Dagger

The thing is, we don't normally allow threads that end up consisting mainly of long lists, since that kind of limits the potential for discussion. That's not to say I think a topic along these lines would never work--Raya and Byakuya's posts are more than just columns of names, obviously. If there were a way to share what you've seen by posting a link (to a DVD indexing site, for example, or a post at your myO), that would save space, and it would open up some room for commenting on what others have seen, or even offering suggestions based on their lists. That's just an idea. The main problem here, I think, is the sheer length of some of the lists. The thread would be much more manageable if off-site links were used instead. Thread closed. But don't be discouraged from trying something similar in the future, either using my suggestion or whatever else comes to mind. ~Dagger~

Well, I have no clue what "yoai" or "yari" are supposed to be, but perhaps you might be interested in the following threads. :p [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=49971&page=6&pp=15][u]Yaoi/BL anime[/u][/url] [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=44119&page=7][u]Yaoi/BL manga[/u][/url] Just ignore the fact that they overlap a bit more than they should. There's no active yuri thread at the moment, although I believe that both BL topics touch on yuri here and there. Also, I have to mention that your writing is more or less incoherent. Please try to make your posts a little more readable; it would help greatly if you didn't use abbreviations so liberally. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

The more recent pages of this thread have degenerated to the point that I'm tempted to close it. But since there are always going to be similar topics floating around, we might as well salvage the current one... Give reasons for your choices, even if it's just a sentence. That's all we ask, so long as said sentence doesn't consist entirely of exclamation points or smilies. Past this point, posts that contain just a list of names or the equivalent of "Me too!" will be deleted; try to keep that in mind. Thanks. ~Dagger~

[quote name='haru sakurai']anime in general end in two ways: with nothing resolved, or everyone dying.[/quote] Not really. There are plenty of anime with happy, closure-rific endings--certainly too many to shove them all in the corner and call them exceptions. [quote name='bellpickle][SIZE=1]I'd change the last episode of Escaflowne. That ending was [I]way[/I'] too rushed and sappy to be satisfying.[/SIZE][/quote] Indeed. I was unhappy with how they handled the [spoiler]Van/Hitomi romance,[/spoiler] and I felt that the show as a whole didn't ultimately live up to the promise of its first half. ~Dagger~

Volume 2 owned me. Episode 6 in particular was just absurdly great, so much so that I don't want to blabber on about it too much. The animation seemed to get a big shot in the arm for the events shown in it; I wish I knew who served as the episode director. The character movements were exceptionally well done. And of course it also contained that amazing scene with [spoiler]Haydee at the opera house.[/spoiler] This is one show I know I'll sit down and re-watch from start to finish once the final disc comes in. It's really quite intoxicating to witness the different plot threads slipping into place. I haven't read the novel either. I guess I'll read it afterward, since I'm curious about what was changed. For example, I've been told that Peppo is a character in the novel, but with a much smaller role than in the anime. ~Dagger~

Yeah, the series is very respected in Japan. It's been voted the best manga of all time on more than one occasion, if I remember correctly. That's quite a title to live up to, of course, but it [i]is[/i] very good. To elaborate on what haru sakurai said, Ash is a gang leader and the unwilling protégé of Dino Golzine, a crime boss with ties to the Corsican mafia. The setting is New York City in the 1980s--or, to be more precise, the NYC underworld. Eiji Okumura is older than Ash but infinitely less street-smart. His mentor, Shunichi Ibe, is a journalist/photographer; Eiji is his assistant, and they've come to New York from Japan to do a story on youth gangs. They manage to set up a meeting with Ash, but not everything goes according to plan. The art is spare and functional, but it has its own sense of style. It can take some time to get used to; Ash is supposed to be this ridiculous uber-bishounen, but he isn't really... until you start looking at his character design in the context of the series. Admittedly, it's easier to perceive that when you're further along not just because you become used to the designs, but also because they do grow slightly prettier. It's heavy on both text and action; a lot is packed into each volume, especially later on. The English adaptation reads very naturally, so I particularly love the dialogue (which is a good thing, because there's a lot of it). There's plenty of death, violence and sexuality of the most sordid kind (though the latter is nearly always off-camera, so to speak), but it never seems forced or gratuitous. It just suits the story, which is more than you can ask from most manga. And volume 12 comes out on Valentine's Day! *twiddles thumbs* ~Dagger~

