Author Archives: sdshamshel

Celebrating Sakamata Chloe and holoX

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Sakamata Chloe standing with all of holoX on stage, with her at the center.

Earlier today, Sakamata Chloe left hololive for the foreseeable future. Secret Society holoX will no longer be five members strong, so I wanted to just write one last post appreciating their generation as a whole. 

holoX was the first time I wanted to get invested in an entire gen from the very beginning. I love their motif as would-be world conquerors who are actually just silly people, and really think they strike a nice balance as a group—in terms of their character designs, personalities, and respective strengths as entertainers.

La+ is a remarkably good dancer with a sharp tongue who somehow manages to be both mature and a brat. Lui can be both a wise older sister and a bit of a bumbler, and she has brought out some of the most creative songs in VTubing. Koyori is an absolute workhorse who loves to experiment and bring a classic idol vibe. Chloe has great control of her voice, whether for singing or bantering. Iroha possesses great athleticism and an adorable personality, which allow her to tackle every project with a charismatic energy. 

All of holoX doing X poses with their arms.

In the three years they’ve been going, holoX has accomplished so much. They have multiple original songs both individually and as a group, and they’ve only grown as performers despite setbacks in their physical and mental health. Seeing them in their most recent 3d concerts just drives home how much effort they’ve all put into their craft, like when noticing the subtle changes La+ makes to her choreography or realizing the quality of Chloe’s full repertoire of music. 

Granted, it’s also a little bittersweet to know that Chloe, at least in this form, will be frozen in time. The other four will keep going, changing and learning along the way, and while Chloe might very well be doing the same, I don’t know how easily we can follow her on that journey. Despite that, I think holoX will still thrive, and Chloe has what it takes to find success and happiness in whatever she does. I hope we get to hear from her again, no matter what form she takes.

Nendoroid figures of all five holoX members. They are small figures with big heads.

PS: I finally assembled all of holoX in Nendoroid form. I’m glad I got it just in time for Chloe’s final concert.

Chloe's mask left behind at the holoX headquarters. Underneath it is a "Thank you" sloppily written in Chloe's characteristic illegible handwriting.

I Wish It Was 52 Episodes: The Stories of Girls Who Couldn’t Be Magicians

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The Stories of Girls Who Couldn’t Be Magicians is an anime that should have been longer. 

Adapted from a web novel, the story of Mahonare (as it’s known for short in Japanese) follows  Kurumi Mirai, a girl who has always dreamed of being a magician, but failed to get into the magic program of the prestigious Rettoran Academy. Attending the school’s non-magical track, a crestfallen Kurumi and the rest of her class soon meet their homeroom teacher, the unusually petite and eccentric Minami Suzuki, who promises that she will teach them magic, despite common sense saying that it should be impossible.

There is one series above all others that Mahonare reminds me of: the wonderful Ojamajo Doremi. While the magic aspect is something they clearly have in common, the similarities also include the style of presentation. From the pastel-like filters to the opening narration each episode to the theme songs themselves, Mahonare greatly resembles the morning girls’ anime of the late 90s and early 2000s that include Doremi but also things like Ashita no Nadja and Fushigiboshi no Futagohime.

But the more important way that the Mahonare draws upon the tradition of Doremi is the way it builds up a strong cast of characters, both major and minor, that contributes to world building and story. Though we get only a few glimpses of some characters, each gives the impression that they’d have their own interesting stories to tell if given the chance. One girl in Kurumi’s class is supposed to be part of the magic elite, only to have come short. Others are more happy to just be attending even if they can’t cast spells, eager to pursue their passions whether it’s cooking, music, or fashion. 

Moreover, while the teens have teen troubles, the adults have adult troubles, and the intersection between them creates conflicts about everything from pursuing your dreams to moral quandaries that cut to the heart of their society. One of the most interesting plot points involves the positives and negatives of the magic notebooks that have become ubiquitous. Their widespread adoption encourages magic to be converted to easy-to-use apps that don’t require necessarily understanding fundamentals, mirroring concerns over the way smartphones and tablets have transformed how children grow up with electronics.

