. . .
wow these past few days i've been feeling kind of like a broken record.
Hakuoki Reimeiroku is about a group of mercenaries... town gards... samurai... known as the shisengumi.
however we mainly focus on this one guy who is found near dead on the side of the road.
he is forces to work for the man who found him despite the constant berating and hitting.
Eventually they are told about a drink that turns humans in furies but if it could be tones down or controlled maybe it could make stronger fighters...
and then it kind of ends without any resolution.... which made me think that maybe it has a season 2 lines up.... but the end of the episode said "the end" so yeah... i don't know.
The good:
The art and animation is just so pretty, maybe i'm just a sucker for stories told in the past but it's just so pretty to look at. The music is good.... especially the intro song and the ending... the intro reminds me a bit of something JDK would do so that probably adds to why i like it.
The characters are interesting and all have their own look.
The not so good:
it's all kinda pointless.... i mean... there isn't much of a plot arc... and then when the conflict starts showing up.... it just ends.... i want to know what happens after a certain event... if it does have a second season then i will forgive this point.
The bad:
it tries to make the worst character in the show sympathetic.... no... i'm sorry.... you almost had me till he did that thing at the end and that was it..... i get that he did it so others wouldn't but that doesn't change the fact that the simple action makes his character irredeemable... and yes... i get it... that was the point... i don't care...
Do i reccomend it?
maybe.... if it had a bit more focus on plot then yes i would whole heartily recommend this show but it doesn't.... and it leaves too many loose ends.... still it's over at crunchyroll so you can watch an episode and give it a try.
Sunday, 30 September 2012
Completed: Tari Tari
well i had a huge scare this morning where my comp wasn't workign but now it's all fixed so i decided to finish watchign tari tari.
This show is about a group of highschool students.
One who wants to sing but has terrible stage fright
another who quit the music club and doesn't seem to fit in with her new class.
a third who is the first girls friend and enjoys riding horses
a boy who's in the badmidton club thats being shut down cause he's the only member
and a boy who just tranfered from overseas and is trying to learn the culture and fit in.
This unlikely group of friends eventually join to create the Choir club andsometimes badmidton club.
and thats.... pretty much the plot in a nut shell... we go through each characters problems and by the end they have all become happier people for their experiences.
The good:
The PA works animation is very pretty, overall the show has a very similar look to hanasaku iroha so if you liked the look of that how you'll probably like this one.
This music is pretty good, nothing too memorable but still well done.
The character arcs are not ones you always see... specifically the friend who likes horses.
The not so good:
a few things happen to fast.... the first 2 episodes should have been the entire season in my opinion... like i said before the main character has stage fright but in episode two she has pretty much completely gotten over it.... i just felt there should have been more build up BUT this is only a 12 episode show so i guess i can't be too hard on the rushed pacing.
unfortunately show show is kind of just average... still really cute and i think people should see it to make their own opinion
if you like slice of life or music based shows you probably want to check it out... it's streaming on crunchyroll
This show is about a group of highschool students.
One who wants to sing but has terrible stage fright
another who quit the music club and doesn't seem to fit in with her new class.
a third who is the first girls friend and enjoys riding horses
a boy who's in the badmidton club thats being shut down cause he's the only member
and a boy who just tranfered from overseas and is trying to learn the culture and fit in.
This unlikely group of friends eventually join to create the Choir club andsometimes badmidton club.
and thats.... pretty much the plot in a nut shell... we go through each characters problems and by the end they have all become happier people for their experiences.
The good:
The PA works animation is very pretty, overall the show has a very similar look to hanasaku iroha so if you liked the look of that how you'll probably like this one.
This music is pretty good, nothing too memorable but still well done.
The character arcs are not ones you always see... specifically the friend who likes horses.
The not so good:
a few things happen to fast.... the first 2 episodes should have been the entire season in my opinion... like i said before the main character has stage fright but in episode two she has pretty much completely gotten over it.... i just felt there should have been more build up BUT this is only a 12 episode show so i guess i can't be too hard on the rushed pacing.
unfortunately show show is kind of just average... still really cute and i think people should see it to make their own opinion
if you like slice of life or music based shows you probably want to check it out... it's streaming on crunchyroll
Friday, 28 September 2012
Completed: Shadow Hunters By Linda McNabb
Before i jump into the review i'm going to mention a few things right off the bat.
1) I didn't realize that this is technically book two in a series... i say technically cause it's really stand alone but she states that it's best read after her other book The Dragons apprentice.
2) Because this was on my kindle I only read it while on transit... essentially creating a 2 month gap where i didn't have time to read or i wasn't on the train or the bus...
3) i don't like to do this.... but i was essentially reading two books at once because i own the blinding knife as a real physical hard cover book and it's just too big to carry around... why don't i like reading two things at once? cause one will almost always be better.... and considering the other one was a brent weeks novel.... you know... one of my fav authors.... yeah this one didn't stand a chance.
But is the book good or bad.... hm... this is going to take some explaining.
The premise of the book is really interesting, The world is full of humans and Elves... but the elves are called shadows cause for some reason they don't cast shadows, The main character turns 13 or so and suddenly notices he doesn't have a shadow... thats odd.... and now he has humans known as hunter after him.... oh this can't end well.
af but thats not enough conflict... see theres also a baby dragon that they find.... it's dying mother gives the main characters the request of takign the dragon home.
well they are heading in that direction anyways so no biggie....
They need to go to the elves village known as Shaldow (probably spellign it wrong... sorry i'm not feeling so great right now and i'm too lazy to check.) so they can get the main character (and potentially his younger sister who may or may not be an elf as well) an elf stone which will give him a shadow so he can hide among humans.
I wont lie... i think thats a really cool idea for elves, haven't seen anything quite like it....
too bad the rest of the book just can't live up to the awesome premise....
The good:
Again the way the world works (except for in the second half) is really cool and other then the magic being kind of useless it was still an interesting take.
There is one line at the end of a chapter that made me burst out laughing... so i'd consider that oen line really well done.
The not so good and really annoying (at least to me):
Thanks to roleplaying most of my teen years some things sound different in my head when i read them.
"THIS IS SHOUTING"
"This is talking normally"
'this is whispering'
'this' or /this/ is speaking inside someones head.
I know this isn't true when it comes to reading but that doesn't change the fact that it's how i hear it.
The entire book has dialogue that looks like 'why hello there i'm talking now' so i read ALL the character dialogue as a whisper... not bad persay but irritating.... if only to me...
The bad:
Wow.... this story is Linear....
first they did this.... then that.... then another thing that just so happens to not take them off their path.
Nothing is refferenced back, things happen at whiplash speed.
(i'll use an example of near the end)
Dragon gets sick >Character get kidnapped>main ones try and rescue them but first go other way>do what they need to do then go back after kidnappers> catch up> get caught > main character gets free again> oh lets go check on the dragon> yay shes better > go rescue attempt 2! > get caught again.... dammit
and that's about.... 2 or 3 chapters of plot? maybe 4? it's just all over the place and convenient as all hell.
the other bad thing.... the ending doesn't have a terribly good climax due to lack of conflict and the ending is WAY too happy... granted i hate happy endings so i'm already biased i just didn't feel they earned the ending they got....
The Unforgivable:
I can't remember the main characters names because i don't know how to pronounce them.... except for Trix... i remember the sisters name but not how to spell it... I really HATE when authors give their characters names that just are impossible to pronounce or too confusing to remember.... especially consiering i took a 2 month break from this book... at least the names didn't have apostrophes in them.... i refuse to even read books like that.
Is the book badly written? no... i have a feeling this is probably one of their earlier works so i'm sure her new stuff is better.... and yeah her writing is fine i just greatly dislike her style.... but i can see the ideas are there.
The book was just mediocre.... I enjoyed it well enough but i can already feel parts of it fadingfrom my memory....
oh well... i'll hopefully have enough time to finish blinding knife this weekend (though i work 8 hours tomorrow and then have a event thing on sunday so who knows) and now i need to get another kindle book.... i have a few on there that i haven't finished but Monte cristo is for when i have nothing else and the others aren't holding my attention as much as i want.... maybe aaron pogue has released something recently....
1) I didn't realize that this is technically book two in a series... i say technically cause it's really stand alone but she states that it's best read after her other book The Dragons apprentice.
2) Because this was on my kindle I only read it while on transit... essentially creating a 2 month gap where i didn't have time to read or i wasn't on the train or the bus...
3) i don't like to do this.... but i was essentially reading two books at once because i own the blinding knife as a real physical hard cover book and it's just too big to carry around... why don't i like reading two things at once? cause one will almost always be better.... and considering the other one was a brent weeks novel.... you know... one of my fav authors.... yeah this one didn't stand a chance.
But is the book good or bad.... hm... this is going to take some explaining.
The premise of the book is really interesting, The world is full of humans and Elves... but the elves are called shadows cause for some reason they don't cast shadows, The main character turns 13 or so and suddenly notices he doesn't have a shadow... thats odd.... and now he has humans known as hunter after him.... oh this can't end well.
af but thats not enough conflict... see theres also a baby dragon that they find.... it's dying mother gives the main characters the request of takign the dragon home.
well they are heading in that direction anyways so no biggie....
They need to go to the elves village known as Shaldow (probably spellign it wrong... sorry i'm not feeling so great right now and i'm too lazy to check.) so they can get the main character (and potentially his younger sister who may or may not be an elf as well) an elf stone which will give him a shadow so he can hide among humans.
I wont lie... i think thats a really cool idea for elves, haven't seen anything quite like it....
too bad the rest of the book just can't live up to the awesome premise....
The good:
Again the way the world works (except for in the second half) is really cool and other then the magic being kind of useless it was still an interesting take.
There is one line at the end of a chapter that made me burst out laughing... so i'd consider that oen line really well done.
The not so good and really annoying (at least to me):
Thanks to roleplaying most of my teen years some things sound different in my head when i read them.
"THIS IS SHOUTING"
"This is talking normally"
'this is whispering'
'this' or /this/ is speaking inside someones head.
I know this isn't true when it comes to reading but that doesn't change the fact that it's how i hear it.
The entire book has dialogue that looks like 'why hello there i'm talking now' so i read ALL the character dialogue as a whisper... not bad persay but irritating.... if only to me...
The bad:
Wow.... this story is Linear....
first they did this.... then that.... then another thing that just so happens to not take them off their path.
Nothing is refferenced back, things happen at whiplash speed.
(i'll use an example of near the end)
Dragon gets sick >Character get kidnapped>main ones try and rescue them but first go other way>do what they need to do then go back after kidnappers> catch up> get caught > main character gets free again> oh lets go check on the dragon> yay shes better > go rescue attempt 2! > get caught again.... dammit
and that's about.... 2 or 3 chapters of plot? maybe 4? it's just all over the place and convenient as all hell.
the other bad thing.... the ending doesn't have a terribly good climax due to lack of conflict and the ending is WAY too happy... granted i hate happy endings so i'm already biased i just didn't feel they earned the ending they got....
The Unforgivable:
I can't remember the main characters names because i don't know how to pronounce them.... except for Trix... i remember the sisters name but not how to spell it... I really HATE when authors give their characters names that just are impossible to pronounce or too confusing to remember.... especially consiering i took a 2 month break from this book... at least the names didn't have apostrophes in them.... i refuse to even read books like that.
