Month: January 2009

Ongoing Investigations: Case #030

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I randomly downloaded the first two episodes of the BL OVA Kirepapa. Since the OVAs were released almost 11 months apart, I am unsure if there is more planned in the series. So the title basically translates to Beautiful Dad, but let me assure you I went to great pains to make sure there was not incest. So far so good. The story centers around Chisato who is an aspiring author and his son, Riju, who is he very protective of (like a Dad who is super protective of his lovely daughter). Chisato is convinced that everyone, including his son’s best friend Shunsuke, are trying to get close to him. But actually Shunsuke is in love with Chisato, and Chisato can’t keep his eyes off Shunsuke. Now let the games begin. The show is, in a word, hilarious. The comedy is over the top and the serious moments are sooo overly dramatic that it is entertainingly funny. The animation quality is passable but the show is littered with a ton of bishonen. When I say a ton, I mean that every character that appears in the show is a bishie, including the grandfather, Shunsuke’s dad, and Chisato’s boss. It was truly enjoyable and I recommend it to BL fans in need of a laugh.

I finally got the Genshiken Fan Book I had pre-ordered a while back. I found it entertaining overall but some parts of the book puzzled me. The book was obviously written before the end of the manga because several important scenes are never mentioned in the appropriate sections. It starts with your standard premise of the manga and character profiles, and relationship guides. There is also Madarame’s otaku commandments which is basically the best of Madarame’s hard core otaku moments. It then has a guide to Kujibiki Unbalanced with a complete script to the first OAV which I felt was completely unnecessary and just pads out the book. There is a totally original Fanzine from the original Genshiken members that acts as an amusing piece of nostalgia for any older fans. We then have an interview with the (in)famous Ken Akamatsu about doujinshi. I am always surprised that Ken Akamatsu while not stunningly good looking is not that unpleasant to look at. There is then some original fan-fiction stories written by professional authors which were some of the better original content. There is then a guide to being an otaku with a little conversation about gal games between Sasahara and Madarame. The book ends with Shimoku Kio showing what shows he was actually talking about when he wrote up the Genshiken club members profiles as omake in the manga. It finally let me know what shows I was right about and what shows I had no clue about. I was amused that he picked everyone’s birthday and blood type based on what Gundam it would make them in the Gundam fortune-telling book. The book has the odd habit of explaining anything that might be unfamiliar as if the reader was not any type of otaku which is slightly odd. You would assume most people picking this book up were already in deep. Over all I enjoyed the book as a look back on Genshiken and what a great series it was.

Since Natsume Yuujinchou has been officially put up on Crunchyroll I have been catching up with the first season. I watched episodes 5-13 and cannot praise this show enough. It has a slow pace that builds a kind of kinship between you and Natsume. Each piece is a beautiful little story with many a melancholy end. Also good to see some human conflict coming up with the appearance of exorcists as well as others who can see youkai. I really like his interactions with Tanuma their friendship is really nice and was fun to watch in episode 13. I am still looking forward to learning more about Madara since he has sort of taken a backseat in many of these episodes. Wonderful show worth checking out by all!

To steal blatantly from Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Captain Harlock is about men who are real men, women who are real women, and small blue haired girls from cruel orphanages who are real small blue haired girls from cruel orphanages. Everyone else is a lazy bastard or corrupt. Harlock definitely has moments of epic space opera goodness but it also has scenes of Gatchaman level camp and some odd comedy. It is at its best when it deals with Harlock being a manly man with his own theme song doing manly things and whenever we deal with the main plot of the alien invasion. I always assumed that the whole series was serious business so I was not expecting Harlock looking after a little girl and the wacky antics of his crew. Also I did not realize there would be such a large divide between the character designs of people like Tadashi Daiba, Kei Yuki and the rest of the crew. Also any time a scientist gets killed in the series they make it almost as dramatic as someone important dying in Blade of the Immortal.

Read Here is Greenwood books four and five. It continues to be hilarious fun dorm life. I really enjoy when the characters talk to the manga-ka or she appears in the chapters. For example, at the beginning of the fourth book Shun and Hasukawa are pondering what Shinobu and Mitsuru were like as first years. There is then this hilarious exchange as the manga-ka laughs maniacally and tells them don’t they realize they just wrote themselves out of the story. Other such occurrences are frequent throughout the series. 

