Fandom won't give me my life back... even though I ask so nicely. :(
Bonsoir, mon ami(e)! French class has been grueling and fun and all kinds of hilarious, and our teacher is very gay and very awesome. 8D I feel very accomplished now that my Friends page is a bit more manageable - and very, very ~free~ and ~un-awkward~ too.
Anyhow~! I was drowning myself in worry unhealthy amounts of coffee over June and July, and haven’t had much time to concentrate on my flist. I’m so sorry for abandoning you, dear flist. Ramadan has pushed back everything by a month, so college with officially start on the 18th of next month, which is definitely a good thing since I have my life back from sn now, and want to catch up on my reading as much as possible.
Apparently, I have the attention span of a fruit fly, so I’ve been hopping from manga to manga, book to book, movie to movie like a deranged fandom-maniac. So, in order to get a semblance of order back in my fandom life, I’ve decided to organize my reading material, and as usual, it’s up to you to decide what I shall be reading over the rest of my holiday, flist, because you’re all more awesome than I am. which leaves me writhing in fangirlish adulationLALALA Nobody read that.
Books
I resolved after I posted this meme that I’d buy titles I’ve been familiar with forever but never read. It took six hours and two injured puppies to hunt down ten books (because apparently foreign books are that rare over here, and my last month’s salary has just been reduced to half. ;-; I suspect I’ve been swindled. D:
♦ Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte): I’ve read through the introductory chapters, and I find the prose engaging enough. I’m reluctant to continue reading it, despite the unspoken rule that every enthusiastic bookworm must read the good old classics. Reason: I skipped to the last few chapters, and read them, because I don’t mind spoilers and Impatience is my middle name.
If Mr. Rochester is anything like Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights, then I’ll not continue reading it. As charming as people tend to think Heathcliff is, and as much as I sympathized with him in his early years as a boy - as Catherine’s playmate - I found his obsessive love for Catherine to the point he digs up her bones D: very… trite, and unrealistic. In fact, that was the only aspect - the romantic aspect - I found unrealistic. The rest was appealing, and Heathcliff’s merciless treatment of the rest of the characters was believable - realistic - in its brutality.
I think I liked Emile Bronte’s style better, but maybe I’m just saying that because I’m familiar with it? I mean, questions comparing the two sisters’ styles have arisen quite often, but I don’t think there’s a flawless/near-perfect style because style is just another imperfection. Some may find that imperfection appealing, others ugly or off-putting and- I really should just stop talking nonsense.
♦ A Tale of Two Cities (Charles Dickens): The first time I read this book was five years ago and it was magical, and I remember falling in love with it. I also do not remember why I fell in love with it, so I tried reading it again recently, and have managed to read a quarter of the book, after which I lost interest. I love the opening (the grandest opening ever), the dramatic journey to Dover, the way Dickens makes concrete allusions to human nature in such remarkably ~pretty~ language, the two male protagonists who each have their own charm, Mr. Lorry’s business-like manner and even Dr. Manette with all his eccentricities.
The only thing I do not like about the book is the female Lucie Manette - she’s too… frail and I get the impression that she might break or faint any moment. And that just doesn’t work for me.
I accept there are people like that, fragile in will but possessing compassion, but when I read a book or manga, I want the protagonist to be likable (Death Note being the exception - I love how amoral Light is). And Lucy Manette is likable-at least, according to all the characters around her who seem to hold her in high regard for no apparent reason save for her ladylike conduct.
Perhaps she was written to appeal to male readers? That’s a stab in the dark for me, but I find that romance novelists always do have a male lead who’d be charming to women, since statistics show that romance novels/erotica do tend to have a larger female ausience more often than not.
Now, I understand times were different vastly different when the book was published, but I don’t know if I can keep reading when I feel the urge to shout at the heroine to, uh, not be so helpless.
I’m tempted to put the book down wherever she’s the main focus of the scene (I don't usually judge this quickly, but I just can't handle such ~fragility~ and ~helplessness~ D: )- but I remember bawling my eyes out five years ago after reading this, and I want to see what drove me to tears like that. On the other hand, the protagonist… ugh. I’m a feminist, okay? Please tell me Lucy actually grows as a character through her trials and tribulations, and merely does not stay pretty and doll-like and damsel-ish.
♦ A Brief History of Time (Stephen Hawking): I practically stole a copy of this book from my friend’s shelf… or at least tried to, but alas! I was caught red-handed in the act of drooling with nerdy adoration over it. I started reading this book because I was unimaginably curious about all the hype regarding Stephen Hawking (and perhaps because I’m a Physics nerd), and I have to say I love every minute of it. It was… astonishing to learn that we’ll always be moving along the time-axis, even if we stay still, fixed in one position in the universe (the displacement-time graph for that would be a slope-less straight line for that, I think, and velocity/time would be a straight line tracing the x-axis). Now that I think about it, it actually makes sense.
Phrases like “time waits for no one”, “time passes you by”, etc also makes a lot more sense - meaning that graph depends on relative motion between time and object A. There is no dependant variable, because we assume object A can be moved by free will, while time passes steadily along. I felt that the writing style got a bit bland sometimes, but style isn’t the focus here - explaining the universe in a way that the average reader can comprehend is. So in case you’re mad about Physics like I am (if so, tell me~! 8D), I’d totally recommend this. And is it sad that I’m actually excited we’re going to cover Einstein’s Theory of Relativity (or should I say non-relativity) this year? God, I hope we cover quarks as well My nerdiness knows no bounds 8D
♦Catch-22 (Joseph Heller): Again, I’ve only browsed the first few chapters, and I’m reluctant to adopt a solid opinion, because according to the reviews, this book was the cause of interminable controversy when it was published, despite being hailed as a novel for all times - a marvelous achievement of literature.
I don’t know the extent to which I’d agree with that, especially after reading the opening sentence: It was love at first sight.
…Well. Clearly, this book is going to be interesting. I’ve read 1/8th of it (currently gawking at the sheer strangeness of chapter seven) - some parts are repetitive, intentionally so, and so full of… snark that you have to laugh at the absurdity of it all. And the conversations ♥. What is really interesting is that the “love at first sight” seems to be between two people obviously. Two guys. Which, is always a huge plus for me. :D
I have doubts about the protagonist, Yossarian - half the time, I can’t help but blanch at him. He seems crazy. Everyone in this book seems to think that everyone else is crazy.
So… I guess I should continue reading this? Yossarian’s attempts to stay in the hospital and out of the war are hilarious after all…
♦ Gone with the Wind (Margaret Mitchell): Someone once told me that Gone with the Wind was the “Harry Potter of its time”, and I don’t know how far I’d agree. I’ve read the first few chapters, and am reluctant to come to a decision regarding whether to continue. It’s over 1k pages long, and I could read three other books in that span of time. But everything I’ve read of the writing so far feels undeniably solid and straightforward - in no way would I categorize this style as “abstract” (which I’m very fond of, by the way); it’s simple, uncomplicated and does a wonderful job of portraying Scarlett O’Hara’s one-track mind, her determination to come out on top-rich and successful-in times of war.
I like her name - Scarlett. Has a vibe of something fierce to it.
Scarlett is definitely an unusual female protagonist of that time - if she wants something, she’ll get it by any means necessary, and she has no qualms about bullying the gentlemen around her. She’s a bit of a virago, if I may say so, but very human in the fact that she loves Ashley, or more specifically, an idealized version of Ashley, levitated to almost-divine status by the sixteen-year old mind of a stubborn teenager - at least, that’s the impression I get from her brief… encounters with Rhet Butler, whom I’m not very fond of as of yet.
Rhet seems like the typical male lead in romance novels - the kind who’s able to match the female character word for word and more, plans a good two steps ahead of her and can infuriate her to outraged speechlessness. So. I’m hoping Scarlett won’t just become a medium through which female readers can appreciate all of Rhet’s, uh, charming qualities, because half the time, we end up knowing more about the male protagonist than the female. Candice Hern’s novels are… meh.
♦ To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee): Written in 1st person, which I have a disdainful regard for TWILIGHT!!! so I don’t know whether I should continue reading this.
The very first page caught me off guard - thrust me right in the middle of all the action and I had to re-read it to get it. Some people may argue that this is required reading, since it deals with a lawyer defending a black man charged with the rape of a white woman. I’m interested in seeing where it goes, but I don’t know if 1st person POV will work for me.
♦ The Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame): Another title I’ve been familiar with forever but have never read. *hides* I’m a bit skeptical about this since this is supposed to be a children’s novel - which I’m not usually fond of god, I hate children don’t kill me. Friendship is supposed to be the main focus, and I’ve always been partial to friendship/companionship stories ever since I watched Samurai Champloo♥. Seriously, I prefer it to romance - to anything, actually- but… I really don’t know how I feel about the characters being animals. :\ I read through the first chapter, and while it was imaginative and the imagery was vivid (because half the time I felt like I was watching a cartoon)… something just didn’t appeal :(
♦ The Hobbit (J.R.R Tolkien): This is one I’m most willing to try out, since I’m obstinate about tackling the dragging epic that is The Lord of the Rings. I’ve been advised by many that perhaps I should read this first to get used to Tolkien’s style before I ambitiously aim for TLotR, which is supposedly sprinkled with sugar, spice and plothole magic.
