Smooth and Flat

Finally got to watch the last episodes of the show, from 5 to 7. Had no time or was not in the right mood for the last three weeks, so there you are.

The plot thickens; more details get unveiled which leads Oz to a few unpleasant discoveries. Alice is being even cuter, and her fights with Raven are just hilarious. I guess she isn’t a tsundere after all. More like a kuudere, I’d say. Oz is being his usual seemingly carefree yet caring self, and Sharon, together with Break (and Emily), are being cunning and sly, as always.

And… The Will of the Abyss finally shows herself.

My laptop went to the service centre last Thursday; it suffered some mild damage due to the lid’s fixture ripping through the case’s plastic. There also were two cracks on the top cover (the one with keyboard in it, not the lid). At first, they told me it might not be covered by the warranty but in the end I get completely free repairs. They will probably replace the DVD recorder, too, as it doesn’t work with CDs at all – it doesn’t even read them. And I’ve got 5 more months of warranty left.

I’m pretty stressed by the fact that the repairs will take at least one week and a half (up to two weeks, actually) because they need to get the new case for my laptop delivered from South Korea.

In other news:

Alice in episode 5 of Pandora Hearts is going tsundere with a charming accent on the dere side. Sometimes she’s just too cute; also, I giggled when Raven called Oz and Alice “kids”. Screenshots, probably, later.

Been to the new Star Trek movie this Sunday with some friends. I should note that I never watched any series or movies related to the Star Trek universe; so I pretty much didn’t expect too much and I got what I expected – a pretty nicely done sci fi action, way better than those new Star Wars episodes. Leonard McCoy was really nicely done, a pity he didn’t get much time. I also liked old Spock (the one from the “original” timespace), and the first captain of USS Enterprise (Christopher Pike was his name, I think). There were silly moments, of course, but not many of them. Conclusion: an overall good and entertaining movie.

And finally,

H*I*N*A Hinagiku! hai! hai!

The ‘filler’ episodes (or, rather, the introduction) have ended, and now we’re finally up to the long awaited challenge. Episode six. Prefectural qualification matches start, and it’s the elimination round for the participating schools. Heaven or hell? Round one.

Participants:

• Toufukuji High School
• Imamiya Girls High School
• Chikumahigashi High School
• Kiyosumi  High School

Kiyosumi High School line-up:

1. Kataoka Yuuki
2. Someya Mako
3. Takei Hisa
4. Haramura Nodoka – vice captain
5. Miyanaga Saki – captain

Let’s rock!

And this episode is yet another example of why I love table games anime series so much – there’s not much action yet the concentration and the overall pressure are completely dominating the viewer. I can’t wait for the next episode, where Nodoka – and, I hope, Saki as well – will act.

The only thing that still annoys me is Nodoka’s watermelons but nothing can be done about that I guess.

Camping is fun.

Disclaimer: these aren’t screenshots with subtitles. The text was added by yours truly.

Basically, the adaptations (both manga and anime) of a novel aren’t the same. At all.

However, it’s like this for me as I have a vivid imagination enough to construct a live picture from the words I read – and it doesn’t even matter if the author is talented in descriptive department. I just see the things I read about right in front of me – and in most cases (as with Toradora! or Suzumiya Haruhi series) the results of my imagination’s work are far more advanced and profound compared to the product of an animation studio.

And in most cases, we lose a lot of the source material; the reasons are that in the novels the author has to be descriptive sometimes, telling us, the readers, about how, and where, and when.

Apparently, I’m a bit wrong here in terms of “losing” something – even though stuff does get cut out, it’s not really a big deal, I guess; what I mean is something else. Whenever we encounter a description in the novel, the animation attempts to follow it – according to the vision of the animation staff. And this vision differs quite a lot from the reader’s point of view.

Let’s look at an example; you won’t find this piece in the TV animation series.

If I ever went to discuss this is with a psychiatrist, they’d probably theorise that I have a case of schizophrenia and thus, have a split personality – which in part was caused by a person named Misao. Because of that, I would probably come off as something of a fragile pansy; and, unfortunately, I have no basis to deny that accusation.

Incidentally, I have no real connection with other spirits, and, aside from Misao, I’ve never met another ghost in my life. I might just be overly harsh on myself, thinking this way, but in terms of reality, I really wonder…

“Yeah, I really wonder, too.” Misao said and, in a charming manner, purposely unbuttoned the collar of her shirt as if almost inviting me to peek between them.

That’s really erotic, so please stop.

“If you can understand it that way, then isn’t that good enough?”

Translation courtesy of Chihiro; revised against the original text and edited by me as I’m way too lazy to translate from scratch.

I’ve first read about this series on moonphase; however, the brief summary didn’t impress me and how should I put it, these brief summaries are usually a turn-off; especially those on AnimeNewsNetwork and MyAnimeList. The main cons are: they are often misleading; they contain spoilers; they are poorly written. It gets worse if the series in question is an adaptation of a manga series – it becomes unlimited spoiler works.

In spite of this, I’ve decided to check the series. And right during the opening sequence… Animation Production: XEBEC. Presented by Square Enix told me: this definitely goes to the watching list. Also, the soundtrack is composed by Kajiura Yuki, the opening theme is performed by FictionJunction (= Kajiura Yuki), and the ending song is by savage genius (= Kajiura Yuki).

Despite all this TBS-related stuff, it’s definitely watchable. While the first episode is almost completely dedicated to the introduction of the characters, it still gave me chills in certain moments. Episode 2 brings in more suspense, and does so at a steady pace, ending with a nice cliffhanger. Basically, I have high expectations for the series.

And Alice is just way too cute.

This show is freaking epic, complete with the motorized horse.

Set in feudal Japan, the series present us with an unique approach when it comes to actual history. More unique than, say, in Samurai Deeper Kyo.

So without further delay, meet Uesugi Kenshin, Takeda Shingen, Sanada Yukimura, Sarutobi Sasuke, Date Masamune and others. And of course we’ve got Oda Nobunaga… voiced by Wakamoto Norio. We’ve got great animation, awesome and crisp character designs, beautifully executed fights and special effects, and unlimited amount of manliness in almost each scene of the first episode.

The opening theme is performed by abingdon boys school and that band seems to get better with each new single. Title is JAP and I honestly don’t want to know what did they mean there though of course I have an idea.

Screenshot time.

Sadly, her storyline didn’t get finished at all. She didn’t even appear in the “high school” arc after her talk with Shuri in episode 11. Actually, her story is likely the only one I really liked – because it was pretty normal. And her behaviour, therefore, was completely understandable.

I’ve heard that Tayutama -kiss on my deity- will be the new Kanokon, so I wasn’t really into checking it out. However, keeping in mind how I missed Myself;Yourself just because someone told me that it’s a rip-off of Maria-sama ga Miteru, I’ve got to watch the first episode.

Good news: this isn’t Kanokon.

Bad news: we have a goddess who’s way too clingy.

The show doesn’t seem to have a large budget, and the animation doesn’t really look very good. Character designs are average in quality, but adorable nevertheless.

Also, Ameri is cute.