February 14th….

The date sends chills down the spines of many a single person, and mental images of high numbers through the brains of chocolate & confectionary companies. It’s hardly any surprise that so many of us fall sucker to the week-plus wait for our opportunities to proclaim admiration for our hopefully mutual adored. It’s practically wetwired into our consciousnesses soon after grade school. It sometimes even haunts our dreams during those crucial high school years, where often awkwardness ensues. All those expectations, it’s easy to be swept away by the bland uniformity of it all.

And what of the “lowly” otaku/fanboy/girl/outcast? What of them? As human as anyone else, those on alternate social scales experience most to all of the same desires, so why shouldn’t they be allowed the same experiences? This is why sometimes, it seems only natural to lean more toward others with similar interests and tastes. We all know that one friend, acquaintance, or classmate that captures your imagination, makes your day, and perhaps even seems to understand you. The time may eventually come to speak up.

In this; what will hopefully function as a continuing series, I’ll attempt to seek out some sweet, simple ways otaple courtship can actually work.

BUT FIRST. A WARNING

Continue Reading »

Instead of another regular post, detailing either a classic show, or even an attempt to fashion a bridge between disparate generations of anime lovers, I thought I’d share this short piece of memory film in celebration of the end of one singularly bizarre decade. It was definitely a ride, and now as we dart rapidly into the holiday season it only felt right to share a little about material goodies, and what happens when your hobby takes unusual turns in history…

Ever get one of those so-uber otaku goodies that would do well to be left unseen by certain family members, only to be brought out the moment you hear their cars putter beyond the proximity of your domicile?

Continue Reading »

Hey all!

Just giving a quick shout of thanks to Gendomike & the AD crew for allowing me to share thoughts and memories with all of you. Now this will be the first of hopefully many journeys through the looking glass, where the face of early US anime fandom melds minds with that of today’s loyal armies. When not tapping away in the labs of my own personal art & geek site, I may also chime in with thoughts on current & older titles, trends, habits and soforth, once or twice a month. The time outside of this is spent continuing my film studies, as well as composing music for the little movies inside my head. Long and short, this’ll serve as a little oasis from the unrelenting clusterfudge I have so enthusiastically created for myself.

So, in order to make this workable, first, a quick dip into the past. I grew up not only surrounded by the golf courses & gaudily placed palm trees of the California desert, but with a very rarified affliction; a very early love for anime, live-action tokutatsu series, and of course the weekly Kaijyu-fests that tv could only provide throughout the late 70s and early 80s in hilariously dubbed form. The near blackout of US tv anime in the late 80s eventually led to the burgeoning of anime on VHS. ( remember, the only alternative to this were cruddy, third gen tapes found at your local Star Trek convention-no joke.) I am what many anime historians consider a 2nd wave fan (the first being the Mach Go-Go-Go! & Tetsuwan Atomu in america phase). I can vividly remember the day my brother sneaked a copy of Urotsukidoji into my virgin VCR.(!!!) And as crazy-old that makes me sound, it’s been a bizarre yet exciting ride. It’s strange to express just how much has changed. Whether collecting videos, figures, and art books, or eventually helping within the US industry, there’s always been something to keep the admiration strong. And to think that all of this came due to a small, but stalwart cadre of geeky low-techs, believing that something special was indeed coming from the east.

So it’s time to dust off the old flashlight, it’s exploration time….First post coming very soon!

(Caution: you may find this cheesy and corny, so stay away if your mood is hyper cynical; you’ve been warned!)

So, yeah, he’s a loser, an Otaku and half hikkomori. Yes, this show is really a pat on Otaku’s backs that sure, you may save the world someday, with a lot of girls.
But you know, someone, inside this Demon King of Cynicism’s heart, something stirred…

How many times, do some of us wish we were dead? What does the world has to do with me anyway? It’s fucked, it’s fucked, it’s fucked. I’m powerless, I’m powerless, I’m powerless.

And I am. That’s the truth. But you know what? Someone out there cares for you. Among all the asses, jerks and dickheads that treat you like shit, despise you and rip you off, someone cares for you.

They sign when you fall into trouble; they secretly cry when you’re sad, but gives a smiling face and telling you it’s OK, when they’re in reality worried sick about you. They want you to live another day and fight on.

That’s what Rimi and the rest feel; no, Takumi must not lose. no, Takumi should stay behind and let me take care of it; No, Taku should rest.

