Dribs and Drabs, Odd and Ends

December 10th, 2010

Today I’m out of the office doing some shopping for my niece and nephew who are, not surprisingly, extremely cool people. True story: Sometime last year I was buying a birthday card for my nephew and decided all the cards in the store made me feel stabby. I sent him a check and a card…and a letter. In the letter I proposed a deal. I could send him some crappy card that insulted his intelligence and a check for birthday/holidays and that would be that. OR he could give me carte blanche to get him whatever *I* feel like getting him – and I promised that it would be strange, potentially hazardous and probably distressing. To my great relief he took the offer of distressing. Later that year, my niece also asked to be in on the deal. And so, for the first time in my entire life shopping for a relative is fun for me too!

In any case, while I am wandering the cold city streets today, I thought I’d give you some random items that have either crossed my desk or originated from it.

Let’s start with – shopping! It’s only fitting. Right Stuf is having a holiday sale until December 13th and the newest special on tap is an unbelievable bargain – all 4 seasons of Maria Watches Over Us for $84.99.  That’s like $100 off the retail value. So if you’ve been waiting or have thought that there’s someone you’d love to get this for, go for it. Remember, Jesus’s Birthday was an important day for Mary too – celebrate it by buying an anime in which she appears as a statue and a vague concept!

Next up, on Hooded Utilitarian this past weekend, I waxed poetic about Hana no Asuka-gumi: Fighting, Fashion and Literature. The comments go into a totally other direction that is both fascinating and totally “wtf?” at the same time. As happens so often at HU. I’m just glad I got to talk about Hibari-sama and the Zenchuu Ura on a blog with TCJ.com in the URL. :-D

Lastly, I want to talk about the O-Shaka-sama mo Miteru series of books by Konno Oyuki.  Unlike the Maria-sama ga Miteru series, OSsmM begins on the first day of school, as Yuuki stands at the gate, trying to decide which path to take into school. If you recall, at Hanadera, one path is reserved for the “Heishi” clubs, the sports and physical clubs and the other for the “Genji,” the culture clubs. Yuuki, who is not planning on joining any club also does not want to make a statement about which side he favors. At which point Kashiwagi comes up and signs his name in Yuuki’s student ID notebook, changing Yuuki’s life forever. Yuuki has become Kashiwagi’s eboshigo, his protege, his particular kouhai. Which means Yuuki is now involved with the Student Council.

In the course of the first book, Yuuki meets and befriends his posse – Kobayashi, his best friend just sort of goes where Yuuki goes. Yuuki saves Arisu from being teased just slightly too much and becomes Arisu’s hero. Takada and Yuuki will eventually bond over sports, but it’s actually Arisu and Takada who become close. (Very close. Slashably close – and Takada knows it. He even wonders a bit about it himself.)

Already on the Student Council are Nikkou- and Gakkou-sempai and a non-entity called Rampo-sempai (a pun on his family name of Edogawa) and our asshole, erm antagonist, Andre-sempai (so named because of his hair, which makes him look like Rose of Versaille‘s Andre.) And here is where the book’s one real flaw appears.

In MsgM, *all* the characters are likable. Okay, fans got their knickers all bunched up about Sachiko or Yoshino or Touko or whoever, but if you think about it a bit, you’ll see that really, all the characters are likable. Especially since they all come to like Yumi, and we like Yumi. It’s easy to be friends with people who like our friends, so unless you’re a petty, jealous friend, you learn to like your friend’s friends too.

Andre is not likable. He’s an asshole. Remember when we learn that Yuuki had to learn the Island dance for “a sempai?” We all just assumed that was Kashiwagi, hazing the new kid. Actually, it was Andre and he put a massive condition on it and was an asshole about Yuuki sucking it up and doing it. He’s being an asshole in the fourth book again, and the worst part is that Yuuki, Kobayashi, Takada and Arisu are really, really likable and I want to read about them – not about the one unlikable guy in the series.

In the second and third books, we spend a lot of time in Arisu and Takada’s heads. Arisu is, particularly, handled with delicacy that I found appealing. He’s got a massive issue with swimming, because he hates boy’s swimsuits. He feels topless – more so now since a kid in middle school teased him about “seeing his titties.” Takada finds himself enraged at this nameless kid. Takada also goes through a crisis precipitated by, of all things, Yuuki. Apparently Yuuki is good at baseball. REALLY good – like could go all the way good. But he over pitched and screwed up his shoulder and can’t play anymore. When the basketball team tries to recruit Takada and the baseball team asks Yuuki to fill in so they don’t have to default, Takada goes through a crisis of identity.