♦ The Ground Beneath Her Feet (Salman Rushdie): I’ve just about given up on this book. The ending -and please don’t kill me for saying this- is reminiscent of a Bengali cinema, only with better graphics. There’s a difference between a vocabulary and thesaurus - and I’m sure Rushdie is a master of both, as this book proves. But there is also this something called verbosity, which Rushdie employs in spades. :/
♦ Anna Karenina (Leo Tolstoy): Many prefer it to War and Peace, although I wouldn’t know why, since I have not read more than three pages. The opening sentence instantly had my attention -All happy families resemble one another, but each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.- My friend tells me Anna herself doesn’t show until halfway through the book, and apparently, this novel addresses the norms between people in each level of society, which is definitely a point of interest to me, since social levels of people in my own country are so diverse- or should I say, unevenly distributed?- that it’s quite morbidly hilarious.
Manga
♦ Katekyo Hitman Reborn! -Amano Akira- (rec’d by mm_megan): Words that often come up on the entries on my friends page, and are totally unfamiliar to me: Tsuna, Vongola, reborn!, Lambo. What is familiar though is the word ‘Mafia’, and that is =♥♥♥. In megan’s words:
♣i mean, a guy with the heart of gold (and a whip) tutoring the aloof, violent bastard who grows to like him so much that he actually risks his life to save him? please. yaoi is written all over that **. the writer is female though, so that explains everything.
♠also evident in khr is the angry uke and his optimistic counterpart. they're practically canon.
(underlined words leapt out at me and my brain spontaneously broke with fangirlish glee - Sasu/Naru much?)
Then she proceeded to explain why Reborn was a- a baby! because I freaked when I read that on Wiki. D: I hate babies - the peaceful ones that sleep eighteen hours a day being a grudging exception.
♦ You’re My Love Prize -Yamane Ayano- (rec’d by mm_megan): Part of the Viewfinder series, I think. I read it, and it was very, very interesting. Or at least, my hormones thought so. ^///^ The spunky!uke/greatest-seme-who’s-ever-seme’d stereotype rarely works for me, but agskdgha, the way it was done had me drooling rather unattractively at the screen for hours. No, seriously. Read it. *_____* And have lots of tissue nearby.
♦ Totally Captivated -Yoo Hajino- (rec’d by mm_megan): Supposed to be a Korean manhwa - apparently virtually unknown - but megan tells me it’s great (although nowhere near as graphic as YMLP - I’m beginning to wonder whether anything is near as graphic as YMLP :p). Boysex is always healthy, I say.
♦ Kanjou Spectrum -Yoneda Kou- (rec’d by mm_megan): High school yaoi. I… really have no idea how much I liked it, given my disdain for HS stories, but HS stories and HS manga aren’t that similar, are they? I’ll try not to be biased. The story was typical, the romantic plot twist was obvious halfway through, but considering the manga is just 43 pages long, I guess I can overlook those little tidbits. I wasn't very impressed though Still, I have no idea how the relationship between the uke!introvert and seme!coolkid will work out now that they’re together.
♦ Beast Master -Kyousuke Motomi- (rec’d by mm_megan): I was under the impression that we’d never see a strong female character in manga who was not objectified in some way *coughIhateyouKuboIhateyousomuchcough*, but this manga totally proved me wrong. I love how spunky and fearless Yuiko is, and how devoted Leo is to her - he’s like this… pet cat. I love cats. :3
♦ Dengeki Daisy -Kyousuke Motomi- (rec’d by mm_megan): I haven’t read this yet, but I’m interested since it’s done by the same mangaka as Beast Master. According to Wiki, it involves a girl, a cell phone and a mysterious text sender who always reassures her when things look bleak. Any opinions on this?
♦ Hakuouki (rec’d by mm_megan - wow, you’ve just drowned me with manga, bb, and I’m glad ♥): A shoujo manga set in the Edo period - I’ve been dying to read a period piece and the main character, Chizuro, is supposed to be a member of an oni clan. She travels with the Shisengumi in search of her father, a famous doctor who’s made a potion that prolongs the lifespan of anyone who drinks it. Wiki doesn’t say much about the characters’ personalities though - and since the series starts with Chizuro being saved by someone from a… low-level demon or something, I’m guessing she’s not a fighter-type. Which indeed is very sad. I don’t know about the members of the Shisengumi, though… what I’m looking for is character interaction in the Edo period, like in… Rurouni Kenshin (I’m not sure if it was set in the Edo period or not, but well. Whatever.)
So does anybody have any idea of the characters? Because I’ll be very pissed off if I read this, only to find that Chizuro is a completely useless DiD.
♦ NANA -Ai Yazawa: Now, this manga, I completely adore. I get the impression that it’s written from a feminist point of view, since it’s rare to see female characters - strong in their own ways - in Japanese media. Nana is definitely awesome, but she’s still very human. I can see her reason for choosing pride over a happy homely life that might’ve been enough for her, for someone who’s never really had a family. And Hachi - she… grew on me, I guess. I mean, she was annoying at first, but so very realistic that it made me heart ache for the poor girl. Reminds me of Yuki from Paradise Kiss actually - both have their warped, unrealistic perception of romance and to have them shattered in every way is just heartbreaking. Hachi is like this projection of what an average girl from a conservative family deals with in real life.
I’m currently at the point in the story where Hachi has a one night stand with Takumi- Nobu gets increasingly jealous of him, I recall, and even attacks him when Takumi speaks of Nana as if she was just another knot on his bedpost.
I’m very curious about Shin though - the boy’s barely fifteen and already he’s sleeping around with women to make a living. I’m sensing there’s more to him than I initially thought - especially after his, uh, inspiring speech about love. Don’t tell me about him - for once, I don’t think I’d appreciate spoilers. I’d like to find out more about Shin myself.
I also get onesided Yasu/Nana vibes here and there. Or maybe I'm imagining things. Then again, she does kiss him. Even though she was frunk at the time. And yasu always seems to be there for her. even though he's there for everyone. Hm...
But if we get analytical, I’d have to say it’s very …solid storytelling, compared to her other works (e.g. I’m no Angel, Neighbourhood Story) It almost feels like I’m reading a book, instead of browsing through a manga - maybe it had something to do with Hachi’s soliloquies/thoughts which are interjected in a timely manner throughout most of the manga. I love reading them. Miss Yazawa is supposedly recovering from an illness of some sort - I really hope she gets herself - and NANA - back on her feet, because leaving the manga unfinished would be a shame. This is, I think, Yazawa-sensei’s masterpiece and the fans deserve some form of closure.
Does anyone have links to soundtracks for the anime? I’m dying to listen to music from Trapnest and Blast, so help me out please? T__T
♦ D.Gray-Man -Katsura Hoshino : I really need to catch up on this because I have no idea how Lenalee regains use of her Innocence - according to questofdreams, she’s had an upgrade in terms of fighting ability and it’s supposed to be awesome. But, I did skip ahead to chapters 180+ after reading DGM CAPSLOCK SUMMARIES and I’ve been hearing strange ~rumours~ that Hoshino-sensei has been having a love affair with the colour purple. These rumours were only confirmed after I saw the cover page for chapter 189. …Can anyone tell me why, exactly, is Kanda stuffed in a Santa suit? :/ There are even weirder rumours that his “hair turned light purple!”
I noticed the art for DGM has gotten comparatively more… ~feminine~ It’s more appealing maybe, in a conventional sense, but it’s just weird. I guess I’m not used to it yet?
♦ Cherry Juice -Haruka Fukushima: Read this while writing for the sn_exchange (I don’t know why, but reading/writing SasuNaru for extended periods of time makes me want to read incest. Maybe it’s just all the ~brotherly love~ in the air. Or something). Anyhow~ I… liked this, I guess. It really wasn’t the type of heavy-serious-angst that I usually look for, but it was definitely… cute and an awesome stress reliever because Naruto and Sasuke were being stupid and whiny and girly and wouldn’t get written the way I wanted them to be written. HOWEVER. The stress all came back in a rush when I clicked a page of CJ, only to find two boys - practically BFFs - suddenly kissing and making out in front of everyone who knows them. And along with stress came a sudden dose of inspiration, because I totally snatched that scene and used it in my sn_e fic (there were multiple variations, of course) :p Naruto and Sasuke were very, very co-operative after that.
