Category Archives: review

A Look at Genshiken Volume 11’s Extras

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The latest volume of Genshiken came out towards the end of 2011, and I was fortunate enough to get a copy by intentionally pre-ordering it twice (they say we make our own luck). As with every other Genshiken, there are a bunch of extra little things like 4-koma to give us more insight into the world of the characters. While not as packed with new information as Volume 10, there are still plenty of things to discover.

For reference, Volume 11 covers the following chapters, which I have reviewed before.

Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67

Sue’s Ogiue collection: The first new thing is the inside cover, behind the dust jacket. Here we see Sue surrounded by Ogiue merchandise. While the PVC figure with its changeable clothing is real, I can tell you with the utmost confidence that the vast majority of the stuff in this room are “what-ifs” at best. You’ll note the Ogiue dolls hanging above, one for each of her “eras,” not counting junior high flashbacks or ComiFest disguises. Interestingly, the picture of Ogiue’s Lilith-esque demon cosplay on that wall scroll is the first time we ever get to see why exactly Ogiue was so intent on hiding her chest when Sasahara came into the room. Lilith-esque indeed.

Women and body hair: A 4-koma where Yoshitake talks about the fact that she has rather long arm-hair makes me realize just how much body hair is a thing in Genshiken, and how much this has to do with the mostly female cast. I think it’s no surprise that it wasn’t really an issue when the club was mostly men, but now we have Yajima talking about how she only shaves her pits when she has to, and Hato accidentally showing his “smoothness.” While it’s not like you can see tufts of hair on their arms or mustaches, the fact that Genshiken has bothered to make this into an on-going topic shows that it’s not afraid to go some places. Then again, this is from the man who screen-toned veins onto breasts for Jigopuri.

Speaking of breasts: A good number of the 4-koma in Volume 11 are concerned with bust sizes, owing to the fact that Hato wore a large chest for his Yamada from Kujian cosplay. Of these, the ones that I think are most interesting are the one where Yajima points out that you can’t exactly say she’s “busty” when her figure resembles a sumo wrestler’s (her own self-disparaging words), and the one where Nakajima mentions that she’s smaller than Ogiue (which she begrudges). Upon reading Nakajima’s 4-koma, I realized that I did not notice this at all in any of her appearances, which is to say that Kio has drawn and characterized Nakajima well as someone who knows how to dress.

Hato’s ultimate cosplay: Hato dresses up as Charles from Infinite Stratos. In other words, a man cosplays as a woman disguising herself as a man.

Ogiue’s Sasa x Mada doujin is a big hit: The freshmen like Ogiue’s doujinshi so much that they all end up making copies of it. The fact that there are people in the club with whom she can really share it is a big step from where she was back when she drew it, and again I have to perhaps point to how different the new generation of club members has turned out to be. That said, it’s clear from just this one panel that it’s equal parts comforting and disconcerting for her.

Heroic Spirit Hopkins: I know a certain Hisui of the Reverse Thieves is going to get a kick out of this one. In the end-of-volume extra, the members of Genshiken discuss the endless enigma that is Sue, trying to figure out the source of her power, both physical and mental. In the end, Sue clarifies for everyone when she says, “I ask of you, are you my master?”

Totally off-topic but: There’s an insert in the volume for Kodansha’s line of light novels, and one of them is a continuation of the Ojamajo Doremi series with the characters now 16 years old! Aptly titled Ojamajo Doremi 16, it features artwork by the original character designer, Umakoshi Yoshihiko, who also did the designs for Heartcatch Precure! and whose art book you should purchase, because it’s totally awesome. As I haven’t finished the Doremi series, I won’t check it out just yet.

The Hato figure: While I own it (as well as the version from the latest issue of Afternoon), I don’t have it on me, so I can’t show it to everyone. Give me a few months.

