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ローゼンメイデン 
This has to be the lousiest week ever for me. I'll explain about it when I'm ready but it's likely that I'll have to go away and postpone my posts for a week or two. I'll try to prepare some pre-made posts while I'm away. Anyway, this series is becoming less and less interesting as time goes by. It's really apparent now that the writers try to stretch out the story as long as they can. The things that have been spread over the course of seven episodes could have been done in 2-3 episodes. Basically they've just done the same thing over and over again. For example, Night short circuits, goes back to Kronos Heaven, being released again, rinse and repeat. Also, last week's episode suggests a no-turning point for Night and Gaku since Gaku has been asked to reformat Night. As it turns out, the situation is not that serious after all.
Once again, sorry for the slow crawl to episode review this week but I have no choice since I have to prepare for a presentation, which is due in the next 12 hours. I probably have to wait before I can review Special A. Anyway, this episode is so much better than I originally thought it'd be. First thing first, this episode have a lot of Shiki and Rima in it. I like both supporting characters and find it amusing that their day job is actually professional model. I didn't expect the anime writers to give longer screentime to showcase the fight between Shiki and that Level E vampire. To see Shiki using his power to fight that vampire was awesome. Moreover, the end of this episode suggests that we have finally reach the first major arc of the series. I'm really excited to see next episode because of one particular character. I just hope they don't botch her character design in the adaptation. I'm a bit cautious after seeing the color they used for her hair.
After last week's debacle about Chrona's gender, I decided to keep the character as genderless as possible. When I got around to do it, however, I found that it's rather hard to do so. It makes me realized how English language, or at least English language that I'm accustomed to use is very gender-reliant. The problem comes when discussing an action that Chrona performs or an object belonging to the character. Normally, this is where I use first person words such as his or her to avoid repetition of the character's name. It makes me wonder if others who write articles have the same problem as I do. I also wonder if this is also a problem prevalent in other language apart from Japanese. It's also kind of interesting how such ambiguity allows an author to not reveal the gender of the character until such a point. This also means that one has to be careful of some of the translation work out there because what's probably meant to be a secret up to a point, would have been revealed early due to the use of gender-identification words.
Sorry for the late entry. This really is the worst week for me to post any kind of entry since I have a major presentation looming in a few days and an exam coming the week after. I'm just glad that the next episode won't be released a week later since that means I would have finished the exam by then. Anyway, this is a rather nice temporary resolution for the series although I'm not so sure if this is a good idea for the Japanese. While watching this, I'm reminded of Moses and his attempt to lead the Jew away from Egypt and into the promise land. There wasn't any sea being parted but the whole thing was similar to making the impossible into a possibility. At any rate, it's an impressive feat albeit one which leaves me wonder, where to go next from here? Would the series end with Zero leading the Japanese back to Japan? I also wonder if this means we'll shift the focus away from Japan and into other countries?
Wow at the ending of this episode. I never expected that one although it'll be weird if it turns out to be true. I just don't see how the series will end if the main antagonist is already gone before the end of the series. Apart from that, however, I think that this is probably the most disappointing episode thus far. I just don't like the mood of the episode in general and there doesn't seem to be much plot left. With only 4 more episodes left, I really hope that the writers will speed up the pace a little bit and finally reveal some backstories. They really need to stop teasing us (or creeping us) with Takeru's backstory and just get straight to the point. I also think they need to tone down the use of Prisoner of Love as a theme song. I personally love the song but after hearing it for the umpteenth time, it does get a bit repetitive. Plus, I don't like the slow version that they use in the series in comparison to the normal one used in the opening.
Sorry for the lack of larger-size images. I got a crappy raw and besides, I intend on replacing most of the screenshots with the widescreen ones later on.
