Category Archives: blogging

Spiral Stinger and Photobomber: Ogiue Maniax Status Update for August 2024

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Otakon 2024 is this weekend! There are a few guests I’m looking forward to seeing (and hopefully interviewing), like Kakazu Yumi (Shizuru in Godannar, Renais in Gaogaigar FINAL) and Uchida Aya (Minami in Love Live!).

I don’t have any panels this year, but good luck to all presenters! I might be in attendance at yours.

Patreon thanks to the following!

General:

Ko Ransom

Diogo Prado

Alex

Dsy

Sue Hopkins fans:

Serxeid

Hato Kenjirou fans:

Elizabeth

Yajima Mirei fans:

Machi-Kurada

Blog highlights from July

How Takanashi Kiara’s Retro Outfit Reflects Changing Beauty Standards

The phoenix of hololive got a new outfit recently, retro in aesthetics but not necessarily proportions.

Miki Kinemi and the Electrifying Characters of Blue Period

Join the Miki Kinemi Fan Club today!

La+ Darknesss Is Now a Shoujo Manga Author

This hololive VTuber has now been published in Hana to Yume magazine!

Kio Shimoku

A new Spotted Flower chapter and a new volume! Find out more from Kio’s tweets.

Closing

See you in Washington DC, maybe!

Muscling Through: Ogiue Maniax Status Update for July 2024

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Things are looking dire in the United States because of the recent Supreme Court decision that grants presidents broad powers with few if any checks. I will admit that I’m very concerned about this, but all I will say is that those who think they’ll be safe from abuse of power are fooling themselves. Independence and freedom don’t just mean “I can do whatever the hell I want, even if others suffer for it.”

I hope that talking about anime will provide some comfort as I think about what to do next.

The summer anime season is officially upon us, and there’s lots of anime being remade and revived right now. The one I’m looking forward to most is Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Arc, which is based on the 2011 continuation of the original Kinnikuman manga. Based on the promotional materials, I feel like it actually has a chance of getting some real traction with a modern audience. Might Kinnikuman be the next JoJo in the English-speaking market?

I hope so.

Thank you to the following Patreon supporters for the month:

General:

Ko Ransom

Diogo Prado

Alex

Dsy

Sue Hopkins fans:

Serxeid

Hato Kenjirou fans:

Elizabeth

Yajima Mirei fans:

Machi-Kurada

Blog highlights from May

The Psychological Price of Distance—Gundam Reconguista in G Part IV: The Love That Cries Out in Battle

My review of the 4th G-Reco movie.

Revisiting “The Transformers: The Movie”

This is a movie from my childhood, but it had been a long time since I watched it in full.

La+ Darknesss Is Now a Shoujo Manga Author

This hololive VTuber has now been published in Hana to Yume magazine!

Kio Shimoku

He has an artbook coming out soon! He talks about this and more in his tweets.

Closing

A lot of hololive birthdays and concerts happened in June, but I think the ones I want to point out most are the Japanese 1st Generation’s 6th anniversary concert (featuring Haachama) and the Gawr Gura 2024 city-pop-themed birthday concert. Not only did La+ show up as a guest, but Gura actually threw in a reference to Legend of the Galactic Heroes!

Soul of Where’d My Money Go: Ogiue Maniax Status Update for June 2024

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As we inch closer to summer (and all the fun and horror that entails), I find myself a little spend-happy. What can I do when the Soul of Chogokin line announced a ton of new releases for their 50th anniversary?! There’s the DX Showa Mechagodzilla, Shinkalion, Tryon 3 (aka the very first Gundam entry in the SoC line), and it doesn’t even stop there. It’s impossible for me to buy all of them, but I am ever so tempted to do so.

I also started playing Elden Ring this month. I don’t know if I’ll do a full review or anything, but it’s inspiring me to at least write one or two posts somewhat related to it.

This past month also saw the birthday of hololive’ La+ Darknesss! I decided to celebrate by pulling out the old ink and brush and drawing a quick portrait. I used to post more art to Ogiue Maniax, but that mostly fell by the wayside a long time ago. I keep trying to convince myself to do more again, but we’ll see.

