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ローゼンメイデン 
November 30, 2005 | 
51 Comments
Episode 8 will undoubtedly be considered boring by some people, but it was a treasure chest for any wannabe anime Nostradamus like me. No action or fanservice at all (with the exception of one preview scene) and only very little comedy - but alot of character development, seeing old faces again and the creation of more new plot threads than you could shake a stick at. Wow! This has got to be one of the most complex background setups I've seen develop over the course of 8 episodes, and most definitely the biggest named character cast I'm aware of.
All this comes at a price. I've been monitoring the relevant message boards and blogs on Otome, and alot of serious misconceptions are floating around. Maybe SUNRISE is overdoing things a bit, because for many casual viewers the setup will be too complicated. It took me another full rewatch of the prior eps to fill some gaps. So, I'll try to sum up the relevant plot threads and factions along with the comments, to save people some time.
Episode Rating: +
November 29, 2005 | 4 Comments
The storyline of the week seems to be inspired from Yakitate!! Japan in the sense that it deals with competitive bakery industry. It's probably not far from the truth considering in Japan, bakery is one serious business. There are many good bakeries all around the country and they do compete fiercely with each other. This episode also continues the plot threads from the previous episode. In other words, Tsugumi and Hajime are back in the episode. Their role seems kind of similar to the role of the mother and son characters in Ringu. What I mean by this is that they are the ones who get to see and investigate things that happen to other characters. It remains to be seen if they'll get any deeper into the mystery just like those two characters in Ringu.
November 29, 2005 | 20 Comments
Dramatic - Piano Version/Short (2MB, MP3) - updated 11/12/05
Okay, first of all, who wants the piano version of Dramatic? :D I don't exactly have the full song but I did manage to rip the song used for the DVD menu and the result is the one you can get above. Because of this, the song ends up being rather short since it's originally meant to be used as a part of a loop. But I figure it's better than nothing. In other news, by now everyone probably already knows that Honey and Clover sits at number 3 on Oricon's top 10 shoujo manga in Japan today. The series is preceeded in popularity only by Nana and Hana Yori Dango. The series' popularity even prompted CDJapan to make a special page for those who want to buy Honey and Clover related items. Anyway, as usual this is an entry about the latest DVD release. So first thing first, here are some scans:
Digipack Front Cover
DVD Case, Front Cover
DVD Case, Back Cover
Clear File
November 28, 2005 | 31 Comments
*Do not direct-link or reproduce this image elsewhere
Update: Unfortunately I'm a bit strapped for time at the moment so I decided to just post information about the DVD by recycling this entry. As I said before, this DVD is basically released in order to promote the upcoming Fate/stay night series, which will start its broadcast in January. The DVD comes in a deluxe box which also contains a hardcover book featuring screenshots of the DVD as well as some character design sketches. I am also not sure if this is applicable to other people's copy or if it's just Amazon Japan thing but my copy actually came with a large poster featuring Saber. The poster's image is similar to the one on the actual box itself but it's still quite cool to have nevertheless. Anyway, just click and scroll down to read more impression and see some of the scans.
November 27, 2005 | 6 Comments
This is a good episode that utilises its island setting very well. The episode also has this purple hue infused into almost every single scene from the colour of the flower to the sparkling seawater during sunrise. I also like how the episode showcases another side of Ginko in this episode. In the previous episodes, the series showed that Ginko is not infallible. He tries to do his best but there are times when he makes mistake. This episode basically re-emphasises the idea that Ginko is not all-powerful. The only reason he manages to survive thus far is because he's careful, knowledgeable, and knows when he has to run for his life. I find the last part of his characterisation to be amusing and yet realistic. After all, it's rare to see a hero in an anime series who actually flees for his life in the middle of danger.
November 26, 2005 | 16 Comments
The animation seems to be quite good just like last week and that's a good thing. This, episode, however, made me notice that the soundtrack in this show is quite lacking. When there is any, it's usually in the form of Jazz that is used in sleazy soft-core flick instead of the good quality Jazz. Oh well, I supposed I can't have it all with this one. By the way, when you watch this episode, do not skip the ending because after the ending, there are flashes of what looks like a group of people dressing up like Yukari, George, and Miwako. They even have the prototype Butterfly ring on display in that sequence. It's quite amusing to look at and made me realise how prior to this episode, I usually dismiss this particular section.
