Krelian's Blog - MyAnimeList.net

On the road again

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 23:32:11 -0700

Not really, but I've been staying with my aunt and her partner for the past week or so. I didn't bring any anime, so I've been reading quite a bit of manga. I figured I'd yap a bit about what I've read, as usual. 1/2 Prince: I really didn't think I'd get into this one. Granted, all the MMORPG terminology and such still drags it down a bit, but the characters and the comedy all have more oomph than I was expecting. I'm looking forward to finding out what happens next. Girls Saurus: Finally, a proper demonstration of how scary women can be. =P I wasn't sure about it at first, but I finally got around to reading it and then catching up on the sequel, and I'm thoroughly entertained. Get You: Meh, I couldn't really get into this one - not the characters or the art style or anything. Ahh, well. Forbidden Wedding: Far too short to really amount to anything interesting or develop much personality. Dekiai Paradise: As with the entry above, far too short. It tries to build in a bit more drama and such, but isn't long enough to make a convincing go of it. Ren-ai Shijo Shugi: Definitely not high-brow entertainment, that's for sure. But it's at least long enough that it might be able to show some character. I've got my fingers crossed, anyway. Otomari Honey: Pretty typical ecchi comedy with an unbelievable situation and fairly flat characters, but it's keeping me somewhat entertained so far. Oni-Gokko: Not sure what to make of this one so far - it's a little hard to follow, but seems like it might end up being pretty good. Osaerarenai: I thought the art was pretty good in this one, and the premise rather entertaining. It's one of the few short manga I've read lately that doesn't feel horribly rushed. Moriguchi Orito no Teiougaku: Just as I was getting into this one, it ended. But what's worse, the ending really didn't make any sense. Quite disappointing, really. Alice no 100cc: Far too weird for me. That's all I have to say about that. Iinari Aibration: Much like the above, but with the weirdness toned down just enough that I can't decide whether or not to keep reading. Aki-Sora: Mmm, smut. To call its plot and characters weird would be quite an understatement - the manga seems to be an effort to include every odd fetish that jumps into the author's mind. In only six chapters the main character has hooked up with his older sister, been dragged off to a partner-swapping orgy by an exhibitionist neighbor, and his twin sister keeps trying far too hard to set him up with her best friend (who she'd rather get together with herself). And on top of it all, the siblings' mother isn't actually their mother, but her twin who stepped in to take care of them after the real mother died. It's boggling my mind, but my interest is piqued as well. Koe de Oshigoto: I really like this one - it's quite funny and somewhat cute, but far from innocent... it's about a girl who's pressured into being an eroge seiyuu by her big sister who develops them, and the surprising talent for getting herself off on pure imagination that she discovers. Otogi no Machi no Rena: It's like a sexed up version of Umisho - I'm quite fond of the art style, as I expected, and though the plot is a little weird I'm enjoying it as well. Not to mention the fanservice. Umisho: After reading the above, I figured I'd take a shot at Umisho as well. I watched the anime, but I was hoping there'd be a little more in the manga. I'm about halfway through though, and so far no dice. Gekkoh: I'm still pretty confused about where the plot is going, but I like this one. The Yakuza angle seems to lend it plenty of action and excitement to go with the awkward relationship drama. Koibana Onsen: Not really much to say here... it's a touch cute and kinda funny, but mostly just fluff and not a whole lot of personality. Still, I'm entertained. Sister Trap: Unlike the above, this is all fluff. I mean, seriously, what kind of siblings would go that far to seduce their sister's boyfriends just to keep them around? XBlade: I'm having a hard time deciding what this reminds me of, but I like it. The art is quite detailed too. Odd sometimes, but very nice at others. I guess it reminds me a bit of Air Gear in that regard. Crimson Grave: Kinda hokey and lame - I don't really mind the premise, but it's short on style and flair so I gave up. Kayou Gogo Kuji: I really don't know what to say about this one. It's just weird. What's there is well made and somewhat interesting, but it doesn't continue far enough to develop much personality or even make a whole lot of sense. Tsukumo Happy Soul: This was an odd manga, and far too short, but for some reason it reminded me a bit of Soul Eater in the way it was drawn and such. I enjoyed it, but I wish there was more. B Reaction: The premise reminds me a touch of UxU, but replacing all the depth of character with a bit of martial arts rivalry. Decent, but that's about it. Hen: I'm surprised I finished this one... I still haven't quite figured out why I kept reading. It has all sorts of weird characters in an unbelievable tangle of relationships, and their circumstances are generally unexplained. What's more, it can be somewhat hard to follow and the pacing isn't any better. Still, it kept me reading to the end and that has to mean something, right?

