Category Archives: anime

Turn A = Science, Z Gundam = Liberal Arts, G Gundam = Athletics: Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei Episode 5

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I normally don’t discuss just individual episodes here, but there’s enough content in this episode for about two or three posts, so I think this is totally warranted.

Wow.

Zetsubou Sensei is probably the finest SHAFT/Shinbo show to date on every level and episode 5 goes a long way in showing why exactly they’ve stepped up their game.

You want to know how to make a reference-based joke funny? Zetsubou Sensei shows you how to do it. The timing of each joke is superb. The references are explicit without being overt, and don’t dominate the joke itself. The references, be they the above screenshot, the above title of the post, or Goku and Vegeta sillhouettes fighting each other as Zetsubou Sensei refers to the harsh physical requirements of athletic events are used to support the humor rather than act as the entire joke itself (something certain otaku comedians, especially ones who refer to themselves as such, need to learn).

More importantly, Zetsubou Sensei doesn’t even rely on reference-based jokes the way, say, Pani Poni Dash does. The absurdity of a cultural athletic festival is topped by the even more absurd athletic culture festival. Prior notions of tsundere are twisted and shattered. This is anime! This is Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei! The land of wild fantasies and desires! (In the theme of Zetsubou Sensei, this is actually a reference that most of you will not get).

As always, the show is visually rich and a plain joy to watch with its strong use of color and composition, reinforced by delightfully comedic characters with strong personalities to keep it all grounded. I don’t care who your favorite Zetsubou Sensei girl is, this episode just presented all of them so well I’m sure you’re pleased.

I know I am.

I would eat her curry anytime.

The Passive Protagonist

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I’ve learned that many, many people do not like passive protagonists. They are seen as weak-willed, indecisive, unpleasant to watch, and just plain too passive. There’s nothing I can do to stop people from feeling this way, but it makes me wonder why I, for example, like the passive protagonist whose life is changed by circumstances beyond his control.

The second most hated anime protagonist of all time is everyone’s favorite human male Evangelion pilot Ikari Shinji (thanks, Itou Makoto for taking the position of most hated). Shinji is a very passive protagonist who, while capable of taking action, only does so as a reaction to things happening around him. It’s not because he’s poorly written, or that he’s necessarily a surrogate for the viewer. Shinji is the way he is, and his passive nature is a direct result of the events in his life, as well as his inability to truly take action for himself.

I can’t fault Shinji for that. I can’t even fault him for never quite getting over it, just as I can’t really fault people for not liking Shinji’s character. But it makes me think of the sheer difference two lives can experience to the point that one person will connect to a character such as Shinji while the other will immediately reject him. And of course, one may turn into the other as we accumulate more experiences in our lives.

The Genshiken 2 DVDs continue to be de-fogged

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Let’s just leave it at that.

Double-sided Devil: Watching Anime and Learning Japanese

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I’ve studied Japanese for a few years. I studied in Japan for half a year. It’s been two years since I stopped studying Japanese in school, though I still try to keep up with things. My Japanese has more than a few holes in it, and I don’t get enough practice speaking these days.

And all this time, I have been an otaku.

The otaku in the Japanese classroom is considered by some to be one of the most unpleasant aspects of taking Japanese classes. I don’t really believe this to be true, because the real culprit isn’t being an otaku, it’s having no actual desire to learn the language. Even if it’s not something you plan to pursue well into fluency, throwing around baka and sugoi doesn’t benefit anyone.

That said, I believe anime CAN help you learn and improve your Japanese. Being an otaku does not put you at a disadvantage. It does not impede your education as long as you know what to watch out for.

Do not take the words spoken in anime as any indication of what is formal or even informal or friendly speech. A lot of anime does not try to accurately portray Japanese society, but rather tries to reflect upon it. There’s really no steadfast rule here. You basically have to learn how to filter out anything that is too unusual, or to learn it but to keep in mind that it’s unusual.

Learning vocabulary also falls into this category. You have to take what you learn and refine it. For example, memorizing special attacks and technique names alone won’t help you in any normal or academic situation, but I think they can give the aspiring Japanese-learning otaku and introduction to the difference between on and kun readings, as well as kanji compound formation.

The best way to put it perhaps, is to say that if you have the drive to learn the language, any usage of it no matter how odd can benefit you as long as you let it and know how to let it.

Oh, and I don’t think anything needs to be said about reading raw manga and learning from there.

Put the all-character splash image at the end of openings to bed

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They appear to be some unusual obligation, and more often than not I feel like they make openings worse than they could have been if they had only ended the video prior to it. The number of shows that I could describe in this regard are probably more than I can count.

As an example of an opening which ends on a NOT-Splash Image and ends up being better for it, I present Rose of Versailles:

Back to the Basics

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I learned a little about myself recently: The title of this blog is very appropriate.

I haven’t really talked much about Genshiken in a while, and it’s expected. The second series is over, the manga is long over. I’ve talked about it numerous times in this blog.

But then recently one morning, I was suddenly struck by the lighting called Ogiue.

The sheer presence of her character moves me to evaluate myself and try to improve, in a number of ways. Sometimes it doesn’t work out, but hey, this is fiction, and Ogiue, as realistic and complex she may be, is not real (as much as I might sometimes prefer otherwise). The events of her life are incorporated into the greater goal of a good story.

So Ogiue Maniax. I talk about Ogiue.

Because I CAN”T HELP IT.

Shugo Chara!: No, Seriously, I Really Do Like It

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I’ve talked about Shugo Chara! here in the past, but I feel that I haven’t done a proper job of conveying how highly I think of the series, so I’m here to correct that. I’ve already summarized the basic premise Shugo Chara! in my first post on it, so I won’t really elaborate on that point.

