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I just got the parcel that I asked Boom to send me from last year’s Comiket. I asked her to get me some doujinshi for me and for Chris. I got one Prince of Tennis and two Death Note ones, and the rest are for Chris (Yu-Gi-Oh!, Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu).
Aside from that I also asked her to get me anything related to Honey and Clover. Mahal yung art book so she got me an animation guide instead.
Well then, another year went by and I managed to watch a lot of… uh, things. Not as many as before (using the past two/three years as a baseline), but the amount is considerable… normal, I guess. One thing’s for sure: I watched a lot of Japanese Films this year, and this is mostly because of my film class last summer. The class aroused my interest in Japanese film so after the class I watched more films, haha.
I already blogged about some of the shows I planned to watch (and finished watching, since most of them are done already), but I’ll write a blurb for some of the shows I’ve seen but never get the chance to talk about.
花盛りの君たちへ (Hanazakari no Kimitachi E)
I’m not done watching the show but this occupied my summer vacation. It’s just fanservice, with a bunch of good-looking boys in a show, but then again, I enjoyed watching it still. Discovered Ikuta Toma, and I actually like his performance there. This is why I am looking forward to him this year for his new drama. More »
Howl no Ugoku Shiro (How’s Moving Castle, 2004)
This is the third Miyazaki Hayao film that I have watched and it almost hit the spot, but then…
Remember my entry about Mononoke Hime? I think Miyazaki did well in Howl no Ugoku Shiro since it is much better than Mononoke Hime. Anyway, despite the fact that this film is just the animated adaptation of Diana Wynne Jones’ Howl’s Moving Castle, I think that again, there’s something wrong with this film in terms of the characters’ background story. In the film, it wasn’t explained why did the Witch of the West cursed Sophie, and what are the possible ways to break the spell. There wasn’t a lot of information about Howl and his origins as well. More »
Princess Princess
The series is about blue-haired freshman Kouno Tooru who transferred to an all-boys school because of some conflict with his family. When he entered the school every guy was looking at him. He was then told about the school’s “princess system”, wherein good-looking freshmen students will be working as “princesses”, wearing girls and Gothic Lolita costumes to enlighten the dull environment of the all-boys school. Together with two other princesses, blonde Shihoudani Yuujirou and rose-haired Yutaka Mikoto, they will work as “princesses” and make their school a more interesting place.
I’m not really a fan of (subtle) shounen-ai anime but this was really interesting. I also started watching the Live Action drama of this series which stars one of my favorite Japanese actors, Kamakari Kenta as Yutaka Mikoto. Anyway, there’s nothing much to say about the animation but the lead characters really looked good, and the plot’s a typical way to increase boy love fangirling to another level. It was entertaining nonetheless. More »
Mononoke Hime (Princess Mononoke, 1997)
I was thinking that Mononoke Hime is one of those overrated animated films here in North America just because it was made by Miyazaki Hayao. It took me three weeks (and the second time I borrowed the DVD from a friend) before I finally watched the film. By looking at the cover, I noticed that the American actors who dubbed the English version were given more exposure compared to the original VAs. While it is true that the video I borrowed is most probably the North American version, I believe that the Japanese VAs should be given equal exposure as well. The video cover gives me the impression that Mononoke Hime was made in North America and not in Japan.
To those who have no idea about this film, Mononoke Hime is about Ashitaka, a prince of a legendary tribe whose entire population was almost wiped out five centuries ago. A boar god from the east became a demon, and he attacked the village where Ashitaka rules. The prince became physically in contact with the boar-demon and after killing it, realized that he was cursed, and that he will die soon. Since he killed the boar god, he also has to cut off his hair and never to set foot on their village. Ashitaka has to travel to the east where the boar god used to live and to find cure there. Upon reaching his destination, he was caught up on a war between the people who lives on the Irontown, as well as the creatures of the forest, headed by San, a girl who was raised up by Moro, the wolf god. More »
I was bored last Sunday so I decided to watch a 12-episode anime series, Genshiken (Gendai Shikaku Bunka Kenkyuukai). I’ve seen the licensed manga before pero hindi ko binili. Anyway this series may not mean to some of you guys pero it’s really funny but not really exaggerated.
Genshiken is a series about a small university organization called The Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture or Genshiken for short. Ang aim ng org na ito is to bridge the gap between anime, manga and video games. Anyway the org isn’t that popular since there are separate anime and manga orgs in that particular school. Nevertheless the story evolves around the members of Genshiken who are all self-confessed otakus (and one cosplay otome — a female otaku) except for Kasukabe Saki, who only hangs around the club room because her good-looking childhood friend (turned boyfriend) happens to be a member of the club.