November 25, 2005 | 27 Comments
This is probably the best 2nd season episode thus far. This episode shows that this show actually has a lot of talented people working for it. Everything from animation, acting, storyline, and down to music is perfect here. Anyone who's afraid that Suigintou's revival is going to be handled poorly can relax a bit now. Her revival was so much better than I thought possible. I will talk about this a bit later though since it's a bit spoilery to discuss in this area. I can, however, talk about the music, which sounds awesome, especially Kamp, the song that plays during Suigintou and Barasuishou confrontation. The style sounds a bit like Kajiura Yuki's music but I don't think it's actually her who composed the song. If you're interested in the song, Flareon mentioned in the comment area that the song is actually included in the ED Single.
November 24, 2005 | 4 Comments
Unfortunately this episode feels a bit compressed to me. It seems as if the writers were trying to cram 4 chapters worth of material into a half hour episode. As a result, some scenes may be a bit hard to understand for those who haven't read the manga. I'm not sure how many episodes this series is going to have but if it ends up being 13, then that explains why the writers are in a hurry to include as many chapters as possible. Anyway, the animation also feels a bit off this time with the colours not looking as nice as in the previous episodes. Thankfully the characterisation reminds spot on although it's really hard to ruin this since the manga already does a good job of establishing each and every character traits. I am also glad to know that the VAs for Karin and Kenta did a good job in two key scenes within this episode.
November 23, 2005 | 3 Comments
Lately I've been thinking how I actually don't find one-off episode format itself to be a problem because I obviously like Mushishi a lot. However, Jigoku Shoujo's way of telling a story is quite limited and therefore, without some kind of an arc, each episode feels a bit repetitive. This episode also made me realised that the animators are trying their best to work with whatever small budget I suspect they've been given. When I saw the stock animation of Enma Ai doing her Ippen Shinde Miru routine being turned upside down, I knew the animators are scrapping the bottom of the budget barrell. I think this is exactly why the storyline needs to be better because when you don't have enough money to show 'the fireworks', so to speak, you have nothing else to rely on but the quality of the script itself. So I'm glad that at the very least the story is quite interesting this time around.
November 22, 2005 | 48 Comments
*Please do not direct-link or reproduce this image elsewhere
I'm sorry that this comes up really late but Mentar has been quite busy lately so I have to take over this particular episode. The problem is, I've also been rather busy trying to prepare for the JLPT on top of writing for 5 other series that I cover this season. Oh well, things will probably get better after I completed JLPT early December. Anyway, this is an interesting episode that deals with Mashiro and her insecurity. There are also some hints of future plots being scattered here and there. Most notable, of course, is the mystery of the Windbloom's true successor which could be one either Arika, Nina, or Mashiro. This episode also features some appearance of several Mai Hime characters which no doubt will make some fans happy.
November 20, 2005 | 12 Comments
It's not until this episode that I realised how apart from Ginko, who sports a grey/white hair due to a reason that has yet to be addressed, the other characters usually have black hair instead of those strange purple/pink hair colour that is prevalent in other anime series. The only exception to this so far is the girl found within this episode. But even then, the green hair colour used on the girl actually serves the storyline a purpose and not just a method to distinguish her from other characters. I really like this because it means the animators have to ensure that each character in Mushishi is drawn distinctly enough so that one can easily recognises a character from another even if they have similar hair colour. As a side note, Honey and Clover fans will be happy to know that Adashino-sensei is played by Ueda Yuuji (Morita Shinobu).
November 18, 2005 | 11 Comments
Rozen Maiden träumend 6: Angel - Preview (MP4, 4.7MB, for PSP/Quicktime) - Mirror
I get the impression that some people are more interested to see the preview for episode 6 than this episode itself. So if you don't mind a little bit of spoiler, feel free to download the small MP4 file that I provided above. I'd also like to use this opportunity to pimp my re-done old episodes. TBS has actually been screening this series in the pan and scan format and BS-i gets to be the one that screens the awesome widescreen version. Unfortunately the widescreen is not available 3 weeks after the original airdate and I can't wait that long to watch the series. The solution? I'll just redo the screenshots in widescreen format a few weeks later. I've done this for the first episode as well as the opening intro video. There is also a Pan and Scan vs. Widescreen comparison for this series if you want to see it.
