Summer 2014 Thoughts

Summer 2014 (Warning, Spoilers Ahead)

The season has been nice to me so far. Loads of potential in a bunch of series, but none of them have really lived up to what they could be. Two guilty pleasure anime for me this time around. Let's jump right into it shall we?

Ongoing Anime That I'm Watching:
Akame Ga Kill!
Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun
Glasslip
Haikyuu!!
Locodol
Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei
Rail Wars!
Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!?
SAO II
Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance
Tokyo Ghoul
Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories 2

Akame Ga Kill!

Supposedly a really big disappointment, although I find it alright. Akame Ga Kill! is about a group of assassins under the name "Night Raid" who go about killing corrupted people in the city, hoping to pave way for a revolution. At times it's definitely got an intriguing story, but for the whole other part of the show it falls flat on its face trying to deliver.

It has gore. Sub-par comedy. A story that's on and off. OP and ED are really nice to listen to, quite possibly one of my favourites of this season (right next to the Tokyo Ghoul OP and ED, but that's coming up later in this post). Worth a try? Yeah, definitely. There's something to be found if you're into this kind of stuff.

Best Girl: All out battle between Akame and Mine right now

Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun

More or less the same stuff that I said last time I did a summer anime impression post. It's doing everything really well in my opinion. Characters extremely likable, comedy changes every episode so that it doesn't get boring and repetitive. I'd like to see more development in the romance department, but hey, maybe it's just one of those anime that end the way they start. OP is catchy and a refreshing change of pace from everything else. Gekkan Shojo Nozaki-kun is a really stable and great anime that does well.

Best Girl: Obviously Sakura Chiyo

Glasslip

If there's one thing that I can say about Glasslip, it's that it has gotten somewhat better. The anime is starting to push in a specific direction, instead of leading the viewer blindly around. If the show had started out like this I definitely wouldn't have criticized it so harshly the last time. Romances are showing up and playing a prominent role in story development, so that's a good thing. Side romance is cute, but whatever.

Glasslip is still salvageable. It's not too close from the point of no return though. If it can continue improving, it can turn into something that is nice, in a very general way. However it's just going to be another anime. Of course, that's assuming that it does head in that direction, which I sincerely hope it does. I thought that the elements for the story were really good, but were just played the wrong way.

Best Girl: Fukami Touko (I don't really like any of the other girls)

Haikyuu!!

Pure love for volleyball is a really big reason for why I am watching Haikyuu!! Aside from that though, I think it's also another good sports centered anime. I can't and won't compare it to something like Kuroko's Basketball, but I can say that this anime provides some well needed stability for the season. Matches are exciting to watch and actually have some tension now.

Best Girl: Shimizu Kiyoko

Locodol

Somewhat of a guilty pleasure watch for me. Cheap comedy and kawaii girls is what you'll get if you watch Locodol. Probably best not to think too much while watching this. However that's not to say that this show is a complete dud. It gets kawaii across and it makes me smile. Really that's all I was looking for, and I'm glad that it delivered.

Best Girl: Kohinata Yukari (holy she's actually just perfect)

Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei

Watched for the laughs because incest (yes, I was still in my OreImo stage).

Got something that was half incest and half about this perfect guy who goes around beating up everybody with magic.

Disappointed.

I really don't know why I didn't drop Mahouka along with my friend. The plot isn't really something that I'm interested in, much rather something that I actually pay attention to. Miyuki is just ugh (what a terrible immouto). In fact, I don't really like any of the characters too much.

Best Girl: SEITO KAICHOU SAEGUSA MAYUMI <3

Rail Wars!

When I say Rail Wars is a completely engaging anime that teaches you about the mechanics of trains and about a group of aspiring students who wish to keep their railways safe, I am completely kidding you.

Rail Wars is another guilty pleasure anime. Especially with the events that transpired in the latest episode, I can say that it is three quarters oppai and glorious exposed flesh and one quarter trains. Hell, probably not even one quarter, something like a eighth would make more sense.

Do I enjoy Rail Wars? Yes, yes I do. There's enough about trains to justify (not really) me watching it and I get enjoyment out of it, whether it's just because it's so silly or the show actually made a funny. Bottom line, this anime is simply fanservice packaged with the "free bonus" of trains, buuuuuuuuut it's something to look forward to every Saturday with.

Best Girl: Koumi Haruka (although if Sakurai gets more romantic development)

Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!?