If you're wondering if this episode contains some kind of crossover to Tsubasa Chronicle, you're setting up yourself for a big disappointment. As I thought, several changes have been made to the storyline. To begin with, this story was meant as a follow up to Himawari's arc but since that arc has not happened yet, Watanuki ends up going to the cake shop only with Doumeki. In addition to this, the writers completely scraps the part of the story where Moro and Maru are essential to keep the store intact. In this episode, both spirits are perfectly fine, changing the storyline in a big way. This particular story made the manga slightly more tense but at the same time, it also made things feel all over the place. It was weird to read a story that is interconnected to Tsubasa Chronicle on several pages and then seeing the story back talking about case-of-the-week on other pages. It often makes me wonder if those two stories are connected but in most cases, the answer is no. As a result, it just creates confusion. But now that the writers scrapped Tsubasa-related plot out, I wonder if they'll ever explain the purpose behind Yuuko's store.
Well, I decided to continue this since it's too late to quit now with only 5 more episodes left. At this point, I'm just watching it to see if Riiko can quit her lousy job and become a patissier. There better be tons of cake shots in the upcoming episodes. Plus, it looks like the story will start to ramp up next week with the introduction of Soushi's ex-girlfriend. Speaking of that ex-girlfriend, I think I've seen the actress in another series/film before but I can't for the life of me figure out her name. If you're wondering about Osen, I'm still interested to cover it but I'll have to wait until the end of each monthly cycle (which is going to be soon) before getting the series from whatever bandwidth still remains in my account. As it is now, however, I'm not sure if I can actually get this week's copy of xxxHOLiC easily. I wish I have a 100GB download limit but I don't see the point when the season is slow like during summer/winter.
This episode reminds me that I am not fully aware of the limitations that the vampires in this story face. If one takes example from other vampire-stories, in 30 Days of Night, the vampires are free to roam around because for 30 days, the sun will not be seen in the artic area. The same can be said about the vampires in Interview with the Vampires, who get burned easily in the sun. While the vampires in this series also avoid sunlights, there have been times when they are seen roaming around during daytime, which is rather unusual for vampires. I also wonder if they have aversion to garlic or if there is a specific way to kill them. It's also interesting to note that unlike other vampire stories, the only vampires which can turn humans into vampires are the pure-bloods. As a result, it's impossible for the series to have some kind of story where a bunch of vampires turn several humans into their own kind.
Because the majority of the characters in this show are kids, I often wonder how the show would fare if it's screened in other countries. The realization never occured to me before this episode but the kids on this show do get injured quite a lot. I am already used to seeing this kind of thing in anime so nothing fazed me but I can imagine that some people would not be happy seeing children violently treated in this series. The thing is, I think the show would be able to get away a lot more if they had used adults or at least teenagers in the story. I guess the reason high school kids are being used in this series is to appeal to the target market but at the same time, is it really necessary for the characters to be young so that high school kids would enjoy the series? Anyway, if you have a choice, what is the age range of the characters that you prefer to see? Personally, I think it'd be nice to see characters in the 20-30 years old range.
This is probably the best episode that have come out of this series. Seeing the other characters getting so much screentime is definitely better for the story since they are the more interesting and amusing part of the series. It still doesn't make either Hikari or Kei more likeable but at least they make the series a lot more fun that it normally is. I remember being bored out of my mind last week but that's not the case with this episode. Every moments are filled with insane plan from Akira's devious mind. It's like watching an episode of Road Runner with Akira being Wile E. Coyote whereas Kei is the Road Runner. The only difference is, I usually root for Road Runner whereas in this one, I wish Akira manages to somehow defeats Kei with one of her traps. It's really annoying when that monster just keeps plowing like a robot.
I admit that normally I don't pay much attention to the political background of this series mostly because I have little interest in politics. However, thanks to the Emperor's speech and his very federation-like uniform, I'm reminded that the political situation in this series is not just a backdrop for Lelouch and Suzaku's clashing ideals. I actually didn't know until very recently that Britannia is an allegory for the United States of America instead of the real Britain. All of a sudden, what used to be an allusion to any country which has done its own share of invasion of other countries becomes a more direct criticism of one particular country. Since I'm not a citizen of the US, I can't say that I feel one way or the other towards this but I have to admit that it makes sense considering the recent political situation. I do wonder how the citizens of the US themselves feel about this. Do most people just don't see the association, choose to ignore the association or admit the association one way or another? Does Britannia represents a fair criticism of the US government?