Kind of Lumpy But Also Swell: Abobo’s Big Adventure

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Double Dragon for the NES is a game that somewhat exemplifies the 8-bit era of video games. Lacking the multiplayer co-op of the original arcade, the game makes up for it with a combination of tight controls and absurd glitches. Whether it’s beating up on an invisible enemy for experience, watching an enemy fall through solid rock, or defeating opponents by climbing up or down until you can’t see them anymore, it had that right amounts of notorious difficulty and sheer fun. It’s with this spirit in mind that Abobo’s Big Adventure was developed, and as one of many who grew up with games of the NES generation, I decided to try it out when it debuted last week. Starring the physically largest enemy in Double Dragon, the game is an elaborate homage to that era, packed with references to an almost innumerable amount of games.

The (very) basic story has Abobo going through various worlds, from Mario to Pro Wrestling, all in order to rescue his son, and the cut-scenes often make light of the fact that Abobo is an unlikely hero, being a boss character originally. In this regard, I find Abobo’s Big Adventure to be at its best when it fulfills more than just an itch for the Nintendo days of yore and actively makes you feel like you’re controlling a beefy “master” (remember when bosses were sometimes called masters?) whose normal job is to make a protagonist regret his path in life. The first stage, a remake of the original Mission 1 from the NES Double Dragon, has Abobo giving nasty overhead chops which take out giant chunks of health in a way a puny martial artist’s spin kicks never could. Stage 3 pits Abobo against one of the characters from rudimentary fighting game Urban Champion, only the situation is entirely unwinnable by the opponent. Try as he he might, the poor “Urban Champ’s” fists cannot make a dent in Abobo’s rock-hard abs. Obviously the difficulty in this section is absolutely zero, but NES homages don’t always have to be about “NES-difficulty,” and it provides a feeling similar to the Wario games, where Wario bowls over enemies where Mario would typically lose lives and in doing so shows how much tougher he is by comparison. The final stage may be the epitome of expressing the power of Abobo, as it literally sets you in the boss position against a good guy in a scenario I think many fans of video games have wondered about for years.

On the flip-side, the biggest shortcoming of Abobo’s Big Adventure is that in some stages it just feels like the original game with an Abobo skin on top. The Zelda and Mega Man sections are especially bad at this, as they do not even bother to give Abobo anything functionally special, other than increased health. Giving the massive Abobo the ability to walk through solid doors in the Zelda level for instance would’ve been a way to emphasize his power and girth. The Mega Man level brings in the infamous Quick Man lasers, and Abobo is just as vulnerable to them as anyone else (i.e. he dies instantly). While I understand something of a desire to be faithful to the originals, these examples could have used as much care as the other parts of the game.

Overall, I think the game is worth a shot, especially given that it’s absolutely free and can be put down at any time. It has a good deal of heart in it, and that shows more prominently in some parts than others.

Creamy Mami, All Right In the End I Guess

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A few months ago when I decided to write my mid-series thoughts on the 80s magical girl anime Mahou no Tenshi Creamy Mami, I expressed some dissatisfaction with the show. With a story centered around a young girl who gains the ability to transform into an older version of herself, and who becomes a beloved pop star as a result, the fault I found in Creamy Mami is that did not do enough to convey its main character Yuu as a normal girl. All of her friends around her age were boys somehow romantically linked to her, and she seemingly never had a normal environment such as as school setting which you could contrast with her adventures.

Shortly after I published that post, I went into the second half of Creamy Mami and lo and behold, the anime now featured her attending classes and talking to female classmates. Seeing as it’s highly unlikely that my thoughts somehow traveled back in time and influenced the production of Creamy Mami, I can only imagine that similar criticisms were brought up at the time, and that at the half-way point they decided to do something about it. At the same time, the show was also clearly successful enough to hit that 6-month mark and continue (and I know there are OVAs and such as well).

While they eventually resolved some of the issues with Creamy Mami, I have to say that it’s the kind of show where even though it gets better, it takes so long to do so that I can hardly expect anyone to stick around, even if it concludes well. Overall, it’s mostly a cute fluff kind of show, which can be nice, but you can also get cute fluff and some more substance from other shows.