But at some point of time, even a hikkomori must wake and stand up and face this world. Yes, there is evil in this world (ask the Jews that survived WWII, as well as the Muslims that survived things that we in the western world didn’t know), but as who we’re, it is our duty to reach out with our hands and take someone’s hands.

(yep, go ahead and start puking)

If Takumi died, would Takumi be saved?
No, it’d just delay the inevitable. There is a time for everything, after all. But the healthy Takumi can do something.
He can fight back lethargy in the mind with a delusion of strength. And it’s funny, because when you do that…

Someone out there in the great unknown answers

(yeah, yeah, laugh at me)

Oddly, you’ll find similar scenarios in that book. That book you were forced to read as a child, but largely forgotten after you grew up.

And if this post has no point, that’s fine; because at least if you read this far, you may have realized that someone out there cares for you and need you to be around;

Even if this anime and the game behind it are really kiss-ups to Otaku who do not do much but sit at home during their free time and play H-Games all day.

I really don’t have anything intellectual to say, but it’s just how I feel. Each and everyone of us has some power, and who knows? The tiny little thing you did the other day, may help many lives or at least, saves one.

And yeah, sorry for this corny post. But at least pat yourselves on your backs, because hey, if you read this far, you probably did some good somewhere that you just forgotten…

Moving on…

So…uh…I guess the fall season’s over. What’s up next on the menu next season? Summaries and info courtesy of THAT.

Continue Reading »

Let’s do something we haven’t done here before on Anime Diet: end-of-the-year lists! Our first list is favorite OPs of the year, drawn from the various anime shown throughout 2008. My personal top five OPs are:

1.) Kaiba OP, “Never.” A deeply heartfelt, mostly-correct English paean to longing and love, for one of the year’s best shows (if not THE best).

2.) Macross Frontier OP, “Triangler”. It’s Yoko Kanno and Maaya Sakamoto! ‘Nuff said.

3.) Mouryou no Hako OP, “Lost in Blue.” I like this better than the same band’s Death Note OP; melodic and driving.

4.) Kannagi OP, “motto☆Hade ni ne! (motto☆派手にね！)”. Instantly catchy. I can’t stop listening to it. (This is the full song, and it comes with a…strange video.)

5.) Itazura na Kiss OP, “Kimi, Meguru, Boku.” I haven’t watched much of this show, but I really dig the song–a jaunty, cheerful pop tune. Not too unlike what Negishi of DMC would write…

What’s some of your favorites? Feel free to link to their corresponding Youtube vids, so I can check them out too. Thanks!

Not mine!

…that my roommate, Mike, would, as an artist, be looking for inspiration in the form of these…models. :) Models made of high quality molded plastic. I haven’t heard them talking back yet, a la Chaos;Head.

All these were bought in the last two months.

BTW, go check out his Deviant Art page and give it a look. We also guested him on a recent podcast.

This purely random post is my official reintroduction after one week of being kidnapped by Real Life (TM) including, for once, actual employment. The usual reviews and blah blah to come!

Time to jump on the bandwagon a little late. As I said the last time I wrote a preview post, I will realistically only end up covering 2 shows max. Still, I want to list all the shows that actually look interesting to my tastes, though that doesn’t mean I will blog it. (Some have already been, ahem, claimed by others.) We’ll see how it shakes down in the end.

Continue Reading »

Eeeeee! Sorry everyone I was going to do a Shojo Mojito for today but my lovely wonderful super awesome friends threw me a surprise birthday party.

I feel honored to know so such wonderful, caring and loving people, this year is going to be a wonderful and great one, and I don’t have words to express how I much I truly appreciate and cherish all the friends I’ve made.

For you Shojo Mojito fans, don’t worry, tomorrow, I’ll be posting a new recipe, so keep an eye out for it ^^

From ANN -

Eva: 1.0, Afro Samurai to Run in German Film Fest

…Two anime films and a live-action spinoff of a popular manga will be screened in the Focus Asia program of Germany’s Fantasy Filmfest,… After its September 2007 Japanese opening, the new Evangelion movie traveled to film festivals in…

Ray’s take: I think I can imagine the Germans chanting “Asuka! Asuka!” and speaking like SLJ in German…Yeah like I’d actually understand anything if they actually did that. Oh and there was a report in German newspapers that the rate of dying of an unexplained heart attack has gone up tremendous in recent days. I guess this is a prelude to Kira sightings in Germany. XD