But that resemblance to Doremi is exactly why I think Mahonare should’ve had more episodes. It feels like a 52-episode work that was condensed down to 12, and the show suffers for it. Little crumbs of plot development that could have been sprinkled in here and there instead come one after the other. Character bonding moments happen very rapidly as well, as opposed to building up gradually and therefore with more weight. While I understand that the reality of current anime production means very few anime get that privilege, I can still lament the loss of that possibility for Mahonare nevertheless.

This certainly isn’t the first time that a series has received a truncated adaptation, and some even go on to have a more thorough version be made later. I can only hope that The Stories of Girls Who Couldn’t Become Magicians falls into this select category.

Marvel Rivals and the Ever-Changing Nature of the Invisible Woman

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Marvel Rivals has recently introduced the Fantastic Four to its roster, and like the other heroes and villains, they’ve received designs meant to capture the spirits of the characters while giving them a modern game-oriented feel. Among them is the Invisible Woman, and thanks to the game’s behind-the-back camera, one thing is clear: Susan Storm-Richards has quite a butt.

Big buttocks and thick thighs are popular these days, so this isn’t particularly surprising in and of itself. However, the fact that they would give Sue a body in that direction makes me realize something: Perhaps no other character in superhero comics more thoroughly reflects the evolution of trends in female beauty standards than the Invisible Woman.

In my look at VTuber Takanashi Kiara’s 1980s-inspired aerobics outfit, I mentioned that its emphasis on a more voluptuous lower body does not match the dominant thin aesthetic that existed back then. The Invisible Woman goes back even further in time, to the introduction of The Fantastic Four in 1961. And while she’s not alone in that regard (there are female heroes who have been around far longer than her), the difference is that Susan has very few specific iconic features that define how she’s “supposed” to look.

The Invisible Woman is meant to be very attractive (enough that Namor is constantly infatuated with her), but not to the extent of a manslayer like the Enchantress. Other than being blonde, she’s not associated with specific physical features, like Power Girl and her large chest or She-Hulk and her muscular green physique. Her costume isn’t particularly iconic or defining, like with Supergirl or Psylocke. And her powers are actually less conducive to establishing her visual identity compared to most others, including her teammates—”stretchy with graying temples,” “man entirely on fire,” and “big rock guy” are instantly identifiable in a way Sue isn’t.

So over the course of six decades, Sue’s look has changed over and over. Her hairstyles have included long, short, straight, curly, simple, coiffed, Mary Tyler Moore, mullet, and everything in between. Her costumes have ranged from conservative to astoundingly daring: form-fitting, skin-tight, that famous design from the 1990s with the cleavage-exposing “4” on her chest. While she’s generally thin, fairly busty, and pretty, her proportions have all fluctuated a bit. To some extent, this can be chalked up to individual artists’ tastes, but I think it’s notable that they can play around this much with her design compared to other female superheroes.

In the context of Marvel Rivals, the Invisible Woman seems to be influenced by two factors aside from “big butts are in.” First, there’s Sue’s status in the Marvel Universe as a kind of matron of superheroes due to her age and experience. Second, Marvel Rivals is clearly trying to be the next Overwatch, and that includes its reputation for sexy characters who are arguably more famous than the games themselves. In other words, the Invisible Woman is very 21st-century MILF-coded, not unlike Elastigirl from The Incredibles—a series that itself clearly draws a lot of inspiration from the Fantastic Four.

If the Invisible Woman is getting attention again in ten years’ time, I wonder how she’ll look then.

Thinking About Mazinger Legs

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I’ve been looking at the Kakumei Shinka Mazinger line from Soul of Chogokin, and the first thing that stood out to me was the legs. They’re slimmer than what immediately comes to mind when I think of Mazinger, and so I decided to just look at other images: anime screenshots, manga images, other toys, etc.

There are two things I’ve noticed. First, the Kakumei Shinka line more closely follows the original manga designs in terms of silhouette. Second, the lower halves of Mazinger’s limbs really run the gamut, from relatively svelte to Popeye-esque.

I don’t know why exactly this variation occurs, but I’d hazard that it’s about the constant push and pull between adhering to the original, appealing to nostalgia, and attempting modernization. The first Soul of Chogokin was the realization of a concept: high-end toys for the child fan who has grown up. It reflects a goal of looking more mature. The GX-07 is based on the Mazinger Z from the 90s Mazinkaiser OVAs, where it has some 90s flourishes but isn’t supposed to be the absolute unit that Mazinkaiser is. Other versions, like those based on Shin Mazinger and Mazinger Z: Infinity take their own angles as well.

