Run run run
This summer has been fairly productive, all things considered. I can run five miles without stopping in a decent time frame, whoo!
I'd be bumping up the mileage this week if my foot wasn't injured. Argh. All of the sudden it started feeling like a badly pulled muscle or a sprain...nothing comes to mind as to what could have directly caused it. Sometimes I'm really surprised with how fragile the body can be...this is the fourth time I've been injured, and the runners I know keep getting knocked out of commission as well. Bad knees all around!
It feels good to be fit, but I can see why so many people let their bodies go. Exercise is dangerous and painful!
But so, so addicting. Heal fast, you stupid foot.
In other news, I am really looking forward to this month's chapter of Di[e]ce.
Sometimes I'm confused about why I like this manga so much. Usually I find female-baiting manga too irritating to read. Specifically, the kind with an attractive, all-male cast that acts quite a bit too fond for each other. Di[e]ce is especially guilty of this, what with the constant grabbing, hugging, and just generally touching each other in ways that aren't exactly realistic behavior... I mean, I love the series, but the author/artist both need to refine their characterizations a bit...has anyone else noticed that the characters are constantly overreacting? No? O-okay...
All that aside, there are some really interesting elements going on. Without really spoiling anything, the developments of Kazuki and Haruki are excellent, especially in how they're reacting to the situations they've faced. How each of them responded to the initial chapters has also pretty much come full circle, but I'll talk about that at a different time.
So after recent events, I hope that 39 isn't yet another wasted chapter. Di[e]ce has had a few pacing issues, what with the (looooong) flashback chapters placed right in the middle of dramatic events. Back story is great, and done correctly it can be amazing, buuuut I'm not sure that's always been the case with Di[e]ce. Even a few of the important events felt like they were dragging on...but again, that could just be me.
In the next chapter I want to see more interaction among the members of Kazuki's group, because it seems to me that character interaction (when it happens, guh) is one of the strongest points of the manga. It feels like during certain arcs certain characters were shelved. After the initial eight or so chapters, Sion basically disappeared until the late 20's. Naoto has been nearly irrelevant since his arc ended. I can't complain too much, however, because it's easy to understand how characters can be overlooked when they're part of such a huge cast.
As a last thought, Sion seems a lot...different, compared to how he acted in the beginning. Even his appearance has changed slightly, in that he's no longer drawn quite so cold-looking. I'm struggling with how to explain what I mean. I think the idea is that he's softened up since he was introduced, but...has anything really happened to justify that? It was kind of a jump that they (meaning Sion and Kazuki) went from grudgingly tolerating each other to apparently caring deeply for each other. In Sion's case it's understandable, but Kazuki...
Looooooong. I wish the fandom was bigger.
I'd be bumping up the mileage this week if my foot wasn't injured. Argh. All of the sudden it started feeling like a badly pulled muscle or a sprain...nothing comes to mind as to what could have directly caused it. Sometimes I'm really surprised with how fragile the body can be...this is the fourth time I've been injured, and the runners I know keep getting knocked out of commission as well. Bad knees all around!
It feels good to be fit, but I can see why so many people let their bodies go. Exercise is dangerous and painful!
But so, so addicting. Heal fast, you stupid foot.
In other news, I am really looking forward to this month's chapter of Di[e]ce.
Sometimes I'm confused about why I like this manga so much. Usually I find female-baiting manga too irritating to read. Specifically, the kind with an attractive, all-male cast that acts quite a bit too fond for each other. Di[e]ce is especially guilty of this, what with the constant grabbing, hugging, and just generally touching each other in ways that aren't exactly realistic behavior... I mean, I love the series, but the author/artist both need to refine their characterizations a bit...has anyone else noticed that the characters are constantly overreacting? No? O-okay...
All that aside, there are some really interesting elements going on. Without really spoiling anything, the developments of Kazuki and Haruki are excellent, especially in how they're reacting to the situations they've faced. How each of them responded to the initial chapters has also pretty much come full circle, but I'll talk about that at a different time.
So after recent events, I hope that 39 isn't yet another wasted chapter. Di[e]ce has had a few pacing issues, what with the (looooong) flashback chapters placed right in the middle of dramatic events. Back story is great, and done correctly it can be amazing, buuuut I'm not sure that's always been the case with Di[e]ce. Even a few of the important events felt like they were dragging on...but again, that could just be me.
In the next chapter I want to see more interaction among the members of Kazuki's group, because it seems to me that character interaction (when it happens, guh) is one of the strongest points of the manga. It feels like during certain arcs certain characters were shelved. After the initial eight or so chapters, Sion basically disappeared until the late 20's. Naoto has been nearly irrelevant since his arc ended. I can't complain too much, however, because it's easy to understand how characters can be overlooked when they're part of such a huge cast.
As a last thought, Sion seems a lot...different, compared to how he acted in the beginning. Even his appearance has changed slightly, in that he's no longer drawn quite so cold-looking. I'm struggling with how to explain what I mean. I think the idea is that he's softened up since he was introduced, but...has anything really happened to justify that? It was kind of a jump that they (meaning Sion and Kazuki) went from grudgingly tolerating each other to apparently caring deeply for each other. In Sion's case it's understandable, but Kazuki...
Looooooong. I wish the fandom was bigger.