Actually, if you want to know the best part about Creamy Mami, it’s probably the second ending theme, Love Sarigenaku. It’s catchy, and kind of a far cry from the rest of the songs in the show, in a good way.

Secret Santa: Planetes, for the Sake of Humanity

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For the 2011 edition of the Reverse Thieves Secret Santa, I was given three excellent titles to choose from. Given that I have been hearing good things about Planetes for a very long time though, I felt that it was the right and proper choice to make. After having watched through all 26 episodes, I find the series to be one that is difficult to pin down because of how it handles so many of its elements extremely well, and asks a great deal of its viewers without making it necessarily a “challenging” watch.  It is a show which eases you into its difficult, mentally engaging portions but also doesn’t let up on them either.

Planetes takes place in the early years of space colonization, when mankind is utilizing resources found outside of the Earth and has established cities on the moon and on orbiting satellites. In this era, space travel is naturally common, but decades of collected junk (old satellites, garbage launched into space, etc.) around Earth’s orbit have made it potentially dangerous. Even a seemingly harmless object becomes deadly when controlled by the unrestrained laws of motion. In order to combat this serious issue, mankind has developed the profession of “debris hauler,” a job which is absolutely vital to space travel but is treated with about as much reverence as a janitor. The story of Planetes focuses primarily on these debris haulers, especially the brash-but-serious veteran Hoshino “Hachimaki” Hachirota, and the new recruit filled with lofty ideals for people and space, Tanabe Ai. Together, they work for the Debris Section of their company, derisively referred to as the “Half-Section” for being perpetually understaffed.

Though I cannot comment on the accuracy of the science in Planetes, I can say that it plays a large role in the series, particularly how inertia works in space. It is taken seriously, and though the show feels light-hearted, the seriousness of their respective positions is also made immediately apparent. As space debris is dangerous, so too is the work of a debris hauler, as they have to be prepared for the fact that every time they are out on the job could be their last.

The challenges of space travel are not simply limited to the tasks at hand, either. When it comes to expanding humanity further into the universe, there are very real consequences. Space development is seen as a way to benefit all of mankind, but the truth is that the wealthiest nations, the ones that have the funds to develop space programs, are the ones that profit the most. The gap between nations grows ever wider. Planetes is an anime that questions progress and development, the interaction of politics and science, personal motivations, the nature of human interaction, and even the way we view ourselves individually.

The beauty of the series, however, is that it does not give a clear winner in the conceptual battle of “cynicism” vs. “idealism,” nor does it say which side is which. Planetes does not push one side over another, as if to say that once you weigh all of the advantages and disadvantages of space travel relative to the state of mankind, you can figure out which is right. The answers are as myriad as the the show’s cast of characters, all of whom are fantastically developed and who contribute heavily to the unlikely combination of feel-good comedy, political intrigue, and genuine speculation, balanced in a way that very few works of science fiction are able to accomplish. Even when you disagree with them, you cannot deny their convictions.

Hachimaki decided to go into space because he wanted to go faster and further than ever before. Fee Carmichael, the pilot of the Half-Section debris ship “Toy Box,” is a chain-smoking pragmatist whose skills are the best in the business, but who shirks at the chance to get promoted because she feels her skills are most needed out in the “field” instead of being behind a desk. Werner Locksmith, the developer of the first inhabitable ship to Jupiter, is a brilliant mind whose emphasis on science over humanity can be shocking to those who expect empathy, but his attitude is also necessary for pushing space development technology further. Tanabe herself strongly believes that the key to everything is love, and that actions without love are lesser for it, an attitude which can be grating to those who see reality as a much harsher place. And yet it must be asked, who is truly naive, the one who believes that love connects humanity, or the one who believes that people are forever alone?

Similarly, some problems are seen as trivial when faced by issues of a larger scale, seemingly insurmountable ones which affect entire countries, but those in turn are dwarfed by the vastness of a perspective with the entirety of the universe in mind. Suddenly those “small problems” of the individual start to play a much greater role. In the end, Planetes never leaves you with a definitive answer to any of the questions it posits, leaving you to decide for yourself.

