So a couple of weeks ago I started my first summer class at Rutgers State University of New Jersey. It was second semester Japanese. The problem is that I didn’t take the first semester before it. I believed with all the anime I watched and all the self-studying I did back in high school, I had enough knowledge of the language to skip the first semester. In a way, this was a good and bad idea. Good in the fact that I didn’t have to spend the first part of my summer taking a class in which I already all the concepts for already. But it was bad in the fact that I have to struggle with the 500+ vocab words that I didn’t memorize before hand. And so most of my work for the class consists of me looking up the most simplest words in the dictionary. Then you also have to remember that this is a summer class, so a whole semester’s worth of learning is condensed into just one month! I’ve only been in class for two weeks and already I have to prepare for the midterm next week!

However, I’m still having a blast with this class! Witting in kana and kanji with an actual purpose and meaning has to be one of the funnest things I’ve ever done in college. I think that everyone in my class is an anime and manga fan, though of course shy little me rarely joins in on their conversation. (^^;) And our Sensei is pretty cool too. He’s given me some pretty nice compliments on my performance so far. I’m getting better with my vocab. The homework takes less and less time for me to complete the more I become independent from the dictionary.

But still, this class has been taking out a huge part of my time right now. My days are booked with school, homework, and my part-time job working at a local video store. Then, with the little bit of free time I have left, I (and for very good reason) chose to spend it with my girlfriend. And so that is why this blog takes a backseat for the time being. That doesn’t mean I’ve been slacking off with my anime watching, though. I still find a little time in the day to still do that. Here’s my list of my shows for this summer, in order of “Watches Religiously” to “Watches Occasionally”:

Kamichu!
Okusama wa Joshikosei
Suzuka
Amaeraide Yo!
Shuffle!
Da Capo 2nd Season

Hopefully I’ll get to blogging about these shows sometime over the summer. I also have a mess of new manga and anime DVDs to tell you about as well. And then, in a couple of weeks my cosplaying girlfriend and myself will be going to Otakon in Baltimore, Maryland. This will be the first time I’ve been to this convention, and I’m really looking forward to it. Is anyone else going? Hopefully I’ll take some cool pictures and write up a nice little entry on it afterwards. It’s been a very good season for this anime fan, that’s for sure!

Also, in case you missed it last week, Matthew translated a very interesting post from Ken Akamatsu’s blog. Akamatsu is the creator of Love Hina, the series that jump started my obsession with anime and manga. Without a doubt, he is my favorite manga artist of all time. I’ve always had a special interest in him because he’s a complete computer nerd, just like yours truly. I’m planning on going into computer programming as a career, and Akamatsu’s first mainstream series, “A.I. Won’t Stop”, was a shounen romance with a computer programmer protagonist. So I’ve always felt a connection to him based on our similar interests.

Well, apparently we think even more alike then that, because that post he worte was about the latest trend in anime called, “Moe.” He talks about how to define the word, and why it’s so popular amongst males. He believes that it has not sexual context what so ever, and it is a longing for males to experience motherhood. What makes this such a big deal to me is that a few months ago, I had made my own post on the topic, and my views were also similar to that of Akamatsu’s. The only difference is that I used the word fatherhood because my personal vision of fatherhood involves a lot more childcare then I guess is in the Japanese (and also American) ideal. But still, to think that I’m on the same wavelength on the subject as my hero is something that I think is very, very cool! (^_^)

Anyway, I hope that all my readers and fellow bloggers are having a good summer so far. I really miss this site, but I should be back as soon as the fall semester begins.

In my few months of blogging, I have never had the privilege to talk about a series as good as what I present to you today. The reason why anime is such a joy to me is because of all the magic and deep meanings expressed in just a medium of entertainment. But it takes a truly great work of art to really blow me away, and when it does, it fills me with such emotion and happiness that I remember just why I became the otaku that I am. Kamichu (short for “The Goddess is a Middle School Student”) is such a series. It’s so filled with magic and meaning that I consider it one of my favorite series of all time. Why? Well, let’s see…

“Mitsue-chan…”
“Hmm?”
“I became a god.”
“What kind?”
“I don’t know, it only happened last night”
“Have an offering”
“I don’t need it.”
“Well, gods can’t be picky.”