I'm not gonna lie. I have completely no idea why I picked up this show, but for whatever reason, it has turned out to be fine. Unfortunately I didn't find a hidden gem underneath all the chaos going on ahead, but hey, it aired on Fridays and I just happened to have that day free (nope, nope, not going to take the Free! references). Uhhhhh, Rokujouma is a typical harem anime. It's about a guy (Satomi Koutarou) who moves into an apartment room only to find a bunch of girls (a ghost, a princess from another planet, a big-chested underground dweller, and a mahou shoujo) each trying to take the room for her own purposes.

Rokujouma is a worth a shot if you're looking for something to take up some of your time. Sometimes it's quite good.

Best Girl: Sakuraba Harumi

SAO II

Uh, one question. WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO ASUNA!?

That's what I thought going into this show. Seeing her on MAL as a "supporting character" really did grind my gears. However as the show has progressed, I can definitely see that it's... better than the first season. There's a new game at least, however the threat of dying in a virtual game is still being used. Shino is an interesting new character. Her back story is something new and interesting.

In the latest episode Kirito and Shino almost kiss. Hell, I don't even know if it was intended to look anything like a kiss, but it sure did for me. ASUNA YOU BETTER CLAIM YOUR TERRITORY QUICK. I doubt that they will do anything more than tease with those kind of scenes, as the whole KiritoxAsuna thing is huge and if they broke it, everybody would lose their minds (but hey, maybe that's exactly what they need after that terrible second arc). Overall SAO II is something that you should watch if you have watched the first season. It's a decent continuation.

Best Girl: Really it can only be Asuna, but hey, with hard work and screen time Shino could take that spot...

Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance

Guilty pleasure is written all over my face right now. Blade Dance is about... a red haired loli trying to find her older sister? A guy looking for a spirit that he apparently treated so badly that it had to run away? A group of girls pandering to the typical OP lead male (oh wait, he's the only male)? There are a lot of things happening in Blade Dance, and sometimes that doesn't leave enough time for what it really is: girls running around trying to get into MC's pants. I feel like... for this kind of harem (something highly reminiscent of Seikoku no Dragonar) it isn't doing a good job of being a harem. Up to now the MC has only really interacted with the red haired Claire and the wonderful girl who also serves as a sword and a dakimakura, Est.

Pretty close to dropping this series, but hey, might stick around to see if something will happen.

Best Girl: Est, Terminus

Tokyo Ghoul

The show was looking to have a turn for the worse with the whole blue-haired-guy-trying-to-eat-Kaneki arc, because that part was just... bad. Too much handkerchief sniffing and build up only to have it end just like that. Just when I thought there wasn't anything worth watching in Tokyo Ghoul, BOOM, something serious actually happens, and the way they serve it to the viewer is much better than compared to the other episodes. More focus on the Doves ripping up and wreaking terror in the 20th ward would go a long way for the anime.

So far it's alright. Could be something really good if it picks up the pace. Black bars OP.

Best Girl: Kirishima Touka

Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories 2

HELLYESSECONDSEASON. Loved the first season. Gives genuine spooks and jumpscares. Definitely worth five minutes per week.

Best Girl: Uhm... I don't know if this counts, but the guy in the mask (narrator)?

Later Later Reader

Thanks for sticking around this time and showing your dedication ^^ Until next time, wonderful reader. I'm an 8 this morning. I actually had most of this done last night but then decided not to push it and finished up in the morning.

"Indecision may or may not be my problem." - Jimmy Buffett

Spring 2014 Thoughts

Spring 2014 (Warning Spoilers Ahead)

I think the spring season was a good season for me. It was the first season where I actually decided to watch on-going anime as opposed to binging on 12 episode series in a day or two. Spring seems like such a long time ago, so I'll have to pull out AniChart and my trusty notepad full of every anime I've ever watched to figure out what I finished this spring season.

Okay. So after a bit of reading this should be it. These are the anime that I watched oh so long ago:

Black Bullet
Bokura wa Minna Kawaisou
Date a Live II
GochiUsa
Gokukoku no Brynhildr
Isshuukan Friends
Kanojo ga Flag wo Oraretara
Mekakucity Actors
No Game No Life
Seikoku no Dragonar

This is going to be a really long post. My MAL just in case if you wanted to check out something.

Spoilers. Yeah, I warned you already.

Black Bullet

I thought that Black Bullet was nice. Nothing godly, nothing that made my heart go doki doki whenever I heard it being talked about. This anime is just... an anime.

There were some really good moments in this Black Bullet, moments that did make my heart go doki doki, but it's unfortunate that this is not how the whole series goes. The ending felt a bit weird, especially with how Kisara becomes a "bad guy" and all that, but I feel that if a second season does happen, it would be really interesting to see how her part plays out. The whole series plays out nicely, but if you're expecting a lot out of Black Bullet, then that's a no no.

