Category Archives: anime

Saimoe 2008: Ogiue fails to make it past First Preliminaries, moves on to Second Preliminaries

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While Ogiue garnered a decent number of votes (212), she failed to make it into the top 9 for her preliminary day. Ogiue placed 12th overall for her initial group, which means she qualifies for the second preliminaries.

I was hoping Ogiue would get in on the first try, but I also have to keep in mind that 12th place is significantly better than her placing last year, which was 20th place.

Ogiue failed to make it to the main tournament last year, so I am hoping at the very least for her to get that far. From the looks of things she already stands a much better chance, but I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

FIVE-TONE SHADING, or A Perspective Which Lacks Perspective

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By now I assume a good number of you have seen Paul “Otaking” Johnson’s fansub angry docurant. This is not about that. This is about his exceedingly idiotic post on what makes anime look good.

In his comic/tutorial, Johnson here first showcases how the anime of the 80s is superior to both western cartoons and modern anime because of the level of shading and detail used. He can have his own opinion on what looks good. That’s okay. My issue is with the fact that his opinion lacks perspective.

fivetoneshading

The problem here is in the examples he gives of GOOD-LOOKING 80s/90s ANIME versus UGLY MODERN ANIME. On the good-looking side is Top o Nerae!, the original Record of Lodoss Wars, Gunnm, and Macross: Do You Remember Love? On the bad-looking side is Naruto, One Piece, Fullmetal Alchemist.

Hmm, wait! Something seems odd here…

Top o Nerae!: OVA
Record of Lodoss War: OVA
Gunnm: OVA
Macross: DYRL: MOVIE

Naruto: TV Series
One Piece: TV Series
Fullmetal Alchemist: TV Series

All of the examples that Johnson gives here of GOOD-LOOKING ANIME THAT HAVE NOT BEEN SURPASSED are shows with HIGH BUDGETS and short productions, whereas the examples he gives of modern anime, where the SHORTEST show is Fullmetal Alchemist at approximately 50 episodes, are all television programs, with Naruto and One Piece having run for much longer. On top of that, the 80s were a much more prosperous time for Japan in general, so it is no wonder that anime would have more budget. OF COURSE those shows would have more complex shading.

Even then, this is not the only faulty point with Johnson’s FIVE-TONE SHADING rant. Johnson acts like it is MODERN ANIME which has cheapened itself to the point of using such simplistic, “Disney-esque” shading (and he’s already a dumbass for using “Disney” like it’s a bad word), when in fact the entirety of anime has been against him all along! By saying that five-tone shading is the only visual style that really matters, you invalidate the entirety of the 60s and 70s in anime. According to this, Rose of Versailles is worthless visually. So is Gundam. So is Tiger Mask and Kinnikuman and Voltes V and so many other shows because they lack multiple-toned shading and that sleek look which permeated 80s OVAs.

Even worse, the 1980s disagree with Johnson, where shows such as Votoms and Zeta Gundam also lack shading on everything but backgrounds. Hell, Johnson posts an image of Misa from Macross: DYRL as an example of SUPERIOR anime aesthetics but fails to acknowledge the fact that the ORIGINAL MACROSS TV SERIES had simplistic shading on par with shows like Fullmetal Alchemist.

It’s one thing to have a preference for certain styles, but it’s another thing entirely to tout one’s position using an “us vs them” mentality. There are no “good old days” of FIVE-TONE SHADING and to believe that it existed is to be delusional.

Vote for Ogiue in the Anime Saimoe 2008 Preliminaries

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Here’s how it goes down.

First, the vote is over at the official Anime Saimoe 2008 website. Go get a voting code here. Voting ends at midnight the next day in Japan. You can keep track of the time in Japan using this site.

It takes some time to get the voting code so don’t get your code at the last minute. Once you do obtain it, the code will look something like this: [AS00-animemoe-XX]

When you get to the voting thread, make a new post with your code at the top of the post and the characters you want to vote for underneath. You must enter the characters the correct way. In the case of Ogiue it is <<荻上千佳＠げんしけん2>>

They’d also like you to include a reason for your voting. English is fine, as the whole point is to show your support your characters.

