When I was in the 5th grade that was around the time I began to notice that more people other then a secluded group of people that I knew were into anime/manga. That was also around the time when I realized Suncoast in the VRC had a whole WALL dedicated to anime.
Around that time I had a discount there so if I spent over a certain amount I'd get $5 coupons and they'd also sent me updates on when they were having sales or a sample of something in a news letter like format. I got a lot of junk from that, a lot of shows that I can guarantee didn't make it past it's first season. But aside from all the junk I got through that monthly news letter, there was one preview that REALLY still today, stands out in my memory:



幽☆遊☆白書 < Yu Yu Hakusho >

The story created by Togashi Yoshihiro starting off as manga series in Weekly Shonen Jump starting on April 10th, 1991 and ending on December 12th, 1994 along with it's 19 book collection.
The series itself begins with a young man Uremeshi Yusuke, a high school delinquent who died very unexpectedly jumping out in front of a car to save a small boy and then getting hit by the car himself. The spirit world not yet having a place for Yusuke's spirit quite yet, decides to give the boy a second chance and gives him an ordeal for him to get his life back.
By the end of volume 2, Yusuke has returned to the living world (sorry to give away spoilers) so one would assume that'd be the end of the series. But no to everyones surprise, the spirit world has other plans for 14 year old Uremishi Yusuke; with Yusuke's hightend spiritual awareness after his death Yusuke gets nominated as Spirit Detective of earth where Yusuke reluctantly gets orders from pilot of the river sticks (grim reaper) Botan, gangs up with an old enemy and 2 other "good" demons to save the world from demonic insects, fat business men and more.
The series itself while not sounding like much defiantly has more going for it then most would assume. Unlike many detective manga/anime Yu yu Hakusho does not rely on one repetitive case after another. (such as Detective Conan or The Kindaichi Case files ) Yu Yu Hakusho while hardly being a mystery show at all more like a action adventure story goes from story arc to story arc meeting new characters, having the characters learn new techniques and in general advancing the plot.
Around the early 2000's this series was brought to the states and the fans of anime at the time were given a sneak peak with a one episode samplier disc sent by Suncoast. From the first episode I was hooked. (and was EXTREMELY happy to see Adult Swim give it s spot every Saturday)
Being around 11 years old at the time, I was not exposed too many varieties of anime--I mostly knew stuff like Cardcaptor Sakura, Rayearth and maybe something like Corrector Yui. The closest thing I had ever seen to YYH was Ranma1/2 and I'm sure even the youngest of anime fans can understand the difference and how mind blowing such a series like YYH was at the time.Especially for someone like myself, who just can't (even to this day) get enough of the stuff.
when I was in grade school, especially around the time that I got into YYH, I was a goody-goody student, I did my homework and always did everything in my power to not get into any fights. So when I saw the main character Yusuke, who not only rebelled but also wasn't afraid of what might happen if you beat this kid up, if you say what you want--I couldn't help but idolize it. A life style that I never had, was curious about and admired greater then I think I could really admit to myself at the time.
The second thing that stood out for me was the wittiness of the show. Sure Ranma1/2 had some good gags, but they were nothing like YYH. Also,the idea of a god in the body of a baby was great, and even better that such an important character to the story with such high class could often be just as if not more immature then the main character/s who were only around 14 years of age while Koenma would have to at least 3 times their ages.
Overall the show was fun, had good/fun characters and and had interesting battles that did not feel the need to follow the "DragonBall Z effect" of having one fight go on for fifty episodes longer then it had to.
The show was so popular that in 2006 it got 15th place out of 100 ranking it to be considered one of the best anime of all time. Many might say that it doesn't matter considering that YYH didn't even make it in the top 10, but if you consider the hundreds of thousands of various manga and anime titles that are out there today, you should realize that even making the list at all is a huge accomplishment in itself.
Another thing that made me very impressed with YYH was the anime was aired starting in 1992 and has better animation then most anime around 1995-1996--not saying a lot, but considering it was 1992 I can say they really worked hard to complete the 112 episodes and give them such a punch that many anime lack even to this very day.
I think all around (especially considering it's time) YYH is a good and fun series. It's a shonen series but even so it still seems to have bits of everything, fighting, good jokes, character development/depth and even a little romance. The 112 episode TV series although may be a bit pricey, I think is well worth it and a great addition to any Anime fans library.

Along with the TV series 2 OAV movies were made: The Golden Seal and Bonds of Fire.
Upon hearing about these two movies as a kid I was more then excited and spent quite a few weeks dreaming about what kind of movies they might be and what I could possibly expect. I would first like to say that the movies plots weren't that bad and for animation the movies surpassed the TV show with flying colors but I have one huge complaint for each movie:
The voices.
This may have been one of the leading reasons why I am not into dubs at all. Now, I will admit to watching the dub of YYH as a child (this was before too many dvds were out mind you I didn't have much choice) so growing up I grew used to watching YYH with Yusuke played by Justin Cook and Kuwabara played by the same guy who played Vegeta in DBZ. I was used to it. And was actually (I cannot believe I'm saying this) a pretty decent dub from Funimation. If nothing else the actors could act. I can't say this for the last two movie.
For Bonds of Fire (also known as Poltergeist Report) the acting was like elementary kids playing with little plastic sheep at recess. The plot for the movie was fine, it was fair, not the most original, but thats okay, it was the early 90's after all and for the most part minus Hinageshi, the movie lived up to most YYH fans standards.
YYH the movie ( Golden Seal ) was so bad that I guess they couldn't get too much funding cause it was only 30 minutes long with a generic plot of someone getting kidnapped and Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama and Hiei having to go and find them while bringing something along with them for an exchange. This movie was an embarrassment and if nothing else is something you need to see just so you and all your YYH buddies can sit around and cry together about how much you expected from it (you can really say that about both movies) and how much each of them let you down in so hard.

Again, avoid the movies (Unless I guess if you watch it in Japanese or something) and stick to the TV series. It's good. It's funny and a great taste of one of the few things the early 90's actually did right.
So that all being said, to my fellow YYH fans and to those wondering what it's like, here's my review, two thumps up. If you haven't already, go watch it, you don't know what you're missing.

Welcome back for "American Manga equals CRAP" part 2--If you haven't read part one I would highly suggest you do so before reading, thank you:



The image above is one of the covers to the American manga/webcomic "Aoi House" written by Adam Arnold, with art by Shiei, and published by Seven Seas Entertainment.
http://www.gomanga.com/webmanga/index.php?series=aoi
The story to Aoi House is pretty simple, basically two male Anime fans who get kicked out of their dorm room and find themselves rooming with five Yaoi Fangirls (Hints the name "Aoi" short for "Yaoi"--a bit of a joke due to the Y on the door falling off) where their "Normal" college life isn't so normal anymore and they have a bunch of crazy anime/Yaoi-themed adventures while trying to (literally) watch their asses.
Never having heard of this story before, regardless of it's "Love Hina" feel, I thought it would be something I would at least be able to get a good kick out of. Being an Anime Nerd myself and in the mood for a little excitement (before even realizing it was a webcomic) I bought the first volume "Omnibus Collection" part one and read it on my way back from Denver to Eugene when flying in after seeing my boyfriend.
I was never expecting a very serious story and especially after seeing other American series published into the market I was certainly was not expecting a masterpiece. While the art was never what I'd consider original, by any means, I was happy to see it was decent, proportioned and to say the least, solid.
All that being said, I am STILL AMAZED at how BAD this story is:

My first issue was the characters. Let's start with our two main heros:
Alexis "Alex" Roberts and Sandy Grayson. (if we must recap the two who are now rooming with the Yaoi crazed girls)
Alex is a pretty guy who as explained by the author, and I quote: "Alex is an everyman. Not Gym crazy but quasi-athletic." (his words, not mine) "He's the clean cut regular guy type"--with "bishonen" looks. (AKA for no imagination went into him, a simple character was needed) "He is a one part regular guy type and one part Otaku guy type" ( Don't even get me started on how many things are wrong with THAT statement.)
Then we have Sandy,(ironically the fat one) and I quote: "Sandy is the absolute epitome of an Obsessed Otaku." ( Isn't using the word "Otaku" already implying his "obsession"?--and I'll say he is, he's fat, has bad glasses and looks like he got hit by a truck--thanks a lot.) He's also apparently "pale skinned, sunburns easily easily" but it is still noted that he "Does enjoy the beach (because of the girls)" And he even has a pet Hamster nicknamed the "Panty Hamster".....yeah, exactly. I think we can all just let it out: Wow.
So...what is my problem...? I'll tell you what my problem is!:
These two characters alone are the most uncreative, stereotyped characters I've ever seen. I can honestly say in just reading their character bios alone that this "Adam" guy wasn't even TRYING when he thought these two up. These two are the MAIN characters! I swear, talking to these two is probably just as fun as watching paint dry or talking to a piece of cardboard.
Well that's fine, right? I mean, as shown from popular shows like Naruto, it's always the side characters that are good and creative, yes? Hahaha...no.
The five Yaoi fangirls who they share their dorm room with are every single over-used character type ever created!(and I am not making this up):