Thank you to the following Patreon supporters for the month:

General:

Ko Ransom

Diogo Prado

Alex

Dsy

Sue Hopkins fans:

Serxeid

Hato Kenjirou fans:

Elizabeth

Yajima Mirei fans:

Machi-Kurada

Blog highlights from May

When the Shounen Good Boy Gets Hate: Tanjiro, Deku, and Anti-Antiheroes

My thoughts on the “good boy” protagonist, and responding to criticisms of such characters.

A Hot Spring Inn in Ogiue’s Home Prefecture: Meigetsuso

Another report from my trip to Japan last year! This time, I visited Yamagata Prefecture.

Crawling Through the Dark: End of Evangelion

I watched End of Evangelion in theaters. Here are my thoughts returning to this film after many years.

Kio Shimoku

Not a whole lotta tweets this month.

Closing

I keep on thinking about upping my foreign language learning, but I have yet to fully commit. I’m considering trying one of those language partner/tutor sites, but I don’t know where to even begin.

Too Many Good Shows, Really: Ogiue Maniax Status Update for May 2024

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The spring 2024 anime season turns out to be absurdly good! There are many highlights among the new shows, but I think chief among them are Train to the End of the World, Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night, and Go! Go! Loser Ranger! It’s also interesting seeing Shinkalion: Change the World try to be a little more mature. I wonder if it’s aiming for the kids who grew up on the first two Shinkalion anime.

Thanks to my Patreon supporters for the month, especially the following people!

General:

Ko Ransom

Diogo Prado

Alex

Dsy

Sue Hopkins fans:

Serxeid

Hato Kenjirou fans:

Elizabeth

Yajima Mirei fans:

Machi-Kurada

Blog highlights from April

One Piece, the Five Elders, and Going Beyond Expectations

The One Piece manga has never been more exciting than it is now.

Time Well Spent: “Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End”

Frieren is indeed as good as everyone says. I’ve rarely seen an anime impress me this much.

Bara Bara Obari: Bang Brave Bang Bravern

A celebration of super robot anime that forges its own path.

Kio Shimoku

For fans of Ogiue (and Ogiue doppelgangers), this is a good month.

Closing

It feels like it’s been a while since all of my highlighted posts are just straight-up reviews and analyses of specific anime and manga titles. I wonder if this trend will continue.

Never Stop Sparking: Ogiue Maniax Status Update for April 2024

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March was a hell of a month and kind of a bad time for fans of Japanese creators, between the deaths of Toriyama Akira, Tarako (the voice of the main character in Chibi Maruko-chan), and Inomata Mutsumi (character designer on the Tales RPG series). I feel like I’m still reeling from the passing of Matsumoto Leiji and Kimura Takahiro last year. It drives home to me the conviction that I need to cherish artists, performers, and creators—because you never know when things might change.

At the same time, I’m still high off the hype of hololive 5th fes. I can’t stop watching all those wonderful performances, and I’m looking forward to whenever the Blu-ray comes out. And how about that Bravern, huh? Expect a review soon.

April is when the Japanese school year starts, and while that has nothing to do with my life, I feel a sense of renewal in the air. Maybe it’s my imagination.

Thank you to my Patreon subscribers for April!

General:

Ko Ransom

Diogo Prado

Alex

Dsy

Sue Hopkins fans:

Serxeid

Hato Kenjirou fans:

Elizabeth

Yajima Mirei fans:

Machi-Kurada

Blog highlights from March:

A Bird Among Dragons: Remembering Toriyama Akira

Here are the ways the work of arguably the world’s most influential manga creatro touched my life.

Above and Beyond: hololive 5th fes. Capture the Moment

This year, I stayed up to watch hololive’s big annual concert series. Was that a good idea? In any case, here are my thoughts about the event.

Dare to Defy the Past: Soaring Sky! Precure

The 20th anniversary of Precure brought one of the most innovative series to the franchise.

Kio Shimoku

A pretty quiet month of Kio tweets (though if you follow his account, you’ll know that he retweets a lot of artists and stuff).