I think I prefer the ones with a bit more heft, but I definitely find a certain charm in the manga/70s anime look. It gives Mazinger Z (and Great Mazinger) a more human feel that’s more superhero than weapon. 

So, to any readers, I have to ask: What are your favorite Mazinger legs?

hololive’s FLOW GLOW and the Door to a New Direction

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Five anime girls in elaborate street outfits in a city environment. These are the members of hololive's FLOW GLOW.

It’s been a couple months since FLOW GLOW arrived on the VTuber scene. hololive’s rap-focused generation is fairly different from what has come before them, and I want to record my thoughts and feelings now that I’ve had more time to see what they’re about.

(Disclaimer: I don’t know music genres very well, so this might just be word salad). 

On a micro level, all of FLOW GLOW feel ready as entertainers. Rindo Chihaya is my favorite of the bunch, between her gorgeous character design, her love of cars, trombone skills, and deeper singing voice. I also find Isaki Riona to be especially silly and entertaining. In one “mindfulness” stream (i.e. assisted meditation), she asked her viewers to emulate throwing a Kamehameha.

On a macro level, FLOW GLOW does something important for me: It helps clarify the direction of their newest branch, hololive DEV_IS. 

Back when DEV_IS was first announced, it wasn’t obvious what exactly made it different. Don’t holo talents already make music? Weren’t INNK and Project Hope different attempts to focus on music that both ended up closing? Don’t the members of ReGLOSS (DEV_IS’s first generation) stream games and talk with chat all the same? But FLOW GLOW makes it much more obvious where the difference lies. One, the generations are seen even more as cohesive groups of performers. Two, they lean even more into the types of antics one might expect of “talents”—the minor celebrities who appear on variety shows in Japan. That first aspect is what piques my interest.

The fact that FLOW GLOW has a completely different sound compared to ReGLOSS says it all. Instead of trying to follow a reliable formula to the point of tedium, Cover Corp seems to be exploring different avenues with the notion that an increasingly diverse roster can reach different corners, and FLOW GLOW’s K-Pop + J-Eap approach contrasts with the smooth synth J-pop of ReGLOSS. While I’ll admit that I’m not a big fan of their debut song, “FG Roadster,” I’m glad they’re not just ReGLOSS 2.0. Also, their first cover song (of KICK THE CAN CREW’s “Marche”) reminds me a bit of A Tribe Called Quest, and gives me hope that they’re going to try different genres of rap.

It’s funny to think about that combo of K-Pop and J-Rap. Sure, rap is a staple part of K-Pop, but within the specific context of Hololive, each of those halves is represented by the members of TakaMori. Takanashi Kiara’s music is increasingly in the direction of K-pop—an intentional decision according to her. Calliope Mori is the first name in VTuber rapping, and while she’s moved on to different sounds that incorporate pop and rock as well, the influence she had on the business can still be felt. Would FLOW GLOW have gone in this direction if Myth hadn’t ascended back in 2020?

I do wonder if hololive will be able to reach a new audience through FLOW GLOW, and if that audience might even include people who are neither into anime or Japanese pop culture. I’m curious to find out where they’ll take us.

King Arthur and the Knights of Justice Has a Comic

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I was recently surprised to discover a King Arthur and the Knights of Justice comic, based on the 1990s cartoon.

As a kid, I thought that show was the coolest. It follows a football team (led by quarterback Arthur King) who have been transported to ancient Camelot to fight in place of the Knights of the Round Table against the evil witch Morgana and her general, Lord Viper. In practice, it was a toy-centric children’s show featuring buff dudes in armor riding buff horses in armor, firing missiles from medieval weapons and sometimes summoning a dragon. Totally radical.

Like so many animations of that era, it’s more impressive in my childhood memories and has no actual conclusion. Eventually, it faded from pop culture consciousness. Seeing it pop up again in a new format, I had to at least give the thing a chance.

