lucky star

So I'm 3.5 eps. into Lucky Star and it's pretty good. Apparently a lot of people think it's the funniest anime ever, but so far I have to disagree. I can't believe just how much like Konata I am. Here's a brief rundown of some of the reasons why:

(1) Procrastination: (a) not studying until the very last minute; (b) cleaning when it's time to study; (c) taking a "break" from studying to watch anime/read manga/play games that lasts all day; (d) staying up late while taking a break and planning to get up early to finish, but sleeping late anyway.

This is me right now!

(2) General otaku characteristics: (a) (i) manga, (ii) anime, and (iii) games; (b) collecting related merchandise (like TCGs, but not playing them)

(3) Being late to or skipping class b/c of (2)(a)

(4) Being the most otaku-ish person I know


(5) Anime/Manga convention attendance (although I've only been to Anime Expo)

So, since I can relate at least to Konata so well, I like the anime so far.

minami-ke +

Well, I had forgotten just how shitting writing could be until I finished a paper that was due today. School blows. Finals are now only ~2.5wks away and I have yet to begin studying. fuck it, i'm too lazy to care.


Minami-ke is pretty funny, 5 eps. in, so I'll keep watching it. hmmm.... what else is there to say? damn. ah well, fuck it. just watch it, このヤロウー！！！　（＾.＾） (how you like the face? pretty nice, eh?)

Welcome to the NHK

Ahh, to be a hikikomori. True, I'm fairly reclusive myself, but damn... And I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to shunning my classmates and holing myself up in my boarding house room for that month I'll spend in Tokyo this summer. (I really hope I too have a talking refrigerator!)

But seriously, if you haven't seen the anime or read the manga, go to the onemanga or whatever link over on the right side of this page and DO IT MOTHERFUCKER!!!!!!!!

Now that you've read the manga, it's now time to DOWNLOAD THE ANIME MOTHERFUCKER!@!@@@!!!!!!

Alrighty then, now that you've finished, do I even need to write this? What the hell right? It's only 9pm and I still have like a ton of hw to do b/f tomorrow, so it's a great time to be doing this!

To start w/, the story's about a college dropout who's w/drawn from society and lives off of money sent to him by his parents. He has various adventures, including attempting to create and ero[tic] (or hentai) game, suffering abuse from an 18yr old high school dropout, and trying, unsuccessfully, to hook up w/ his high school senpai who pops pillz like dey waz candy ya hurd. (sorry, my ghetto slipped out.) anyway, it's probably the GODDAMN FUNNIEST MOTHERFUCKING anime/manga EVERRRR!!!!!! I mean, imagine power thirst, but funny . There ya go, biznitch.

So, anyway there might be some spoilers, so don't read any more if you don't want to. The ending in the anime was a hell of a lot better. This is my primary complaint. It seems like the mangaka just didn't have time to bring the series to a proper conclusion. I mean, in the anime, Satou was on the verge of starvation and was forced to finally get out of his apt. and get a job after Yamazaki left. The anime ended w/ Yamazaki back in Hokaido running the family farm and married and Satou working lame jobs and tutoring Misaki, who was back in high school. In the manga, on the other hand, it just ends w/ Satou saying how he and Misaki lived in the apartment for 2 weeks after Yamazaki left, how he tried to like Misaki, and how relationships just fall apart in time. Maybe I'm just a romantic (I am) who just prefers happy endings (I do). So the way the manga ended just sucked for me (like a $10 hooker...（・＿・） ... just kidding).

Anyway, the manga was better b/c it went a little farther w/ the humor. For example:

BUSTED!!!!

I'm still laughing at this part. I mean, it's totally fucking hilarious. I won't ruin the rest of this scene (cause I know of the 0 people that read this, 0 have read the manga).

Conclusion

So, anyway, the overall story is great b/c a lot of people (losers like me) can relate to Satou and adhere to much of the philosophy caricatured in NHK. That's what it all comes down to - a decent point of view that is portrayed in a most hilarious and entertaining fashion. That's why you should watch or read NHK ni Youkoso (aka NHK ni Yokoso, or Welcome to the NHK).

hmm...

