Dagger

[quote name='Fasteriskhead']So, while it's true that different people will "moe" towards different characters, that could just mean that they "moe" at differing traits that are all moe from the start. Moe characters don't change or grow or demand interpretation. Everything relevant about them is right there in the open for every scene.[/QUOTE] This explains my being able to consistently predict my favorite girl/guy in games based on character design alone. :animeswea Which plays into your point--I'm not nearly as good as doing that when it comes to anime, because the anime characters don't necessarily have to be on parade to the same extent as in an eroge. Your post sort of suggests to me that a moe type of character is a character that's made to be moe for people who go moe for the specific attributes found therein. (Tongue-twister?) I lean toward the "moe is an emotion" side, though, in part because of its potential for bleeding out of anime etc. that try to evoke that warm & fuzzy (in the heart, loins, or wherever else) sensation. Ex: the other day my friend was pathetically ill, and when I saw her curling up and lolling around, it was like I got a Zeus-caliber lightning bolt of moe awareness through the head. Setting real life aside, though, moe spills over into just about everything, to the point that I think it becomes troublesome to sort out who was always moe and who was made moe after the fact by the fandom. I also like the idea that you get to decide who's moe for you because it cuts out the need for debate over whether or not a character is moe in the first place. I guess that's a concern for me because I straddle the fujoshi and male otaku fandoms. If I think both [url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/tonya.jpg][u]this girl[/u][/url] and [url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/yuuki.jpg][u]this guy[/u][/url] are moe, I don't like having to justify it to either camp. [quote name='Fasteriskhead']I'm not so sure. I guess there's support for this, given that the term is now sometimes used as a verb (in the sense: "I moe'd over Eriko-chan"), but there is a tendency towards "moe" indicating certain facts.[/QUOTE] The Japanese Wikipedia entry for 萌え is practically a dissertation-length piece on usage and so forth (it's worth noting that the word is a shortening of a verb). I barely skimmed it, but there's an emphasis on moe as a feeling toward a specific "target." I've never looked before, so I was surprised--its content and the content of the English entry are totally different. As far as the English fandom goes, moe as a feeling has never gained a lot of traction, but that's where the roots of the concept lie. Which helps explain why fujoshi and members of other fringe fandoms use it just as freely as fans of the types of characters that are more readily recognized by foreign fans as moe. ~Dagger~

Hold on, now! Moe is 100% subjective. All it means is that Yurie is moe for him but not for you (or, to put it more technically, he's moe for Yurie, but you aren't). But insofar as one can objectively say that a character looks or seems moe, I'm surprised you don't think Yurie falls under that category. Small for her age, cute, sleepy, shy... ~Dagger~

[quote name='Deus ex Machina'][COLOR="DarkOrange"] Anyway, how can the show with the shortest attention span ever not satiate your attention span?! It's the most crack-addict-nine-year-old-without-ritalin show evar! XD You should probably re-watch as a block if you didn't the first time. [/COLOR][/QUOTE] Yeah, you've got a point there. :animesmil I think I petered out around episode 8 or something... will probably take you up on that suggestion when the winter break doldrums hit. ~Dagger~

Wow@the fanart. :) Yeah, Baccano is loads of fun (albeit yet another casualty of my tiny attention span). Kind of hoping that they even out the animation for the DVDs, though. Some parts of it look so great and some are so... awkward. It's also a nice source of OP parodies. The [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htyQif4QofQ][u]Gundam 00 version[/u][/url] is the best I've seen, I think. The Lucky Star one isn't bad either. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Chikara Kokoro'] Fansubs also have an important role in saving classic shows such as Hunter x Hunter and Rose of Versailles that, despite their strong stories and characters, will never make it to the States because of "dated" animation. At this point it is clear that Kurapika will never be gracing my DVD collection, and so I'm glad for fansubs just for the reason that I do not have to live a life without him ;)[/QUOTE] I'm with you on Rose of Versailles, but Hunter x Hunter? Not really. One of them was made from 1979-1980, and the other from 1999-2004. That makes for some huge differences in terms of not only artwork/animation but also music and, well, everything else. Personally, I'm confident that someone will pick up Hunter x Hunter eventually... but I can understand why no one's done so yet, given that the Japanese manga chapters are coming out at a snail's pace, and the anime is far from finished. Netflix has cut down quite a bit on the number of fansubs I watch. Even if I like the first few episodes of a show, I've grown more likely to run out of time or temporarily lose interest and tell myself that I'll just rent the first disc when it gets licensed. ~Dagger~

