Wonderful Dreams of True Friendship: Heartcatch Precure!

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There’s something special, really special, about Heartcatch Precure!, so much so that I think the best way to properly convey its brilliance is to take the long, scenic route to introducing it. It’s a show whose strengths can be subtle yet obvious, and I want to really give the show its proper due as a noticeably strong piece of fiction which utilizes nearly all of its elements intelligently and artistically without ever losing its sense of fun.

The premise is simple and familiar. A heroic figure, Cure Moonlight, suffers a traumatic defeat, and in desperation sends two young fairies to Earth to find two individuals capable of taking her place. The first girl is Hanasaki Tsubomi, a young girl and recent junior high transfer student who loves flowers. Tired of her meek personality, Tsubomi sees the move as an opportunity to turn her life around. The second girl is Kurumi Erika, an aspiring fashion designer who immediately sees Tsubomi as a friend, but whose eagerness and hyper disposition exasperate and overwhelm Tsubomi. Together, they become Cure Blossom and Cure Marine, fighting against an evil group whose goal is to transform the Earth into a wasteland by feeding off the fears and doubts of humans.

Pretty typical on its surface, Heartcatch Precure! manages to go above and beyond through not just its technical execution but what I would actually describe as “heart.” One of the most prominent aspects of the show for me is the mature and helpful manner in which it discusses a variety of serious topics that not only kids but even adults can grapple with in their daily lives, and this complexity tempered by graceful simplicity extends to all areas of the anime as well. In terms of visual design, the character designs are less stiff when compared to typical Precure designs (or even anime characters in general) without being overly esoteric, and the pastel colors and free-flowing line work breathe a sense of vibrancy into them. This in turn makes both the show’s action and non-action scenes stand out in a manner reminiscent of Casshern SINS (no surprise given that they share the same character designer), trading the dreary, post-apocalyptic world of that anime for one whose messages of hope and growth are more apparent. The narrative is also bolstered by the visual aesthetics, as they are able to support the strong characterization found in the show through their sheer energy, whether they’re laughing or crying or just walking about.

Right from the first episode, the characters are remarkably complex and their interactions dynamic and fun. Of particular note is Erika (pictured left), who I find to be an amazingly well-rounded character who complements Tsubomi well, and whose traits give her not only a lot of fundamental strength but also room to grow. While the Precure franchise has always been about the contrasting personalities of its main characters, Tsubomi and Erika are not so easily divided into opposing categories like “smart” vs. “athletic,” or “loud” vs. “quiet,” though they exhibit such differences to a certain degree. As the show progresses, rather than trying to make up for each others’ weaknesses, the girls learn from each other and deepen their friendship, and it’s a wonderful thing to see play out.

Going beyond the main two, the character Myoudouin Itsuki provides another interesting example. Itsuki, being the successor to her family’s martial arts dojo, crossdresses in order to represent her status as “next in line.” Unlike many other shows, however, Itsuki’s issue isn’t about whether she feels any bitterness towards having to act as a “man,” but whether or not the amount of responsibility and pressure she’s willingly put on herself is making her disregard her own feelings. This more thorough, yet still relatively simple, psychological exploration contributes to the show’s strong sense of characterization.

Perhaps the greatest strength of Heartcatch Precure! can be found in the way it shows that there is life beyond the immediate. Notable in this regard is the establishment of the character “Dark Precure” (the one who defeats Cure Moonlight at the start) as a powerful antagonist who completely outclasses the heroines and who continues to be a legitimate threat every time she appears. This is a rare feeling in previous Precure series, and part of the show’s draw simply has to do with seeing how the girls can manage to overcome this seemingly insurmountable obstacle, an adversary they are actually unsure of how to defeat.

By far the best representation of this broader perspective, however, comes from the fact that Heartcatch Precure! acknowledges the world past junior high. In every other Precure series, none of the main characters are ever older than 15. Once they hit the end of their third year in junior high(9th grade in the US and other countries), the show ends and nothing more is ever seen of them, and even when they appear in the crossover movies, they are always portrayed as still being in junior high. Heartcatch Precure! bucks that trend. Cure Moonlight is 17 years old. Tsubomi’s grandmother, who is in her late 60s, is actually a former Precure herself. These older figures not only guide the younger Cures through their experience, but also learn from the younger girls’ optimism and zest for life, making it less of a one-way street and more of a mutual growth which spans generations.