-The bitchy leader girl with a secret soft side
-The semi-lesbian tough chick
-The shy girl with huge boobs
-The "OMGSUPAKAWAIIINYA" girl

Add "the Mascot" and "The cool guy" and "His fat nerd friend" to the list and we've got a full set. Oh but wait...look at that, we do! You know what that tells me?
This tells me that this comic is nothing more then some shits and giggles for some wannabe Manga artist who is too busy jerking off while watching things like Love Hina and Happy Lesson to be able to create characters that are least slightly original to the point where you don't get pissed off anime fans having to write and complain about it on their livejournals!
A boring (over-used) plot makes for a boring comic. The story literally goes nowhere.
Now as stated above, I was not excepting this comic to be incredible I was expecting some good laughs and maybe some funny references here and there from some of the older and more classic of series and I guess to be fair, they have me at least half of what I wanted. They had jokes and references which was fine, but I can imagine that if you don't know the series, it's just boring.
Unfortunately,the jokes are repetitive and get old, FAST. From literally the page you get introduced to the main cast it's a never ending tirade of "pantie" and "Yaoi" jokes (We get the girls like Yaoi, give it a REST! ) that are not only stupid but an over dramatized stereotype of what a Narutard looks like minus the Naruto.
There is this ongoing theme in Aoi House it seems of stereotypes and lets see how stupid we can make this character/stereotype look. It's just not funny.
And to be honest, being a anime/yaoi fan myself I am deeply insulted by this comic. ( probably one of the big things that makes me hate it so much) Sometimes joking around with a stereotype is fun and if done right can make a great series. ( Take Genshiken for example )
Just because you're into Anime does not mean you play DDR and live off of boxes of Ramune. It also does not mean you're fat and are a total fucking loser and eat candy all day long.
And just because you're into Yaoi does not mean you make stupid rules about any guys in your dorm must always take a shower with another man, it does not mean you become a mindless pussy-wooped slave when you see a pretty guy!
I realize this comic is suppose to be funny, but you know what? It's not. It's immature, stupid and a waste of space. It seriously never ends with this series. It's like every time you sit there being like: "It can't get any worse" it proves you wrong and adds in just one more joke in there that makes you wanna piss yourself out of frustration. This series is not only an insult to Manga/Yaoi fans-alike but it's also an insult to the comic book industry.

Knowing that Aoi House was a webcomic made me feel a little bit better about this series. As most people who read webcomics on a regular basis knows, for everyone one webcomic there is at least 50 if not 100 bad ones. So as far as art goes (at the very least) Aoi House is not the worst thing in the on going webcomic library.
Having known that I relaxed for a second and you know, understood and didn't think it was too bad. But then I thought: "Wait a minute, this is a disaster!"
What the hell was Seven Seas Entertainment THINKING when they published this thing?!?!?!
Tokyopop with its rising Stars of Manga contest as least didn't have a choice, they HAD to pick the BEST ones that were submitted ( which for many, I would hate to see what some of those books won against) but for Seven Seas they have NO excuse, none. I mean, I can't even laugh about it. It's like, of ALL the webcomics out there that were good enough to actually publish and make a contract with they picked Aoi House.....? Are you KIDDING me?!
This webcomic had every flaw imaginable when it comes to making a comic. Bad characters, poor plot and it not only got published but it has an ACTUAL fanbase? Now that's what really kills me. I looked up reviews on this stupid thing and they were GOOD. How? I don't get it. This thing was like a never ending waterfall of a three day diarrhea problem where your insides feel like they're being burned off you one hunk of guts at a time! I'm not even trying to be funny, it's terrible.
This comic is a terrible and in general a huge disappointment. I HONESTLY cannot believe how BAD it is!
If this kind of book is released by a manga fan ABOUT manga fans then what is the world coming to? The reason us Manga fans are stereotyped and have such a negative rap about us is because of filth like this. And it's not just a rap against the fans themselves but crap like this also give the people who actually would like to be taken seriously in the manga/comic book industry a bad time.
The thing I find even funnier, after going on his site and reading some of the forums I read his comments and whatever at the bottom of the each page of the comic and this guy is hilarious cause he takes himself SO seriously. It's like, how? You not only gave yourself but every manga/yaoi fan EVER a horrible rep, your jokes aren't funny and to top it all off, the only reassuring thing to know about your comic is that if something THAT crappy can get published just about anything can.
Aoi House is an insulting, boring, over-used themed story for very little in between. My review on this manga today was to show everyone exactly what I'm talking about as far as crap American Manga coming into our bookstores. Give us some variety, have some respect for yourself and for your fellow fans and for gods sake make something someone would actually want to read.

So, My final thoughts are:

Aoi House is nothing more then a huge (bad) joke and not worth wasting any more of your time on. It sucks.

Don't read it.

Over the last maybe five plus years there has been a rise in Female comic book creators. Back around anywhere before probably the mid-90's comics (at least in the states) were a "Boys Thing", very few, if any, girls were into comics--much less writing or drawing them.
With the introduction of Manga however around 1982 and the rise in popularity has not only gotten boys but also girls of all ages from five years old to adults into comics. ( and no, not just fat men living in their mothers basements)
Back when I was still in elementary school was when I think manga/anime REALLY started to get noticed here. I remember when I first started watching things like DBZ and Gundam Wing on Toonami and then started watching things like YuyuHakusho and from there Inuyasha on Toonami's big brother Adult Swim. (this being before I knew the glories of the internet and Emerald City comics mind you)
With probably only a few short years did Tokyopop (one of the top leading manga industries ever) come out with their "Rising Stars of Manga" contest which seemed to spark a sensation.
I know for myself as a younger kid, reading Ranma1/2 or even around the time I got into things like Paradise Kiss, One Piece or Kare Kano that I would love to be able to make manga for a living. I had artistic ability, a weird imagination for a kid and an even weirder, if not stronger, sensation to create manga. But because places like Marvel were ( or so I'd heard ) very anal about the Japanese ways of making comics I didn't see it happening.
But then by some miracle, Tokyopop realized a way to let people achieve their goals and started the "Rising Stars of Manga" competition which has led to many new authors (SEVERAL female) as well as titles in the industry. Everything seemed great.
But wait...maybe not.

Because I don't wanna step on too many peoples toes, I'm going to make this as vague as possible:

Tokyopop for all their hard work, is quite impressive, they've scored a lot of good if not excellent series, and they know how to market. They're not a bad company in the least. However, I'm disappointed with several of the titles they chose (through the Rising Stars gig or not) to publish and slap their logo on.
My first complaint of course is their over all lack of imagination. And no, I am not just referring to the stories. The stories are all aimed at the same audience! Not too much they can do about that considering of course, Tokyopop needs something they can market. And as we all know it tends to get a bit tricky to market to several audiences with mature themed stories.
The stories are cute sure, I mean let's face it, who doesn't like something with some slap stick humor or something in the daily life of a "stereotyped" character? They're not all bad but most of the stories feel forced.
Which brings me to the art issue ( and again, this does not apply to every comic out there) a lot of this "manga" is not manga-like at all. Lots of it looks like American comics with a few manga-like undertones. What a joke.
Another thing with the art, is that many of these artists who are fortune enough to win looked like they learned "manga" from the "How to draw Manga" books. Which is fine, if that's how you were taught but isn't one of the deciding factors for becoming an artist of ANY kind having at least a slightly original style???? Their art looks like nothing more then an advertising vehicle! Jesus.......
And finally plot:
Let's be honest, having a good idea for a story is a lot harder then it looks and just because you have a good story does NOT mean your story will be good. For many of these stories, the idea behind it....sucked and was written even shittier. I can understand not wanting to give your story that you've been working on for years to Tokyopop out of fear of having your baby be branded, logod and raped up the ass by money-slut of a company. But that is no excuse for shit writing and a crap story, I'm sorry.
The characters dialogue (a huge personal pet peeve of mine) was weak and made it sound like the author either a) did not know her characters or the most likely, b) crap writing.