Currently at a single volume, the comic version keeps the same basic premise but changes a few things up. The plot is a little more nuanced and does a lot to foreground the characters’ interpersonal dynamics. It’s also a lot more gay now, and I don’t mean that in a derogatory fashion. Two of the male teammates-turned-knights are literally a couple, and their relationship is both displayed prominently and becomes a major factor in the plot. There’s even a note at the end of the book promoting it as LGBTQA+ fiction. 

While I could see some people criticize this adaptation for “changing the characters,” it’s not as if King Arthur and the Knights of Justice was ever some work with strong, three-dimensional personalities or significant cultural traction in the first place. Related to this, the characters are drawn fairly differently, going from the barrel-chested children’s cartoon heroes common in the 80s and 90s, to appearing a bit more svelte and often kind of sultry.

I find the new designs fascinating, because it’s like the comic designs are a confluence of various influences and forces originally found in shounen manga. First, there’s the handsome sports dudes component in the vein of Prince of Tennis or Yowamushi Pedal, but through the additional lens of comics such as Check, Please! Second, whether intentional or otherwise, King Arthur and the Knights of Justice has always been a kind of American version of Saint Seiya, a series that is foundational for the fujoshi community. In a way, making a Saint Seiya descendant that was as chaste/bland as King Arthur in the character department into something closer to Saint Seiya (in a way that appeals more to a chunk of the latter’s fanbase) feels like things have gone full circle.

The comic is trying to draw from a past resource and do its own thing, and I appreciate that. Although it runs the risk of alienating people who just want something totally faithful to the original, I think that aiming it at a newer generation is A-OK.

A Lasting Legacy: Love Live! Superstar!! 3rd Season

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11 anime schoolgirls in gray uniforms holding letters in their hands that spell "Liella!"

Love Live! Superstar!! is one of my favorite entries in the Love Live! franchise, but even I was unsure if the third season was necessary. The previous season ended on a high note, and the girls of Liella! could have ridden off into the sunset for a satisfying conclusion. But despite some misgivings, I decided to stick with it. Fortunately, my faith was rewarded once again, and by the end, I found that this season solidified my ongoing belief that Superstar!! is the absolute best of Love Live! from a storytelling perspective.

Love Live! Superstar!! 3rd Season begins with protagonist Shibuya Kanon and the rest of Liella! coming off the high of finally winning the Love Live! national school idol competition. They start the new school year determined to be first back-to-back champions, but a few hurdles stand in their way. First is the pressure of being the reigning team. Second is the presence of one Wien Margarete, a transfer student from Austria who competed against Liella last time and decides to form her own school idol club at their school instead. Third is the fact that Kanon decides to pull a surprise heel turn (of sorts) and join Margarete’s side along with another girl, Onitsuka Tomari. Now, instead of everyone working as one, the two sides must compete to see who will represent their school.

The idea of rival clubs is an intriguing one, but Love Live! is not really a franchise that can make it particularly intense. Or rather, the last time they tried with the (now-defunct) Love Live! All Stars mobile game, it backfired among the fanbase, and the anime adaptation had to tone things down. And so events proceed fairly predictably, with the two sides eventually coming together and any animosity being just caring and affection in disguise. In that sense, Season 3 is a bit of a disappointment, but I eventually realized that this was the wrong angle to look at the whole thing.

The Love Live! competition itself isn’t actually the main focus in 3rd Season. Even the desire for a repeat victory and the challenge of getting there is merely a backdrop than the driving force. Instead, the real story is about how everyone deals with the inevitability of change that comes with the fact that Kanon and the other founding members will be graduating from high school. All the third-years are thinking about what their adult lives will look like and what careers they want to pursue. The second-years will be the ones to inherit the club, and they must go from being the newcomers to becoming the core. And the first-years, Margarete and Tomari, see their participation in more cynical terms. They’re all at different stages.

Superstar!! is also the first time we’ve followed a core cast from the start of high school all the way to the end. In the first season, Kanon’s main struggle is overcoming her trauma that prevents her from singing. In the second, it’s figuring out how to help others overcome their own fears and doubts. And in the third, it’s about leaving behind a system and legacy that will encourage even more in the future to have courage and chase their passion. This might seem par for the course compared to previous generations of Love Live!, but there is a significant difference. 