Best Girl: Senju Kayo

Bokura wa Minna Kawaisou

There is nothing wrong with this anime. Art is fantastic. Characters are great and you can definitely relate to them. It gives off a really strong Sakurasou vibe with it's premise and everything. With 12 episodes, I wasn't expecting any hardcore drama to fall on the cast, and it didn't. Yes, Kawaisou is an anime that leaves you hanging with the romance between the protagonists.

The comedy was great and the timing for it was also great. It certainly didn't close the Sakurasou void, but it helped. Kawaisou is a solid anime, and fun to watch at that.

Best Girl: Ritsu Kawai

Date A Live II

Should I really say anything about this? If anything, DaL II felt worse than its predecessor. Yoshino got dropped hard to a supporting role where she hardly got much screen time and I didn't have as much fun as I did in the first season. Whether it's because I matured as an anime watcher, the second season was simply just worse, or I grew tired of the setting, the end point is that I didn't enjoy DaL II.

Best Girl: Yoshino

GochiUsa

I watched for kawaii girls running a coffee shop. Guess what I got.

Kawaii girls running a coffee shop.

GochiUsa is what it looks like, and you're not supposed to expect anything more than that. If that's your mentality walking into something like this, then you'll be fine. I myself actually had a good time watching this anime. The message of cute really gets to you, and the art is nice to look at. All of the characters have a variety of traits and are each likable in their own way.

Best Girl: Chino Kafuu

Gokukoku no Brynhildr

As much as I'd like to say that more episodes would've helped Gokukoku no Bryndhildr out, it probably wouldn't. Maybe.

The show is about a group of witches trying to stay alive. They need to take pills regularly to keep themselves from melting into a heaping pile of gooop and every witch has their own rank and superpower(s). The way that Gokukoku no Brynhildr sets itself up is definitely interesting, and something I looked at twice before deciding to pick it up.

However as the show progresses more and more it gets more and more complicated and confusing, to the point where I can't and don't really care about what's going on. There's a bit of fanservice here and there, but nothing to completely turn off the regular viewer.

Best Girl: Neko Kuroha

Isshuukan Friends

Man, everything in the spring season had really promising potential, but then just degraded as it went on. Isshuukan Friends is a good example of this. It was a nice cute show for me to watch, and I really liked it. It's about Kaori Fujimiya, a girl who loses her memories of any friends every Monday and how her new friend Hase Yuuki tries to... help her out?

One thing I really really think was great in the anime was the side romance between Shougo and Saki. However that's one of the few things that I can really applaud Isshuukan Friends on. As the anime was setting up for the end, it threw in an old childhood friend who just messes up everything. A bunch of stuff happens and the two MCs break apart. A few episodes pass like this and they make up in a pretty non-climatic didn't-make-my-heart-go-doki-doki way. For this reason the anime just didn't work out for me.

Best Girl: Kaori Fujimiya

Kanojo ga Flag wo Oraretara

Ew ew ew ew ew. Everything was really confusing and messed up and waaaaaaaaaaay too complicated. I also got turned off by how the characters looked. Just blech. I think I gave it a 5 or something.

Best Girl: (Do I really have to pick? :/) Akane Mahougasawa

Mekakucity Actors

I didn't like it.

Before you flame on me, realize this. I have not read any of the manga or listened to any of the songs ever. I know LITERALLY 0 about the universe of Mekakucity Actors. I just watched the anime because it was airing and my friend recommended it to me.

Watching Mekakucity Actors was frankly confusing for me. I think back story would have helped me to understand what was going on, but even with the back story, I feel that the execution was somewhat poor. The art style was meh and I didn't particularly like it (thanks Shaft). Plot felt compressed and I had little to no time getting to know characters. Longer run might've helped? I don't know.

Best Girl: Marry Kozakura

No Game No Life

I loved No Game No Life. Realizing that there's a lot of hate on how much it is hyped up, it might be the wrong thing to say, but hey, I do love it. The show was witty and entertaining the whole way. You knew that Blank would undoubtedly win, but it was most definitely the way that they won that was something worth watching.

Art style is very different, bursting with colour, but not something that I didn't like. Execution was great, and always left me wanting more. Cliffhanger pls.

Best Girl: Jibril

Seikoku no Dragonar

Oppai, dragons, and fanservice. That's really all there is to Seikoku no Dragonar. Do I mind? Not really. I watched this just for the hell of it.

Oh yeah, that kiss at the end? Bestiality.

Best Girl: SEITO KAICHOU Rebecca Randall

That's It, Summer Thoughts Next Post?

I can't believe I actually thought that I could fit both my spring and summer thoughts into one post. Seeing this post as it is now, it's close to impossible. I doubt you'd be able to continue reading anyhow.