November 18, 2005 | 15 Comments
Wow, what happened to this episode? Have the animators suddenly been given enough budget to produce the series properly? Because I think the production values looks unusually good here with lots of close-ups and facial shots. Just look at some of those Yukari's glamour shots. It seems as if the animators have saved all of the budget for this episode alone. Either way, I am happy to see this. It also helps that the storyline starts to become interesting as well. Franz Ferdinand fans will also be happy to know that there's a little advertisement for the band in one of the episodes' scenes. Anyway, I hope the good quality continues right through the end because I really like the ending for this series and would hate to see it ruined by lousy animation and direction. As a sidenote, according to Akadot there will be a Paradise Kiss shop in the Odaiba area from November 19th 2005 to March 31st 2006.
November 17, 2005 | 2 Comments
Well, it's three episode down and the animation is still consistently good. So I think it's safe to say that J.C Staff are going to treat Karin quite well. Unfortunately the storyline seems to be a bit slower in pace this time around. I don't mind this because the episode in general is still pleasant to watch. However, I do miss a couple of scenes that were in the manga. Speaking of the manga, this episode seems to cover right up to the end of chapter 6 but the majority of its storylines have been altered a little bit to facilitate the 'happiness' theme that is presented within this episode. Unfortunately, the treatment of the theme is quite superficial and in the end, only serves as a way for Karin to figure out how she can get rid of her nosebleed problem whenever she gets close to Kenta.
November 16, 2005 | 9 Comments
Well, this turns out to be the most entertaining episode so far. The animation is also a bit better with only a few stock animation being used in this episode. I did, however, noticed that an umbrella seems to be the new stylish weapon of choice for girls to use these days. I have to admit that the item is a brilliant choice because it serves dual function to protect you from rain and from uninvited guest. Speaking of item, our sponsor, Jigoku Inc., would like to use the opportunity to announce their new stylish accessory lineup: The Jigoku Baseball Cap™. It is available in several colour choice including light creme (just like the face of your fake personality), black (similar to the color of your skin when it gets burned in hell), and red (the way you'll bleed for us in hell). Please buy some or Ai will personally visit you and take you on a never ending boat ride to hell.
November 15, 2005 | 35 Comments
Tommy february6 - Lonely in Gorgeous (MP4, 31MB, for PSP/Quicktime)
Paradise Kiss - Lonely in Gorgeous (MP4, 14.7MB, for PSP/Quicktime)
Well, here is the lyric for this song. If you didn't manage to obtain the PV, I have a PSP version of it here. Even after several repeats, I still think that the PV looks weird. In general I can't decide if Tommy was drunk or intentionally acting like she was drunk. It doesn't help that 'story' depicted within the PV itself doesn't have anything to do with the lyric. The lyric actually tells a story of a girl who is in love with a boy but ends up having her heart broken by the boy during a party at night. So it definitely doesn't have anything to do with undercover cops or drunk singer. If anything, the lyric sounds as if it was written especially to illustrate the relationship trainwreck depicted in Paradise Kiss.
November 14, 2005 | 37 Comments
Okay, I'll confess it. I went into this episode in a very sour mood, not just expecting but intending to hate it. I had just seen 3-4 screenshots from the episode and was totally annoyed by the fact that this was obviously going to be a senseless fanservicey fluffpiece for lolipedofins. Where's the plot, dammit? Where's the drama? GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER, SUNRISE! GRRRRR!
Well, and then I watched it.
Mai Otome 6 turns out to be the best comedy episode of the entire Mai franchise so far, and ranks among the best comedy episodes ever in my book. It had me howling even before the OP, and when the last frame of the preview had aired, I was happy in EVERY aspect. The show was utterly hilarious, we even had some minor plot progression, some nice character development woven in, and the preview proved that in the next episode the serious plot will kick in. What more could you possibly wish for?