Yurie is a sweet but very shy middle school girl who, like the dialogue says, became a god. While this might seem like a strange thing to the most of you, in her world it is a fairly common event. Exactly what does she do now that she’s a god? Well… she doesn’t quite know yet. But her friends gladly offer her advice as to how she can use her powers. Going for the superhero approach, they come up with the name “Kamichu”, “Kami” as in god and “chu” as in middle school. And so Yurie takes a deep breath, and like a Dragonball character mixed with a Pokémon, screams out, “Kaaaaaah, Miiiiiiiiiii, CHUUU!!!” While the effect of the yell is only a little wind at first, it ends up becoming a huge typhoon. Now she has to use her unknown powers to fix the mess that she accidentally created.

The biggest thing that one will notice about this series is that the setting appears to be the day-to-day normal life in Japan. However, the outrageous notion of being a god is no big deal, and many non-human spirits roam around and cohabitate perfectly with humans. While many are turned off by the oddness, I find it’s clever and fun. Since the characters take gods and spirits so casually, eventually so does the viewer. It’s really a pleasant world to enjoy.

But what is also very pleasing are the characters, particularly our protagonist, Yurie. My history of favorite anime characters includes Shinobu from Love Hina, Nodoka from Negima, Yuri from Ichigo 100%, and Aoi-chan from Ai Yori Aoshi among others. Basically, I’ve always liked the sweet, shy, and cute girls in anime (and in real life as well ^^). So it’s a pretty big deal when I believe that Yurie is the sweetest and cutest girl ever in anime. Her short hair and roundish head are adorable, and her shy mannerisms and frequent blushing facial expression just melt your heart. But the biggest winning point for her character would be the voice acting, done by the 18-year-old actress, Mako. Mako is a member of the J-pop group Bon-Bon Blanco, but this is her first time at voice acting anime. Well, she fits the part perfectly, using her voice to add a whole other level of cuteness to our young heroine.

And yet behind all the magic and cuteness lays the work for some very deep storytelling and symbolism. I recently talked to a member of my extended family about religion in anime. He is a professor at a famous religious college in America, and he specializes in Japanese language and culture. He recently showed Miyazaki films to his students to show its Shinto and Buddhist themes and symbolisms. Well, I can’t wait for him to see Kamichu because Shinto isn’t just a theme of the series, it is the series! I wonder how he would interpret it. If you want to learn more about Shinto (and I suggest you do for watching this series), check out this Wikipedia entry.

But even beyond the religion lies a completely different take on human life. One thing they make very clear is that Yurie is in middle school - they even put that in the title! What so significant about being in middle school is that it’s the time for change, which all of us painfully remember as adolescence. Yurie becoming a god is actually a symbol for her going into womanhood, which includes all the confusion and awkwardness one can expect. It’s a theme used in previous anime works like Kiki’s Delievery Service, SaiKano, and the whole magical girl genre in general. In each one, a young girl struggles to control her budding powers, which is an obvious symbol that I’m surprised is not mentioned for often. Such is the case the Yurie, and I’m looking forward to see how this girl eventually discovers her own identity as the series continues.

I can’t stress enough how much I love this series. This world in which the gods and spirits of the Shinto religion exist is very fun and entertaining, the main character is an absolute sweetheart, and the series also has some really in-depth symbols that I love to find and admire. But most of all, it’s just the magical feeling I get from watching it that really makes me enjoy this show so much. My motto for this website is that “we all need to escape into fantasy sometimes,” and that’s just so easy to do with Kamichu! (^_^)

You know, the anime business has been going through a bit of a slump in the past year. Don’t believe me? Just check out what’s been going on at the conventions. Nothing. Industry panels pretty much just talk about what the companies are about to release over the next couple of months. But for the most part, no one’s making any big news. AnimeOnDVD.com make this interesting chart showing just how many titles are NOT being licensed this year. It’s a shame, really.