♦ Soul Eater -Atsushi Okubo: I can understand why this manga would appeal to both sexes. The protagonist is female and kicks serious ass (she waves a scythe around! A scythe!), and I love the other characters (especially the Death the Kidd - him and his loltastic obsession with symmetry, ha!). There were some especially hilarious moments, but never did I feel that the humour was over the top - a bit typical maybe, but the timing is so well-done, that it doesn’t matter. And I don’t mind that the girls are more often than not naked as long as they’re awesome. As far as I was able to discern, Maka’s desire to turn Soul into the perfect weapon (Death Scythe?) is what drives the story - and I definitely get Soul/Maka vibes - but what is the actual plot? …Don’t tell me we’re going to have to sit through arc after arc. That’d be just like Bleach so typical of shounen manga. Any suggestions? Because I definitely don’t want to waste my time
♦ Vampire Knight - Matsuri Hino: Lately, VK hasn’t done anything for me - I mean, the art is fucking pretty and just appeals (god, Hino-sensei draws hands like no other. I fell in love with hands. Hands! D: ) but ever since the last ten/twelve chapters, I noticed she started using lighter shading. I definitely prefer her initial drawing style - it was so concrete and created wonderful contrast between the characters’ complexion and their eyes/hair. Also, while the plot unfolds, the character development, I feel, has taken a downward plunge. I prefer Yuki/Zero to Yuki/Kaname, and now I feel like sighing because I feel like VK has left the realm of manga, and entered the world of cliché fanfiction, especially sicne the Yuki-Zero interaction has been horribly awkward whereas once they chattered constantly to each other (or at least Yuki chattered and Zero gave grunts once in a while to indicate he was listening). I’m not even going to say anything about Yuki-Kaname - except maybe, as sexy as all the neck-biting is, we get that they adore each other, and there is no point in further emphasizing on that. It gets… redundant after a while. mm_megan once told me that even great writers, when they write established!relationship, shoot themselves in the foot in their attempt to do so. Now I believe her.
♦ Eden of the East -Kenji Kamiyama character designs by Chika Umino)- (rec’d by lalagirl208): Characters modeled after Umino-sensei’s characters from Honey & Clover, only made cuter. I’ve always adored Morita and Yamada from H&C, and have thought that they’d look ~gorgeous~ together, even though I primarily support Hagu/Morita - so to have more aesthetically appealing versions of both characters, together, in Eden of the East is something like a dream come true for me. I have no idea about the plot though - I only know it involves a very special mobile phone, through which you can call someone to get your wish granted for a price.
♦ Solanin -Inio Asano- (rec’d by lalagirl208): lalagirl says that since I loved H&C so much, I’d love this to bits as well - according to her, it’s one of he best slice-of-life manga out there. Did I mention I love sol manga? But it’s apparently directed at an older audience - ages ranging from 20 and above, and I still have years to go before I’m anywhere near twenty. But all the character in H&C were over twenty as well, and I could relate to them, so… should I read this?
♦ Kingdom Hearts: I’ve been familiar with the name forever, but I have no idea what exactly it’s about - I did read a KH yuri story and I liked it - a lot - despite not knowing a thing about the KH world. What I managed to understand was that Sora, Riku and… Kairi, I think, were the main characters is that an OT3 I smell?, and there were these… creatures called Heartless and I’m not sue about the plot at all. Someone tell me about this? My reaction to the Wiki article was TL;DR :|
♦ Pandora Hearts -Jun Mochizuki- (rec’d by Satiah): I Wikied this. I learned:
♠The protagonist is a fifteen year old boy who’s… cheerful, if I remember correctly - the typical male hero.
♠There are Contracts and Contractors. I have no idea what these are.
♠The heroine, Alice, is a weapon of some sort and is 150cm tall. Which is really, really short.
♠There are lots of allusions to Alice in Wonderland.
I DO NOT KNOW WHAT TO MAKE OF THIS.
Except, maybe, this sort of reminds me of Shakugan no Shana, which I didn’t like at all. The only thing I liked about that was Shana’s hair - long and vermillion, sort of like Kushina’s - but not Shana herself (even though she is kickass) because she, as happens with all manga, falls for the main guy. Which is not cliché. At all. *nodnod*
♦ Code Geass -Ichiro Okuchi- (rec’d by Satiah): Satiah says this is definitely the manga for me since I love political mindgames so much oh Rosemary, what have you done to meee~ The world is supposedly divided between three superpowers right now, and the main character - Lelouch? - is supposed to be hot like burning. I tried reading the manga, but it’s separated into three parts and I have no idea where to start!
♦ SaiKano -Shin Takahashi: I’ve been hearing about this manga forever, and something about the name just… stuck.It has something to do with two teenagers who are in love and don’t quite know how to express it, and are therefore awkward around each other. It also has something to do with …bioweapons, maybe? I read some reviews for this, and they were very, very intriguing - SaiKano is supposed to be a moving epic, something sad, something beautiful. How many chapters does the manga have, anyway?
♦ Koi Kaze -Motoi Yoshida: Now this is one manga I’d definitely recommend if you’re into incest - what I love most about Koi Kaze is that the mangaka takes the issue of falling in love with your own sibling very seriously and portrays it as such. The background is a bit disappointing, and emphasis is given to the main characters so that the other characters come off as looking hastily drawn - but the way the subject matter is treated makes up for the less-than-stellar artwork. There’s a considerable age gap between the characters concerned, and the way the manga portrays their growing feelings, that inevitable lunge into depression, is something so realistic, something you don’t find in most other incest manga. On this note, I’d love to read another incest manga that treats the matter seriously - if you have any recs, tell meee~!
♦ One Piece -Eiichiro Oda: I watched the anime… five years ago and I don’t remember much of anything at all (I do, however, remember that the OST was very catchy). The characters weren’t aesthetically appealing so I stopped watching wow, I’m shallow and moved onto InuYasha and Rurouni Kenshin. Back then I didn’t realize how original the artwork was - it’s a risky style, given that people seem to go more for the big-eyed anime chibis. The manga is supposed to be full of fucking awesome crack, and it doesn’t have an obligatory sheen of romance slapped on, so… I mena, I want to read it, but-- there are so many chapters. DX
♦ Sengoku Basara -Shinotsuki Kairi- (rec’d by istne_pieklo): I tried reading the manga version. SB - or at least, the manga - is definitely a throwback to Dragon Ball Z because I really couldn’t understand what the hell was going on - all I knew was there were two guys fighing, trying to kill each other for no apparent reason I could discern and being a masochist I would’ve kept reading too, just because, had istne_pieklo not told me the anime was much better. istne_pieklo made a post on general seme-uke stereotypes and how they related to Sengoku Basara, and the main characters seem interesting (they remind me of Sasuke and Naruto in some ways)… so, should I watch this?
♦ Ookiku Furikabutte -Asa Higuchi- (rec’d by gonrie): I didn’t recognize the Japanese name when gonrie first mentioned it, but Wiki says its English title is “Big Windup”, which, aired on Animax until recently and is supposed to be a baseball manga. I watched it sparingly, when I could find the rare time to just unwind and flip through TV channels (which I haven’t done that in a year D:). I… really didn’t think much of it, to be honest but maybe that’s because baseball is just one of the few sports that I find, uh, not-exciting. It’s supposed to be cute and full of yaoi moments, but I don’t know how much yaoi I could handle, given that half the manga on my to-read list are yaoi manga.
♦ Doctor Who - So a month ago, I saw this Doctor Who based SasuNaru art submission on the sn_exchange and I couldn’t stop staring. I have no idea about the manga, and am too lazy to look it up, so tell me about the main plot and characters please? O__O and-- and please tell me it's sexy
♦ Avatar: The last Airbender - Um. So. I’ve heard… uh, really, really horrible things about the movie. I also read a sarcastic movie review, and couldn’t stop laughing throughout even though I didn’t actually know the characters. The reason I avoid ATLA is because the art style seems a bit too… American? After watching Japanese anime for so long, I don’t know how well I’d adjust. But it’s so tempting, because Katara is supposed to be very, very kickass... and she’s apparently a water bender, which is a plus, because element-wise, I was always a bit partial to water. Any opinions on this?
Anime/Manga I feel the sudden urge to re-watch/re-read:
♦ Slam Dunk -Inoue Takahiko: The first fandom I ever wrote for, actually, so it’s very dear to me. It helps that I have an obsession with basketball. I don’t necessary follow the NBA leagues or anything - I just love playing, that’s all and Slam dunk is greatly responsible for that. It’s an old time anime/manga and I love all the characters, and even the overblown humour. The art style has developed quite a bit since then, but it’s the realistic drawing style of SD that sets it apart from other sports manga. Just check out Wiki - the amount of praise/awards it had received since it was published is amazing. And I miss the hilarious one-sided rivalry between Hanamichi and Kaede! Good times. Yes, definitely.