Before I finish, I feel that I must emphasize once again that somehow through all this, Planetes is fun and even a bit romantic. It takes itself seriously, but it also doesn’t neglect the personal joys that can be found in life. There isn’t anything quite like it.

Thick with Cyberpunk: Real Drive

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I’m here today to review the show Real Drive, also known as RD Sennou Chousatshitsu. While I started on the show years ago, early on in the life of this blog, I never got around to finishing it until recently. Even now that I have, I’m not entirely sure what to make of it (other than that I think it’s a good show overall), but I still want to draw attention to it because it is quite an unusual work, and I think it’s worth a look, if only for that.

Probably the most peculiar thing about Real Drive is that it’s an eclectic mix of elements that you normally wouldn’t associate together. While you might find other anime which are designed to appeal to as wide a number of fanbases as possible, the focuses here are so specific that their combined coverage only makes things more confusing. I’m going to group these elements into five basic categories.

Cyberpunk

The centerpiece of Real Drive is an advanced form of internet-like shared space called “The Metal,” portrayed as a kind of “ocean” into which characters must “dive.” Most of the characters in the story have replaced their organic brains with cybernetic ones which allow easier access to The Metal, while some have prosthetic bodies to slow aging, and others have androids to help out with a variety of tasks. As might be expected, the system isn’t perfect, and all of the stories involve The Metal in one way or another, and by extension things like human perception in a possibly post-human world.

Chubby Girls

Quite different from just about most visual entertainment out there (let alone anime and manga), the female characters in Real Drive, particularly the ones seen most frequently, range from athletic to voluptuous to legitimately overweight. Definitely meant to be cute, sexy, or both depending on the character, the presence of such portrayals of the female body is a constant in this show. Perceptions of sexual attraction plays a role in the story as well, but there is also a kind of slice-of-life feel, particularly with the high school girls in the cast but also even with the male characters.

Environmentalism

The ocean-like design of The Metal ties into the actual oceans, and the cyberpunk world of Real Drive is in part due to an environmental disaster which occurred many years prior to the main story. The sunny skies and constant presence of water make for a far cry from the Blade Runner visuals which people associate with terms like “cyberpunk” and “post-apocalypse.” The politics between technology and environment also come into play.

A Geriatric Protagonist

Real Drive is one of the few anime where you will find an octogenarian main character, and his age does play a role in the show and the overall story. A man who loved to dive (in the real ocean), only to have an accident and wake up about 50 years later, the unusual world of real drive is experienced largely through the eyes Haru Masamichi.

Episodic Format

While the show has some on-going plot lines, most of the show involves incidents that resolve after one or two episodes. These can range from people losing their consciousness in The Metal to the dreams of a musician to a lost dog, but even the “everyday comedy” stories will involve some aspect of the science fictional world in which Real Drive takes place. Overall, the approach enriches the scenario portrayed by the show, making it possibly better than a more focused on-going narrative.

Once I develop my thoughts on the themes, messages, and ideas presented by Real Drive I might write something more substantial, but for now I just want to think about its potential as a “gateway” anime, not so much for anime in general but for the various genres/aspects that are in this show. Could someone who comes to this show for the science fiction start to understand the appeal of girls talking over lunch? Could the converse also happen? I’m not entirely sure myself, and I think the combination has just as much potential to drive people away as it does to draw them in, but that is precisely why I think Real Drive is worth a look.

My Favorite Thing About The World God Only Knows

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With the premise of a dating sim-addicted nerd tasked to woo real women in order to exorcise loose demon souls from them by using his wealth of game-derived “knowledge,”  The World God Only Knows is the kind of anime that can very easily go wrong. Initially, I approached the series with some wariness, but after having finished the first season I found myself immediately eagerly continuing with the second one. Overall, I ended up being reasonably impressed by The World God Only Knows and it hinges on one reason in particular.