On Negima

Sun, 05 Jul 2009 11:40:57 -0700

When I watched the first Negima anime, I can't say I was blown away. I was much more impressed by the SHAFT follow-up with its goofy sense of humor and stylish animation (I love most all the comedies they animate). But I could never have guessed that both series are pretty poor adaptations of the manga - the former being to short to get to the really good stuff and the latter not drawing much more than its characters and setting from the source material. Anyway, yeah, I absolutely love the manga, and ran rather short on sleep while reading it. Now it's up there near the top of my list of manga I'd like to see a proper and full adaptation of, accompanying Berserk and Fairy Tail and the like. Outside of Negima, I've also been reading a fair bit of other manga: Shina Dark: The anime's entry on this site caught my eye, but when I realized it was just for a music video I figured I'd check out the manga instead. It's nothing special, but pretty entertaining. Omamori Himari: This is a fairly typical fluff series - ecchi/harem comedy with a side of supernatural action and a touch of serious drama. The formula is pretty overdone, but it's enjoyable still and the heroine has more personality than most. Oniichan Control and Oniichan no Koto Nanka Zenzen Suki ja Nai n da kara ne: Both of these are pretty similar, and I like them both about the same. Still feels kinda wrong to laugh at some of the jokes though. Nana to Kaoru: I was pretty surprised by this one - a romantic comedy centering around softcore S&M sounds like the perfect opportunity for relying on nothing but fanservice, but the characters are surprisingly developed and interesting and the humor is great too. What's more, it's damn sexy without trying too hard or going overboard in that department. I love it... though I'm a touch worried to find out what that says about me. Tsubasa Chronicle and xxxHOLiC: I caught up on Tsubasa Chronicle and was reminded of why I love the series so much, so I figured I'd watch the new xxxHOLiC OVA and start into the manga in order to delve further into how the two stories connect (though xxxHOLiC is certainly awesome on its own as well). Not sure if I want to read through what I've already seen in the animes though, so I'm pondering skipping ahead. Sundome: I'm really not sure what to make of this manga - it's just plain weird. And yet it manages to keep my attention and has me wondering just what's going on in its characters' minds. And that's always a good thing, ne? Inumimi: Just as I expected - it was short, comedy fanservice fluff. There isn't much to really set it apart from the pack, but I enjoyed it. Marugoto Anjyu Gakuen: This pretty well reminds me of Rosario+Vampire, but not as obnoxious. The basic premise is about exactly the same, and there isn't much that makes it memorable, but it's short enough that it doesn't wear out its welcome, so to speak. I really didn't care for the "ending" though. M to N no Shouzou: I was expecting this to be pretty interesting, but the writing was just bad and the characters didn't have the personality and charm I thought they would. I ended up stopping after a volume or so. Kagetora: It seems kinda typical and a bit old in style, but I'm crossing my fingers and hoping it gets more interesting. Dengeki Daisy: I've only read nine chapters so far, but I'm completely hooked. The story is getting interesting, and the characters are great - the heroine won me over with personality where that role in many manga and anime is often filled with overstated sex appeal. And the disparity between the mystery friend "Daisy" and the everyday persona he dons to hide his true feelings and such makes for entertaining drama and comedy both. I can't wait for more. Beast Master: As with Dengeki Daisy, this one features an unusual male lead and a heroine whose charming point is her great personality. I can't say it's as engrossing as the other so far, but it's still a good read. Koukou Debut: Yet another romantic comedy with great and unusual leading characters. So far it doesn't feel cliche in the least and I'm quite enjoying it. I'm surprised to see them already forging a relationship so soon into the series though - it makes me wonder what's in store for the future since it's so rare to see the main characters in a romantic comedy get together so early on. Kimi wa Girlfriend: An amusing short about two people whose odd personalities make them lonely and easily misunderstood. It's an interesting look at insecurity and carries a strong theme of accepting people despite their quirks. I've also watched a bit of anime too. Inukami: This was a hit - it was hilarious and enjoyable and had a decent plot to boot. It's so rare to find a show of this sort where the females aren't the ones who always end up exposing themselves, and that really sets it apart - the heroine in particular has a penchant for transporting her gutter-minded counterpart into public places sans clothing when he gets under her skin. Tales of Phantasia: I would've liked to see a lot more detail, but unlike Tales of Symphonia this installment at least felt complete. I definitely enjoyed it... I just wish they'd take their time when making these series. Tonagura: After the first episode, I have to say it isn't as exciting or different as I was hoping for. It's at least good enough to keep watching for a while, but I don't know how long that''ll last. Seto no Hanayome OVA: As usual, I laughed my ass off. Still can't get the bits about ol' "Bunta Willis" out of my head. Good times, good times. Pani Poni Dash OVA: My memory of the original is rusty, but definitely positive, and it was nice to see an OVA that does a decent job living up to my expectations for quality and such. Ah! My Goddess: Tatakau Tsubasa: I meant to watch this earlier, but I just found some fansub. It's definitely a good addition to the series. Mai-Otome Zero: I'd forgotten a fair bit about the prior installments in the series, so it took a while to figure out just how people were connected and such, but once I did I really enjoyed it. Even moreso than the other OVA they made.