♦ Honey and Clover -Chika Umino: Probably one of the few anime that surpassed their manga, like I’ve told lalagirl208. I love the tranquil feeling I get from this anime - everything is so relaxed and unhurried, but before you know, a year has passed for the characters, and they’re all struggling to find their purpose, or themselves, in some cases. I loved the Morita/Hagumi so evident in canon, and the Mayama/Rika, which I think would appeal more to older fans. It’s definitely one of the most lovely slice-of-life manga I’ve ever read. I love Takemoto’s monologues as much as I love Nana Komatsu’s, and like lalagirl208 says, Takemoto’s story was excellent and it’s amazing how he accepts mediocrity, and comes to terms with himself. The other characters were all equally well-done - they each had their stories to tell, and I love that the mangaka revealed more and more about them as the story went on instead of expanding on a pre-decided character personality. I mean, nobody can singularly label your personality as “jovial” or “stand-offish” if you think about it, and I’m glad that that applies to the characters in this manga. It makes them more human. Now I want to watch this again, just to hear that wonderful background music. But maybe I should watch Eden of the East or Solanin first? I don’t know.
♦ Emma -Kaoru Mori: Set in Victorian Era London, it still remains one of my most nostalgic anime to date. I’ve always taken a huge inters in social classes and the norms that pervade each class, and this anime shows that off realistically. The difference in status between a maid and a gentlemen of a wealthy household. Emma herself is a memorable character - she’s quiet, but perceptive, and tries to make the most suitable decision for everyone. She lived her childhood begging in the streets, until a strict but kind governess took her in. Her story definitely makes you empathize with her as a character.
♦ Wolf’s Rain -Keiko Nobumoto: I… really don’t remember the plot or any of the characters except Kiba since I saw this… five years ago? Or maybe more? But the opening song stuck with me even after all these years and even though I didn’t actually understand much of the plot back then, but I remember the soft colors and the snow which some of you know I have a strange fascination for. And I remember the chracters’ voices, though not their names - everything was just drenched in so much angst. Sigh. It seems when I read/watch something, I remember more of what I felt than the actual content of the material. :/
♦ Nodame Canabile -tomoko Ninomiya: I was re-reading this a week ago and made it to the kotatsu scene (Chiaki decides that no, the kotatsu is not the source of all evil. It’s Nodame herself - in one word, that chapter was hilarious). It’s been… so long since I’ve read the manga. The last time I read it (after the release of the anime), I just sort of… browsed through the manga and more or less ignored - or at least, paid much less attention to - anyone who wasn’t Chiaki or Nodame, because I was just that impatient to see their relationship develop. I… usually don’t go for romantic comedies, but the way Nodame Cantabile done - interspersed with classical music, an unusual female protagonist and a vibrant, tasteful humour - is just amazing. And I love how Chiaki isn’t as perfect as everyone makes him out to be - he’s good looking, talented, but has a caring side that he hides behind a temper, not behind a taciturn mask. And exactly how often do we see that in manga?
♦ Rurouni Kenshin -Nobuhiro Watsuki: The second anime I ever watched and to tell the truth, RK was what got me genuinely interested in fandom. I love the storyline, love all the characters and love the whole concept. The concept of redemption - repentance? - is played out so well here. Oh Sasukeee! ;__; At the beginning of the series, he seems amiable and kind, but as the anime progresses, we get glimpses into his inner conflict - how hard it must’ve been to change from Battousai to Kenshin Himura, the man with the reverse-edged sword. To someone completely different. What I like most is that the female characters get sufficient screen time as well, which is surprising considering that this manga was set in older times - and women really weren’t considered fighters back then. Megumi, Kaoru, Misao are all strong in their own way; I like that the characters - even the silliest/youngest ones - have a core of maturity in them. And I only grew to like them even more after watching the OVAs. I’ve just lightly browsed through the manga, but I want to read it seriously now…. Or maybe read Watsuki-san’s other works? Because that’d be just awesome. *__*
♦ Trinity Blood -Sunao Yoshida/ Kentaro Yasui / Thres Shibamoto: Vampire!manga. One of the most excellent I’ve ever read - even better than, though not as well-known as, Vampire Knight which is becoming increasingly more typical with each chapter. D: The soundtracks are so ~soulful~, especially Broken Wings. Sighhh.
I love Abel Nightroad, the power that lies behind his kind, goofy disposition (he reminds me of Kenshin in some ways) and I love Esther from the light novel/manga, not from the anime. The ladies are given seriously awesome roles which actually further the plot (Seth, for example) and Ion Fortuna - young for a Methuselah (vampire… sort of) - is quite huggable, especially with the way he grows to like Esther, despite the fact that she’s a human. The graphics for the anime were quite amazing - really managed to convey how serious the plot was, but why in the world do anime-makers always - always - have to alter canon events and/or change certain aspects of a character’s personality? Do they not like the characters as they are?
♦ Blood+ - Junichi Fujisaku / Asuka Katsura: Vampire!manga again. Sort of. In the sense that it contains a lot of blood and sexy neck-licking. *___* Saya Otonashi is an awesome protagonist, just like Diva - her sister - is an awesome villain. It’s just very, very refreshing to see fights between two sisters instead of brothers (Japanese manga seems big on the brotherhood theme. Hm…there’s Edward-Alphonse, Sesshoumaru-Inuyasha, Itachi-Sasuke, Madara-Izuna…). Then there are the chevaliers - Haji and Solomon in particular are very, very charming (it helps, that Haji can kick ass while lugging around a huge cello :D) I’ve been craving something bloody and sexy lately. Maybe Blood+ will do? 8D
♦ Samurai Champloo -Shinichiro Watanabe: Oohhhh. Just thinking about SC makes me giggle. I was skeptical about it at first, even though it was from the makers of Cowboy Bebop (which, by the way, was the best thing ever), because the promo ads were just so… tacky. But then I watched the anime - you know, just because - and before I knew it, I was addicted to the bizarre hip hop background music - who knew hip hop and samurai could mix so well? The OSTs are so damn catchy, and Mugen-Jin-Fuu are actually an exception to my threesome obsession. They’re perfect as companions - well, in a dysfunctional way anyway. :D
Layout
Flist, I’m very, very curious about which web browsers you use.
Reason being, my header (created by the amazing pet911) currently stands at 789px and while the alignment looks perfect with my IE8, it doesn’t look quite right in my Maxthon and Apple Safari browsers, which I use frequently as well (in fact, I prefer Safari over IE8 and Maxthon - the graphics are much more compatible with a Mercury AGP card :D).
Just let me know, and I’ll be going with the majority becuase it... irritates me to see my header out of place.. On this note, how do you like my new layout? Should I enable my mood theme? Take out the automatic italic/bold colouring? Switch back to my old August theme altogether? (My old theme was convenient in the sense that it overlapped my ad banners, and was perfect for a Plus a/c. Not so much for navigation, though. :|) Maybe I should downgrade to a Basic a/c? But... my userpic limit will decrease, and I don't want that! D:
Phew! Long post is long. My internet has been going haywire on me, so I’ll be changing my connection soon. So I’ll be disappearing for a day or two. Since I have about… 17 days to catch up with fandom, I want to get in as much reading as possible within that time. Or at least 3 books and five manga, so any opinions? (Hint: I’m looking for something light, something entertaining and something with good character interaction. Political mindfuckery/sexiness of any kind works just as well.)
On this note, I’m undecided regarding my Friends Only banner, because yet another b- okay, infernal nuisance has thought it fit to abuse my journal. I’ve deleted the comment, and will be going Friends Only in a few days. :/ Can anyone rec a team sevenfriends only banner? Perhaps a community/user I can make a request to? Or should I go with A, B or C?
And oh, I just watched Inception the other day. It was ♥.
P.S. I have three posts in mind for the next few days - one to pimp some communities (like help_pakistan. Seriously, check this out - the newspaper tabloids are horrible. Pakistan shows up on our newspapers a lot since we have a history with it), another to discuss movies (Inception and a few other… unconventional gay movies) and some music (some obscure bands and anime OSTs probably. I have Leah Dizon's Under the Same Sky on repeat - it's so sigh-worthy and beautiful :3). And finally, a compilation of all the amazingness in this year’s sn_exchange for my own convenience (although, I may have something a lot to say about a few effing fantastic fics once I catch up 8D). On an unrelated note, I’ve been itching to read/write some SasuSaku lately. Any recent (read: recent and amazing) fanfiction I should know about?
ETA1: Post will be fully edited by today! I’m dead tired after going on a typing spree like this one, but I feel more organized already. “Organized” - I’m beginning to like the word. :) Will add more tags later - I'm making a dash for my french class in my pajamas! So much for organized DX
ETA2: Tags have now been added. I have the worst net connection in history. When I said I'd be changing it, I didn't think it'd take this long. I'm slightly more punctual than this guys, but oh well. Apparently, Doctor Who is not a manga. Silly me! But the one day break did lend me enough time to do some beta work, send in replies to the people who were waiting for one for ages, and read a bit of TKaMB. I might actually like it, once I get used to the narrative. :D That said, I'm absolutely loving French and hating Jane Eyre. I'll just look out for the pretty metaphors rather than the actual story.
