Year: 2009

Manga of the Month: April

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X-Day by Setona Mizushiro

This is a very short title that came out a number of years back. It easily caught some attention with the surface premise. Four people, three students and one teacher, come together through various  tragedies and decide to blow up their high school. But rather than being a look at an anarchistic plot, it is a story about the meaning of friendship. Rika was high on the social ladder till her injury and her break-up with her boyfriend. She no longer views her world the same way. As she tries to adapt she stumbles across a chat room where she meets three people who change her indefinitely. These people bond together and no one is more surprised about it than themselves. As the story goes on, and as the characters better learn about themselves, the plot against the school takes a backseat to them helping each other. This is a good short story, just two books, which is able to develop its characters in the limited amount of time.

Addicted to Curry by Kazuki Funatsu

Addicted to Curry is definitely a senien manga. Koenji Makito is clearly a senien hero because he basically starts off as a godlike curry chef. He might perfect his craft slightly or learn a minor lesson but he’s already an expert. You also have more of the healing manga setups than tournament manga ones. This means someone will have a problem and Makito will show them the answer with one of his dishes. That is not to say that there aren’t cooking battles. They are just more one on one battles over some point of ideology than tournaments. Being senien manga also means more fan-service and racy content but it’s nothing prevalent.

We start with Sonezaki Yui whose father, the owner of a curry restaurant, has disappeared after saying he was going to sharpen his skills. Despite her best efforts she will soon have to sell the restaurant due to mounting debt. On the way home she finds Koenji Makito starving on the street and accidentally throws food at him when trying to feed him. When he tracks her down it turns out he is a friend of her father and was hoping to work at his restaurant. He soon agrees to be the curry chef until her father comes back. It is going to take a lot of work for Yiu and Makito to get back into the black. There also seems to be an evil corporation that wants to buy the curry house and will do anything to buy the land.

Most chapters have a full recipe for whatever was made in it so you can make your own dishes. It is always nice to see a cooking manga that teaches you while entertaining you at the same time.

Con Survival Series: How to Run a Panel

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So do you want to go to a convention and get in for free? Do you have a topic you are an expert on? Do you have something you want the rest of the anime community to know about? Do you constantly get asked the same questions again and again in real life and on the Internet? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you might be perfect to run a panel. It is great because you almost always get in for free and you get a little soapbox to spread youe addition to the anime gospel. The real question is why doesn’t everyone do it? Because is it is a lot of work. If you do it right, even a simple panel is enough work equal to the price of admission. So let’s get down to business. How do I do a super special awesome chocolaty fudge-coated panel that will get me invited back again and again?

You’re right, everyone’s first inclination for running a panel is that you can get in for free. Though you have to check that before you get excited, many smaller cons only give you a discount on your ticket or none at all. Doing a panel because you want to and are actually going to put in the effort necessary without getting paid, that is when you separate the men from the boys. It is really important to think hard about doing a panel before signing up, you are placing yourself as a event of the convention. It is a responsibility.

Clearly the first thing to decide is what you want to talk about. There are a wide variety of topics you could do a panel or workshop about. Next is deciding who to do your panel with. If you are really confident, you can go it solo. However, the on stage banter between two or more people can keep the panel fresh and lively. If you are super cautious, you can check what panels the convention ran last year. Typically if the same person is doing the same panel year after year your are much less likely to get accepted as a panelist on the subject. Now it is time to write your proposal. When you submit your panel idea you want to sell it hard. First list all the accolades that would sell your panelists. If any panelists have professional, scholastic, or amateur experience mention it in the proposal. For example, studying for a literature or animation degree, heading an anime club or other fan activities, or a job related to your topic are all good things to put down. Also if you have ever run any other panels mention that, too. You want to present yourself as overqualified. You want to sell the person reviewing your proposal that you know what you are talking about. Don’t just write a two line description if you can avoid it.

Panels are just more fun when you are doing them together. Of course, it throws in a set of problems like making sure everyone shows up and puts in the needed effort. Nothing is more frustrating than having one member totally unprepared. Once your panel is accepted there may be a little bit of paperwork involved depending on the convention. Typically there is some sort of release form that each member has to sign and turn in prior to the panel. Now it is time to start working on the actual panel. Do not leave this till the last minute! Start work on your panel atleast a month before the convention.

