10,780円.

Fractal 10

What it is: An animator doujin/key frame collection primarily featuring the work of animators Toru Yoshida and Yuichi Nakazawa. The book includes key frames of Yoshida’s work on Ryuko’s fight with Ira in episode 9 of the show. I’ve written more about this book here.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: 1,000円

Shipping and other costs: See Kill la Kill Volume 1 (Manga, Japanese) below.

Kengo Saito Vol. 1

What it is: An animator doujin/key frame collection from Kengo Saito.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: 1,233円

Shipping and other costs: See Kill la Kill Volume 1 (Manga, Japanese) below.

Kill la Kill Volume 2 (Manga, Japanese)

What it is: The second volume of the official Kill la Kill manga, with art by Ryo Akizuki and story by Kazuki Nakashima.

Where I bought: Rakuten via From Japan

How much it cost: 116円

Shipping and other costs: See Kill la Kill Volume 1 (Manga, Japanese) below.

Kill la Kill Volume 1 (Manga, Japanese)

What it is: The first volume of the official Kill la Kill manga, with art by Ryo Akizuki and story by Kazuki Nakashima.

Where I bought: Rakuten via From Japan

How much it cost: 98円

Shipping and other costs: The whole order, from Fractal 10 to the first volume of the manga, had shipping and other costs totaling to 3,782円.

Japanese Blu-ray Set and Key Frame Books

What it is: The entire 9-volume Japanese Blu-ray set, plus the associated 9 key art books. Every episode is included, as well as the four Drama CDs, two documentaries, one staff interview, and two soundtrack discs. I have a post about this set here, and my tag for the key art books is here.

Where I bought: Amazon Japan via From Japan

How much it cost: 29,300円

Shipping and other costs: 4,150円

Kill la Kill Volume 4 Limited Edition (Blu-ray, DVD, and Bonus DVD Combo Set)

What it is: The fourth volume in the five-volume North American Limited Edition Blu-ray set. It came with episodes 15-19 on Blu-ray and DVD, the “Kill la Kill Making Documentary” DVD #2, two postcards, a card featuring Ryuko and family, and a double-sided poster.

Where I bought: Rightstuf

How much it cost: $36.03

Shipping and other costs: None

“Shin Sekai Kōkyōgaku” Album

What it is: The album for the second ending theme of Kill la Kill. It came with a music disc featuring the song among a couple of others from the musical group Sayonara Ponytail. There is also a music video DVD.

Where I bought: Mandarake

How much it cost: 400円

Shipping and other costs: 890円

SL SKETCH 3

What it is: A small fan doujin by Buzin. You can find most of the art in this book on their Tumblr!

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 320円

Shipping and other costs: See Takepro down below.

SUSHIO CLUB LOVE LOVE KLKL

What it is: A beautiful book featuring full-color character model sheets, the Mako backstory “Mako’s Story,” and more.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 3,600円 (very, very cheap for this book)

Shipping and other costs: See Takepro down below.

Takepro

What it is: This charming little volume is a collection of animator fanart for the show (and other shows). The book includes a short profile for each featured artist, and their big Kill la Kill pieces are—like all titles in Kill la Kill—named after classic Japanese pop songs. You can read and see more about Takepro here.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 700円

Shipping and other costs: The whole order, from SL Sketch 3 to Takepro, had shipping and other costs total 4,214円.

Newtype (March 2014)

What it is: A magazine with a fair amount of Kill la Kill content included, such as the Elite Four Light Novel.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 580円

Shipping and other costs: See Kill la Kill Storyboard Ep. 01 below. 

チラシシューマイ12ヶパック×3

What it is: A very small doujin from Kill la Kill director Hiroyuki Imaishi. There isn’t much Kill la Kill, though there is a page of Ryuko and Satsuki in their respective Kamui.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 480円

Shipping and other costs: See Kill la Kill Storyboard Ep. 01 below. 

Kill la Kill Storyboard Ep. 01

What it is: A complete storyboard book for episode 1 of Kill la Kill, originally included as a shop bonus for the original Japanese Blu-ray/DVD release. I’ve written more about this book, Imaishi’s doujin, Takepro, LOVE LOVE, and the Newtype issue here.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: 3,900円 (you can get it for much, much lower)

Shipping and other costs: The whole order, from the March 2014 Newtype to the Kill la Kill Storyboard Ep. 01, had shipping and other costs total 3,688円.

SIMA la KILL

What it is: A Kill la Kill/Blazing Transfer Student fan doujin by Kazuhiko Shimamoto, the actual mangaka of Blazing Transfer Student himself. I’ve written about this doujin here.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 700円

Shipping and other costs: See Kill la Kill Key Art Collection (Books 1-3 and Box) below.

Log. 2

What it is: A fan doujin from Kotaro Nakamori, who worked as an animator and animation director in Kill la Kill. I’ve written more about this book here.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 700円

Shipping and other costs: See Kill la Kill Key Art Collection (Books 1-3 and Box) below.

チラシシューマイ12ヶパック

What it is: Another very small doujin from Hiroyuki Imaishi. There is some Kill la Kill content among other works.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 1,100円

Shipping and other costs: See Kill la Kill Key Art Collection (Books 1-3 and Box) below.