In every other case, the story begins with a collection of first-, second-, and third-years all coming together. While characters develop in their own ways, they’re also limited to a degree by this format in one way or another. Often, the specific roster is portrayed as lightning in a bottle—something that cannot (and maybe even should not) be replicated. In contrast, all three seasons of Superstar!! collectively work to show that even as Kanon and her classmates leave, the club will continue to grow and change. Each iteration of Liella! has been important in its own way, and the anime implies that this won’t stop even after the original five are no longer there. This flow of time is what sets this series apart, and ultimately makes this third season satisfying to watch.

So that’s Love Live! Superstar!!…or at least until the series gets a feature-film send-off. While I have great fondness for all generations of Love Live!, I really do think that this one is special because of how strong it is as an overall piece of narrative fiction. Superstar!! relies the least on expecting from its audience an inherent receptiveness to idols (and by extension the “school idol” concept), and I think this versatility helps make it a very rewarding series overall.

Snake? Snaaaake!!!: Ogiue Maniax Status Update for January 2025

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It’s customary to see the New Year as a fresh start, and an opportunity to say farewell to the previous year. I don’t expect 2025 to be an especially fantastic year, but I do know we have a lot of anime to look forward to. Witch Hat Atelier! Wandance! And more! At the very least, I hope that we can find comfort in art created by artists.

Thanks to my supporters on Patreon. I appreciate that you’ve stuck with me, and hope you’ll be safe in 2025 and on. And remember: Don’t subscribe on iOS if you can help it!

General:

Ko Ransom

Diogo Prado

Alex

Dsy

Sue Hopkins fans:

Serxeid

Hato Kenjirou fans:

Elizabeth

Yajima Mirei fans:

Machi-Kurada

Blog Highlights from December

Rawhide Kobayashi’s Favorite Anime: Delusional Monthly Magazine

I had to write about the fact that this anime even exists.

A Fine Roast: Fantôme Thief’s Revenge

I decided against all common sense to attend this concert, and it was totally worth it.

Best Anime Characters of 2024

Who are your picks?

Kio Shimoku

One last Kio twitter summary for 2024.

Closing

I don’t exactly have any big plans for Ogiue Maniax in 2025, but perhaps if I write about my lack of ideas, something fun will manifest. I really should get back around to doing a Gattai Girls series…

Kio Shimoku Twitter Highlights December 2024

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https://twitter.com/kioshimoku1/status/1863517206774161642

New web chapter of Spotted Flower. This one reveals a plan by Ogino-sensei to be engaged to both her partners!

“A new Gundam by Studio Khara. Wheeew, what a time to be alive.”

Kio wonders if the new model kit for Gundam GQuuuuuuX will have the parts sorted by color.

Kio thinks Lupin III: Castle of Cagliostro still holds up.

Kio watched Black Magic M-66 on DVD, and the video quality was rough. He’s hoping for a remaster.

For a color illustration with a lot of skin tones, Kio tried a high-contrast style with lots of layers and some airbrushed red. He thinks he could figure out how to replicate what he did, but is holding off on that for now.

Kio was interviewed by Yomiuri Shinbun a little while back along with fellow manga artists Toyoda Minoru and Shito Reisa. (Unfortunately, I can’t seem to access the site.)

https://twitter.com/kioshimoku1/status/1867939518843883758

Kio is shocked to discover that yuzu pepper sauce has no black pepper in it. Apparently, in Kyushu, they call chili peppers (karashi) “black pepper” (koshou). It might have something to do with English.

Just as Kio has been gathering materials about the Edo period, the latest Taiga drama is going to be set during Edo.

Kio never made an account on mixi (an older Japanese social networking site), so while he might be an old man himself, he can’t jump in on discussions related to it.

https://twitter.com/kioshimoku1/status/1870485801609626004

Kio grilling meat with family to celebrate. 

https://twitter.com/kioshimoku1/status/1871466380702429362

A visit to a couple of galleries in Ikebukuro: One for giant robots, another for the author of Initial D.

https://twitter.com/kioshimoku1/status/1872881516352774147

Kio was finally able to buy the Real Grade ver 2.0 RX-78-2 Gundam model kit from his local model store.

https://twitter.com/kioshimoku1/status/1873005813599748585

In the new year, Kio plans to release part of It’s All Your Fault, Sensei 2, the sequel to his 18+ doujinshi. In the meantime, the first book is on sale at various sites.