But I guess that all the companies were just saving it all for two weekends ago at Anime Expo, because they let out some pretty big news. You can read all the details at Anime News Network, but here’s a couple of tidbits that really caught my attention. (^_^)

Mai-HiME licensed by Bandai

And it’s about fricking time! Mai-HiME was one of the best series to come out in Japan in the last year, and it has all the potential for doing great in the US as well. When I showed this series to my club last year, I told them that there had to be one company in particular that was to pick up this fantastic series. That kind of mech action had “Bandai” written all over it. So one of the things I told them leading up to our trip to Anime Boston was “get ready to hear Bandai announce that they got HiME!” Well, you could imagine my disappointed when the Bandai rep, Jerry Chu, told me that he had no licensing announcements to make this year.. I almost asked him, “What about HiME, Jerry? What about HiME?” But at Anime Expo, he finally announced that they have it, and now I can finally tell my club members, “Toldja so!” This is bound to be a release that no one should miss.

Evangelion to air on Adult Swim

Wow… I see some potential here. When I first saw Evangelion all those years ago, it showed me just what kind of a mind-fuck anime could have on the viewer. The whole philosophy and execution was so brilliant, there’s a reason why many consider it the best anime of all time. Because of Eva, I look at anime with the idea that there’s more then what’s on the surface. But will this show have the same effect on the Adult Swim market?

I think it will.

With the combination the off-center (yet witty) American cartoons that the network shows along with the serious anime action series, the Adult Swim viewer is also looking for something that is different and cool. I feel that while many might be turned off by the start of the series, once the philosophical parts kick in, it will be a hit. Expect to see more interest in the series through the internet and merchandise (not like there’s not enough of that already!). However, I think we will also see a repeat of the backlash towards the ending of the series as well, so I guess we all have to tell them to shut up and watch the movie.

Afro Samurai Live Action

I’ve talked before about how Samuel L. Jackson will play the title character of studio’s Gonzo’s Afro Samurai anime series, but the company has announced a video game, manga, and live-action version of the film will be made too. And to make it even better, Jackson’s staring in the movie!

Hmmm… I can see it now…

[Master prepares the Afro Samurai for his journey to Japan]

Master: And you know that they don’t have the Quarter Pounder with Cheese in Japan?
Samurai: They don’t have the Quarter Pounder with cheese?
Master: No man, they got the metric system. They wouldn’t know what the fuck a Quarter Pounder is.
Samurai: Then what do they have?
Master: They have all this Japanese stuff like a Teriyaki Chicken sandwich.
Samurai: Teriyaki Chicken sandwich… What about the Big Mac?
Master: Well, they have it. A Big Mac’s still a Big Mac, but they call it a “biggu makku”.
Samurai: “Biggu Makku”. Ha ha ha ha. What do they call a Whopper?
Master: I dunno, I didn’t go into Burger King.

VIZ licenses SaiKano OVA series

Before it’s even released in Japan. Well, I can’t really say I’m too disappointed. When I first picked up the manga about a year ago, I really thought it was one of the best series out there. But after reading more into it and watching the anime, it became too depressing for me to handle. It really is one of the most tragic stories there is. I’ve actually put off watching the last DVD of the TV series because I don’t want to see these characters suffer anymore, lol. But still, I do wanna find out how it all ends up. Maybe I should get around to finishing the last DVD…

G4 to air Colorful (o_O)!

In what has to be the strangest news I’ve heard recently, the video game network G4 will air the very weird and perverted series Colorful. Just what is Colorful? Well, the back of the DVD has this little poem written on it:

Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
This show’s about panties.

That’s right, folks, this is a comedy series all about panties, panties, panties! And so, to think that it would ever be aired on US television, let alone a video game network, is beyond all reasoning to me! But then again, I guess the concept is pretty appealing to the video game nerd demographic… but still, something’s not right about that!