Episode Rating: ++
November 13, 2005 | 13 Comments
Well, this is actually not as gory as I had hoped it to be. However, it is indeed slightly more graphic than usual. I hope people will still watch the episode though, because I think the storyline is the most creative out of the episodes that have been aired thus far. I am also glad to see the series still maintain its high-quality style from previous episodes. This is a relief to me because the quality of an anime series usually goes down around either the third or fourth episode. As a side note, according to Amazon Japan, the first DVD of Mushishi will go on sale in January. The first pressed edition will include 2 episodes, a bonus disc with interviews, making of footage, 20 page booklet, six postcards, and a deluxe case. I think my credit card just went into a cardiac arrest because it knows that I'm going to get this DVD for sure.
November 11, 2005 | 9 Comments
This turns out to be a very good episode that contains equal amount of character development and action scenes. The animation is also a lot better here with some nice movement during the first round of Alice Game. Story-wise, this is mainly a showcase episode for Suiseiseki's character development. But Shinku's regret for destroying Suigintou that was shown in the first episode gets carried over to this episode as well. Similarly, Jun's progressive character development also reaches a new level here and shows that deep down he really is a kind and caring person. This is probably the second series in the year where I feel that the main protagonist has grow a lot during the entire season of a series. The other character, in case you're interested, is Takemoto from Honey and Clover.
November 11, 2005 | 14 Comments
I don't get this version of the series sometimes. When the scene calls for a dramatic moment, the anime goes comedic instead. But when the scene is supposed to be comedic, the animators completely miss their mark and just go on as if nothing has happened. This is really unfortunate because the anime has now reached an interesting point within the story. However, it's hard to enjoy the story when I get distracted by awkward cuts, scenes that miss their mark, and weird landscape shots. That last one was especially annoying in this episode. I love my art-y screenshots as much as anyone. But I think there's nothing art-y about a shot of an empty grass field or the outside of an apartment building. Especially not when they're drawn in a generic manner and without a specific focus given to a particular object within the scene.
November 11, 2005 | 15 Comments
Opening Theme: Scarlet by BRACE;d (9MB, for PSP/Quicktime) - Updated 20/03/2006
I am not sure if I like some of the changes that have been done to the series. For example, there is a clear attempt to make the series more perverted and I feel that this is unnecessary since the series is already good on its own. I also don't like the minor design change the animators have given to Ren, Karin's older brother. In the manga, Ren has a rather normal ear. In the anime, however, Ren sports a vampire-like ear, making him looking a bit weird. Apart from that, however, this is another nice episode for the series. The opening actually looks really good although once again I kind of wish they didn't go overboard with the nudity. A flash here and there is nice but as it is now, I think the opening makes the series looks like a soft-core porn.
November 10, 2005 | 14 Comments
Arashi - Wish (MP4, 21.8MB, for PSP/Quicktime) - Reuploaded (21/11/05)
This is actually the OP theme of Hana Yori Dango live action. If you're interested to know more about the series, I'll suggest that you check out Ten's coverage of the series. This PV is basically sung by Arashi, a band whose members include Matsumoto Jun, who plays Doumyouji in the live action version of Hana Yori Dango, and Sakurai Shou, the actor who will be playing as Takemoto in the live action adaptation of Honey and Clover. The PV itself is about a painter who arrives in a town and falls in love with a girl. So he sets to win her heart even though he meets some challenges along the way. This is all done in Muppet-style animation and in general, the mood of the song feels a lot like a christmas song.
Kobukuro - Koko ni Shika Sakanai Hana (MP4, 23.1MB, for PSP/Quicktime)
I thought I'd let some people know that I've just updated Kongetsu again. Lately I've been reminded of the time I spent with my friends in Japan again and I think it's partly because of this song. When I was in Japan, I often heard this song playing at the 100-Yen shop that my friends and I often visited. However, I didn't actually know the song's title until I arrived back home. I was quite surprised when I found out that the song is actually an ending theme to a Japanese drama called Ruri no Shima. The drama was playing around June which is the reason why the song was popular around that time as well. I have recently had the chance to see the drama itself and I have to say that it is actually quite good. I'll probably do a coverage about it one day when my schedule is a bit lighter. For now, enjoy the PV while you can because it's quite hard to find even on the Japanese P2P program.