[quote=AoD]Konata Izumi - Wendee Lee Tsukasa Hiiragi - Michelle Ruff Kagami Hiiragi - Kari Wahlgren Miyuki Takara - Karen Strassman Akira - Stephanie Sheh Minoru - Sam Regal Kuroi-sensei - Kate Higgins Release info: - 6 volume release - Special Editions with goodies like with Haruhi Suzumiya. No details on OST/music yet. - No set street date at this time. - DVD Liner notes to be included for explanations of inside jokes and references in the series. - Original Japanese Endings will be kept[/quote] So they are going down the special edition route after all. Will be interesting to see how this plays out for them. I suppose I could be tempted if the innards (so to speak, haha) are *really* nice. ~Dagger~

Not really interested in the other two manga (as I'm not into Blood+ in general), but I might pick up the one-volume Hagi-centric spin-off that ran in Asuka Ciel. I don't recall the story being especially fantastic or anything, so basically it boils down to me being a sucker for Kisaragi Hirotaka's artwork. :animeswea ~Dagger~

Media Blasters (as expected) [url=http://giapet.net/2007/12/08/nyaf07-media-blasters/][u]has the license[/u][/url] to Genshiken 2. Part of me is thinking of waiting until the eventual two-season box set rather than getting the singles as they come out, since I keep putting off getting season 1. :animeswea ~Dagger~

[url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2007-12-08/code-geass-to-air-on-adult-swim-in-usa][u]Code Geass on Adult Swim[/u][/url] Can't find anything about the broadcast date yet. ~Dagger~

I loved both seasons of Honey & Clover, but one aspect of the end of season 2 left a bad taste in my mouth. It really irritated me, because the main elements of the ending were so perfectly done, and it was only one little thing, and I couldn't level any concrete criticism against it except that [i]I just didn't like it[/i], and now it sticks out in my head whenever I think about the wonderfulness that is the rest of H&C. Argh. Will be interesting to see what you think of the end. Anyway, I semi-marathoned H&C and since that worked out well, I'm planning to do the same for Nodame Cantabile sooner or later... must get on that... ~Dagger~

Curious about what people make of episode 9. I liked it, but my perspective may be skewed because of having been through the game. Opinions seem to be divided over whether it was way too fast-paced or just right. People have also mentioned being uncertain about Hiro's feelings, which is interesting; each chapter of the game is narrated by a different male character, so you really get inside their heads. In contrast, the anime shows more of the female characters' perspectives (to reiterate, a lot of the Miyako material in the last few episodes was anime-original and not in the game, at least not in that kind of direct detail). So is Renji right about Chihiro? Is she always the same at heart no matter how her memories change? And whatever the truth might be, will he have the strength to go on believing that? ~Dagger~

I use white lies about as much as anyone else, but I don't often find myself with cause to lie about important things. I couldn't call myself honest at the core or anything, though; I lie without hesitation on the rare occasion when I feel compelled to do so, either to cover up for someone else or to save my own butt. ~Dagger~

I like to think that Akari has the same kind of glorious pink-haired optimistic charisma as Sora. Re: the A names, this is basically hearsay, but I've read in a couple of places that the manga-ka came across some kind of study that concluded that the "a" sound is the most soothing and chose the names for that reason. @DB: Oh... yeah, if you have a Mac, you're probably outta luck. :animeswea ~Dagger~