Psychic Academy Release Info

There is one series in my girlfriend’s manga collection that I always tease her by saying, “why are you the one collecting this and not me?” and that would be Psychic Academy. It’s a typical shounen romance series with magic and a lot of fanservice. However, I’ve become a really big fan of the artist’s most popular series called Futari Ecchi. Now Futari is pretty much the story of a newlywed couple of virgins and how they figure out what sex is and how to do it properly. I guess you could consider it the manga version of the radio show “Loveline”. The couple encounters many problems with love making, and they help each other out to fix it. It’s as sexual as any comic can get, but it’s too serious to be considered true hentai. I think it’s the most entertaining “sex guide” for young adults out there, and would probably be a big hit for our age group. Of course, it will be a cold day in hell before something like that ever hits the US bookstores, right?

But Psychic Academy is out over here, and it looks like it’s doing pretty well. Tokyopop is going to release the anime adaptation of the manga. The anime was originally aired on the internet, so each of the 24 episodes are under 10 minutes long. Tokyopop is releasing the show in 2 DVD volumes with subtitles only, and the first one is going to have a book included with it. At first they were planning to have the book be Psychic Academy vol. 1, which they realized was a mistake. Probably the only people who were going to buy the anime were already fans of the series and had the book already. So the company announced at Anime Expo that the series would include a newly licensed book by the same author, though they haven’t said which one yet.

It’s that other book that I’m excited about. Now, as wishful as I am, I know it’s still not going to be Futari Ecchi. But if you look at the artist’s other works, he really does seem to have some goodies. They all seem to be either shounen action series or adult ecchi series. While the new book will be of the former category, I’m still very interested in reading it. Also, that means that Tokyopop has expressed interest in the artist, and they love to be the exclusive licensers on the people they like. So maybe this is a sign that maybe they will take a chance on Futari down the road. What an impact that title would make on the industry…

I like the fact that the Japanese have four different seasons for anime. Just as one group of series ends, another begins. And the summer heat also brings in some very hot anime too! And as I’m seeing some of these screen caps for all these new series that started in the past couple of weeks, my list of “must watch” shows has gotten pretty long. So throughout my summer schedule, I’ll be bringing you a sample of what’s out there, JASCII-style! First up will be a show that’s been out for a little while now, but has also been making quite a buzz, Zettai Shounen (”Absolute Boy”). But judging from the first episode, this buzz looks like just a fizzle to me…

With the first episode being titled “The Beginning of a Depressing and Strange Summer”, this series starts off very strange but not quite so depressing. A young boy of divorced parents spends the summer living with his father in a boring town. But after a little while, he discovers something very unusual going on around there. Namely in the form of a cute little boy, floating orbs of light, and flying toys. You are kinda thrown in the middle of the situation with absolutely no information or narration as to what’s going on. The first time I watched this episode, I thought that the boy’s mother had passed away so now he was living with his father. I would recommend reading Matt’s post to get some background on the series translated from the show’s website.

The pacing of this series is very slow, which may turn off a bunch of people. The combination of the speed and lots of cicada sound effects become very reminiscent of the early episodes of Evangelion. Also, the character designs, color, and voice acting are all pretty dull. Hopefully the story becomes more exciting in future episodes because so far I would have to consider this one of the most boring anime I’ve ever seen.

One theme I do like, though, is that there are lots of animals shown through out this series. The boy’s father is a vet and has a fascination with with cats in particular. So you’ll see plenty of cats around, along with dogs, cows, and even snakes. Then, in the previews for the next episode, the animals (in very cute voices, I might add) talk to and tease each other about themselves and what’s happening next episode. A very, very cute way to end such a show!

I also enjoyed the theme productions to this series as well. The OP is a catchy cute tune. The visuals show different characters and things from the show, but with very bold outlines. My first impression was that it looked like a cell shaded video game. The EP is sung by one of my favorite Japanese artists, Masumi Ito. With past works such as “Azumanga Daioh” and “Magical Meow Meow Taruto”, this singer has a very unforgettable voice that I just find to be so cool.