...

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 11:19:03 -0700

Not much to report, as usual. I've been cooking quite a bit lately, which is fun, and my 360 died the other day, but there isn't much news beyond the usual family stuff. I have been watching some anime though, so I figured I'd write a bit about that. K-ON: Not as hilarious or as emotional as most of what I've seen from KyoAni, but it was certainly fun to watch. The biggest disappointment for me was not seeing the awesome ending theme show up anywhere in the series. Valkyria Chronicles: I'm caught up through episode 12 now, and pretty disappointed. It seems to be vaguely following the original's plot and characters, but while it makes for a decent anime it's pretty poor as an adaptation of the excellent game. There's a lot less tension, personality and style all around... which is pretty much what I expected when I first saw the artistic style they went with. Ahh, well... Naruto: After catching up on the manga, I figured I'd give Shippuuden another chance. It's still pretty dull and mediocre, but at least not as painful to watch as before, so I'll give it a while. Shikabane Hime: I finished both series, and was fairly happy with them on the whole. It's a somewhat hokey premise and not particularly impressive or well written, but decent enough all the same. Hetalia: Still not sure what to think of this one. Sometimes it's absolutely hilarious, while other times it's just nonsensical or lame. But the episodes are short, so it's easy enough to press on with even when the episodes fall short sometimes. Yakitate Japan: Another fairly bipolar show... the parts about baking are awesome and I love the creativity that various characters show in their creations, but the lame, overlong "reactions" to how great food is (when a judge eats something, they go into some long series of odd behavior or hallucination centered around some sort of pun) really drag the show down. The only ones that were even remotely worth watching were parodies of other things I enjoy, like One Piece or even Lord of the Rings. Still, it inspired me to do more baking and that's certainly a plus. Clannad - After Story: I stopped kinda in the middle of this one, and just finished the other day. I absolutely loved it too, but that's no surprise. I was pretty impressed though by how they left the familiar school romance/drama setting behind and developed the characters further into their adult lives though. It wasn't as funny as the original, but it certainly had emotional impact. Guin Saga: I'm still quite taken with this show - it reminds me in a few ways of Terra e... which is always a plus, and it pulls off the high fantasy setting quite well without coming off as hokey or lame. I just wish fansubs came along more quickly. World Destruction: Not a whole lot to say here - the show is decent enough to keep watching, but that's about it. Most RPG adaptations seem rushed and lose most all their depth in the process, and that's certainly the way of it here. Chrome Shelled Regios: Honestly I'm not really sure why I watched this all the way through. There isn't much about it that I like - maybe a character or two, but that's it. And the ending is horrid to boot. I kept hoping it'd turn out to be moderately good, but instead it ends without tying up any of the myriad loose ends. D.gray-man: I was catching up on the manga, but it looks like it's going on hiatus or something. I'll be pretty disappointed if it does, as I quite like the series. Tower of Druaga: From the first episode, I wasn't expecting much from this series. But its depth and focus on serious character and plot development really surprised me. The second season went even further with those aspects, and turned out to be quite good. In fact, I'd love it if they made a game out of the anime (though that might be odd since it uses a game for its backstory already) Orphen: I watched a few episodes, but couldn't really find anything I liked enough to keep me going. Tsubasa Chronicle: Just caught the first episode of the latest OVA, and as usual it has me quite excited and a bit irritated about having to wait for more. Hopefully the next installment and what's to follow come swiftly. Record of Lodoss War: I watched the TV series, and it did quite a good job reminding me of why I enjoyed the original. It may be old, and a touch hokey at times, but I guess I'm just a sucker for epic fantasy with strong character development. The Law of Ueki: Just started watching this one again with my brother, and he seems to be enjoying it. After that I think it's on to Juuousei. Tales of Symphonia: This was a huge disappointment - and still fairly decent. I'm just pissed off that it only covers a portion of the story and doesn't even do a decent job of that in its meagre 4 episodes. It ought to have at least a full season and a decent ending after all the great things I've heard about the game. And not having a way to play it (no PS2 release in the US) makes things that much more irritating.