Is the book badly written? no... i have a feeling this is probably one of their earlier works so i'm sure her new stuff is better.... and yeah her writing is fine i just greatly dislike her style.... but i can see the ideas are there.
The book was just mediocre.... I enjoyed it well enough but i can already feel parts of it fadingfrom my memory....
oh well... i'll hopefully have enough time to finish blinding knife this weekend (though i work 8 hours tomorrow and then have a event thing on sunday so who knows) and now i need to get another kindle book.... i have a few on there that i haven't finished but Monte cristo is for when i have nothing else and the others aren't holding my attention as much as i want.... maybe aaron pogue has released something recently....
Thursday, 27 September 2012
Comlpeted: La storia della Arcana Famiglia
Wow.....
what a pointless show.
This show is about an Island, Regalio, and it's bad of mercenaries.... town guards.... fighters... things.... who all have magic powers thanks to making contract with different tarot card (i'm assuming they only stick to the Major Arcana but more on that later)
but.... thast not what it's about....
NO it's about the Arcana Duello, a tournament where all members of the previously mentioned Magical Mercenaries (gunna call them the Family from this point on) fight to be the next Papa AND to have the chance to have one wish granted AND to get to marry his daughter.
But... thats not really what this is about...
No it's about Felicita and her two childhood friends Nova and Liberta, each of them have their own damage but they work together to be even closer and to help work things out.
But thats not what it's about....
No it's actually about htis shady guy and this odd kid who appears in three episodes... then you find out what the kid is and they are enver mentioned again....
But once again.... not what this show is about...
No in all truth it's about the fact that the Family's papa is dying because too many of the cards don't have host so they are feeding off him (which is odd cause in the last episode theres like... 50 people in the stands and only 26 or so major arcana... i mean if we are counting minor then thats fine... i'd just hate to be the guy contracted with the 9 of swords.....) so the show is about finding someway to help him live and we find out that his daughter can but certain things must happen and despite having such a happy life she can't make thse things happen
BUT THAT STILL ISN'T WHAT THIS SHOW IS ABOUT.
after all of that..... ALL OF THAT the show is actually about taking 13 episodes and going on these crazy semi connected tangents and then at the end returning everything to the status quo like nothing even happened.
I hate when shows do that. if after the story nothing has really changed... no one has truly grown and NOTHING was accomplished.... what is the point.
And i liked this show right up till the last 5 minutes.... so sad.
Ugh... ok.
The good:
Love the character design, the animation, the intro and ending song are really good... visually it's eye candy.
The not so good:
Read above..... this plot is so bad i don't even think my description does it justice.... if this show had a point or a statement then it could have been so much better...
it was so close to being good...
and thats what annoys me i REALLY wanted to like this show... up until the very end it was doing so cool stuff and the magic system was fun cause i enjoy things that have to do with tarot cards.... and then it got lazy....
wasted potential just is so irritating.
But if your interesting watch episode 1-11, it's still pointless and theres no overarching plot but it's better then sitting through that awful last episode that essentially ruined the entire show.
Am i being harsh? yeah probably but i just can't describe how annoying it is to have your time wasted when you thought it was something good.
what a pointless show.
This show is about an Island, Regalio, and it's bad of mercenaries.... town guards.... fighters... things.... who all have magic powers thanks to making contract with different tarot card (i'm assuming they only stick to the Major Arcana but more on that later)
but.... thast not what it's about....
NO it's about the Arcana Duello, a tournament where all members of the previously mentioned Magical Mercenaries (gunna call them the Family from this point on) fight to be the next Papa AND to have the chance to have one wish granted AND to get to marry his daughter.
But... thats not really what this is about...
No it's about Felicita and her two childhood friends Nova and Liberta, each of them have their own damage but they work together to be even closer and to help work things out.
But thats not what it's about....
No it's actually about htis shady guy and this odd kid who appears in three episodes... then you find out what the kid is and they are enver mentioned again....
But once again.... not what this show is about...
No in all truth it's about the fact that the Family's papa is dying because too many of the cards don't have host so they are feeding off him (which is odd cause in the last episode theres like... 50 people in the stands and only 26 or so major arcana... i mean if we are counting minor then thats fine... i'd just hate to be the guy contracted with the 9 of swords.....) so the show is about finding someway to help him live and we find out that his daughter can but certain things must happen and despite having such a happy life she can't make thse things happen
BUT THAT STILL ISN'T WHAT THIS SHOW IS ABOUT.
after all of that..... ALL OF THAT the show is actually about taking 13 episodes and going on these crazy semi connected tangents and then at the end returning everything to the status quo like nothing even happened.
I hate when shows do that. if after the story nothing has really changed... no one has truly grown and NOTHING was accomplished.... what is the point.
And i liked this show right up till the last 5 minutes.... so sad.
Ugh... ok.
The good:
Love the character design, the animation, the intro and ending song are really good... visually it's eye candy.
The not so good:
Read above..... this plot is so bad i don't even think my description does it justice.... if this show had a point or a statement then it could have been so much better...
it was so close to being good...
and thats what annoys me i REALLY wanted to like this show... up until the very end it was doing so cool stuff and the magic system was fun cause i enjoy things that have to do with tarot cards.... and then it got lazy....
wasted potential just is so irritating.
But if your interesting watch episode 1-11, it's still pointless and theres no overarching plot but it's better then sitting through that awful last episode that essentially ruined the entire show.
Am i being harsh? yeah probably but i just can't describe how annoying it is to have your time wasted when you thought it was something good.
Sunday, 23 September 2012
From start to finish -Cave-
super creative title... i know.... *sighs*
um.... yeah i have no idea what brought this on.... just know that i probably wont do anything like it again any time soon... but who knows.
It started off with a really simple 5 min sketch
I wasn't completely happy with it so i decided to turn it intoan experimentation piece.
which turned into....
and yeah the colouring was pretty lazy i was still having fun with it.... so about an hour later it turned into...
i was honestly just goign to do the BG.... then i decided well... i've already spent an hour on it.... why not finish? oh and make it lineless cause you havent doen that in a long time...
yeah i forgot how hard lineless is.... i can do it with traditional meium fairly easily but now always digitally
still i had so much fun with this... trying to have that blue cask over everything was really hard but fun... did i succeed? maybe not but i had a blast and it was good for an experiment.
You an also find it at
Tumblr
DeviantArt
Society 6
Anipan
Redbubble
hm.... now i think my book needs reding...
oh total time? not sure... 3 hours maybe? mayeb more.... i took too many breaks to be able to tell...
um.... yeah i have no idea what brought this on.... just know that i probably wont do anything like it again any time soon... but who knows.
It started off with a really simple 5 min sketch
which turned into....
i was honestly just goign to do the BG.... then i decided well... i've already spent an hour on it.... why not finish? oh and make it lineless cause you havent doen that in a long time...
still i had so much fun with this... trying to have that blue cask over everything was really hard but fun... did i succeed? maybe not but i had a blast and it was good for an experiment.
You an also find it at
Tumblr
DeviantArt
Society 6
Anipan
Redbubble
hm.... now i think my book needs reding...
oh total time? not sure... 3 hours maybe? mayeb more.... i took too many breaks to be able to tell...
Saturday, 22 September 2012
Completed: The Black Prism By Brent Weeks
hey it's a novel review... haven't had time to do one of those in a while
um... this is going to be long so i'll start off like this.
TL;DR - if you like fantasy, interesting characters, really cool magic system and fantasy that isn't written in such a serious manner and has range from extremely funny to incredibly sad..... then you owe it to yourself to give Brent Weeks a try. He currently has two series out
Night Angel Trilogy - Finished
Light bringer series - 2 out of 4 books released.
Go give it a shot...
hm..... OK it's story time....
Despite my love of reading, i'm really really picky with what i read.... after The belgariad it took me a long time to find a series i loved as much.
My parents got me to read Harry potter... it was good but not as good as the belgariad....
My friend tried to get me to read some popular teen fiction despite the fact that i was no longer a teen at this point.... and it was great for a laugh but NOT a good read.
So one day i'm in a local bookstore, a rather large one and there was a table of fantasy novels and one caught my eye... Shadows Edge.
My first thought - Wow thats a really nice cover..... yeah yeah i know don't judge books by their cover but seriously we all do it....
my second thought. - Book 2 of the night angel trilogy? damn wonder where book 1 and possibly 3 are..... oh.... right beside them.... i guess i was just attracted to the red on the cover.
my third thought - 10 bucks each?........... yeah i'll give it a shot and if i don't like it.... i'll give it to someone else.
Wow it was such a breath of fresh air.... one of only a few things that i didn't guess the ending to or any of the plot twists. It made me laugh, it made me cry... hell outright sob.... and the second book specifically has the best Final line that i've ever seen in a book.... I literally let out a little scream that had the people around me making sure i was okay.
I instantly tried to get everyone i knew around me to read it because i wont talk about things with others incase i spoil something... so i make them read it and THEN i can talk....
and YES that's why i write these things.... i write them because when i have no one to talk to about this kind of stuff i go nuts and honestly half the time i just wanna gush about how much i loved something.
Anyways fast forward a year or two and he's announced Book 1 of a new series, he's even posted the first three chapters to be read http://www.orbitbooks.net/blackprism/
I'm flying out for a family members wedding and he's going to be doing a book tour about 2 or 3 hours from where she lived.... however it meant i would have missed the first 2 weeks of my second year of college so i had to pass. anyways I had to fly there and i HATE flying... the doctor even gave me meds to take the edge off and they did nothing.... however reading The way of the shadow helped keep my mind off the fact that we were really really high up... though finishing it in less then 4 hours probably meant i was really nervous... anyways this was the second time i had read it... and it was even better.... so much foreshadowing.. .so much sequel bait so much goodness that i mad missed due to not having the knowledge of the characters that i had after finishing the series. I learned a valuable lessonthats to that.... sometimes it's best to read again just tosee everything you missed.
So black prism comes out.... next day it's done and i love it.... i saw more of the plot twists coming because i now understood how Brent Weeks wrote plot twists.... but it didn't matter they were all still really well done and quite emotional.
And again a really good final line that made me want to read the next book right away............ but it didn't come out for 2 years.... in fact it only just came out over a week ago.
However i knew i couldn't go to the store and buy it due to crazy hours at work so i ordered it online and expected it to take a week which would give me enough time to re-read Black prism... it arrived two days later after i had done a 13 and 12 hour days so yeah.... i had to make a choice.... screw re-reading the first book and jump right into the second.... or torture myself further by re-reading book 1 and writing a huge review before diving into book 2
Well i picked torture... and i'm so glad i did... again i missed a lot of clues and foreshadowing.... and yes with this one i guessed the most major plot twist but still seeing how he hints at it was just so well done....
and now i'm done, thanks to reading before i pass out i managed to get it finished in about 8 hours of reading time.... spread out over a week and a half.
-Story Time End-
OK now onto the review
Black prism is about a young, chubby, clumbsy oaf named Kip who wants to think he's something special but knows he just going to live a meaningless life in a crappy town with his Permanently high mother who seems to hate him.
