Brooklyn Botanic Gardens: Sakura Matsuri 2009

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The rain, cherry blossoms, and tears can all fall with infectious joy or breathtaking sadness. The Sakura Matsuri was held at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens on Saturday and Sunday. Every year around this time they have a collection of Japanese performances and lectures on a wide range of Japanese arts in the background of the falling cherry blossoms. You get a wide variety including: dance, music, poetry, and artistic botany. The crowd is also very diverse. I saw families, couples, friends, young people, old people, otaku, and hipsters. There were many people in cosplay but they hardly overwhelmed the normal patrons nor were they ever disruptive on the day that I went. I am curious if it was any better or worse on Saturday.

Most everyone I know went on Saturday and I went Sunday. This meant that Sunday was a solitary journey which lends a different feel to the proceedings. For some reason the whole day brought to my mind the 71st episode of Urusei Yatsura, Shinobu’s Cinderella Story because of the constant rain. I half expected to get drawn into an adventure of romance and danger. But that just goes to show what an odd person I am in the end. Plus I always like to picture myself as Shinobu. Maybe because we have similar personalities. Maybe I just want the ability to hurl tanks when upset. Still all the cherry blossom trees were in full bloom and you often saw blossoms littering the air and walkways. Although a popular activity was people shaking the trees to get the rain of petals effect. It was definitely a good weekend to capture the proper ambiance of Sakura Matsuri.

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Japan Society: KRAZY! The Delirious World of Anime + Manga + Video Games Exhibit

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An exhibition highlighting parts of Japanese popular culture is not to be overlooked. Though going in I didn’t really know what to expect or how much there would be to see. Just knowing that all these pieces that have influenced not only each other but popular culture in Japan and abroad makes quite an impression. This is going on til mid June so we figured if you haven’t seen it yet maybe you will after this!

I like anime, manga, and video games so this exhibit seemed right up my alley. I usually go into exhibits like these with guarded expectations. You never know when the person who put together the exhibit is an expert on the subject or someone who is catering to demand in the market. I was also a little worried because all three subjects are interconnected but very different. With an exhibit like this I want to get something out of it. I want to either learn something new or gain some greater insight about something I already knew about.

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Ongoing Investigations: Case #043

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I finished the Contraband arc of Liar Game. It ended pretty strongly with a equal mixture of  success and failure for our main characters. I really liked that it was neither a total victory nor a total loss. Nao and Shinichi are definitely in a tight spot going into the next round but they did much of what they needed to do. Liar Game stays a smart series that challengers the reader but does not pull its plot twists out of thin air. How the game works and how the characters pull off their schemes are set up before the reveals are given. A clever person could probably figure out the answers in advance. Norihiko Yokoya has obviously been set up as a reoccurring villain which is the first in the series. Nao is still oscillating between being girl-who-needs-to-be-saved and Shinichi’s partner but at least her character is growing. I am hoping by the end she will have her own unique perception and tactics. I am a little surprised that Fukunaga is staying on as an important side character.

Picked up Key to the Kingdom a while back but just started reading it. So far books one and two have impressed me, it is a wonderfully put together shojo fantasy. We start with Asta, the youngest prince, who has no desire to rule nor to hold a sword. So when the country’s rule lies in the hands of whoever can find the “key to the kingdom” it seems he will be free of such troubles. However, fate has other things in store as Badd, a retainer, drags him into looking for clues to its whereabouts. When a Dragon Man appears on their path it becomes clear that everything is not as it seems. A diverse cast emerges along the road as Asta resists but gets caught up in the complexity of the country’s history. There are many things going in this story including action, politics, mystery, and love. I was surprised that the series is only six years old because the art certainly has a late-80’s or mid-90’s feel to it. A great start to the series, highly recommended!

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