An update

Sat, 11 Apr 2009 08:35:33 -0700

Surprisingly enough, I'm still not dead. Not really spending any time around the internet these days, but I have been watching some anime. Figured I'd throw in some comments there and a brief state of the union address. Things are okay here, I guess. I've been doing some part-time web design work for a local music shop here in town - plenty of fun but it doesn't cover all of the bills so it's about the equivalent of plugging a soon-to-collapse dam with your finger. I've actually been pondering the military as a potential career option if I don't manage to find a job soon, but I can't really make up my mind. It's either that or sell my car, find more work and try to put myself through the last bit of college part-time. Anyway, on to more important things... I've actually been watching a fair bit of anime lately. At the moment I'm trying to finish up Soul Eater and maybe plow through Tytania. I just finished Negima, which was less hilarious than I remembered it being. I guess my expectations have risen a bit in the two years it's taken me to finally gather all the episodes. I've also finished up Ani-Kuri 15 (some of the shorts were awesome, others kinda lame, so they balance each other out), Kara no Kyoukai 5 (excellent as usual), To Aru Majutsu no Index and Gundam 00 S2 (both great stuff), Penguin Musume Heart and the Sekirei OVA (dull), Persona (a touch better), Asu no Yoichi (run-of-the-mill but fairly amusing), Kuroshitsuji (reasonably good minus a few lame episodes.... goddamn curry zombies), Maria+Holic (hilarious... gotta love random SHAFT comedies), Toradora (excellent) and Michiko to Hatchin (good, but not as engrossing as I was hoping for towards the end). Oh, and I rewatched Baccano and the first season of Black Lagoon with my brother... good times there. I was also attempting to get a little further in Ikkitousen, but I lost interest again pretty quickly. I've also been trying out some new stuff. Many of the shows were pretty lame, or boring at the very least: Akikan, Infinite Space, QUIZ Magic Academy, Hakushaku to Yousei, Kemeko DX, Komugi-chan, Zettai Shougeki, Okusama wa Joshikousei, BALDR Force EXE, Kurokami (like Shakugan no Shana with all the excitement and character sucked out), Dragon Ball Kai (every bit as lame as the original), Charady no Joke na Mainichi, Nyoro-n Churuya-san, Pandora Hearts (might give the manga a shot), Queen's Blade (no... just no), Z Mazinger and Slap-up Party (people actually watch this stuff?!) and Marie & Gali. There were some nice surprises though, like Guin Saga (seems promising if the source material gets the time and money it deserves - I haven't read any but I've heard good things), Shangri-La, Sengoku Basara (ridiculous and over-the-top, but fun. And it features lots of awesome voice actors), Mouryou no Hako (wish I could find subs for the whole thing) and Casshern Sins. And other nice not-so-surprises, like Valkyria Chronicles (I'm actually playing the game again), the new FMA, season two of Hayate and K-ON. Unfortunately Natsu no Arashi has yet to measure up to the standard set by other SHAFT comedies like Zetsubou Sensei, Maria+Holic and Pani Poni Dash. There are also a fair few others that seemed at least worth giving a shot: Chaos Head, Chocotto Sister, Black Heaven, FLAG, Overman King Gainer, Zegapain, Princess Princess, Orochuban Ebichu, Viper's Creed, Hetalia, Kemono to Souja Erin, Tears to Tiara and Chrome Shelled Regios (I'm mysteriously motivated to keep up with that one, even though it's a stellar example of the phrase "nothing special") Anyway, I guess that's it for now. I'll be around, probably. In the mean time, I need to do some grocery shopping, update my iPod, do the laundry... find a job =/