So to sum up, Zettai Shounen is a sci-fi series that is so deep into it’s own mystery that is is hard for it to become entertaining or even interesting. However, I did like the animal theme and theme productions. And if the buzz is any indication, it seems like this series’ storyline will eventually pick up the slack that the first episode is having. But as far as this initial impression goes this boy is not quite as absolute as many say it is.

One of the best sleeper hits for me was a manga that featured a couple of high school girls on the cover. It looked so cute that I knew it would be my kind of manga. When I brought it home and opened it up, I was surprised to see that it wasn’t like anything I’ve read before. It was a collection of four-panel comic strips that told a linear story. But after reading the first couple pages of this quirky comedy about high school girls, I was hooked. Azumanga Daioh quickly became one of my favorite manga at the time, and I feel it to be one of the best series of all time. But I thought that I had seen it all, considering that all of the manga and anime has been out for quite some time. So, man, was I surprised to see this new title on the shelves the other day while at my local Borders. I wasn’t even aware that it was licensed in the US! But is it as good as it’s predecessor? Well, I believe it is, and maybe even a little better!

Yotsuba&! is Kiyohiko Azuma’s follow-up to Azumanga. It’s the story of a naive little girl, Yotsuba, and how she observes the world around her. The book starts off with her moving into a new house with her father, and we’re introduced to the family living next door, a mother and her three daughters. While the mother is very dull, each of the daughters have their own cute personalities that often clash with each other. The oldest is the pretty one, Asagi, and the youngest is the smart one, Ena. But probably the most important daughter is the middle one, Fuka. She’s not that pretty and draws some pretty bad artwork, but she’s very helpful and polite.

Fuka: We should take this next door for them to sign.
Mother: Mm.. Alright then. Do it for me, will you?
Fuka: OK. I’ll be back.
Mother: You’re such a good girl, Fuka. You do your mother proud.
Fuka: Ha ha. um… it’s no big deal.
Mother: Asagi on the other hand… she’s worthless. You know, she ate my ice cream last night. I’ll never forgive her for that.

Yotsuba and her father are also friends with a really tall person with the nickname Jumbo. Jumbo has to be one of the coolest characters in all of manga history. He has some of the funniest lines in the whole book.

Mother: YOU’RE HUGE! What happened to you?
Jumbo: My dad’s ancestors were giraffes.
…
Asagi: It must be difficult finding clothes in your size, huh?
Jumbo: Bah! Clothes! Who need’s clothes?!
…
Ena: YOU’RE HUGE! Oh, I’m sorry. I- I mean, you’re tall.
Jumbo: ROWRR!

If you hadn’t already noticed, Azuma has a very unique sense of humor. However, I feel that it does translate well to the foreign audience. He’s quirky, there’s really no other word to describe him. He has one of his characters do something very strange, and then all the other characters react to such bizarre behavior. Azuma’s hollow-eyed “in-shock” expressions have now become common in other anime series. Ken Akamatsu’s latest series, Negima, would be the best example of this.

How Yotsuba&! differs from Azumanga is that since the title character is just a naive little girl, her ridiculous behavior can be just considered, “oh, she just doesn’t know any better.” In some cases it’s considered more cute then funny, which may be a positive thing for this series. But every once in a while you’ll get the adults acting up to remind you that everyone crazy in the world of Azuma. Take, for example, this exchange between Yotsuba and her father when he put a pair of boxers over his head:

Father: I AM BOXERMAN!
Yotsuba: Boxerman! We meet again!
Fuka: What do you mean, “again”?
Father: Which way is up? Which way is down? I do not know!
Yotsuba: Curse you, Boxerman!

The only gripe I have would be the English title of the book. I don’t know why the guys at ADV would chose such a translation for it, but God is it an eyesore!!! The Japanese title is “Yotsubato!” with “Yotsuba” being the name of the main character and “to” meaning “and.” So the title is meant to be read “Yotsuba and…” with each chapter title filling in the rest. “Yotsuba and Moving”… “Yotsuba and Manners”… “Yotsuba and TV”… you get the point. So yeah, the title does make sense in that respect.

