Dagger

Welcome to Otakuboards, Fire Fox FOXINA. ^_^ For future reference, this type of thread belongs in the Suggestions & Feedback forum. And while we're on the topic of suggestions, I think it'd be a good idea for you to read OB's Rules and FAQ, both of which can be found simply by glancing at your left-hand navigation bar. Pay particular attention to what James says about the importance of writing coherent, high-quality posts. To get an avatar, click "Edit Avatar" (the link should be located halfway down the blue bar that runs along the left side of your screen). Once you're there, just select a category and choose any pre-made avi you desire. You can also make and upload a custom avatar, but that's somewhat more complicated. Since you're new, it'll probably be easier to use one that's readily available. If you have any additional questions, feel free to PM me or one of the other moderators. With that having been said... Thread closed. ~Dagger~

[quote name='SpaceCowboy156']I would have to say FLCL to wet up tast buds then trygun and outlaw star :devil:[/quote] I would have to say that the reply quoted above is a classic case of spam. Since you're new, you may not have realized that OtakuBoards places a strong emphasis on post quality. This includes using proper grammer, spelling and punctuation; unfortunately, your post is lacking in all three areas. It'd also be nice if you chose to write more than a single sentence. Instead, take the time to justify your choices and explain why fans of Cowboy Bebop might enjoy FLCL or "trygun." To learn more about our policies, read OB's official Rules and FAQ, both of which are linked to in your left-hand navigation bar (convenient, ne?). If you have any questions, comments or concerns, feel free to PM me or one of the other moderators. Thank you very much. ^_^ ~Dagger~

Hmm... I was a wee bit disappointed by episode 9. It's well-executed, but the underlying message is sort of simplistic and--at least in my opinion--shouldn't have consumed nearly half an hour of precious screen time. I did enjoy the story about the [spoiler]dying girl. The artistic style remained basically the same, but the fact that the new characters' eyes were drawn differently succeeded in making them look like a stereotypical shoujo couple.[/spoiler] Overall, though, I thought that most of the women's anecdotes seemed somewhat lackluster and were interesting only because of their inherent irony. ~Dagger~

[quote name='crobo']Anyway i tink you should show them more "normal" anime because some people can get bit feeaked out by the comedy elements of some animes (In my experience anyway)l[/quote] *nods* In his first post, Sennen also said something to that effect, and the two of you couldn't be more correct. Azumanga Daioh and Sensei no Ojikan definitely have their merits, but both rely heavily on cultural jokes that would fly right over the average American's head. Parodies like Excel Saga, Otaku no Video, etc. are also pretty much guaranteed to fall flat. It takes a while for people to become accustomed to the quirks of Japanese comedy (which is often very exaggerated and over-energetic). I'd avoid series which rely heavily on symbolism. These include FLCL, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Revolutionary Girl Utena and The Melody of Oblivion. I love the latter two anime, but generally speaking, skeptics often think such shows are weird or heavy-handed. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Japan86']Though some anime may be shoujo, that doesn't matter. All people are different. Some girls may hate shoujo, yet love shonen, and vice versa.[/quote] Of course. ^_^ That principle applies to every form of entertainment, from pornography to trashy romance novels. As I mentioned earlier, [i]many[/i] guys are enthusiastic fans of shoujo, and I know girls who absolutely refuse to watch it. However, almost anything that can be easily categorized will by its very nature have to contain some stereotypes--which is why I think it's best to show anime haters something that isn't instantly recognizable as shoujo (such as Sailor Moon) or shounen (Naruto, DBZ, etc). There are a lot of people who feel that anime is beneath them in terms of depth and content. Lighter fare like Love Hina just won't cut it for those folks, so I've put together a second list aimed at intellectual elitists/everyone who won't accept that not all cartoons are for preschoolers. Some of these anime may be a little quirky, but none feature mecha, hyper schoolgirls or bratty kids with psychic powers. Kino's Journey Master Keaton Monster Haibane Renmei Koi Kaze Paranoia Agent Grave of the Fireflies Texhnolyze, Boogiepop Phantom and Serial Experiments Lain are all fantastic series, but you'd have to show someone at least three or four episodes of each for them to make a bit of sense and not come across as being ridiculously obtuse. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Undefeated']No Child Left behind demands accontability. That is what our nation needs, not a bunch of neo-feminist touchy feely crap.[/quote] NCLB must be quite effective, since your spelling skills are absolutely dazzling. Anyway, I find your assertions rather amusing, considering that President Bush originally marketed himself as a "compassionate conservative." [quote]Fact 1. Rome was unstoppable when moderate logicism ruled the Senate. Fact 2. Rome fell in less than 100 years after accpeting homosexuality and other loose morals (from the standpoint of secular humanism, not Christianity.) Fact 3. Relativism is ********. Carthage learned this, because when it's philosophies became relative, it got whiped out by Rome.[/quote] Even assuming that your facts can indeed be taken as such (I lack the time to verify this on my own), I'm amazed that you can so confidently present us with a single [i]ancient[/i] example and expect it to strengthen your argument. If you're capable of proving that "loose morals" have led nations to self-destruction time and time again throughout the course of history, then I might stop taking your posts with a liberal dose of salt. I'm not old enough to vote. If I was, I'd have to go for Kerry. I'm not his biggest fan, but the current administration has screwed up so badly that I really think we should give someone else a chance. It's not entirely Bush's fault; many of the nation's current problems can be blamed on his staff rather than on the man himself. However, he shows so much downward loyalty that I doubt he'd be willing to fire any of them. ~Dagger~