No posts for months, eh? Ah well, wtf - it's not like anyone's reading this anyway. So to catch nobody up on what I've been doing since watching Tenjou Tenge, here's a list:

• watched a shitload of anime
• Black Lagoon (pretty damn good)
• Boys Be (lame, but tolerable)
• Code Geass (this anime is the 5H122L3)
• ef - a tale of memories (~5 eps. so far, and ok)
  
• Ergo Proxy (very damn good)
• Gedo Senki (good, but not as good as it should be coming from Ghibli)
• Great Teacher Onizuka (aka GTO - pretty funny, but annoying at the same time)
• Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora : looking up at the half-moon (i really liked this)
  
• Hana Yori Dango (aka Boys Over Flowers - i thought it was good for a while, but the animation blows and the story gets incredibly annoying so i haven't finished the series - at about ep. 34
  
• Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsu na Koto: Someday's Dreamers (this was ok)
• Murder Princess (pretty good, especially considering that it doesn't seem to be very popular)
• RahXephon (this was quite good; the storyline was much deeper than i expected, but it's unnecessarily convoluted at times)
• Yume de Aetara (the series totally blows, but the OVA is much better)
• Zombie Loan (what was that, Jonathan Davis? Oh, "FUCK ALL THAT BULLSHIT!!")
  
• read some manga
• keeping up w/ Berserk, but Miura's incredibly slow - not that i'm really complaining
• also keeping up w/ Naruto, but only b/c i get bored in class on Mondays
• Welcome to the NHK! (i'm going to have to post separately about this - it's the first time i've ever thought that the anime was better than the manga)
  
• worked on a paper for school (but only a little - it's due Friday, so it's crunch time)
  
• avoided doing my homework
• decided to spend a month studying law in Tokyo this summer
• had 14 interviews w/ law firms and got 1 offer for a summer job
• i was starting to feel like Godai (Maison Ikkoku) there for a while - it took like 6 wks after the interview to get an offer

So you can see I've been pretty busy.

But wait, I know you're dying to ask "wtf's changed so that you've suddenly decided to grace the internet w/ more of your pointless babbling?" Well, it's b/c I have that damn paper due in 5 days and finals start in 3 wks. Instead of doing what I should be doing, I'm avoiding it. Procrastination is what I'm best at, after all. (i wonder if those losers interviewing me could tell...)

I haven't been keeping up w/ Bleach (anime) since the fillers. It was just too disappointing.

I also finished Tales of the Abyss - that game is FUKC1N6BA|)@$$ (maybe not, but it's pretty damn good).

So, i'll prolly post moar sooner rather than later yo.

Tenjou Tenge blows

I just finished Tenjou Tenge, and man does it suck. Several reasons for this:

1. Nagi's name may as well be Super Saiyan Goku (spiky blond hair + transformation + dragon nature)
   
2. There is no real ending (I mean how the hell can the series end b/f the fight they talked about for the last 4 eps. not even happen? I realize the manga is ongoing, but I don't give a shit about reading it after seeing the lame-ass anime.)
3. Aya looks like a deformed frog
4. It doesn't even show the conclusion of the fight b/t Aya and Maya (and this is a fight that takes place and apparently ends in ep. 24/26)
5. it doesn't adequately explain anything (example: the sword apparently was a way for Shin to control his power, but at the same time it causes him to slaughter everyone around)

The list isn't exhaustive by any means, but I was seriously disappointed. I suppose that means I expected something. I guess I did after seeing Nagi vomit through his nose after Masataka kicked his ass like a little bitch, so I at least expected the fighting to be tolerable. It was for the first 2 eps., but then it got completely lame.

There were a few funny parts, but no need to watch the series - the pics here show them.

btw, Seagate finally got me a replacement drive - 750GB for the 500GB I returned. Not bad.

Lack of updates + Fable

Well, there would be more updates, but my 500GB drive w/ most of my anime died, so I'm waiting for a replacement.

I have, however, been playing Fable: The Lost Chapters and it is quite good. I made my character something like Ishida in Bleach. 3 reasons for the comparison: (1) there's an equivalent of the "shunpo" (flash step) that allows you to traverse a distance to end up behind the targeted opponent; (2) you can enchant your arrows, kinda like w/ "reiatsu" (spirit energy); and (3) just that you can be an archer, I guess (ok, so the last reason's pretty lame).