Given the concept of the series, it inevitably leads to a good number of female characters being introduced in order for the hero Keima to work his moves. In the case of The World God Only Knows, it also results in each girl having a particular problem that must be resolved in order Keima to win their heart, and the danger I felt was that it could potentially lead to the kind of series where a girl appears, Keima romances her and breaks the curse, and then her story is simply done, as if this romancing is the most important period of her life. Thankfully however, The World God Only Knows avoids that pitfall with grace and dignity.

Certainly Keima does make the girls fall for him, but rather than end up feeling like a girl’s story is reaching its conclusion, it’s more like their story is only just beginning. Keima acts as a turning point in their lives, where they resolve some long-standing (or perhaps recent) issue and come out the better for it, their mental and emotional states refreshed. The entire world is open to them. Also, they forget about falling in love with Keima so he doesn’t end up having half a dozen girls chasing him at all times.

Though perhaps The World God Only Knows could be called a visual novel-themed anime, it ends up behaving more like a healing anime. Showing the opportunities that can be available with some renewed perspective on life and the willingness to confront inner demons (no pun intended), The World God Only Knows maybe therapeutic to not only its cast of characters but perhaps to the viewers as well.

If you want to try it out, the entire thing is on Crunchyroll, and if you want more, keep in mind that it’s based on a manga.

One Piece: Genshiken II, Chapter 70

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Contrary to my expectations, Chapter 70 is not a School Festival Chapter, but rather the setup to one. As such, it’s more of a calm before the storm, but one where you can tell the waves are thrashing below the surface of the ocean.

In addition to the cosplay studio Genshiken has been putting out every year since Ohno joined, glorious leader Ogiue Chika has decided that the club will sell a special edition of their club magazine Mebaetame for the festivities. Gearing it towards story-based works, Ogiue intends to draw a manga while Yoshitake and Yajima decide to team up to create an illustrated story. Yoshitake’s idea is “Sengoku School Festival” or something along those lines, and nothing is holding them back aside from the fact that Yajima is not entirely confident in her own drawing skills and that Yoshitake has never written a story before.

Hato meanwhile is asked to draw something as well, Ogiue recognizing Hato’s vast potential as an artist, a level of ability that she believes might even surpass her own. However, what Ogiue does not know is that Hato has some very unusual limitations when it comes to art. When dressed as a woman, Hato is only capable of producing beautifully rendered BL. When dressed as a man, his style becomes much more… interesting.

Given that this edition of Mebaetame is meant to be sold to normal folks, having to avoid anything hardcore acts as a huge roadblock for Hato. He’s not alone though, as Ogiue herself appears to be having issues with her own work. The chapter actually begins in the middle of a conversation between Ogiue and Sasahara, who are discussing that classic art debate, creating for oneself vs. creating for an audience, as well as how one should take criticism. As Ogiue was the one who called Sasahara over to discuss it, it is clearly a conversation she was looking to have, but it is also obviously not easy for her.

There are difficulties outside of Genshiken as well, as it turns out Yabusaki and Asada have been kicked out of the Manga Society (Manken) for aiding the enemy, i.e. helping Ogiue sell her doujinshi at the last ComiFest. The ever-mysterious Katou (the one with the bangs obscuring her eyes) does not seem to be affected by this punishment, but is so busy trying to find a job as she nears graduation that she has simply not shown up. Both Yabusaki and Asada try to convince each other to join Genshiken, but it seems to not be so simple.

I find that this chapter has me anticipating the next one quite a bit. It doesn’t have quite the oomph of the previous Risa chapters, but I can feel it building up to the school festival. It’s like watching all of these various puzzle pieces start to slide into place, except you have no idea if you have all of the pieces or if they even all come from the same set. It’s exciting.