Kill la Kill Key Animation Art Collection (Books 1-3 and Box)

What it is: A huuuge set of three books featuring key frames from every episode of Kill la Kill. There’s also a giant box available that fits all three books snugly.

Where I bought: Yahoo! Auctions via From Japan

How much it cost: 17,500円

Shipping and other costs: The whole order, from SIMA la KILL to the key animation box, had shipping and other costs total 4,466円.

Newtype (May 2014) 

What it is: While I own the whole magazine, the big Kill la Kill thing is the little Kill la Kill booklet included in the issue. Much of the content was republished in the Kamui Bansho.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 350円

Shipping and other costs: See PASH! (January 2014) below.

“Senketsu’s Date with Ryuko” Card (Japanese)

What it is: A special PR card for the official Kill la Kill card game. I’ve written about this card here.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 50円

Shipping and other costs: See PASH! (January 2014) below.

修羅雪姫

What it is: A fan doujin by 紐パン featuring short stories about many of the characters.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 200円

Shipping and other costs: See PASH! (January 2014) below.

第四十一雑居房

What it is: Another fan doujin from 紐パン.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 200円

Shipping and other costs: See PASH! (January 2014) below.

Log. 

What it is: Another fan doujin from Kotaro Nakamori, who worked as an animator and animation director in Kill la Kill.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 1,000円

Shipping and other costs: See PASH! (January 2014) below.

PASH! (January 2014)

What it is: A magazine with very minimal Kill la Kill content, though it does include a poster of Uzu, Ira, and Houka.

Where I bought: Suruga-ya via From Japan

How much it cost: 240円

Shipping and other costs: The whole order, from the Newtype to the PASH!, had shipping and other costs total 1,596円.

Kill la Kill the Game: IF Limited Edition (Japanese)

What it is: Exactly what it says on the tin. Came with the game, a Mako-croquette keychain, an acrylic Mako keychain with art by Mago, a Kengo Saito wall scroll featuring Ryuko, Senketsu, and Mako, the IF original soundtrack CD, the IF art book, and the Limited Edition box (with a Senketsu Box). I’ve written about this purchase here.

Where I bought: Rakuten via From Japan

How much it cost: 10,530円

Shipping and other costs: 2,900円

Kill la Kill Raw In-between Frames

What it is: Three more raw in-between frames actually used in the production of Kill la Kill. I’ve made a post about these frames here.

Where I bought: In person at Anime Expo 2019

How much it cost: $30

Shipping and other costs: None

Kill la Kill Volume 2 Limited Edition (Blu-ray, DVD, and Bonus DVD Combo Set) and Kill la Kill Volume 3 Limited Edition (Blu-ray, DVD, and Soundtrack CD Combo Set)

What it is: The second and third volumes in the five-volume North American Limited Edition Blu-ray set. The second volume came with episodes 5-9 on Blu-ray and DVD, the “Making of Documentary” DVD #1, two postcards, a Ryuko/Senketsu card, and a double-sided poster. The third volume came with episodes 10-14 on Blu-ray and DVD, the Original Soundtrack CD #2, two postcards, a Satsuki card, and a double-sided poster.

Where I bought: eBay

How much it cost: Involves a bit of math. To get the last two volumes that I was missing, I bought a whole 'nother set from a seller on eBay for $345. I sold the extras, but taking into account eBay fees and the like, I only was able to make back $151.33. So, the total cost of both was $193.67 (RIP).

Shipping and other costs: $14.20 shipping + $31.69 tax = $45.89 (RIP)

Kill la Kill the Game: IF Limited Edition (North American)

What it is: Exactly what it says on the tin. Came with the game, a Mako-croquette keychain and a Mako-themed takeout box, the IF soundtrack and art book, and the Limited Edition box.

Where I bought: Arc System Works’s online store

How much it cost: $99.99

Shipping and other costs: None

SUSHIO THE IDOL

What it is: I couldn’t fit this book well in my picture, but it’s a 300-page, full-color art book from character designer Sushio, featuring his work for Kill la Kill and other series, groups, etc. I wrote a post about the book here.

Where I bought: Rakuten via From Japan

How much it cost: 3,456円

Shipping and other costs: 2,720円

Guts Backpack, Uzu Button and Card, Senketsu Pin, Senketsu Charm, Ryuko/Senketsu Art, Kill la Kill the Game: IF Posters and Postcard

What it is: All exactly what it says on the tin!

Where I bought: Everything here was either a gift (the Uzu button and card, Senketsu pin, Senketsu charm, and Ryuko/Senketsu art) or gotten from a convention (I got the Kill la Kill the Game: IF posters and postcard at Anime Expo 2019, and I won the Guts backpack at AniRevo 2019 (and got it presented to me by Ami Koshimizu herself!!!))

Tl;dr I’ve spent almost $1,500 just for Kill la Kill merchandise and nearly $500 for shipping, taxes, and other fees associated with that merchandise.