It's also about Gavin Guile, the most powerful man in the world and the only man who can split light into every colour and use it as magic...
hm i should back track... See the magic in this world is the most interesting magic system i have ever seen.... and not just cause i'm a colour nerd myself.... it's all based on light and colour.... most Drafters can be put into a few categories: monochrome - only able to draft one of the colours; Bichrome - about to draft two colour, almost alwasy colours that touch so blue-green or red-sub red are fairly common but you do get the occasional one who has an odd combo like Superviolet and Yellow or Red and green; Polychrome - very rare then can draft 3 or more colours; the last one is the Prism who can draft all 7, has a role as a religious figure but only tends to live in incriments of 7 years... the lonest lasting till about 21 years in office.
Each colour has a different thickness, property, hardness, use and smell.... it also makes you feel certain emotions (orange gives the feeling of unease while blue brings calmness) which is pure colour theory and i eat it all up.
anyways with that out of the way back to Gavin
SO he is the most powerful man in the world and he just got a troubling letter "you have a son, his name is Kip, i'm Dying and you should ocme meet him"
well thats a hell of a way to start off a book.
There are 3 other characters who I would consider important but one of them i don't dare talk about cause it was more interesting to read, it's in the three chapters i linked above so if your interested give it a shot.... the other two are interesting but not as interesting as the main three.
The good:
Well obviously i ADORE the colour magic system... maybe it's because i'm an artist and i did a series based on colour theory and how it makes people feel or maybe it's because it's a really cool system....
I love the characters... like i mentioned Kip isn't your typical main character but dammit you just love him.
the story has just the perfect amount of twists and turns before it starts getting convoluted... it knows just which feelings to tug on and which to rip out of your chest and then show you before they get stomped on. and it's a really good length.... around 600 pages.
The not so good:
Nothing can be perfect but there is one chapter.... where i felt half of it was completely unnecessary and had nothing to do with the plot UNLESS something happens in book two and then maybe i'll forgive it.... but seriously.... yes we know what happens and we don't need you to describe it in such nasty detail... maybe i just hate when authors write about that particular subject but i have seen it done well... go watch Berserk.
The bad?:
Nothing is really bad BUT it is written in a way that people who like their fantasy to be super serious may not like... i personally love it though cause it's just fun... so this is more of a warning... again read the first three chapters and you'll see what i mean when i say he has a unique style...
Do i recommend it?
I Think i've been pretty clear on that fact... it's one of my favorite books and he is one of my favorite authors so yeah.... go read it.... and go read night angel Trilogy cause it's brilliant as well...
also when you read it... read the acknowledgements.... i did when i first picked up Way of the shadow and yeah it made me burst out laughing.
well i did warn you that this would be long. alright i can finally go read blinding knife! i'm so excited i could--- whats was that.... i need to do some work at home so people don't yell at me for not havign any money? but..... but....... lightbringer 2 *sobs*
ok extra work first THEN blinding knife *nods*
um... this is going to be long so i'll start off like this.
TL;DR - if you like fantasy, interesting characters, really cool magic system and fantasy that isn't written in such a serious manner and has range from extremely funny to incredibly sad..... then you owe it to yourself to give Brent Weeks a try. He currently has two series out
Night Angel Trilogy - Finished
Light bringer series - 2 out of 4 books released.
Go give it a shot...
hm..... OK it's story time....
Despite my love of reading, i'm really really picky with what i read.... after The belgariad it took me a long time to find a series i loved as much.
My parents got me to read Harry potter... it was good but not as good as the belgariad....
My friend tried to get me to read some popular teen fiction despite the fact that i was no longer a teen at this point.... and it was great for a laugh but NOT a good read.
So one day i'm in a local bookstore, a rather large one and there was a table of fantasy novels and one caught my eye... Shadows Edge.
My first thought - Wow thats a really nice cover..... yeah yeah i know don't judge books by their cover but seriously we all do it....
my second thought. - Book 2 of the night angel trilogy? damn wonder where book 1 and possibly 3 are..... oh.... right beside them.... i guess i was just attracted to the red on the cover.
my third thought - 10 bucks each?........... yeah i'll give it a shot and if i don't like it.... i'll give it to someone else.
Wow it was such a breath of fresh air.... one of only a few things that i didn't guess the ending to or any of the plot twists. It made me laugh, it made me cry... hell outright sob.... and the second book specifically has the best Final line that i've ever seen in a book.... I literally let out a little scream that had the people around me making sure i was okay.
I instantly tried to get everyone i knew around me to read it because i wont talk about things with others incase i spoil something... so i make them read it and THEN i can talk....
and YES that's why i write these things.... i write them because when i have no one to talk to about this kind of stuff i go nuts and honestly half the time i just wanna gush about how much i loved something.
Anyways fast forward a year or two and he's announced Book 1 of a new series, he's even posted the first three chapters to be read http://www.orbitbooks.net/blackprism/
I'm flying out for a family members wedding and he's going to be doing a book tour about 2 or 3 hours from where she lived.... however it meant i would have missed the first 2 weeks of my second year of college so i had to pass. anyways I had to fly there and i HATE flying... the doctor even gave me meds to take the edge off and they did nothing.... however reading The way of the shadow helped keep my mind off the fact that we were really really high up... though finishing it in less then 4 hours probably meant i was really nervous... anyways this was the second time i had read it... and it was even better.... so much foreshadowing.. .so much sequel bait so much goodness that i mad missed due to not having the knowledge of the characters that i had after finishing the series. I learned a valuable lessonthats to that.... sometimes it's best to read again just tosee everything you missed.
So black prism comes out.... next day it's done and i love it.... i saw more of the plot twists coming because i now understood how Brent Weeks wrote plot twists.... but it didn't matter they were all still really well done and quite emotional.
And again a really good final line that made me want to read the next book right away............ but it didn't come out for 2 years.... in fact it only just came out over a week ago.
However i knew i couldn't go to the store and buy it due to crazy hours at work so i ordered it online and expected it to take a week which would give me enough time to re-read Black prism... it arrived two days later after i had done a 13 and 12 hour days so yeah.... i had to make a choice.... screw re-reading the first book and jump right into the second.... or torture myself further by re-reading book 1 and writing a huge review before diving into book 2
Well i picked torture... and i'm so glad i did... again i missed a lot of clues and foreshadowing.... and yes with this one i guessed the most major plot twist but still seeing how he hints at it was just so well done....
and now i'm done, thanks to reading before i pass out i managed to get it finished in about 8 hours of reading time.... spread out over a week and a half.
-Story Time End-
OK now onto the review
Black prism is about a young, chubby, clumbsy oaf named Kip who wants to think he's something special but knows he just going to live a meaningless life in a crappy town with his Permanently high mother who seems to hate him.
It's also about Gavin Guile, the most powerful man in the world and the only man who can split light into every colour and use it as magic...
hm i should back track... See the magic in this world is the most interesting magic system i have ever seen.... and not just cause i'm a colour nerd myself.... it's all based on light and colour.... most Drafters can be put into a few categories: monochrome - only able to draft one of the colours; Bichrome - about to draft two colour, almost alwasy colours that touch so blue-green or red-sub red are fairly common but you do get the occasional one who has an odd combo like Superviolet and Yellow or Red and green; Polychrome - very rare then can draft 3 or more colours; the last one is the Prism who can draft all 7, has a role as a religious figure but only tends to live in incriments of 7 years... the lonest lasting till about 21 years in office.
Each colour has a different thickness, property, hardness, use and smell.... it also makes you feel certain emotions (orange gives the feeling of unease while blue brings calmness) which is pure colour theory and i eat it all up.
anyways with that out of the way back to Gavin
SO he is the most powerful man in the world and he just got a troubling letter "you have a son, his name is Kip, i'm Dying and you should ocme meet him"
well thats a hell of a way to start off a book.
There are 3 other characters who I would consider important but one of them i don't dare talk about cause it was more interesting to read, it's in the three chapters i linked above so if your interested give it a shot.... the other two are interesting but not as interesting as the main three.
The good:
Well obviously i ADORE the colour magic system... maybe it's because i'm an artist and i did a series based on colour theory and how it makes people feel or maybe it's because it's a really cool system....
I love the characters... like i mentioned Kip isn't your typical main character but dammit you just love him.
the story has just the perfect amount of twists and turns before it starts getting convoluted... it knows just which feelings to tug on and which to rip out of your chest and then show you before they get stomped on. and it's a really good length.... around 600 pages.
The not so good:
Nothing can be perfect but there is one chapter.... where i felt half of it was completely unnecessary and had nothing to do with the plot UNLESS something happens in book two and then maybe i'll forgive it.... but seriously.... yes we know what happens and we don't need you to describe it in such nasty detail... maybe i just hate when authors write about that particular subject but i have seen it done well... go watch Berserk.
The bad?:
Nothing is really bad BUT it is written in a way that people who like their fantasy to be super serious may not like... i personally love it though cause it's just fun... so this is more of a warning... again read the first three chapters and you'll see what i mean when i say he has a unique style...
Do i recommend it?
I Think i've been pretty clear on that fact... it's one of my favorite books and he is one of my favorite authors so yeah.... go read it.... and go read night angel Trilogy cause it's brilliant as well...
also when you read it... read the acknowledgements.... i did when i first picked up Way of the shadow and yeah it made me burst out laughing.
well i did warn you that this would be long. alright i can finally go read blinding knife! i'm so excited i could--- whats was that.... i need to do some work at home so people don't yell at me for not havign any money? but..... but....... lightbringer 2 *sobs*
ok extra work first THEN blinding knife *nods*
Thursday, 20 September 2012
hey it's another list thing~
So this list deals with 'Original Anime' apparently... i'll talk about the shows i've seen~
list can be found http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2012/09/19-1/japanese-fans-pick-their-favorite-original-anime
1. Puella Magi Madoka Magica
I completely understand why this is number 1, this show took my by complete Surprise... i almost gave up after episode two cause it was so happy and fluffy and i was just tired of the same old shoujo crap.... then episode three and yeah.... the rest is history
2. Angel Beats!
hm.... it's okay i guess.... i didn't dislike it but number two? hm...
3. Code Geass
again it was a good show even if it's just death note with mechs and amazing music.... but still this is really high on the list.... still i guess it is/was really popular
4. AnoHana
Yeah I relly enjoyed the show, possibly cause it hit a little too close to home for comfort or maybe i just liked it cause it was a really well told story
5. Tari Tari
Ugh.... i've almost finished this show (like one or 2 eps left?) and i still don't know what i think.... mroe on that when i finish it.
6. Summer Wars
Everyone talks about two things when they talk about this
1. it's amazing
2. it's done by the same guy who did the digimon movies and is pretty much the same plot.
i haven't seen it but what i have seen looks really interesting and i love the art style
7. Hanasaku Iroha
This should be higher then Tari Tari.... and yes i only compair the two because they were done by the same animation house but seriously this show was WAY more enjoyable then Tari Tari... again more when i actually finish Tari Tari
8. Dog Days
I saw one ep of this show and hated it.... from the stupid character names to the fact that everyone had animal ears.... just not my cup of tea.... i barely tolerated it in utawarerumono (i know i probably spelt that wrong but can you blame me?) so why would i deal with it here.
9. Spirited Away
Not my fav Miyazaki movie but i see why it's on this list.... it does have a really nice score
10. Castle in the Sky
I'm 99% sure i saw this and liked it but other then the hair being shot off i do not remember.... and i wouldn't have been that young so yeah... no idea...