I can not stress enough that not ALL American Manga is crap but I can say that lots, if not most is.
It's frustrating and seemingly nothing but a huge joke. These stories play off Manga as basically nothing more then Sunday morning cartoons with a slightly longer plot line and a slightly manga-themed feel. The characters are weak, the plots are weak and there are few exceptions.
As an artist and as a hardcore Manga/Anime fan, I am insulted by the crap coming into the American Market.

Like you're going to see in Part 2 of this rant with a review of the Manga/Web comic "Aoi House" sometimes there are reasons why people hate anime fans so much......Have fun--the worst has yet to come.


++ See you all in Part 2 ++

By "they" I'm talking about Funimation.
You know, you'd think you'd get used to it after a while but...you really don't.
So, as I'm sure you can all assume Funimation has dubbed yet another series. No surprise I guess considering they're a major dubbing company in the United States and because they seem to have quite the popularity with the runnings on Adult Swim, something as "crazy" as them dubbing yet another show shouldn't be THAT big of a deal, right?
Well Sure...okay, let's go with that for a second: Funimation was founded in 1994, Fort worth Texas and since then has dubbed quite a few Animated series. Want a list? Here we go, some of the bigger anime given to the states by this company:
DragonBallZ, Fullmetal Panic, Fullmetal Alchemist, Fruits Basket, Detective Conan ( Case Closed dub), Kodocha and many many more....
Now many of you are probably like: "Oh sweet deal, I lovez that show! That show is badass! I watch it on TV all the times!"
Yeah. Alright. Most if not all these shows ARE good, no lie there. But doesn't it piss you off to know that this company who is so loyally sending you anime is cheating you? That's right. As many may or may not know, when Funimation ( 4Kids & Nelvana is guilty of this too on a much wider scale, but that's for a bit later. ) dubs shows they not only edit out "Mature content" ( I can understand editing out a bit but if you need to edit it SO much that you change the story then maybe the show of choice really doesn't belong on TV to begin with.)
They also change characters names and along with this often characters personalities.
Many love to argue that the character is the same person with the original voice and that it really doesn't matter one way or another because either way they enjoy their show of choice.
.....How wrong you people are. Now, just because a character is dubbed, even by such assholes like Funimation,4Kids or any other company does not mean for certain that the character is going to be different. But in my experience often times, 4kids & Nelvana especially love to change things not only in a characters voice but also in how they act.
In the 2000's Nelvana released the series "Cardcaptors" which did incredibly well here, and for a bubbly magic oriented show that was aimed at younger girls, it wasn't too bad.
Now if you've seen any of the show you know Sakura Kinomoto--oops, I mean Avalon, my bad. Her original name I guess was just too Japanes for us Americans. And with Sakura ( how did we manage to keep her first name Japanese and not her last...? ) I'm sure you remember Sakura's friend Tomoyo--oops again, "Madison Taylor".
This shit bugs the white balls out of me, I can understand wanting to give out shows that will do well in the states so your company can make money...but Madison Taylor? If you can get over the name change....I pity and admire you. But on a possitive note, shouldn't we just be happy "Madison" and Tomoyo are the same person?
Wait, what? Tomoyo is quite and cutesy while "Madison" is very valligal and preppy? Oops.

At this point you're probably like: "Hold up Julious, that series was released in the 2000's, it's old news, nobody does that anymore--and why are you bringing up 4Kids and Neva-whatever when you said you'd be talking about Funimation, Funimation doesn't do that does it?"
In a lot of series that Funimation does it's true within the last few years, I'd even be willing to say 6 years, the company has gotten a lot better about not doing the stereotyping changing rice balls to American snacks, toning down violence or changing peoples ethnic background for the "good" of the show and the ratings it might get for toning down it's content and showing how "Ani"recism it is by giving everything SUCH an American feel! ( go fuckin' 4Kids...)
However, even Funimation, regardless of not being as bad as 4Kids ( or is it ) still has it's problems, name Proncounciation--not the BIGGEST problem in the world, toning things down as well as craping out shit voice actors due to a limited staff thus often changing feelings of characters and their personalities.
But at least they don't change names anymore, yeah?
HAH!
I wish.
Many know my rant about what they did to Meitantei Konan ( Detective Conan ) in their remake/dub of it "Case Closed" so I'll keep this short:
Changing the title although frusterating, I do realize that it was out of their control, the name "Conan" in the states has already been copy written and at this point there was not much else they could do. However, I highly doubt the rest of the Japanese names were copy written as well:
Kudo Shinichi = Jimmy Kudo
Mouri Ran = Rachel Moore
Hattori Heiji = Harley Hartwell (...yeah....what????)

Ugh. I thought dubbing companies had gotten over this shit, I mean I know even 4Kids although it's been a TOUGH TOUGH transaction for them as even gotten better.....
Funimation must have been taking one hell of shit out their dick when they decided on this crap. Jesus Christ.

So with Funimation releasing the anime of Ouran Koko Hosutobu ( Ouran High School Host Club )


http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=6122


I can't help but feel scared and at the very least.....annoyed.
I guess I should be greatful that it's not done by companies like 4Kids or whatever but god....but with Funimations sudden back slide into crap translations and changing not only names but personalalities and so on....well, let's just say I am far from greatful.

If anyone watches the horrid dub of this show let me know...or....if it's too shitty don't tell me....cause...that'd suck hard.....Gah....

Fuck I hate Funimation....

4Kids needs get kicked in the bean bag off a cliff though....doucheberries....

This is NOT mine! This was done by an artist on DA. http://ojamajodoremidokkan.deviantart.com/
Check out her stuff, please!

Now, I know that normally my posts are anime related ( don't worry guys and gals I have another anime related post coming your way! ) But this was just so funny I couldn't pass it up.
I love when people make little comics/pictures like this With their own characters or with characters they like and/or hate. I am going to try and do it more often cause it's fuckin' awesome. I think I could make some coolio ones with Kai....

Kai: ....So you're going to make me Gay, Stupid or Dead.....?
Me: Um....well...That wasn't the ORIGINAL plan but....
Kai: .....
Me: ....Don't give me that look.
Kai: I hate you....

OFF TO A GREAT START!!!!

Although I keep meaning to write some more actual reviews due to lack of inspiration or otherwise, I seem to have other things to write about first.
Todays topic is going to be something rather classic but at the same time an interesting point that I hope some will notice and give their much appreciated impute on:
As I believe we’ve also noticed, anime and manga over the course of maybe five or so years has increased in popularity. Manga in every book store, the wide-eyed, stylized bodies expressed in art projects for school, the unique over dramatic varied storylines increasing in written works or in the daily fantasies of how life should be ---and finally, if nothing else I’m sure the increase of Japanese phrases in the most out of place and awkward times has been noticed. Which brings me to my next point:
I’m sure when you think of an “Anime fan” or even “Anime Otaku” you all get a mental image. In the teen section of the library, you see them. They’re around the manga section seeing if the next volume of Inuyasha, Naruto or Fruits Basket is finally in stock. They have brightly dyed hair, generally wear something either incredibly colorful with many layers, or something simple like jeans and a t-shirt that says something along the lines of “I heart Anime” or something clearly showing off their anime fandom. Accessories generally include, side shoulder bags, buttons and anime themed items like Naruto key chains hanging from their bags or something remotely Japanese looking. Cat ears are also not uncommon ( in stereotype and theory only )
As far as physical image everyone has their own way of dressing and style of body movement, either by choice or my social group. Generally speaking, although noticeable, the anime fans choice of dress is not what draws such a negative stereotype around the community. You all probably know where I’m going with this: It’s the shrieking, the giggling and the never ending anime/manga talk.
It’s one thing to shriek and giggle with your friends. That’s totally understandable—male or female, regardless of age, we all have weird things we do and ways we act around people we feel close to, friends, family or otherwise. As we all know how, styles of speech vary from every person, group to group, country to country. Preps say “cool”, Jocks say “sweet”, Computer geeks say “Indubitably”. Regardless, stereotype or not, chances are that a group of people and/or friends have different ways of speaking to one another. This is no exception for the anime obsessed fangirls/boys of this generation.
As you’ve probably noticed from going to one or more Anime conventions, spent some quality time at a local book store, or even encountered one of these “Anime Freaks” you are probably familiar (even if you don’t know the full meaning) of some of the daily vocabulary of this particular group.
Fangirls especially while posing and doing the Peace sign will shriek and yell things like: “KAWAII! NARUTO! SUKI SUKI SUKI KAWAII! SASUKE AND NARUTO ARE SO KAWAII!!!” regardless of who they’re talking to. And if you don’t agree with them or say something they find to be out of line like: “I personally don’t like anime.” Or “I’m more of a fan of (insert random anime title here)” you’ll get a tirade of: “OMG! Naruto is the BEST thing ever! BAKA! BAKA! INUBAKA! I speak Japanese and you don’t, you BAKA!” (I have been a personal witness to this exact situation)
If it’s not the continuous jabbering and giggling and attack of “crazed fan” that gets you it’s the never ending anime talk.
There is a kid at my school named Brad. He’s not only into anime but video games as well. As nice as Brad is and as great as his intentions are for engaging in cheerful conversation with the people around him, he is my prime example and my main inspiration for this article.
Brad literally NEVER stops talking. And I am not just exaggerating. If you’re not hearing him say something like: “KOWAII!” “KAWAII” Or “OHAYO GOZAIMASU!” (pronounced wrong mind you) you are hearing nothing but something that happened in the most recent volume of Ranma1/2, Inuyasha or Evangelion volume that he’s read and/or how he LOVES Japan and how since he LOVES anime so much he automatically knows EVERYTHING there is to know about it.
And while everyone is different and yes, it is not fair to make assumptions based on one person, he is not the only person I have personally seen do this or something very similar. I have noticed that the majority of anime fans I run into and/or hear about now-a-days are one of two kinds of people. They are either the hyper active “I love Japan” J-pop listening, Pocky eating, Naruto headband wearing, DDR playing fangirls(boys) you see at cons running around and glomping any of their favorite character in site;
or like the anime elitist. One who knows everything about not only Japan but everything about anime simply because they watch the shows on Adult Swim every night and not just that, but because they think (insert random popular anime title here) is the BESTEST-BEST-THING-EVER since strawberry poptarts.

