Archives for category: Anime

In Memoriam – Satoshi Kon

August 26, 2010 //

It’s really hard to put down into words all the things that went through my head when I first read the news. Disbelief, numb shock, then tears. Probably like many other Satoshi Kon’s fans from around the world when they first heard the news.

Reading Satoshi Kon’s 2008 ANN interview was bittersweet; reading his final message was heartbreaking. My Japanese is very limited, but the basic gist came through – the pain that the cancer wrecked on his body and family; regret about unfinished work; gratitude to his family and friends.

Millennium Actress is and always will be one of my favorite anime films of all time – the story was profound, and exquisitely told. It moved me in a way that few other films have. Watching Perfect Blue and Tokyo Godfathers cemented my status as a Satoshi Kon fan; watching Paprika renewed my love for this director’s incredible creativity and ability to tell stories that grab the imagination and take on lives of their own.

Satoshi Kon’s works will stand as lasting testimony to his unique vision. The world has lost a masterful storyteller – he will be sorely missed. My thoughts go out to his family and friends in the days to come.

Quote Seiho Takizawa:

ご冥福をナントカなんて書きたくない。

なぜ死んだバカヤロウ

Durarara!! Cosplay Around the Interwebs

August 17, 2010 //

Seeing this awesome image in the Boing Boing article “Spreading the Word About New Anime Through Cosplay“:

…made me want to check how many other cool cosplay pics there are out there for Durarara!! So I did. And Flickr, as always, delivers It’s really nice to see that Drrr!! was well-represented at this year’s cons!

The Deep Dark Secret Behind Spirited Away

August 4, 2010 //

Of all the hidden symbolism and meaning that I read into (or made up) from Spirited Away, I never thought that the sex industry would have anything to do with such a charming movie, but apparently it does! From cering.tumblr.com:

…I read interviews with Miyazaki. This was all put in intentionally. Miyazaki’s stories are filled with underlying themes and metaphors. He said he was tackling the issue of the sex industry rapidly growing in Japan, and that he felt children being exposed to it at such early ages was a problem.

Who would’ve thought?! Thanks tates for the tip!

Nodame Cantabile: Finale

July 8, 2010 //

I marathoned through the whole of Nodame Cantabile: Finale yesterday, and now there is a dark gaping void in my life which used to be filled with Nodame goodness. I almost blew the internet cap in the viewing process, but gosh it was worth it. I had delayed starting Finale because I thought this would happen, given how much I love the series. Despite the fact that I was utterly traumatized by the abrupt manga ending, seeing it again in anime form the second time wasn’t quite as bad. In fact, the anime actually helped me come to terms a bit more with the manga ending.

I think Nodame Cantabile is the ONLY series where I’ve read the entire manga, watched all three anime seasons, and the live action series (to the Europe special). I may have to track down the two live action movies soon. I also started a Nodame WIP to attempt to fill the abyss in my soul… it’s sort of helping

Seeing this image in the ED sequence always tore at my heartstrings, so… love to Nodame and Chiaki, and why, WHY did such an awesome series have to end? Whyyy?

Of Ponyo Cupcakes and Otaku Singledom

June 14, 2010 //

I was incredibly jealous when I saw these on Tim Maughan’s blog. Not only because these Ponyo cupcakes look fantastic, but also because his girlfriend made these scrumptious delights for him.

I’ve tried hooking my long-time boyfriend onto anime by starting him with a couple of my favorites – the Cowboy Bebop movie, Millennium Actress, and I may have also tried a Ghibli movie with him too. None of these worked, so I’m resigned to being the open-closet otaku in this relationship. We’ll camp out on the couch to watch Bones or Australia’s Greatest Athlete, but any anime will have to be watched on my spare time (and usually when he’s not around). Certainly I won’t be getting any cool Ponyo cupcakes from HIM anytime soon, sigh…

FMA Brotherhood ED2 | Miho Fukuhara – Let It Out

May 3, 2010 //

Am absolutely in love with this FMA Brotherhood ED right now – “Let It Out” by Miho Fukuhara. Definitely my favorite OP/ED song from FMA Brotherhood so far, although the 1st OP also has a special place in my heart – “Again” by YUI – because YUI is, well, awesome

Anime Postage Stamps

April 28, 2010 //

I used to be quite an avid stamps collector.

But even though I don’t collect stamps any more, I REALLY, REALLY want these:

And these:

Whenever the day comes that I FINALLY make it to Japan, I know my wallet’s going to bleed from all the anime merchandise that I’ll end up getting – but I never thought that postage stamps would also end up on my animu want list! It’d be great if I could pick up sets of these in nice shiny commemorative booklets… *drools*

From Gigazine: “‘Fullmetal Alchemist’ Postage Stamp to be released in JP Post’s Anime Hero/Heroine Series” and “‘Sgt. Frog’ Postage Stamp to be released by JP Post“

Bandai’s Gundam Café in Akihabara

April 24, 2010 //

This looks flippin’ awesome.

Now all they need are some full-time cosplaying employees and this place would be golden! Imagine sitting at this cafe, munching on some Haro Crunch Choco while Gundam Wing or Gundam Seed pilots stroll about… *drools*

Next up, Macross Café?

From Akihabara News: “Bandai Open its first Gundam Café in Akihabara… And we tested it!“

Of EVA Water Bottles and Macross Frontier Noodles

April 12, 2010 //

Am I the only person on the internets who is disturbed by this?

Gah.

On the other hand, there’s this:

I love instant noodles and definitely wouldn’t mind getting some of that

…for some reason the above sentence came out kinda pervy. Unintentional side effect of thinking/talking about anime-affiliated products? Anyways, I guess it’s just another day in the wondrous and varied world of anime merchandising! How many new ways can Japanese companies come up with to suck the money out of YOUR otaku pockets?

From Gigazine: “Evangelion Bottled Water shaped like Asuka and Ayanami’s plug suit” and “Ranka and Sheryl’s ‘Macross Frontier Instant Ramen’ by Bandai“

Hakuouki: Shinsengumi Kitan First Impressions

April 11, 2010 //

So the first new series that I checked out from the Spring 2010 season turned out to be Hakuouki: Shinsengumi Kitan. Apart from Heroman, none of the other series on my current wishlist are out yet, so I’m sitting tight while sneaking occasional peeks at ANN’s Spring 2010 Anime Preview Guide

My attention span is uber short these days and I can lose interest pretty quickly, but I found the first episode of Hakuouki: Shinsengumi Kitan to be a great watch. I basically turned off my brain for 30 minutes as I enjoyed the display of eye candy men parading in front of me. Which may sound rather demeaning, but I actually meant that in the most positive way possible; the show is purposely designed to show off all the bishonen anyways. Which this first episode did, successfully. There’s enough of a plot to keep the show moving along, but nothing too complicated (or overly cliche) to detract viewers from admiring the hot dudes.

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