[centrally-unplanned]

Seriously, I had a very good time, lots of great art & cosplays, and the vendors halls were a ton of fun. The one doujin vendor there had actually just gotten a huge haul from someone dumping their collection of 90's doujin that they let me look though, just packed unsorted in boxes, which was really fun. I even found in there a volume of A-Zone, the Sailor Moon doujin drawn by Azumaga Daioh author Kiyohiko Azuma! I would have bought it for a decent price, and to be clear they actually did not know what they had on their hands so I definitely tried to sneak one out from under them - but the package had a god damn Mandarake sticker on it listing its price as 4000 yen from a decade+ ago so they knew it had to be worth something for some reason and would not be haggled down, alas. I am not in fact an Azumanga Daoih fan in the end, so its not like I have any particular attachment to it, and like...I just linked you to it. You can read it right now, and in English to boot. But for cheap it would have been a fun find. I did find a 1997 unscanned Evangelion doujin at least, I prioritized that instead as my memento.

I did have some truly poor panel luck though - okay so I burned out on Anime Con panels a long time back, as they are generally just aimed at a lower level of knowledge than I have. No shame, its totally fine, but I am an anime researcher, this is just reality! But I wanted to give them more of a chance, be relaxed about it and use it as a chance to see what other people are talking about and maybe meet some people who are like minded. But every single "anime analysis" panel was at an awful time when I had other commitments! I couldn't go to any one of them. Sorry, "Statistical Analysis of Hentai Trends" panel, maybe next year!

Anyway the KatsuCon anime convention was fun, attended a lot of panels about the trajectory of Soviet housing policy clearly, good to be home!

[firefightinghimbo]

Please consider that you don't know shit, okay? You're an infant in fandom years and right now, you're acting like it.

Call me an infant all you want it doesn’t change the fact that you are disrespecting content creators by sharing their work without permission. 

1. Artists should know posting something online can get their things stolen.

Do you never want any content ever hmmm? Should content creators never give you fucking content cause you don’t know how to act like an adult and understand that if something isn’t yours, you shouldn’t take it?? :^)

Pixiv artists are literally deleting their accounts because people are refusing to ask to share their work, reposting without credit or permission. Yall are about to lose the content creators you apparently love.

A house with a door left unlocked, if someone breaks in and steals, it isn’t fucking excused just because someone left the door unlocked.

2. You are acting like a child and can’t understand old fandom things.

Maybe you should realize this isn’t fucking 2007 anymore and you should support newer YYH artists instead of artists who can’t have a say in whether or not their art is reposted or shared. There are countless of websites functioning as source finders and there are ones specifically for artwork. Posting art you saved from google images and saying “oh someone will credit it later” is absolute bullshit and so fucking disrespectful than actually finding the source.

Stop using your age as an excuse for ignorance and get with the times of respecting artist and sourcing.

3. But there is some artwork that was lost!! We are only reposting to share it.

If you cannot source the artwork, it’s not your fucking right to share it. Stop acting like just because something exists, you have the right to do whatever you fucking want with it.

Reposting fanfics to different sites without sourcing and asking permission is theft. 

Reposting artwork to different sites without sourcing and asking permission is theft.

Reposting fantranslated doujins without sourcing the translator and asking permission is theft. @lola1b  How would you like if someone did that to your doujins??? Oops, couldn’t find the source or I was too lazy to try. Here are doujins that I didn’t put any effort in and now I am getting popular for sharing it. :^) That wouldn’t be cool huh?

Stop making up excuses to not source artwork. Doujins for the most part are free game to fan translate, but then stealing a fantranslated work is also bad. You aren’t entitled to someone’s artwork just because you saw it, or like it. It’s not yours. Didn’t people fucking learn that in kindergarten. 

[bitchfacetokiya-archived]

Thank you so much for all you have done for utapri! Btw, how did you get into Ren x Toki?

Thank you, I appreciate your kind words!!! I’m very happy that I can help people, it’s why I stay involved in the community ^^Ah, you’ve asked the “Why RenToki?” question...be prepared for a long post after the cut...

I’m not really a textbook “fujoshi”--that’s to say, whenever I get into a new series, shipping two characters is way in the back of my mind (if I even think of it at all). That includes UtaPri; I was more invested in the idol-protagonist relationships rather than possible romantic relationships between the idols.I started reading UtaPri doujinshi when my friend introduced me to a work by LEGO!, who is well known in the UtaPri doujin circle in Japan for her amazing art and depiction of Tokiya x Otoya. This sounds like BS, but I really did start reading her comics not for the sex but for the artwork, haha. Eventually I started trying out different pairings, mainly based on whether I liked an artist’s cover art, sometimes to just experiment. I think I decided that I was really intrigued by Ren x Tokiya when I was chatting with a friend a few years ago and we were discussing how such a relationship would work, and she mentioned that not a lot of doujin with Ren x Toki pairings existed.I hadn’t really thought about it much after that until I heard their quotes about each other for the Heart Links in Shining Live (which are really adorable), and then this promo illustration was released around the time of the PS Vita remake of Amazing Aria & Sweet Serenade:

When I noticed that Tokiya and Ren were looking at each other, I don’t think I felt more excited about seeing them together and actually smiling at each other!