*sigh* Why do I always get into crappy situation like the one I'm in now? FYI, I'm typing this from my office now because I can't get into my apartment. I foolishly forgot to bring my key with me when I left the place this morning. I know I should call Locksmith but it's late at night and I don't feel like waiting outside until the guy comes and they usually don't tell you when they'll come. Oh well, at least I still have an internet connection here or else, it'd be mind numbing waiting until morning. Anyway, moving on to the actual series, unfortunately this episode sees the rating goes down a little bit. I wonder if this is because the episode feels a bit repetitive? As usual, Eri and Ogurin don't get too much screentime either. Eri did provide some advice for Ruka in this episode and is it just me or did everyone else also get the impression that Eri knows the truth about Ruka? And although she said otherwise, I still think that Eri doesn't actually cope with loneliness all that well. If this is true, then expect to see a change in her mood starting from next week.
This is one of my favorite HOLiC stories because it's a straight up horror stories that the series often do a good job of. I can't help but being creep out everytime I see the figure that Watanuki see from outside the house. Although realistically, how many people would actually go in and investigate said figure in real life? I'd personally leave it alone. This is one thing that characters in horror stories like this one can't seem to grasp or understand. Instead of just staying away from it, they have the need to investigate it, which of course, leads them to experiencing the horror. Of course, if they didn't go in, then there wouldn't be a horror story in the first place. In a way, horror stories relies on its characters to investigate the very thing that terrorize them, in the process, they get terrorized even more. Anyway, to celebrate another creepy story, I decide to recycle the idea that I used in Episode 10 of xxxHOLiC. I basically told a horror story and asked others to do the same. You don't have to if you can't but it'd be good if you can because sharing horror stories is fun in that creepy kind of way.
I have a mix feeling about this final installment of Metal Gear Solid. On the one hand, I'm glad that I'll finally be able to play the latest and final chapter of the series. On the other hand, it's a bit sad to know that this will be the series' final swan song. I've been a big fan of the series ever since Playstation came out and the series have been one of the most entertaining games I've had the pleasure to play. Anyway, the official site for the game is now open with all sorts of movie from the latest press conference. The game is finally completed and is set to be released on June the 12th. The official trailer feels a tad cheesy (complete with a cheese-tastic "Evil is Powerful but Courage is SOLID" tagline) but I think that's Kojima's intended aim. The press conference also released several adverts featuring Snake and other characters promoting game-related merchandise such as a W62S Sony Ericsson phone, Regain drink, t-shirts by UNIQLO, and even an alarm watch. Note: if you're not interested to play the flash game on the website but still want to get the extra items (wallpapers, mp3s), there's someone who's played the flash game and posted the freebies that you get if you played it.
All MGS 4 website bonus content (all credit goes to MGS TUS board poster, Dema)
Once again, sorry for the crappy screencap quality but this is the best I can do at the moment. Anyway, it looks like the decision for Night to be more robotic in this adaptation is not really the actor's choice. When Night turns his head left and right in a robotic manner at the start of this episode, I realized that this is a direction from either the script or the director. This is rather unfortunate because the interesting thing about the manga was that Night actually looks similar to human just like those Replicants in Blade Runner or those Cylons in Battlestar Galactica. In this adaptation, however, Night acts more like an old-style robot, complete with creaking noise when he turns his head around. It's not surprising that Riiko feels uncomfortable around him because no matter how human his outside appearance, he still has some robot-like elements, just like those creepy Terminators.
I'm always amused with this particular part of the series no matter how many times I've read/seen it. I just think it's very dramatic and a bit harlequin-romance-esque. Especially with Yuuki saying "Together, let us commit the most unforgivable act". The first time I read it I though they were going to have sex but much to my disappointment, it's just more blood sucking. On a hindsight, this could just be an allegory that the author used to represent sex without the magazine censoring every single bits of the story. After all, the basic idea of the scene in question is that of a pre-marital girl willingly giving herself to a guy. Interestingly enough, for some reason vampires are often seen as sexual deviants, possibly because the act of sucking someone else's neck was considered taboo back then and still is for some people. What's amusing is how this element of taboo actually sexualizes the concept of vampirism more than it scares people away.