But an ampersand?!? Who the hell uses an ampersand anymore?!? That is a very, very poor and unnecessary decision on ADV’s part. I understand that they couldn’t leave it as “Yotsubato!” because it wouldn’t work with the chapter titles that way. But still, they should have just done it as “Yotsuba and!” or maybe just put a damn space before the ampersand. Yeah, it’s still difficult to read and understand, but it’s a hell of a lot better then trying to read “Yotsuba&!”

But that still doesn’t bring down one of the best books to come out this year. If you were a fan of Azumanga, Yotsuba is a must have book! With loveable characters, great punch-lines, and the most quirky humor out there, I can’t stress how much I just LOVE this book! (^_^)

Please support this series by buying Yotsuba&! vol. 1 at Amazon.com or your local bookstore.

You know, considering that my target audience for this site would be college-age male anime fans, it’s not going to be too often that you will see me write up any series that are made for little children. That’s not to say that they’re bad. In fact, I actually like a couple children’s anime shows like Hamtaro and Magical Meow Meow Taruto. But in general, these shows are too filled with frills and fluff to keep my attention for long, which is okay because they are for children after all, not myself. But there’s a show in particular that’s been buzzing around the blogging community that I had to check out. And behind all the frills and fluff comes a number of things that really do make this series enjoyable to even the college-age male anime fans.

Fushigiboshi no Futago Hime (”The Twin Princesses of the Mysterious Planet”), takes place in a world in which the sun is located in the center of the planet. The several kingdoms on this planet rely on this “Sun’s Blessing” in order to keep the world peaceful and prosperous. But when this light begins to weaken, it’s up to the twin princesses of the Sun Kingdom, Rain and Fine, along with their little elf-like companion, Pumo, to save the planet with their magical princess powers. But do the most un-princess-like princesses in the Mysterious Planet’s history have what it takes to do it?

Okay, so the story isn’t really that exciting to me. It seems that in each episode the princesses encounter someone who’s not quite performing “up to par” and they fix it. A princess too scared to dance? A cook who can’t make his rice spicy enough? A fire dragon with a bad cold? Just one magical girl transformation sequence and the problems are solved. Thus teaching the kids that if you just can’t do it yourself, magic will always solve it. But then again, I guess all fairytales are like that, huh?

Once you get past the simple storyline, you really do have a good show. First let’s look at the eye candy here. This show, like all other kiddy anime, is cute. Really, really cute. How cute is it? Well, I was fortunate enough to have my girlfriend watch most of the first episode with me. The way she reacted to the cuteness should be an accurate representation. And so here’s this show’ss performance on the Jenn’s Squee-scale.

What she saw:	Reaction:
The animal servants of the castle:	Awww…
Pumo	Awww!
Milky and the princesses of the Seed Kingdom	EEEEEEE!!!

So there you go. This show earns a rating of a very large “EEEEEEE!!!” on the Jenn’s Squee-scale. I believe we have a new record here.

But there is one thing that made me squee too, and that would be Princess Leonne’s ears. You see, I grew up with two pet cats. I used to find it so interesting the way that their ears would flicker when even the slightest thing would touch them. I could easily amuse myself with testing out this very cool reflex of theirs. So the first time I watched Candidate for Goddess on TV, my heart was won over by the cat-girl protagonist and her identical ear flickering.

So it’s because of her flickering animal ears that I completely fall in love with Leonne. It’s not very uncommon to be attracted to such a thing either. Recall the first episode of Inu Yasha and how Kagome spent quite a long time flickering Inu Yasha’s doggy ears. I believe that this is just another anime ideal that satisfies the pet-lovers out there.

Another big surprise with this series is the comedy. This show has some very funny moments that made this blogger crack up even after watching it several times. I particularly love the random outbursts such like this:

“You’re Pumo?”

