Mistakes of Youth: The Blog (Powered by EXCELLENCE!)

Dirty Work (1998) and System of Romance (2000) are two shorts by manga-ka couple Sadamoto Yoshiyuki and Takaha Mako. I came upon both of these a good amount of years ago, but due to a recent IRC conversation they returned to the forefront of my mind. Seeing as I haven’t done it already, I figure I’ll write a little about these two quirky short stories.

I don’t really read much  manga (I’ll get into the why of that in a post that may or may not come to being) but a lot of the manga that I do enjoy tends to have something of a strong grounding in reality; more so than the types of anime I watch. I really enjoy it when these realistic settings are used as stages for somewhat dark–but not too dark–stories, especially those in which emotional teenagers are instrumental to how things play out. I also like weird short stories, and considering these tales have only enough substance to really fill around 30 pages, I quite like them.

Before I continue with the rest of this post, I’d like to direct you to links for both of these stories here and here. My spiel has spoilers, so if you really care it’s better to read the stories before reading my thoughts on them.

The main theme that runs across both of these stories is that of young people starting to grasp the concept of Adult Life while in the midst of doing stupid spur-of-the-moment things that only teenagers do. In Dirty Work, Tatsuo carries out vengeance for his childhood friend turned one-sided lover, Kana, against people that assaulted her (sexually or otherwise) in their farming town known for producing eggs and fertilizer.  In System of Romance, the (near as I can tell) un-named main character finds out that a man she met on a singles chatline–who she then had sex with–is in fact more dangerous than she thinks.

Dirty Work in particular portrays a setting that is very real in its gritty nature–a farming town known only for its “eggs and chicken shit” in which teenagers carry out acts of violence in the name of love. Tatsuo and Kana are both well aware of their situation, and what they’re doing. There’s nothing glamorous about Tatsuo’s assaults, and there’s similarly nothing glamorous or romantic about his failed attempts to win the love of his already-taken childhood friend Kana. The characters exchange down to earth, cold dialogue with subdued expressions on their faces.

There is a strong sense of hopelessness–these characters won’t ever be released from their life of “eggs and chicken shit.” Tatsuo applies to universities in Tokyo expecting to fail, so he has a bunch of local backups. Kana is resigned to her fate as a farmer, even when Tatsuo offers an alternative. However, in the middle of all this hopelessness is an attempt to move forward. Tatsuo doesn’t kill his target this time–he lets him live. The two characters speak of re-incarnation, in hopes of attaining a life better than what they’re living now.

The saddest part of the story is how Tatsuo resigns himself to the fact that he’ll never be with Kana. Because of this, he’s forward and unashamed with his advances towards her, knowing they’ll fail. He knows he has nothing left to lose. They’re both half-assing it like teenagers always do, but that’s what makes the story poignant and realistic.

System of Romance is more of a straightforward story about The Mistakes of Youth, but it ends on a twist. The girl in System of Romance is portrayed as a laid back girl without a care in the world. But unlike, say, Hirasawa Yui, the girl in Romance is simply bored with life, and doesn’t really think about the consequences of her actions until put in a near death situation–one which was in part brought about by her own foolishness.

In the process of being raped by the serial killer/rapist she met on a chatline and then proceeded to have sex with a year ago, the main character regrets how she’s acted towards her family, and her friends. She realizes just how cruel she  might have been towards others when she thinks it’s all too late, and regrets not having lived a better life. However, at the end she’s spared. The murderer doesn’t kill her. Resolved in the fact that he’ll be caught soon, the murderer leaves her. At a flash-forward near the end, she comments that no one else made her heart flutter quite like he did.

While more of a quirky and dark love story than anything else, System of Romance does a good job of capturing the sort of feelings we’ve all had at some point regarding our life. We regret the little jabs we’ve  made towards people we hold dear–it may not be in as extreme a situation as the one detailed in the story–but it happens to all of us, I’m sure. However, in a way, the twist at the end tells us not to worry about it. Even though she was put in a near death situation due to her own stupidity, it turned out to be one of the best experiences of her life. Sure, it’s a not great moral, but it’s an interesting way of looking at what would have otherwise been a typical story about considering the outcomes of your actions.