Episode 9: Lockon/Felt!? :love: So Lockon's real name is [spoiler]Neil... and he has a twin brother. Not that it matters, but I think that Lockon was the one behind the tree in the opening scene, not the one laying down the second bouquet. Gotta wonder whether his brother knows about CB.[/spoiler] Christina's reaction to the attack made a pretty big impression on me, even though it was unprofessional of her. I guess I was startled to see such a realistic response--I mean, so many have anime have cute young women (and men) with little or no combat experience handling battle situations like hardened professionals. This broke the mold a little. Psyched for more psycho Allelujah in episode 10. Not to mention Virtue's special power or whatever it's supposed to be. ~Dagger~

If you like the Tsukihime anime, you should try the game (there's a translation patch). The anime is quite enjoyable in its own right--and notable for being the first anime to be based on a doujin visual novel--but the game is much vaster in scope. Can't remember... were you watching El Cazador? and/or have you seen Madlax? Noir is still my favorite out of the "trilogy" by a long shot, though I'd be hard-pressed to explain why in concrete terms. @Des: Yay, another Aria fan!! Do you have a favorite undine? :catgirl: ~Dagger~

[url=http://www.dannychoo.com/fauna_detail/eng/639/Shakugan+no+Konata/][u]Shakugan no Konata[/u][/url] I must say, that would definitely get me to watch Shana... EDIT: And while I'm at it, this really needs to be shared. [url=http://anime-chronicles.com/post/view/3651][u]New Megami poster - Lucky Star version of the Haruhi bunny girls[/u][/url] ~Dagger~

AoD's [url=http://www.animeondvd.com/specials/year-in-review/2007inreview.php?view=5][u]Year in Review[/u][/url] for Geneon summarizes a few reasons why it may have happened. I would say that the clearest reason is the market slump, though. ~Dagger~

Time to put those old Aria avatars to good use. [size=1][IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/akari-1.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Akari [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/akari3.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Akari [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/akari4.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Akari [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/akari5.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Akari [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/akari43.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Akari [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/akira2.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Akari [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/aiak1.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Aika [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/aika1.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Aika [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/aika3.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Aika [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/aika5.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Aika [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/alice-1.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Alice [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/alice2.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Alice [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/alicea.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Alice [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/alicia2.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Alicia [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/alicia1.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Alicia [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/alicia.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Alicia [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/akira-1.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Akira [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/akira1.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Akira [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/akira3.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Akira [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/atena.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Athena [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/atena1.jpg[/IMG] [b]Category:[/b] Aria [b]Name:[/b] Athena[/size] I still love these, if I must say so myself. :whoops: ~Dagger~