Honestly, I’m almost surprised at how well Shugo Chara! has held up. It’s simply a joy to watch every episode, to see the interactions between the characters, to cheer for Hinamori Amu as she falls in love and teaches herself and others to never give up on their dreams. I mean, who doesn’t want to support a girl who more than anything wants to be herself, only to realize that the “herself” she wants to be has limitless potential? A person can never be too old to reach for the stars, especially when those stars are deep within one’s own heart.

The show is simply very strong on a variety of technical notes. It has a very bright and refreshing artwork with a heavy pink and plaid motif. The humor brings a smile to my face with its charming innocence. The theme songs are catchy and match the opening visuals quite well. The overarching plot is something to watch out for, but on a purely episodic level and everywhere in between Shugo Chara! keeps my attention.

And the characters! I won’t go too much into them, but I will say that it would have been so very, very easy to make a lot of the characters annoying and unbearable. Amu’s sister, fellow Shugo Chara owner Yaya, and especially the Shugo Charas themselves all had the potential to be deal breakers, but they are all very enjoyable characters. Especially Yaya.

Though I do find it odd that the person Yaya wishes to be is a baby. I wonder if she’s maybe an older sister who has to take care of her younger siblings, and she wishes she could live a more normal life at home. I’m probably reading too much into it.

I can safely say that Shugo Chara! is the best Peach Pit series I’ve seen. Yes, more than Rozen Maiden. And yes, especially more than DearS. Shugo Chara! is perhaps the finest modern mahou shoujo series I’ve seen since Cardcaptor Sakura.

Oh, and the best Shugo Chara? Miki, by far. I’m just saying.

My Kind of Moe: Ballad of a Shinigami

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A Mysterious Ancient Force dropped a book into my lap last week. It’s the first volume of “Ballad of a Shinigami,” possibly better known as Shinigami no Ballad, one of the premiere titles in Seven Seas Entertainment’s new line of light novels.

Ballad of a Shinigami is many small stories with one common theme: the arrival of an unusual shinigami named Momo. Unlike her dark and gloomy peers, Momo is a young girl clad in all white, save for a pair of red shoes. Accompanied by her servant, a talking winged cat named Daniel, Momo fulfills her duty of bringing souls into the afterlife, but not without bending the rules here and there along the way.

I have to admit that I was a little worried that it would be a little too cutesy. The dialogue, either by original script or translation or possibly both, is a little stilted and awkward. However, Ballad of a Shinigami turns out to be a very pleasant surprise. The central theme of the novel is change. The characters, no matter their afflictions, possess incredible heart and inner strength. If they don’t, then they have friends and certain other worldly white-clad individuals helping them to change, to accept their pasts while moving towards their ever uncertain futures with heads held high. By the end, I hardly noticed the writing’s awkwardness, as the emotion of it all took over.

It would be so easy for this to be a sweet, cathartic tale, but it isn’t and we’re all the better for it. Momo inspires the people she meets to grow and mature. As a shinigami she teaches people to accept death and pain, a small price to pay for growth and maturity.

When characters suffer and change and progress, it is my kind of moe.

A dream which vaguely counts as anime-related

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I had a dream last night, which I want to share with all of you.

In the dream, I had friends who I told to go to an awesome arcade on Thursday, but they didn’t. So I decided instead to go that following Friday. There, after playing some games and some trouble with my credit card, I noticed that the arcade was connected to a restaurant, and that connected to the restaurant was a Super Smash Bros. Brawl  tournament going on. There, the MC shouted, “Are we here to have FUN?” And the crowd shouted back, “NO!”

I was viewing this from a hidden entrance. I found out shortly after while eavesdropping that this was an entrance people weren’t supposed to know about to keep people from flooding in to play Brawl.

Then, in a seamless transition which happens only in dreams, I was watching an episode of the Simpsons.

…with guest star Nagato Yuki.

The Simpsons were under house arrest for bootlegging movies. Homer shouts, “THEY’RE CALLED VCDS!!!”

Luckily, Yuki has a plan. She has a robot marge distract the cops, while the Simpsons and Yuki are camoflauged to blend in with the fence. Yuki falls down, but tells the family to keep running.

Sadly, this is where I woke up, so I do not know how this episode ends.

Con Identity

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I have been to very few cons, and I can hardly call myself a “con-goer.”

Hell, I can list the cons I’ve been to easily: Lunacon 2002, 2003, and I think 2005. I-Con 2003. Otakon 2006 and 2007. Tekkoshocon 2006. PAS Spring Anime Fest once or twice if that counts. New York Anime Festival.

That’s my entire history with cons both anime and non.

In my sparse experience though, I go to cons for mainly two reasons: panels and friends. I don’t think this is too different from other people, though there may be some disagreement as to which panels are worth the time. I prefer industry panels with Japanese guests, such as artists and directors. Probably my favorite panel so far was Otakon 2006 where the director of Madhouse whose name I keep forgetting despite promising not to was a guest. I try to stay away from cosplay and amv’s because they’re not really my thing, but I have nothing against them.

With what amounts to similar groups of fans going to each and every con, I begin to wonder what separates them, aside from geographical location. Why are the big cons the way that they are, and how do they differ from each other? I know some cons are considered big cosplay cons, and others big amv cons, and others are purely professional.

I find myself planning on going to Otakon again this year, without fully knowing the guests. Is it maybe becoming a habit? I’m not exactly sure what appeals to me about Otakon after all.