( I personally believe a lot of fans bring these stereotypes upon themselves.)


Anime over a short amount of time, especially with in the last five years has skyrocketed in popularity. It’s everywhere, there is literally no book store that doesn’t sell manga. You can’t go into a Walmart or even a Starbucks without someone being a fan of XXX such a show, liking XXX such a manga or at least having a good pal who’s into it.
I think it goes without saying that manga is popular. I think it also goes without saying that there are stereotypes that linger around this fan base not only in the States or in Japan but all around the globe.
No matter how you look at it, manga got noticed by boys, girls and people of all ages kids, teens and adults. Anime and manga took the united states by storm. Fangirling, fanfics being written, anime clubs being attended, book stores being swarmed, crazy amount of views on adult swim being viewed. It’s a conspiracy. Without a doubt anime has been noticed by the media at large.
So here’s an interesting thought for everyone:
Why hasn’t the media done more with this up rise of anime popularity?

Now, before I go on I know you’re all probably like: “Julie, that’s stupid. They sell magazines, action figures, they have CONVENTIONS about this frickin’ stuff cause they KNOW that people FUCKING LOVE IT.”
Yes, that’s true. All these things being imported from Japan. And while yes, it’s for sure out there and readily available and the media ( TV, books, magazines, CDs ext.) are making more then enough money I’m surprised that more companies such as Disney or even local places like Starbucks haven’t gotten the hint and used it for more of an advertising vehicle.
Before anyone gets on my case about this, I would like to just say very fast that I am personally happy they haven’t done this(yet). Especially considering that so many series already get whored out to such companies like Funimation or 4Kids and brainwash todays youth with their late night showings of Death note, Inuyasha, Samurai Champloo or FLCL. But hear me out—
If people clearly love this stuff SO much that not only will they stay up WAY past their bedtime to watch the show, buy ANY form of merchandise they can get their hands on, dress up as their favorite characters from their favorite shows and if nothing else if people get the inspiration to want to LEARN ANOTHER LANGUAGE why is it that no one else has seen this and thought about trying to control that fandom to make even MORE money?

Look what they did with Harry Potter. At first it was just a popular book or few books but in no time at all it took seemingly the world by storm and before any of us knew it, it was being translated in other languages, the movies were coming out, they had owl stuffed animals only making it special cause it had a Harry Potter tag on it, they had pencil boxes, glue sticks even fake round rim glasses. Everyone was screaming Harry Potter, kids and parents alike couldn’t get enough of the stuff and the media was having no problem in taking advantage of the fans and their love for Harry Potter and turned it into an advertising ploy that makes thousands if not millions of dollars.
It doesn’t make sense to me. Anime has been around for YEARS now in the states, starting with shows like: pokemon, Digimon, Sailor Moon, DragonBallZ, Cardcaptor Sakura, Gundam Wing and on to things like Fushigi Yuugi, Utena, .hack//sign or Fruits Basket. I mean, I was watching DragonBallZ on TV back when it was just starting to come out , and so were many other young kids my age.
The fandom has only grown from there. Welcoming the oh so popular father of Toonami, Adult Swim which ratings sprouted various other shows along with the toys and magazines we see today at stores and at Conventions.
So if it’s been around for SO long and is obviously just getting more popular then what’s the deal? I have to wonder what’s stopping them or if they just haven’t thought about it.
Anime and manga have everything if not more things for it then Harry Potter has. People, as I’ve stated before, fucking love this stuff. Now, it may be wrong to compare anime with Harry Potter but I believe it’s a very similar concept.

Half of me won’t be surprised if in five to ten years from now the media will blast with this huge anime phase where EVERYTHING will be “Japanimation” and it will be “cool” and the media will act like it was never here before and that Everything has to be anime and anime and manga will become the next Abercrombie & Fitch or Spongebob Squarepants fascination.
But another theory someone very close to me pointed out was that it probably will never happen because Anime and Manga seems to be an underground group. Not that people don’t notice or care but it’s just not something a lot of companies don’t want to mess with. The same idea with why just because many like 100% Cranberry juice for example, doesn’t mean the whole world is going to go insane and turn 100% Cranberry juice into something that’s way blown out of proportion.

I have a lot of mixed feelings on these points and I apologize if I what I was saying was a bit random and if my thoughts didn’t connect or create a clear picture of what I was really trying to say.


Let’s hear what others have to say about the topic/s……

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This is my baby Griffith from the Anime/Manga series BERSERK.

As most of you know I may like a lot of characters in anime/manga. ( Seemingly most of the pretty male ones...) Now, like most, I do fangirl but unlike many I usually keep my fangirl moments to myself or at the very least to my close friends. And I NEVER draw fanart. (not that fanart is bad)

Until now.
I am OBSESSED with Griffith. I have him as my background. And and it seems like every time I pick up a pencil I seem to start drawing Griffith!!! ( no joke )
I have been drawing him all over EVERYTHING!!!! I've been drawing him in very erotic poses with perky nipples, putting his hands through his hair and cuddling with muscly Guts having Guts say things like: "My sword is REALLY big!"
It's pretty intense.

I am a huge anime buff. Anything from something old and classic like Doraemon to something a bit more modern day and serious like Death Note, I love anime. But like many, I don't just watch to see what'll happen but I watch to see WHAT makes it good, see character development. I basically pay attention so small detail and enjoy analyzing the anime, good or bad, for it's most redeeming and it's worst qualities. I also enjoy discussion.
I saw the Detective Conan movie ( in USA: Case Closed) "The Fourteenth Target" tonight. It's on the old side because it was one of the first Conan movies made in 1998. Even though the animation wasn't great, the story was well thought out, the characters were in Character, there was character development everywhere and it has plenty of action with a bit of romance. It was by far one of my favorite Conan movies and defiantly a classic. Much better then some of the more recent up to date movies that have been released within the last few years.
Now, I have mainly two reasons for bringing this movie up and that'll help bring me to my next point. Although I do love discussion, many fans aren't into discussing something media related ( anime/movie/TV or not) in the least and simply say: "It's just a show. Get over it." It's really discouraging, because for MANY movies, animated films or not there are many people that work VERY hard to make these movies as good as they are. And a lot of famous screenwriters and artists write and draw out these beautiful/amazing stories for a reason. (like Miyazaki's films for example) and these movies ( to me anyway) feel like they were made to be talked about and aren't just some filler entertainment to laugh at like Family Guy.

So Here's my question, ( sorry for the ramble ) Do you watch your anime/movies like I do? ( even look through comics in the same way) and is it ever hard to find good conversation when you want to express your thoughts about the movie you just watched and get opinions from others?
Do you watch to watch or are you watching for something more?