A fan got one of the autographed artbooks (the sister from Jigopuri), and Kio thanks them.

https://twitter.com/kioshimoku1/status/1873994035284893866

As the New Year rolls in, Kio is thankful for getting to release his artbook. 

Best Anime Characters of 2024

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BEST MALE CHARACTER 

Laios Touden (Delicious in Dungeon)

Finding characters you can relate to is part of the fun of fiction. Over the years, I’ve found a fair many that I could connect to, but exceedingly few have spoken to the core of my very being  in the same way as Laios Touden.

Laios lives in a fantasy world filled with magic and the supernatural, where he has the unusual hobby of eating monsters, but there are layers to that passion. Sure, he wants to know the best ways to cook the beasts that populate the dungeon, but he’s not like his travel companion Senshi, who wants to find the peak of labyrinth cooking. Instead, what drives Laios is culinary discovery and exploration. More important than figuring out what tastes best is the desire to taste flavors he’s never come across before, and to eat things that might not even be considered edible to most others. If I were in his shoes, I would be the same way. He and I share a similar philosophy: “You don’t know how it’ll taste until you actually eat it.”

And if Laios were just a goofy, relatable guy, that would be enough. But there’s a depth to his silly charm. He’s basically never lost his childhood curiosity, and his enthusiasm is both infectious and a positive force on everyone who gets to know him. I could only hope to be so lucky to do the same for the people I know.

BEST FEMALE CHARACTER

Frieren (Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End)

Over the past fifteen years, it’s often felt like anime has been lacking more traditional fantasy series. Then in comes Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End to show that something more classical-feeling still has a place. It feels refreshingly new yet orthodox, and central to that success is the protagonist herself.

Frieren is an elf mage who has basically already accomplished her biggest quest ever, and is now on a journey to retrace her old steps, indulge in her hobby of collecting obscure and delightfully frivolous spells, and help guide a new generation of adventurers. Her long years mean she has lived experience of things lost to time to most, yet she neither puts stock in the old or the new just because. To her, everything is a valuable learning experience. In a way, she reminds me of a previous Best Character of the Year, Yang Wen-Li from Legend of the Galactic Heroes.

There’s something that I think sums Frieren (and by extension the themes of the series) very well: How the character Serie sees her. To most, Frieren is like a walking myth and impossibly powerful, but Serie is actually even older and stronger. In her eyes, the younger elf has squandered her years and is well below her magical potential—like someone with 30 years of experience in a foreign language only being as fluent as someone who’s been studying for 20. However, Frieren sees value in pursuing things at the pace you want for the things you value, and it’s a lesson I constantly try to take to heart.

BEST ROBOT BRO

Bravern (Bang Brave Bang Bravern)

There is possibly no character who flips his entire world on its head more thoroughly than Bravern. When you first enter the story of Bang Brave Bang Bravern, you think it’s this gritty, relatively realistic mecha story. Colors are dark and subdued. Then, when a fearsome enemy attacks that overwhelms conventional human militaries, in comes a mysterious and bright-red super robot reminiscent of 90s Yuusha anime with little need for an indoor voice, but he literally plays his own fiery, trumpet-filled theme song!

Bravern is not just a fun character—he’s a representative of a style of giant robot and giant heroics lost to time. And he’s the massive unit you want by your side, whether for the bro friendship or the bromance. Or, you know.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Laios and Frieren have a lot in common. They’re both protagonists of fantasy series that have garnered incredible acclaim among fans and critics alike. The two are so popular that you might well accuse me of making the most boring and obvious choices. Yet, while it’s often said that “popular doesn’t mean good,” that doesn’t mean popular things are automatically bad either. With Delicious in Dungeon and Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End alike, you have titles that show how you don’t have to appeal to the lowest common denominator to garner love on a wider scale. 

But more important than all that stuff is this: If they met, Laios and Frieren would probably end up being incredible friends for each other. Their sense of wonder at amazement at things others overlook would probably get them talking for hours to each other. The two represent not just styles of fantasy fiction that aren’t as game/isekai-coded, but also approaches to heroes who don’t prioritize power or progress.

And as for Bravern, well, he’d probably be good chums with them too, don’t you think?