Anyhow~! I was drowning myself in worry unhealthy amounts of coffee over June and July, and haven’t had much time to concentrate on my flist. I’m so sorry for abandoning you, dear flist. Ramadan has pushed back everything by a month, so college with officially start on the 18th of next month, which is definitely a good thing since I have my life back from sn now, and want to catch up on my reading as much as possible.
Apparently, I have the attention span of a fruit fly, so I’ve been hopping from manga to manga, book to book, movie to movie like a deranged fandom-maniac. So, in order to get a semblance of order back in my fandom life, I’ve decided to organize my reading material, and as usual, it’s up to you to decide what I shall be reading over the rest of my holiday, flist, because you’re all more awesome than I am. which leaves me writhing in fangirlish adulationLALALA Nobody read that.
Books
I resolved after I posted this meme that I’d buy titles I’ve been familiar with forever but never read. It took six hours and two injured puppies to hunt down ten books (because apparently foreign books are that rare over here, and my last month’s salary has just been reduced to half. ;-; I suspect I’ve been swindled. D:
♦ Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte): I’ve read through the introductory chapters, and I find the prose engaging enough. I’m reluctant to continue reading it, despite the unspoken rule that every enthusiastic bookworm must read the good old classics. Reason: I skipped to the last few chapters, and read them, because I don’t mind spoilers and Impatience is my middle name.
If Mr. Rochester is anything like Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights, then I’ll not continue reading it. As charming as people tend to think Heathcliff is, and as much as I sympathized with him in his early years as a boy - as Catherine’s playmate - I found his obsessive love for Catherine to the point he digs up her bones D: very… trite, and unrealistic. In fact, that was the only aspect - the romantic aspect - I found unrealistic. The rest was appealing, and Heathcliff’s merciless treatment of the rest of the characters was believable - realistic - in its brutality.
I think I liked Emile Bronte’s style better, but maybe I’m just saying that because I’m familiar with it? I mean, questions comparing the two sisters’ styles have arisen quite often, but I don’t think there’s a flawless/near-perfect style because style is just another imperfection. Some may find that imperfection appealing, others ugly or off-putting and- I really should just stop talking nonsense.
♦ A Tale of Two Cities (Charles Dickens): The first time I read this book was five years ago and it was magical, and I remember falling in love with it. I also do not remember why I fell in love with it, so I tried reading it again recently, and have managed to read a quarter of the book, after which I lost interest. I love the opening (the grandest opening ever), the dramatic journey to Dover, the way Dickens makes concrete allusions to human nature in such remarkably ~pretty~ language, the two male protagonists who each have their own charm, Mr. Lorry’s business-like manner and even Dr. Manette with all his eccentricities.
The only thing I do not like about the book is the female Lucie Manette - she’s too… frail and I get the impression that she might break or faint any moment. And that just doesn’t work for me.
I accept there are people like that, fragile in will but possessing compassion, but when I read a book or manga, I want the protagonist to be likable (Death Note being the exception - I love how amoral Light is). And Lucy Manette is likable-at least, according to all the characters around her who seem to hold her in high regard for no apparent reason save for her ladylike conduct.
Perhaps she was written to appeal to male readers? That’s a stab in the dark for me, but I find that romance novelists always do have a male lead who’d be charming to women, since statistics show that romance novels/erotica do tend to have a larger female ausience more often than not.
Now, I understand times were different vastly different when the book was published, but I don’t know if I can keep reading when I feel the urge to shout at the heroine to, uh, not be so helpless.
I’m tempted to put the book down wherever she’s the main focus of the scene (I don't usually judge this quickly, but I just can't handle such ~fragility~ and ~helplessness~ D: )- but I remember bawling my eyes out five years ago after reading this, and I want to see what drove me to tears like that. On the other hand, the protagonist… ugh. I’m a feminist, okay? Please tell me Lucy actually grows as a character through her trials and tribulations, and merely does not stay pretty and doll-like and damsel-ish.
♦ A Brief History of Time (Stephen Hawking): I practically stole a copy of this book from my friend’s shelf… or at least tried to, but alas! I was caught red-handed in the act of drooling with nerdy adoration over it. I started reading this book because I was unimaginably curious about all the hype regarding Stephen Hawking (and perhaps because I’m a Physics nerd), and I have to say I love every minute of it. It was… astonishing to learn that we’ll always be moving along the time-axis, even if we stay still, fixed in one position in the universe (the displacement-time graph for that would be a slope-less straight line for that, I think, and velocity/time would be a straight line tracing the x-axis). Now that I think about it, it actually makes sense.
Phrases like “time waits for no one”, “time passes you by”, etc also makes a lot more sense - meaning that graph depends on relative motion between time and object A. There is no dependant variable, because we assume object A can be moved by free will, while time passes steadily along. I felt that the writing style got a bit bland sometimes, but style isn’t the focus here - explaining the universe in a way that the average reader can comprehend is. So in case you’re mad about Physics like I am (if so, tell me~! 8D), I’d totally recommend this. And is it sad that I’m actually excited we’re going to cover Einstein’s Theory of Relativity (or should I say non-relativity) this year? God, I hope we cover quarks as well My nerdiness knows no bounds 8D
♦Catch-22 (Joseph Heller): Again, I’ve only browsed the first few chapters, and I’m reluctant to adopt a solid opinion, because according to the reviews, this book was the cause of interminable controversy when it was published, despite being hailed as a novel for all times - a marvelous achievement of literature.
I don’t know the extent to which I’d agree with that, especially after reading the opening sentence: It was love at first sight.
…Well. Clearly, this book is going to be interesting. I’ve read 1/8th of it (currently gawking at the sheer strangeness of chapter seven) - some parts are repetitive, intentionally so, and so full of… snark that you have to laugh at the absurdity of it all. And the conversations ♥. What is really interesting is that the “love at first sight” seems to be between two people obviously. Two guys. Which, is always a huge plus for me. :D
I have doubts about the protagonist, Yossarian - half the time, I can’t help but blanch at him. He seems crazy. Everyone in this book seems to think that everyone else is crazy.
So… I guess I should continue reading this? Yossarian’s attempts to stay in the hospital and out of the war are hilarious after all…
♦ Gone with the Wind (Margaret Mitchell): Someone once told me that Gone with the Wind was the “Harry Potter of its time”, and I don’t know how far I’d agree. I’ve read the first few chapters, and am reluctant to come to a decision regarding whether to continue. It’s over 1k pages long, and I could read three other books in that span of time. But everything I’ve read of the writing so far feels undeniably solid and straightforward - in no way would I categorize this style as “abstract” (which I’m very fond of, by the way); it’s simple, uncomplicated and does a wonderful job of portraying Scarlett O’Hara’s one-track mind, her determination to come out on top-rich and successful-in times of war.
I like her name - Scarlett. Has a vibe of something fierce to it.
Scarlett is definitely an unusual female protagonist of that time - if she wants something, she’ll get it by any means necessary, and she has no qualms about bullying the gentlemen around her. She’s a bit of a virago, if I may say so, but very human in the fact that she loves Ashley, or more specifically, an idealized version of Ashley, levitated to almost-divine status by the sixteen-year old mind of a stubborn teenager - at least, that’s the impression I get from her brief… encounters with Rhet Butler, whom I’m not very fond of as of yet.
Rhet seems like the typical male lead in romance novels - the kind who’s able to match the female character word for word and more, plans a good two steps ahead of her and can infuriate her to outraged speechlessness. So. I’m hoping Scarlett won’t just become a medium through which female readers can appreciate all of Rhet’s, uh, charming qualities, because half the time, we end up knowing more about the male protagonist than the female. Candice Hern’s novels are… meh.
♦ To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee): Written in 1st person, which I have a disdainful regard for TWILIGHT!!! so I don’t know whether I should continue reading this.
The very first page caught me off guard - thrust me right in the middle of all the action and I had to re-read it to get it. Some people may argue that this is required reading, since it deals with a lawyer defending a black man charged with the rape of a white woman. I’m interested in seeing where it goes, but I don’t know if 1st person POV will work for me.
♦ The Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame): Another title I’ve been familiar with forever but have never read. *hides* I’m a bit skeptical about this since this is supposed to be a children’s novel - which I’m not usually fond of god, I hate children don’t kill me. Friendship is supposed to be the main focus, and I’ve always been partial to friendship/companionship stories ever since I watched Samurai Champloo♥. Seriously, I prefer it to romance - to anything, actually- but… I really don’t know how I feel about the characters being animals. :\ I read through the first chapter, and while it was imaginative and the imagery was vivid (because half the time I felt like I was watching a cartoon)… something just didn’t appeal :(
♦ The Hobbit (J.R.R Tolkien): This is one I’m most willing to try out, since I’m obstinate about tackling the dragging epic that is The Lord of the Rings. I’ve been advised by many that perhaps I should read this first to get used to Tolkien’s style before I ambitiously aim for TLotR, which is supposedly sprinkled with sugar, spice and plothole magic.