I rarely download raws (seeing how as I know almost no Japanese). Yet I've been anticipating Samuari Champloo for so many months that I couldn't resist watching episode 1 as soon as possible, even without being able to understand the dialogue. Anyway, since this show is bound to be insanely popular, I'm sure someone will sub it pretty soon. Shinichiro Watanabe has become one of my personal gods, heh. I worked my way through Cowboy Bebop once or twice, and I appreciated it for what it is--a high-quality anime that I enjoy watching but just don't love. Samurai Champloo, on the other hand, seems to be right up my alley. The first episode alone contains one of the best anime swordfights that I have [i]ever[/i] come across. It's better than those seen in the last arc of Peacemaker, better than Kenshin's first duel with Saitou, possibly even better than all of the amazing battles that motivated me to buy the Samurai X OVAs. I can't even find the words to express my esctacy. Visually and aurally, Samurai Champloo is (as expected) very, very cool. The scene transitions are particularly innovative, and the show's animation just about reeks of style. This series is to hip-hop as Cowboy Bebop is to jazz--it owes much of its unique atmosphere to its daring soundtrack. I used the word "daring" because most people simply wouldn't think of combining a historical action-drama with... well, hip-hop, which is one of the most modern genres of music in existence. I loved how [spoiler]the second-to-last frame said "The End," and was followed shortly by "Psyche! To be continued."[/spoiler] That amused me quite a bit. ^_^ ~Dagger~

To the best of my knowledge, the individual anime forums were closed because their average post quality tended to be pretty sub-par. They also suffered from a general lack of interest. Anyway, since it sounds as though you'd like to discuss Digimon, you might want to take a look at [URL=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=39407][u]this[/u][/URL] thread. In the future, please make sure that all of your posts include proper capitalization and punctuation; doing this will make them far easier to read. If you have any other questions, feel free to PM me or one of the other moderators. Thank you very much. ^_^ Thread closed. ~Dagger~

Sensei no Ojikan is a thirteen-episode comedy anime that began airing on April 4, 2004. It's currently being subbed by Seichi-Fansubs and The Triad (along with Anime Coalition). SnO's humor and lack of a central plot invite people to dismiss it as a clone of the incredibly popular anime/manga Azumanga Daioh. However, this isn't entirely the case, since the original SnO manga came out shortly before Azumanga Daioh. I can't quite explain why, but I enjoy watching this series. Sensei no Ojikan is the anime I turn to when I'm exhausted and in need of some serious relaxation. Its jokes have gradually become more and more sophisticated (or, at the very least, less banal). Artwork isn't the show's central focus--the character designs and animation are very simple--but none of the characters ever goes off-model. SnO revolves around Mika-sensei, a twenty-seven year old teacher who looks like she's barely out of elementary school, and her class--which is quite literally filled with freaks and geeks. The main cast includes Seki, an arrogant cross-dresser; Suetake, a talented, easygoing and oblivious (some might say dumb) jock; and Kitagawa, a pretty lesbian with a fetish for small girls. So far, episode 4 is definitely my favorite. Some of its gags are surprisingly cute and subtle (for example, the eyecatch following a scene with Mika-sensei and her father features a giant pea-pod). ~Dagger~

