Author: Don

This might work

When I read that BOST is offering DRM-free downloads of their shows, I figured I ought to check it out. So I registered and purchased the minimum quantity of BOST “points” (a disorienting process: the PayPal page was initially specific to Japan, but I live in Kansas, not Kansai). My first download was the iPod-ready version of the The Tower of Druaga‘s initial episode. There were problems. My first attempt to download the file last night stalled at 56 megabytes. I tried again this morning and got the entire 84 megabytes in five minutes. However, the episode wouldn’t play in VLC or QuickTime; according to the former, there was a “moov box” missing from the file. Grrr. I wrote a couple of sarcastic paragraphs about BOST earlier today, but before posting them, I downloaded the PSP version to see if that would play.

I’m relieved to note that it does work in VLC. The image size is 480 by 272 pixels, not generous, but large enough so that subtitles are easily readable. Hitherto, legal downloading schemes involved DRM and were Windows-only, both deal-breakers. $2 for a freely-watchable mp4 I can live with. Now let’s hope BOST offers shows that are worth watching.

Oh, yeah, about The Tower of Druaga. The first episode is apparently a one-off spoof of RPGs. I found it rather tedious, but if you are a gamer with an encyclopedic knowledge of ’70’s and ’80’s anime, and if you find girls and tentacles an amusing combination, you might enjoy it more than I did.

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Shamus (whose Chainmail Bikini and The DM of the Rings satirize RPGs more entertainingly than Druaga #1) recently posted several classic — if that’s the word — annoying videos. Click at your own risk. Shamus did have the decency not to include badgerbadgerbadgerbadg…. Unfortunately, one of his commenters was not so considerate.

Update: Someone had to go and link to the rathergood.com kittens. At least he didn’t bring up their viking cousins. The miscreant also mentioned this old favorite that I hadn’t seen in years, so I might forgive him.

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If The Kawaii Menace were the name of a book, it would have a 69.0% chance of being a bestselling title, according to the the Lulu Titlescorer. I tested a few other names:

Wonderduck’s Pond — 76.9%
The Ego’s Nest — 69.0%
Mahou Meido Meganekko — 26.3%
Haibane Renmei — 35.9%
Martian Successor Nadesico — 10.2%, 26.3% or 41.4%, depending on how you describe the title
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World — 26.3%
Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, in Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of several Ships — 8.6%

(Via Frëd.)

Oddments

Media Blasters has rescued Seirei no Moribito. Further good news: the first novel in the series that Moribito is based on is scheduled to be published in June. The series also will be shown on Cartoon Network. I look forward to apoplectic reactions from the “meat is murder” crowd when the twentieth episode airs.

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Quote of the week:

As regards Go Nagai, I’m not sure that the creator of Kekko Kamen and Cutey Honey is really the father [of anime] we want to acknowledge. He’s more like the creepy uncle who goes around wearing the trench coat.

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So far, the only upcoming series I plan to watch is Allison to Lillia. The main reason, of course, is that it is based on books by Keiichi Sigsawa, the creator of Kino no Tabi. I recently discovered that the opening and closing themes feature the Kuricorder Quartet, who, as the Kuricorder Pops Orchestra, did the music for Azumanga Daioh.

Update: Astro has posted the opening.

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A few notes on the Anime Blog Awards before I drop the subject forever:

1. As I mentioned before, Rule #10 disqualifies me from participating:

10. You do not have to nominate blogs for all the categories. However, you are required to fill in at least 9 nominations in 9 different categories in order for your nomination to be accepted.

Let’s see: I don’t read manga; I don’t obsess over particular seiyuu; I’m not interested in fan art, doujinshi or visual novels; I don’t collect figurines; my main sources of anime news are not blogs; and, for humor, satire and comics, I’m too spoiled by David Burge, Randall Munroe and their peers to have much interest in their otakusphere counterparts. That leaves at most eight categories in which I might be able to make knowledgeable nominations. Owen, in a comment on my earlier post, says

I got clarification: it’s a guideline, not an absolute rule. It was made in order to scare off those who’d vote in like 1-2 categories for 1-2 people or something. Perhaps you have like 5, 6, 7 potential nominations? That’s fine.

That implies that there are two sets of rules, the official ones posted on the site, and the real rules, which are secret. If that’s the case, then I’m really not interested in being part of this.

2. The categories are rather arbitrary. I can think of several not included that I would rather have seen than some listed, and I expect that you can, too. The worst omission: there should have been a category for “best reviews.” The single most useful service an anime blogger can do is to identify what’s worth my time and explain why. Those who are good at it deserve recognition.