Or Not

Sun, 25 Jan 2009 22:48:59 -0800

My last blog entry seems rather ironic seeing as I titled it "Breathing Easy" and haven't been able to do so since. I thought it was just the dust, but perhaps thanks to that, the weather, and stress from all the recent drama I've been sick ever since. Mostly what seems to be bronchitis, with some horrid headaches, now down to just a bit of congestion. Good times, good times. I haven't been doing much of anything but sitting on the couch and/or trying in vain to sleep, finding myself too exhausted to even bother opening my laptop to check the email and such for most of last week. I finally started feeling better, so my brother and I took a trip down to visit some family and had a great time there. Just got back in town last night, actually, and spent most of today lazing and playing video games, watching a little South Park and catching up on some anime. Haven't been doing a great deal of that with my brother around though, as many shows he isn't interested in and most of the others I'm watching he hasn't seen before... instead we've just been playing through Xenogears together. Good times, that. Oh! We fixed a supposedly Chicago-style deep dish pizza. I've never had the real thing and have no idea how close we came, but it was pretty good. Nothing exciting like the others we tried recently, and it could use quite a bit of improving, but worth eating and perhaps even trying again. I've been getting my brother's help in the kitchen quite often lately, hopefully teaching him a few things in the process. He used to hate cooking, but ever since he learned how to steam vegetables and add a bit of flavor to scrambled eggs (he calls this making an omelet, which I suppose i'll have to correct him on eventually) he's been enjoying it quite a bit. Maybe even as much as I have. Anyway, I was ready to fall asleep 2 hours ago, so I guess I'll stop rambling and get to it. Adieu =P