♦ The Ground Beneath Her Feet (Salman Rushdie): I’ve just about given up on this book. The ending -and please don’t kill me for saying this- is reminiscent of a Bengali cinema, only with better graphics. There’s a difference between a vocabulary and thesaurus - and I’m sure Rushdie is a master of both, as this book proves. But there is also this something called verbosity, which Rushdie employs in spades. :/
♦ Anna Karenina (Leo Tolstoy): Many prefer it to War and Peace, although I wouldn’t know why, since I have not read more than three pages. The opening sentence instantly had my attention -All happy families resemble one another, but each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.- My friend tells me Anna herself doesn’t show until halfway through the book, and apparently, this novel addresses the norms between people in each level of society, which is definitely a point of interest to me, since social levels of people in my own country are so diverse- or should I say, unevenly distributed?- that it’s quite morbidly hilarious.
Manga
♦ Katekyo Hitman Reborn! -Amano Akira- (rec’d by mm_megan): Words that often come up on the entries on my friends page, and are totally unfamiliar to me: Tsuna, Vongola, reborn!, Lambo. What is familiar though is the word ‘Mafia’, and that is =♥♥♥. In megan’s words:
♣i mean, a guy with the heart of gold (and a whip) tutoring the aloof, violent bastard who grows to like him so much that he actually risks his life to save him? please. yaoi is written all over that **. the writer is female though, so that explains everything.
♠also evident in khr is the angry uke and his optimistic counterpart. they're practically canon.
(underlined words leapt out at me and my brain spontaneously broke with fangirlish glee - Sasu/Naru much?)
Then she proceeded to explain why Reborn was a- a baby! because I freaked when I read that on Wiki. D: I hate babies - the peaceful ones that sleep eighteen hours a day being a grudging exception.
♦ You’re My Love Prize -Yamane Ayano- (rec’d by mm_megan): Part of the Viewfinder series, I think. I read it, and it was very, very interesting. Or at least, my hormones thought so. ^///^ The spunky!uke/greatest-seme-who’s-ever-seme’d stereotype rarely works for me, but agskdgha, the way it was done had me drooling rather unattractively at the screen for hours. No, seriously. Read it. *_____* And have lots of tissue nearby.
♦ Totally Captivated -Yoo Hajino- (rec’d by mm_megan): Supposed to be a Korean manhwa - apparently virtually unknown - but megan tells me it’s great (although nowhere near as graphic as YMLP - I’m beginning to wonder whether anything is near as graphic as YMLP :p). Boysex is always healthy, I say.
♦ Kanjou Spectrum -Yoneda Kou- (rec’d by mm_megan): High school yaoi. I… really have no idea how much I liked it, given my disdain for HS stories, but HS stories and HS manga aren’t that similar, are they? I’ll try not to be biased. The story was typical, the romantic plot twist was obvious halfway through, but considering the manga is just 43 pages long, I guess I can overlook those little tidbits. I wasn't very impressed though Still, I have no idea how the relationship between the uke!introvert and seme!coolkid will work out now that they’re together.
♦ Beast Master -Kyousuke Motomi- (rec’d by mm_megan): I was under the impression that we’d never see a strong female character in manga who was not objectified in some way *coughIhateyouKuboIhateyousomuchcough*, but this manga totally proved me wrong. I love how spunky and fearless Yuiko is, and how devoted Leo is to her - he’s like this… pet cat. I love cats. :3
♦ Dengeki Daisy -Kyousuke Motomi- (rec’d by mm_megan): I haven’t read this yet, but I’m interested since it’s done by the same mangaka as Beast Master. According to Wiki, it involves a girl, a cell phone and a mysterious text sender who always reassures her when things look bleak. Any opinions on this?
♦ Hakuouki (rec’d by mm_megan - wow, you’ve just drowned me with manga, bb, and I’m glad ♥): A shoujo manga set in the Edo period - I’ve been dying to read a period piece and the main character, Chizuro, is supposed to be a member of an oni clan. She travels with the Shisengumi in search of her father, a famous doctor who’s made a potion that prolongs the lifespan of anyone who drinks it. Wiki doesn’t say much about the characters’ personalities though - and since the series starts with Chizuro being saved by someone from a… low-level demon or something, I’m guessing she’s not a fighter-type. Which indeed is very sad. I don’t know about the members of the Shisengumi, though… what I’m looking for is character interaction in the Edo period, like in… Rurouni Kenshin (I’m not sure if it was set in the Edo period or not, but well. Whatever.)
So does anybody have any idea of the characters? Because I’ll be very pissed off if I read this, only to find that Chizuro is a completely useless DiD.
♦ NANA -Ai Yazawa: Now, this manga, I completely adore. I get the impression that it’s written from a feminist point of view, since it’s rare to see female characters - strong in their own ways - in Japanese media. Nana is definitely awesome, but she’s still very human. I can see her reason for choosing pride over a happy homely life that might’ve been enough for her, for someone who’s never really had a family. And Hachi - she… grew on me, I guess. I mean, she was annoying at first, but so very realistic that it made me heart ache for the poor girl. Reminds me of Yuki from Paradise Kiss actually - both have their warped, unrealistic perception of romance and to have them shattered in every way is just heartbreaking. Hachi is like this projection of what an average girl from a conservative family deals with in real life.
I’m currently at the point in the story where Hachi has a one night stand with Takumi- Nobu gets increasingly jealous of him, I recall, and even attacks him when Takumi speaks of Nana as if she was just another knot on his bedpost.
I’m very curious about Shin though - the boy’s barely fifteen and already he’s sleeping around with women to make a living. I’m sensing there’s more to him than I initially thought - especially after his, uh, inspiring speech about love. Don’t tell me about him - for once, I don’t think I’d appreciate spoilers. I’d like to find out more about Shin myself.
I also get onesided Yasu/Nana vibes here and there. Or maybe I'm imagining things. Then again, she does kiss him. Even though she was frunk at the time. And yasu always seems to be there for her. even though he's there for everyone. Hm...
But if we get analytical, I’d have to say it’s very …solid storytelling, compared to her other works (e.g. I’m no Angel, Neighbourhood Story) It almost feels like I’m reading a book, instead of browsing through a manga - maybe it had something to do with Hachi’s soliloquies/thoughts which are interjected in a timely manner throughout most of the manga. I love reading them. Miss Yazawa is supposedly recovering from an illness of some sort - I really hope she gets herself - and NANA - back on her feet, because leaving the manga unfinished would be a shame. This is, I think, Yazawa-sensei’s masterpiece and the fans deserve some form of closure.
Does anyone have links to soundtracks for the anime? I’m dying to listen to music from Trapnest and Blast, so help me out please? T__T
♦ D.Gray-Man -Katsura Hoshino : I really need to catch up on this because I have no idea how Lenalee regains use of her Innocence - according to questofdreams, she’s had an upgrade in terms of fighting ability and it’s supposed to be awesome. But, I did skip ahead to chapters 180+ after reading DGM CAPSLOCK SUMMARIES and I’ve been hearing strange ~rumours~ that Hoshino-sensei has been having a love affair with the colour purple. These rumours were only confirmed after I saw the cover page for chapter 189. …Can anyone tell me why, exactly, is Kanda stuffed in a Santa suit? :/ There are even weirder rumours that his “hair turned light purple!”
I noticed the art for DGM has gotten comparatively more… ~feminine~ It’s more appealing maybe, in a conventional sense, but it’s just weird. I guess I’m not used to it yet?
♦ Cherry Juice -Haruka Fukushima: Read this while writing for the sn_exchange (I don’t know why, but reading/writing SasuNaru for extended periods of time makes me want to read incest. Maybe it’s just all the ~brotherly love~ in the air. Or something). Anyhow~ I… liked this, I guess. It really wasn’t the type of heavy-serious-angst that I usually look for, but it was definitely… cute and an awesome stress reliever because Naruto and Sasuke were being stupid and whiny and girly and wouldn’t get written the way I wanted them to be written. HOWEVER. The stress all came back in a rush when I clicked a page of CJ, only to find two boys - practically BFFs - suddenly kissing and making out in front of everyone who knows them. And along with stress came a sudden dose of inspiration, because I totally snatched that scene and used it in my sn_e fic (there were multiple variations, of course) :p Naruto and Sasuke were very, very co-operative after that.