I think that the reveal with Yabusaki and Asada is a significant one that quite possibly says a lot. Why would Yabusaki and Asada be so unceremoniously dumped from the club that they’ve been a part of for so long just because they helped Ogiue out one time? The only way I can make any sense of it is that despite Yabusaki was able to foster a friendship with Ogiue, there must still be some bad blood between Ogiue and the remaining members of Manken. Most likely, they still have never forgotten the harsh and demeaning words Ogiue had for them in her less enlightened days.

But Ogiue has indeed changed, and we can see this throughout the manga. In addition to Yabusaki, just seeing how far the friendship between Ogiue and Sue has come is heartwarming. Sue is no longer the mysterious gaijin that must be handled with a hazmat suit but something of a genuine confidant. Ogiue’s brief recollection of Nakajima in this chapter shows that she still hasn’t forgotten those tougher days, but she’s a new person.

At this point I want to mention something that my very soul beckons me to say: I’ve missed Sasa x Ogi scenes. Even though this one is quite brief, it still showcases some of the powerful electricity that courses through their relationship. The tension between their status as a couple and their respective professions as editor and artist makes for what is evidently a tricky balancing act. Though it’s shown that this is not the easiest feat for them to accomplish, it is still amazing that they manage to do so in the first place, especially when other couples owe their success to never reading each others’ work ever.

Also, they’re cute. Super cute. Seeing them happy makes me happy too.

This chapter may have turned out to be more Ogiue-centric than I realized, but maybe I’m just a tad biased.

So, I think I I’ll end this one the only way that this chapter can approve of: Cosplay. This may be the best cosplay Kuchiki has ever done.

PS: Next chapter is going to feature color images, Genshiken on the front cover of Afternoon, and one of two Hato figures (the other one being packaged with a limited edition of Genshiken Volume 11.

Appreciating Fandom at Nishicon 2011

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This past month I had the opportunity to attend an entirely brand-new anime convention in the Netherlands, Nishicon.

Taking place in the city of Haarlem, Nishicon was held in a kind of sports gymnasium, which meant a few things. First, the primary form of seating was bleachers, which given the small con population (though by no means a disappointing turn-out) actually made for very convenient seating. Practically everything took place on that central floor, with workshops and video games being the only exceptions, so it was easy to move from one thing to another. If you were on the main floor, it was essentially impossible to avoid hearing the cosplay and AMV competitions, which seemed more of a close gathering of enthusiasts than the massive arena-filling extravaganzas of a large or even medium-sized American anime convention. When the AMV contest was taking place, every so often I could peer over to the other corner of the room and catch a glimpse of it.

Another feature of Nishicon was the bar and maid cafe, which like “Anime Con” in  Netherlands (and unlike New York Anime Festival) allowed the maids to serve its customers. This maid cafe is run by a different group than the one from Anime Con, and in speaking to one of the head maids I found out that they were looking to differentiate themselves from other maid cafes at Dutch anime cons by providing a more interactive experience. In addition to custom snacks (alongside the standard Dutch bar fare, beer, frikandel, kroket, etc.), they also provided a chance to play card games and board games, as well as provide a shoulder massage which only cost 2 euros.

Speaking of cost, I’ve noticed that Dutch cons seem to provide much more affordable food options than their American counterparts. While a tad pricier than just going to an automat, a broodje kroket (croquet on a roll) cost me a mere €2.50 or so. While I don’t know the exact reason for this, I have to imagine that it’s because every convention I’ve been to so far has had some sort of fully stocked bar attached to it, and they simply charge the prices they normally would. That said, if you’re coming from the United States watch out for the dollar to euro conversion rate.

I bought one piece of merchandise at this convention: a card game called “Manga Manga” (no relation). As you can see from the box, it has Action Power.