Sadamoto has a way of depicting teenagers that’s extremely different from any other artist out there. They’re young characters, but there’s a hard-edged adult nature to them, which I think comes through in his angular style and somewhat lanky character designs. The characters in here are also very plain looking. Well designed mind you, just very down to earth, which suits the stories well. Sadamoto similarly does a good job depicting both rich urban and rural Japanese settings, which inch their way into panels as needed, and are gracefully left out when not. This use and lack there of creates a good variety of moods for each set of panels that complements Takaha’s dark narratives.

One thing I love about manga is that it’s a great medium to tell visual stories that probably wouldn’t get the kind of funding needed for any sort of anime production. Dirty Work and System of Romance are both great stories that make wonderful use of their medium, and deliver something not usually seen in a lot of mainstream works–be it anime, movies or visual novels. This brand of gritty realism matched with youth drama is not something we often see come out of otaku media, and because of that both of these stories are quite refreshing, and I hold them as all time favourites.

So please, someone, translate Archaic Smile.

If I was in a more dismissive mood, I’d leave the blog post at that picture. But no–there are things to be said.

It’s been out for a while–I know, don’t get on my case–but having just finished reading the first translated volume of the Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei  manga a few weeks ago, I have some things to say about it, most of it revolving around its translation into English.

By the time the existence of Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei was known to the English-speaking world, those keen in the ways of Japanese (and those not, even) knew the material was difficult to translate well. Further more, a commercial release of such a work would be a disaster if not done properly. However, despite seemingly insurmountable linguistic and cultural barriers, amateur translators managed to put out great, high quality localizations of the franchise’s TV anime counterpart. Why is it, then, that professionals can’t handle the manga part of the deal better?

While I can’t speak entirely for accuracy, Del-Rey’s translation of Zetsubou Sensei generally reads decently. It does feel stiff in places, but on the whole it comes off fine. However, at some point in the book–and this is a very specific point–things go all wrong. Once Kaere’s chapter rolls along, it seems as if the guy in charge of quality control just gives up. “Oh no!” is followed by its romanized Japanese equivalent “yada!”, and the translator for some reason feels “eki-in” (駅員) needs a translation note, when it simply means nothing more than “station attendant.” C’mon, guys. Even the fansubs translated that. I can understand them leaving the joke about Kaere’s name to a translation note, but I honestly expect more creativity and smarts out of  professional translators and editors.

Another big issue is the incorrect romanization of character names, and I’m not talking about trivial Shaa/Char shit. That said, this only really effects Sekiutsu, who is first introduced as Sekiuchi, then referred to as Sekiutsu, then is later on in the book referred to as Sekiuchi once more. Guys, I know the 内 in 関内 is typically read as “uchi”, but Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei has furigana for god sakes. This stuff is spelled out for you, quite literally, in conveniently placed bits of hiragana. To add insult to injury, they get her name right not once, but twice after the initial mess up. Then, in the next chapter, our lovable Maria becomes Sekiuchi again. Also, later on in the “Current Charges From This Issue” section–a section detailing the people Kaere sued–Nozomu’s name is rendered as “Noboru”, which is just utterly stupid.

I really feel sorry for any newcomer to the series reading this translation. While it reads decently in other sections, I’m afraid these bits will throw people off and confuse them, if they’re not already confused by all the Japan-specific cultural gags. I do commend Del-Rey for throwing in a glossary at the back, but it’s still missing some painfully obvious things. I haven’t read further volumes, so I don’t know if they improve or not, but this one gets pretty dire.