Breathing Easy

Wed, 14 Jan 2009 23:43:52 -0800

My lungs were bad enough back when I was a kid and I missed a week of school every year thanks to bronchitis (which rendered me unable to do anything but lay on the couch and watch movies - well, Star Wars, as it was the only thing we had worth watching - and laboriously drag myself across the floor to the bathroom since I was too weak to walk anywhere). And they were even worse once I took up smoking; I break out my pipe at least once a day now. But I'm pretty sure it'll be cleaning that'll finally ruin me. My brother moved in a few days ago, and before moving his stuff in we decided to give the room he'll be in a good, thorough cleaning. I'm talking moving furniture around, the whole nine yards. I inhaled an ungodly amount of dust in the process, and my allergies are still acting up a bit. It's worth the work though - my brother is awesome, and I can't think of many people I enjoy spending time with as much. We've been having a blast playing games (Xenogears and Guitar Hero, mostly), watching Lord of the Rings, cooking, catching up on anime (Index, and I got him caught up on Bleach), and smoking ourselves retarded. Of course, it's not all fun and games - he was living with our mother and her boyfriend up to this point, and when he finally got tired of dealing with their bullshit and decided to leave, much drama ensued. She even went so far as to say that she wouldn't be speaking to him for a long time, which turned out to be about 12 hours. I don't want to dwell on the family drama though... it's ridiculous and gets me agitated if I think too much on it, and I'd rather just focus on being glad that he's around more. Not much anime or gaming news to mention besides the tidbit above - we started watching the first few episodes of Trigun, but that's about it.

Getting Biblical

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 01:32:57 -0800

My cooking is so good that it shatters stone tablets in true Old Testament fashion. Okay, so that's not entirely true. I actually only shattered a ceramic pizza stone, and it turns out that was because I didn't no how to use it properly, not because I was an amazing chef. Which kinda takes the wind out of my sails, ne? The pizza I was making was fucking delicious though. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but it was some of the best pizza I've ever had. I pulled the recipe for both pies off of a cooking show I saw over the holidays - they're both white pizzas... after the cream and mozzarella the first one had some spicy italian ham, a little onion, lemon juice and arugula. The second (and best) had pancetta, zucchini slices, and dollops of this delicious roasted garlic cream cheese. The dough was handmade too, and though it didn't go quite as well as I'd like it was still pretty damn tasty. The chef whose recipes I adapted apparently won some sort of international pizza-making competition with the latter one. The show also included some footage of him tossing dough on a NYC streetcorner - it was a pretty absurd blend of breakdancing and culinary skill, and not one I'll be attempting any time soon hehe. I did replace the pizza stone though, and we had extra ingredients, so I'm making even more tomorrow. Or, technically speaking, today. Also, I snagged the latest Bleach soundtrack (the third) and it fucking rocks. I've been waiting for this one for ages, ever since the Arrancar arc began and I heard that first flamenco-laden track. Good stuff. As entertainment goes, I watched the final episode of Kannagi. Not sure if I'm completely satisfied with the ending, but all in all it was a pretty enjoyable and funny series. Nothing all that original or spectacular, sure, but I had a good time watching anyway. I also caught the OVA from the latest season of Zero no Tsukaima which was similarly unspectacular and yet plenty entertaining in the usual ZnT fashion. I have to say, it's actually better than average as far as special episodes and one-shot OVAs go - I'm generally disappointed by how little they reflect the parts about the shows that I enjoy, but I guess this one just works since ZnT is pretty much just comedy and fanservice anyway. I also caught a few movies - Nacho Libre and Tropic Thunder. The latter being hilarious, and doubly so when Tom Cruise is on screen as the balding media mogul that is completely fucking nuts.

Master Exploder

Fri, 02 Jan 2009 19:09:10 -0800

I love Jack Black, and Tenacious D. I came across that song in Rock Band (more on that in a bit), and it reminded me that I really needed to watch their movie - The Pick of Destiny. A lot of people seem to blow them off as a spoof band, but they're entirely too awesome, in the same way that things like This is Spinal Tap and The Darkness are awesome - they aim to blend comedy and music and excel at both. I was particularly impressed by Black's vocal range, which is just absurd. So yeah, Rock Band - I shouldn't have, but after playing Guitar Hero: World Tour so much over Christmas I went out and bought that and Rock Band 2. I'm having a blast with both of them, but especially with Rock Band - it just seems to do most everything just a little bit better. And I named my band and modeled most of the characters in it after The Black Stones (aka Blast, from NANA) - that coupled with all the downloadable Chili Peppers songs sold me on it. But yeah, I'm having a great time with both actually. Not much to update on anime-wise. I've been hearing from a buddy that I really need to get around to Bokura ga Ita, but I want to finish Persona first and I've just been generally distracted by video games. And all the guitar games have me back playing the real thing fairly often again. I'm still put off a bit by how much I suck, as usual, but I'm pretty sure I'll always feel that way no matter how good I get.