The way I see it, terms like shounen, seinen and shoujo serve to indicate an anime's content and intended audience rather than its [i]actual[/i] audience or artistic style. The Chobits manga was one of CLAMP's first attempts to reach male readers, but as you mentioned, the series has also attracted female fans. Guys adore Maria-sama ga Miteru despite the fact that it's aimed squarely at women; the same thing goes for SuperGALS! and Marmalade Boy. Lol, Inuyasha is a pretty pathetic romance story. However, my opinion of the anime has pretty much dropped through the floor in recent weeks, so I'll spare you any lengthy discourse on its flaws (real or perceived). Visuals may not always play a large role in determining a particular show's classification. Nevertheless, ridiculously large-breasted girls and effeminate bishounen are seen in so many anime that one can't afford to totally disregard the significance of various series' character designs. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Adora]June is pronounced "Ju-nay" and refers to a magazine once called that in the early days of Yaoi mags. [i]Technically[/i'] it means serious, deep, meaningful, and sometimes sex-less guy/guy relationship stories in the manga form. But ones where they do have sex can still be called June. It's sort of seen as a "thinking persons" Yaoi.[/quote] Many thanks for the explanation. ^_^ This reminds me of all the confusion surrounding the usage of "shounen-ai" and "yaoi." Most people now think of yaoi as hardcore PWP, but the word once referred to simple boys' love. Technically, Gravitation and FAKE--which are advertised as shounen-ai--should be called yaoi. Shounen-ai manga used to feature the equivalent of girls' s-class relationships (highly passionate friendships that may include various kinds of "light" physical intimacy). Sometimes I just substitute "slash" for shounen-ai/yaoi/whatever, since that term pretty much covers [i]everything[/i]. ~Dagger~

[quote name='OtakuSennen][color=navy']For Shoujo, though, I suppose Chobits, Kare Kano and Inuyasha fit the bill rather well. And for many 16-year-old males, a little dose of Love Hina can never hurt. *wink*[/color][/quote] Gah! Chobits and Inuyasha are most definitely [i]not[/i] shoujo. As a matter of fact, I think that the former series would also be more suitable for 16-year-old males. Inuyasha just falls under the same category as other super-long shounen anime like Rurouni Kenshin and Yu Yu Hakusho. I don't watch very much shoujo, so I can't really offer any replacements for the shows that you suggested. My mom [i]did[/i] take well to Fruits Basket (a sweet, marvelous, wonderful anime), but I don't think she exactly represents NashvilleDream's target audience. Oh well... ^_^; ~Dagger~

[quote name='Adora']Eh, let's hope they don't do too bad a job (like the bastards who changed by Weiß Kreuz to "Knight Hunters"... goddamnit).[/quote] That would be Media Blasters... although when it comes to Knight Hunters, the quality of the source material is also somewhat questionable. ^_~ [quote]Sorry, heh, I have to confess, I haven't seen the anime yet...[/quote] You know what to expect, right? I've encountered a lot of PMK manga fans who were pretty disappointed by the anime. Personally, I love it like none other, but GONZO played around with the original storyline and characters in ways that annoyed some people and just made others angry. :/ If you approach the television series as a separate work (rather than one that strives to slavishly imitate the corresponding manga), I think you'll have a better chance of liking it. ~Dagger~

My favorite scene in episode 6 (other than all of the parts with Poipoider ^_~) was when Yagami popped up from the manhole, looking [i]totally[/i] clueless. Despite the prior silliness with Enora, I hadn't been expecting anything so deliciously random. Speaking of which, the revolutionaries are definitely going to reappear when we least expect them. Kubernes has a pretty nifty character design, although his metal arm immediately made me think of FMA. Enora's personality kind of veers between annoying, spunky and just plain cute. I loved how she ordered around her kidnappers; I was a little irritated by the way she pestered Gram. Eh.... at least she's not totally insane like Anna (what a scary woman!). On the subject of scariness, I can't wait to see the Captain in a dress. ~Dagger~

[quote name='JazzLady22']And if I'm not mistaken, they took 'Kurogane' out of the title, didn't they? Or did they just shorten it for the press release?[/quote] Yeah, that was probably requested by GONZO. R1 licensers just don't have much control over those types of name changes (i.e. "Hundred Stories" becoming "Requiem from the Darkness"). As long as Peacemaker can still be abbreviated to PMK, I shan't complain. ^_~ Frankly, it sounds as though someone at ADV pulled the summary out of his or her *** after reading a poor translation of the original Japanese blurb... which [i]does[/i] refer to losing one's humanity and becoming a demon. The press release is pretty poorly written, and fails to clarify that the Shinsengumi members' demonic powers are figurative rather than literal. ~Dagger~

Vincent looks [i]marvelous[/i]. For the most part, I think they've done a fantastic job of making FF7's anime-inspired character designs appear more realistic. Since it's pretty obvious who everybody is (only Yuffie would wear that cute sweater tank), I have almost no complaints... although the Sephiroth clone with shoulder-length hair might as well be a grown-up Riku. Wow, I haven't posted here in ages. :p ~Dagger~

