Category: Polls

Anime knitting

Here are some curious items from the most recent batch of search terms:

heresy is not kawaii
gurren lagann knitting
cowboy bebop knitting
knitting anime themes
ponyo on a stick
sailor moon cardboard cutout
a religion based off of sailor moon
canzoni kawaii
languid gay charles solomon
gender critics are idiots
anime girl wolf boy frog
haruhi peanuts
kawaii the murderer pics
safe for work babes
oink supervisor

There were a few that make me glad that I am unlikely ever to meet the searchers:

anime manly girls
armpit hair pictures
kawaii tentacle monster

*****

Anime cosplayers are normal, sane people — at least compared to these.

Via Steven, who recently discovered Pokémon. (Update: note the third-place item in this list.)

Ubu, meanwhile, has discovered RahXephon. In a comment at Ubu’s place, Avatar confirms what I had suspected:

RahXephon was a show where we constructed a couple of really elaborate theories that explained everything, wrote off to Japan with a “so which one is it, we need to know for the translation”, and got back “huh? We did all those things because they looked cool.”

*****

I recently watched the first two episodes of El Hazard: The Magnificent World. Good grief. Here’s our hero:

I really wonder sometimes: do Japanese boys want to be girls? If you think I’m exaggering, count the thumbnails on this graphic:

The first El Hazard OVA was written by Ryoe Tsukimura. He also wrote the scripts for the first Tenchi Muyo! movie and the many UFO Princess Valkyries. They have their moments, but they’re all essentially anime junk food. Most of the rest of Tsukimura’s output looks similarly undistinguished. However, he does have one classic to his credit, Noir, which was his idea and his script. In this, he reminds me of Kou Ohtani, a competent, unmemorable soundtrack composer who on one occasion exhibited afflatus.

*****

Since I closed nominations for the current poll, commenters have mentioned Ghost in the Shell, Tenchi Muyo GXP, Kimagure Orange Road, Spice and Wolf and Wolf’s Rain. The first has been mentioned twice (the second time in an email), so I’ll probably add it to the second round candidates. Would anyone care to second any of the other series?

The winner

After four rounds and over a thousand votes, we have a babe:

I’ll post the complete results sometime this weekend.

*****

There were 62 nominations altogether for the best anime soundtrack. I’m going to run two preliminary rounds of 31 each, in which you can vote for up to three candidates. The top ten in each round will go on to the finals.

Ideally, I should post excerpts from all the nominated soundtracks, but I’m lazy. If you want to campaign for your favorite, feel free to post a link to an illustrative video or .mp3 in the comments. (There are a number of such links in the comments here.)

Here’s a list

Soundtracks nominated so far for the next poll:

Aria the Animation/Natural/Origination
Azumanga Daioh
Bartender
Bleach
Bubblegum Crisis OVA
Bubblegum Crisis 2040
Code Geass/R2
Cowboy Bebop
Death Note
ef: a tale of memories
Elfen Lied
Eureka 7
FLCL
Full Metal Alchemist
Haibane Renmei
Kaiji
Kamichu!
Macross Frontier
Madlax
Manabi Straight
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Noir
Oh! Edo Rocket
Princess Tutu
Record of Lodoss War
Revolutionary Girl Utena
Shigofumi
Shigurui
Simoun
Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann
True Tears
Vision of Escaflowne
Welcome the the NHK

A few others were mentioned, but I’m not sure that they were meant as nominations:

.hack// et cetera
Vampire Princess Miyu OVA
Vampire Princess Miyu TV
Witch Hunter Robin

Some other soundtracks worth considering:

Ah! My Goddess: The Movie
Angelic Layer
Binchou-tan
Denno Coil
Interstella 5555
Kaiba
Macross Plus
Metropolis
Mushishi
Paprika
Saiunkoku Monogatari
Shingu
Someday’s Dreamers
Sugar, a Tiny Snow Fairy

What else? I’m sure I’m forgetting something obvious.

Also, would someone care to nominate a specific Miyazaki movie OST?