As for the manga itself, it’s pretty good. Kumeta’s work is still in infant stages here, so these early chapters feel a bit awkwardly paced and somewhat random, but they work well to deliver the franchise’s celebrated dark comedy and social satire. However, I do think the anime did a better job of streamlining these early chapters into something that flowed a bit easier. The art is also still developing, and hasn’t yet reached the point where SHAFT can just trace it panel to panel for their anime adaptation.

Man, this is such a good comic. Was this joke in the anime? I forget.

Reading over the Hayate comic, I’m reminded of why this is such a good series. Putting the comedy aside, each of the characters, especially the female characters, are all wonderfully written. Well, as wonderfully written as characters in a comedy can get. They certainly have every flavor for ever taste in this series, but the difference is Hayate doesn’t feel produced. I think what helps this is that Kenjiro Hata is honestly an otaku, so when he’s shameless pandering to whatever kink he’s pandering too, it’s honest. I mean, you have to be down in pretty deep to be able to make Gundress jokes.

Children are precious. They are our future. We must love and respect them. We must guard their purity.

So clearly we must lust after them like the dirty perverts we are.

Ah, Nagi. This is why I love you. Ignore all those other weak otaku who like girls like Hinagiku. They’re not real men. They don’t understand. I understand. I understand randomly buying a giant boxset of a show you’ve never seen before. I’ve been there. We all have. Nagi, I understand.

I started on the Hayate manga last summer, but stopped because… I only had one volume. At Otakon roastbeefy hooked me up with two through five because he didn’t like the comic as much as the cartoon. I’m about three chapters deep in volume two, and I really like it. I’m getting the same amount of laughs that I got from the cartoon, and I mostly like Kenjirou Hata’s style. You can really see his Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei influence, which makes the comic look more arty than it actually should be, but it’s nice to look at. I do prefer how the anime handled the art, though.

Reviewing this manga is a little tough for me. I read through its whole first volume raw, and while I got the general gist of things, a lot of fine details were lost on me. Someone had scanslated about a chapter and a bit of this, so I read through those to help me out. So, while I don’t really understand this comic, I’m going to try my hand at reviewing it anyway.

First, let’s set the scene: It’s France, in the second half of the 19th Century. Japonisme has swept the nation, along with a strong desire for modernization. These rapid changes in the times have brought despair to the shops in Galarie Du Roy, which is now in danger of closing its doors. One of these many shops, Enseignes du Roy, is now making an effort to sell Japanese goods to cash in on the French’s love for all things Japanese.

Claude, the man in charge of this shop, is startled when his older friend Oscar returns from Japan with not only Japanese goods, but a young Japanese girl! Her name is Yune, and she has come from Japan with a strong desire to work in France. In France, Yune learns to cope with the various cultural differences, and comes across a couple of colourful characters; such as the Japan-obsessed rich girl Alice, and a young thief.

Ikoku Meiro no Croisée is a unique manga that takes moe elements puts them against a rich historical backdrop. Since my understanding of this was pretty bad, I was mainly taken in by the artwork. Takeda Hinata is an amazing artist who can render detailed and convincing backgrounds splendidly. Her character art is also consistently incredible. The girls in this comic always wear lavish outfits that are rendered perfectly panel after panel, and while the men’s attire is more reserved, Hinata draws them solidly. Her work, while very detailed, never assaults your senses. Her lines are gentle, and flow naturally.

The story is pretty slice-of-life, but there’s decent helpings of comedy, and some drama. Each chapter more or less follows Yune as she gets acquainted with life in France. There are often misunderstandings, Claude usually gets mad, and Oscar chimes in with light-hearted comments every now and again. The characters aren’t really unique, but they’re fun people and their interactions are entertaining. Claude is at times a bit too much of a Manga Protagonist, but that doesn’t really take away from anything. Yune is cute, and Alice’s Japanophilia is absolutely adorable.

It’s a real great comic. If you like like amazingly detailed artwork, lolis, 19th century France, and slice of life antics, I suggest you give this a spin. Not much has been scanslated, but if you can read Japanese go for it.