♦ Soul Eater -Atsushi Okubo: I can understand why this manga would appeal to both sexes. The protagonist is female and kicks serious ass (she waves a scythe around! A scythe!), and I love the other characters (especially the Death the Kidd - him and his loltastic obsession with symmetry, ha!). There were some especially hilarious moments, but never did I feel that the humour was over the top - a bit typical maybe, but the timing is so well-done, that it doesn’t matter. And I don’t mind that the girls are more often than not naked as long as they’re awesome. As far as I was able to discern, Maka’s desire to turn Soul into the perfect weapon (Death Scythe?) is what drives the story - and I definitely get Soul/Maka vibes - but what is the actual plot? …Don’t tell me we’re going to have to sit through arc after arc. That’d be just like Bleach so typical of shounen manga. Any suggestions? Because I definitely don’t want to waste my time
♦ Vampire Knight - Matsuri Hino: Lately, VK hasn’t done anything for me - I mean, the art is fucking pretty and just appeals (god, Hino-sensei draws hands like no other. I fell in love with hands. Hands! D: ) but ever since the last ten/twelve chapters, I noticed she started using lighter shading. I definitely prefer her initial drawing style - it was so concrete and created wonderful contrast between the characters’ complexion and their eyes/hair. Also, while the plot unfolds, the character development, I feel, has taken a downward plunge. I prefer Yuki/Zero to Yuki/Kaname, and now I feel like sighing because I feel like VK has left the realm of manga, and entered the world of cliché fanfiction, especially sicne the Yuki-Zero interaction has been horribly awkward whereas once they chattered constantly to each other (or at least Yuki chattered and Zero gave grunts once in a while to indicate he was listening). I’m not even going to say anything about Yuki-Kaname - except maybe, as sexy as all the neck-biting is, we get that they adore each other, and there is no point in further emphasizing on that. It gets… redundant after a while. mm_megan once told me that even great writers, when they write established!relationship, shoot themselves in the foot in their attempt to do so. Now I believe her.
♦ Eden of the East -Kenji Kamiyama character designs by Chika Umino)- (rec’d by lalagirl208): Characters modeled after Umino-sensei’s characters from Honey & Clover, only made cuter. I’ve always adored Morita and Yamada from H&C, and have thought that they’d look ~gorgeous~ together, even though I primarily support Hagu/Morita - so to have more aesthetically appealing versions of both characters, together, in Eden of the East is something like a dream come true for me. I have no idea about the plot though - I only know it involves a very special mobile phone, through which you can call someone to get your wish granted for a price.
♦ Solanin -Inio Asano- (rec’d by lalagirl208): lalagirl says that since I loved H&C so much, I’d love this to bits as well - according to her, it’s one of he best slice-of-life manga out there. Did I mention I love sol manga? But it’s apparently directed at an older audience - ages ranging from 20 and above, and I still have years to go before I’m anywhere near twenty. But all the character in H&C were over twenty as well, and I could relate to them, so… should I read this?
♦ Kingdom Hearts: I’ve been familiar with the name forever, but I have no idea what exactly it’s about - I did read a KH yuri story and I liked it - a lot - despite not knowing a thing about the KH world. What I managed to understand was that Sora, Riku and… Kairi, I think, were the main characters is that an OT3 I smell?, and there were these… creatures called Heartless and I’m not sue about the plot at all. Someone tell me about this? My reaction to the Wiki article was TL;DR :|
♦ Pandora Hearts -Jun Mochizuki- (rec’d by Satiah): I Wikied this. I learned:
♠The protagonist is a fifteen year old boy who’s… cheerful, if I remember correctly - the typical male hero.
♠There are Contracts and Contractors. I have no idea what these are.
♠The heroine, Alice, is a weapon of some sort and is 150cm tall. Which is really, really short.
♠There are lots of allusions to Alice in Wonderland.
I DO NOT KNOW WHAT TO MAKE OF THIS.
Except, maybe, this sort of reminds me of Shakugan no Shana, which I didn’t like at all. The only thing I liked about that was Shana’s hair - long and vermillion, sort of like Kushina’s - but not Shana herself (even though she is kickass) because she, as happens with all manga, falls for the main guy. Which is not cliché. At all. *nodnod*
♦ Code Geass -Ichiro Okuchi- (rec’d by Satiah): Satiah says this is definitely the manga for me since I love political mindgames so much oh Rosemary, what have you done to meee~ The world is supposedly divided between three superpowers right now, and the main character - Lelouch? - is supposed to be hot like burning. I tried reading the manga, but it’s separated into three parts and I have no idea where to start!
♦ SaiKano -Shin Takahashi: I’ve been hearing about this manga forever, and something about the name just… stuck.It has something to do with two teenagers who are in love and don’t quite know how to express it, and are therefore awkward around each other. It also has something to do with …bioweapons, maybe? I read some reviews for this, and they were very, very intriguing - SaiKano is supposed to be a moving epic, something sad, something beautiful. How many chapters does the manga have, anyway?
♦ Koi Kaze -Motoi Yoshida: Now this is one manga I’d definitely recommend if you’re into incest - what I love most about Koi Kaze is that the mangaka takes the issue of falling in love with your own sibling very seriously and portrays it as such. The background is a bit disappointing, and emphasis is given to the main characters so that the other characters come off as looking hastily drawn - but the way the subject matter is treated makes up for the less-than-stellar artwork. There’s a considerable age gap between the characters concerned, and the way the manga portrays their growing feelings, that inevitable lunge into depression, is something so realistic, something you don’t find in most other incest manga. On this note, I’d love to read another incest manga that treats the matter seriously - if you have any recs, tell meee~!
♦ One Piece -Eiichiro Oda: I watched the anime… five years ago and I don’t remember much of anything at all (I do, however, remember that the OST was very catchy). The characters weren’t aesthetically appealing so I stopped watching wow, I’m shallow and moved onto InuYasha and Rurouni Kenshin. Back then I didn’t realize how original the artwork was - it’s a risky style, given that people seem to go more for the big-eyed anime chibis. The manga is supposed to be full of fucking awesome crack, and it doesn’t have an obligatory sheen of romance slapped on, so… I mena, I want to read it, but-- there are so many chapters. DX
♦ Sengoku Basara -Shinotsuki Kairi- (rec’d by istne_pieklo): I tried reading the manga version. SB - or at least, the manga - is definitely a throwback to Dragon Ball Z because I really couldn’t understand what the hell was going on - all I knew was there were two guys fighing, trying to kill each other for no apparent reason I could discern and being a masochist I would’ve kept reading too, just because, had istne_pieklo not told me the anime was much better. istne_pieklo made a post on general seme-uke stereotypes and how they related to Sengoku Basara, and the main characters seem interesting (they remind me of Sasuke and Naruto in some ways)… so, should I watch this?
♦ Ookiku Furikabutte -Asa Higuchi- (rec’d by gonrie): I didn’t recognize the Japanese name when gonrie first mentioned it, but Wiki says its English title is “Big Windup”, which, aired on Animax until recently and is supposed to be a baseball manga. I watched it sparingly, when I could find the rare time to just unwind and flip through TV channels (which I haven’t done that in a year D:). I… really didn’t think much of it, to be honest but maybe that’s because baseball is just one of the few sports that I find, uh, not-exciting. It’s supposed to be cute and full of yaoi moments, but I don’t know how much yaoi I could handle, given that half the manga on my to-read list are yaoi manga.
♦ Doctor Who - So a month ago, I saw this Doctor Who based SasuNaru art submission on the sn_exchange and I couldn’t stop staring. I have no idea about the manga, and am too lazy to look it up, so tell me about the main plot and characters please? O__O and-- and please tell me it's sexy
♦ Avatar: The last Airbender - Um. So. I’ve heard… uh, really, really horrible things about the movie. I also read a sarcastic movie review, and couldn’t stop laughing throughout even though I didn’t actually know the characters. The reason I avoid ATLA is because the art style seems a bit too… American? After watching Japanese anime for so long, I don’t know how well I’d adjust. But it’s so tempting, because Katara is supposed to be very, very kickass... and she’s apparently a water bender, which is a plus, because element-wise, I was always a bit partial to water. Any opinions on this?
Anime/Manga I feel the sudden urge to re-watch/re-read:
♦ Slam Dunk -Inoue Takahiko: The first fandom I ever wrote for, actually, so it’s very dear to me. It helps that I have an obsession with basketball. I don’t necessary follow the NBA leagues or anything - I just love playing, that’s all and Slam dunk is greatly responsible for that. It’s an old time anime/manga and I love all the characters, and even the overblown humour. The art style has developed quite a bit since then, but it’s the realistic drawing style of SD that sets it apart from other sports manga. Just check out Wiki - the amount of praise/awards it had received since it was published is amazing. And I miss the hilarious one-sided rivalry between Hanamichi and Kaede! Good times. Yes, definitely.