Call for nominations II

The next poll will probably be anime soundtracks: which is the best? There are the obvious candidates: Noir, Haibane Renmei, nearly everything by Yoko Kanno; and some less-obvious ones: Denno Coil, Oh! Edo Rocket, Mushishi. What other examples are worth considering? Please leave your nominations in the comments. Links to illustrative mp3s or videos will be helpful.

Note that this is about specific soundtracks and not who the best composer is. That is a topic for a future poll.

I’m going to let the anime babes poll run for another week or two. I’d like to see at least 200 votes before I close it and compile the top ten. Please vote if you haven’t already.

Update: I just checked that other dealer. Although the soundtracks to Haibane Renmei and Noir are gone, there are still many noteworthy OSTs available for $4, including Arjuna (the series itself looks like toxic waste, but Kanno’s score isn’t bad), Azumanga Daioh, Someday’s Dreamers and Utena (four eccentric CDs’ worth of the last — if nobody else nominates Utena, I will).

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Poor neglected Eineus. She hasn’t yet received a single vote in the final round of “who’s the babe?” I’m trying to resist the temptation to campaign for or against particular candidates, but I will note that I think she has a better claim to be a proper babe than at least one who is headed for a top-ten finish.

Query

The adult Mikuru Asahina is leading the current poll. You all do realize that in voting for her, you’re voting for a character who appears only in one four-minute scene during the entire 14-episode run of Suzumiya Haruhi, in which all she does is talk to Kyon and display a little cleavage? Is that really sufficient qualification to be one of the outstanding babes in anime?

Blossom gazing

Cherry trees bloom in Wichita as well as Japan. The one above is the variety “Kwanzan,” which has large double flowers, not the single blossoms that constantly turn up in anime. It’s not as elegant, perhaps, but it is very eye-catching.

Given the frequency with which cherry blossoms occur in anime, one would assume that the trees are in bloom half the year. I doubt that’s the case.

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Astro says, “BTW your top ten is flawed because it doesn’t include AzuManga’s Yukari. Probably because she’s the best anime babe ever, and you were just trying to make it competitive. *astro shakes his tiny fist*”

Nobody mentioned her when nominations were open. I plan to start the third and last of the preliminary rounds of the Who’s the Babe? this weekend. Should I add Yukari to the candidates? And while I’m at it, should I also add Motoko Kusanagi from Ghost in the Shell, another possibility whom nobody nominated and I forgot about?

Update: the nays have it.

*****

Bonus nonsense: Subtitles — They’re not just for anime. (Via Dustbury.)

Steve, Steve, Steve, Stephen, Steve, …

The Maximum Leader says he doesn’t know who all the Steves are in the current poll. Let’s see if we can do something about that. Here are several of the Steves in action.

Stephen Bennett: “C.E.O. (Comanche Executive Officer)”

[audio:http://tancos.net/audio/CEO.mp3]

Steven King: “Medley: Puttin on the Ritz/42nd Street/It Don’t Mean a Thing” ((The bass you hear is actually the sound of the two lowest strings on King’s guitar run through a separate pickup and electronically transposed an octave down.))

[audio:http://tancos.net/audio/Medley_Ritz_42nd_Mean A Thing.mp3]

Steve Lukather: “Naima”

[audio:http://tancos.net/audio/Naima.mp3]

Steve Morse: “Cruise Missile” ((Jerry Peek, bass, and Rod Morgenstein, drums))

[audio:http://tancos.net/audio/Cruise Missile.mp3]

Steve Stevens:”Melt” ((Tony Levin, bass, and Terry Bozzio, drums))

[audio:http://tancos.net/audio/Melt.mp3]

Steve Vai: “The Attitude Song” ((Stuart Hamm, bass, and Chris Frazier, drums))

[audio:http://tancos.net/audio/The Attitude Song.mp3]

For Steves Hackett and Howe, dig out your old Genesis and Yes albums.

I regret that I don’t have any Steve Kaufman handy (what I have is on cassette, but my tape deck died several years ago). He is the only person to place first three times in the National Flatpick Competition at Winfield (Mark O’Connor only did it twice). If flatpicking is what you like, he’s your guy.

If you don’t know who Stevie Ray Vaughn is, you have some remedial listening to do.