Increase Mangafication

Tue, 23 Dec 2008 20:28:18 -0800

Okay, I apologize. That title was pretty awful. I don't generally read a whole lot of manga though, so it's a special occasion of sorts. It's also nearly Christmas, and I guess that's kind of a special occasion too. To Aru Majutsu no Index: Thanks to my withdrawal symptoms growing more prominent as the anime keeps getting better, I figured I'd go to the source to get my fix. Cut out the middle man, y'know. Unfortunately I fucked up in a big way, because the manga is just an adaptation as well (damn those visual novels) and it isn't but a chapter or two ahead of the anime. It's quite good, but I have no real desire to read a manga that's exactly the same as an anime I'm watching if it doesn't sate my desire to know what happens next. So it was promptly dropped, which makes me feel awkward as that generally has bad connotations. To Aru Kagaku no Railgun: This does quite a bit better job of sating my aforementioned urge, as it's fresh material - a sidestory of the above centered on biri biri what's-her-name (seriously, my mind just blanked there) and friends. Good times. Franken Fran: Picked this up on a whim as the main character seemed a little odd and possibly interesting. I'm enjoying it so far - it isn't for everyone, I guess, but the dark humor, gore and misguided idealism mixed with mad-scientist experimentation make for a fun read. If you have a twisted sense of humor like I do, it's worth checking out. And the disembodied head girl that shows up in one of the chapters is disturbingly cute. Negative Happy Chainsaw Edge: I really enjoyed this one. Just finished it up today, and was quite happy with the short length, unique/odd premise, and most of all the impressive art. I think it'd make for a great anime adaptation too - a quick several-episode OVA with similarly impressive artistic flair. It hits a nice blend of weird, awesome, insightful and sweet, made all the more poignant since it's never any longer than it needs to be. Berserk: Finally got around to catching up on this one, though it'd only amassed maybe 6 chapters since the last time I checked. It's always great to dive back into Berserk, of course. I only wish they still had it on mangatraders (it's quite convenient - I have all the stuff I'm downloading punched into an RSS reader so I can easily keep track). In other news, I'm practically bursting with excitement. I have one British friend in particular who's a big RPG fan, and I've been dying to get him into Xenogears (which is a touch difficult since it was never released in Europe) for years now. Anyway, he managed to load it on his PSP somehow and is just starting into it now. And as we were discussing the game on a forum, another buddy of mine showed some interest and I told him how to set up an emulator on his computer so he could give it a go. Then yet another RPG loving friend stumbled across the post and decided he'd try it too. So right now I have no less than three friends currently playing Xenogears for the first time. Just thinking about it gets me worked up, being the enormous fanboy that I am, and if I dwell on the thought any more I'll probably explode. I'm also a touch jealous, as playing Xenogears for the first time was a wonderful experience, and no matter how many times I enjoy it, it's never quite the same. The game throws you so many curve balls and twists that are wonderfully foreshadowed and yet you'll never see them coming, and the impact of that two-hit combo - the surprise and the realization of just how long it's been brewing - just isn't the same when you know how things are going to play out.