Related to this, I finally found out FUWAMOCO’s favorite Genshiken character!

Closing

The spring 2024 anime season is upon us, and it is stacked, especially when it comes to returning series and sequels. Here’s to hoping that Shinkalion: Change the World actually gets picked up for streaming!

Virtual Tumult: Ogiue Maniax Status Update for March 2024

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I broke an internal rule this month, which was that I try not to post about VTubers more than twice in a month. However, extenuating circumstances resulted in me doing three posts. One was because of the unprecedented events surrounding the termination of Selen Tatsuki, aka Dokibird. Another was the fact that the La+ Darknesss Waku Waku Dark Nightmare Solo Live was available only until March 1. And the last was the post I had actually planned all along: a celebration of Hakos Baelz for her rare Leap Year birthday. How rare is it that three of my absolute favorites would end up having something big in the same February?

And that’s not even considering that hololive 5th fes is in a couple weeks.

I’ve started to think about a Venn diagram between VTubers, pro wrestling, soap operas, and superhero comics. The concepts of loose continuity, neverending stories, kayfabe, and more make for a fascinating thought exercise. I don’t know when or even if this’ll become a real post, but I keep thinking about it.

Thanks to my Patreon subscribers below for this month:

General:

Ko Ransom

Diogo Prado

Alex

Dsy

Sue Hopkins fans:

Serxeid

Hato Kenjirou fans:

Elizabeth

Yajima Mirei fans:

Machi-Kurada

Blog highlights from February:

Laughing It Off: Celebrating Dokibird and Selen Tatsuki

A VTuber came back from the brink, and I am grateful she’s still around.

BaeDay 2024: The Unceasing Force of Hakos Baelz

One of the hardest working hololive members around.

Shinkalion and Japan’s Railway Museum

I wish the US had a train museum this good (and also train-themed robot franchise).

Kio Shimoku

Kio tweets about cool stuff, but he also came out with his official Genshiken LINE stickers!!!

Closing

I said last month that my Japan posts might go past February. That is clearly more than a “maybe” now. I bet April will even be likely at this point.

Bang Blog Bang Bloggern: Ogiue Maniax Status Update for February 2024

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It’s February, which means the day everyone with romance in their hearts looks forward to.

That’s right: It’s new Precure anime time. And with Precure Full Bloom and Soarin’ Sky Precure finished, I’m hoping to have reviews of both series done this month.

Of course, the must-watch show for me this season is Bang Brave Bang Bravern. The culture clash between a very super robot and a gritty realistic world is hilarious, and I want to see where it all goes.

This month is also a momentous time for two of my favorite VTubers. La+ Darknesss, fresh off a new outfit reveal, will be having her first solo concert. It’s sponsored by Nissin UFO yakisoba, of all things. Meanwhile, Hakos Baelz will be celebrating her February 29 birthday with streams every day (and hopefully won’t collapse from overwork). After the string of unfortunate VTuber events recently, I am looking forward to some fun times.

Thank you to my Patreon subscribers!

General:

Ko Ransom

Diogo Prado

Alex

Dsy

Sue Hopkins fans:

Serxeid

Hato Kenjirou fans:

Elizabeth

Yajima Mirei fans:

Machi-Kurada

Blog highlights from January:

Comiket, at Long Last: Comic Market 103

After two decades of wanting to go to the largest doujin event of all, I finally made it.

In Search of Hanayo: My “Love Live!” GiGo Collabo Cafe Experience

Another highlight of my Japan trip!

Nico Nico Douga, Natsuiro Matsuri, and Nostalgia for Asynchronous Chat

Thoughts on the benefits of the Nico Nico comment system.

Kio Shimoku

Kio exploring making LINE stickers.

Closing

I definitely have more posts about my Japan trip on the way! They might even go past February.

I Comied, I Ketted, I Con-quered: Ogiue Maniax Status Update for January 2024

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Welcome to 2024!

I mentioned having some fun surprises last month, and I let the cat out of the bag on Twitter a few days ago: I attended Comic Market for the first time!