Here's a snippet from ADV's latest press release. "About Peacemaker: This action-packed film is beautifully animated by the talented team at Gonzo Digimation (Final Fantasy: Unlimited and Full Metal Panic!). Fans of Samurai X are sure to enjoy Peacemaker when they notice the heroic similarities between the two main characters. Tetsunosuke Ichimura had always been a runt, the smallest, weakest kid in his village, but after seeing his parents murdered by a dangerous and evil assassin, Tetsunoke vows to become strong enough to avenge his parents' deaths. Now, at only 15 years of age, he has made up his mind to join the army in order to gain that strength? but what he doesn't know is that the army he's chosen isn't a normal army at all! Now a frightening choice awaits him; to achieve his revenge, will Tetsunosuke be willing to forsake his very humanity for demonic powers? The roads to vengeance and hell may be one and the same in Peacemaker. ADV Films announces a fall 2004 release for Peacemaker." Uh... that summary is basically [i]packed[/i] with inaccuracies, but I wouldn't worry about it too much. ADV happens to be the company that placed the Gunslinger Girl manga under the category of action/comedy, and from what I've heard, its translation is pretty accurate despite that glaring error. ^_^;; I guess they're planning to release the anime and the manga around the same time, but fall 2004 seems a little too soon. Don't get me wrong, I'd be wildly happy if ADV actually managed to get the first DVD out by then. However, they've set (and, more importantly, missed) ambitious street dates in the past. ~Dagger~

Welcome to OtakuBoards, my dear. ^_^ First of all, OB's rules make it quite clear that introduction threads are not permitted. Since you're asking for information (presumably about the inner workings of this forum), I strongly recommend that you glance over the aforementioned [URL=http://www.otakuboards.com/rules.php?][u]rules[/u][/URL] as well as the site's official [URL=http://www.otakuboards.com/faq.php?][u]FAQ[/u][/URL]. Without knowing more details, I really can't provide you with very much assistance. Bear that in mind the next time you beg for help, and please be sure to save it for PM. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

[quote name='MamoruAlpha']It wasn't at all scary and there wasn't much to think about, either. Now, I know that this was just the first episode...[/quote] Obviously I can't convince you to like the series, but I'll try to explain why people often call it thought-provoking. Boogiepop is structured in such a way that each episode has a different main character. Almost every single event and person ends up having some kind of significance. For example, in the first episode Moto encounters a senior who tells her she has a spider on her heart. [spoiler]Episode 2 focuses on that boy (Jonouchi), and shows the same scene from his perspective. I find it really cool to see someone who initially seemed like an important character suddenly being reduced to just another face in the crowd. In the end, even Jonouchi isn't terribly important.[/spoiler] I think that Boogiepop portrays life more realistically than most other series. Events may have multiple causes or no cause whatsoever; minor encounters may be more important than one person's greatest dreams and aspirations. Its convoluted timeline--the episodes take place almost completely out of order--only adds to the fun. ~Dagger~

r2vq-- All of ADV's releases are uncut. They occasionally take liberties with the English dialogue (for example, Saiyuki's dub is a lot more racy and suggestive than the original version), but to my knowledge they never alter an anime's actual footage or use dubtitles rather than proper subtitles. American companies tend to get a bad rap simply because of the horrific things that Nelvana and 4Kids have done to series like Shaman King and Cardcaptor Sakura. :/ Anyway... there's a possibility that Peacemaker may be edited for television, since it's probably going to air on The Anime Network. However, the DVDs will definitely be uncensored. ^_^ [quote name='JazzLady22'] I cannot wait to buy my lovely, shiny box set. If I'm not mistaken, ADV is the one with the great art boxes? *Twitches with joy*[/quote] Well, that depends. Geneon and Bandai usually have the best art boxes; some of ADV's are good (Full Metal Panic, Noir) and some are pretty iffy (Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi, RahXephon). Certain fans [i]loathe[/i] "flimsy" boxes... I don't care too much either way, but I won't buy one unless it looks attractive enough to merit the expense. EDIT: Apparently the first (sort of...) volume of the manga is set to come out in October. ~Dagger~