ARGH... I fail at life. (Read: I caved and caught up on the 4:3 version of Clannad. :animecry:) I've avoided reading anything specific about the game story, but given what I've seen about it being extremely long--especially the latter half of it--I'm wondering how they plan to fit in all the separate girls plus the after story. Ah well. It's the after story that intrigues me a lot more than any of the girls in particular (except lovely Kyou~). One of the problems that carries over from Kanon to Clannad (for me personally) is the fact that it's so heavily school-based. Somehow that emphasizes the fact that Fuuko's story (can't speak for any of the others yet) is very standard Key fare. The fact that Tomoya and Nagisa are spending so much time together already continues to be a huge plus, though. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Twilight_Kioku'] So are their any thoughts yet on how the stories are going to end? Will Renji and Chihiro have a happy ending like the story is supposed to? Will Kei or Miyako win over the contested manga-ka? Myself, [spoiler]I'm hoping for an ending akin to a bad higurashi arc! Ok, not that evil[/spoiler], but this doesn't have the feel of a show where everyone is happy at the end.[/QUOTE] I can't say anything with respect to Hiro's side, since at this point I'm pretty confident that they're not going to go for a different ending than the game. (Some scenes have been removed/added/changed, but the overall shape is the same.) As for Chihiro, though, I don't know what to think. At the least, I doubt the writers are going to aim for a miraculous ending, which means they probably can't have a purely happy ending... [quote name='Meggido'] What do you want to start with on thematics Dagger? I mean ep 7 just has so much to work with in itself while the series has some thematics that run right through while it appears others are just within an episode.[/QUOTE] Replying a little late here; Thanksgiving got in the way. :animeswea It'd be nice to start with episode 7, since it's got so much meat to it (so to speak) and then work backwards (or forwards) to see where it takes us. I'm especially interested in the fact that while Chihiro's novel functions as an obvious metaphor for her personal story, it also brings out themes that apply to the other characters (Miyako in particular). ef keeps coming back to the idea of a "closed world." Pretty much all of the characters except Chihiro have the ability to choose between figuratively shutting themselves in or reaching out to others. On a related note, the arts--drawing, writing, filming, etc.--become either a means by which to connect with others or a way to withdraw further. From the contrast between Chihiro and everyone else, it's possible to trace one of the show's main threads: the implicit suggestion that the only way to break out of your closed world is to grow as a person, and that this is not accomplished solely by reaching for your ideal self, but by growing [i]toward[/i] others. In episode 8 (hopefully no one considers this a real spoiler?) Miyako mentions that there's a certain freedom in not being connected to anyone. This parallels Chihiro's story (and, in a way, Chihiro's own experience) about the girl being the "god" of her world. Are there other parallels between Chihiro's story and the other subplots? Is it only Miyako who can be referenced here, or are any other characters experiencing the same kind of thing? And so on and so on. :catgirl: Speaking of which, in episode 8, [spoiler]there's a lot more cutting back and forth between Kei/Hiro/Miyako and Renji/Chihiro. I especially liked how the scene changed to Chihiro after the shot of Miyako trying to open the locked door.[/spoiler] Actually, my favorite moment was probably [spoiler]the unvoiced montage of the various characters that appeared when Kuze was playing his violin.[/spoiler] The last scene [spoiler]was heartbreaking...[/spoiler] Oh, and great news: [B] ef - the latter tale[/B] finally has a release date! It's set to come out on 5/30/08.... which seems endlessly far away, but at least it's on the schedule now. I'm really excited for the [spoiler]Kuze/Miyuki[/spoiler] story, since it won't be in the anime. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Deus ex Machina'][COLOR="DarkOrange"] I WARN YE. Kaleido Star has a lot of DVDs and they aren't always easy to find (I can only find goddamn New Wings)[/COLOR][/QUOTE] Thinpaks for both seasons of Kaleido Star are out, so she should be able to get it pretty cheaply (and without having to search for the separate DVDs). ~Dagger~

[quote name='James']If you still want to use our previous blue theme, simply go down to the bottom of the page and select "OB Standard". Both OB Standard and Geisha are still selectable.[/quote] :catgirl: ~Dagger~

No, it's not hentai. Actually, it looks like a fansub group released it today (quick turnover... I guess because it's so short). Most people seem to have liked it a lot more than me... *shrugs* ~Dagger~

Just watched a short (under eight minutes) yuri ONA called, quite inexplicably, [b]Candy Boy[/b]. I don't know if it's a pilot or a one-shot or what, but I'd say yuri fans might as well give it a look... not a big waste of time if you don't like it. I'm not a fan of the twincest angle unless it's treated seriously. When it's done lightly, as in this ONA, you come away unsure as to whether the creators were going for the "pure sisterly love" feeling, or the "it's okay because we're twins or... er, something" feeling, or what. I did kind of like the character designs, though. I just don't understand why they had to be sisters--would've been more to my tastes if they were just roommates or something. ~Dagger~

Love the new skin. Great work! It's really exciting to finally use something other than Geisha (my past choice). :love: ~Dagger~