'Till the next post. I'm an 8 for today.

"History will be kind to me for I intend to write it." - Winston Churchill

Another Party

Yes It's A Joke

No, not the party. The party happened and it was awesome (as expected).

The title is a joke. Cause you know, we watched like an episode and a half of Another. Haha.

Haha?

Anyhow, yesterday there was another party, this time with the goal of watching a "horror" movie (just turned out to be more of a thriller, but hell it was fun) and having a more serious ultimate frisbee game. I had a great time once again. I think everybody else also had a really fun time there. Playing ultimate was also fun. We had separated ourselves into two teams, one consisting of seniors (grade 11 and up) and the other consisting of juniors (10 and down, which was my team). In the end it was a landslide victory (for us of course), so our plan to have a intense neck-to-neck game was shut down. Maybe next time Eric.

Oh Hi There

Made another anime wallpaper. I like this one much better than #3.

Probably going to make an anime centered post in the next bit. If I do I'll combine the spring concluding thoughts and the summer current thoughts together.

Oh yeah, I made a "Behind The Scenes" for the wallpaper if you're interested in how I do this kind of stuff.

Sorry For Keeping You

Uh, you can have another picture of me from the run.

And a picture of the rabbit we used to have.

No she didn't pass away or anything, we gave her away to a new family (tearing up now). Her name is Lucky. I miss her dearly. Photo stolen from my cousin's Facebook.

I'm an 8 for tonight. Until the next post valued reader.

"Hope is such a bait, it covers any hook." - Oliver Goldsmith

Color Me Rad

Hey Finally A Picture Of Me On My "Personal" Blog

It's never really occurred to me that I don't really put up any pictures of myself on this blog. Kinda stupid because it's a "personal" blog. BUT WAIT. The day for change is today.

Long story short, I ended up filling somebody's spot for the Color Me Rad event and had a blast.

Anyhow, here's a picture of me.

Erm, that's all.

I would put up more, but there are some derpier looking ones and I also feel like they would take up a lot of room for this one single post. Maybe I'll simply spread them out across the next few posts or so.

I don't know anything about taking photos okay.

PARTY MOVED TO MONDAY

Bummer.

That's really all I have to put up on this post today. And yes, I am a 9 today. It's been a while since I've had this much fun. Thanks to everybody who put up with me and my silly antics today. Hope that maybe next year I can join you guys again as a part of the "starting lineup" as opposed to being a sub.

"You make mistakes. Mistakes don't make you." - Maxwell Maltz

New Header, Updating The Pages, And Stuff

So Uh, Yeah.

Here is the header in question:

Am I proud? Hell yeah. I actually learnt something from doing this.

Little back story before we continue here. I'm big on vector design. It's my thing. Naturally I've spent much more time on Fireworks than I have on Photoshop. Sure every now and then I come across an occasion where I'm required to use Photoshop for it's fabulous filters, but for the most part I use Fireworks.

However, for this banner idea I wanted to do something a bit "flashy" and decided to incorporate a GIF into it. My initial idea was to have two GIFs actually, one of Chitoge (which made it) and one of Mashiro (which sadly did not make it). So now I had to set about to make the GIFs have a transparent background. Fun.

I've seen people edit GIFs through Photoshop, but never Fireworks, so I pulled up chitoge.gif in Photoshop and sat there just wondering what to do. 6 frames of animation. Now what? Guess it's time to start removing the background. I click the pen tool and fail within a minute. It was different from the pen tool in Fireworks that I so dearly loved, so I had to do a bit of research online to figure it out. After learning the one mistake I had been making, I corrected it and was well on my way.

Successfully completing the removal of one frame, I moved onto the next. However the twist was that I didn't know how GIFs worked in Photoshoop. I messed up everything and had to restart. I was irritable and considered dropping this whole idea and using a still image instead, but for some reason I continued. Eventually I learnt the secret behind the GIFs and by then I had already invested too much time into this little project. So instead of using the pen tool like a proper designer, I cheated and took a shortcut with the magic wand tool.

Of course that's why the GIF looks bad to an extent. I moved onto Mashiro only to find that I messed up while saving it. The background had a colour similar to her hair, so the magic wand tool was out of question. I decided to not put Mashiro into the banner (laaaaaaaaame).

So there you have it. If you want to learn how to do any of this or have any questions, feel free to just post or shoot me an email. I'm also open to suggestions and such if you're interested.

I'm going to go shower. After I'm done I'll go and work on updating the other pages of this blog (last update was around February I think). Later then.

I'm an 8 for today.

"We must rediscover the distinction between hope and expectation." - Ivan Illich