♦ Honey and Clover -Chika Umino: Probably one of the few anime that surpassed their manga, like I’ve told lalagirl208. I love the tranquil feeling I get from this anime - everything is so relaxed and unhurried, but before you know, a year has passed for the characters, and they’re all struggling to find their purpose, or themselves, in some cases. I loved the Morita/Hagumi so evident in canon, and the Mayama/Rika, which I think would appeal more to older fans. It’s definitely one of the most lovely slice-of-life manga I’ve ever read. I love Takemoto’s monologues as much as I love Nana Komatsu’s, and like lalagirl208 says, Takemoto’s story was excellent and it’s amazing how he accepts mediocrity, and comes to terms with himself. The other characters were all equally well-done - they each had their stories to tell, and I love that the mangaka revealed more and more about them as the story went on instead of expanding on a pre-decided character personality. I mean, nobody can singularly label your personality as “jovial” or “stand-offish” if you think about it, and I’m glad that that applies to the characters in this manga. It makes them more human. Now I want to watch this again, just to hear that wonderful background music. But maybe I should watch Eden of the East or Solanin first? I don’t know.
♦ Emma -Kaoru Mori: Set in Victorian Era London, it still remains one of my most nostalgic anime to date. I’ve always taken a huge inters in social classes and the norms that pervade each class, and this anime shows that off realistically. The difference in status between a maid and a gentlemen of a wealthy household. Emma herself is a memorable character - she’s quiet, but perceptive, and tries to make the most suitable decision for everyone. She lived her childhood begging in the streets, until a strict but kind governess took her in. Her story definitely makes you empathize with her as a character.
♦ Wolf’s Rain -Keiko Nobumoto: I… really don’t remember the plot or any of the characters except Kiba since I saw this… five years ago? Or maybe more? But the opening song stuck with me even after all these years and even though I didn’t actually understand much of the plot back then, but I remember the soft colors and the snow which some of you know I have a strange fascination for. And I remember the chracters’ voices, though not their names - everything was just drenched in so much angst. Sigh. It seems when I read/watch something, I remember more of what I felt than the actual content of the material. :/
♦ Nodame Canabile -tomoko Ninomiya: I was re-reading this a week ago and made it to the kotatsu scene (Chiaki decides that no, the kotatsu is not the source of all evil. It’s Nodame herself - in one word, that chapter was hilarious). It’s been… so long since I’ve read the manga. The last time I read it (after the release of the anime), I just sort of… browsed through the manga and more or less ignored - or at least, paid much less attention to - anyone who wasn’t Chiaki or Nodame, because I was just that impatient to see their relationship develop. I… usually don’t go for romantic comedies, but the way Nodame Cantabile done - interspersed with classical music, an unusual female protagonist and a vibrant, tasteful humour - is just amazing. And I love how Chiaki isn’t as perfect as everyone makes him out to be - he’s good looking, talented, but has a caring side that he hides behind a temper, not behind a taciturn mask. And exactly how often do we see that in manga?
♦ Rurouni Kenshin -Nobuhiro Watsuki: The second anime I ever watched and to tell the truth, RK was what got me genuinely interested in fandom. I love the storyline, love all the characters and love the whole concept. The concept of redemption - repentance? - is played out so well here. Oh Sasukeee! ;__; At the beginning of the series, he seems amiable and kind, but as the anime progresses, we get glimpses into his inner conflict - how hard it must’ve been to change from Battousai to Kenshin Himura, the man with the reverse-edged sword. To someone completely different. What I like most is that the female characters get sufficient screen time as well, which is surprising considering that this manga was set in older times - and women really weren’t considered fighters back then. Megumi, Kaoru, Misao are all strong in their own way; I like that the characters - even the silliest/youngest ones - have a core of maturity in them. And I only grew to like them even more after watching the OVAs. I’ve just lightly browsed through the manga, but I want to read it seriously now…. Or maybe read Watsuki-san’s other works? Because that’d be just awesome. *__*
♦ Trinity Blood -Sunao Yoshida/ Kentaro Yasui / Thres Shibamoto: Vampire!manga. One of the most excellent I’ve ever read - even better than, though not as well-known as, Vampire Knight which is becoming increasingly more typical with each chapter. D: The soundtracks are so ~soulful~, especially Broken Wings. Sighhh.
I love Abel Nightroad, the power that lies behind his kind, goofy disposition (he reminds me of Kenshin in some ways) and I love Esther from the light novel/manga, not from the anime. The ladies are given seriously awesome roles which actually further the plot (Seth, for example) and Ion Fortuna - young for a Methuselah (vampire… sort of) - is quite huggable, especially with the way he grows to like Esther, despite the fact that she’s a human. The graphics for the anime were quite amazing - really managed to convey how serious the plot was, but why in the world do anime-makers always - always - have to alter canon events and/or change certain aspects of a character’s personality? Do they not like the characters as they are?
♦ Blood+ - Junichi Fujisaku / Asuka Katsura: Vampire!manga again. Sort of. In the sense that it contains a lot of blood and sexy neck-licking. *___* Saya Otonashi is an awesome protagonist, just like Diva - her sister - is an awesome villain. It’s just very, very refreshing to see fights between two sisters instead of brothers (Japanese manga seems big on the brotherhood theme. Hm…there’s Edward-Alphonse, Sesshoumaru-Inuyasha, Itachi-Sasuke, Madara-Izuna…). Then there are the chevaliers - Haji and Solomon in particular are very, very charming (it helps, that Haji can kick ass while lugging around a huge cello :D) I’ve been craving something bloody and sexy lately. Maybe Blood+ will do? 8D
♦ Samurai Champloo -Shinichiro Watanabe: Oohhhh. Just thinking about SC makes me giggle. I was skeptical about it at first, even though it was from the makers of Cowboy Bebop (which, by the way, was the best thing ever), because the promo ads were just so… tacky. But then I watched the anime - you know, just because - and before I knew it, I was addicted to the bizarre hip hop background music - who knew hip hop and samurai could mix so well? The OSTs are so damn catchy, and Mugen-Jin-Fuu are actually an exception to my threesome obsession. They’re perfect as companions - well, in a dysfunctional way anyway. :D
Layout
Flist, I’m very, very curious about which web browsers you use.
Reason being, my header (created by the amazing pet911) currently stands at 789px and while the alignment looks perfect with my IE8, it doesn’t look quite right in my Maxthon and Apple Safari browsers, which I use frequently as well (in fact, I prefer Safari over IE8 and Maxthon - the graphics are much more compatible with a Mercury AGP card :D).
Just let me know, and I’ll be going with the majority becuase it... irritates me to see my header out of place.. On this note, how do you like my new layout? Should I enable my mood theme? Take out the automatic italic/bold colouring? Switch back to my old August theme altogether? (My old theme was convenient in the sense that it overlapped my ad banners, and was perfect for a Plus a/c. Not so much for navigation, though. :|) Maybe I should downgrade to a Basic a/c? But... my userpic limit will decrease, and I don't want that! D:
Phew! Long post is long. My internet has been going haywire on me, so I’ll be changing my connection soon. So I’ll be disappearing for a day or two. Since I have about… 17 days to catch up with fandom, I want to get in as much reading as possible within that time. Or at least 3 books and five manga, so any opinions? (Hint: I’m looking for something light, something entertaining and something with good character interaction. Political mindfuckery/sexiness of any kind works just as well.)
On this note, I’m undecided regarding my Friends Only banner, because yet another b- okay, infernal nuisance has thought it fit to abuse my journal. I’ve deleted the comment, and will be going Friends Only in a few days. :/ Can anyone rec a team sevenfriends only banner? Perhaps a community/user I can make a request to? Or should I go with A, B or C?
And oh, I just watched Inception the other day. It was ♥.
P.S. I have three posts in mind for the next few days - one to pimp some communities (like help_pakistan. Seriously, check this out - the newspaper tabloids are horrible. Pakistan shows up on our newspapers a lot since we have a history with it), another to discuss movies (Inception and a few other… unconventional gay movies) and some music (some obscure bands and anime OSTs probably. I have Leah Dizon's Under the Same Sky on repeat - it's so sigh-worthy and beautiful :3). And finally, a compilation of all the amazingness in this year’s sn_exchange for my own convenience (although, I may have something a lot to say about a few effing fantastic fics once I catch up 8D). On an unrelated note, I’ve been itching to read/write some SasuSaku lately. Any recent (read: recent and amazing) fanfiction I should know about?
ETA1: Post will be fully edited by today! I’m dead tired after going on a typing spree like this one, but I feel more organized already. “Organized” - I’m beginning to like the word. :) Will add more tags later - I'm making a dash for my french class in my pajamas! So much for organized DX
ETA2: Tags have now been added. I have the worst net connection in history. When I said I'd be changing it, I didn't think it'd take this long. I'm slightly more punctual than this guys, but oh well. Apparently, Doctor Who is not a manga. Silly me! But the one day break did lend me enough time to do some beta work, send in replies to the people who were waiting for one for ages, and read a bit of TKaMB. I might actually like it, once I get used to the narrative. :D That said, I'm absolutely loving French and hating Jane Eyre. I'll just look out for the pretty metaphors rather than the actual story.