[quote name='densuke']Finally started watching this. I saw the first 4 episodes in one go. It's great to see a tragic hero like Dr. Tenma. This series seems pretty black-and-white to me - Tenma is the only character where the two tones blend to any extent (well, maybe Lunge).[/quote] I feel rather stupid for suggesting that Monster may dabble in the supernatural, because so far every plot twist has a reasonably rational explanation. Perhaps all the spooky background music started going to my head. ^_^; Anyway, I think that Tenma's [spoiler]ex-fiancee (Eva?)[/spoiler] is less easy to hate than your standard evil *****. In certain ways she reminds me of a character from Melody of Oblivion (the girl that Bocca calls Four-Eyes). Both offer coldly logical justifications for immoral behavior and encourage their love interests to succumb quietly to the status quo. Eva is more blatantly shallow and manipulative, but her grief at [spoiler]her father's death[/spoiler] serves to set her apart from someone like [spoiler]Johan.[/spoiler] [quote]Given the length of the manga this looks to be a [i]very[/i] long series (52+ episodes) - or else it will come off like Berserk, hacked off at some huge climax...[/QUOTE] I can't remember where I read this, but I did see a press release--or something to that effect--which stated that Monster would be 70 episodes long. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Cahoots34']...Is anyone else picking up some subtle shounen-ai undertones from this series?[/quote] Wolf's Rain is pretty well known for just that kind of thing. From what I've read, Hige [spoiler]eventually becomes involved with another (presumably female) wolf,[/spoiler] but there's always Toboe and Tsume. Actually, I wouldn't be at all surprised if fans liked to pair Kiba with Tsume, seeing how as they have that hate-hate Harry/Draco-type connection which people seem to enjoy playing around with so much. On the subject of couples, Cher and Hubb are really cute together. ^_^ Their relationship is refreshingly uncliched, and I love Cher's attitude (it also doesn't hurt that she's amazingly gorgeous). Since a good portion of Wolf's Rain is rather melancholy, at least in terms of atmosphere and music, it's nice to have a few supporting characters who can bring a bit of light-hearted banter into the mix. ~Dagger~

Geneon has licensed Cybuster, Burn Up Scramble and Saiyuki Reloaded (this means that the series will have a different voice cast than the original Saiyuki, which belongs to ADV). They also announced that they had acquired Shingetsutan Tsukihime--renamed Lunar Legend Tsukihime--and thankfully are planning to release it in three volumes rather than four. ADV now owns Peace Maker Kurogane, Full Metal Panic! Fumoffu and the original, uncut version of Gatchaman. The latter is presumably an older series, as it has well over 100 episodes. Obviously I'm really, [i]really[/i] happy that PMK is coming to America. ^_^ Since I gave up on the original FMP after watching its first eight episodes, I feel no need to spend my money on the sequel. It's probably going to sell quite well, all things considered. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Adora']Shounen Ai, Shoujo Ai, Yuri, Yaoi, June, and if there is a female equivalent of June, whatever that is.[/quote] I'm sure I've seen the term 'June' elsewhere on the Web, but I can't remember what it means. Are you by any chance referring to shotacon? [quote]...and the recently released Queerie Faerie (I think that's what it was called, the original Japanese title was Ghost! anyway)[/quote] Hehe, the English title is actually Eerie Queerie. I don't know who came up with that--presumably one of Tokyopop's more mischievous staff members--but clearly he or she was doing crack. It's a fabulous series, regardless of the name. I recently came to the realization that almost all of the manga I own are either outright shounen-ai/shoujo-ai or contain certain hints in that direction. Right now I'm in the process of collecting Gravitation, Eerie Queerie, Tokyo Babylon, Les Bijoux and (Amazon willing) Banana Fish. I never could get into FAKE. Though the artwork is nice enough, the plot just doesn't interest me that much. For some reason, I find Banana Fish much more fascinating... its stark, bold character designs add a lot of credibility to the gritty storyline. Anyway, the first volume of Tokyo Babylon has totally restored my faith in CLAMP--not that I had much to begin with, but at least now I can trust that they occasionally live up to all the hype. I can't wait until Gohou Drug is released here in the States. [quote]...for a non-Japanese title, I think Harry and Draco are so cute together, even though I hate the Harry Potter books & movies.[/quote] *grins* I'm a huge fan of Remus/Sirius, although Harry Potter has such a huge and varied cast that one can find an endless array of interesting pairings. Back to video games. I'm surprised to see that no one has mentioned Kingdom Heart's most popular couple (Riku/Sora, of course!). Both separately and together, those boys may be the very definition of cuteness. For me, their tumultuous friendship was the highlight of an otherwise average game. ~Dagger~

[QUOTE=Chiimaru]HELLO!!! I'm new here! Okaaay See Ya!![/QUOTE] This post is totally off-topic and far too short to qualify as anything but spam. Please review OtakuBoards' rules before writing another reply; you'll find that we place a strong emphasis on post quality and that official introductions are not permitted. Since you're new, it's best to simply browse the forums until you feel comfortable with joining a discussion. ^_^ ~Dagger~