All roads lead to Moé.（全ての道は萌えに通ず。）

よろしくね！

あぁぁ、ユミナお姉ちゃん！あぁ、なんたる素晴らしさ！なんて清楚で美しく、おしとやかで、慎ましく、優しく、おくゆかしく、柔和で、簡素で、清貧で、ことば優しく、笑顔で、慈愛に満ちあふれている聖女様なんでしょう！まさに和顔愛語を体現してる聖女さま〜！そんな聖道の聖女様がバザールにおいて邪道な暴走族の「よろしく」Tシャツをピックアップしてるのです。なんというセンス！そんなユーモアたっぷりのユミナたん（笑）！今では死語となった日本語表記、その表音文字たる漢字は「イデア文字」となってるそうです。それがユミナお姉ちゃんの宗教の神聖文字なのでしょう。ちょうど、カトリックがラテン語を使い、仏教徒がサンスクリット語を使うように。それで、「夜露死苦（よろしく）」だなんて、よくそんなイデア文字が残ったものです。神聖文字なのに。

Continue Reading »

12 Comments »

Good artists copy; great artists steal.

- Attributed to Pablo Picasso

What is the difference between copying something and stealing it?  To copy is to mimic, to ape, at all steps being cognizant of the fact that the thing you are copying is not your own.  To steal is to take something and make it your own.  Therein lies the fundamental difference in attitude between the technically competent and the great: an artist who merely copies without making a work his own has not imparted his own style and has not truly produced something worthy of being called art.  He is a failure as an artist.  A great artist, no matter how much he may superficially use the styles of others, leaves his own mark on things.

Continue Reading »

12 Comments »

When thinking family as a unit comprised of varying components, functioning as best they can with their respective abilities and personality quirks, it isn’t hard to think of how cool it would be if this were so on a regular basis. Or at least, when the world needs it most. Which is all the more heartening to see a film that not only gives us the ultimate expression of this in anime form, but succinctly embraces its identity as singular 21st century entertainment. The many levels of enjoyment to be had from Mamoru Hosoda’s follow-up to Toki Wo Kakeru Shoujo are wide and plenty, making it not only great reminder of anime’s many wondrous attractions, but also a grand example of family-geared amusement sans pandering, and packed with savvy.

Continue Reading »

4 Comments »

The Anime Diet State of the Union Address

– By Ray Hu, representing all for this moment in time.

February 26, 2010

My fellow Otakus:

As Anime Diet enters its third year, I’m reminded of the tracks that we have carved in the history of anime fandom. As fellow anime lovers, or otakus, if you so dare, we have been fighting. Yes, fighting. Just as you have struggled through the last decade engaged in mortal combat with changes, finance issues, work, school, relationships, and any other seemingly trivial but strong foes. You have waged war with the enemies with all your heart, your might and your strength, and at the end of the grueling match, you have come out on top, and that’s why you’re reading and hearing this. I congratulate you for your bravery and resourcefulness in managing social upheavals as well as other concerns that have been of the utmost importance in your lives. As for us,

Continue Reading »

1 Comment »

Having seen the anime series a good number of years ago (before this website began), and thus knowing at least the eventual outcome of the first season, this is a tough volume to review in the usual way. For the most part, it’s very similar to the first few episodes of the series, so here are some thoughts about what stood out for me on experiencing the story for the second time.

• The hikikomori allegory aspects stood out much more strongly this time around: the hub world with the many possible entrances, the idea of talking to dolls as a form of therapy even–see Lars and the Real Girl for a much more positive take on the idea in American cinema, of all places. Reading this post-Welcome to the NHK! is instructive; the situation is somewhat reminiscent for one of the sister with the MMORPG-addict brother though Nori is much more domestic, much more motherly. (And less interesting, alas.)
• That contrast between Jun and Nori makes Jun that much more unsympathetic in this instance too. For some reason I don’t remember being as irritated with him when I saw the anime than when I read this manga. He really is a bit of a jerk, though of course the point of the series is watching him come out of his shell.
• The line work is lavish and attractive. I was not all that taken by the dolls in the anime for some reason, and I found many of the voice actresses annoying. There are some wide panels in the manga that show off the fine detail of the hair and the dresses and I can recognize the artistry in them now. Kudos to Peach Pit.
• It’s interesting we are barely told anything about the Alice Game so far. Most of the time spent in the in-between world was devoted, Evangelion-style, to the internal and real-life world of Jun and what he’s missing. As I mentioned before the hikikomori aspects are clearer to me now and so the story seems more character-driven as a result.
• Why did I also feel that the conversation Shinku and Nori have about the right temperature for tea leaves was a thinly veiled allegory about Jun? It reminded me very much of the conversation about pinot noir grapes in the movie Sideways, in which different kinds of grapes = different kinds of people.

Will I continue the manga? I’d actually be curious in knowing a little bit about how it differs from the anime from all of you who’ve read it, so feel free to give some general hints in that direction. (No outright spoilers, please.)

2 Comments »

Sora no Woto, at its three-quarters mark as of episode 8, is fulfilling the promise that was evident from its very first episode, one background detail at a time.

Continue Reading »

No Comments »

OK, the latest Tsundere Banana is out. I think I won’t post too many show notes because people are smart and they can look it up. I will have links like below.

I will respond to each comment individually. I know that’s not the normal but each one of you offers a unique response (trust me, you do) and I’d like to respond to each person personally.

List of topics:

Losers of the week:

Guy ram IRS Building with his PRIVATE JET PLANE (not a hero, trust me)

Bandai Channel (prejudiced thoughts behind that bunch – get with the times)

Winners of the week:

You, of course! (Forever)

Claymore Revolution (still going)

Sora no Woto (Edge of my seat)

Durarara! (Outstanding)

Follow me below:

My twitter

 

 Tsundere Banana 9 [10:04m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (244)

 

 Tsundere Banana 9 [10:04m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (40)

warning: no holds barred.

12 Comments »

Just as Half Life had its head crabs, Alien Nine, a bizarre attempt to fuse the school slice-of-life genre with bloody alien hunting antics, has the ‘Borg. I suspect the name is no accident.

Continue Reading »

2 Comments »

The story in the Welcome to the NHK! manga has now fully departed from that of the anime, and the bleakness is almost stifling. Still, it really gets some parts of human nature right: the infinite capacity for self-deception and the power of indiscipline.

Note: Over a year ago, I reviewed volume 1, volumes 2 and 3, and volume 4 of the NHK manga. Even longer ago, I reviewed the light novel where it all began. This is a long-delayed follow-up to all this.

Continue Reading »

3 Comments »

アニメ・ダイエット代表のマイケルとレイの強い推めで『N・H・Kにようこそ！』をみました。これがなんとあまりにも面白く、２４話一気にみてしまった！！！あぁぁぁぁ、そしてこのシャンソンはすばらしい！！！『N・H・Kにようこそ！』の挿入歌はなんとすばらしいこと！！！まさに神曲だ！アニソンは世界でもっとも崇高な芸術でありまする！シャンソンがまさかアニソンになるとは！アニソンはまさに文化の総合、そう、ピカソがかつてアフリカ芸術を取り入れてキュービズムを大成したように！あぁ、おフランス、行きたい、住みたい！フランスといえばカフェ（喫茶店）の発祥地、サロンなど革命の原点となったところでありやす！そして、フレンチ・メイドの原点でもあるのです。そこにフレンチ・メイドのコスチューム（メイド服）を着たウェートレスがいればもうメイドカフェとなるのです！

Continue Reading »

1 Comment »