I became so obsessed with this image that I made an itabag:

And shortly after that I started collection doujin with them together:

Not all of these are illustrated, some of them are novels! And not all of them are R18 either; I really did want to see how other fans depicted their relationship even if it wasn’t sexual or romantic. Some of them are very lighthearted, others deep and even dark (I won’t openly discuss which one it is and how it’s dark).This might seem like a large collection, but if you’ve ever seen the UtaPri section at a shop that sells doujin, this pales in comparison to how much doujin exists for Ren and Masa or Otoya and Tokiya. I’ve literally had to HUNT for these at multiple shops (and bless the many Ren x Toki artists/writers that showed up to Tokiya’s birthday event this year, I spent a ton of money buying all of their stuff XD)

Unsurprisingly, I think my interest in Ren and Tokiya together also comes from how attractive I find them to be, but since I’m usually uncomfortable with seeing Haruka in a R18 doujin (she’s such a sweet and innocent girl They’re definitely not the most uncommon combination, but I feel like Ren x Tokiya is a pairing that was probably popular a few years back, around the first or second season of the anime, and then slowly fizzled. Most of my doujin are at least three years old and UtaPri doujin in general isn’t as popular as it used to be. So although it’s not a very popular, it makes me happy to see my two favorite characters interacting with each other. :)

[millimim]

Hello! As most of you know, recently there have been posts regarding a translator profiting off eastern artists’ works through patreon and ko-fi. Although she was never attacked, harassed, or explicitly mentioned by the original post, user @seairu-kun (tumblr) / @seairu_ (twitter) spoke up and admitted that it was her doing. Her most recent posts showed that instead of a proper apology to the artists, she responded with a post that named several translators who were completely unrelated to the incident, for actions she believes justify her own but are not the same.

This is a direct response to @seairu-kun for her allegations against the named individuals translating Katsudeku fanart from eastern artists and to explain why her methods are harmful towards these artists. 

Before I respond to Seairu’s post, people will say “you should’ve messaged her personally” and I did (screenshots of this convo below).

the original ask message to Seairu: "Posting your translations privately is a good way to respect the artists' work, but posting them so only that people who pay you can read it is the opposite of respecting it... please create a private blog or something instead of using kofi and patreon to release privately, the artists get no revenue from what you're doing and exposure isn't a payment. having a kofi for tips or donations is perfectly fine, but translating a work doesn't make it yours, this money shouldn't be going to you."

1) “I didn’t realize providing my translations in private was a bad thing”

It isn’t, if it was a 1 unique translation to 1 unique commissioner for personal uses type of situation. She has been repeatedly charging people $3 on ko-fi for the same translated page. This means that she’s profited off the same translated page multiple times, which is different than charging 1 unique commissioner for 1 unique translation. In addition, Seairu asks for “donations” through ko-fi, but they are only donations in name. By withholding a product before a sum of money is given and charging “donors” (clients) for a “donation” (purchase), it becomes a TRANSACTION.

Translators such as shousanki, whom Seairu pointed out, minimize the damage done to artists by charging a unique commissioner once to cover the hours spent translating one unique doujinshi/comic and can scarcely be classified as a profit. This is more ethical than what Seairu has been doing, which is profiting off the same artist over the same artwork multiple times.

2) “...maybe have a talk with the other popular bakudeku translators in this fandom who post doujinshi on public sites like myreadingmanga while promoting their kofi links and zines?”

Shiku/shousanki (tumblr): “I don't know how Patreon works exactly, nor can I speak for other translators who use it, so I will only be clarifying how my own process goes. Generally when I take commissions it's for full-length doujinshi and inclusive of typesetting, cleaning, and editing services. Additionally, a large number of my commissions are private in that one client pays money for the completed product, along with exclusive rights to it, which means I won't redistribute it to anyone else. More commissions tend to be for original manga rather than doujinshi as well. In the case of public doujinshi translation, again, only one client-to-translator transaction occurs. I'd consider donations and commissions to be in entirely different leagues, too. Even if nobody donates money to my ko-fi, or nobody donates requesting a particular translation, whatever translations I have planned to post for free ends up posted eventually.”

Kat and Vivie/Revenge of the Dicku (MRM): “Hello, we’re very confused as to why we were brought up in the first place. We’ve never really interacted with seairu before; we’re not sure why she specifically named us when her argument seems to be pointing at any and all translators and we’re pretty new in the field. Not to mention, our situation is clearly very different because we give out all translations for free and never profit off of the original artist. As for our ko-fi, like most translators, we put up our link at the end of each doujin as a suggestion; it is meant to be on a purely donation-basis, aka we will NEVER withhold translations until someone gives us money. We produce translations, and if people wanna donate, it’s their choice. Moreover, these donations have and will be solely channelled to the production costs of the zine that we’re helming, so we essentially take no money out of this at all. Also, we’re not sure why our zine (AKOGARE) is implicated in this at all either. Either way, we do this so we can share with our friends so if people do not like what we do, then we will simply take everything down, it’s no loss for us. Thanks for listening.”