Okay gang,
I was with a friend last night and we were watching one of the first discs of Yugioh in Japanese! Everyone is SO homosexual in that show and it's flipping awesome!
And also, I mean jeez, calm down Yugi. He's a flippin' nerd and he's wearing bondage, wtf?
The subtitles are SO funny! I usually just kinda scan over them when there's something I really can't understand. The subtitles meant to say the name: Pegasus J. Crawford (ペガサス・ジェイ・クロフォード Pegasasu Jei Kurofodo) but instead for SOME reason, the subtitles said: Pacassi Helenfaki. Yeeaahhhh...weird. I didn't realize that Peggy suddenly had a name change and somehow became Italian. I was like: "WHAT????" I don't get it. I am SOOOO confused! ( I am SUCH a Peggy fangirl after watching the Japanese version!!! Wow. He is AMAZING! ...Although Yami is STILL my Number one. *rapes* )

People have been pissing me off lately and I'm going to tell you why. Now this is going to be very similar to one of my favorite little rants by Lanipator on youtube (he's awesome)
  http://youtube.com/watch?v=r1mZJR7aogw  only not so much about video games but not exactly about anime either but something esle. So here goes:
People have the right to like or dislike anything they want and express their opinion freely. At least in the US where we have Freedom of Speech. Now, I personally don't like Naruto. I just don't. I love reading fanfiction and looking at fanart ( as long as it's gay) but for the most part I just do not like Naruto. Now, I have nothing against anyone who likes it and for the record, Naruto's not a TERRIBLE show, and to be fair, as I think I have said many times before, having a ninja with a bright orange jump suit is pretty cool. But it's still not like it's the most amazing anime on the face of the planet. There are a LOT of other anime and manga out there that are JUST as good if not better. ( in my personal opinion ) I just find it f-ing bullshit when you say: "Yeah, Naruto's okay but I'm not much of a fan" and you get a bunch of shit about it. It's like: God dude, calm down. I'm not dissing YOU, I'm just saying I PERSONALLY DO NOT LIKE THIS SHOW.
Jeez. Now, as many of you know, I HATE the character Keiko from Yuyu Hakusho. I just flat out don't like her. And I'll tell you why: At the beginning fo the series she was fine. The series was made in 1992 and for the time period, Keiko was at LEAST decent. She was the tough smart girl and the to-be girlfriend of the main character Urameshi Yusuke. But as time went on she grew to be like EVERY OTHER girlfriend character out there. whiny, annoying and just flat out irritating. And as I have stated to MANY, I find her to be a waste of space. She had the potential to be a GOOD character and yet they did NOTHING with her. ThAT is why I don't like her. I don't give a rats ass if anyone else likes her, in fact, power to them, I mean shit, she's THERE, SOMEONE had better like
her.
A few months back, I found this picture on DA of Botan having just chopped off Keiko's head. And so I commented on it saying I personally don't like her and I liked the pic. And me and the artist over time started having little discussions through these messages and so on. This has been going on for months now. ( recently not as often )
Randomly I get this message the other day from this gal whom I have never talked to before commenting on what I said about the pic being like: OMG KEIKO HATER BURN IN HELL!!! ( not naming any names )
See now, this is what I'm talking about. Now, I don't like having my favorite characters bashed either, but jeez, I don't take it as a fucking personal insult if someone happens to not like the same character/s I do and choose to say so. If I don't wanna look at fanart or fanfiction about something annoying happening to my favorite characters I don't look at them. It's that simple.
This girl was doing everything I hate and is one of those people I think ( in my personal opinion ) gives Anime fans a bad name. She totally attacked me and EVERYBODY who said anything remotely negative about Keiko with the same slanderous filth flamer message because they chose to state an opinion openly about a character that they don't like.
I don't mind people stating their opinion and telling me: "Hey you know I actually like this character and this is why--Lalalala~" I can respect others opinions, I may not AGREE with them, but I have no problem respecting their view/s. I told her I wasn't bashing her and I told her right away I did not like her littering my mail folder with her garbage and that with such passions of defending Keiko and being 18 years of age ( at least in her profile ) that she would have the respect AND the maturity to be a little more mature about the situation and actually state her side rather then rudely insult everyone who had a slightly different opinion then she did. She even acted like SHE was the victim, like she was some how wronged. I don't know about anyone else but I told her that I was sorry we hurt her feelings but this IS a free Art Community and if she doesn't like what people are drawing or what their views are and can't respect that, she shouldn't be looking at that stuff.
People have no respect for each other any more. Seriously as long as you're not bashing on fans of a show and you're just stating opinion about a show/character you shouldn't be getting fucking shit about it. People should have the balls to actually come up with a debate and a reason why they should be taken seriously and have a brain smart enough to where they don't need to flame the fuck out of other fans with assholey garbage like "GO TO HELL" and then turn around and tell everyone else THEY'RE being negative and being a pessimist. ....Hypocritical bitch.
Sorry but in general this shit pisses me off and it's been going on for TOO FUCKING LONG. In the Video Game AND Anime & Manga Community/s. So in general, wither you're a Naruto fan, a Keiko fan, a purist FF fan, kingdom Hears fan, or anything kind of fan out there, and someone bashes on something you like don't take it personally. If you're going to say anything about it grow some fucking balls and learn how to be a decent human being. Being a loyal fan or this being online is no excuse to be jackass. Grow up, assholes. This shit is gonna stop.

OKay, I woke up at 4:00 PM on Saturday. Who thinks I'd be going to bed anytime reasonable? Well, you're wrong.
I was thinking about one of my favorite episodes ( involving Hattori Heiji ) from Meitantei Conan ( Funimations title Case Closed ) and since I clearly had nothing better to do at 3:00 in the morning I pulled out a random piece of shit "Case Closed" dvd I have laying around and popped it trying to see if the English Translations was at all correct to the Japanese version in by far one of my favorite scenes ever. ( more like my favorite lines ever )
So making myself suffer through the part I wanted to see in English I rewound the stupid dvd and pressed subtitle button first and then the audio button. Well just my luck the stupid subtitles are the same as the English version. Shit. Then I go back again and try just audio KNOWING in other dvds this works and that Funimation can't be THIS big of a giant piece of dog shit, right? Nothing. It says in English. What the fuck?
Okay here's where that pisses me off. Okay, first of all, Haven't these dickweeds heard of progress? I mean god dammit, what's the point of a button (especially a frickin' AUDIO button) that you can't even use??? I mean really, why? Did Funimation want people to suffer SO badly that they decided to make that not an option like how you can't skip those stupid commercials in the beginning of the Dvd? Seriously, this is not me just being a lazy asstard, it's about common sense. If there's a button on the dvd player, it should work on ANY dvd. (unless the fucker doesn't have an audio option which is understandable)
Now....ugghh, here's where it gets REALLY annoying: I go to the main menu where you can go to "Set Up" and right there is a frickin' Japanese with English subtitles option.
What the shit? I mean I can understand a little bit but...no, you know what? Fuck. Now when I mentioned this to my friends before some of them laughed being like: "You're so lazy." But no, no. It has NOTHING to do with laziness. It's like um...okay since it CLEARLY has BOTH options why can't I use the audio button? Plain and simple, why?
So then I had to go ALLLLL the way back to that stupid point in the dvd and watch the scene in Japanese ( at least this time I wasn't scarred for life) to find that yeah, although they weren't worded the same ( which I understand ) the basic idea of that piece was the same.
But really, I mean god. What a fucking waste of my time. Who knew it would take SO much fucking work to just do that? I mean the sequence I needed to watch only took like...maybe 15 seconds to watch at most. So why the fuck did I spend at LEAST a good 10 minutes dinking around with this? I'll tell you why, cause Funimation is a stupid ho bag.
Here, let me give you a senario you all may be able to understand a bit better: It's like having an old school Game Boy, Black and White, Game Boy color doesn't really matter as long as it's the same idea. And you can't use the frickin' A button. You're screwed, right? I mean it's the EXACT same idea. It's a fucking lose-lose situation. Exactly like that stupid mother fucking audio button. I mean how much harder would it have been to just simply having fucking main the audio button be able to be used? I mean what I was doing was innocent enough I was checking for frickin' consistency and as you all know I KNOW when Funimation's been naughty. I wasn't watching that scene 12 times in English for my own enjoyment I was watching it so many times and making my ears bleed to so I could check something. God dammit that pissed me off. I hate funimation. Those assholes really bring my piss to a boil.
I mean how sad is this? I'm sitting there just clicking the audio button. Being like: "Uh, okay duhr....Any day now ga-hyuk...come on....hyuk" and then after clicking and clicking and having to deal with that load of ass shit....I find that wow, that was the BIGGEST waste of time ever.
I knew I hated Funimation ( 4Kids as well, don't think I don't have anything to say about these pig fuckers either) but god dammit.....this made me hate them even more.

Ladies and Gentlemen this has been my "Case Closed Nightmare", have a wonderful fucking morning.

It’s been a while since I’ve done a review, hasn’t it? I do apologize. Minus a lot of school work, intern ship fun, and a bunch of Lemon Martini humbo jumpo I am back and here with a review which I am NOT as fond of.