=

darker than black #5

Darker than Black continues to impress. There are some pretty gruesome parts in this ep., like when November 11 frostbites that one guy's head. The only way it could've been better would be if he'd blown the frozen head off w/ a shotgun (ala Doom 3). Aside from that, there's not much fighting; this ep.'s focus is mainly on plot development. I am curious to learn more about Hei's little sister, Bai, and his role as the "black shinigami." I didn't realize until just now that the kanji for "Hei" is the kanji for "black" (黒 - it's one of the few that I know).

btw, has anyone else noticed a similarity b/t Darker than Black and the James Bond movies? Watch the intros. I can't help but notice how it seems the female silhouettes in DTB were just like they were pulled out of a Bond intro. (If I had a better Bond DVD for comparison, I would've used it, but my collection is lacking in 007.) This goes w/o mentioning the MI6 agents in this ep.



=

Maybe, since Hei kidnapped Havoc, he'll go all Sayid on her to get info about Bai (although I doubt that's necessary, or would even be productive since Havoc apparently did not contest being crammed in a suitcase). Hopefully we'll get to learn more about Heaven's Gate through their encounter.

Bokurano ep. 3

While I thought that Bokurano was going to be really good, considering the ending of ep. 2, ep. 3 ruined it for me. After the first ep., I could already see where this series was going. Ep. 2 through me for a loop; either (a) the pilots did not have to die after piloting, or (b) they died in creative ways brought about by their friends. (b) would have been great b/c then the future pilots would have to match their willpower w/ fate and see which triumphed. Unfortunately, the option taken by the series is comparatively boring.

All is not lost b/c of the predictability. I'm still curious to see how some of the characters will deal w/ the collateral damage incurred when they engage enemies. It seems to me that the characters are still far too detached from the casualties for which they are responsible. Maybe (hopefully) this will change in the next ep., considering they just went to a funeral.


It will also be fun to see how the children react when they discover that they are all doomed.

Quality of OP/ED ∝ Quality of Series?

Here's my theory: the quality of the OP/ED of a series is inversely proportional to the quality of the series. Some examples of really good anime w/ terrible OP/ED:

• Maison Ikkoku w/ "Sukisa" OP
• This is quite possibly one of the worst songs ever recorded (and that includes those of Thor in Rock 'n Roll Nightmare).
• Berserk w/ "Tell Me Why" OP
• wtf is up w/ this lame-ass (yes, that IS hyphenated) song? Seriously. I'm all for using English in songs if you can make it understandable, but this guy sounds like a drunk hobo.
• Speed Grapher w/ Duran Duran's "Girls on Film" OP
  
• Duran Duran blows. Do I need to say anything else?

Of course, I know my "theory" is merely a debunked hypothesis. Some of the best series out there have some of the best OP/ED. Examples of good anime w/ good music include:

• 12 Kingdoms w/ "Junigenmukyoku" OP
  
• Best OP ever. Tsuneo Kobayashi did a great job picking this song.
• Bleach w/ "D-TecnoLife" OP (UVERworld is pretty damn good), "Thank You!!" ED (HOME MADE 家族), and "*~Asterisk~" OP (Orange Range)
• I have yet to be seriously disappointed w/ the music used in this series.
• Paranoia Agent w/ all the music by Susumu Hirasawa
• Hirasawa also did "Forces" and the OST for Berserk, except the OP/ED. Not only can this guy write music, but he also has a social conscience.
  

Darker than Black #4

I just finished Darker than Black, ep. 4 and it was, as were the first 3 eps, tight. I really thought that ep. 3 would be the end of that last little story (was I alone in this?). Luckily, however, that was not the case and things just became considerably more interesting. We learn more about the contractors and see Mai distraught over what she has become and what she is capable of. We also learn what the deal was w/ the seed in her wrist.


There are also a couple of short, but nicely animated and executed fight scenes w/ plenty of gore. More gore -> more enjoyment.

The only thing that I thought was kinda lame was Mai's power. Straight out of a Stephen King book. How about coming up w/ something more original next time?