The final result will look something like this:

——

[AS00-animemoe-XX]

<<荻上千佳＠げんしけん2>>
I love Ogiue. Her character moved me in ways I thought not possible.

——

You’re allowed up to 5 characters but we all know that isn’t necessary right!

Here is the voting thread as of now (updated 7/22/08 12:30AM EST). This is subject to change at any moment as it is very possible for this thread to become locked and voting to be continued in a following thread in the voting board on 2ch.

Oh, and proxies aren’t allowed.

So let’s get Ogiue into this tournament proper. Together. For Modern Society and the study thereof.

If only there was a Kaiji-Baccano crossover

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I’d pay to see Ladd Russo curbstomping all of those yakuza who think they’re invincible.

From Internet to TV: Tonari no 801-chan Anime Announced

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Many doujin artists these days end up publishing professional manga, but what we don’t see often is a webcomic reaching that kind of notoriety. Tonari no 801-chan (The 801 by My Side) has managed to achieve such a position, starting off as a humble comic on an artist’s blog and turning into a variety of media, the most recent being an anime to debut in 2009.

Tonari no 801-chan, the tale of an adult fujoshi named, of all things, Yaoi in an otaple relationship whose boys-love-loving side manifests itself as a furry little creature called 801 (801 can be pronounced as “yaoi” hence the joke). I was referred to it by kransom in the past but never took a good look at it until recently.

The very first comic involves the very normal Yaoi transforming into 801 and citing almost word for word Ohno’s famous line from Volume 4 of Genshiken:”There’s no such thing as a girl who hates homos.”

I think I’ll be sticking with this one, and I’ll be looking forward to the anime next year.

Xam it all to hell

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As you might know, I have been looking forward to Bounen no Xamdou, now known as “Xam’d: Lost Memories,” ever since it was announced. I’m a big fan of Eureka Seven to the extent that I bought all the DVDs individually as special editions (when those editions were available) as a show of support, and I expect good things out of the show.

I was surprised when I found out that BONES is doing a legitimate and subbed worldwide release. “This is a good thing,” I thought. The only problem is that it is a pain in the ass.

The only way to get the episodes legit is to download them from the Playstation Network. That is to say, you have to spend $400-$600 on a Playstation 3 before you can actually download the episodes at $3 US per episode.

C’mon, man. I want to give you money but you’re just making it difficult.

Depending on how things go, I might heed OGT‘s suggestion and simply pay for the episodes legitimately but download the torrents anyway. Either that, or I’ll have to wait for the DVDs.

Oh, and to get it out of my system, here’s some additional puns.

Xam’bot 3
Sha-Xam’d

Okay, I’m done.

The Fujoshi Files 6: Fujiyoshi Harumi

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Name: Fujiyoshi, Harumi (藤吉晴美)
Alias: N/A
Relationship Status: Single
Origin: Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei

Information:
Fujiyoshi Harumi is a second-year (11th grade) high school student and the only fujoshi in her class at a school whose company-sponsored name changes every week. Although she is comfortable enough with her fujocity that the other students are aware of her hobby, Fujiyoshi is still somewhat afraid of showing others her yaoi doujinshi manuscripts. Fujiyoshi is a talented artist and regular participant at Comic Market, and her doujinshi range from Gundam SEED to Pretty Cure.

Fujiyoshi often has problems distinguishing conventional thinking from her own personal opinions, even among fujoshi. Fujiyoshi will also often draw very unconventional pairings, though she is also a fan of more popular pairings and even a few male-female ones. Unlike many fujoshi, Fujiyoshi is surprisingly athletic.

Fujiyoshi’s name is a pun on the word “fujoshi” itself. Harumi is the name of a former location of Comic Market.

Fujoshi Level:
While Fujiyoshi’s talent at sports may seemingly contradict her status as a fujoshi, it is actually the best indication of that status. Fujiyoshi’s athleticism is the result of pushing herself past her own limits while enduring Comic Market and other doujin events for long hours. This makeshift exercise, powered by her desire for yaoi doujinshi, improves her physical stamina, strength, and speed, making her able to do even more at future events. Her devotion to doujinshi has resulted in Harumi being fujoshi in both mind and body.