Arisu gets to sneak into Lillian in one of the novels. Dressed casually, during summer club meetings, with girls walking around the campus, he just sort of blends in and gets to pretend, for a little while, that he’s where he wants to really be. He discovers from Yuuki that at Lillian they have strawberry flavored milk and begins to obsess about it. When Yuuki gets Yumi to bring some home for Arisu, Arisu goes so far as to kiss him (not quite on the lips) in thanks. But…that’s not the first kiss in the series. Kashiwagi has also kissed Arisu…and Yuuki. Oh yes, he has.

And while all this is going on, Yuuki is at the forefront of a teeny little rebellion that is quietly taking place. Because *everyone* at Hanadera *has* to pick either Genji or Heishi…and Yuuki will not. He steadfastly refuses to choose either a White cover to his student ID or a Red cover. Kashiwagi gets around it by being on both kinds of clubs. But Yuuki refuses to decide – he walks around campus with a Black, uncovered notebook in his pocket. This act is a testament to his strength. And it does not go unnoticed. He waits for a friend in either Heishi or Genji clubs to be able to enter school, but he is already famous in the student body – and a hero among the 1st years. As Book 4 of the series opens, Kobayashi has joined Yuuki in wearing his black notebook openly in his uniform pocket.

Unlike Yumi, Yuuki is a natural leader. Like Yumi, Yuuki is a master manipulator simply by being honest and straightforward. As we suspected, his being President of the Student Council as a 2nd year will be no fluke.

And there we are. I’m about halfway into the 4th book and they do not suck. Really. I’m still reading them. Will I be glad to leave Hanadera to return to Lillian – you betcha. But the Fukuzawa siblings aren’t done, yet and I for one think they still have some surprises up their respective sleeves.

Ratings:

Overall – I’d give the series as a whole a 7, but Book 3 (Wet or Dry?) was an 8 and Book 4 (Jibun no Ouendan) is sort of 5-ish so far because we spend too much time with Andre.

Posted in Miscellaneous | 6 Comments »


CANAAN Anime, Disk 2 Blu-Ray (English)

December 9th, 2010

Liang Qi says it all along. She says it repeatedly. But since she’s crazy, we don’t really listen.

It’s all about Love.

Cummings loves Liang Qi who loves Alphard. Alphard loved Siam, to her detriment. Yun Yun loves life. Santana loves Hakko and Hakko loves him. Maria loves Canaan and Canaan loves Maria, both the to the extent that they each are a bit blind about the other.

On Disc 2 of CANAAN, we approach a series of climactic moments that fail to actually build to a single climax. Hakko’s tragic story ends in more tragedy, Liang Qi’s story drags on painfully until it ends in pain. Maria, Yun Yun and Canaan escape one horror to walk right into the middle of another.

And, in the middle of that horror and sacrifice, Maria, Yun Yun and Canaan finally come face to face with themselves and don’t shrink away from what they see.

The final battle between Alphard and Canaan is everything a final battle between implacable enemies should be. I.e., on top of a speeding train, crossing a mountain bridge, while a helicopter shoots at them.

Because this is Okazu, and because the first two episodes of Disk 2 establish that Canaan and Maria love (“aishteru”) each other, let’s talk a little about the scene in which Canaan says that Maria is not her “light,” but her “friend.” When I watched this series originally, it seemed awfully like a denial of their feelings. But upon reflection, I have found an interpretation I can live with – Maria had given up the idea of walking by Canaan’s side, but at that moment, Canaan embraces it. Up to that point, her desire was to “protect” Maria. By naming her friend, Canaan has in fact awarded equal status to Maria in her heart.

Mino-san says that, although they can never truly walk side by side, they can be close. It’s true that they can not live side by side in Canaan’s world, nor in Maria’s, but I think it becomes obvious that they are close enough to hold hands across that gap. While not the ending I’d write, it’s good enough for me.

Extras are clean OP/ED and a clip episode, narrated by Mino-san.  Nothing to write home about.