My fondness for Heartcatch Precure! is quite obvious at this point, but I do think there are areas where it falls short, and I feel that the best way to sum up my criticism is to compare it to Ojamajo Doremi, a similar magical girl show which actually shares much of the same staff. In that light, I find that the biggest flaw in Heartcatch Precure‘s is how “beating up the enemy” is too often the solution to a character’s problems, even in situations where fighting has little to do with the dilemma at hand. Granted, it’s certainly not the only show in the world to do this, but I know Heartcatch could have done better in this regard, especially given Doremi. In contrast, Doremi‘s most glaring problem, the blatant toy-pushing aspect of the show, is handled far more gracefully in Heartcatch Precure! Owing to the strong visual design of the show mentioned before, the transformation sequences and the special attack animations so typical of the magical girl genre almost never feel tiresome because of how lively they are.

Watch Heartcatch Precure! If you’re not that big a fan of magical girls, if you haven’t enjoyed the Precure franchise in the past, I think this is a really good place to start. It exceeded my expectations in almost every way, and it might do the same for yours. Just keep in mind to not expect too much to quickly and enjoy the show at its own pace.

Notes on Genshiken Volume 10 Extras

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I recently received my copy of Volume 10 of Genshiken (aka Genshiken II Volume 1), and as anyone who’s read Genshiken in collected format knows, there are always little extras in between chapters. This time around it’s a combination of four-panel comics and profiles from the Genshiken club magazine Mebaetame, of which only one has been shown in-comic (Hato’s explicit one). The purpose of this post is just to jot down things I find interesting from those extras.

For the sake of convenience, here are all of my individual chapter reviews from Volume 10:

Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61

Ogiue’s Pen Name: Ever since it was first revealed, people had no idea how to actually say it. This time around though, Ogiue has given us a handy pronunciation guide, for which I am very grateful. So say it with me: OGINO NARUYUKI. Feels good, doesn’t it?

Majors: The coursework for the characters in Genshiken is something we’ve never learned much about, other than the fact that Kohsaka wasn’t in Computer Science but learned how to program anyway. Now though, we know that Ogiue is a 3rd-year Literature Major, Yajima is 1st-year Literature, and Hato is 1st-year Economics. The rest of them don’t bother mentioning it. I feel like knowing their majors gives some perspective on the whole thing in terms of seeing where the members are coming from, and it’s also interesting to compare to an American college anime club, where history and experience have taught me that a good chunk of them are indeed CS Majors.

Hometowns: For years we’ve known that Ogiue is from the Tohoku region of Japan, but nothing more specific than that. It turns out Ogiue is from Yamagata Prefecture, which of course means that she speaks specifically in the Yamagata dialect.

Yajima is from Tochigi Prefecture (Kanto) and Hato is from Niigata Prefecture (Hokuriku). Yoshitake doesn’t mention anything, and as we already know, Sue is from Massachusetts.

Yoshitake’s Ramblings: If you read my translation of Tamagomago’s post and got confused when he mentions Yoshitake talking about “oinking” (buhireru), it’s because it happens in Yoshitake’s profile, which is a long, long thing all about how she wants to see a manga or anime made out of a particular historical novel. This (and the huge word bubble in chapter 58) also makes it clear that Yoshitake is indeed a literary person.

Favorite Titles: Keep in mind that a lot of the titles are parodies of existing works. A lot of this is gotten with help from this site.