While I don’t have a schedule fully planned out, you can expect the next couple months to have at least a few blog posts about my experience at Comiket, as well as other bits of my trip to Japan. I’m actually a bit worried about them overshadowing other topics, including the new anime season, but hopefully it’ll all work out.

May the Year of the Dragon bring fortune to everyone, but especially my Patreon subscribers:

General:

Ko Ransom

Diogo Prado

Alex

Dsy

Sue Hopkins fans:

Serxeid

Hato Kenjirou fans:

Elizabeth

Yajima Mirei fans:

Machi-Kurada

Blog highlights from December:

Best Anime Characters of 2023

The annual tradition continues.

The Role of Unique Voices in VTubing, K-Pop, and More

Some thoughts I’ve been having about how singers are presented in various media.

Anime NYC 2023 Was a hololive Bonanza

My con report, at least for all the hololive content that was there.

Kio Shimoku

Kio drew a special Christmas Ogiue!

Closing

I did experience the earthquake that hit Ishikawa Prefecture, but fortunately only from a great distance. I know there have been some tragic losses, but I hope everything gets up and running for those most affected.

Holy Moly Holidays: Ogiue Maniax Status Update for December 2023

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Whenever I get around to December, I begin to think about my annual tradition, where I post about my favorite characters of the year. I’ve had one in mind all year long, but there’s another who’s a bit of a late entry of sorts.

I’ve also been enjoying the heck out of the holoX 2nd Anniversary streams, especially La+’s (naturally). I highly recommend them all, but want to draw particular attention to La+’s performance with HimeHina.

Happy holidays to all my Patreon subscribers for December:

General:

Ko Ransom

Diogo Prado

Alex

Dsy

Sue Hopkins fans:

Serxeid

Hato Kenjirou fans:

Elizabeth

Yajima Mirei fans:

Machi-Kurada

Blog highlights from November:

Attack on Titan: The Final Conclusive Ending Denouement

My thoughts on the controversial ending and the equally controversial main character

I Imported Japanese Curry Because of a VTuber

Spoilers: The curry is good, and you should check out Sena Aimi.

The Unbearable Weight of the Past: Space Battleship Yamato 2202

Reviewing the sequel to a remake, one that poses some tough questions.

Kio Shimoku

Kio will have one of his works adapted to live-action, but probably not the one you’re thinking of.

Apartment 507

Yohane the Parhelion

Closing

In other news, I’ll be doing a bit of traveling at the end of the year, and I hope I can come back with some worthwhile stories to share.

Ogimani Blogemi 16: Ogiue Maniax 16th Anniversary

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I occasionally picture myself old and gray and still writing Ogiue Maniax. You really never know what the future might hold, but tomorrow will be 16 years since I started, and it increasingly feels like that vision might come true. 

Blogging this year has been more of a challenge through reasons somewhat beyond my control. I’ve considered reducing my posting schedule further, but I do worry that it’ll put even more pressure on me to make every blog entry some kind of refined masterpiece. 

That said, I do think I might be imposing overly high standards on myself. Recently, I was recalling the earliest days of Ogiue Maniax, when I let just about anything escape my brain and end up in a post, and I’ve started to wonder if I should make at least a partial return to those days. I’ve positioned myself as someone with a degree of insight, but maybe I should be more comfortable having some mediocre opinions every now and then.

Funnily enough, what made me think about returning to the basics is the continued and active enshittification of Twitter. Over the past seven years or so, I decided to let my more off-the-cuff thoughts exist on Twitter while I devoted longer form things to the blog, but now that everything is on fire on Twitter, I might very well find myself spit balling right here. I’ve joined some alternatives like Bluesky, Mastodon, and Threads, but am still unsure of where I’ll land.

Ultimately, what Ogiue Maniax has become is not so much a career or even a life‘s calling, but something much simpler. It’s a place for me to question, be it myself, others, why I feel the way I do. It’s a place for me to anchor my passion. And sometimes it’s work, in a certain sense, but I’m really only beholden to myself and the notion that I can grow by writing. This is a home online I’ve been building for the last 16 years, and each post is another brick. Will I ever be done? Let’s see.