I’ve already touched upon the visuals in my review of Disk 1, but let me reaffirm that this was a really good choice for a BD purchase. The battle scenes make it very worth your while to watch this large.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 8
Characters – 8
Yuri – 5
Service – 4

Overall – 8

Posted in English Anime, Type-Moon | 4 Comments »


Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha The Movie 1st Blu-Ray (English) Guest Review by Richard B.

December 8th, 2010

 Today is Wednesday and you know what that means – a special guest review treat! Richard B. has been a commenter here several times and, as I will not get to see this BD until the new year, I thought I’d let him give us his two Canadian cents before I have a go at it. Take it away, Miwa!

Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha the Movie 1st is a retelling of the events of the first Nanoha TV series. While this may not seem like a good thing, it does pay to remember that back in 2004 the first Nanoha TV season was a scattered mess. As a spinoff from the Triangle Hearts adult game series the first few episodes were nothing more than a bad Card Captor Sakura clone. With a few unsavoury elements left over from its source material.

It wasn’t until later on in the series when Fate was introduced, that the things became interesting. She was a dark, mysterious magical girl with a troubled past, fighting our main character. So the first thing fandom did was pair them together as a couple. Add in the fact the battles in the final few episodes were done in more of a shounen giant robot style (complete with giant beam attacks) and the series took a complete 180-degree turn.

With all that and seeing how the later series were more popular and sold better in Japan, you could see why the makers wanted to redo the original material. And, for the most part, Nanoha the Movie is a superior retelling of the 1st chapter in the Nanoha universe.

The movie creators know what the fans in the series want – action and Nanoha/Fate. Luckily we get both fairly quickly into the movie. Fate is introduced much sooner in this version, and set up as the central conflict of the movie (with the Jewel seeds relegated to being a plot McGuffin). The movie handles the two becoming friends through fighting better than the TV series, both with better action scenes and better introspection. The pacing is tighter than original season, which dragged on at the beginning until pace picked up in the last 4 episodes.

The action is more like the later episode of the series, and here is where the movie shows off its big animation budget. The final battle between Fate and Nanoha in particular is well done and I had a big smile on my face while watching it.

There are some new original scenes, including some nice bits showing Fate’s past and training. But the character most benefiting from the new material is Precia, whose motivations are  given more detail as is the accident she had her in past. It fleshes her out greatly and makes for a much better character over all.

Most of the more unsavoury stuff from the original is gone, too. Except for the transformation scenes which were pretty ick. Thankfully, they only appear once for each of the leads.

The Blu-Ray version of the movie comes with an English subtitle track that is fairly well done. Except for a few nits (Arf is called Alf and the TSAB is called the DAB) it’s well written and easy to understand. The subtitle font is middle of the road, readable but I would have rather had either a bigger black outline or a non-white font color. The picture and sound quality is amazing though, as colors stand out and the animation quality never dips for the battle scenes, showing what BluRay can do for animation.

Nanoha the Movie fixes a lot of the problems I had with the first season, keeps the elements I liked and adds even more of what I wanted. It reminded me why Nanoha/Fate became the first Yuri couple I really liked. I hope we see the same budget and care given to StrikerS when it gets a movie. Highly recommended to Nanoha fans.

Art – 8
Story – 7 (Better than the TV but still the weaker of the 3 series)
Characters – 8
Yuri – 7 (Alot more than the first TV series)
Service – 8 –

Overall – 8

I’m told that the 2nd movie has been greenlit (presumably because this movie is doing well in DVD/BD sales, so good!) Next up is As, where we’ll be treated to the reimagined Knights and Hayate. Let’s keep our fingers crossed that it’s as good a reboot as this appears to be!

Posted in English Anime, Guest Review, Nanoha, Yuri Anime | 2 Comments »


Yuri Manga: Comic Lily Plus, Volume 2

December 7th, 2010

Comic Lily Plus, Volume 2 (COMICリリィプラス) is the fifth of the Comic Lily anthologies. As a result, some of the stories that have been a little hard to follow are now beginning to gel into series that have some plot and character development. As with most quarterly anthologies, however, one struggles a bit to remember what the heck happened last time.

