What do the characters we like say about us?
November 16, 2009
Apparently I am easier to read than a picture book. It seems that people are rather easily able to tell which characters I like from series that I watch. This revelation led Narutaki and I to have a long conversation not only about what types of characters we liked but what did it say about us as people. Do your favorite characters give you and others insight into who you are? Do they reflect any pattern in the types of friends you make or people you date? Do they say anything about how you view yourself or others? Narutaki and I are going to share three different charters that exemplify types of characters we enjoy and one oddball character that does not fit our standard categories. We then have a little challenge for all of our readers.
A good deal of us put a lot of love into the characters that we like and there is no denying that sometimes it can go over the top. But that is neither here nor there in this case. There are grand ideas abound! Specifically, I am constantly wondering just how much the characters people like actually say about them. And I move in wide circles from thinking it is the window to someone’s soul to convincing myself it means absolutely nothing, and then back again. It would be egregious not to mention that I am thinking about the personalities of characters rather than looks. Frankly, looks tell me nothing about anyone, sure I may be able to pick out another character they enjoy on the surface but it doesn’t delve very deep. Now who a character is, there there might just be something to be learned about someone. To further matters along in a fun way, we will be giving you a glimpse at some of the characters that are near and dear to us. Happy analyzing!
Ongoing Investigations: Case #049
June 26, 2009
Quest for the Missing Girl is a mature manga. Not in the sense that it has cursing, violence, or graphic sex; Missing Girl deals with topics such as missed chances in life, settling down and moving on, relationships between parents and children, and compensation dating. Even compensation dating which could easily be used for a gratuitous sex scene is discussed as a subject of serious weight and importance but is never shown. The story begins when the mountaineer Takeshi Shiga is informed that Megumi, the daughter of one of his old friends, has gone missing. Shiga soon finds himself playing the part of detective in Shibuya, which is just as unfamiliar to him as the mountains would be to most other people. As the story goes on we learn about what lead up to Megumi’s disappearance and how it relates to the lives and decisions of all the other characters involved. Except for the climax there is not much action. In fact, the climax is mostly Shiga VS inanimate object. The draw to this book is as a fascinating character study and tightly plotted one book story. It’s never going to have a huge fan base in the manga community. The story is excellent but it won’t pop for younger manga fans. It is not mature due to excess. It is mature because it’s a well told story which deals with matters that only those with life experience will care about.
I was really glad I had a chance to read Quest for the Missing Girl which is nominated for an Eisner this year. The plot of Megumi missing actually brings to the surface many underlying mysteries in the lives of the characters. The strained relationships also make for thoughtful scenes. This really gives the book a hefty amount of weight that is woven in and out of this not so complicated missing person’s case. All culminating in a daring rescue attempt that is very “a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do”-esque. There is something very passionate about Shiga who literally comes down from the mountains to find this girl. He isn’t a super over the top seinen hero but Shiga is definitely a manly dude who does some manly things. Jiro’s artwork is far from simple but it isn’t very stylized which compliments the story perfectly. So while on the whole it doesn’t come off as gritty it still seems gaunt at times especially with his way of shading. This book begs to be picked up and read in one swift sitting. Quest for the Missing Girl was my first encounter with manga-ka Jiro Taniguchi and it was an overwhelmingly positive experience. So much so that I ordered up a few more of his books immediately.
Ongoing Investigations: Case #016
October 24, 2008
Narutaki and I both lost our Internet connections so oddly enough it has led me to watch MORE anime than usual. Without the World Wide Web there to distract me it has left me some time to catch up with my unwatched anime.
I picked up the first Girl Who Runs Through Time manga released by CMX. I’ll just take a moment and mention how much I like CMX’s manga line as they consistently pick up over looked but good series many of which are short. After seeing The Girl Who Leapt Through Time I have been anxious for this manga to come out. While the movie clearly pays homage to its predecessor, they are still different entities. It was quite good with a fun and spunky heroine. Our two romantic rivals and the all knowing friend to round it all out. Though I am not sure how it can be resolved in just one more volume. This also reaffirms my hope that someone will pick up the original novel.
I can now understand why AWO says that GaoGaiGar gets better and better as the series goes on. The next to the last battle in the series is so epic and satisfying. The last battle is a little more of an emotional climax than any world shattering climax but it is still fun. I am still pretty sure that no one is going to like this show that is not in it to win it from the beginning. The final episodes are definitely better but I don’t think they would ever win over anyone. Still it is manly robot anime with fiery courage and bravery saving the day. I am going to take a little break before I throw myself into GaoGaiGar Final and/or Grand Glorious Gathering. I might also go out and pick up Betterman before that for the minor connection. Because I am a nerd like that.
THANK GOODNESS GUNDAM 00 IS BACK! I am truly enjoying every minute. It is great to see all the storylines converging. It was great seeing Sumergai back in action! And with the return of my beloved Allelujah, well I’m happy! The next episode looks to be just what I wish for, too. I have been itching to watch the first season over again. I’m really looking forward to the DVD release. P.S. Black Haro is clearly the big villain, not sure why no one else sees it.