 Oh boy…where should I begin. I’ll be honest in saying I’d rather not be talking about this anime, actually if it were at all possible I would go back in time and shoot myself right before I saw it for the first time. But, thanks to this show forever scarring me for life, I cannot help but feel I need to discuss this anime, or in my eyes a flaming pile of dog shit.

Marmalade Boy. Now let me start by saying, the manga, by Yoshizumi Wataru was awesome. Very shojo, very romantic and best of all, not too long. The characters although not amazing were decent and were defiantly good for a romantic comedy setting.  Played right into my 6^th grade romantic phase and right into my swelling hopeless romantic heart. It was awesome, I couldn’t wait to get the next installment when each volume came out every few months, it was like a new Episode of Friends or Boy Meets World, exciting and to say the least, sad.

 So like the good little anime fan I was I heard about the Marmalade Boy anime. Oh boy! One of my favorite manga was a TV show, yippee! I was so excited I couldn’t contain myself, but before my days of having a job and still being a mere-preteen I was forced to wait until the next physically present opportunity. My Birthday. Boy was that ever a bad omen for a bad year….

 Let me make it very clear that this was before I knew or even fathomed the idea that a good manga could have a bad, if not terrible anime version of itself. This was one of the many examples when my eyes were finally open to the truth.

 One day after an appointment, my dad had picked it up at the o’so awesome “Emerald City Comics” at the U of O book store and handed the three miserable box sets three discs per box with ten episodes a disc. 76 episodes in counting.

 When I got home, not knowing the curse I would be striking myself with I popped the first disc in my dads trusty old  DVD player:

 http://youtube.com/watch?v=57jc59_97eI
 was the first thing I saw within the first thirty seconds  of putting that piece of shit in the DVD player.

 Now at the time, I didn’t mind. Miki’s hair (main heroin) looked like period blood coming from a woman’s vagina, or that Yuu’s hair looked like a dirty mustard terd with a bonus mullet on the other end.  I was just happy to be seeing the anime and actually hearing the characters voices and watching them move around in their annoyingly light pink and blue outfits and blue/purple tinted ‘dramatic’ scenes.

 I didn’t think too much about these small details, it’s understandable and not totally unheard of to change a characters hair color. Fushigi Yuugi did that with a few characters and I guess period blood and dirty mustard is better than an all around muddy stereotypical brown….in theory….

And as far as the weird…coloring at weird moments, freakishly baggy clothes and odd choice in general style, not to mention basic shitty animation. I figured, ‘well, I’ll give it a break, you know it was made in the 80’s after all, right?” Right? Wrong.

 The Marmalade Boy anime from episode one to the seventy-sixth episode was made in 1995 to 1996.

 Now I’d like everyone to take a minute, take a deep breath so we can continue:

 

 ARE.YOU.FUCKING.SHITTING.ME?!?!?!!! 1995?!  I was willing to forgive it if it was made in the 80’s. I was VERY much willing to forgive it. I mean those clothes and animation style is SO the 80’s style. So I made myself ASSUME it was made in the 80’s. Well it’s like my dear father always tells me, “Julie, you should never assume anything.” Yeah, well thanks for the heads up dad, cause you sure as fuck weren’t kidding!!!

  Now for those of you who don’t know, and aren’t as familiar with the anime early-mid 90’s scene let me give you a few examples:
 The Yuyu Hakusho Anime was released in Japan in 1992 and ended in 1995. Let me say, wow. Yuyu Hakusho, while not having the best animation in the world was fricking AMAZING for an early 90’s anime production. Wow. Let’s move on:

Fushigi Yuugi 1995-1996. Same time frame.

 And Escaflowne, all 26 episodes made in the year 1996.

 Yeah, are you surprised? I AM! What the hell is WRONG with that company? I mean, did they just not bother looking at all the other anime in the market and not wonder why for some reason Marmalade Boy was just not up to par?  Or that for some reason, it was shit? Were they blind?

 I mean one theory from one of my friends was that they made it, realized how bad it was, stuffed it away somewhere and then were unlucky enough to stumble up on it again when they were in a jam and needed money. Now obviously, this couldn’t have happened. But too bad it didn’t because it sure as hell would have made a better story.

 Now the thing I find more sad then anything about the animation alone was just the fact that things actually made in the 80’s were better. Miyazaki’s Tonari no Totoro for example was better then this shit. Even Doraemon, made in 1976 was better in quality. ( and no that is no lie) That is just beyond sad.

 

 Sorry, got a bit carried away, my 2nd major complaint besides it’s over all lack of imagination and shitty script making 76 episodes grueling was that after looping through the same basic he said – she said soap drama for the first half of the series they randomly get a forien exchange student from the states. New York to be exact. ( don’t remember this guy in the manga do you?---don’t get me wrong I don’t mind too much when anime adds on or changes a few minor things, not a big deal but--) From what I could tell and have heard, these people have clearly never set foot on American soil. Not only did they over stereotype every bad American trait: This New Yorker only learned “fluent” Japanese because he liked Samurai movies, he ate like eight scoops more ice-cream than Miki. And that was just the exchange student.  Then for some reason they go to New York where yet another drama begins ( don’t ask)  and everyone is HUGE, all obsessed with basketball and just gaahhh….Oh, and finally, They’re in New York, EVERYONE SPEAKS JAPANESE. Not a lot they can do about that considering I can imagine children and even teens or adults wouldn’t watch it if they couldn’t speak the language after it was in Japanese for so damn long. But it WAS a bit frustrating after they had a good five minute portion where Miki just jabbered about how bad she was at English and had this little rugrat lesson how to say your first name first in English and your last name last. It was like: “wow, what a waste of space that was when no one is even speaking English to begin with.”

Now by the end of the series I was SO happy for it to be over. You can not even imagine my joy it was unbelievable, I let out a sigh of relief and everything. It was over, I mean FINALLY! But no, no that’s not good enough, just when you feel you’ve made it in the clear they fuck you over all over again….that’s right, they added on a 30-40 minute “Bonus” episode at the end where Yuu ( main guy ) finds out about his parents getting divorced like Miki did back in episode one and then they went on to explain his reaction. Yuu doesn’t talk a lot so that was good, and some how the animation had gotten at least a little better since the last episode so that was good.

 But when he saw Miki….was when everything died. He saw a girl with a tennis racket hitting a ball against the wall and out of nowhere these little kids come and start spraying her with a squirt bottle yelling stuff about a “demon”. Okay first of all: “what?” Secondly, why did they feel the fans would want to watch this? All it did was manage to get worse.

Yuu laughed to himself quite loudly while Miki played along with the kids chasing after them with a towel. Which wasn’t so bad, minus the kids obviously Power Ranger inspired matching outfits.

 And the rest of this “bonus” doesn’t change much, Yuu walks around following Miki finding her very entertaining and finally finds out that –gasp- Miki’s going to be his new stepsister!!!

 And then…oh boy this confused me. The only ACTUAL English in the whole anime is at the end of this, this guy Miki and Meiko are talking to is like: “Hey some attractive guy has been watching you. I just saw him.”

 …..I want this explained. Why the hell are they talking to some RANDOM American man sitting in a random café? And why after all that crap of Miki not speaking English does she suddenly understand him just fine, and finally why the fuck is HE speaking English in Japan when NO ONE ( not one person) spoke English in New York?

 Hurts your brain too doesn’t it?

 

 So finally, what do I have to say about this anime? Let me be very clear. It sucked. It was boring, the animation hurt my eyes, the voices were annoying, it never ended and my god it was a waste of money. I don’t encourage ANYONE to watch this show. Read the manga, but do NOT watch the show. Even out of curiosity cause it’s REEEAAALLLY not worth your troubles. Yes, this is not a fair review, this is my opinion, 100%.  You don’t have to agree just understand that it’s not like I’m aiming for this to go in the New Yorker or anything classy like that.

 The only reason I finished that terrible series and even bothered writing a review of all things about it  ( sure tells you what kind of time I have ) is because I needed to vent my frusteration and not having too many friends who ACTUALLY care, I decided that the ones who do and don’t want to listen to me talk can have all the fucking fun in the world reading this review.  It sucked, and I’m glad it’s over.

 On a final ending note, I will say it again and again: Do NOT watch this anime! It.sucks.SHIT!

 Rawr.
 I want to be drawing but I need a new drawing pad...but being my busy self with both after school internship at First Place Family center along with all the other shit I seem to be doing lately I have not had ANY spare time to speak of to be able to run down to the UO and pick myself up a $4.00 art book. ( at least )
 And Kai being Kai is too conceited to understand that so like always he's being his bitchy conceited fucky self and yelling like a banshee.