3) “I don’t understand how the fandom normalizes this and goes on reading scanlations of the BNHA manga every week, but turns around acting holier-than-thou while trying to ruin someone’s life in the process”

Scanlators (namely Fallen Angels and Mangastream) for BNHA offer their translations for free (you can choose to donate if you want), and do not charge readers $3 per translated page. The issue isn’t about reading things for free - the issue is about making (a lot of) money off somebody else’s hard work.

Asking for donations is completely fine as long as it’s optional. It is not okay to demand that people pay you for something that doesn’t belong to you. Yes, translation work is hard, and it is a service (many translators agree), but in the end, it is not the translator’s content. The hours they spend translating someone else’s words into another language are dwarfed in comparison to the hours of work the artist spends coming up with a plot, composing dialogue, lining, drawing and shading for a doujin; therefore, translators do not have the right to demand money from others for something that is not theirs. Translators may be approached for a commission and offered a one-time payment to compensate them for their time, but this situation is different since Seairu has been reselling the same set of translations to make a lot of money.

Below are pictures of Seairu’s ko-fi, Patreon, and posts about how she is offering to translate doujins and comics only if people become her patron or donate a ko-fi .

Note that it says “donate to [Seairu’s] patreon” but again, it CANNOT be called a donation because the doujins and comics are behind a paywall and money is demanded first. Most doujin artists charge 400-1200 YEN ($4-12) per doujin to primarily cover production costs IN ADDITION TO little comics they post for FREE on twitter and pixiv. Seairu has been charging people much more than the ORIGINAL CONTENT CREATORS and profiting off of that.

(In case people are unaware, Patreon works like a subscription sort of platform - you pledge a certain amount of money that corresponds to a tier, and you get content according to the tier you paid for. Effectively, you get multiple people paying for the same translation done by Seairu.)

4) “... but I’ve already taken down everything I could at the moment, and I sincerely apologize for my ignorance”

Ignorance seems unlikely since people have reached out to Seairu regarding this problem. They reached out to her in DMs to ask her politely to take them down, and she refused to acknowledge her wrongdoings, instead choosing to point fingers at other unrelated translators.

If this still doesn’t seem like a problem, below are screenshots of artists that Seairu’s profited off saying they’re not okay with their works being used for profit:

Hibarihiro: Original and Translated Conversation

Evidence of Seairu reselling the same translation multiple times through her ko-fi account.

Seairu has since deleted her translation posts for these artists’ works, but -

Shibaya:

Silverstar and Yutah:

Unfortunately, there hasn’t been a response from silverstar, but their bio says no reposts are allowed, and it’s even in English.

Yutah believed that people were just giving gifticons to Seairu as thanks for her translations; Yutah did not know that Seairu actually opened a Patreon to profit off of her works.

5) “... to support my translation work since [it’s] a hard job that takes up many hours of my day…”

Yes, translation does take a long time, so it really doesn’t make sense to implicate other translators who are doing this for fun or to get by. As stated in Seairu’s patreon, she hoped to make this a “full time job,” profiting off of the works of artists who are unhappy with her doing so.

Many of these artists are against reposting at all, and some allow it with permission but ONLY IF the reposters do not profit from them. Artists who don’t want people to repost their art, much less demand money for it, WILL NOT HESITATE to lock or delete their accounts, their art, and start mass blocking English speaking fans. It’s happened before. Some artists have already done this and will continue to do so. They will NOT hesitate to stop sharing their beautiful art and ideas with us because some people just can’t respect their wishes. There’s a reason why the western fandom has such a bad reputation amongst eastern artists and what Seairu is doing is just aggravating the situation. Not only that, but upon being faced with upset artists and facts, she decided to point fingers at unrelated translators, people who do such for a one time commission and later make it available for free, as well as translators who do it for free and have ko-fis as SUGGESTIONS only. Her “donations” are TRANSACTIONS for something that is not hers, and this is illegal.

Below is a link that talks deeper about translated commissions versus a paywall: http://dmmegsie.tumblr.com/post/171857295019/clarifying-commissionspaywalls-versus-donations

Overall commissioned translation for one person privately is fine. But when you create a paywall for multiple people to pay that's when damage is being done.

If possible, Seairu should refund the money or share profits with the artists. She has responded to messages on tumblr saying that she has apologized to the artists in question and it would be well received for her to post screenshots of these conversations.

None of the original posters used Seairu’s name, but many knew of these illegal actions. This is not a “witch hunt”, but note that no other translators were mentioned until Seairu herself brought them up with her own post (which is titled as an apology, but does not feel like one since she doesn’t post her apology to the artists). She continued to reblog posts mentioning the other translators while none of them have reblogged the post that contains Seairu’s name.

Please do not support these kinds of actions, whether that be illegally mass profiting off of other’s work or attempting to shift the blame onto others.

[om-nom-berries]

How to Make a Fan Comic

The ask I received from @griffindorfightingheart earlier (which I answered here) got me thinking about fan comics and how much is generally understood both about this scene and even how one might go about making a fan comic. I thought I’d talk a little more about it because I want encourage more people to get into making fan comics. So come on over and let me tell you a story...