I worship at the altar of Banana Fish. (Well, sort of.) Right now I'm up to volume 11 of Viz's un-flipped re-release. It's amazing how the story manages to stay fresh and suspenseful, and a lot happens in every installment. The artwork improves subtly in the later volumes, but it never loses its atypical look. And fantastic though the plot is, it would be worth reading for Ash alone--he's one of my favorite characters in any anime or manga. Would you like a spoiler-free synposis or something? Do you want to know more about the framework of the series before you chance your money on it? I'd be happy to plug Banana Fish till the cows come home, but I was wondering if you were looking for something more specific. ~Dagger~

The first rule of l33t Club: you do not talk about l33t Club. More to the point, there are many places where you can write in numbers to your heart's content. As it happens, this isn't one of them. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

Um, hi? It's a little strange to make an introduction thread when you've been here since early December. Either way, surely you know by now that we prefer for new or new-ish members to become acquainted with others by posting in regular discussions, rather than by starting separate introduction topics. If you want to get a... er, reputation, then go ahead and participate in other threads throughout the forum. I hope you've succeeded in working the whole QUAKE IN PH34R thing out of your system. If you have any questions, send a private message my way. Thanks. :animeswea Thread closed. ~Dagger~

Yeah, Sergei is an interesting guy. Much preferable to Tate, his look-alike in My-HiME... I just saw episode 14. Arika learns about [spoiler]Rena[/spoiler] from Erstein. Finally! [spoiler]The overall mood at school is very grim, due to the war between Remus and Romulus (way to be subtle with your mythology, Sunrise). Meanwhile, Tomoe shows off her evil side even more. I feel like I should hate her by now, especially since she embodies the "psycho lesbian" stereotype that's popped up more than a few times in recent anime, but I find her unexpectedly intriguing. Someone at another forum suggested that she could actually be the real princess, since she's the only Otome candidate other than Nina who comes from Windbloom. That could lead to some fascinating ramifications for our heroine, not to mention Nina & co...[/spoiler] As for other family tree theories, I'm going with the camp that says [spoiler]Mashiro and Arika are fraternal twins. When you take eye color into consideration, their resemblance to Rena and to each other is striking.[/spoiler] There were a lot of character appearances in this episode, such as [spoiler]Midori and her gang.[/spoiler] On that note, [spoiler]Miyu[/spoiler] shows up again! Once again, she retains that nice air of mystery. It's funny--I hated her guts in My-HiME, but I kind of like her Otome incarnation. About the episode 15 preview: It's cool that Arika is such a go-getter, but [spoiler]kissing Sergei[/spoiler] is just going to create a ton of awkwardness for everyone. Hoo boy. :animeswea ~Dagger~

Personally, I may not stick around for the filler arc, although I'll give the 63 & 64 special a look at some point. It's not that I don't want to see what they come up with, but I've got other stuff to watch. The Bleach filler won't be a high priority for me unless it turns out to be really spectacular. While I don't think anime-only material is a bad idea in theory, somehow it always seems to turn out poorly in this type of show. So my expectations for the next arc aren't that high to begin with. I'll just be happy if it's not all "Don friggin' Kan'onji," as you so wisely phrased it. ;) ~Dagger~

Ha! I like that one. Reminds me of the "Vikings go rampaging through a mall" commercials from a couple years back (although I saw one this holiday season, as well). I can't seem to remember which company did those... ~Dagger~

Those are some beautiful Bleach avatars, Raya. :) [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk.jpg[/IMG] [size=1][B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Okita [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk1.jpg[/IMG] [B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Okita [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk2.jpg[/IMG] [B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Okita [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk3.jpg[/IMG] [B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Susumu [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk4.jpg[/IMG] [B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Susumu [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk5.jpg[/IMG] [B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Ayumu [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk6.jpg[/IMG] [B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Saitou [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk7.jpg[/IMG] [B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Tetsu [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk8.jpg[/IMG] [B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Suzu [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk10.jpg[/IMG] [B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Suzu & Tetsu [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/pmk11.jpg[/IMG] [B]Category:[/B] Peacemaker Kurogane [B]Name:[/B] Suzu[/size] How I love Nanae Chrono's art. I found the source images for these avatars languishing in an old, long-forgotten folder... poor things. ~Dagger~