Suddenly, Eureka

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Manly Slice of Life

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Why should slice of life be purely the realm of cute girls? Why can’t middle-aged men have pleasant day-to-day experiences?

Imagine, if you will, an automobile shop, run by a rough yet kind man and his friends. They’re all getting a bit old, but they would not trade their shop for anything in the world. Every day, between fixing engines and repairing brakes, they take the time to sit around at a small, rickety table discussing anything that comes to their mind. Though they may posture and ridicule each other, at the end of the day they know their friendship is stronger than anything.

It’s slow, it’s pleasant, and it’s manly.

I Can Clearly Hear It, the Galaxy’s Song: Macross Frontier 1-13

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If one were to describe a Macross series, there would be many recurring concepts: war, transforming fighter jets, idol singers, love triangles, culture. However, if one were to describe the feelings conveyed by each series, theywould be hard-pressed to find too many similarities. The original Super Dimensional Fortress Macross feels different from Macross Plus, which in turn has little in common with Macross 7 or Macross Zero thematically. They all exist in the same universe, but they could not be further from each other without turning into Gaogaigar and Betterman.

So it can be mighty confusing when I say that Macross Frontier, or at least the first half of it, feels like Macross.

Macross Frontier is the 25th anniversary celebration of Studio Nue’s Macross, and with it comes a return to the original in terms of pacing, characterization, and the specific balance of love and war and the way they intertwine. Nowhere is this more evident than in  the main love triangle of Macross Frontier.

The “love triangle” has been a constant part of Macross since day one with Hikaru, Misa, and Minmay. Still, I have always found the original love triangle to be the best because it truly seemed like a battle for the heart, a battle whose landscape is transformed radically by war and the circumstances surrounding it. Macross Plus is less about developing love and more about resolving an existing one, Macross Zero’s is wrapped in its own lore, and Macross 7’s you can hardly call a love triangle when it involves a guy who likes a girl, a girl who kind of likes both, and a guy who doesn’t care. In every case, the romantic tension is lacking, a tension which I believe factors significantly into the success of the original.

Macross Frontier’s three main characters, Saotome Alto, Sheryl Nome, and Ranka Lee, recapture that tension. Saotome Alto is an amateur fighter pilot and former theatrical actor. Sheryl Nome, the “Galactic Fairy,” is by far the biggest music idol of the day. Ranka Lee is a young girl working at a Chinese restaurant who aspires to be a pop idol. Mankind’s encounter with the Vajra, a violent alien race so powerful it can easily avoid an Itano Circus, brings Alto, Sheryl, and Ranka together and ties their destinies together.

It all sounds very familiar, but I am in no way saying that Macross Frontier is treading old ground, or that it’s some sort of lazy throwback to time immaterial (the 1980s). Already from my small and deliberately basic description, there are some things which are new and refreshing, particularly in this current age of anime. Unlike previous series, the main characters are all involved in performance in very different ways. There’s also the fact that we have not one but two idols with many years of experience of difference between them, with Sheryl being both Ranka’s surrogate mother (Ranka herself losing her parents at an early age), and her conflicted rival for the affections of Alto. Just like in the original Macross, I cannot bring myself to hate either girl or Alto, and also like in the original, I cannot seem to decide who I want to side with at the moment. I like this feeling. It’s one I’ve enjoyed before, and yet it feels so new.

Macross has always used its continuity as merely a backdrop, unlike say, Robotech, which thrives on it. However, whereas the latest incarnation of Robotech is marred by this devotion to continuity, Macross Frontier’s many, many nods to the past, a live performance of My Boyfriend is a Pilot and a car radio playing Planet Dance being just two examples, fit right in without overwhelming the viewer with backstory. History lessons are welcomed, but are not absolutely necessary, so what you end up having is a series which is progress not for the sake of progress but for making something worth watching and worth remembering.

The suspense is so great I may deculture my pants.