This will unfortunately have to be a rather quick entry since I'm still quite sick and not in the mood for a long-winded summary. Overall this is a rather interesting story that deals with infidelity and violence. I have to say that I'm surprised to find the amount of stories that deal with the pressure of being in a community housing owned by a company in anime and manga. If you're interested, Hot Gimmick is another manga that deals with this kind of stories, albeit in a much lighter manner. Animation-wise this is much better than last week's effort with several shades of red colour being used to represent the infidelity theme of the episode. It reminds me of The Red Shoe Diaries .... err, not that I've seen it or anything like it. :P
November 6, 2005 | 16 Comments
This episode is simply breathtaking. I was actually a bit concerned as to how the animators are going to portray the cold winter scenes in some of the chapters. As far as painting goes, I find that it's usually far easier to depict lush greeneries of spring and summer than the white snow of cold winter. In order to effectively use white to portray winter, other colors need to be mixed in with white so that the white will actually stand out instead of making the image looks flat. The blue/grey-ish tinted snow in this episode is a good example of how to draw the snow correctly. The colors perfectly capture the cold weather that surrounds the village to the point that I feel sorry for Ginko for having to walk so far into the village in such a heavy snow storm.
November 5, 2005 | 16 Comments
Wow, even after using Winny, the raw for this series was as hard to find as a needle in a haystack. I hope this is not an indication of the popularity of the series. But it sure is annoying to find many copies of other series and none whatsoever for this one on the Japanese P2P programs. Anyway, I realised now why I don't like the SD characters so much and that is because they take away whatever emotional moment a scene is supposed to convey. For example, there is a scene in this episode where Yukari is angry at George. In the original manga, her anger and frustration are quite palpable. However, because the animators choose to use the SD, the emotion is no longer as strong as the original intention. It sure is funny but I didn't get the impression that Yukari is actually quite upset about the incident.
November 4, 2005 | 26 Comments
I've been mulling over the rating of Mai Otome 5 for quite a while. The episode wasn't really bad, but it certainly was the one I enjoyed the least out of all 5 installments so far. But does this alone justify a minus rating? Eventually I decided to give it a (-) sign as a vote of confidence - meaning that while this episode convinced me that I'm going to love the story once it turns more serious, this installment was "below average". After all, I want to be able to credibly pull high ratings aswell, without being branded a cheerleader ;)
Episode Rating: (-)
November 4, 2005 | 13 Comments
I'm sorry for taking longer than usual to write this but I'm a bit feverish at the moment and it feels as if I have a painful 'Mushi' on my throat. Oh well, one more series and I can go to bed. Anyway, if it weren't for the arrival of Canaria, this would feel a lot more like a filler episode. This episode also forces me to realise that Canaria really is moulded from the same personality prototype assigned to HinaIchigo. That means she's a klutz and a bit annoying to boot. Thankfully the animation in this episode remains as consistent as the first two so despite its flaws, the episode remains largely enjoyable. It also helps that Rozen Maiden's comedy scenes are always of the sarcastic and dry types so they are more amusing than annoying.
November 3, 2005 | 17 Comments
Ending Theme: 「もうひとつのバースディ」 - Mou hitotsu no birthday by Fm.8 (9MB, for PSP/Quicktime)
Wow, this is another nice anime from J.C Staff. It looks like they've learned a few tricks from producing Honey and Clover. This anime uses similar nice-looking airbrushed background that was featured in that other series. In addition to this, the series uses a really strong colour palette. As a a result, each frame is really nice to look at. You really have to see this yourself to appreciate the quality of the style. As a side note, the sponsor's announcement is actually delivered in English language. I wonder if that means the producers are very aware of the likelihood of the series being watched by the English-speaking audiences. Anyway, at the moment there is no opening theme but there is a simple ending theme.
November 2, 2005 | 11 Comments