Outside of the AMVs and the cosplay, there were no big “events” or panel programming. For me, this is quite unusual, as I primarily spend my normal convention experience darting from panel to panel, with breaks for food and checking out the dealers’ room. As a result, this meant that if I were to enjoy myself at Nishicon, it would have to be at a relaxed, non-goal-oriented pace. In that regard, I think Nishicon was quite successful for me. I was able to play Go for the first time (and lose, naturally). I spoke to people at tables, asking them what they thought of the convention, one of whom mentioned that it’s fortunate for a convention to be located more towards the western side of the country). I found myself at a drawing area (run by the fine folks at mangaschool.nl) next to people I didn’t know, putting to paper whatever came to mind. It was actually the first time in a long while that I’ve drawn that much, and that made me feel good (or bad, depending on how you look at it).

What it all came down to for me was that the “lack” of major events made me participate in the convention the way I think most con-goers in general do. The point isn’t to listen to fans and creators talk about some aspect of anime and manga, nor is it to expect some “thing” out of it. That vital aspect I think people are looking for is the simple pleasure of being surrounded by others with the same passion for anime, and that is something that can be experienced by just sitting around other anime fans. Don’t get me wrong, I love attending Otakon, but I would not have ever sat down there next to other artists (aspiring and otherwise) in order to just relax with pen and paper.

Before I leave off with a barrage of photos, I want to mention something that might make some people feel a tad salty: did you know that Michiko & Hatchin was released in the Netherlands but not the United States?

Smooth Criminal: Genshiken II, Chapter 69

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Last time we met what can be best described as the Luigi to Yoshitake’s Mario, Yoshitake Risa. No, seriously, think about it. She’s younger, taller, and jumps higher.

…

Anyway, unlike the previous little sister in Genshiken who didn’t really get a dedicated spotlight until many volumes later, we get to learn a lot more about Risa just one chapter after her introduction. She’s quite an intriguing character, so I’m all for it.

(Did you know Yoshitake has the power to snore in English?)

As the freshman drinking party concludes at Yoshitake’s place with everyone crashing for the night, we get to learn quite a bit about young Risa. She awakened to her nature as a shotacon because of a particular child star, though she prefers the timelessness of 2-D over the aging process which inevitably affects the inhabitants of the real world. Also, though she loves playing basketball (enough to attend games instead of going to doujin events), she is tired of everyone assuming that she’s going to pick a college based on her hoops prowess. Yoshitake Rika, always the loving older sister, not only buys all of Risa’s doujinshi for her, but brought her to Shiiou University to help her think things through.

When all’s said and done, Risa has one last request. Knowing that Hato began crossdressing so that he could make friends with fujoshi, Risa is curious as to just how “challenging” that process is, how far Hato has gone for the sake of meeting like-minded people. Yoshitake, who can also be a “helpful” older sister, manages to twist the situation such that it ends with a visit to Hato’s place.

There, Yoshitake wants to use the time Hato spends showering to find out all of his secrets, but Yajima stands in her way. Despite assistance from the younger sibling , Yajima manages to stop Yoshitake, though in the process they inadvertently open the door to the bathroom and both Yajima and Risa get to see that Hato is indeed a man, albeit an incredibly smooth one. Risa, with Hato’s image possibly burned into her brain, now finds a reason to take the exam for Shiiou University, much like the other Genshiken little sister.

Before I get into my thoughts on the chapter itself, I want everyone to look at this image of Risa’s body.

Risa’s figure can be described as that of a tall, slender but athletic woman with small curves. It makes sense, given the amount of time she puts into sports. It is also an incredibly uncommon body type for a female character in a manga with men as its primary audience. Sure, there are girls with small chests in shounen/seinen, and there are also plenty of athletes, but rarely are they like Risa’s. Even in most comics targeted towards girls of all ages, a body type like this is not drawn with as much focus on anatomy.

Ohno, Kasukabe, and Ogiue’s bodies were already quite different, and Yajima is of course overweight, but Yoshitake Risa’s realistically athletic figure, which doesn’t really try to adhere to typical notions of feminine appeal nor masculine portrayals of heavy musculature, makes me fully aware of just how varied the body types of the female characters are in Genshiken. It’s actually quite impressive, and I think shows that Kio Shimoku, more than ever, is trying to draw female characters for men in a way that fosters understanding of women as people.