Update: In celebration of April 15, here’s Stevie Ray:

[audio:http://tancos.net/audio/Taxman.mp3]

59 babes

Here are the nominations:

Akane (Ranma 1/2)
Alpha (Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou)
Amuro Ninagawa (Kenko Zenrakei Suieibu Umisho)
Arai Chie (Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei)
Atsuko Chiba (Paprika)
Balsa (Seirei no Moribito)
Eineus (Macademi Wasshoi)
Falis (aka Alita) (Murder Princess)
Faye Valentine (Cowboy Bebop)
Ginrei Von Vogler (Giant Robo)

Grand Duchess Laetitia (Tytania)
Grandis Granva (Fushigi no Umi no Nadia)
Haruka Urashima (Love Hina)
Horo (Spice & Wolf)
Ifurita (El Hazard)
Kan’u Unchou (Ikki Tousen)
Kei (Dirty Pair)
Kyoko Otanashi (Maison Ikkoku)
Lady Eboshi (Princess Mononoke)
Lafiel (Crest/Banner of the Stars)

Lexshue (Crest/Banner of the Stars)
Lina Inverse (Slayers)
Lum (Urusei Yatsura)
Luxandra (Divergence Eve/Misaki Chronicles)
Lyar Von Ertiana (Divergence Eve/Misaki Chronicles)
Madoka Ayukawa (Kimagure Orange Road)
Mai Kawasumi (Kanon 2006)
Meia Gisborn (Vandread)
Mikuru Asahina (adult version) (Haruhi Suzumiya)
Mio Sakamoto (Strike Witches)

Misato Katsuragi (Neon Genesis Evangelion)
Mitsune Konno (Love Hina)
Musubi (Sekirei)
Rena Sayers (Mai Otome Zero)
Mutsumi Otohime (Love Hina)
Naomi Armitage (Armitage the Third: Poly Matrix)
Nausicaä (Nausicaä)
Pirotess (Record of Lodoss War)
Priss Asagiri (Bubblegum Crisis OVA)
Rin Tosaka (Fate Stay Night)

Roberta (Black Lagoon)
Rushuna Tendo (Grenadier)
Ryoko (Tenchi Muyo OVA)
Ryoko Yakushiji (Yakushiji Ryokou no Kaiki Jikenbo)
Ryomou Shimei (Ikki Tousen)
Sachiko Ogasawara (Maria-sama ga Miteru)
Sayaka Yumi (Mazinger Z)
Setsuna (Shingu)
Shampoo (Ranma 1/2)
Sharon Apple (Macross Plus)

Spoor (Crest/Banner of the Stars)
Teletha Testarossa (Full Metal Panic)
Tsuruko Aoyama (Love Hina)
Urd (Ah! My Goddess TV)
Yoko (Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann)
Yomiko Readman (Read or Die)
Youko Mizuno (Maria-sama ga Miteru)
Yuki Mori (Nova Forrester) (Space Cruiser Yamato (Starblazers))
Yuri (Dirty Pair)

That’s 59 altogether. I’ll run three rounds of 19, 20 and 20, and the seven top finishers in each round will go on to the final round of 21.

If I wait until I have pictures of every candidates, it will be next year before I start the poll. Therefore, I’m beginning the first round tonight, and I’ll post the pictures when I have them all.

I have a some questions about the candidates in the remaining rounds. First, I am informed that Yoko is 14 at the beginning of Gurren-Lagann. Does she remain 14 through the series, or does she reach an eligible age? And how old is Akane in Ranma 1/2? And Shampoo? Also, there are four nominations from Love Hina. I have no problem with the three from Crest of the Stars because that was an exceptional series, but I am skeptical that there are four worthy babes in LH. Do all four deserve nominations, and if not, who does?

I’m allowing Horo even though she has the human form of a 15-year-old. I figure that her centuries as a wolf goddess count for at least one additional year.

You can vote for up to three candidates in each round.

Addendum: Oh, yeah, about the previous poll: I had expected that Neon Genesis Evangelion would win easily, and it did take an early lead. However, Naruto soon caught up and eventually won the title “most overrated anime,” 35% to 31%. Bleach was a distant third at 15%, followed by The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann and ef: a tale of memories. A total of 199 votes were cast.