TRIGUN MAXIMUM MAKES NO FUCKING SENSE

Thank you Sadamoto, for such wonderful Misato-service in volume 11 of the Evangelion comic. Unlike most Eva fans, I do not like Rei or Asuka, but I really like Misato! So thanks!

Volume 11 covers the second half of episode 24, and then starts to move pretty well into End of Eva territory, ending just as Seele’s assault on NERV gets underway. One great thing Sadamoto has done with his adaptation is deviating from the source material. The plot stays exactly the same, but character interactions are different and some vague details from the TV series are covered more in depth. Sadamoto’s most striking and interesting deviation from the television series is his portrayal of Kaworu. Kaworu in the TV series is a caring and loving individual, who shows Shinji kindness that he’s never felt before. In the comic, Kaworu is more of a jerk. His comments, mannerisms, and actions challenge Shinji, and often times irritate him. Their relationship is completely the opposite from what it is in the TV series. However, Shinji’s indecisiveness about killing Kaworu is just the same, which brings forth a set complex emotions that’s completely different from what is present in the TV series.

After that, the manga more or less copies the first fourth of End of Eva panel for panel. That’s not all together a bad thing, but it’s substantially less interesting than the preceding chapters. Good action, though!

The Evangelion comic has a kind of grittiness that’s not present in the TV show. Sadamoto’s handling of the narrative for some reason comes off as a lot more honest and down to earth. It could just be because the manga lacks the TV show’s over the top orchestral score, and its kinetic animation. Sadamoto’s artwork also progressively deviates from his original cartoonish designs, to characters that look more realistic.

I’m not trying to say the manga is better than the TV series, since the TV series is my most favourite anime ever, but I really appreciate Sadamoto’s take on the tale. I think in a way it’s just a tad bit more accessible than the TV show.

Manga are comics. They are published in books.

I’m cutting into my Special Fund here, but these are the only two US releases I’m really following, so I figure I’ll get them right when they hit, especially since volumes from both of those series come out about once every two years.

Since I totally forgot where Trigun Maximum left off, I started reading Evangelion on the train ride back home, since I’m familiar enough with the TV series plot to just pick it up and not be totally lost. I still love Sadamoto’s vision of the story. I’ve seen episodes of the TV series way too many times, so a different angle on the story is quite refreshing. It looks like it’s finally about to end, too! I really like how in one panel Sadamoto has a drawing of the Twin Towers in flames, in attempt to illustrate the folly of man. Way to date your comic! Now everyone will know of the ~10 years between volume 1 and volume 11!

When buying these, I attempted to strike up conversation with “The Asian Guy” at Tokyo Kid, asking him how those US-made dakimakura are selling. I asked him this because I assumed he was One Of Us (he was assembling some goth loli figure at the counter) but he seemed very uncomfortable. In an attempt to make it seem like I wasn’t making fun of him, I admitted to owning a lot of hug pillows myself. He then got more uncomfortable. I expected better of you, Asian Guy At Tokyo Kid!

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I watch Clannad, and after I’m done with an episode, it usually doesn’t leave much of an impression me. The show isn’t bad, it just doesn’t really resonate with me like it does with others. That’s why I was surprised when I just randomly thought up this comic. Usually when coming up with comic ideas, I have to run through all the shows I’m watching and try to pick out potentially funny aspects of them to make into comics. When I came upon Clannad, this idea popped up without much thought. And I like it. Yes, I like it. Maybe I just like it because I’m using Angryblue brushes for the first time since highschool, but I still like it!

This comic didn’t involve much art, but overall I like how everything turned out. The linework is ok, but after I cleaned it and coloured it I came to not hate it. I think I did a decent job of emulating KyoAni’s overdone lighting for the Illusionary World panels, and the last panel is my best Yasuhiro Yoshiura impression. I may continue to light comics like that, even though I’m totally ripping him off. I’ll keep doing it until I realize I can never be as cool as the dude who made Pale Cocoon and Eve no Jikan. Anyways, me actually liking something I made must be a sign of the apocalypse. If anyone sees Four Horsemen on their way to work or something, It’s probably my fault.