First, I’ll tell you about how I got into making fan comics, which was my discovery of doujinshi...

Doujinshi (or Dōjinshi, which Wikipedia tells me is the proper English term but I’ve been using the first term since before there was a wikipedia article for it so lol). Zelda doujin via History of Hyrule was my gateway drug. I discovered the site many, many years ago and was impressed to see that fans in Japan were just making their own comics. GOOD comics, too! I started collecting them via eBay, talking with fellow fans who also collected them, etc. It was so impressive to me and I decided I wanted to make comics too.

But I couldn’t afford to get them printed.

I also didn’t know how.

Starting Off Small

But I could figure out how to make a webcomic! Sort of...

I got some help and I was able to start a Zelda webcomic in 2003, which may as well be fucking ancient times at this point. It’s not pretty to look at (I gave the comics from that site to History of Hyrule so you can always check them out), but they gave me a start. I worked on that site for a few years, got busy with school and life (my mom got cancer in 2005 so that was a big distraction) and then started to do some original comics.

Get an Artist Alley Table

In 2007, I finally decided to try to go to my first anime convention as an artist, and tried for a table at Anime North. I was successful (there used to be less demand and therefore easier to get a table back then), and finally had the impetus to make a printed fan comic. I actually made two that year: one based on Ocarina of Time, and one based on Twilight Princess. My friend @renlikesstuff helped me get them printed (dude do you remember that lol?) and I was able to debut them there. Sure, I printed way too many copies, but it was a great learning experience (yes, I did eventually sell out of those copies, but I did print way too many).

Friends R Good

I just want to point out that having friends in fandom, especially friends that enjoy the fandom in similar ways (ie: write fan fiction, make fan art, etc) are invaluable. You can support one another but also are there to help you with your ideas (what is a realistic goal, for example).

Legal Stuff

Are fan comics illegal? In most jurisdictions, if you don’t have the permission of the copyright holder OR it’s a parody (legal protected in many countries but not all countries), then yes, it’s illegal. But generally the enforcement of copyrights is left to the copyright holder. To be realistic, the only dangerous bootleg stuff out there are, for example, plane parts (yes, this is a thing and really fucking scary), or medical equipment (that could harm or kill someone). A fan comic, unless you’re selling thousands of copies, isn’t really hurting the copyright holder (if said copyright holder is a large, multinational corporation). Even still, some large companies have been known to crack down on fan works (usually as a result of rampant bootlegging. See: Disney).

If you’re in a fandom, the discussion of fan art, bootlegs, etc may or may not be A Thing, depending on how the copyright holder deals with fan creations. Some copyright holders may be independent, and some may be large corporations. You must be mindful of the laws where you live and sell your works, and of how the copyright holder feels (or doesn’t feel) about any kind of fan works.

You must also keep in mind that a copyright holder can choose to enforce their copyright at any time. Generally, if they feel you’ve overstepped a boundary, they’ll let you know by sending a simple Cease & Desist notification (usually by email) or just have your web host take down you creation without warning (if said host has a way of reporting it). No one’s going to come to your house or school or work or blow down your fucking door over this shit (I mean, if you live in a democracy, because some people do live in countries where freedoms are more restricted and sometimes this shit does happen over what others might consider very basic actions).

Actually Fucking Drawing Something

I could write a metric assload of stuff about making a comic. But I won’t, because people have already written a lot about it. Instead, here’s some links to get you started:

notes from a 2011 presentation that Love Love Hill did at Anime North about making comics/doujinshi

comic process and tutorial notes from Love Love Hill (listen to them for they are wise)

resources for printing, payment services, etc from AAtoast

creating a comic - basic process

About printing:

Printing is expensive!

At least, nice printing is. If you don’t have a lot of money, you can do zine-style stuff, where you’re using a basic photocopier and a long arm stapler (to do what’s called a “saddle stitch” binding). If you have a little bit of money you can hire a printing company to print the comics for you. I’ve done both, and here’s the pros and cons:

Printing and Stapling Yourself

Pros:

Cheap af

No surprises re: quality control

Cons:

More work

You may need a long arm stapler (but some people do super short comics that are foldable which is cute too)

Has to be shorter (bc long arm staplers will only staple through so many pages before you need to get a stronger industrial one)

Printing with a Professional Printer

Pros:

Quality result

Access to perfect binding (when you have it bound by glue)

Cons:

Expensive

Not all printers can do book binding or have experience with comics

You often need to pay extra to get the comic pages set up for printing if you don’t know how to use something like InDesign

Actually Fucking Sell Something

When you finally have a print comic, you can sell it! Knowing WHERE to sell it is just as important as actually selling it. You want to make sure you’re presenting to the right audience.

I’ve done direct sales, mostly, either in person or online using Paypal as the payment handling.

When you’re selling online, keep in mind the cost to mail the comics (postage, packaging). Packaging is important because you want the comic to arrive in pristine condition. I usually get plastic bubble mailers and then put the comic in another plastic baggie so that there’s no chance of moisture getting in there. Also, I put in a nice little thank you card signed to the person who bought the comic. Handwritten notes are always a kind and appreciated gesture that people will remember.