“You’ll teach us many things?”

“Yes. From how to use the power of Prominence, to about the test, everything-”

[Girls grab him and shake him around]

“TELL US! TELL US! TELL US NOW!”

I also enjoyed the music and visuals of the OP and EP. I’m surprised you don’t see more dancing in other series during the theme songs. I mean, you got the music, go get that those feet moving. The OP is very catchy and upbeat, featuring the royal family step-dancing, the other princesses doing some kind of para-para thing, and the twin princesses shaking their booties at one point. The EP gets a little classier with the girls doing some ballroom dancing to slower music. For some reason, it vaguely reminds me of “Watashi no Tamago”, the EP to Dragon Half, except the princess EP is little more elegant and a lot less on crack.

But the thing that I have to really express is just how wonderful the fansubbing is on this show! It’s done by a newcomer to the fansubbing community, Fushigiboshi☆Subs. Okay, so what the group lacks in name creativity, it makes up for in content. The subs are very sleek, sophisticated, and dare I say, downright sexy.

Okay, okay, enough of the joking. Fushigiboshi☆Subs is actually my fellow anime blogger, Matthew. Considering that he was the only one doing it and it was his first time fansubbing, I really didn’t expect it to come out so good. Well, shame on me for ever doubting him! His subs are as top-notch as his website is. The biggest thing I’ve got to commend him on is the fact that he subtitled the advertisements at the end of the OP and EP. I have never seen that done before, and I’ve always wondered just what the hell they kept on saying over and over again. So I really have to give it up for that!

The only criticism I have to give Matt would be the color-coding of the text. I was never a big fan of it when other groups did it. I just think it’s a waste of time, too gimmicky, and I end up ignoring it anyway. But when the color changes right in the middle of the line, it does become very distracting. With fansubs people should be more focused on the show then the subtitles. So this is just a little suggestion for next time from me, but ease up a little a on the coloring. Otherwise, I think this is one of the best subtitling jobs I’ve even seen. Fantastic job, Matt!

So sum it up, being that it’s a show made for children, the storyline is very simple and full of frills and fluff. However, there’s no way that you can resist the absolute cuteness of the characters. Older anime fans can also appreciate some very funny moments, a fun and catchy OP and EP, and the bliss that is Leonne’s flickering ears.

Many of you will recall that not so long ago I had a post of mine cited on Anime News Network. That little link resulted in a huge flow of traffic to my site as well as some brief server problems throughout the day. But still, I was very pleased that it happend and hoped that it would happen again.

Well, it did, but this time it’s a little differant…

Planet Tokyo, an off-center Japanese travel guide, posted an article today on the financial problems of the anime industry. My opinions were mentioned in the article about how I feel that the fansub community doesn’t support the industry financially, and a paragraph from my post was quoted.

While the article was sympathic to my views, the readers weren’t. It’s only been two hours since the article was posted, but I’ve had to turn off the comment feature on that post due to the large number of very wordy, negative feedback I was getting. You know, you can only hear the same thing so many times before you start getting annoyed by it. So this time around I did delete the really nasty ones. Hey, as long as you support the industry in some way that will translate into money for them (which includes just watching anime on TV), then you have no reason to argue with me. I’m saying that everyone should be do as you do! But conversely, if you are completely screwing over the industry by only downloading shows and nothing else, you have no right to argue with me. But whatever. Even negative publicity is still good publicity, right?

So despite the negative feedback, I still think that being considered worthy enough to be quoted in an article is a postive thing for both myself and the whole anime blogging community. People do care about what we have to say and value our opinions. After all, what’s the purpose of a blog if not for expressing our own editorial reviews an opinions! So, I’m still very, very happy about it!

And by the way, since that post I did end up buying the first volume of Girls Bravo with the box. It should be arriving any day now in the mail. When it does, I’ll be sure to write up a nice little piece on it! But for now, lemme finish this Twin Princess write-up for tomorrow! (^_^)