The way this chapter is, it actually feels like a hang-out between girls (plus Hato). It’s kind of like that scene at the retreat back in Volume 7, only without the painful recollection of traumatic events from the past. Instead, they were able to create new traumatic events (again, Hato). Again, it’s not out of the blue, and when I look back on Genshiken it’s clear that it’s always been different in portraying female characters, but Chapter 69 somehow feels like a particularly strong example of this approach.

I continue to enjoy the sibling relationship between Rika and Risa for reasons touched upon in the chapter summary above. Yoshitake comes across as a person who genuinely loves and looks out for her younger sister, and it’s clear that her happy-going personality has had a positive effect on Risa’s development through the years. That Risa is comfortable with calling her older sister for advice is in itself a strong sign of their bond, as is the fact that Risa feels compelled to go along with her sister’s hair-brained schemes (crossdressing, bearhugging Yajima). Again, I have to contrast it with the Sasaharas, who eventually reached something along those lines, but only through a long and arduous process.

As for Yajima, I find that she is in this strange position where Hato’s crossdressing has taken on the opposite effect of what it used to be for Yajima. Initially, Hato’s female guise made Yajima rather uncomfortable, as it challenged certain deep-rooted feelings and beliefs in her. As they have become friendlier however, the crossdressing almost acts like a barrier preventing Yajima from thinking of him as a man, which Yajima consistently views as a kind of “other,” like so many nerds out there. This is why you see Yajima try to prevent Risa from convincing Hato to change into his male version. Poor Yajima.

Speaking of Hato, the chapter also provided some insight into his life. For one thing, we learn that the reason Hato lives so far away is that he had to find an apartment with a walk-in closet to store both his dresses and his massive amount of doujinshi. Now that’s the kind of dedication that Risa can understand.

Next chapter is the school festival, and while not quite as exciting as a ComiFest chapter, it’s still something I look forward to from Genshiken. We’ll also get to see Ogiue again. And if that’s not enough, Volume 11 is on its way in February December with a special edition and an exclusive Hato figure. I’ll probably end up owning one myself, if only because I try to get every single special edition of Genshiken that I can.

I do not intend to ever break that streak.

Wonderful, Everything’s Wonderful: Cosmic Baton Girl Comet-san, Revisited

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When I originally wrote my Cosmic Baton Girl Comet-san review, I mentioned that I had not finished the show simply because not all of it was available at the time. In the three years since I wrote that review though, I have been able to finish the entirety of the anime (sans subtitles), and so I want to make an update, bring some closure, and tell you if my opinion has changed since then.

Pretty much everything I said in the original review still holds true. The pleasant pace, the way it makes everyday life feel worthy of discovery and appreciation, the charming characters that make you want to smile, it’s still all there from beginning to end. Comet never stops growing, Meteor shows that there’s more to her than just snooty princess-type comedy. The way the characters interact with each other shows off their personalities so well that it’s hard to find many other shows that can manage this subdued sense of wonder.

The second half does indeed bring more plot, but Comet-san never stops being an anime that you can ease yourself into. The ongoing plot points build up slowly but surely, and it has what I find to be an appropriately satisfying ending.

In considering how this show might appeal to otaku who might not necessarily be into mahou shoujo, I might compare this show to slice-of-life, but I think that would perhaps be doing Comet-san a bit of a disservice. I like slice-of-life shows, don’t get me wrong. I eagerly await the new season of Hidamari Sketch and I’m a fan of Minami-ke, but those just cover the joys of everyday life. Comet-san does that, better than those shows, but it also shows the great things and bittersweet feelings that can arise from life slowly changing, until the everyday of today is not the everyday of two months ago.

It’s somewhat of a long series at 43 episodes, but I think it’s worth it. This show is really, really good. Ojamajo Doremi good. Heartcatch Precure! good. If you have the chance, and you want to see a simple but poignant show, check out Cosmic Baton Girl Comet-san.