If you are already quite knowledgeable about your panel subject then it is a simple matter of organizing your thoughts. Otherwise you are going to have to sit down and do some research. Once you have decided on the subject make a quick outline. Decide all the things you want to talk about in a big brain-storming session. Then take all those ideas and sort them into categories. Once that is done, write down what highlights you want to touch upon in each category. You don’t have to write everything out like it was an essay, just lay down talking points so you always know the flow of the panel.

Now when planning out the panel it is essential to think about your time frame. Some subjects will be too grand to cover in a mere hour and some things too narrow. So after picking your subject you should break it into segments. Here is a breakdown for our Anime Recruitment panel as an example:

  • Intro to us/panel – 5 mins
  • Do’s and Don’ts – 10 mins
  • Recommendations – 30 mins
  • Q and A – 15 mins.
    total: 60 mins.

You actually need to run through the panel to make sure your breakdown is realistic, too. It is wise to set aside some time for questions at the end, however if it is your first time running a panel leave only about 5 or 10 minutes. Otherwise you may have dead space in your panel. My advice is to also ask your audience to hold all questions till the end because you need to make sure to get through all your subject matter. I find this to be the biggest folly at panels. And it is better to have more questions than you can answer that flow into the hall. Also in that time be packing up your stuff to make way for the next panelist.

The old joke is someone asks, “Pardon me sir, but how do I get to Carnegie Hall?” and the other man replies, “Practice, practice, practice.” The best panels have probably been rehearsed at least three times before they were ever given. This is even more true for any workshops, demonstrations, game shows, and scripted events. Even if you have it all written down in front of you, it will flow off the tongue more naturally if you practice before hand. Rounding people up to watch you practice is even better. It gives you a good opportunity to make sure you are making eye contact with the audience and you can gauge their reactions. Ideally you would have one person in the audience that has no idea what your panel is about and one person who is knowledgeable about it then get their thoughts at the end. Also an audience can shoot you some questions so you have some idea ahead of time what you might be asked at the actual panel.

While it isn’t necessary, we highly recommend the use of visuals like a PowerPoint presentation. It gives some pop to your panel, makes sure the audience isn’t only looking at you, and makes you look slightly more professional. This can easily keep the audience from getting bored and it makes your job that much easier in trying to describe things. You can also create hand-outs for the audience to keep with them after your panel. For example, if you are talking about many different shows the hand-out could list them, who released it, and how long it is. You can also use that space to promote your blog or website. Finally, a good way to draw attention to your panel is to give things away. Does that sound sleazy? Who cares! It works. In the convention guide be sure to mention a giveaway in your panel description. Then just gather up a few DVDs, books, etc. you aren’t too attached to and presto! Instant audience!

Now that everything is done it’s time to cover your behind. You want to throw any presentations, videos, handouts, and notes on at least two separate back up sources. They can be either laptops, CDs, DVDs, portable hard drives, or written copies of all the panel information. That means no matter what happens you should be able to do the panel. A girl who was giving several panels had her laptop die right at the beginning of the Providence Anime Convention. Her presentation contained rather scholarly panels with a great deal of information, pictures, and charts on her PowerPoint slides. Since she had a backup CD and a portable HD she merely borrowed a laptop from someone in the audience or staff and ran her panels without a misstep. Ideally, everyone on the panel should bring along a backup copy of all the panel materials. No matter who drops out the remaining members can still do the panel without them.

Now comes the moment of truth, you have to get up there and do a panel. Our first panel, I was slightly nervous but the convention was small so it wasn’t too terrible. My second experience was much more nerve racking! Otakon was a whole different ball park with a lot more people. Plus, you had to get up on this stage area! Something about being elevated made it far worse. Don’t panic, if you are nervous when you get up there tell the audience so. Start talking with them to loosen yourself up. In any case, I’m just pointing out that I get terribly nervous but make it through. And then you feel a nice exhilaration after it is all over! But when it is all over, how do you know if it went well? People will clap, hopefully, and some will probably talk to you after the panel. These are good signs. Con staff in the room are also good people to ask because they are typically keeping an eye on the audience. And finally check out the forums and ask around. Remember, all panels have the potential to be good it just takes some foresight to make it memorable! Good luck!