Congratulations to Pete, who submitted the 500th comment to The Kawaii Menace.

For those keeping track: the first vote cast in the new poll was for Kan’u Unchou.

Update: Has anyone besides Ubu had trouble voting for more than one? If so, then please either list the other candidates you would have voted for in a comment or send me an email (tancos [at] tancos (dot) net; be sure to include the word “poll” in the heading so I don’t delete it as spam), and I’ll make adjustments.

Update II: I made a change to the template (which should have not been necessary, grrr), and you should be able to vote for multiple candidates now. If it still doesn’t work, let me know, and I’ll bang my head against the wall some more. (If you’ve already voted for one, want to vote for one or two more candidates, and haven’t mentioned them in the comments here, feel free to visit here with a different browser and vote for the others. Given the circumstances, I won’t regard it as cheating.)

Anime babes II

Here are the ladies nominated in the comments so far:

Rushuna Tendo (Grenadier)
Meia Gisborn (Vandread)
Setsuna (Shingu)
Kan’u Unchou (Ikki Tousen)
Grand Duchess Laetitia (Tytania)
Urd (Ah! My Goddess TV)
Madoka Ayukawa (Kimagure Orange Road)
Yoko (Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann)
Balsa (Seirei no Moribito)
Ryoko Yakushiji (Yakushiji Ryokou no Kaiki Jikenbo)
Falis aka Alita (Murder Princess)
Arai Chie (Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei)
Lafiel (Crest/Banner of the Stars)
Lexshue (Crest/Banner of the Stars)
Spoor (Crest/Banner of the Stars)
Mio Sakamoto (Strike Witches)
Horo (Spice & Wolf)
Amuro Ninagawa (Kenko Zenrakei Suieibu Umisho)
Lyar Von Ertiana (Divergence Eve/Misaki Chronicles)
Luxandra (Divergence Eve/Misaki Chronicles)
Ryomou Shimei (Ikki Tousen)
Mai Kawasumi (Kanon 2006)
Rin Tosaka (Fate Stay Night)
Naomi Armitage (Armitage the Third: Poly Matrix)
Ryoko (Tenchi Muyo OVA)
Teletha Testarossa (Full Metal Panic)

To these, let’s add the Brickmuppet’s list:

Roberta (Black Lagoon)
Yomiko Readman (Read or Die)
Yuki Mori/Nova Forrester (Space Cruiser Yamato (Starblazers))
Sayaka Yumi (Mazinger Z)
Lady Eboshi (Princess Mononoke)
Nausicaä (Nausicaä)
Kyoko Otanashi (Maison Ikkoku)

And a couple more from Arson55’s:

Utena Tenjou (Revolutionary Girl Utena)
Lina Inverse (Slayers)

Finally, let’s let most of the rest of the previous top ten have another chance: ((Sailor Venus is underage, and kinda flaky, too))

Sharon Apple (Macross Plus)
Priss Asagiri (Bubblegum Crisis OVA)
Grandis Granva (Fushigi no Umi no Nadia)
Pirotess (Record of Lodoss War)
Ifurita (El Hazard)
Misato Katsuragi (Neon Genesis Evangelion)
Ginrei Von Vogler (Giant Robo)
Lum (Urusei Yatsura)

And a few of the runners-up:

Faye Valentine (Cowboy Bebop)
Shampoo (Ranma 1/2)
Kei and Yuri (Dirty Pair)

That gives us 47 candidates, if I counted right. Most of the ladies I had in mind have been nominated, but let me toss out a few more names to consider:

Sora (Oh! Edo Rocket)
Kirika Yumera (Noir)
Eineus (Macademi Wasshoi)
Rue (Princess Tutu)
Alpha (Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou)
Chane Laforet (Baccano!)
Nice Holystone (Baccano!)
Atsuko Chiba (Paprika)

What I think I’ll do is run three rounds of about 17 or 18 candidates each, and then a final round with the top seven from each of the preliminaries. I’ll probably start the polling this weekend after I locate pictures of all the candidates. Until then, nominations are still open. If there is a worthy babe not listed above, please mention her in the comments.

Thank you, everyone who responded, and thanks again, all you who included links to pictures.