In the future, please don't waste your Phoenix Downs on really old general/multi-anime topics. Each of these shows has its own designated "official" thread, which can be found by using the search function or browsing the [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=38208][u]Directory[/u][/url] sticky. A good rule of thumb is to avoid reviving threads that have been inactive for more than two months or so. Unless they relate to a single specific anime, in which case it's okay. It's a pretty straightforward system, but feel free to private message me if you have questions that need answering. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

[QUOTE=Lindus]I'm still unsure as to whether I like the newer characters/plot though (I'm only around chapter 65). I wouldn't say the series has "jumped the shark" per say, but the story seems less attractive to me with the lack of [spoiler]L...............[/spoiler] I'm probably sure it has picked up considerably from where I left off, since those chapters were a transition from one part of the story to the next, but it might take me a while to gather the will to continue reading.[/QUOTE] Looking back, I think there are two main areas during which DN's overall progression slowed down noticeably: [spoiler]the Yotsuba arc and a lot of what happened after L's death, especially with the introduction of Mello and Near.[/spoiler] It's not as though they presented similar situations; it seems more likely to me that the reason readers find them less appealing is because in both cases--albeit for drastically different reasons--Light is more or less safe. It's when he's really struggling to maintain his edge that the plot becomes most exciting. That's why people tend to look back on the early volumes as being the best parts of the series, since he was just getting started and wasn't quite used to the intense mind games with L. If things keep heading the way they are currently, [spoiler]he's going to face Near more directly, and Near is proving to be a very formidable opponent. He's been building superbly on the foundation laid by L; it's amazing how he deduced Light's real identity and figured out not only that there was an X-Kira, but also exactly who X-Kira was. So unless Near gets knocked off prematurely, I think Light will be forced back into his prior, more paranoid mindset. He's been doing way too well lately.[/spoiler] Once one gets the hang of the story, I think Death Note is better off being marathoned, anyway. You're doing just the right thing. Come back to it whenever you feel interested; it'll really die for you if you force yourself to continue reading. There was a period after [spoiler]L's death[/spoiler] when I left the series alone for a while and came back every so often to read five or ten chapters in a row. Although with what's been happening lately, I'm starting to become much more anxious about finding out the next twist. ~Dagger~

Nana is pretty much the most popular manga in Japan right now. It's a tremendous sensation, and it's already spawned one highly successful live-action movie (with more to come, I believe) as well as an upcoming TV anime. I couldn't really get into Nana, personally. Maybe its sheer popularity made it intimidating for me, or maybe my expectations were too high to start with. Either way, I'm waiting for the anime and hoping that it doesn't turn out like Paradise Kiss. As far as I know, Nana is still running in Shojo Beat. ~Dagger~

[quote name='bellpickle][SIZE=1']I think this extends to males too. A charming, attractive man can easily toy with most girls he comes across with hardly any effort. I think Akio "Smooth Operator" Ohtori and Touga Kiryuu from Utena are excellent examples of this.[/size][/quote] As is Light (speaking of Death Note, and all that). Although frankly, [spoiler]I think he overdoes it, and it's probably going to get him into big trouble at some point. He was incredibly lucky to have found Misa, whose rather unique personality makes her a safe tool for him to use. It was stupid of him to play the romance card with Takaya, even if he had few other options left... jealousy is the one thing that could push Misa into actively working to undermine him.[/spoiler] [quote][size=1]To Dagger: Thank you for giving me another incentive to get ahold of Monster. ^_^[/size][/quote] Yes! Watch Monster, it's awesome. :) ~Dagger~