Ogiue: Haregan (Fullmetal Alchemist), Kujibiki Unbalance, Zenkoku no Kyojin (Shingeki no Kyojin [Advance of the Giants])

Yajima: Pakuman (Bakuman), Kintama (Gintama) , Ten Piece (One Piece), Menma (Naruto), Back-bared no Mago (Nurarihyon no Mago [Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan)

Hato: Duarara!! (Durarara!!), Rebuild of Evingelion, Hetalila (Hetalia), Winter Wars (Summer Wars), Fuyume Yuujinchou (Natsume Yuujinchou [Natsume’s Book of Friends]), Sweets Basket (Fruits Basket), Koi to Kyuuso (Unsure of even the pronunciation), Metro no Inu (Chikatetsu no Inu), Kaburagi-san to Rokuhara-kun (Hori-san to Miyamura-kun), Femto (Fate/Stay Night according to that site), Tsukutsukuboushi no Naku Koro ni (Higurashi no Naku Koro ni)

What we can see is that Yajima sticks mainly with Shounen Jump (or “Shounen Champ” as it’s called in-story) and also that Hato has very diverse tastes, but we knew that already.

Ogiue Likes Sasahara Just the Way He is: Just wanted to point out that in one comic, Ogiue thinks about how Ohno didn’t mention Sasahara among the “weirdos,” but that she likes his unassuming personality.

Showdown! At! The Internet! Pokemon Battling Nostalgia Ramblings

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I’ve recently been talking to an old friend in the competitive Pokemon community, and I was surprised to find out that he and other people I knew from back in the day were still playing competitively. In fact, a bunch of them are going to the Pokemon Video Game Championships this year in Indiana, and though I definitely can’t make it, it’s kind of re-lit the fire in me to do something with Pokemon, especially when I’ve seen what he’s been up to.

Known in the Pokemon communiy as Fish, his team is the one on top, if you want to see some intense and exciting turn-based combat.

At the very least, I want to have a well-conceived team or two around in case anyone wants to battle me. I don’t know how long it’ll take me, especially because I haven’t even opened my copy of Pokemon Black yet, but I think it’ll be a worthwhile endeavor.

I definitely want to use Durant, as I’ve been waiting for an ant Pokemon since the original games.

Thinking back on my years of playing Pokemon, I began to reminisce about the original RBY era and its competitive scene. I talked a little bit about RBY-style battling here, but I’m not sure if my description did it justice in terms of how unique RBY battling turned out to be, relative to subsequent generations of Pokemon. RBY was the era where the only way to cure a status ailment was through the use of Rest, when every Pokemon could have all of its stats maxed out to their personal best. The result was a game where Pokemon were neither overly frail nor excessively defensive.

The best example I can think of is a scenario where one player is switching in a weakened Rhydon on a weakened, paralyzed Alakazam. Alakazam could have predicted a switch and thrown out a Thunder Wave to paralyze the incoming Pokemon, but because Rhydon is immune to electric attacks, it can effectively block the Thunder Wave and avoid its paralyzing effects. From there, a fight which would normally be won by Alakazam’s superior speed and nasty Psychic attack has a different consequence, as paralysis reduces Alakazam’s speed by 75%, well below Rhydon’s, and so now Rhydon has the first shot, and its superior attack does tremendous damage to Alakazam’s poor defenses, possibly to the point of knocking it out. But if Alakazam decides to switch out, Rhydon can throw down a Substitute for 1/4 of its health to take damage for it while it Earthquakes from a safe position. The permanency of paralysis is key here, as in later generations status ailments can simply be whisked away by the effects of moves such as Heal Bell and Aromatherapy.

RBY was by no means a balanced game in terms of diversity. Only about 10-15 Pokemon were considered viable for competition (barring Mewtwo and Mew, who were usually banned due to being way, way, way too good), but it had a certain kind of intensity that wasn’t quite present in later games, and it’s something I wouldn’t mind coming back, though I know it’ll never happen.

When people lament changes in sequels despite the fact that the original game’s system was the result of various limitations and oversights, I can relate to knowing that something is unreasonable and yet still feeling that it’s right. I’m not going to talk down the other generations of Pokemon Battling, though. There’s always a special place in my heart for that original 151, but I still look forward to having fun with a list that is now 646 creatures long.

Ivory Jaws

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Note: This post discusses spoilers for Tiger & Bunny, A Certain Magical Index, and Hajime no Ippo.

In episodes 12 and 13 of Tiger & Bunny, the heroes of Sternbild City fight the powerful villain Jake Martinez. His telepathy allows him to read an opponent’s intentions and avoid getting hit. Out of the four heroes who face him, Jake only ever gets hit twice: Once by accident when Wild Tiger trips over himself, and then a second time when Barnaby is able to land a clean hit, but Barnaby’s attack is enough to defeat him.