I decided to look at the first two episodes of Hajime no Ippo: New Challenger even though I never finished the first season. The only reason I never finished was I bought the series for my ex-roommate and he took it with him when he moved. Which reminds me I should pick up that series for myself. Since I had a good idea of who all the characters were from I had almost no problems settling in. They have a quick rather unobtrusive recap in the first episode to get anyone with a passing understand back up to speed. We have the standard Ippo has a HUGE penis jokes, Ippo’s slow moving relationship with his would-be girlfriend, and of course the real draw awesome boxing action. The boxing is a middle-ground between being ultra realistic and super move silliness. People have techniques and named moves proving Ippo is firmly shonen fighting but they are mostly grounded in reality with some pseudo-science to back up the rest. The series starts with the spotlight on Ippo’s rival fighting the Australian champ and his mysterious Blood Cross technique. Man oh man does this series lend itself to yaoi doujinshi. They even lampshade the homoerotic tension in the series between Ippo and Ichiro in a playful manner that is a trademark of the series.

Since I have been watching so much Natsume Yuujinchou, this is the pic of the week:

Con Survival Series: Money and Packing

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Now that all the plans have been laid you have to start thinking about the actual needs on the trip. I think one of the most common questions on forums for first time con-goers is, “how much money do I need?” I can understand that because the last thing you want to do is arrive and be broke by the end of day one. But alas it is rather a complicated question.

It is best to be a fat cat millionaire to whom money is an inconsequential matter for the poor people to worry about. For everyone else you have to prioritize on your general free cash vs. your desires. Single people with full-time jobs are going to have more than students and people with families. Also as far as I can tell, any serious cosplayer is going to have less free cash. If you mainly collect manga and phone charms you’re going to spend less than the person who buys art books and 1/8 sized figures. We are going to try to do our best to give a ball park minimum and some idea of additional costs you might incur. As always you want to tack on some extra because if you don’t old Murphy and his law will surely strike.

Establishing a budget leading up to the convention and then trying to stick to it while there is a good idea. Excluding your hotel and transportation expenses you need to figure in food money, spending money, and emergency money. So making the budget, first of all you should start the moment you make that commitment to go to the convention. If it is going to be the highlight of your year then you can bend your will and knuckle-down to save a bit. I think using cash is best at conventions only because it stops your spending from getting away from you.

My sample budget is as follows:

  • $80 ($20 a day for food/drink, this should include travel days, not just days at the convention);
  • $150 for the dealer’s room (total, not daily);
  • $40 emergency fund (or could have a credit card).
    total: $270

Divide that number by the number of weeks to the convention and you’ll know what you need. Put away a little from each paycheck/allowance/lunch money and voila you’ll have your total in no time!

If you are taking any pointers from our Room and Board post, then you know you can save a lot of pennies by not eating out in excess. You might also want to up your food and drink budget if you plan to go out to eat meals at a restaurant any time during the convention. Also if you are going to indulge in any amount of alcohol your drink budget is going to shoot up quite a bit. The place you are most likely to blow out all of your cash is the dealers room. The most important thing to remember is how much you have budgeted for spending in the dealer’s room and try to only buy what you can’t get anywhere else. We will be devoting a whole article in April to how to get the most bang for your buck in the dealers room so look forward to that. If you are super paranoid you can always throw an emergency 20 in your sock. It’s always good to have an extra bit of cash on you when you are away from home. I know that the area around Otakon is sort of less than upscale. I have never had any sort of incident but sometimes a little piece of mind is worth more than anything. Plus it prevents you from causally spending your last 20 dollars on anything frivolous.

So besides the suitcase full of money you’ll be bringing, you will probably also need a number of other amenities for your person. The key is to pack as little and compactly as possible because the last day of the convention you might just have to lug all your stuff around with you. For example, take a hoodie instead of long sleeve shirts. You can wear it over and over plus t-shirts take up less room. Anything that can be worn over and over, without it being gross, is a good choice. I usually wear one pair of jeans the whole time and take on extra just in case. Some of the easiest things to lose from your load are things the hotel provides like soap, shampoo, hairdryer, and towels. Sure they may not be your first choices but it is only for a couple days. Some things you might not think about bringing but can be helpful are a travel sewing kit and an extra bag for purchases from the dealer’s room.

My packing list:

  • 4 t-shirts (which is one more than I need)
  • 1 pair of jeans
  • 1 pair sweat pants (for sleeping)
  • 4 pair underwear/socks (which is one more than I need)
  • toothbrush/toothpaste/floss
  • medication (prescription, aspirin, cold, etc.)
  • deodorant
  • contact case/solution
  • hair brush
  • hoodie
  • sewing kit
  • extra bag (something you can fold up when not in use)
  • cellphone charger
  • book (for traveling)

I prefer packing in a bookbag because it is the easiest thing to lug around, plus it forces you to pack only what can fit. And since I don’t have a car, it makes it easier to get to and from the bus station. Also a friendly reminder to anyone taking a plane, don’t forget the liquids law for carry on baggage. Which is another good reason to just use the hotel provided toiletries.