11. Tsuritama
I really need to finish this show.... i just kinda lost interest....
12. My Neighbour Totoro
never saw it but i hear it's good... if not kinda pointless overall
13. Princess Mononoke
Yeah.... this is my fav miyazaki film..... if only for the music.... but either way is should be higher then all the others in my opinion
14. Gurren Lagann
I loved the first 13 eps of this show.... hated the second half... but yeah.... i see why it's here as it's very original
15. Mawaru Penguindrum
Everyone talks about how good/sad this show is... i haven't seen it... maybe now that it's licensed i will...
16. Dennou Coil
Never heard of it but it looks interesting
17. s-CRY-ed
I rented the first disk of this from Blockbuster back when they were in buisness and all i remember is the intro song.... i did get the manga but yeah... it wasn't very good...
18. Senki Zesshou Symphogear
never heard of it *check it on MAL* a big breasted mech girl show..... yeah i wont be checkign this out anytime soon.... oh is that a little harsh? sorry but i'm not a fan of fan service shows.
19. Ano Natsu de Matteru
and of course after i say that this is a show with a bit of fanservice.... argh... i enjoyed this show... apparently it has a lot of connections to please teacher and please twins but i have only seen one ep of the former so.... yeah.... still the show wasn't bad.
20. Sola
I saw this so long ago... it's the one about the vampite with the clouds on the inside of the umbrella right? well i don't think i disliked it.... but again can't really remember much.
21. Ashita no Nadja
Never heard of it but it looks adorable
22. (tie) true tears
I remember i was going to watch this show but then the licensing company (i wanna say it was bandai but i don't remember) was going to release it in a way that was liek 1 or 2 episodes a volume but at full price.... yeah even back then i didn't like watching things illegally so i avoided this show
22. (tie) Revolutionary Girl Utena
I hear everyone talk about how good this is.... i could really care less.... i just can't get past the fact that i don't like the art.
24. Natsuiro Kiseki
Never heard of it but it looks kinda cute
25. The Wolf Children Ame and Yuki |
I have heard of this but i haven't seen it.... i do want to.
26. (tie) Sound of the Sky
never heard of it.... and an army show? hm.... probably wont see this any time soon
26. (tie) Noein
I've seen one or two episodes of this and despite not haveing a clue whats going on i enjoyed it.... just don't care if i ever see it again.
28. 5 Centimeters Per Second
Considering i own this i should really find a few spare minutes to watch it.... i've seen all his other stuff after all.
29. Motto! Ojamajo Doremi:
I don't get this show.... too kiddy for me i guess?
30. Jewelpet Twinkle
oh my god... my eyes... they are burning out of my skull from the cuteness.... get it away!
31. Hell Girl
I hear it's good but i haven';t seen it... it is on my list
32. Mashin Hero Wataru
wow this is old... i don't think i've seen it....
33. Kamichu!
i've heard of it but i'm in no rush to see it.
34. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (requires a pretty qualified concept of "original")
I really enjoyed this movie.... it was really really good.
35. (tie) Occult Academy
Seen 1 ep of this show... couldn't stand it... hated the art hated it's use of the music and just what little bits of plot i got.... ugh.... i may try and give it two more episodes but not likely....
35. (tie) Eden of the East
Every time i see this the style reminds me of hunny and clover so i want to see it.
37. Jinzo Konchu Kabuto Borg VxV (troll response)
troll responce cause it doesn't exist? still pretty high on the list for a fake show.
38. Fushigiboshi no Futagohime
looks a bit too cutesy for me....
39. Night Raid 1931
I want to watch this just haven't made the time.
40. Uta Kata
Again i've heard of it but no interest to see it...
41. Wish Upon the Pleiades
A collab between gainax and subaru......
...
..
.
no.... i'm stayign away from that
42. A Little Snow Fairy Sugar
Show always looked too cute for me.
43. Jewelpet Sunshine
More jewelpet?
44. (tie) Science Fiction Saiyuki Starzinger (another pretty qualified "original")
Mech AND in space.... count me out
44. (tie) Lagrange: The Flower of Rin-ne
i think i saw a bit of this... just didn't hold my interest...
46. Princess Tutu
....
...
..
.
Ok..... um.... why isn't this number one?
hm.... why isn't this in the top ten?
i'm fully serious... yes i haven't seen half the titles there but still this is probably a contender for my all time favorite show....
and what could be more original then a duck turning into a girl named duck who turns into princess tutu who goes arund gathering heart shards for the prince in the story for whom she can never tell that she loves....
yeah..... nothing...
47. Kowarekake no Orgel
*sniffle* this one was so cute! i really liked it.... but i thought it was based off a manga.... maybe it came after?
48. Tamayura
Never heard of it.... but it loks good
49. Zettai Muteki Raijin-Oh
old mech shows.... wow styles have changed
50. Animal Detective Kiruminzoo
oh god my eyes are bleeding again....
so yeah lots of stuff i haven't seen... let alone heard of....
but seriosuly tutu at 46? thats just.... wrong...
list can be found http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2012/09/19-1/japanese-fans-pick-their-favorite-original-anime
1. Puella Magi Madoka Magica
I completely understand why this is number 1, this show took my by complete Surprise... i almost gave up after episode two cause it was so happy and fluffy and i was just tired of the same old shoujo crap.... then episode three and yeah.... the rest is history
2. Angel Beats!
hm.... it's okay i guess.... i didn't dislike it but number two? hm...
3. Code Geass
again it was a good show even if it's just death note with mechs and amazing music.... but still this is really high on the list.... still i guess it is/was really popular
4. AnoHana
Yeah I relly enjoyed the show, possibly cause it hit a little too close to home for comfort or maybe i just liked it cause it was a really well told story
5. Tari Tari
Ugh.... i've almost finished this show (like one or 2 eps left?) and i still don't know what i think.... mroe on that when i finish it.
6. Summer Wars
Everyone talks about two things when they talk about this
1. it's amazing
2. it's done by the same guy who did the digimon movies and is pretty much the same plot.
i haven't seen it but what i have seen looks really interesting and i love the art style
7. Hanasaku Iroha
This should be higher then Tari Tari.... and yes i only compair the two because they were done by the same animation house but seriously this show was WAY more enjoyable then Tari Tari... again more when i actually finish Tari Tari
8. Dog Days
I saw one ep of this show and hated it.... from the stupid character names to the fact that everyone had animal ears.... just not my cup of tea.... i barely tolerated it in utawarerumono (i know i probably spelt that wrong but can you blame me?) so why would i deal with it here.
9. Spirited Away
Not my fav Miyazaki movie but i see why it's on this list.... it does have a really nice score
10. Castle in the Sky
I'm 99% sure i saw this and liked it but other then the hair being shot off i do not remember.... and i wouldn't have been that young so yeah... no idea...
11. Tsuritama
I really need to finish this show.... i just kinda lost interest....
12. My Neighbour Totoro
never saw it but i hear it's good... if not kinda pointless overall
13. Princess Mononoke
Yeah.... this is my fav miyazaki film..... if only for the music.... but either way is should be higher then all the others in my opinion
14. Gurren Lagann
I loved the first 13 eps of this show.... hated the second half... but yeah.... i see why it's here as it's very original
15. Mawaru Penguindrum
Everyone talks about how good/sad this show is... i haven't seen it... maybe now that it's licensed i will...
16. Dennou Coil
Never heard of it but it looks interesting
17. s-CRY-ed
I rented the first disk of this from Blockbuster back when they were in buisness and all i remember is the intro song.... i did get the manga but yeah... it wasn't very good...
18. Senki Zesshou Symphogear
never heard of it *check it on MAL* a big breasted mech girl show..... yeah i wont be checkign this out anytime soon.... oh is that a little harsh? sorry but i'm not a fan of fan service shows.
19. Ano Natsu de Matteru
and of course after i say that this is a show with a bit of fanservice.... argh... i enjoyed this show... apparently it has a lot of connections to please teacher and please twins but i have only seen one ep of the former so.... yeah.... still the show wasn't bad.
20. Sola
I saw this so long ago... it's the one about the vampite with the clouds on the inside of the umbrella right? well i don't think i disliked it.... but again can't really remember much.
21. Ashita no Nadja
Never heard of it but it looks adorable
22. (tie) true tears
I remember i was going to watch this show but then the licensing company (i wanna say it was bandai but i don't remember) was going to release it in a way that was liek 1 or 2 episodes a volume but at full price.... yeah even back then i didn't like watching things illegally so i avoided this show
22. (tie) Revolutionary Girl Utena
I hear everyone talk about how good this is.... i could really care less.... i just can't get past the fact that i don't like the art.
24. Natsuiro Kiseki
Never heard of it but it looks kinda cute
25. The Wolf Children Ame and Yuki |
I have heard of this but i haven't seen it.... i do want to.
26. (tie) Sound of the Sky
never heard of it.... and an army show? hm.... probably wont see this any time soon
26. (tie) Noein
I've seen one or two episodes of this and despite not haveing a clue whats going on i enjoyed it.... just don't care if i ever see it again.
28. 5 Centimeters Per Second
Considering i own this i should really find a few spare minutes to watch it.... i've seen all his other stuff after all.
29. Motto! Ojamajo Doremi:
I don't get this show.... too kiddy for me i guess?
30. Jewelpet Twinkle
oh my god... my eyes... they are burning out of my skull from the cuteness.... get it away!
31. Hell Girl
I hear it's good but i haven';t seen it... it is on my list
32. Mashin Hero Wataru
wow this is old... i don't think i've seen it....
33. Kamichu!
i've heard of it but i'm in no rush to see it.
34. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (requires a pretty qualified concept of "original")
I really enjoyed this movie.... it was really really good.
35. (tie) Occult Academy
Seen 1 ep of this show... couldn't stand it... hated the art hated it's use of the music and just what little bits of plot i got.... ugh.... i may try and give it two more episodes but not likely....
35. (tie) Eden of the East
Every time i see this the style reminds me of hunny and clover so i want to see it.
37. Jinzo Konchu Kabuto Borg VxV (troll response)
troll responce cause it doesn't exist? still pretty high on the list for a fake show.
38. Fushigiboshi no Futagohime
looks a bit too cutesy for me....
39. Night Raid 1931
I want to watch this just haven't made the time.
40. Uta Kata
Again i've heard of it but no interest to see it...
41. Wish Upon the Pleiades
A collab between gainax and subaru......
...
..
.
no.... i'm stayign away from that
42. A Little Snow Fairy Sugar
Show always looked too cute for me.
43. Jewelpet Sunshine
More jewelpet?
44. (tie) Science Fiction Saiyuki Starzinger (another pretty qualified "original")
Mech AND in space.... count me out
44. (tie) Lagrange: The Flower of Rin-ne
i think i saw a bit of this... just didn't hold my interest...
46. Princess Tutu
....
...
..
.
Ok..... um.... why isn't this number one?
hm.... why isn't this in the top ten?
i'm fully serious... yes i haven't seen half the titles there but still this is probably a contender for my all time favorite show....
and what could be more original then a duck turning into a girl named duck who turns into princess tutu who goes arund gathering heart shards for the prince in the story for whom she can never tell that she loves....
yeah..... nothing...