Where to sell? If you have enough followers on Tumblr, you can do ok, especially if you’re already known in the fandom. If not, some larger fandoms run comic anthologies (either print or digital). I’ve seen people also sell on Etsy and Gumroad. I’ve used Gumroad but not Etsy. Keep in mind that using 3rd party sellers like Etsy and Gumroad and Ebay make it much easier for copyright holders to take notice of you, and they might assume you’re just a bootlegger making a ton of money off this.

Which brings me to my final point:

Don’t Expect to Get Rich Making Fan Comics

You’re not going to make much money selling fan stuff. That’s just the reality. If you’re really REALLY good and persistent then yes, maybe you can do the convention circuit or get a popular Patreon or something. Some have. But it’s rare, and those artists that made it work did put a ton of effort into finding something that worked for them and also mix in original art and extras.

If you’re getting into making fan comics, make sure it’s because, first and foremost, it’s something that brings you joy in creating. It doesn’t have to be an expensive hobby, but it should bring you some measure of joy. I’d say that’s the most important thing.

[fnlrndcllctv]

REVIEW: Nitroplus Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- (2015)

Going into this review, I wasn’t at all familiar with the world of Nitro+, which doesn’t come as much of a surprise as the vast majority of their work has never actually been released outside of Japan.

So, let’s start this off with a quick background on the company and what kind of stuff it has released in the past. Since 2000, Nitro+ has been steadily releasing Visual Novel games, with Steins;Gate arguably being their most well known game in the west.

Most of the themes in these games are pretty dark, ranging from the more fantasy-based stuff like necromancy to some incredibly questionable material such as murder and rape.

In the mid-2000s, the developer released Nitro+ Royale -Heroines Duel-, which brought together thirteen fighters from their back catalogue of games in a traditional 2D fighter, and seems to be a pretty unremarkable, by-the-numbers doujin fighting game.

Almost a decade later, Nitro+ once again stepped outside of the Visual Novel genre to make another attempt at a crossover fighting game that included a who’s who of their games making appearances, only this time taking advantage of the various advancements in the fighting game genre had seen.

The resulting release was today’s topic; Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel-.

The question remains, is it any good?

Gameplay

The game uses just five buttons; light attack, medium attack, heavy attack, escape action, and heavy action.

The escape action button can be used to perform evasive manoeuvres and guards while heavy actions can be used to push an opponent back when players are feeling pressured during a fight.

The game makes it incredibly easy to chain together combos, and implements a whole bunch of other common elements that help to make the game feel like it fits in with the subgenre, and makes it easy for new players to get the hang of things.

Air dashing? You got it!

Super gauge-fuelled super attacks? Hell yeah!

“Lethal Blaze” ultra attacks that feel unique to each fighter and often look stunning? Of course they’re here!

Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- feels very comfortable to play, while still offering enough of a challenge to encourage players to improve.

Story

The game’s main story mode is a standard 8-match arcade ladder in which players must battle through with their chosen fighter. The plot revolves around an evil being (a copy of the character Al Azif made from fragments taken from multiple different timelines where the Demonbane failed) who attempts to take over the final remaining dimension.

Instead of cutscenes, we’re met with the visual novel approach, which doesn’t do a fantastic job of engaging players and making them muster up any motivation to finish the story.

Upon finishing the normal story mode for the first time, an extra story mode becomes available, comprised of ten individual chapters. The mode is a(yup, you guessed it) visual novel adaptation of HP Lovecraft’s story “The Case Of Charles Dexter Ward”, and follows the games cast as they assume the roles of the story rather than themselves. This mode has more variety visually, but only slightly, and the scenes that do pop up are very questionable (one particular scene is very “non-consensual” in nature).

I guess it was inevitable that the game’s story would be presented in a visual novel-like format, considering the origin games for the majority of the roster, but they’re so difficult to follow thanks to a tidal wave of complicated terminology instead of any likeable dialogue or character development.

Roster

Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- features fourteen unique playable characters, two of which are DLC fighters.

Al Azif - From the Demonbane series, Al Azif is the spirit of the Necronomicon (that’s the “book of the dead, for all you non-Evil Dead fans out there!). Her primary goal is to hunt down and destroy all unholy powers that are in league with the evil gods.

Anna - From the Gekkō no Carnevale series, Anna is an automaton doll that was found in a trash dump. She has amnesia, and now works in a workshop, fixing machines.

Ethica - One of the protagonists from the Tokyo Necro series, Ethica is a young "Private Special Living Dead Stalker" who practices a special kind of fighting style known as "Close Quarter Armed Martial Arts".

Ein - From the Phantom Of Inferno series, Ein is an assassin with such skill she was given the codename "Phantom", has no memories of her past and is incredibly apathetic towards, well, mostly everything except killing.

Ignis - From the Jingai Makyō series, Ignis is a demon hunter and the sworn protector of humanity who makes up for her lack of supernatural powers by mastering martial arts and being deadly with a kitana.

Mora - From the Vampirdzhija Vjedogonia visual novel, Mora is a vampire hunter who is armed with a massive hammer to beat down her opponents with.