Two podcasts went up over the past month. First one is this Macross Frontier podcast I did with The Internet’s Daryl Surat. I meant to post about this on the main site the week it came out, but I got distracted by Election Day and forgot. Anyways, it’s a good show. I’m pretty quiet, but that’s fine since Daryl knows a lot about Macross and will educate you good. The next one is a show that went up just yesterday about Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu. The guests this time around are TV’s Jeff Lawson and The Internet’s omo. It’s a pretty silly show, but Haruka is a silly anime, so it all works out.

Gankutsuoh is growing less and less interesting as it progresses. I really don’t care about any of the characters anymore, and as a result I don’t really care where the plot is going either. The characters that aren’t the Count/aren’t affiliated with the Count are all dumber than School Days characters, and less sympathetic than them as well. Maybe it’ll get better in the last four episodes. At least this isn’t as bad as Romeo x Juliet, though.

ChäoS;HEAd, however, is still impressive five episodes in. This is a momentous feat, considering its concept sets itself up for failure really easily. The animation is a little bad, but it makes up for it with pretty strong writing. Not an episode goes by where stuff doesn’t happen. It is almost the most enjoyable part of my week, if the most enjoyable part of my week wasn’t Zettai Karen Children. Or Michiko to Hatchin.

Kodomo no Jikan has been meandering a lot lately, but I still like it. Though, when each new chapter hits the pipes, I slowly begin to understand why Seven Seas pulled the plug on its release. When they first announced their cancellation of the title, I had only read the first four or so volumes, which are–for the most part–not that bad. I was slightly annoyed, but figured it was ultimately a good business decision. But upon looking at the latest chapters, I have no idea how this could have survived in the US market without there being lawsuit after lawsuit fired in Seven Seas’ direction. For instance, try figuring out how to localize this joke, and then having the balls to put it in a US bookstore. Nevermind the fact that later on in that chapter Rin discovers that there is more to her special place than just going to the bathroom. They should just put this in a lolicon anthology and be done with it! However, if this did get a US release, it’d totally be a step in the right direction, and would hopefully open the doors for many other lolilicious titles to be brought over. I’m looking at you, Lolicon Phoenix!

Aaaaand, that’s all for this week. I have no homework this weekend, so I’m just going to chill. Later.

Original Post

I guess I need to backtrack and provide negative commentary for the last comic in addition to providing negative commentary for this current comic, considering I was pretty lazy last update. The character art in the last comic is pretty bad, but I don’t hate it. I know I can do better though, or at least try. The backgrounds are a little rushed, and I kind of wish I could have represented the Boston City Hall more accurately. When I was in there to vote, I hastily took pictures before the security guard could notice. A partly middle eastern gentlemen such as myself taking photos in a government building isn’t really an image that inspires a feeling of safety, I don’t think. The script isn’t really laugh out loud funny, but I find the idea of talking about necrophilia and the like around people during election day to be funny. I added in Brad at the last minute as an excuse to draw a scowl and a tie. And maybe inspire some cheap laughs. Agitated old guys are always funny, right? That’s why I always try to make Aaron Clark’s life a living hell! Or used to. I’m turning into an agitated old guy myself.

This new comic has slightly better art, but it’s still pretty bad. One thing I have trouble with is the size of the head in relation to the body, so I tried to get that right here. Tina looks pretty bad in panel 2– I think maybe her head came out too small, and her body looks too manish. The rest is mostly fine, though. The lighting effects didn’t come out just as planned, but I like the backgrounds. I’m basing more and more of my backgrounds on real locations, and this one isn’t an exception. It’s my school’s dining hall. I feel if I keep doing this, I’ll eventually turn into Makoto Shinkai. The script isn’t really funny at all, but considering my chances of studying abroad in Japan are pretty high, I figure I may as well set the comic to go in that direction as well. And hey, anyone who’s been through that paperwork will be able to relate to Rets. There is a lot of paper work, I’ll tell ya what. Anyways, as always, I’ll try harder to write funnier things next time.