47. Kowarekake no Orgel
*sniffle* this one was so cute! i really liked it.... but i thought it was based off a manga.... maybe it came after?
48. Tamayura
Never heard of it.... but it loks good
49. Zettai Muteki Raijin-Oh
old mech shows.... wow styles have changed
50. Animal Detective Kiruminzoo
oh god my eyes are bleeding again....
so yeah lots of stuff i haven't seen... let alone heard of....
but seriosuly tutu at 46? thats just.... wrong...
Wednesday, 19 September 2012
Completed?: Humanity has declined
I think.... this was just the end of season one.... maybe...
So humanity has declined.... it's about...
um...
uh...
well there's a girl and her name is....
it's.... um.... Does she even have a name?
anyways she works for her grandfather who's name is.... uh....
so they study fairies because thats the next step in evolution.... humanity has declined after all.... and
um.... uh.....
stuff happens? I think... maybe
What the hell did i just watch?
ok in all seriousness the basic plot seems to be that humans continued to be selfish jerks who used everything till there was nothing left.... and now they are dying out. Fairies are popping up occasionally and the main character acts as mediator between humans and fairies....
whatever that means.
odd thing is... i have no idea why i kept watching.... maybe cause it had some crazy ideas...
The good:
Um... had some pretty crazy and fun ideas i guess.... and uh the art style was kinda interesting... especially how they drew light.
i guess the fairies, their design and how morbid they are was pretty good.... best way to describe them is permanent : D faces no matter what emotion they feel... it's kinda jarring but well done.
I was able to tell that the ending song was the same ground that did raspberry heaven from Azumanga diaoh.... i'm always kinda happy when i make those connections.
The not so good:
I litterally have not got a clue what i just watched.
No one has a name.... nick names yes but names? no....
it's either I (main character) or Grandfather or assistant or Human..... no names.
it made my brain explode a little at the end of episode one.... all i'll say is pastry should do that.
The bad.... but also kinda the point:
Things are brought up... never mentioned again.... her hair is an example....
I watched all 12 episodes.... at 24 mins (approx) each that means i wasted around 4 hours of my time (granted i watched most of it while working so it was just background noise but still) it's pretty much saying that i am the reason humanity is declining....
or maybe this show has blown up my head again and i'm looking to much into this.
Do I recommend it?
um... i don't know... if you like anime that makes no sense and is surprisingly dark despite it's pastel colours.... then yeah go for it... if you like plot or purpose in your story.... maybe it's not the thing for you.... but who knows!
I sure as hell don't....
Did i like it?
yeah i think i did.... i'm at least not mad at it.... just very very very confused.
So humanity has declined.... it's about...
um...
uh...
well there's a girl and her name is....
it's.... um.... Does she even have a name?
anyways she works for her grandfather who's name is.... uh....
so they study fairies because thats the next step in evolution.... humanity has declined after all.... and
um.... uh.....
stuff happens? I think... maybe
What the hell did i just watch?
ok in all seriousness the basic plot seems to be that humans continued to be selfish jerks who used everything till there was nothing left.... and now they are dying out. Fairies are popping up occasionally and the main character acts as mediator between humans and fairies....
whatever that means.
odd thing is... i have no idea why i kept watching.... maybe cause it had some crazy ideas...
The good:
Um... had some pretty crazy and fun ideas i guess.... and uh the art style was kinda interesting... especially how they drew light.
i guess the fairies, their design and how morbid they are was pretty good.... best way to describe them is permanent : D faces no matter what emotion they feel... it's kinda jarring but well done.
I was able to tell that the ending song was the same ground that did raspberry heaven from Azumanga diaoh.... i'm always kinda happy when i make those connections.
The not so good:
I litterally have not got a clue what i just watched.
No one has a name.... nick names yes but names? no....
it's either I (main character) or Grandfather or assistant or Human..... no names.
it made my brain explode a little at the end of episode one.... all i'll say is pastry should do that.
The bad.... but also kinda the point:
Things are brought up... never mentioned again.... her hair is an example....
I watched all 12 episodes.... at 24 mins (approx) each that means i wasted around 4 hours of my time (granted i watched most of it while working so it was just background noise but still) it's pretty much saying that i am the reason humanity is declining....
or maybe this show has blown up my head again and i'm looking to much into this.
Do I recommend it?
um... i don't know... if you like anime that makes no sense and is surprisingly dark despite it's pastel colours.... then yeah go for it... if you like plot or purpose in your story.... maybe it's not the thing for you.... but who knows!
I sure as hell don't....
Did i like it?
yeah i think i did.... i'm at least not mad at it.... just very very very confused.
Tuesday, 18 September 2012
mondays suck
i had to work 13 hours AND i didn't get to finish my book?
worst day ever *sobs*
that being said it was a crazy weekend so i'll probably finally have enough time to read the rest of book 1 tonight (in three days only 4-5 hours of reading? thats just not good enough) and then i'll start book 2..... and have one hell of a time putting it down : ( it's okay.... i don't need sleep.... sleep is for the tired...
oh and pre warning... book 1 is probably going to have a really long review with lots of side stories and what not.
alright back to work.
worst day ever *sobs*
that being said it was a crazy weekend so i'll probably finally have enough time to read the rest of book 1 tonight (in three days only 4-5 hours of reading? thats just not good enough) and then i'll start book 2..... and have one hell of a time putting it down : ( it's okay.... i don't need sleep.... sleep is for the tired...
oh and pre warning... book 1 is probably going to have a really long review with lots of side stories and what not.
alright back to work.
Thursday, 13 September 2012
Completed: Natsuyuki Rendezvous
Or at least i think i have, crunchyroll says there's an episode 12... but MAL sais 11 and honestly the story is over... so yeah i'm pretty sure it's done... however if somehow i'm wrong then i'll make an adjustment to this next week.
Alright....
The plot is simple enough, A man walks by a flower show and fall in love with the young shop keeper almost instant, she's cute and small and he soon finds himself buing something from the shop every day just to catch a glimpse of her. One day she posts a want ad on her store front and next thing he knows he's working there part time.
However one day he heads up to her apartment, which is above the store, to help her out with going away party decorations.... after opening a door he sees a pale, pretty but very naked man standing in the doorway, he is asked. "do you love the manager?" but due to the shock of being greeted by a naked man the main guy leaves in a hissy fit.
Little does he realize the man is a ghost, the managers dead husband to be precise... despite being dead he still hangs around watching the manager.
The main point of the story is dealing with is it more painful to be the one who dies, or the one left behind. If a new opportunity presents itself... do you take it or does the guilt stop you?
This show is so close to being damn near perfect.... more on that later.
The good:
The art is so pretty, i just love the overall style of the show.... yeah some characters ahve larger eyes but they still feel quite real considering it's a slice of life show.
The music is good, i especially like the ending song... considering most episodes end up with me in tears tht song fits the mood perfectly.
The relationship between Rokka (the manager) and her dead husband is so well done and really really heartbreaking. It doesn't feel like it's trying to force you to cry, it's just a really happy and sweet story with an extremely tragic element.
The not so good:
Pacing is odd... i dunno i feel like a certain plot point should have happened way sooner then it did.
The bad:
Hazuki, theman Stalker who went to the flower shop every day despite being poor just to talk to her. Seriously EVERYTHING he does would trigger alarm bells. ESPECIALLY the end... in fact the way it's drawn i think he actually starts creeping out another character.... as he should.... cause he's creepy
This show would be so much better if either he had no part in it OR he wasn't portrayed as an obsessed stalker. and his relationship is supposed to be seen as cute and trying to help Rokka move on? NO!! when someone forces them self on you that is NOT something to be glorified. Yes Rokka did need to move on from the past a bit but not with someone who has such dramatic mood swings and spent most of his time stalking her and the rest of his time forcing his love on her...
why couldn't this story have been focused on Rokka and her dead husband before he died.... and yes a lot is told in flashback but i just felt like it ALL should have been told in flashback.
so yeah i really dislike the main guy and thanks to that the entire show isn't as good as it could be... and that's kind of upsetting.
but who knows.... maybe i read too much into the fact that his every though seems to be of Rokka and he gets really upset when she talks about her husband.... maybe he's not obsessed..... but you know.... i kind of doubt i'm the only one who feels like this....
Anyways should you watch it?
Only if you enjoy slice of life and you don't mind the fact that it may make you shed a tear. It's streaming for free on crunchyroll.
okay now should i get back to playign nayuta..... or re-readign black prism...
wait..... black prism came out 2 years ago...
i've only been writing these for a year.....
...
..
.
guess i gotta read the black prism again before blinding knife arrives on my doorstep.
Alright....
The plot is simple enough, A man walks by a flower show and fall in love with the young shop keeper almost instant, she's cute and small and he soon finds himself buing something from the shop every day just to catch a glimpse of her. One day she posts a want ad on her store front and next thing he knows he's working there part time.
However one day he heads up to her apartment, which is above the store, to help her out with going away party decorations.... after opening a door he sees a pale, pretty but very naked man standing in the doorway, he is asked. "do you love the manager?" but due to the shock of being greeted by a naked man the main guy leaves in a hissy fit.
Little does he realize the man is a ghost, the managers dead husband to be precise... despite being dead he still hangs around watching the manager.
The main point of the story is dealing with is it more painful to be the one who dies, or the one left behind. If a new opportunity presents itself... do you take it or does the guilt stop you?
This show is so close to being damn near perfect.... more on that later.
The good:
The art is so pretty, i just love the overall style of the show.... yeah some characters ahve larger eyes but they still feel quite real considering it's a slice of life show.
The music is good, i especially like the ending song... considering most episodes end up with me in tears tht song fits the mood perfectly.
The relationship between Rokka (the manager) and her dead husband is so well done and really really heartbreaking. It doesn't feel like it's trying to force you to cry, it's just a really happy and sweet story with an extremely tragic element.
The not so good:
Pacing is odd... i dunno i feel like a certain plot point should have happened way sooner then it did.
The bad:
Hazuki, the
This show would be so much better if either he had no part in it OR he wasn't portrayed as an obsessed stalker. and his relationship is supposed to be seen as cute and trying to help Rokka move on? NO!! when someone forces them self on you that is NOT something to be glorified. Yes Rokka did need to move on from the past a bit but not with someone who has such dramatic mood swings and spent most of his time stalking her and the rest of his time forcing his love on her...
why couldn't this story have been focused on Rokka and her dead husband before he died.... and yes a lot is told in flashback but i just felt like it ALL should have been told in flashback.
so yeah i really dislike the main guy and thanks to that the entire show isn't as good as it could be... and that's kind of upsetting.
but who knows.... maybe i read too much into the fact that his every though seems to be of Rokka and he gets really upset when she talks about her husband.... maybe he's not obsessed..... but you know.... i kind of doubt i'm the only one who feels like this....
Anyways should you watch it?
Only if you enjoy slice of life and you don't mind the fact that it may make you shed a tear. It's streaming for free on crunchyroll.
okay now should i get back to playign nayuta..... or re-readign black prism...
wait..... black prism came out 2 years ago...
i've only been writing these for a year.....
...
..
.
guess i gotta read the black prism again before blinding knife arrives on my doorstep.