Oh, yeah — Rei Ayanami is not eligible for three reasons. 1. She has no “attitude.” 2. She’s underage. 3. She creeps me out.

Update: By all means keep the nominations coming in. And please do point out those who are under sixteen; it’s not always easy to tell. Utena, for instance, seems much more mature than fourteen, and Gurren-Lagann‘s Yoko doesn’t exactly have a fourteen-year-old’s figure.

Call for nominations

The classic list of anime babes is a bit outdated. I think the most recent woman mentioned there is Faye Valentine. There’s no mention of such memorable characters as Lyar Von Ertiana from Divergence Eve/Misaki Chronicles, or Lafiel and Lexshue from Crest/Banner of the Stars, or Yoko from Gurren-Lagann. Therefore, my next poll will be of babes in anime.

I could use a little help here. I’ve watched a lot of anime, but there’s much more that I haven’t seen. I’ve undoubtedly missed some of the more distinctive women. So, who do you think is the outstanding anime babe of all time?

A few rules:

• She must be at least sixteen years old.

• She doesn’t necessarily have to be human, but she must be unequivocally female. I.e., no traps. Sora from Oh! Edo Rocket would be worth considering, but not Genzou. (Reverse traps, e.g., Sailor Uranus out of uniform, are acceptable.)

• She must an anime character. Women who are primarily known as video game characters or appear only in manga are not eligible.

Please leave your nomination in a comment. Be sure to mention what anime the character is from. ((Please be precise;, e.g., do you mean Priss from the original Bubblegum Crisis or from Bubblegum Crisis 2040?)) It would be helpful if you could include a link to a good quality, safe-for-work picture of the lady. You can nominate more than one babe, but please don’t get carried away. Thank you.

Addendum: Steven inquires about the criteria for babe-ness. Cute, sexy, competent and intelligent are all desirable characteristics, so I would say “all around.” But really, do I have to define what a “babe” is? ((“A female from the anime universe who possesses great beauty, a marvelous attitude, and the ability to act upon her desires to acquire that which she wants most (whatever that may be).”)) Here are the original rules, which might might clarify things.

Rule Number One: She must be made out of pencil and paint [or pixels —ed.]. No flesh and blood girls here.

Rule Number Two: She must be attractive and not merely “cute” (meaning the judges decide what is “hot beauty” and what is simply “kawaii”) (so according to the judges all “Noriko Takayas” are out). While this may be open to interpretation by you, the viewers, the judges’ decisions are final.

Rule Number Three: The contestants’ taste in men has no relevance on them being considered an “Anime Babe”. Since all anime girls are doomed to love total geeks or other social outcasts, the subject of boyfriends has no bearing on the judges’ final decisions (especially because most of the judges are social misfits too).

Rule Number Four: There must be more to an “Anime Babe” than just looks. She must have “attitude” and the “ability to achieve and maintain” all that her attitude alludes to (don’t ask). Not one or the other (so no Rei Ayanami’s).

Yes, let’s make it official. Rei Ayanami is no babe.

And, yes, you can nominate Rushuna.

Clarification: the original list is not mine.

*****

In the current poll, after several weeks of being neck-and-neck, Naruto has pulled ahead of Neon Genesis Evangelion by five points. I’m a little surprised; I had figured that Evangelion would be an easy winner.

New poll

Which is the most overrated anime series? The candidates are drawn from the responses I’ve seen to this meme.

*****

nanoha

Results of the previous poll: Nanoha Takamachi has the best mahou shoujo costume, according to 28% of the visitors here who voted. This is a bit surprising, because hers is the one with the longest skirt. It’s probably because the first season of Lyrical Nanoha was recently released in region one, and Nanoha is currently the most prominent magical girl. ((Unfortunately, I found the show unwatchable. I stuck it out for four episodes and realized that if I saw that transformation one more time, I would throw up.)) The balletic Princesses Tutu and Kraehe followed Nanoha with 17% and 10%. Others who received votes were Jubei-chan, Kaitou Jeanne, Cure Black, Sailor Moon (both classic and eternal), Sailor Star Healer, Cure White, Pixy Misa and Mew Ichigo. Pretty Sammy and Wedding Peach received no votes.