Ongoing Investigations: Case #037

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I quickly dug into the rest Fairy Musketeers. It was all in all a solid if unremarkable magical girl show. Which is not to say it was not entertaining because it was very well done and boatloads of fun but it won’t win over anyone who did not all already like magical girl shows. The characters are enjoyable, cute, and cool when they need to be. Akazukin interestingly enough reminds me a lot of Narutaki other than the fact that Narutaki only wishes he had a magical wolf companion and was the greatest dual sword fighter in the world. Highlights of the show include the evil sorcerer/playboy named Dude; Ringo saving everyone by being a wuss; a music duel worthy of Macross 7; an episode about religion; and as always Val bringing the manliness to counterbalance all the girl power cute. I was a little disappointed my theory about Cendrillon’s motivations was incorrect. It has a solid ending that does not prevent a sequel but does not beg for one. It leaves you with a warm and pleasant feeling which is all you can ask for sometimes and possibly just what you need.

Read the third book of Switch. I was of course delighted by Hal and Kai having to infiltrate a high school drug ring. It was a decent arc but seemed a bit predictable and the ending didn’t surprise me much. There was also not enough Hal in it which always takes it down a notch for me. The new arc dealing with a new section of the team that deals in information manipulation starts off really well. Looking forward to that continuing story in the next book.

After hearing a good deal of positive reviews I went back and watched Xam’d: Lost Memories from where I had stopped the last time. I was intrigued with the show but Narutaki’s interest waned so it was a matter of me getting back into the grove on my own. That this show came from Bones and its director was a man heavily involved with Eureka Seven is unmistakable. I enjoyed the tighter storytelling in the shorter Xam’d. There was less filler but there was almost no time to catch your breath. They moved quickly from important plot development to important plot development. Eureka Seven’s filler was usually enjoyable and helped you again insight into the characters so there are benefits to taking your time as well. I really enjoyed all the female characters which is a plus. Nakiami is pretty bad-arse while still being human. Haru Nishimura was my favorite character but she was the queen of making some rather foolish decisions. I will also reluctantly admit to being way to intune with Furuichi feelings and conflicts. Another good ending that leaves time to have a sufficient amount of conclusion without dragging it out. I am a little worried that all these good endings to series is setting me up for some big disappointment in the future. Another series I highly recommend especially if you liked Eureka Seven.  They have to get it out there some way that is not just the PlayStation Network because while I loved Xam’d I’m not buying a PS3 to own it.

Read Naughty But Nice by Naduki Koujima. In a strange turn of events, the cover art is unappealing while the interior work is pretty nice. This book actually contains two BL stories, Naughty But Nice (which is only the first half, it continues in a book called Spicy But Sweet) and Bouquet of Love. The first one is mediocre at best going along without any real rhyme or reason. Even though I like teacher x student I just couldn’t get into it. It moves at too clipped a pace throwing us Wakasa’s past ungracefully. Though surprisingly they didn’t jump into bed. The second one was quite a bit better. Kazuki is very cute, he works at a flower shop, and when he helps a man who is allergic to flowers a bond forms. It has a little bit of contrived drama, but otherwise is a sweet story. However, since it is the shorter of the two it doesn’t seem worth picking up. You can read a preview here.

I read the first book of Queen of Ragtonia by Chika Shiomi. It is a standard fantasy adventure but enjoyable. Falna is looking for a magical sword that can slay the evil necromancer that has taken over the kingdom and killed her family. This is a hard task because the necromancer has stolen her ability to walk and one of her eyes. Cardus is a huge sword-wielding warrior who also lost an eye fighting a demon at the beginning of the book. When they fight together they can defeat even the most powerful demons and save lost souls. The book is fun but the pacing is really odd. I can’t put my finger on it exactly but it seems to oscillate between being fast and slow. Cardus reminds me of Gourry in both of them are big powerful swordsmen that are sort of goofy and slow but kindly and brave. Falna is a character that wants to be a strong female character but is hampered by her physical handicaps and her inner weaknesses. So far she has mostly strives to be stronger which is good enough for me. Chika Shiomi has tried to show the motivations behind all the characters including the demons (though we haven’t seen the necromancer yet). It does not always work but it kept the monsters from being evil for evil’s sake. Apparently Queen of Ragtonia was originally a doujinshi that has been turned into a professional work. In the afterward the author shows some panels from the original compared to the panels in the new version. You can read a preview here.

I picked up the Black Jack Illustrations Museum, pocket-sized, from Book Off! It is filled with pictures of, you guessed it, everyone’s favorite surgeon. A few of the pictures involve other characters like Pinoko but 85% are just the man himself. The book is 320 pages long with 78 color pages, which includes some writings. The rest are all black and white images and the end has some writing as well. It’s a really nice piece and quite affordable.

This weeks pic is the Haru who leapt through time:

The Haru who lept through time