Monday, 10 September 2012
First Impression: Nayuta no Kiseki
so.... as i have mentioned before.... i can be a bit of a fangirl when it comes to falcom games.
however other then Vantage master (which is still in it's wrapping) and Ys vs Sora no Kiseki: alternative saga i kind of refused to import Falcom.....
My friend imports lots of games.... and recently he made me really jealous by importing Nayuta no Kiseki, one of the newest Non-Ys Falcom games.
Now in my reviews i've mentioned that Ys doesn't really need a story.... it's there, it's good but the game is still fun without it.
The legend of heroes games (and this which is a spin off but not a legend of heroes game... cause it's not turn based.... apaprently) are a different thing.... they are HEAVILY based in story.
So i pop the game in... have to update psp... of course.... i barely play the thing so almost every single time i have to update when i get a new game. Anyways start the game, no opening movie...thast fine... bump up the music and voice level.. .cause falcom has amazing music and the voice acting will be the only way i can get the gist of the story.
voice actign right off the bat~ yay
after fist bit..... no voice acting..... dammit....
so now i'm trying to read this stuff outload cause i need to hear it to understand it...
but there is so much kanji which i can't even guess at.
so yeah that is my base first impression..... i'm barely going to have an idea of what the plot is uless theres more voice acting... which i have been told there isn't too much.
WHY did i let him talk me into borrowing a game i can't read?!
what... combat? not there yet.... and i gotta pass out... long day at work (13 hours or so) was long~
unless i'm reading blinding knife i'll probably get to combat tomorrow
however other then Vantage master (which is still in it's wrapping) and Ys vs Sora no Kiseki: alternative saga i kind of refused to import Falcom.....
My friend imports lots of games.... and recently he made me really jealous by importing Nayuta no Kiseki, one of the newest Non-Ys Falcom games.
Now in my reviews i've mentioned that Ys doesn't really need a story.... it's there, it's good but the game is still fun without it.
The legend of heroes games (and this which is a spin off but not a legend of heroes game... cause it's not turn based.... apaprently) are a different thing.... they are HEAVILY based in story.
So i pop the game in... have to update psp... of course.... i barely play the thing so almost every single time i have to update when i get a new game. Anyways start the game, no opening movie...thast fine... bump up the music and voice level.. .cause falcom has amazing music and the voice acting will be the only way i can get the gist of the story.
voice actign right off the bat~ yay
after fist bit..... no voice acting..... dammit....
so now i'm trying to read this stuff outload cause i need to hear it to understand it...
but there is so much kanji which i can't even guess at.
so yeah that is my base first impression..... i'm barely going to have an idea of what the plot is uless theres more voice acting... which i have been told there isn't too much.
WHY did i let him talk me into borrowing a game i can't read?!
what... combat? not there yet.... and i gotta pass out... long day at work (13 hours or so) was long~
unless i'm reading blinding knife i'll probably get to combat tomorrow
Saturday, 8 September 2012
So japan voted on a list of shows Otaku's need to see
Pushing aside the fact that i really hate being called an Otaku (TL;DR otaku to me means someone who is so obsessed with something it effects their day to day life, it is not something to be praised... I like games, anime, manga, tabletop rpgs, fantasy novels, cinema and figures.... and simple because anime is in that list i get labeled an otaku or even worse a Weaboo? why can't i just be called a fan? why is that so hard?)
The list is posted over at crunchyroll , go check it out and see how many titles you have seen from that list and wether or not you liked them....
cause thast what i'm going to do on this blog post.... a lot of shows at the top of this list are things i wont see again so i wont be doing completed reviews on them.... so i'm using this as a chance to do small ones..... though considering how long the list is and my ability to ramble.... i doubt this will be short.
Also this is all my personal opinion, if i like a show you hate or hate a show you like i'm not saying your opinion is wrong... this is just my take on it.
1. K-on!
... okay so i'll be honest.... I didn't initially read the list past number one.... I HATE k-on! The fact that it is number one on this list made me want to talk about shows that others say people of the fandom should see. I haven't seen the first season so i'm only talkign about the first 13 episodes but I can't tell you how much i dislike this show.
The animation while decent has a terrible style with small hands and Moe bullshit that I personally can't stand.... i hate all the songs and for a show about a band i expect the music to be better.... i do actually like one song.......... the ending song. however K-on!'s worst offense is it's lack of character arc, plot or just overall relevance. After K-on we also go a lot more badly drawn moe anime and yeah there were a few years where i didn't like anything that was being played.... maybe the second season makes up for the moe mary sue main character? i don't care i wasted 13 episodes on it already i refuse to waste more.
2. Neon Genesis Evangelion
I understand why this show is on the list, I even agree... it's an important show to watch and make your own opinion of. Unfortunately my good friends in highschool Adored this show and told me how good it was and eventually i sat down and watched it.... and it wasn't bad.... but when soemthing is that hyped it's hard tolive up to that expectation.... I just find it kind of forgettable.... bad? absolutely not... i just got tired of hearing how amazing it is....
3. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
I know a lot of people consider this show overrated.... I am not one of those people, i Love this series but not for Haruhi.... no i love it cause of Kyon.... in fact i prefer the novels (though the show is so pretty... even if some episodes in season two suffered from k-on hands) because you are pretty much stuck in kyons head and yeah.... i just love it.
It's smart, i 'like' all the characters and it's just fun.
4. Gintama
I tried to watch an episode of this.... it didn't catch my interest.... it wasn't bad it just isn't the type of show i tend to like
5. Puella Magi Madoka Magica
I love this show and i think anyone who is getting tired of the same shoujo bullshit should see this show.... the first two episodes nearly lost me to be honest.... all i could think was wow this is so sweet it's rotting my teeth and i am just tired of that shit...
then Episode 3
yeah....
so yeah.... good show
6. Hyōka
Currently watching this so.... i'll give my opinion once it's done
7. Bakemonogatari
I think i saw an episode of the season season... and if it;s anything like the first.... then i wouldn't like it.... too creepy for me
8. A Certain Magical Index
Never even heard of this show, i don't claim to know every show out there.
9. Code Geass
oh code geass.... well i like the music...... the music is good.... i just get bored with mech anime.... this one is one of the better ones but yeah.... just not a fan of the genre as a whole... granted this really just is death note with mechs..... done better then deathnote.
10. Gundam (whole thing)
like i said before..... not a fan of mech anime, i did watch gundam seed when it was on TV.... and it seemed okay with good music but overall too silly for me.
11. Any Key anime (such as Clannad)
Yep i agree with this entry completely, all the key anime are near the top of my fav anime list (though i don't think any of them are number 1)
12. Lucky Star
Rai how can you hate K-on but enjoy lucky star? it's just as pointless and stupid and badly drawn
hm.... maybe cause it got a few chuckles out of me.... it's not my fav show by any stretch but i enjoy it.... in small doses.
13. Natsume Yūjin-chō
*looks at number* Crunchyroll..... you.... you got you numbering wrong..... THIS should be number one... maybe i'm just in a phase right now but i mean.... this has been my favorite shows for a while and one of a few things i fangirl over (the others being falcom games, brent week and aaron pogue novels)
This show has such heart and spirit and yeah it's not for everyone but it is so good in my opinion... and not a lot of people have heard about it and i just want to talk to others about how wonderful this show is! *sighs* ok next...
14. Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai
I have heard of this show, it looks very pretty... but i haven't seen it cause as far as i know there's no legal way for me to watch it and it looks a bit too fanservicy for my personal taste.
15. Detective Conan
I'm not the biggest fan of mystery but the sheer length of this show is what stops me from getting into it.... but yeah must be really good considering how long it's been going on.
16. Dragon Ball (all of it... didn't exclude GT)
One of the first animes i saw as a child, i see why this is on the list but i'm not a fan of shonen so yeah.... good show despite it's habit of retellign the same story over and over.... godo for a laugh though....
17.Toradora!
Currently watching it at a friends house so i'll give my review once i finish
18. (tie) Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha (all)
heard of the show.... just never really caught my interest so never searched it out...
18. (tie) Macross (again, not even Zero is left out)
I feel this should be higher... but i'm biased cause this is one of the only mech shows i like.... i love this show actually.... it doesn't even send me into panic attacks.... yes the animation is terrible... yes Minmei is the worst character ever.... i don't care... the story is so good.... also that intro song to the original... so epic.
funny/odd side story, when i was young i would hum a song, i didn't know what it was from but i liked the melody....
fast forward to me being 18 or so i heard the song coming from the tv, i rush into the room and check to see whats on.... macross plus.... my father owns the dvds but we never watched it.... so essentially when i was really small he would watch it on VHS and the melody just stuck with me.
20. Umineko: When They Cry (not Higurashi)
Not Higurashi? but.... but.... higurashi is better.... i can't even sit through umineko without groaning.... hm....
21. Pokemon
I loved this show as a kid, until they got out of jhoto then it just kinda went downhill... but i still love the games.... good time
22. Doraemon
Never seen it... don't really plan to
23. Genesis of Aquarion (not Evol)
Not a mech fan.... next
24. Fate (/stay night and zero)
This show isn't bad, and i haven't seen all of zero.... but i dunno.... show is a bit overrated but again i had peopl around me who really liked this and anything type moon (i think that's the name of the company)so yeah.... just don't care.
25. Sengoku Basara
Never heard of it but it looks good...
26. Shakugan no Shana
i do feel this show could be better.... granted i have yet to watch season 3..... but yeah.... i liked it at first but now i'm kinda bored with it.
27. Sailor Moon (all seasons)
why isn't this higher? oh well this was the other show that was my first anime experience.... i love it....
28. Death Note
I hate this show and i don't think it should be on the list... i didn't realize how much i hated it until i reviewed it but yeah.... can't stand it.
29. Certain Scientific Railgun
Another season of that show i haven't heard of? hm...
30. Bleach
I haven't watched the show but i did read up to vol 18 of the manga.... i got bored.... shonen is just boring to me most of the time
31. Ghost in the Shell
I don't get the fuss over this movie/show.... again i hate mech anime and i hate pretentious bullshit trying to be deep so.... yeah
Granted i'm probably beinga little unfair since I haven;t seen much of GITS but i don't care
32. Gurren Lagann
I like the first thirteen episodes of this show.... the second half can go screw itself because it took me forever to watch it cause i kept having panic attacks....
the reason i hate most mech anime is because it goes into space and does crazy shit there.... Gurren Lagann takes that to a new level and i just can't handle it.... it is a good show though.... i just will never watch it again.
33. Durarara!!
I just recently finished this and yeah i really enjoyed it... so much actually ordered an orihaya izaya figure.... and not just cause he's played by Hiroshi kamiya who did Natsume in natsume yuujinchou..........
....
..
though it may have played a small part in making him my favorite character of the show....
34. Rozen Maiden (former PM Taro Aso approves)
I want to liek Rozen maiden.... maybe if it had a point or a real ending i would.... oh well it's pretty to look at.
35. Pretty Cure (all of it)
I tried to watch it.... couldn't get into it.... too cutesy i guess
36. Prince of Tennis
Not a fan of sports anime plus the main character just seems to perfect...
37. Space Battleship Yamato
Has space in the title? yeah not touching it with a ten foro pole.... i hear it's really good i just can't handle it....
side note... and i know this is bad.... i don't liek the art style.... i know he's an important artist to anime... i don't care... it's not for me.