Since I haven't commented on it b/f, the OP is decent. It sounds like a Japanese take on southern metal. Also, the ED is done by Rie Fu (who also performed the "Life is Like a Boat" ED for Bleach).

Ranma 1/2

I finished reading the Ranma 1/2 manga about a month ago, and it was a hell of a lot better than the anime. The anime was rather sub-par to begin with, regardless of the fact that it is rather old. The pacing of the anime was just terrible. The animators would draw out everything as long as possible, making the anime fall prey to the DBZ syndrome (no action in entire episodes).

While manga can tend to be rather confusing because the mangakas are trying to cram as much as possible into each episode, Rumiko Takahashi's skill as a master of her art shines through in the Ranma 1/2 manga. The pacing is absolutely perfect. Additionally, Ranma and Akane's feelings for each other really show themselves in the manga, whereas one is left to guesswork with the anime. The Ranma 1/2 manga offers a perfect example of why manga typically surpasses anime in terms of the conveyance of emotions. Furthermore, as the anime ends before the manga's conclusion, anyone who wants to get the full story simply must read the manga.

mahoromatic review

So I just finished Mahoromatic a few days ago and have given some thought as to where this anime should fit. It's a rather typical moe romance involving a rather young boy and a robot (quite similar to Chobits). While I did enjoy the majority of the series, the ending was just fucking weird. Anyone who's seen it will know what I'm talking about. I was rather displeased with the totally random and ambiguous final episode. I would rather have a simple and depressing ending than some BS ending like that. What the hell were they thinking. Whatever. I can't even recommend Mahoromatic, despite the first 25? eps. because of the random ending. If someone's just getting into anime, that will only turn them off.

claymore (first 3 eps.)

So I was watching Claymore and expecting it to be rather lame. This, luckily, was not the case. While weaker than Bleach, Claymore is far better than the vast majority of anime I have seen over the past year (and that's quite a bit). While it may be a shounen anime and has a typical tragic childhood/orphan protagonist, it is a hell of a lot better than Naruto - Shippuden Chronicles now.


Naruto - Shippuden simply lacks the proper pacing and seems to be falling prey to the DBZ syndrome (where an entire episode is devoted to taunts and no action). At least into the 2nd ep. of Claymore, there is plenty of action and there are no pointless delays (which would presumably be present to give the mangaka a chance to stay ahead of the manga). What's more, the OP and ED of Claymore are decent. While the OP is far from great, there is a pretty tight riff at the beginning. Compare to Naruto, where the OP and ED are complete garbage.

anime > hollywood

Generally, anime surpasses Hollywood. This is so for several reasons. Primarily, anime typically lacks the dichotomy of good and evil. What I mean by this is that the stories driving anime usually manage to provide for some reconciliation between (or entirely lack) the 'good' and 'evil' characters. While there are rarely any 'evil' characters in serious anime (virtually anything other than shounen anime), they frequently exist in Hollywood. For example, consider Princess Mononoke and any Disney movie or The Lord of the Rings. While I do enjoy both Disney movies and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, they simply fail to provide any depth whatsoever to the 'bad' characters (any Disney villain or Sauron). Compare to Princess Mononoke where either the humans, led by Eboshi, or the wolves, characterized by Mononoke, could be considered the antagonist. In Mononoke, Ashitaka (the protagonist) allies with both of the possible antagonists. This alone signifies a complexity absent in the vast majority of Hollywood films.

The dichotomy present in typical Hollywood films is unrealistic and merely impresses upon people a false distinction among people generally. While I realize it is a cliché, there simply is no such thing as a good or evil person. Everyone has 'good' and 'bad' qualities and characteristics. Everyone must have some redeeming quality, regardless of the atrocities they have committed in the past.

That this false dichotomy is impressed upon people is a tragic reality of current societies. It is, I believe, responsible for the deaths of countless people. People who oversimplify and are able to categorize others into the groups of 'good' and 'evil' are responsible for the deaths of innumerable people and entire populations. I believe that, in some minimal yet significant way, anime can help society as a whole overcome such dangerous categorizations and perhaps bring about the dawn of a new and more tolerant society.