I am boss

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 22:08:34 -0800

Still spending a bunch of time fooling around with web stuff. I remade my signature and tweaked the script that generates it quite a bit, and made a new anime list and manga list as well. I don't expect many people elsewhere to get the signature (<3 Minami-ke) but at least some of the denizens here will have a laugh. In other news, I still haven't started Xmas shopping and probably won't any time soon. Christmas itself just keeps getting weirder. Last year was awkward as my grandfather wasn't around for the first time (he died a bit before thanksgiving) and Mom was elsewhere since she and Dad were getting divorced. This year we're not even doing the usual dinner with my grandmother on Christmas Eve like we have every year of my life, and I had to sit out that side of the family's get-together because I don't care for Mom's boyfriend (same one who gave her an awful-looking black eye and threatened to kill her around my birthday this year - apparently I'm the one being bad and unreasonable by not wanting anything to do with him). So instead we're getting together on Christmas Eve to visit a cool friend of my old man and have dinner at his place, and then driving down to Charlotte after so we can visit the family and spend the rest of the week there. Not a bad plan in the least, but after doing the same thing for over 20 years it just feels awkard to do things differently. As far as anime goes: Hellsing Ultimate: Just caught the fifth installment, and I was less than impressed. I don't know if that's because of the speedsubs, because I've already read the manga, or just because the episode wasn't as interesting as the others. I do know, however, that it was the first time I noticed that I really don't much care for the music. Which is a shame, because the earlier Hellsing anime had an awesome soundtrack. Lucky Star: I was pondering giving the entire anime another go, but figured I'd just watch the OVA instead since I hadn't seen that yet. I was waiting for some subs from a group I recognize to come out, but if they did I surely missed them. Still, it was quite entertaining, as Lucky Star ought to be. To-LOVE-Ru: Finally worked up the motivation to finish this one. I was hoping the characters and the humor would carry it all the way through, but whatever freshness and charm the show had dried up well before the end. All in all, it's a pretty average harem comedy and the sci-fi element doesn't add anything particularly interesting into the mix. Persona: As much as I didn't care for the gameplay, I did enjoy the general premise of Persona 3. So I figured I'd catch the anime, and so far I've been pleasantly surprised. I wasn't expecting it to be something I'd keep watching, and yet I'm even going so far as to moderately enjoy it. I've still got 6 or 8 episodes to go. Kiss x Sis: This manga is certainly living up to its name with respect to content and class. I caught what's apparently episode 0 of the anime as well, which seems to be a pretty solid adaptation from what I can tell. I almost said good adaptation, but then I caught myself, as the subject matter toes a similar thin line of deviance as Kodomo no Jikan, but with the character development and plot replaced with fairly explicit fanservice. Momoiro Sango: Just started full-bore into this one. It's kinda similar to the above in style - low on substance, with some comedy and lots of explicit fanservice. The big difference is that while the main females in the cast who spend their time teasing the protagonist and trying to get at the contents of his pants are related, they aren't in any way related to him (versus Kiss x Sis having to explain itself in that they're not related by blood and such). Which makes it enjoyable with a little less of the creepy vibe, I suppose. But still a far cry from quality entertainment. Asatte Dance: I read a volume of this and then ended up giving it up. It wasn't bad in any way, just not really interesting enough to keep going with - the humor and the art weren't as good as either of the two above, I'd say, and that's about all you've got in a manga like that. To Aru Majutsu no Index: This is still driving me crazy, and I'm starting to wish I had never attempted to watch it before it finished airing. Each episode gets me even more interested in the series and its characters and such, and the more excited I get the more let down I end up feeling when the credits roll. I think it's problem is that it's too good - it does a great job keeping up the suspense and excitement, action and humor are impressive as well, it has a great cast, and lovely animation to boot. I get so caught up in watching that it feels like the end comes only 5 minutes into the show, which is always a big letdown since I have to wait an entire week for that next 20 minutes of bliss. It's definitely the show I look forward to the most each week, with Toradora falling in close behind and then Michiko to Hatchin, TotA, One Piece, Clannad and Gundam 00 falling in afterwards. Anyway, I just finished downloading the manga in order to get my fix, so expect updates on that at some point. I've got an urge to watch Gungrave or a good comedy like Lucky Star or Pani Poni Dash lately, but I'm not sure if I'll act on it. Probably not.