 On another note....
 I am rereading this HUGE fat assed book of Sherlock Holmes. *cuddles Holmes book* OMG I am SUCH a fan of Sherlock like no one has ANY idea. Gaahhh~ Sherlock~
 Speaking of Sherlock I found out some wicked awesome stuff.
 Okay so apparently back in like the 1800's Sherlock and Watson were based roughly on a few things: Watson was loosely based, for example on A. Conan Doyle, while Sherlock was roughly based on some professor Doyle had at some point. ( if you look Watson looks like A. Conan Doyle)
 More interesting then that both Sherlock and Watson were based on the idea of the "Perfect Ideal Men" for that time period. Sherlock being very intelligent and confident while Watson being intelligent was also a 'family man'.
Hahaha I have also been reading some interesting stuff about Sherlock and women. Hahaha.
 OH! Speaking of Sherlock relatedness!!!
 Everyone knows I love Meitantei Conan but omg omg omg, listen to this: I ordered these books off of Amazon.com by Edogawa Rampo.   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rampo_Edogawa
  I mean how slinker-cool is THAT?! Omg I am excited. His stories apparently are AMAZING. According to the message Amazon.com has sent me they have been shipped ( two books) and I will be getting them in a day or two. -can't wait- Once I am done reading Sherlock Holmes I will start reading my lovlies and make love to the book! ( only not--saving that for someone else...)
 
 Man, I am a nerd.

 For those who care, I am working on a few reviews that I will soon post! (hopefully sooner than later) I am working on ( as a sneak peek) a review for Marmalade Boy anime ( trust me...it's good) and also dubs in general and how Funimation has in more than one way fucked me and a lot of my favorite shows up the anal poop-shoot repeatedly until it's so swelling with fuck that it's not even worth talking about. ( that was gross....I apologize only not cause Funimation sucks a shit. Along with 4Kids....Gaahh...4kids...)
 Those will be up when I finish them which could be anywhere from soon to sometime that's not so soon. ( Hopefully I'll have them up within the week.)
 LOOK FORWARD TO IT!!!

 Okay, let's jump straight to the point: MONEY
 I mean aside from the moral fact of the matter, money is reason number one. I love anime and manga. I spend a lot of money on what I like. WIth $10.00 to $11.00 for every book and $30 to a $100-something an anime series, I don't really have a lot of money to spare. Especially because of a lack of job at the current time and so much anime and manga on my 'want list' a month, I really can't afford such things like drugs. I mean, being the anime nerd I am I can get my own highs:
  example: I want to be mellow I can watch something like Lain or Haibane Renmei (CFF) maybe even a MIyazaki production.
 I want to be hyper and be "awake" and laugh a lot: Excel Saga, FLCL, Ranma 1/2.
 I want to "Halucinate" why bother buying a drug when you can watch something like Mach Go Go Go, Marmalade Boy or Lain.
 And I want to be happy? Watch some of my favorites like: Meitantei Conan, Tennis no oujisama, MahouTsukai Tai.
 I can even feel 'Lovey-dovey' with watching something like, Marmalade Boy, Kodomo no Omocha, Kare kano, Loveless, Gravitation
 oh, AND I can read manga/anime that makes me think and/or can give me everyday life advice: Fruits Basket, Kare Kano, Haibane Renmei, Angel sancuary....
:) Anime can also give you nice things to look at: Shounen-ai, Yaoi, Shojo-ai, Yuri (whatever your preferance may be)
 The list goes on and on for a bunch of catagories that can send a bunch of different emotions  and feelings to the brain. They're not addictive and I'm sure in the long run they're cheaper than ANY large amount of drug. ( At least you can RENT an anime and even if you buy it you won't have to keep paying a bunch of money for the same show and enjoyment)   Can't say THAT about drugs now can you?

 I'm an anime nerd, on top of my anime and manga, I buy CD's, artbooks, posters, wallscrolls, figurines, buttons....I don't have money or time for drugs, and even without money I'm too busy watching and reading all the anime and manga I've gotten, planning for anime conventions (SO FUN) and posting posts like this one....I don't have time for drugs and for those who do drugs.
 
 So, in that case, say no to drugs and yes to anime.  ANIME IS MY ANTIDRUG! HELL.YEAH!

Wow Kai's been a whore lately....
 Okay so my friend comes up to me on Friday while I was finishing coloring a picture of Kai ( anyone suprised? ) and asks me what's up. I tell her the truth. Not a lot but Kai, being the little selfcentered little bitch he is won't stop raping my mind and MAKING me draw him. He cried and whines if I don't screamings about how beautiful he is and how he needs his beautiful face drawn. (again) Which is weird in itself, cause although Kai is...well Kai and a bit of a bitch he's really passive agrressive...bluntly meaning HE REALLY DOESN'T GIVE A FUCK ABOUT ANYTHING!!! he's like: "whatever" about everything. EVERYTHING. He's such a bitch and Passive he has to rape me ( not anyone else) dry hump my brain, take my mind hostage and be like: "DRAW ME BITCH OR I SKIN YOU ALIVE AND EAT YOUR fACE!" ( me: "What???" )
 so....while telling her this my teacher ( I guess) over hears and takes me aside and is like: "Okay, as your teacher it is my job...Are you REALLY hearing voices?"
 
 Hahaha. I had to explain to her that No I was not and that Kai was such a big part of my life. ( sad but true) that he took up a lot of my mind and that I felt like his coinues intrusion on my everyday life was sometimes a little overwelming and so I can't help but feel my mind is (at times) a rape victim due to the exsistance of a fictional character I have molded and crafted over the years....
 She laughed and understood. But I think she still thinks I need help. ( Fuck I probably do. I'm fuckin' nutshit- ass-crack-crazy.....fuck....)


 On another note...no...wait it's the same nevermind. Carring on:

 I was talking to a friend today ( erm...techniqually yesterday) about Kai ( as I seem to enjoy doing that little bitch...)  and the conversation went a little something like this:

 Him: "Well next time he gets whiney send him to me and I'll draw him. I'm terrible."
 Me: "He'd probably make you draw him until he was satisfied..."
 Him: .....XD....I could draw him having sex with a man.
 Me: Hahahaha. That'd be fine...except...he's bi. He's so passive he wouldn't care.
 Him: "...I could draw him naked with a small penis...."
 Me: "See now that might piss him off."
 Him: LOL. :)



 .....Fuck I have problems....damn.

 Well, my mom's not a shrink for nothing. (....when all goes wrong....blame the therapist mother...it works...haha...)

 

 I am in LOVE with this Japanese rock band called Antic Cafe right now!

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ef46VJGnMvg  is a link on youtube.com of  my favorite song by them "Merry Making" and it.is.awesome.

 Miku = Vocals
Takuya=Guitar
Kanon=Bass
Teruki=Drums
Yuuki=Keyboard

 Look them up, you can also find them on deviantart.com! ( Type in Antic Cafe )
They are REALLY hot.
Bou one of my favorites recently quit (a guitarist) he dressed up, looking like a girl as a part of his "style" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ef46VJGnMvg  but OMG I CANNOT BELIEVE he's GONE!!! -cries- That's okay, I can still love Antic Cafe and him in my heart, right?
 I love their clothes, their music videos (tons on youtube.com) and them in general.

 This may not be "Anime" related but this post sure is nerd related.

 

< Sorry for not posting in so long but I felt this was something that would be good to put in this Livejournal. I apoligize for those of you who have already read this in my other livejournal but this seriously needed to be put here for the sake of everyone's enjoyment....or not...>

 I will try and update more regularly in the future:





Most people know what an anime otaku is. But the question is, where do we draw the line? Is an anime otaku simply someone whom anime/manga just HAPPENS to be one of their hobbies? Or is it something deeper than that? Someone who, as explained by one of my frends: 'knows their stuff'?

I personally don't have an opinon either way, my idea of anime otaku changes from day to day, situation to situation.
Although, one day while in the middle of watching GALS (anime) and thinking about the future anime club at my school, I thought of an ineresting concept:

Anime/manga otaku are in some respect, kind of like 'KoGals'.

Kogals = http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kogal


You take the stereotyped normal person who gets into anime, you notice a couple of changes:

( these are simple stereotypes, they are however not any personal opinions of mine, if nothing else they appear to be common observations)


1) a person, often influenced by popular loud Shoujo manga/anime will become a lot louder and will obsess over saying things like: KAWAII or HAI

2) When going into a high school you notice people usually are into normal over your shoulder with two strap backpacks. However anime fans tend to go for the over one shoulder bag. (often with an anime logo)

3) Most if not all refrences they make tend to be that of an example of a relashionshoip issue in an anime/manga.
( I heard of one person who would often write term papers in college about the complex relashionship between Shuichi and Yuki from Gravitation.)