Moving on, I figure I’ll mention some manga I’ve been reading. So as not make mt-i feel as if the manga he sent me is just sitting around, collecting dust; I’ll talk about my adventures reading Ikoku Meiro no Croisée in raw Nihonese. One thing I noticed immediately was that my reading speed is way fucking slow. I suppose that’s normal, considering I have just over two semesters of Japanese under my belt. It does dash my hopes of applying seiyuu’s voices to these characters in my head though, since I’m more focused on making sure I’m reading this shit correctly. As far as understanding goes, I can understand most everything on a very basic level, but I often find myself missing fine details. The thing that helps this comic is its great artwork, which makes forcing my way through some tougher spots slightly easier. But seriously, this artist is super fucking pro. I don’t see how this person doesn’t spend three hours just on one panel. I seriously wish I could draw this well.

On the anime side of things, one show I’ve been watching is the Kyou no 5 no 2 TV series. I think I’m about the only person who cares about this show, but that’s fine, since I can totally understand people not caring about it. It’s not a bad show per se, but it’s just not as good as the first OVA’s take on the material. Kyou no 5 no 2 suffers from what every remake does, in that it will always be compared to the original no matter what. I think on its own it’s a fine piece of work, and I do appreciate its alternate take on the old material, and I like the new material as well. The show has also gradually gotten more fanservice laden, which is also a plus. But the whole, it’s simply not as funny. That said, I didn’t find the OVA to be all that funny either– I just watched it for the fanservice, and for the slice of life aspect.

The new TV series nails the slice of stuff pretty well, too. One thing I like about Kyou no 5 no 2 is how it captures those early years of your life pretty well– those years when you’d argue with your friends over dumb shit, would talk about sex and have no idea what you’re talking about, and when you still thought Super Balls were the coolest things in the world. But in the end, I guess if I were to rewatch 5-2 I’d rewatch the OVA (unless the original material in the TV series wows me.) The character’s don’t look as cute, but it’s an all-around more solid piece.

I guess I’ll cut it off here. I was going to go on for a bit more, but this rant is already around 900 words, and my other rantings are probably better suited for blog posts anyway. Hell, that bit on Kyou no 5 no 2 is a blog post in itself. Anyways, see you guys next week.

HARD COVER. Real manga hardly ever get hard covers.

(Note: I kind of have this mental post backlog that I’m burning through at the moment. I have time to kill so I might as well)

There are nice people in this world. mt-i is one of those nice people. Out of the kindness of his heart, he offered to mail me some manga (complete with furigana) for me to try my hand at reading. I didn’t ask for anything, he just did it. That’s pretty cool of him. I emailed him a big thanks, but I should probably send another one out since the guy deserves it. NSFW after the jump.

(more…)

Alright alight, I’ll admit it– I’m taking Japanese classes at my school. I’ve been taking them for something like a year now, and this semester I’ve moved up to the intermediate-level class. I don’t know what took them so long, but it’s only now that they’re setting the cheesy learning videos loose on us. The Japan Time’s Genki stuff is pretty dry and bad, but one thing I’ve really taken a liking to is Erin Ga Chousen, or Erin’s Challenge.

The middle one is the titular Erin. The robot’s called N21-J, and the stupid yellow thing is Mr. Horigon. I actually like the robot, even though he’s totally useless, but Horigon can burn in hell. Anyways, as you can see from the image, this shit’s corny as all hell. I do however prefer it to the horrible Le Café des Rêves show I had watch when I was taking French in high school. That shit was terrible.

But yeah, Erin ga Chousen follows Erin, an exchange student from the UK (イギリスから来ました she says so enthusiastically) as she tries to fit in with Japanese society. The episodes are a mixture of B-grade 3D animation mixed with cheesy live action segments that are meant to teach students about Japanese culture and shit.