Broken rib or no, one hit doesn’t seem like it should be enough to take down such a strong adversary, but Tiger and Bunny does a good job of making it obvious that Jake’s weakness isn’t just a glass jaw, but a side effect of his powers. Jake is so adept at using his NEXT abilities to avoid any and all attacks that he is simply not used to being hit, and so making contact shocks him not just physically but psychologically as well. Even Wild Tiger’s inadvertent flip kick has little force behind it and yet still gives Jake pause.

When I saw this, I immediately thought of another villain: Accelerator from A Certain Magical Index. Like Jake, he is the mid-series villain, and like Jake, he possesses a power which prevents attacks from reaching him. In Accelerator’s case, he can control vectors, so any punch or bullet thrown has its direction diverted or even reversed with little effort. In the face of Index hero Kamijou Touma’s ability-canceling abilities however, Accelerator’s face meets Touma’s fist repeatedly. Like Jake, he can’t take a hit.

I think there’s something a little satisfying about villains whose weaknesses are something so simple and basic that anyone could avoid them if only they were familiar. With both Accelerator and Jake, they rely a little too much on their abilities, so when those are negated they do not have the natural reaction time to make up for it. In a way, these antagonists are portrayed as members of a kind of ability-based ivory tower, where their privileged statuses make them vulnerable to the rest of the world, even if it’s not immediately noticeable.

Interestingly, Hajime no Ippo shows the other side to this trope, though without any use of true villains. In the world title match between Date Eiji and undefeated champion Ricardo Martinez, Ricardo lands a severe blow on Eiji, which he’s 100% confident will take Eiji down for good. To his surprise however, Eiji manages to recover from that punch, which leads Ricardo to conclude that the only reason Eiji could’ve possibly taken that hit is that he must have fought someone whose punches are as hard if not harder than Ricardo’s own. This, of course, refers to Eiji’s fight with the main character Ippo, who is characterized by incredibly brutal punches. Had Eiji not gained the experience of taking hits from Ippo, had the impact not been engraved into his body, the sheer shock from being hit in a completely new way would have finished the match with Ricardo right there.

Which is to say, in a Martinez fight, Jake definitely wouldn’t want to get hit by Ricardo.

ME AM OPEN UP AMERICAN CLUB TO MASSES

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There have been many, many American characters in anime and manga over the years, and in many cases they tend to use a very odd and unique form of Janglish, where Japanese and English are interspersed. One common way to convey that a character is American (or perhaps just American-esque) is to have them use English pronouns, e.g. “YOU wa baka desu!”

So you’d think they’d use “I” when referring to themselves, but there’s a long tradition of using “ME” (as in “me, myself, and I”) instead. Of course, I don’t quite understand why it’s used over “I.” So the thing I’d like to know is, when did this start? How far back in the history of anime and manga does it go? Is it even something that arose out of anime and manga? Perhaps it has something to do with how Americans spoke in post-war occupied Japan.

As far as anime and manga go, the oldest example I can think of with an American character who uses “Me” as one would normally use “I” is Getter Robo, which features American cowboy and robot pilot Jack King. Another popular American character is Terryman from Kinnikuman.

If anyone has more information about the history of American manga and anime characters, I’d like to hear all about it.

Also, In celebration of this most American of days, I’ve decided to open up the myanimelist club dedicated to American characters a little more, so that non-members can also post. I know I haven’t been able to keep up with requests and such over the past year either, so I’m also going to be opening up officer positions over the next few days so that the truly patriotic can make this club greater than it has been.

A Problem-Free Philosophy

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If someone asks me who I prefer to use in Street Fighter, at first I tell them, “Don’t worry about it. Really.”

But if they insist, I just say to them, “Akuma, Makoto.”

Super Smash Bros. and Non-Traditional Fighting Games

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Whenever the Smash Bros. community interacts with other fighting game communities, it inevitably leads to comments that Smash Bros. is not a fighting game. More often than not, these comments are trolls meant to rile Smash fans and belittle the games they’ve spent so much time on, but I’ve also seen people argue this point in earnest, and I want to discuss some of the points that tend to get brought up, if only to make people aware that the category of “fighting game” isn’t all that sacred.