[quote name='AzureWolf][COLOR=teal']Then she became helpless, which was sad, but still cute (I think I'm sounding disturbed now...).[/COLOR][/quote] Now that I think about it, Rakka is actually very [i]moe[/i] (in the sense that she makes the viewer want to cherish and protect her). Well, that's how it was for me, anyway. :animeswea As far as cuteness and/or moeness goes, AIR TV's Misuzu Kamio wins in my book. [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/air_01-1024.jpg[/IMG] It helps that her character design is really rather stunning when animated--freakish facial proportions and all. Pretty much everything she does is cute in some way ("Gao!"), and she has the additional benefit of being voiced by the ridiculously versatile Tomoko Kawakami. The pathos and beauty of her story just add to her appeal. I'm also very partial to Kaleido Star's Sora Naegino, as seen below and in most of my past fifteen avatars... [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/sora.jpg[/IMG] A good number of shows have perky, kind, "I'll just try it and see what happens," determined, never-give-up, "I won't let others worry about me" female characters as leads, but Sora is the first one I've seen who strikes the perfect balance. She's completely sympathetic, she's never annoying, and she's adorable. Arika Yumemiya (from My-Otome) is another good character of this type, although her moe aspects and innocence are more exaggerated. Incidentally, Sora has the same seiyuu as Rakka. Anyway, I'm shocked that no one's mentioned the almighty Sakura Kinomoto. [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/ribbons300.jpg[/IMG] She's every bit as cute as Tomoyo-chan claims. And I guess I'll leave it at that (although I might make a general-attractiveness post later, if I feel so inspired, since this one was just devoted to cute/moe characters). ~Dagger~

Please post in [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=40657][u]this[/u][/url] thread, which is still active, if you'd like to continue the anime vs. manga line of discussion. Please also bear in mind that OtakuBoards places a strong emphasis on post quality. Starting a thread with three words invites spam. At the very least, we ask that you explain your choices in complete sentences, rather than simply posting "anime" or "manga" or something else to that effect. If you have any questions, you're welcome to private message me or one of the other staff members. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Raiyuu][color=DarkGreen][font=Trebuchet MS]I have to ask, does the series assume I've seen [i]My-HiME? [/i]Because the first episode's raised a lot of questions, and what with this being anime and not Western TV, I don't know whether this is assumed knowledge or stuff that's going to be gradually revealed over the course of the series.[/font'][/color][/quote] Plot-wise, it has nothing to do with My-HiME, and information about the Otome world/setting is gradually given out within the show; HiME wouldn't have helped you understand the political factions in Otome, for instance. But since so many of the characters are alternate versions of those who appeared in My-HiME, you many not be able to make some of the automatic connections that HiME fans would. As an example (sorry, this one has some vaguely stated spoilers for both series): the most recent episode of Otome was about Akane Soir, who was called Akane Higurashi in My-HiME. People who had seen HiME were very interested in her fate, since in HiME [spoiler]she suffers horribly, and her suffering served as one of the show's big turning points.[/spoiler] But in Otome, she [spoiler]ended up getting the ultimate happy lovey-dovey ending--so far, anyway.[/spoiler] So while that was an interesting twist, it probably wouldn't have seemed quite as surprising or unusual to someone who didn't know what happened in HiME. Similarly (spoiler tags are just for safety, in this case), people who have seen My-HiME almost universally assume that Otome-Shizuru is also [spoiler]in love with[/spoiler] Otome-Natsuki, though there isn't a tremendous amount of evidence for it in My-Otome alone. I'd say go on and watch it, since you'll still be able to follow the story. There's a fair degree of silliness in the earlier episodes, much like there was in HiME, but the seriousness has recently started to settle in. You can bet that the second half of the show is going to be one hell of a ride. Episode 14 will air in a couple of days, and apparently there's supposed to be a new OP song. Some speculation, based everything up to & including episode 13: [spoiler]I think Tate is going to be a character. Possibly a dead character, or some other kind of non-speaking role, but I strongly doubt that Sergei is the one who Mai fell in love with way back whenever. That would be a little too strange and complicated, especially given his obsession with Rena (not to mention Arika's current crush on him). I hope they come up with something a little more creative than having Nina turn to the dark side because of Arika and Sergei. They're pushing so strongly in that direction that to me it feels like a red herring. We'll see, though. As for the upcoming Otome war, it would be awful if the Coral class had to become involved. Really awful.[/spoiler] Which is why I'm hoping the writers will do that. :devil: ~Dagger~