Now, I realise both Kogals and anime otaku are very diffrent. But if you replace trends of music, short skirts, make-up and so on with anime/manga talk and so on, you will see that the two are very similar.
A kogal, same as an obsessed 'anime Otaku' knows their stuff and follows (to some degree) a certain kind or form of stereotype that leads into misunderstandings of both sides and what one or the other tends to be.
(example a: Many feel that anime/manga is porn or just another simple cartoon ment specifically for small children.)

So with that idea in mind, wouldn't an anime Otaku be someone who goes past the idea of mear interest and border on obsessive?
For example:
- is always up to date on most anime/manga
- is up to date on new fads and what one might like if are into XXX such an anime/manga
- Have a basic understanding of anime slang
- tend to go for the subs rather than deal with filtered out dubbed translations of some of their favorite shows


I guess a simplier way of showing my point would be:

Although a person may like something doesn't always mean they fit in the stereotype of someone who would be classified as a 'hardcore' fan. ( one who likes to stay in shape does not always require title of 'jock' )
A girl who wears short skirts and make-up isn't ALWAYS a gal. In some ways it's like a lifestyle. An attitude if you will.
A hardcore anime otaku and being a kogal are both expensive hobbies to conform to, and both require a bit of attitude or lifestyle change. (require however, may not be the right word)

An anime otaku or Kogal both pick up on slang terms for their hobbie of choice very quickly. As well as tend to talk diffrently ( if not faster ) around those who share their hobbie/lifestle of choice.
Will frequantly know the top names of those they admire in that feild. ( manga authors, popular anime, new series ect---popular brands of clothes/music ect)

A lot of things tie into this stereotype and a lot of other points can be made to show this idea. Now, this idea is only based one one kind of stereotype among many, so please don't take personal offence to this.
I know this post rambles a LOT and isn't exactly clear on a point, but I guess I have a LOT of points within this post.

So, discuss:

What's your idea of an 'anime Otaku'?
and/or
Kogals compared to Anime Otaku
OR
stereotypes (good or bad) made on kogals/anime fans in general.

 Aww, Speed Racer. My first techniqual anime show and my first HUGE obsession. And guess what everyone? Julie Sermak was six years old. The show came on every week night Monday-Friday, at 7:30PM, followed by Jonny Quest.
 I would kick my brother/s or anyone else who was on at the time off ten to five minutes before Speed would start and sit in excitement.
 Now, in my six year old mind, things were not as simple as just loving a show. Oh no, I also had my first "crush" if you will at that time in my life. I was infatuated with Speed Racer. I loved him and KNEW we were ment to be.
 However, (minus him being a cartoon character) I had one HUGE problem. In the english version of this Japanese program I believed ( as a six year old) that they were doing a bit of false advertising.
 In the English opening theme there are a few lines that were a bit off to me. Here is the passage:
 "Here he comes, here comes Speed Racer, he's a DEMON on wheels. He's a DEMON and is ganna be chasin' after someone."
 In my little kid brain this ment trouble. I thought of a Demon as a bad guy, a theif. And being a loyal fan to the show I KNEW Speed was NOT a bad guy. I mean, how could he be? He was Speed Racer. However, my parents DIDN'T know that. I thought them hearing that "He's a DEMON" passage would ruin in potential chance of a happy marriage life between me and my hero.
 So, I would force my father or Mother out of the room insisting they couldn't come back until the show was over. ( I'm sure they thought I just really liked the song---which I do. I head bang to that awesome song even today!)

 Why did I like this show so much? Speed Racer ( Original Japanese title Mach Go Go Go) in all logical reasoning has no reason to be as popular as it is today. Okay I take that comment back, considering it was one of the very first Anime productions from Japan to be released in the states I guess it does have it's reasons.
The original manga of Mach Go Go Go was released in Japan 1966, being turned into a 52 episode TV series one year later in 1967. So what does this tell us? For those of you who have watched old TV shows (cartoons especially) made before the 80's you know the animation sucks. Mach Go Go Go was no exception. The animation was choppy, characters looked different in almost every episode and the weirdo mistakes done by key animators moving and removing Speed Racer's ( Mifune Go) gloves for example makes this show almost comical due to it's lack of animated experience in the generation it was made in.
 As far as characters go, it wasn't bad for it's time. The characters at time were a little inconsistant from time to time, but you had to tip your hat to them for making a character like Trixie. Now, I can understand hating her. The main female who happends to be Speed's girlfriend ( although it has never been CLEARLY stated in the show) at first glances seems to be your stereotypical (not blond) girl who follows Speed around almost all the time. But considering the time period, a tomboyish girl who risks her neck for her boy is definatly something that really needs it's own award for alone. Now-a-days a character like Trixie is nothing considering we watch something like GALS or Slayers and we wave Trixie good-bye.
It's translation....let's see. Well the name changes although odd I guess I can't really complain. This show was brought to the states (correct me if I'm wrong) late 80's early 90's and was shown for five years. The name changing shit didn't REALLY start stopping until recently so, even though it pains me to say so I guess I don't mind as much as I might otherwise.
 I have not been able to get my hands on any of the ORIGINAL 1967 Japanese episodes so I can't REALLY tell you how good/bad the translations are, but I'm assuming by weird facial expressions in certain situations you can guess what that's like....( if you care)

 So on that basis alone. What made this show so great? It's just a pretty boy with blue eyes who likes to race his awesome car around, right?
 Wrong.
 I didn't really notice this until I grew older and actually thought about it, but if you think about it, although yes the show does seem to focus around racing and the character development REALLY isn't that great, I still consider Racing to be a minor part of the actual goal behind the actual show.
 Racer X ( Speed's secret older brother who ran away from home) clearly cares about the family even though he doesn't come home. He gives Speed the right pushes and information he needs to not kill himself and is ALWAYS around to save his kid bro when he's in a pinch. There's also Spritel ( Speed's younger brother) and his Chimp "Chim-Chim" ( Senpei). Spritel, although seemingly an annoying little boy who likes candy way too much for his own good, is actually very loyal to Speed and would do anything to help him out. And often will be the one through his mischeif save the day and help our hero Speed Racer more than we realise.
 There is a love, or brotherly love in this series. ( no, I am not referring to anything icky) and a lot of family values that are tested.
 The "Go Team" consisting of Speed's family  (for the most part) their macanic Sparky, and Speed's girlfriend Trixie are a very close group that even though may be done pretty poorly at times, I believe their love and connection shows brightly when Speed is in a pinch and needs their support.
 I don't believe the series main goal is to get kids to care about racing. I think it's suppose to teach doing the right thing over what your goal is and deciding what values come first. Sure Speed wants to be the best Racer he can be, and he wants to win, but even an 18 year old boy with a dream can realise that letting someone else win the race doesn't mean that you REALLY lost.
 
 So all in all, what do I like about this show? I can't REALLY tell you. I can't imagine what I liked about it so much way back when in 1996, but I sure can tell you what I like about it now. :)

 As most of you who may know due to my rantings and ravings they are making a liveaction (real people) Speed Racer movie that comes out in theaters May 9th, 2008. I am VERY excited about this whole thing.
 Sure, I'm nervous, the people who made the Matrix are producing it for gods sakes. A Japanese cartoon show produced by Americans? Well...I guess we'll have to see.
 So far I am happy with what I see though. The movie is going to focus more around character development over racing. ( probably a lot  of Speed and Trixie moments)  The Mach 5 will have a lot of special effects that goes into it.  ( no Matrix moves, please)
 And yes, they ARE using a real Chimp for Chim-Chim. (yay!)
 They even picked a cute actor for Speed. His name is Emile Hirsch. I don't want too many normal movies but I will say I hope he can act.

 I do have my doubts, being the hardcore Speed Racer fan that I am. But I am going to try and be open minded about the whole thing and not bash the movie into the ground before I've seen it with my own eyes.

 

 


 
 

Hello sexies!!!
 This Livejournal is dedicated to my Anime Otaku mindset where I will mostly review anime/manga and go into deep theories and thoughts about Anime/Manga related topics. ( You don't like it, you don't have to read my livejournal, so shut your face)
 I will also talk about webcomics, art theories and basically anything I want to that I don't have to worry about my non-anime friends being annoyed about.
 Please, if you have something to say SAY IT. I like conversation! Just please don't make an ass of yourself.

 This is a friends only journal. If you'd like to be added please PM me and tell me. One can not add who they don't know wants to be added to the mix! I will most likely add you. If I don't, I either didn't see your post or I probably forgot.
 
 So, finally it is here! My Anime/Manga related Livejournal!