38. SchoolDays
.....
...
..
.
No.... no..... no why is this on this list....
NO..... dammit i wish i read past 1 when i started doing this cause i wanted ot make this a decent length..... but i am capable of ranting for hours on how TERRIBLE this show is.
I get that it's kind of the point but again I DON'T CARE... this show should never have been made... the main guy is such a piece of trash and just everything that happens....
No i don't wanna rant about how bad school days is..... i don't wanna talk about the fact that i don't trust recommendations from the person who told me to watch this anymore.
I hate this show, do not go watch it unless you feel like getting angry.
39. Aim for the Top! Gunbuster
... the science episodes from gunbuster? hm... i'm going to breifly talk about gun buster.
I have seen it.... it took me nearly a week to watch the last few episodes cause i kept having to leave the room. I had to make sure after i returned it (she also lent me gurren lagann) that let her know i have an irrational fear of space.... and that's why i took forever to watch 6 episodes.
still i did like the last line of the last ep.... but i was so glad it was over at that point.
as i said in my review.
Good show..... i hated it
40. Inazuma Eleven (all)
not a fan of sports anime so i haven't checked it out....
41. Millennium Actress
I enjoyed this movie, kinda confusing but one of my favorite satoshi kon films.
42. Card Captor Sakura
It may be the answer to the life, the universe and everything but why is this so low down the list... it should sure as hell be above School days.
43. Urusei Yatsura
My friend owns all the DVDs of this show... i haven;t seen it though cause it's long.... but it looks good.
44. (tie) Sasami: Magical Girls Club
i hadn't heard of it but i recognized the art... i dunno doesn't look like something i would like... i know i shouldn't judge a book by it's cover... but i do
44. (tie) Perfect Blue
This movie is good, i was too young when i first saw it (14 or 15) so i think that plays into a part of why i don't like it.... but it isn't bad.
wow that didn't take as long as i expected.
I am surprised i've seen as much as i have from the list. yeah i seem kinda negative but i find that what i tend to like doesn't get popular... does it mean i have bad taste? maybe.... i think it more has to do with the fact that
a) i'm a little weird and my taste jump around for no reason... i mean i say i hate mech shows but i love macross, i say i hate sports anime but i loved Chihaya furu and i am having a blast with kuroko's basketball.
b) i'm not the target audience for half the shows up there, Anime is targeted at teenage to young adult Boys.... i'm a girl trying to figure out life after graduating from college.... most of the shows up there are targeted for younger girls and i just don't like children stuff for children... i like things children can enjoy.
final note
Why is princess tutu not on this list? *sighs* or kaliedo star... or lovely complex... kodocha.. gankutsuou... kimegura Orange Road.... *sighs*
how can school days be up there but not these^ ugh!
The list is posted over at crunchyroll , go check it out and see how many titles you have seen from that list and wether or not you liked them....
cause thast what i'm going to do on this blog post.... a lot of shows at the top of this list are things i wont see again so i wont be doing completed reviews on them.... so i'm using this as a chance to do small ones..... though considering how long the list is and my ability to ramble.... i doubt this will be short.
Also this is all my personal opinion, if i like a show you hate or hate a show you like i'm not saying your opinion is wrong... this is just my take on it.
1. K-on!
... okay so i'll be honest.... I didn't initially read the list past number one.... I HATE k-on! The fact that it is number one on this list made me want to talk about shows that others say people of the fandom should see. I haven't seen the first season so i'm only talkign about the first 13 episodes but I can't tell you how much i dislike this show.
The animation while decent has a terrible style with small hands and Moe bullshit that I personally can't stand.... i hate all the songs and for a show about a band i expect the music to be better.... i do actually like one song.......... the ending song. however K-on!'s worst offense is it's lack of character arc, plot or just overall relevance. After K-on we also go a lot more badly drawn moe anime and yeah there were a few years where i didn't like anything that was being played.... maybe the second season makes up for the moe mary sue main character? i don't care i wasted 13 episodes on it already i refuse to waste more.
2. Neon Genesis Evangelion
I understand why this show is on the list, I even agree... it's an important show to watch and make your own opinion of. Unfortunately my good friends in highschool Adored this show and told me how good it was and eventually i sat down and watched it.... and it wasn't bad.... but when soemthing is that hyped it's hard tolive up to that expectation.... I just find it kind of forgettable.... bad? absolutely not... i just got tired of hearing how amazing it is....
3. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
I know a lot of people consider this show overrated.... I am not one of those people, i Love this series but not for Haruhi.... no i love it cause of Kyon.... in fact i prefer the novels (though the show is so pretty... even if some episodes in season two suffered from k-on hands) because you are pretty much stuck in kyons head and yeah.... i just love it.
It's smart, i 'like' all the characters and it's just fun.
4. Gintama
I tried to watch an episode of this.... it didn't catch my interest.... it wasn't bad it just isn't the type of show i tend to like
5. Puella Magi Madoka Magica
I love this show and i think anyone who is getting tired of the same shoujo bullshit should see this show.... the first two episodes nearly lost me to be honest.... all i could think was wow this is so sweet it's rotting my teeth and i am just tired of that shit...
then Episode 3
yeah....
so yeah.... good show
6. Hyōka
Currently watching this so.... i'll give my opinion once it's done
7. Bakemonogatari
I think i saw an episode of the season season... and if it;s anything like the first.... then i wouldn't like it.... too creepy for me
8. A Certain Magical Index
Never even heard of this show, i don't claim to know every show out there.
9. Code Geass
oh code geass.... well i like the music...... the music is good.... i just get bored with mech anime.... this one is one of the better ones but yeah.... just not a fan of the genre as a whole... granted this really just is death note with mechs..... done better then deathnote.
10. Gundam (whole thing)
like i said before..... not a fan of mech anime, i did watch gundam seed when it was on TV.... and it seemed okay with good music but overall too silly for me.
11. Any Key anime (such as Clannad)
Yep i agree with this entry completely, all the key anime are near the top of my fav anime list (though i don't think any of them are number 1)
12. Lucky Star
Rai how can you hate K-on but enjoy lucky star? it's just as pointless and stupid and badly drawn
hm.... maybe cause it got a few chuckles out of me.... it's not my fav show by any stretch but i enjoy it.... in small doses.
13. Natsume Yūjin-chō
*looks at number* Crunchyroll..... you.... you got you numbering wrong..... THIS should be number one... maybe i'm just in a phase right now but i mean.... this has been my favorite shows for a while and one of a few things i fangirl over (the others being falcom games, brent week and aaron pogue novels)
This show has such heart and spirit and yeah it's not for everyone but it is so good in my opinion... and not a lot of people have heard about it and i just want to talk to others about how wonderful this show is! *sighs* ok next...
14. Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai
I have heard of this show, it looks very pretty... but i haven't seen it cause as far as i know there's no legal way for me to watch it and it looks a bit too fanservicy for my personal taste.
15. Detective Conan
I'm not the biggest fan of mystery but the sheer length of this show is what stops me from getting into it.... but yeah must be really good considering how long it's been going on.
16. Dragon Ball (all of it... didn't exclude GT)
One of the first animes i saw as a child, i see why this is on the list but i'm not a fan of shonen so yeah.... good show despite it's habit of retellign the same story over and over.... godo for a laugh though....
17.Toradora!
Currently watching it at a friends house so i'll give my review once i finish
18. (tie) Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha (all)
heard of the show.... just never really caught my interest so never searched it out...
18. (tie) Macross (again, not even Zero is left out)
I feel this should be higher... but i'm biased cause this is one of the only mech shows i like.... i love this show actually.... it doesn't even send me into panic attacks.... yes the animation is terrible... yes Minmei is the worst character ever.... i don't care... the story is so good.... also that intro song to the original... so epic.
funny/odd side story, when i was young i would hum a song, i didn't know what it was from but i liked the melody....
fast forward to me being 18 or so i heard the song coming from the tv, i rush into the room and check to see whats on.... macross plus.... my father owns the dvds but we never watched it.... so essentially when i was really small he would watch it on VHS and the melody just stuck with me.
20. Umineko: When They Cry (not Higurashi)
Not Higurashi? but.... but.... higurashi is better.... i can't even sit through umineko without groaning.... hm....
21. Pokemon
I loved this show as a kid, until they got out of jhoto then it just kinda went downhill... but i still love the games.... good time
22. Doraemon
Never seen it... don't really plan to
23. Genesis of Aquarion (not Evol)
Not a mech fan.... next
24. Fate (/stay night and zero)
This show isn't bad, and i haven't seen all of zero.... but i dunno.... show is a bit overrated but again i had peopl around me who really liked this and anything type moon (i think that's the name of the company)so yeah.... just don't care.
25. Sengoku Basara
Never heard of it but it looks good...
26. Shakugan no Shana
i do feel this show could be better.... granted i have yet to watch season 3..... but yeah.... i liked it at first but now i'm kinda bored with it.
27. Sailor Moon (all seasons)
why isn't this higher? oh well this was the other show that was my first anime experience.... i love it....
28. Death Note
I hate this show and i don't think it should be on the list... i didn't realize how much i hated it until i reviewed it but yeah.... can't stand it.
29. Certain Scientific Railgun
Another season of that show i haven't heard of? hm...
30. Bleach
I haven't watched the show but i did read up to vol 18 of the manga.... i got bored.... shonen is just boring to me most of the time
31. Ghost in the Shell
I don't get the fuss over this movie/show.... again i hate mech anime and i hate pretentious bullshit trying to be deep so.... yeah
Granted i'm probably beinga little unfair since I haven;t seen much of GITS but i don't care
32. Gurren Lagann
I like the first thirteen episodes of this show.... the second half can go screw itself because it took me forever to watch it cause i kept having panic attacks....
the reason i hate most mech anime is because it goes into space and does crazy shit there.... Gurren Lagann takes that to a new level and i just can't handle it.... it is a good show though.... i just will never watch it again.
33. Durarara!!
I just recently finished this and yeah i really enjoyed it... so much actually ordered an orihaya izaya figure.... and not just cause he's played by Hiroshi kamiya who did Natsume in natsume yuujinchou..........
....
..
though it may have played a small part in making him my favorite character of the show....
34. Rozen Maiden (former PM Taro Aso approves)
I want to liek Rozen maiden.... maybe if it had a point or a real ending i would.... oh well it's pretty to look at.
35. Pretty Cure (all of it)
I tried to watch it.... couldn't get into it.... too cutesy i guess
36. Prince of Tennis
Not a fan of sports anime plus the main character just seems to perfect...
37. Space Battleship Yamato
Has space in the title? yeah not touching it with a ten foro pole.... i hear it's really good i just can't handle it....
side note... and i know this is bad.... i don't liek the art style.... i know he's an important artist to anime... i don't care... it's not for me.
38. SchoolDays
.....
...
..
.
No.... no..... no why is this on this list....
NO..... dammit i wish i read past 1 when i started doing this cause i wanted ot make this a decent length..... but i am capable of ranting for hours on how TERRIBLE this show is.
I get that it's kind of the point but again I DON'T CARE... this show should never have been made... the main guy is such a piece of trash and just everything that happens....