The first assertion that gets thrown out is that the Smash Bros. series is simply not good enough to be considered a fighting game. Either it’s too simplistic or it doesn’t reward competition enough, and so fails to qualify for the fighting game pantheon. But since when has competitive viability and depth of gameplay actually defined fighting games? For every fighting game that is remotely competitive, I can name twice as many that fall apart under scrutiny and are just plain bad. So why is it that a game like Rise of the Robots is allowed to be called a fighting game, while something like Smash Bros. isn’t?

The second assertion is that Smash Bros. does not qualify for the genre because it does not fulfill supposedly “fundamental” aspects of fighting games. Over the years, I’ve seen people say everything from the fact that the game doesn’t have traditional life bars to the fact that it’s four-player to the fact that items exist in the game to the presence of stage hazards. More recently, people have been saying that it’s not a fighting game, but rather a “party game,” a “platformer,” a “beat-em-up,” or any combination of those categories.

But in bringing up those genres, it must be said that there are fighting games that fall under those categories that aren’t Smash Bros. As I show examples of each, keep in mind that I am not defining the fighting game genre based on how “good” the games are, and you shouldn’t either. “Balance” is a non-issue here.

———

Fighting Vipers

Non-Traditional Life Bars

Fighting Vipers has kids dressed in armor beating each other up in a closed arena. The game has life bars, but it also has an armor system wherein shattering pieces of armor makes the opponent more vulnerable to attacks. You can see it in action at 00:52.

World Heroes 2

Non-Traditional Life Bars/Stage Hazards

A game where warriors from throughout history engage in 1-on-1 combat, while the regular gameplay in World Heroes 2 is about as conventional as it gets, there is also a special “Death Match” mode. Rather than having two distinct life bars, one large bar is shared by both players in a sort of tug-of-war battle. Also note the buzz saws and electrified ropes.

Aggressors of Dark Kombat

Beat-em-up

Aggressors of Dark Kombat actually features gameplay where characters can move up and down the stage field, reminiscent of Final Fight or Double Dragon. It is literally a beat-em-up fighting game. The female character, Kisarah Westfield, made her return in Neo-Geo Battle Coliseum.

King of the Monsters

Beat-em-up/Items/Stage Hazards

King of the Monsters also possibly qualifies for the “wrestling game” genre, and as a result, also possibly the “Non-Traditional Life Bar” because of how you need to win by pinning. Incidentally, a lot of the beat-em-up fighting games are made by SNK, though this is the only one featuring giant monsters destroying a city in the process.

The Outfoxies

Platformer/Items/Stage Hazards

Featuring assassins trying to kill each other with swords, guns, and bazookas, The Outfoxies is probably the game closest to Smash Bros. in feel and style, especially in the platformer-esque gameplay. By the way, there actually exists an Outfoxies tournament, and the game can get pretty amazing. Again though, that doesn’t really matter.

Power Stone 2

Platformer/Beat-em-up/4-Player/Items/Stage Hazards

Power Stone 2 is probably the example that best features almost all of the “not really a fighting game” categories in an actual fighting game. Like so many games in the genre, it features warriors from around the world.

———

So there we go. If you don’t consider the above examples to be fighting games either, then there really isn’t anything I can say.

By the way, I’d better not seeing any Melee vs. Brawl in the comments.

Time and Genshiken

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When I originally read Tamagomago’s post on the Genshiken generation gap, I realized something: time has moved differently for the characters of Genshiken compared to the real world.

The gap between Genshiken and Genshiken II has changed how I relate to Genshiken. Genshiken II starts off only a few months after the end of the first series, but in the real world, nearly five years had passed. One result of this is that the references used in the new series are a little anachronistic (a Zan Sayonara Zetsubou-sensei reference when the show shouldn’t have been out at that point, for example), but the one I find to be more personally important is that I went from being around Sasahara’s age to actually being closer to Madarame’s. I am no longer the college senior who could read about Sasahara’s graduation around the same time as my own. Had the manga progressed steadily from Volume 9, had there not been the long wait to herald in Genshiken II, I wonder if I would’ve also been reading the manga a little differently?