In “Esu to Emu to Etosetora” (S and M and Etcetera) Mashu is trying to get her own feelings for Satake-san organized, but it’s not easy when she’s being “helped” by a number of friends with their own agendas and I find I can’t remember any of them…

A new series, “Motto Motto” is a bit easier to follow, as it starts from the very beginning, with Chisato asking Mari out, and the two of them figuring out what, exactly, that means to them. I have no idea if this will continue, but it was a sweet first steps sort of thing.

“Summer Vacation” continues the dorm love drama that has been running in all of the Lily volumes. In both art and content, it reminds me a lot of a Bonnie Bonny doujinshi I have that deals with post-Marimite life for the couples of the Yamayurikai. This chapter ends with 2 couples good and one sort of ambiguously having issues. More to come, one presumes.

Tsune’s continuing drama, “Enka to Mai no Himitsu no Koubo” has turned quite dramatic, as the old lady, Enka’s aunt, gives up her own painful lost love story…and it’s not just random confessions, either. It’s directly related to Enka and Mai’s recent tiff. Of all the random bits that hadn’t really come together as a story, this one stood out as suddenly doing just that.

Most of these stories, and the others I didn’t touch upon, are still firmly in “Story A” territory, but most have settled down a bit, giving them a feeling of stability and a chance to actually play out over a number of chapters, instead of being one-shots that get sequels.

Ratings:

Overall – 7

In no way do I consider Comic Lily Plus a must-read,  but I’m willing to stick with it and see if it matures a bit. There’s hints here and there that it might just.

Posted in Yuri Manga | 3 Comments »


Yuri Manga: Hoshikawa Ginza 4-chome (星川銀座四丁目)

December 6th, 2010

In Hoshikawa Ginza 4-chome, (星川銀座四丁目) Hoshikawa Minato cares about her students. So, when she learns that problems between her mother and father were keeping Matsuda Otome out of school, she went over to have it out with the parents. The result of her taking the piss out of Otome’s parents? Hoshikawa-sensei takes Otome out of the house altogether, becoming her guardian.

Otome still won’t go to school, so Sensei homeschools her. Time passes. 6 years in fact. And Otome has gotten into the habit of cooking and cleaning around the house to pass the time (often when she should be studying.) A number of people comment that Otome is like a wife to Sensei….

A crisis rears its head when *Sensei* starts to skip school. In an emotional moment, Hoshikawa-sensei says that she’s lonely since Otome isn’t going to school, and finally, after so many years of not attending, Otome returns to school. Where she shows herself to be a responsible and reliable student.Other teachers comment that Sensei’s company has been good for Otome.

But another crisis, one that threatens their relationship in a far more concrete way, is looming. Both Hoshikawa-sensei and Otome are starting to have decidedly not-teacher/student feelings for one another. Sensei is also keenly aware of the age difference between them and the multiple problems that can cause for both of them.

This situation threatens to become drama when an old college friend of Sensei’s arrives and puts two and two together. She’s not cool at all with it, but she does tell Otome more about how Sensei used to be – and why, exactly, she’s not cool with it. Neither Otome nor Minato seek to reassure her, but basically say, look, this is they way it is between us. It’s our issue and in every other way, we’re totally functional in our lives. The friend’s presence makes them both think about their feelings more, talk about them, and explore the boundaries of what they are and aren’t willing to address.

While they acknowledge their feelings, by the end of the book they have not done more than kiss  – and that only in totally not-adult, nothing-you-couldn’t-do-with-a-relative way. And so, while the situation remains problematic in nature, it’s handled sweetly and honestly and with an agreement that they will wait until Otome is older, the end.

Ratings:

Art – It’s Kurogane Kenn, so for me 4, but for many others 8
Story – 8
Characters- 8
Yuri – 8
Service – 10

Overall – 8

The one thought I had over and over while reading this was that, although this book may not itself come directly under the rubrick of the Non-Existent Youth Bill, that if that thing should pass (for the sake of the children!) Kurogane Kenn will be without a job, permanently. And for those of you who think that just because a book you own does not, in fact show a non-existent youth, or a non-existent adult drawn youthfully in a sexual situation, let me assure you that the Mayor of Tokyo and designer of the Bill has also recently stated that he believes that homosexuals being seen on TV being gay openly is a symptom of the collapse of Japan’s society. And the bill includes books that incite children to violence or anti-social behavior, which he has made clear includes homosexuality in any form.

In other words – don’t think this doesn’t mean *you* and the books in *your* collection.

Posted in Yuri Manga | 14 Comments »