You might also want to bring the following if you have room for it: A portable game system is always nice for playing when you are traveling, waiting in line, or just to kill time in general; A camera and/or a digital recorder if you meet anyone interesting; A laptop and power cord if you are doing a panel, plus many hotels have free internet access. As we’ve mentioned before you might want to bring food from home. A nifty trick is to throw all your food in one bag. Since you are probably going to eat a majority of the food you brought by the last day you can now use that bag for anything you got at the convention. I also bring a messenger bag. You can use it to carry around anything you need at the convention and store any valuables. The best way to make sure you take everything you need is a check list. So what happens when you forget something at home (which is probably going to happen). People often forget their cellphone charger which is the most inconvenient thing to forget. Fortunately there is a simple fix to this situation. Almost any pharmacy or convenience store will have backup cellphone batteries that will get you through the weekend. If you forget any toiletries that are not automatically in your room, just ask for them at the concierge desk. Anything else can also usually be bought at a local pharmacy or convenience store in travel sizes.

Ongoing Investigations: Case #029

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I have stayed up to date with Toradora! and I think it has been worth it so far. It has been continuing to mix comedy and drama while keeping the story entertaining. I think all the characters have grown on me and continue to impress me. The most impressive thing about Toradora! is how I have warmed up to Ami. At first I felt that she was the loud, bitchy girl who you are supposed to feel sympathy for after one bit of drama ala Sheryl from Macross Frontier. They have avoided this trap by slowly letting us see her complexity. By not trying to change our perception of her like a light switch it makes her a richer and more sympathetic character. I do not love her with the passion that others do but I actually now enjoy seeing her in the story. Minori has also revealed herself to be beyond that of a silly airhead especially when at Ami’s villa and during the school festival.

Finally picked up a copy of All-Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder, the first hardcover collection. It is great to see Jim Lee doing Batman again, he is just incredibly, insanely talented period. And he has only gotten better as time has gone on. There are some really intense pieces which Scott Williams really enhances in this series including one where Batman is holding up little Dick Grayson, here is a scan. I wasn’t aware this series was starting with a Robin origin story, not that I am complaining, on the contrary it was a pleasant surprise. True to Frank Miller form he writes Batman as a borderline psycho which always keeps you guessing. And it certainly does boast an all-star cast, as the title implies, with appearances from the Joker, Bat-girl, and Cat-woman in just these first few issues. Oh, and Batman and Robin making fun of the Green Lantern, hilarious. Looking forward to more!

I am not quite certain why I keep reading Ken Akamatsu stuff. For some reason his books entertain me even if I can’t really say they are good. I just read Negima 19 and 20. Since the school festival arc is over it means they need a training arc before they move on. Ah, the staples of shonen fighting mixed with the staples of shonen romance. And I enjoy this why? Oh and because we did not have enough tsundere girls in the series we had to add Anya, Negi’s childhood friend. I did like her crazy boobie conspiracy theories though. I am always a little scared about how well researched the magic and Latin is in Negima. It’s like finding out that porn you just watched had a team of historical consultants.

Continuing reading of Switch, just finished the second book. It keeps itself moving between intense cop drama and humor pretty well. We wrapped up the story involving the famous model with some serious business. Kai and Hal are a good pair. Then we have a short bust with the help of the department’s analyst, Kuzui, she has a most hilarious crush on Kai. We end on another longer story, which continues into the next volume, involving a high school gang. I have to admit to enjoying seeing Hal and Kai having to infiltrate a high school to get a drug bust. Oh so 21 Jump Street! Though Hal is only posing as a teacher.

I watched the first 4 episodes of Turn A Gundam again. I had started watching a long time ago but then some computer trouble wiped out what I had downloaded so I stopped there vowing to watch it after I finished the original Gundam. Since we are currently watching First Gundam for the blog I decided to restart Turn A. It’s an unusual Gundam series even though it is directed Yoshiyuki Tomino. The initial steam-punk technology of Earth is strange and there are no colonies, only men from the Moon. Loran’s role as a double agent is definitely unique because he has best wishes for both sides. Sochie Heim is a likable character but so far she is getting kicked pretty hard by life and I don’t expect that to change. I will also say it’s amusing to see quite a bit of nudity of both sexes so far. I guess they really wanted to sell you on this 20th anniversary Gundam series.

I was so happy to see the Tower of Druaga second season start up. While I didn’t think the first series was the most incredible story ever written, I really enjoyed it and it left you on quite a cliffhanger! So getting back into it was fun. A little time has passed since the end and we start out with some interesting new mysteries. Fatina remains my favorite character and her interactions with Jil are nicely thoughtout. As with the first season, the opening is unrelated but very well done and a joy to watch. I really appreciate when the staff thinks about the placement of the text in an opening, as opposed to just slapping it over their beautiful animation.

And now my pic of the week (or Hisui reveals herself to be a Turn A Gundam shipper):