One criticism of the new Genshiken that I see from not just English-speaking fans but also Japanese ones is that it’s been difficult to relate to the new, primarily female cast. The feeling I often get from that response is that the readers who are of the opinion that Genshiken has changed for the worse feel that this world of college-aged otaku is not the one they had originally left. I even talked about it when the new series was beginning, remarking that Genshiken has always been about change, and that it should be possible to relate to these new characters, even if they do come from a different generation otaku. I realize now though that it’s not so much a matter of these readers not being able to relate to characters unlike themselves, but more that they feel the philosophy of Genshiken has changed, that the core essence is something different and perhaps frightening.

Obviously, the experience of shifting age groups as the result of the gap between Genshiken series is not something everyone can experience, especially if they’re not reading the comic as it comes out. Even if that weren’t the case, given time I would’ve reached Madarame’s age anyway. And even if others are around the same age as me, it’s not like people experience the passage of time in the exact same or even similar ways. More importantly, it’s not like my own personal experiences over the past five years are particularly better than others’. Even so, when I think about it a little more, it seems like one of the themes that comes out of Genshiken for the readers as well as the characters is the influence of personal history and how self-perception of time changes accordingly.

Ogiue originally defined herself by the trauma of her time in junior high. It dominated her life before she was eventually able to move on with the help of her friends. Madarame clings to the recent past by leaving his situation with Kasukabe comfortably ambiguous. Kugayama put his half-hearted ambitions aside and decided to just be normal. The first chairman, well, I’m not sure if he existed within time.

For the fans who feel alienated by Genshiken II, their personal definition of what it means to be otaku, and by extension, what it means to be part of a group otaku, has not changed in the five year Genshiken gap. I emphasize once again that there’s nothing wrong with this, and in fact it’s also pretty much where Yajima is at in terms of her own otaku-existential conflict. As for me, I know fully well how much I’ve related to Genshiken and continue to do so, but I also know that a lot has happened in my life since I finished the original series. I’ve defined myself many times on this blog according to how Genshiken has changed my life, but in the face of this new iteration, I find that it doesn’t change me so much as change alongside me.

I Cannot Understand You Mutants

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Going to the theater in the Netherlands means, at least for non-domestic works, that films will be shown in their original language and subtitles. The last time I went, I saw The Borrower Arrietty in Japanese with Dutch subs, so when it came to watching an American movie, I figured that I wouldn’t have any trouble beyond ignoring the subtitles. The movie I chose to implement this on was actually X-Men: First Class.

For those of you who have seen this movie, you probably already know that the choice I made was a bit of a mistake, but for those who haven’t seen it, all I have to say is that the movie features many languages that are 100% not-English. At certain points, characters speak Spanish, German, and Russian, and it sure didn’t help my comprehension that the subtitles were (naturally) in Dutch. To the movie’s credit, the acting and the setting gave enough context clues for me to understand what was going on overall, but it’s a unique experience to watch something where the dialogue is in a language you don’t really know, and the translation is in a different, also incomprehensible language.

One interesting difference with movies shown in the Netherlands is that they often come with intermissions, even for a relatively short movie like this one. Of course, the movies were not made with this in mind, so the cut-off point is not built into the film as it was with, say, Gone with the Wind. They do their best to pick a lull in the action to pause the movie, but I have to wonder if anyone out there who’s big into viewer immersion tears their hair out whenever it pops up.

Mamma Mia! Genshiken II, Chapter 65

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It’s Comic Festival Day 3 (the guys’ day), and Madarame’s in danger! How is he going to fare against a girl who actually wants him? That’s  Genshiken II, Chapter 65.

If it wasn’t obvious from the previous chapter (see the image at the bottom of the post), Ohno’s buxom Bostonian friend, has a certain agenda in mind, and that is to get some sweet, sweet scrawny Japanese nerd ass. Angela does what any remotely observant person would call “really blatant flirting,” and the only things preventing Madarame from realizing the truth are a language barrier, his own nerdish obliviousness, and lingering feelings for Saki. Hato, seeing him in trouble, sheds his female guise and offers to help Madarame and the other guys out with the doujinshi run, at the expense of not being able to participate in a round of cosplay with Ohno and the other girls (Ogiue is still out sick).