Satsurikuin Ouka - From the same modelling agency as Super Sonico, Ouka is a confident, extroverted young girl who is constantly looking for her spot in the limelight. She’s also attached to a robotic metal crucifix for some reason.

Ruili - From the Kikokugai: The Cyber Slayer visual novel, Ruili is essentially a reanimated corpse/”soul transfer experiment” that contains the soul of a young woman who yearns to be with her brother (in a “way more than friends” fashion… yeah).

Saber - From the Fate/stay night visual novel, Saber is the personification of Arturia Pendragon (or, as he is more commonly known, King Arthur) and was created to aid participants in a to-the-death tournament called the Fifth Holy Grail War.

Muramasa - From the Full Metal Daemon: Muramasa visual novel, Muramasa is the human form of a tsurugi (a living soul forged into a set of armour). Also a demon?

Super Sonico - Nitro+’s mascot and lead singer/guitarist of the fictional band First Astronomical Velocity. Originally appeared in the arcade version of this game, but was made into a fully playable fighter for the console releases.

Saya - From the Saya no Uta visual novel, Saya is a being from another dimension who materialized in this universe for the sole purpose of reproduction. While she looks like an innocent young girl, in actuality, she is some sort of amorphous fleshy abomination that emits a putrid stench and produces slime, and eatanything from cats to human beings.

Heart - From the Arcana Heart games, Heart is the first DLC fighter in the game.

Homura - From the Senran Kagura series, Homura is the last DLC character.

In addition to the game’s roster of playable fighters, there are twenty different “assist” characters to choose from.

With representatives ranging from games/anime/manga such as Psycho-Pass, Guilty Crown: Lost Christmas and Phenomeno to Expelled From Paradise, School-Live! and Gargantia On The Verdurous Planet, each of these characters act in the same way as the striker system in The King Of Fighters ‘99. A player can choose two assists, and during a match, can briefly tag one of these assists into battle to do extra damage or change up specific stats.

The game handily makes things easier for players in this decision making process by informing you which duo of assist characters have an effective synergy with your chosen main fighter. With how likely it is that players will not be very familiar with most of (if not all of) these extra support faces, this is incredibly helpful.

Therein lies one of the biggest issues of Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel-, and it’s a problem that it seemingly shares with a great deal of anime as a whole; it’s full of fanservice, but actively alienates and overwhelms anyone who might be newcomers.

All of the character descriptions above were the result of me having spend hours delving into the story of each individual game for the purposes of the review, as this game doesn’t give you any information whatsoever. Throughout the dialogue of the story, each character makes references to their respective game, which is fine if you’re a diehard fan of any of these titles, but is absolutely bewildering for anyone who is out of the loop, and makes it tough to connect with any of the fighters outside of a technical level.

Look, I’m really not asking for my hand to be held through this, I just don’t think that it is too much to ask to include some basic information to go along with each fighter.

At least put the original game titles for each fighter in somewhere!.

Graphics

Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- follows the tradition of many 2D anime-style fighters such as Blazblue, Under Night In-Birth and Arcana Heart, showcasing some very stylish fighting action.

All of the character sprites in the game are nicely animated, especially during assist moments mid-match and whenever someone lands a particularly devastating finishing move.

The visual flairs that pop up on screen during some of the “Lethal Blaze” attacks are amazing to watch, especially characters such as Ein, who leaps offscreen only to reappear in the distance with a sniper rifle, allowing players to quickly aim the gun at a foe.

At no point do the visuals in Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- set the bar for the genre, but it’s still a great game to look at.

Stages

The variety of stages in Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- is quite a mixed bag quality-wise.

When the stages look good, they’re great. The skyscraper-laden view from the rooftop stage is a highlight, as is the viscera covered grounds of the city (which feels appropriately Lovecraftian, when you learn about why it’s happening in “Another Story”).

The problem is that every stage feels very boring, even the ones that look nice. Everything feels so empty and lifeless, and directly clashes with the fast-paced action of the fights.

Every stage feels like a training stage, and is one of the more disappointing aspects of the game.

Replayability

Outside of the game’s standard story modes and score attack, there’s not really that much to do in Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel-.

In a similar way to games like Blade Strangers (read our review of the game here!), there’s not much of an incentive to carry on playing the game once you’ve gained the character art from the end of each character playthrough in story mode.

Even then, the gallery is lacking somewhat, showcasing art you’ll have already seen by the time you’ve unlocked it.

Training mode is as barebones as you could possibly get, offering nothing other than the ability to reset your position onscreen and a command list.

Online play is tricky too, as (at the time of writing) there was next to nobody to fight against, so it renders the option rather useless.

Final thoughts & overall score

Nitroplus Blasterz: Heroines Infinite Duel- is a solid and interesting crossover fighting experience that effectively offers an impressive fighter roster, fun to watch assist characters and easy to learn gameplay mechanics.

It’s a shame that the game doesn’t have the same depth as its peers, with two borderline nonsensical storylines, a range of disappointingly boring stage designs and a total unwillingness to offer any character context to players that aren’t familiar with the source material.

Do you agree with our review of Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines infinite duel-?

Let us know in the comments section below!