3. The list of blogs nominated so far suggests that the inhabitants of this region of the otakusphere are rather parochial. The awards are popularity contests and you’re inevitably going to see the same sites over and over, but I expected a broader range of nominees. Many of the sites I find most interesting were still missing from the lists last time I checked. Surely I’m not the only one who finds the infrequent updates at AniPages Daily worth the wait. There was exactly one nomination for a mee.nu blog. There is one site in particular I have in mind whose absence from four of the listed categories is inexplicable and renders the competition meaningless (not that that particular blogger gives a damn).

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Nick has posted a collection of short works by Makoto Shinkai on his site.

Monet meets Roger Dean

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Here’s a curiosity: Iblard Jikan. It’s a Studio Ghibli project based on the paintings of Naohisa Inoue of the imaginary world Iblard. There’s no story; instead, it’s thirty minutes of looking at surrealistic paintings. It’s not as dull as it sounds. The paintings are enhanced with discreet animation: rivers sparkle, waves roll up beaches, trams glide on tracks, girls fly. There’s no dialogue, just instrumental music (mostly bland, but a few of the pieces are listenable). If you pay attention to the backgrounds when you watch animated features, you might find Iblard Jikan worthwhile. There are more screen captures below the fold.

Those who enjoy jigsaw puzzles will want to visit this page.

Continue reading “Monet meets Roger Dean”

Shinigami #A-100100

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The typical shinigami, according to K-Ske Hasegawa in Ballad of a Shinigami: Momo, the Girl God of Death, Volume 1, atones for the crime of taking his own life by delivering death and collecting souls. He remembers only his suicide and one memory of his past life. His grim nature is reflected in his black color.

Momo, however, remembers nothing at all about her past life. She may carry a scythe, but she wears white, her hair is white and her complexion is like snow. She wears shiny red shoes. Only her eyes are dark. Unlike other shinigami, who conduct their tasks in a business-like manner, Momo takes an interest in the humans whom she encounters. This exasperates her servant demon, the winged cat Daniel.

Continue reading “Shinigami #A-100100”

Grumbling and muttering

So now there are Anime Blog Awards. Too bad I can’t participate. According to the rules, “… you are required to fill in at least 9 nominations in 9 different categories in order for your nomination to be accepted.” Unfortunately, there aren’t nine categories of anime weblogs with which I am familiar enough to make nominations. Thanks a lot, guys. I notice also that there is no category that applies to The Kawaii Menace, no “most eccentric,” “most frivolous” or “most desultory.”

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One more peculiar search term: “maoist anime.” I can’t think of any series offhand that reflects that point of view, and I’m not particularly interested in finding one. However, if you’d like a maoist interpretation of an anime, here’s a review of Serial Experiments Lain:

A further serious flaw in “Lain:” it makes no references to reality outside of imperialist-countries. The decadence of imperialist society is not just a matter of internal ennui, violence, and f******-up gender relations: it’s also predicated on the imperialists’ oppression and exploitation of the colonies and neo-colonies. “Lain” assumes all of humynity can connect to “the wired.” In our world, less than 10% of the world’s population has internet access (619 million of 6.23 billion).(1) For that matter, countries like Afghanistan, Burma, and Liberia have less than one telephone line per 100 population, and only 28% of India’s population has access to improved sanitary facilities.(2)

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Garfield minus Garfield. (Via Eve Tushnet.)

The real Ai no Senshi

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Angel Lily, Wedding Peach and Angel Daisy

When the world needs saving, Americans turn to superheroes: neurotic, grandstanding, steroid-abusing macho jerks. The Japanese rely on mahou shoujo: pretty girls in short skirts. Advantage: Japan. (The Japanese also call upon giant mecha, for which there is no specifically American equivalent. Advantage: America.)

Different magical girls have different specialties. School girl Momoko Hanasaki, along with her friends Yuri and Hinagiku, is a “love angel.” When agents from the demon world possess humans in attempts to destroy the happiness of those in love, Momoko transforms into “Wedding Peach” and tells the demons that she is extremely displeased. Then she exorcises them with attacks powered by her Love Wave.

I first read about Wedding Peach at T.H.E.M. Anime, where it was invariably mentioned with scorn. As I recall, the review there said it was stupid enough to cause brain damage in children. (That review has since been replaced by a more temperate, but still snide, assessment.) I figured that this was a series I could skip. However, I noticed that reviews elsewhere were more positive. The comments on this thread at Steven’s piqued my curiousity, and when I noticed that the discs were on sale for $4 each, I figured that it might be worthwhile to watch the first and see just how bad it is.