No i don't wanna rant about how bad school days is..... i don't wanna talk about the fact that i don't trust recommendations from the person who told me to watch this anymore.
I hate this show, do not go watch it unless you feel like getting angry.
39. Aim for the Top! Gunbuster
... the science episodes from gunbuster? hm... i'm going to breifly talk about gun buster.
I have seen it.... it took me nearly a week to watch the last few episodes cause i kept having to leave the room. I had to make sure after i returned it (she also lent me gurren lagann) that let her know i have an irrational fear of space.... and that's why i took forever to watch 6 episodes.
still i did like the last line of the last ep.... but i was so glad it was over at that point.
as i said in my review.
Good show..... i hated it
40. Inazuma Eleven (all)
not a fan of sports anime so i haven't checked it out....
41. Millennium Actress
I enjoyed this movie, kinda confusing but one of my favorite satoshi kon films.
42. Card Captor Sakura
It may be the answer to the life, the universe and everything but why is this so low down the list... it should sure as hell be above School days.
43. Urusei Yatsura
My friend owns all the DVDs of this show... i haven;t seen it though cause it's long.... but it looks good.
44. (tie) Sasami: Magical Girls Club
i hadn't heard of it but i recognized the art... i dunno doesn't look like something i would like... i know i shouldn't judge a book by it's cover... but i do
44. (tie) Perfect Blue
This movie is good, i was too young when i first saw it (14 or 15) so i think that plays into a part of why i don't like it.... but it isn't bad.
wow that didn't take as long as i expected.
I am surprised i've seen as much as i have from the list. yeah i seem kinda negative but i find that what i tend to like doesn't get popular... does it mean i have bad taste? maybe.... i think it more has to do with the fact that
a) i'm a little weird and my taste jump around for no reason... i mean i say i hate mech shows but i love macross, i say i hate sports anime but i loved Chihaya furu and i am having a blast with kuroko's basketball.
b) i'm not the target audience for half the shows up there, Anime is targeted at teenage to young adult Boys.... i'm a girl trying to figure out life after graduating from college.... most of the shows up there are targeted for younger girls and i just don't like children stuff for children... i like things children can enjoy.
final note
Why is princess tutu not on this list? *sighs* or kaliedo star... or lovely complex... kodocha.. gankutsuou... kimegura Orange Road.... *sighs*
how can school days be up there but not these^ ugh!
Monday, 3 September 2012
Ys: Oath in Felghana PSP vs Steam
so about a year ago... maybe more... i beat the PSP game Oath in Felghana.
i loved it, i had only played Ys 1&2 on ds before hand (i have been informed that it was 'the bad port' but hey i beat it and enjoyed it so.... yeah) and i wasn't quite a falcom fangirl yet..... oh and i think i had beaten Legend of heroes 4/2/1 a tear of vermillion at this point as well but thats a different series. anyways i picked up the game because i had enjoyed the other ones and boy... my mind was blown.... it was so different... instead of just being a freakishly hard action rpg with an amazing.... it was a freakishly hard action rpg/platformer/bullet hell shootemup with an amazing score..... and i only played on normal and this game kicked my ass.... i can think of 3 bosses where the game actually took pity on me and lowered the difficulty so i could continue.... more on that later.
anyways a lot of time passes and Xseed annouces that they will bring the PC version of the game over to steam.
this news makes me happy because if they are bringing those games over there may be hope for other falcom PC games that haven't hit north america.
I'm a little upset though cause i already paid for the psp version... and i beat it... and it was really hard.... but i still want to buy it and support Xseed because if these games do well it ups the chance that we will get more.
Still i held off.... until steam had their summer sale... and it was less then 5 bucks.... then i didn't care that i had already bought it. i even convinced a friend into getting it since the Ys series is fairly episodic... you can play games out of order and not miss too much other then a reference here and there.
i did play the Steam version on hard just to give myself a small challenge without throwing my usb controller across the room... .cause as i mentioned before these games are hard and i'm already terrible at video games.... i love them but i am not good at them.
So time to compair the two and see which one deserves your money more!
Whats the same?
Game play, music, bosses, level design.... as far as the basics go this is the exact same thing on both systems
Whats different
PSP has new game plus so when you beat the game you can take some points (which i think you get based on the difficulty you beat it on but i could be wrong) an put them towards being able to upgrade weapons 9 time instead of 3 or carrying over weapon levels.. or upping the amount of health you have at the start... that kind of stuff.
The PSP version is full voice acted... and in my opinion it's done fairly well.... it was a bit jarring playing the steam on and it being silent but i could still hear th lines in those characters voice.... specifically Elena and Chester... Adol gets an old narrators voice which for some reason i find it really funny.
Steam has achievements and unlockable costume for the main female character (though i couldn't get it to work.... and i don't care enough to try)
It also has a leaderboard but again i suck at games so i avoid stuff like that.
finally it doesn't have the feature where if you suck at a boss it drops the difficulty.... which sucks for someone like me but a little grinding solves that problem.... even if i had to grind to lv 56 (60 is the max) to avoid death during the final boss.... even though i had the ressurection item... *sighs*
Which do i recommend?
The PSP game is better, some bugs are fixed and the new game plus feature is an instant win for me. HOWEVER the PSP is a dead system... no one supports it anymore so this game, being that no one has heard of falcom, is probably not going to be easy to find. so for those reason i have to recommend the Steam version since it's easy to get, it's about half if not a 3rd of the price of the psp game and really is only missing the new game plus feature.
Also did i mention how AMAZING the music is.... watch the opening video if you don't believe me.
So yeah if you like Action Rpg you have to check this game out.
hm.... guess i need to stop procrastinating on KH3D... since i have a lot to say about that particular game.... but not till i beat it... *sighs*
i loved it, i had only played Ys 1&2 on ds before hand (i have been informed that it was 'the bad port' but hey i beat it and enjoyed it so.... yeah) and i wasn't quite a falcom fangirl yet..... oh and i think i had beaten Legend of heroes 4/2/1 a tear of vermillion at this point as well but thats a different series. anyways i picked up the game because i had enjoyed the other ones and boy... my mind was blown.... it was so different... instead of just being a freakishly hard action rpg with an amazing.... it was a freakishly hard action rpg/platformer/bullet hell shootemup with an amazing score..... and i only played on normal and this game kicked my ass.... i can think of 3 bosses where the game actually took pity on me and lowered the difficulty so i could continue.... more on that later.
anyways a lot of time passes and Xseed annouces that they will bring the PC version of the game over to steam.
this news makes me happy because if they are bringing those games over there may be hope for other falcom PC games that haven't hit north america.
I'm a little upset though cause i already paid for the psp version... and i beat it... and it was really hard.... but i still want to buy it and support Xseed because if these games do well it ups the chance that we will get more.
Still i held off.... until steam had their summer sale... and it was less then 5 bucks.... then i didn't care that i had already bought it. i even convinced a friend into getting it since the Ys series is fairly episodic... you can play games out of order and not miss too much other then a reference here and there.
i did play the Steam version on hard just to give myself a small challenge without throwing my usb controller across the room... .cause as i mentioned before these games are hard and i'm already terrible at video games.... i love them but i am not good at them.
So time to compair the two and see which one deserves your money more!
Whats the same?
Game play, music, bosses, level design.... as far as the basics go this is the exact same thing on both systems
Whats different
PSP has new game plus so when you beat the game you can take some points (which i think you get based on the difficulty you beat it on but i could be wrong) an put them towards being able to upgrade weapons 9 time instead of 3 or carrying over weapon levels.. or upping the amount of health you have at the start... that kind of stuff.
The PSP version is full voice acted... and in my opinion it's done fairly well.... it was a bit jarring playing the steam on and it being silent but i could still hear th lines in those characters voice.... specifically Elena and Chester... Adol gets an old narrators voice which for some reason i find it really funny.
Steam has achievements and unlockable costume for the main female character (though i couldn't get it to work.... and i don't care enough to try)
It also has a leaderboard but again i suck at games so i avoid stuff like that.
finally it doesn't have the feature where if you suck at a boss it drops the difficulty.... which sucks for someone like me but a little grinding solves that problem.... even if i had to grind to lv 56 (60 is the max) to avoid death during the final boss.... even though i had the ressurection item... *sighs*
Which do i recommend?
The PSP game is better, some bugs are fixed and the new game plus feature is an instant win for me. HOWEVER the PSP is a dead system... no one supports it anymore so this game, being that no one has heard of falcom, is probably not going to be easy to find. so for those reason i have to recommend the Steam version since it's easy to get, it's about half if not a 3rd of the price of the psp game and really is only missing the new game plus feature.
Also did i mention how AMAZING the music is.... watch the opening video if you don't believe me.
hm.... guess i need to stop procrastinating on KH3D... since i have a lot to say about that particular game.... but not till i beat it... *sighs*
Saturday, 1 September 2012
Reliance -From Start to Finish-
this started out as a random sketch, i wanted to draw the character formally known as Kurai as a kid.... so i did ad i came up with
ebcause it was just a skecth i was pretty lazy with everything but i had fun with the concept so i decided to continue on with it and inked it.... i was worried that if i go too long without doing some art i'd fall into art block so yeah.... just trying to stave that off.
so yeah lots of things in this changed... the lines are still pretty lazy but i just wanted to be kind of loose with them. it's odd though i ended up inking him as if he's looking at the clutching he's clinging to and not the viewer.... still i figure why not have fun with the colouring and try some new things specifically texture and upping the contrast.
so this was a little over halfway, figured its a good idea to document the piece as i'm going.... though it just shows i'm being bad and not naming layers again which i used to do all the time but yeah i ended up going for very primary colour focused piece... i think it works cause it helps the kid stand out more against his very cool surroundings... though i tend to stick to one or two focused colours so i'm always scared when i add a third.... all thanks to my high school teacher saying the fewer colours the better lol
oh well...
final result!
i couldn't figure out what i wanted in the BG... originally i had clouds.... then trees but then it just ended up blue with the hops of making the kid pop out from his surrounding with colour contrast. I had a lot of fun with this.... in total it probably took 4-5 hours and i dont tend to spend that long on anything but i was really focusing on trying things i don't normal do. so yeah pretty happy with it but i look forward to starting the next thing.
alright
it can be seen on
Society 6: http://society6.com/Raichana/Reliance-9ww_Print#
RedBubble: http://www.redbubble.com/people/raichana/works/9298890-reliance
DeviantArt: http://www.deviantart.com/submit/sell/?ty=1&deviationId=324770878
Anipan: http://www.anipan.com/art/prk#!art/crgk
so this was a little over halfway, figured its a good idea to document the piece as i'm going.... though it just shows i'm being bad and not naming layers again which i used to do all the time but yeah i ended up going for very primary colour focused piece... i think it works cause it helps the kid stand out more against his very cool surroundings... though i tend to stick to one or two focused colours so i'm always scared when i add a third.... all thanks to my high school teacher saying the fewer colours the better lol
oh well...
final result!
alright
it can be seen on
Society 6: http://society6.com/Raichana/Reliance-9ww_Print#
RedBubble: http://www.redbubble.com/people/raichana/works/9298890-reliance
DeviantArt: http://www.deviantart.com/submit/sell/?ty=1&deviationId=324770878
Anipan: http://www.anipan.com/art/prk#!art/crgk
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