We didn’t have time to watch the whole thing, but in this first episode, little cartoon Erin jumps inside some rift in the time-space continuum and comes out the other side as a flesh and blood girl with a somewhat less moe voice, but still manages to be pretty cute. From there she goes on to attend Japanese school and pretend she’s a foreigner even though she’s quite obviously Japanese.

The one thing that struck me about this whole affair was just how moe cartoon Erins’ attire is. She’s all up in the ribbons, short skirts and even thighhighs. Nevermind her big beautiful anime eyes and aforementioned moe moe voice. Seriously, who’s her seiyuu? But in the end, cartoon Erin just can’t do it for me. She’s cute, but she’s just a little a 3D rendered graphic. Nothing worth posting on danbooru. After we went back down to the class, I figured I’d forget all about Erin and crew. That was until the professor presented me with what was probably the most dangerous handout I’ve ever gotten in a class.

Yes, Erin has a manga! Manga Erin has big bright eyes! Poofy blonde hair! A smile that could kill! She’s too cute! I wanna fuck her right now! Prof only gave us two pages of this, but it seems like it covers the live action stuff from the show, just in comic form. It’s really well drawn, and I bet if I looked hard enough I could find some Rule 34… and if there isn’t any, get to it… because Erin’s friend, Saki, is pretty hot too…

I really hope my Japanese teacher somehow finds this post. That would be most hilarious.

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See! I told you it’d be the same joke again! And this comic is more poorly written than the last. I really gotta learn to streamline my writing like Penny Arcade. How does Tycho do it? Man’s a genius. Next week’s comic will be actually funny though, don’t worry.The art here is kind of fine. I’m still trying to find a decent way to do eyes. One thing I noticed about most modern styles is that they don’t really do eyelashes that much. Some modern styles still do it, but it’s kind of rare. The way I draw eyes is kind of held over from the 90s. I like having the eyes spike out the way they do, but at the same time I want to make my style look more modern. But first I guess I gotta learn how to draw bodies, lawl.

MIT is screening a lot of things I’m actually interested in, so as such I’ll probably be there every week for the next couple of months. Last night they showed Gankutsuoh and Mushishi. Gankutsuoh looks like it was a SHAFT show pushed up to 1000% and set against Windows 95’s 3D Maze screensaver. And it mostly works, aside from some really bad 3D stuff at times. The story thus far is pretty interesting, and the Count himself is pretty badass. The whole thing is terribly gay, though. I mean seriously. Mushishi is good, just incredibly slow. By the fourth episode was I falling asleep. It’s not a bad show by any means, but they gotta space that shit out with episodes of Detroit Metal City or something. They also showed Nogizaka Haruka, which was the same as always. The guy in front of me panned it as terribly generic. While it is, I would have argued that it also does this, that, and the other thing but I was entirely too tired. I blame Mushishi.

I started reading Otaku no Musume-san again, but this time in Japanese. I downloaded the first 3 volumes raw off of Perfect Dark a while back, and have only recently attempted reading them. It took me about 30 minutes to get through chapter 7, but I almost understood it 100% of it due to the (really tiny) furigana. The chapter was mostly chatter between kids, so future chapters with adults speaking may get difficult… but I’ll try my best! (by the way, if anyone can suggest to me any other manga with furigana that I’d like please let me know…)

Another thing I’ve been reading lately is Patrick Macias’ JAPANESE SCHOOLGIRL INFERNO. I’ve had this book since Christmas, but have only now gotten around to reading it. It’s a great book, as expected. Patrick is an amazing writer and can really get you excited over anything. I had no idea the history of Japanese schoolgirl fashion could be so interesting, but it is. Of course, the stuff Patrick covers is positively bizarre, but his writing really involves you in the history behind this stuff. It’s almost like you’re there yourself! After this I may read Fresh Pulp, or something.

That’s all for this week! I’ll see you all later.