Actually, the first six episodes are quite watchable. Wedding Peach is plainly modeled closely on Sailor Moon (not that surprising, given that the character designer and one of the writers are alumni of the earlier show). However, thus far it seems to be not so much a cheap ripoff of Sailor Moon as Sailor Moon done right. Momoko is not a stupid ditz like Usagi. When she and her friends invoke their superpowers and battle the forces of evil, they’re competent. They don’t have to be rescued every episode by a mysterious yet dorky guy wearing a mask. It’s clear early on that the guy with whom Momoko regularly quarrels is destined to be her romantic interest, and it’s clear to them as well, though they won’t admit it.

It’s also ridiculous. Each of the three girls undergoes a double transformation in becoming a love angel, First she magically dons a wedding gown, which she then changes to a much-abbreviated combat dress. I’ve posted Momoko’s transformation on my video weblog. The long-term story apparently involves finding the evocatively-named “Saint Something Four.” Tongues were in cheeks when this show was made.

I haven’t decided if I’m going to watch the rest of it. It’s not exactly great art. There are any number of better shows available, and unless you have a special interest in magical girls, I don’t recommend it. It’s probably not even that good a substitute for Sailor Moon. Part of the appeal of the latter is the intricacy of the universe developed over the course of five seasons of anime, eighteen tankoubon of manga, three movies, a live-action show and a series of musicals. Wedding Peach offers only a mere 51 episodes plus four OVA episodes.

Definitely kowai

Every time I check the search phrases that lead surfers here, I learn once again that there are some really strange people in the world. Most frightening recent query: “‘president aria’ image gallery hentai.” Then there’s “keroro gunso doujinshi yaoi download.” Yaoi is distasteful enough when it involves humans. Let’s leave the frogs alone, okay?

Other search phrases from the past few weeks worth noting:

shounen comedy martial arts romance action fantasy ecchi harem schoolkids anime — Could you be more specific, please?
bleah — I agree
how to be haruhi
crunchy vs smooth peanut butter personality variables
nekomimi quartet
autistic catgirl
jack the ripper was autistic
sailor moon as a religion — it beats Scientology
transforming boys into girls — there’s a bit too much of that going on
creamed colored precalculus textbooks
are you kawaii or kowai?
kowai clothing
paranoia agent sounds like strawberry fields forever — not really, though “Maromi’s Theme” is a good lullaby for psychotics
rube goldberg clothes in basket
cyberpet adoptions japan wolves

And more variations on the usual theme:

kawaii crimson
kawaii closed roads
kawaii in chicago
kawaii badger
kawaii weather in june
kawaii horror

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Another item for the “ducks in anime” file:

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Ten’s spaceship in episode 2a of Urusei Yatsura.

Breaking the Cycle of Rudeness

Eve Tushnet on Miss Manners:

It’s somewhat startling how many of her rules and guidelines stem from the basic principles of putting others first and protecting them from our rougher feelings: how to write a thank-you note for a present you didn’t like; how to respond to a friend who gets embarrassingly drunk at a party (and how that friend ought to behave the next morning!); how to politely and charitably point out that someone has cut in front of you in a line. Even the correct way to refuse an invitation (apologize, but say no firmly, and don’t make excuses) is concerned in part with sparing others’ feelings: If you say, “I’d love to, but I’m afraid I’ll be flossing my otter,” you not only invite argument and attempts to persuade you away from your excuses. You also let your friends know exactly where they rank on your scale of priorities — possibly above cleaning the gutters, but definitely below otter dental hygiene.

New poll

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Paya-tan

It’s time for a fresh poll. Which creature ((Beelzenef, strictly speaking, isn’t a creature but a hand puppet, but it has more presence than Nekozawa does.)) from recent anime would you most like to see as a plushie? Some of the candidates might be unfamiliar to some visitors here. Paya-tan/Dark Paya (two phases of the same character) is the “crazy and cute” mascot from Dai Mahou Touge, an underappreciated series recommended to those who like their humor black. The mojos are Isako’s helpers in Denno Coil.

As far as I know, none in the poll are yet available in soft and fuzzy form, though there is a President Aria “money box.”

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Dark Paya

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Mojos

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Beelzenef

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I lost interest in the anime Spice and Wolf, but I do like the neo-Renaissance soundtrack. Here’s “Mada Minu Machi he.”

[mp3]http://tancos.net/audio/29 – Mada Minu Machi he.mp3[/mp3]

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The most impressive magical gift of the sailor senshi is their ability to sprint while wearing high heels. It turns out that some ordinary humans also run in stiletto heels. Why, I don’t know. See also the Ukrainian army.

Foolishness

I’ve been following the “March madness” at Derailed by Darry. It’s depressing; it demonstrates yet again that popular taste is a lousy guide to quality. In search of further bad news, I took a close look at the list of the “Top 50 best rated” animes at ANN. ((There are two different lists of the “best,” each calculated differently, but both essentially the same. This one is the “bayesian estimate.”)) Here it is, with my comments:

Continue reading “Foolishness”