I think part of the problem that this series had before is because the writers try to stretch one volume of the manga for one episode. Vampire Knight writers realized that this is impossible and does a good job of mixing up a few chapters but that's not the case with this series. Thankfully the writers start to realize that this is not the way to go and starting from this episode, they combine 2 chapters to make one episode. I also realized now that the majority of Special A's stories are more like a straight-up romance between Kei and Hikari than a comedy involving the rest of the Special A members. I know I've said this before but it needs to be repeated because I think the side characters like Tadashi, Akira, Ryuu, and the twins are a lot more interesting to see. I don't like Yahiro though, I think he's as annoying as Kei so watching this episode is similar to seeing two annoying people at once. It doesn't help that I think the animation is not as good as last week's episode.
Although Death the Kid can be pretty stupid, Miyano Mamoru does a good job of voicing him. In a way, Kid reminds me a bit of Tamaki because the voice that Miyano employs for this particular character is pretty similar to the voice that he used for Tamaki. Death the Kid is not the only thing that is funny about this episode. The pairing of Black Star and Soul as partner is a pretty amusing concept as well. In fact, the whole Soul/Black Star vs. Death the Kid turns out to be very funny, making this the funniest episode thus far. It makes me wonder if I actually prefer this kind of comedic-based episode than the endless fight ones. Oh well, let's see what happen next week since that should be the one where the group goes on a mission again. But between this and last week's episode, I definitely enjoyed this one a lot more.
Air Date: October 2008
As everyone probably already know, there'd be a continuation to Nodame Cantabile anime coming up this October on Fuji TV's Noitamina block. Ttitled「のだめカンタービレ 巴里編」(Nodame Cantabile Paris Hen), the series will hopefully be similar to the drama version in that, it doesn't go beyond the manga storyline since the last time I checked, the manga is not completed yet. I am actually a bit apprehensive about this since it seems like the producers just want to capitalize on the series even though the series is nowhere in completion yet. Moreover, they ended the first season in such a rush that they just showed parts of the stories as static stills that shares space with the ending credit.
At any rate, sequels seem to be popular in the anime industries these days, which understandable since the fans (including myself) lapped it up but at the same time, it does make one wonders about originality. At times like this, I'm glad that Honey and Clover manga is finished. This means there's nothing that greedy producers can do to milk its popularity apart from doing various drama adaptations. Speaking of which, I'm still waiting for the US adaptation of Honey and Clover drama. Just kidding, Japan. Don't even think about it. I think three live-action adaptations are more than enough. Anyway, there are other sequels that we'll see this year or next year, click after the cut for some preview.
Update: included better images.
The solution to the problem that Lelouch faced on last week's episode turns out to be a lot more interesting than what I had anticipated. It still surprises me to see Rolo helping Lelouch willingly like this. It looks like Lelouch's pep talk has really got into him because his turnover from enemy to ally is very quick. I do wonder about the rest of Lelouch's alliance though. Because at the end of the day, he's still a Britannian. What would happen if the rest of Black Knights find out about this? Sure, several members like Karen has accepted it so far but would others be happy as well if they know that their leader is actually a Britannian? And then there are 'uneasy' alliance that he's made with unwilling parties like Villetta or willing but possibly have other motives like Li and the Chinese Federation. Most importantly, there is C.C. IIRC, so far we still have no idea what she demands from Lelouch in exchange of giving him geass. What if at the end of the series, her request ends up being in conflict with Lelouch's interest? Will Lelouch honor her request or betray it?
I just found out from the official website that there's some kind of cell-phone based, short drama spin-off series called "Eri, My Love". The series will be distributed every week and the story will show Eri's private life, which is not shown much in Last Friends. That sounds interesting and a good thing for Mizukawa Asami since her character hasn't exactly been getting much of a focus here. But I feel like I'm missing out on the story even though the website claims otherwise. I hope we'll get to see it as well someday. On a happier note, DramaWiki points out that this episode actually got a 19.9 rating, a 4.0 jump from its usual 15.9 rating. This puts it on the same level as a normal Nodame Cantabile episode. I hope that this increase is not just a one-off incident though atlhough I admit that I didn't expect this drama to end up being this popular even though it features at least 3 principal casts from Nodame Cantabile. But the writing has been quite good and the characters' motivation are easy to understand/sympathize even if you can't put yourself in their position.