Shakugan no Shana ends pretty well. I was a little surprised that the final fights are mostly inconclusive and short. I suppose it was better that they worked on an emotional climax rather than a physical one but I wanted some more melee. I was also a little disappointed that we never see this supposed sword vs. spear fight between Shana and Sydonay as promised in the second opening. I suspect they don’t want to kill off the Bal Masque either because they realized it was popular enough to get a second season and/or they wanted to stick closer to the original light novels. It’s another series that while I could watch more of I am in no rush to download it when I am trying to catch up on watching what I have legitimacy purchased. Plus the second Shakugan no Shana has a decent chance of getting licensed especially if the box set sells well enough for Funimation.
Watched some more Code Geass and am happy to report the last couple of episodes on the first disc were not a fluke. The show is indeed good. I also found it great to be enjoying a fluff episode like 6 where the cat steals Zero’s helmet. It gave the series a nice uplifting episode but also reestablished the friendship between Lelouch and Suzaku. This disc made me really liked Shirley as she wanted to befriend Suzaku despite everyone else. I am also really loving Shirley and Kallen’s friendship. Still waiting for C.C. to really show some of her powers although she does prove usefull in this disc. Oh and apparently me and Kohaku are the only people on the internet that really like Suzaku.
I saw Genius Party with Kohaku and Scott from Anime Almanac. It is seven short animated shorts by different artists. Like most anthologies you are going to like certain stories more than other. The first eponymous titled Genius Party is a quirky little short about the creation and spreading of ideas. It has very striking visuals which is a necessity since there is no dialog. It has little stone coconut heads who create and transmit little heart shaped ideas and the scarecrow bird that preys on them. The second short is Shanghai Dragon which is a fun little story about a snot nosed kid who has to save the earth from alien invaders with a magical pen. The best part for me about this short was the two cyborgs that defend the boy and his female friend until he can come into his role as savior of the earth. Their seinen manly heroics against impossible odds were stylish and cool. Deathtic 4 was a odd little piece that was all 3D CG reminiscent of Gregory Horror Show or Reboot. I was entertained with the story of a team of self-proclaimed super hero zombies that try to get a frog back to the world of the living. It had a amusing little nod to the Fantastic 4 and filled with kids humor (aka fart jokes) in a macabre world. Doorbell is the story of a student who finds that another version of him has started taking over his life. Whenever he gets somewhere and his duplicate has arrived before him the people there seem to take the duplicate as him and can no longer see him. So a race starts between the two to see who can claim this existence. An odd little story with a seinen feel to the character designs. If I ever watch Genius party again on DVD I am sure to skip Limitcycle each and every time. Limitcycle is a rambling soliloquy about mans’ relationship to God. It basically has no plot and often times bewildering cyberpunk visuals that incorporate alchemical diagrams and seemingly random numbers. It was the most self indulgent piece I have seen in a long time. I don’t mind a little navel gazing but this meanders in such a unabashedly personal manner that it is incomprehensible to anyone but the author. Happy Machine is clearly by the man who directed Kaiba. Everything from the character designs to the relentlessly disturbing feeling under the pastel coloring. It is the second short in the anthology to be almost completely without dialog. It is the story of a baby who lives in a child rearing machine until is starts to break down and he is forced to survive in a hostile alien world. I say without hesitation that Baby Blue would have been Narutaki’s favorite story had he gone to see Genius Party. A warm little story of an almost love. A boy invites a childhood friend of his to skip school and go on a little adventure with him to the beach. They have a fun little bittersweet adventure as they spend the day together.
I have been reading a lot of one-shot and one book shojo manga of late. It’s actually quite a challenge to make the reader engage with the characters and at the same time tell a complete story. So I’ll just mention a few that did the job. A manga-ka who is quickly becoming a favorite is Tsukuba Sakura and luckily just about everything she has done has either been licensed or scanlated. I read two shorts by her but the one that stuck out was Shiro no Keiyaku. It is about a pure white crow who is ostracized by his flock. One day after being injured he falls to earth and is fixed up by a girl; he immediately falls in love with her. The story takes him to a devil to make him human and spend his time with her. It has the fairytale aspect down pat complete with happy ending. Sakura does a great job of combining a dash of fantasy with a sweet love story. Another fairytale one was Otogibanashi no Fude in which our lead male is the keeper of a sacred tree. He stumbles upon the secret of the tree which is a beautiful water goddess kept inside of it for hundreds of years. He is the only one able to summon her and as he continues to spend time with her he inevitably falls in love. This story has more of a bittersweet under score to it but still makes you smile in the end and be hopeful. This story also made me immensely interested in reading more by this author, Akizuki Sorata. I also re-read 7th Period is a Secret which deals with that ever popular taboo, teacher x student. Shun has transformed herself but she doesn’t truly feel at easy with her friends. Her young teacher Jun sees right through her and she finds him understanding her better than anyone. So beings a romance! Even though our guy is supposed to be older, it exudes the first love sweetness for both of them. It also doesn’t have any real tragic ending, in fact we are lead to believe they will stay together. I just picked up another series by Chiba Kozue and I am reading more short stories as I write this so I’ll be talking about them a lot in the coming weeks.