As Ohno and Friends are cosplaying the cast of Madoka Magica (sans Madoka herself, who was going to be Hato, and before she caught a fever, Ogiue), Ohno asks Angela about her actions in regard to Madarame, and Angela responds that she’s been interested for a long time now, ever since her first trip to Japan, in fact, but hasn’t made a move because of how infatuated Madarame was with Saki.

Hato, also noticing Angela’s attempts, asks Madarame about his interest towards 3-D girls. Madarame vehemently denies any affection for any dimensions beyond two, but Hato knows that he’s lying,  having previously discovered Madarame’s hidden stash of Kasukabe cosplay photos. At the same time, they also visit the industry booths at ComiFest, where they run into a crossplaying Kohsaka, whose presence surely reminds Madarame of Saki, and also shows Hato what it is to be a natural at crossdressing.

The chapter ends with Angela planning her next move.

There are a lot of little things in this chapter I enjoy, such as the fact that not only is Ogiue absent from ComiFest but so is Sasahara, Sue’s, uh, “cosplay,” and the reactions on everyone’s faces as Angela continues to flirt with Madarame. Of course, the biggest part of this chapter is Angela’s aggressive interest in Madarame, which probably comes as a bit of a surprise if you haven’t seen the second Genshiken TV series. In fact, in this chapter there is a flashback to a scene where Madarame helps Angela read an anime magazine, the moment that Angela started to have a thing for him, but it only ever happened in the anime. Combined with the canonization of the cat-mouth girl’s name as Asada, it’s clear that either the makers of the Genshiken 2 anime consulted Kio Shimoku about the scenes they expanded upon, or that Kio decided to use those ideas for himself.

It still is kind of out of the blue though, considering that aside from the aforementioned anime scene, the only hints we had previously were Angela saying that she has a thing for glasses-wearing “uke,” which Madarame fits to a tee, and a splash image where Angela is wearing his glasses. And I know a question that’s bound to be on people’s minds is, “Why Madarame?” Having a gorgeous blonde all over a skinny otaku is bound to have people accusing Genshiken of catering to fantasies of regular hopeless nerds getting incredibly hot women, but I don’t think it’s as simple as that. It is, however, simple in a different way.

I think it’s clear that whatever Angela’s feelings are for Madarame, it isn’t a profound love that has grown through constant interaction like with Sasahara and Ogiue, or Tanaka and Ohno. More likely, it’s probably a mix of yellow fever and Angela having a thing for guys who are easily flustered, and I even doubt that Madarame is exactly what she wants in a man. And if anything does happen, I think Angela is comfortable with either having it be a brief fling or something longer-lasting; this may be my own interpretation, but I see her as being okay with sex without any deep romantic feelings. In any case, pure virgin bride she is not, but then that’s never been an issue with Genshiken from chapter 1. Also, as Keiko pointed out to Madarame, it’s pretty obvious to everyone that he has feelings for Saki, and it should be no surprise that someone like Angela has also been aware of this fact.

What I find really interesting about Angela’s flirting is Madarame’s reaction to it, which is “complete denial that such a thing could ever happen.” To some extent, I am with Hato in thinking that Saki’s image is still burned into Madarame’s retina and that he’s having trouble moving on because of it, but I also think it’s Madarame denying the possibility that a hot American girl could ever want him. This is a very realistic response from someone who believes he has no chance with women, or that he has no likable qualities as a man, and you see it with dorks everywhere. Personally speaking, I can remember hearing that a girl really liked me in junior high, and oddly enough, like Madarame, my hands were a point of attraction. My response was to completely ignore this information, because I thought that a) no girl could possibly be attracted to me, and b) it must be a prank. Granted, I was 13 and Madarame is in his 20s, but like me, thinking that it’s some kind of cruel joke is exactly his response.

Boy can Tamagomago call it.

I guess the only thing left to ask myself is, am I okay with the idea of Angela x Madarame? My gut reaction is “sure,” but letting my mind into the conversation a little, my revised response is, “As long as it’s written well.” That said, there’s no guarantee of anything happening.