Orange Range - O2 (NEW - 45MB, PSP/Quicktime format) | YouTube version
To be honest I didn't really like song the first time I heard it. While the lyric seems relevant to Lelouch and Nunnaly's situation in Code Geass R2, the actual melody and composition of the song are not really the best that I've heard coming Orange Range. I am actually kind of amused that the producers decided to use Orange Range and wondered if they want the viewers to be reminded of Orange-kun. I don't think that's the case but it's a bit amusing everytime I heard about it. Anyway, I still think the song is not as great as Colors but the full version seems to be better and less abrupt than the TV Size. The PV itself is very funny and features Orange Range members dressed up as Samurai in Edo period. They end up helping this one hapless Samurai to be with his lover when the hapless Samurai is beaten up by a bunch of henchmen. At one point, one of the members actually moves at a lightning speed and grabs all of the swords from the henchmen's hand. On a glance, it looks similar to what Rolo can do when he uses his geass. In general though, nothing about the PV gives any impression of Code Geass.
I'd guess that the only way I can fully enjoy this episode is if I have a full understanding of the games' rules. Otherwise, it feels like I'm only watching half of the story since I have no idea why certain things seem funny to the characters. This also makes me realized that there are several Japanese cultures that I can't connect with on a personal basis. Mahjong is one of them and Shougi, which I mistook as mahjong last week, is another. I think the same thing can be said about Pachinko. I remember sleeping at a nearby chair while my friends were busy trying to get more money out of Pachinko machines at an arcade in Japan. I do wonder if it's wrong that I don't want to understand them a bit more. It's just not in my interest to do so even though in general, I do like Japanese cultures. I just think that just because you like a culture, it doesn't mean you have to pretend that you like every single facet of said culture.
The lack of chemistry between the three leads is starting to wear me down. I think there's something wrong when I don't really care that Night is off with another girl instead of staying with Riiko. I am starting to agree with some posters who suggested that the guy who plays Soushi's older brother would have been a better candidate to play Soushi. At least he looks a bit closer to Soushi in the manga. This reminds me of that new remake of King Kong where Peter Jackson for some reason think it's a good idea to cast Adrien Brody against Naomi Watts when the two have zero chemistry with one another. Meanwhile, Thomas Kretschmann, who plays the captain of the ship, actually looks a lot more similar to the original Jack Driscoll in both attitude and looks. Anyway, this episode also suffers from a mid-episode problem where the story feels stretched out longer than necessary. This would have been fine if some development comes out of it but at the end of the episode, everything just returned to the way they were.
I have to admit that I'm quite surprised with the decision that the animation team made in regards to this adaptation. At first I thought they'd be staying away from all of the erotic part of the series but that's not true at all. This episode is particularly kinky with all the neck, blood, and finger licking good that each vampire does to another vampire or human. This also makes me realized how unfazed I am with this kind of thing anymore. A few years ago, I would be too embarrassed to include some of the screenshots that I took for this episode. Now, I just don't see the problem with it and sometimes they kind of amuse me. It makes me wonder if anime does lower my inhibitions or it just makes me shameless. XD Wait, maybe I shouldn't have wrote that because this is how the media over-exaggerates things and claims that anime is an evil influence that turns good people into the perverted types that anime fans are known for. :D
Well, this is a rather pleasant ending to Dr.Stein's mini arc. This is actually one of those occasions where I feel lucky that I haven't read the corresponding chapter. If you haven't either, then try not to read it until you watch the episode first because it's worth it. Unfortunately, the animation starts showing sign of degradation here. While it still looks good in general, it's not as clean and perfect as the past 4 weeks. As long as it doesn't degrade a lot more than it currently is, I think I'm going to be fine with it. Anyway, I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but the missing interrogation scene wasn't added in the late night version and we don't get to see it either in this one. Since Soul Eater is an evening show, I can understand BONES decision to excise the scene although it's a bit unfortunate as well because it's a funny scene more than anything else. This, however, makes me wonder about the purpose of the late night version. Is it just a way to increase ratings for the series instead of giving the ultimate version of the series?