It’s fun to watch because I can relate to the characters, although hindi pa naman ako papatay ng tao just to attend a convention. Most of the guys read a male-oriented doujinshi, play erotic games and such and those aren’t my… type. Nevertheless, Genshiken is an interesting show to watch because the characters’ physical attributes defies the stereotypes of an a-boy (akiba boy a.k.a. otaku), an example is Kousaka, which is pretty good-looking despite his unhealthy obsession with anime and video games.
Anyway, in case you’re wondering, there are three real-life Genshiken clubs in Japan. Interesting.
Matagal ko nang dine-deadma sa university bookstore yung xxxHolic. But after watching Genshiken at dahil wala pa yung subbed na Ouran High School Host Club 12, I decided to check if xxxHolic’s okay.
So far na-entertain naman ako. I was thinking na iba yung storyline compared sa ibang CLAMP works such as Magic Knight Rayearth, CardCaptor Sakura and Tsubasa Chronicle (among others), although this isn’t as dark as X (X/1999). Speaking of CLAMP, they’ll be in the US sa isang upcoming convention.
Napapangitan nga lang ako sa illustration ng xxxHolic. Parang it’s too simple (like Tsubasa Chronicle) samantalang very elaborate ang dating sa akin ng iba nilang series. However, my respect for this series grew after watching xxxHolic the Movie: Manatsu no Yoru no Yume. Compared to the series, mas creepy ang storyline ng movie at minimal ang use ng CG. Pero for someone to understand the movie, I recommend na panoorin muna ang series o basahin muna ang manga. The movie was entertaining nonetheless. Kahit na hindi ko masyado gusto ang illustrations, nagustuhan ko naman ang concept at flow ng story.
Habang naghuhugas ako ng plato kagabi ay may dumating na mama at pinapirmahan ang package kay mommy. Tinanong ng mommy ko kung may kaibigan ba daw ako sa Japan na nagpadala, hehe.
Sa mga hindi nakakaalam, ito po ang Prince of Tennis volume 20.5, o official fanbook ng animanga series na Prince of Tennis. Sa volume na ‘to nakalagay ang profiles ng mga players na nasa series na iyon, except the teams featured on the OAV. My dad bought this for my 20th birthday at galing pa ‘tong Japan.
Pita Ten
This anime is about a sixth-grader boy who lost his mother a couple of years ago. He lives with his workaholic father and spends his day at school with two of his childhood friends. One day a girl appeared from his front-door apartment only to realize it later that the girl is an apprentice angel and is living beside his apartment. They will also meet an apprentice devil and her guardian devil-cat. The only problem is that this devil is too nice to become a devil, much to the devil-cat’s annoyance.
This is a kid’s cartoon, if you ask me. I love how the characters were drawn in detail even though they’re so cute I want to throw up. However, what was disappointing with this series is that the relationship between the protagonist and his father weren’t resolved. By the end of episode 26, there aren’t a lot of interaction between him and his father, and I wonder if the kid will grow up to be distant or something. More »
Finally got a chance to watch R.O.D. the TV, and I confess, it’s now one of my favorite series.
R.O.D. or Read or Die the TV is sort of a continuation of the R.O.D. OAV which features the librarian, extreme bibliophile and paper master, Yomiko Readman. The one that I am watching is the TV series wherein Yomiko’s friend, Sumiregawa Nenene encountered the “Paper Sisters” who are also able to manipulate paper. Two of the “Paper Sisters” are also book addicts like Yomiko. In the series, Yomiko has been gone missing for four years and Sumiregawa’s manager hired the “Paper Sisters” to be her bodyguards after the attempt assassination of Sumiregawa back in Hong Kong.
I am happy because there’s a series where my favorite past times were combined together. I can also relate to Michelle and Maggie because they really love books and they tend to hoard books. I cannot help but smile everytime Maggie hides in dark places in order to read her favorite books. Perhaps, booklovers like me tend to have weird habits when reading.
I am still halfway on the series, but like what I’ve said, it’s one of my favorites now. 
Angela Solis grew up in the Philippines before moving in to Canada in 2003. She became a Canadian in 2006. Angela is 22 years old and an alumnae of University of Manitoba with a degree in Bachelor of Arts (Adv.) in Psychology and a minor in Asian Studies. She has been blogging since 2002 and occasionally writes for Tinig, Peyups, and Filipino Journal. [MORE] [PHOTO INTERVIEW]