This episode is actually pretty good. The animators are starting to get used to using shoujo style conventions (soft filters, pastel colors, etc). The cheesy crayon drawings that always appear during Hikari/Kei scene still present but it's easy to ignore them and just focus on what's good about the episode. I do wonder what people think about the 'tablecloth' effect. I'm talking about this white tablecloth patterns that appears everytime they try to emphasize harmonious situation. The scene usually involves a static screen so the tablecloth looks like a watermark/pattern overlaying the image. At first I find it amusing but I'm getting used to it know and sometimes they actually look pretty good. As for characters, the focus of the story is still on Kei and Hikari but at least the other members are getting more screen time than in the previous episodes. And if the anime continue in this direction then we'll actually see an arc involving Akira pretty soon.
OP Theme: 「踊れ」 (Odore) by Micro
Download: AVI version (27.1MB) | PSP version (17.1MB) | YouTube version
My original intention was to actually blog this drama, but since I already picked up Last Friends on top of Zettai Kareshi, I have to put this on the side for a while. I simply can't afford to download more than 20GB worth of stuff per month and 3 one-hour dramas per week means losing around 2.4GB per week. Not good when I have other series to cover. It's especially hard since for some reason anime broadcast goes pseudo-HD, inflating the filesize up to 500MB each. Moreover, 3 dramas in one week would be a bit too much for me. Having said that, I'm still interested to cover this and will find a way to do it somehow. I probably won't be able to keep it up on a week by week basis but I'll catch up somehow every few weeks. Anyway, let's see what happens. I'm more concerned with the bandwidth thing more than anything else. At any rate, this is a pretty good first episode. It brings back good memories of old anime series like Fruits Basket and Yakitate! Japan. It's probably because this show is so entrenched in Japanese culture just like those series I mentioned above.
This is a rather nice surprise from the series. The comedy is actually spot on and the little twists and turns provided in between are enough to make me want to see the next episode. I'm also surprised to see the new Suzaku, who seems to be smart enough to play tactician against Lelouch. Granted that it's not over yet but he just checked Lelouch into a corner during the last few minutes of this episode. This episode is also chock-full of fanservice and the good thing about this is that most of them are actually hilarious. Because of this, I'm not even going to attempt normal summary. I'm just going to highlight what amuses me during the episode and a little bit of the plot if necessary. It'll be a nice thing to do once in a while and at least this way I'll get to sleep a bit earlier. :D
While I'm not exactly a fan, I've been following Ueno Juri's career ever since Swing Girls. With every film/series, I notice that she always chooses a role that is different from the one that she played beforehand. Her role in Swing Girls requires her to be a spunky high school girl whereas in Summertime Machine Blues, she plays a geeky and rather quiet college girl (and Eita's love interest). I don't think I need to highlight how different her role in Nodame Cantabile was in comparison to her role as Ruka in this series. It's also interesting to see her working with Eita over and over again. Although they seem to work together quiet frequently, their interaction in each projects are distinctly different. Takuma/Haruka in Summertime Machine Blues are reluctant couple whereas Nodame/Mine in Nodame Cantabile are goofy friends who get to drive Chiaki mad. Ruka/Takeru, on the other hand, is more like unrequited love mixed with deep friendship.
If you're interested to see the difference between the pan/scan version and the widescreen, I've changed all of the screenshots from the first episodes into widescreen version. As you can see, it doesn't make much of a difference since washed out colors would stay washed out even in widescreen mode. The framing of the scenes are slightly better but it's nothing extraordinary. Maybe it'll be more apparent in episode 2, which has better, warmer color in comparison to episode 1. This episode itself is rather pedestrian in terms of animation. As I said before, the animation does make it harder to like this series. Sometimes I wish this series look more like Soul Eater (quality-wise) while still keeping the story similar. This episode itself is not too bad although it's certainly not a reference episode either. What stands out in this one, however, is the soundtrack, which is really good and in a way, is wasted on such poor animation/character design.