[quote name='John']Here's one sort of along those lines. I would've used Steve Carell or someone for the "NO WAI!!!", but I couldn't find a good pic.[/quote] That, good sir, is [i]perfect[/i]. I'm so happy that you used Jon Stewart, haha. And all the others have been quite fun as well; I just felt like I had to come out of the woodwork to congratulate yours in particular. (I thought about using spoiler tags on Stewart's name... excessive caution, or a sign of a more insidious illness? Only time can tell.) ~Dagger~

Hey there. The thing is, the entire Otaku Lounge is for "talking about stuff." If you're going to start a thread, it'll just languish or be devoured by spam unless you have something a little more specific in mind. Just scroll down the first page of the forum for examples. No matter how silly (or dead serious) the topic is, we usually try to encourage something resembling a genuine discussion. So that's another thing to keep in mind, along with the importance of good post quality. Anyway, if you have additional questions, feel free to private message me or one of the other staff members. Cheers. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

Well, I tried to find earlier threads but couldn't dig up any. Let me know if you come across one. I watched Gunbuster 1 earlier today. What an experience. It was the right choice to sit down and see it all at once--I don't think I could've stopped if I wanted to, anyway. If I can say it after one viewing, this is almost certainly my favorite Hideaki Anno & Gainax anime. I'd put Nadia ahead of it, were it not for the island episodes. But that's another matter. I know there are a bunch of stories surrounding Gunbuster's production... that seems to be true for a lot of Gainax anime, heh. It makes me wonder to what extent they made the story up--or changed their minds about it--as they went along. The theme of distance in both space & time reminded me of Voices of a Distant Star (it should probably be the other way around, no?). It's done so powerfully, especially in the final two episodes. The first episode gave me the sense that I was starting a regular twenty-four or twenty-six episode series, but Gunbuster covers an amazing amount of ground, considering its length. And its relative compactness makes it more potent and epic. I've heard a lot about how different Gunbuster 2 is. I don't think that'll be too much of a problem for me, since I'm prepared for it (I'll try to catch up with the first four episodes tomorrow). Kunihiko Ikuhara directed episode 2, so that's an extra incentive. ~Dagger~

Hm... interesting topic. I guess I'd put intelligence and lack of honor pretty high up on the list. Villains handicap themselves when they start playing by the rules (and half the time, those who do so aren't real villains to begin with). Unpretentiousness could be a very potent characteristic, now that I think about it. Only people who are full of themselves will fail to make a back-up plan or will go around telling the hero their evil schemes before killing him. [b]Kuroro[/b] from Hunter x Hunter fits into the doesn't-take-himself-too-seriously category pretty well, if I remember correctly. [b]Johan[/b] from Monster is very close to being the ideal villain--the only thing holding him back is his penchant for theatricality, really. He could wipe the floor with Light, in terms of intellect and everything else. So could Banana Fish's Ash, for that matter (who, unluckily for the world, is not a bad guy). It's fun to think of Light getting a taste of his own medicine... Out of curiosity, which Utena characters were you thinking of? ~Dagger~

[QUOTE=Remadi] Looking forward to the 10th, because that's when Wild Rock is supposed to come out! I get to own work by Takashima Kazusa![/quote] Thanks for the reminder. (Wow, that's tomorrow!) I agree with you about Blu's production quality. I think it's really nice--not to mention lucky for us fans--that at least three of the companies doing BL put out books which really look nicer than the norm for manga. [quote]P.S. Did any of you guys get any good BL-related gifts for the holidays? I'm supposed to be getting a manga, but I don't get it until next week.[/QUOTE] Let us know what it is when you get it. :) I didn't receive any BL-related gifts, but I did give myself the first volume of La Esperanca, haha. I was impressed with the chapters I read way back when, but taken as a whole, the volume was more engaging than I had expected. The artwork is very beautiful. It's not the sort of thing that would ordinarily be to my tastes, but it's so well done that I honestly can't complain. Plus, the manga-ka used screen tone very heavily, and I get drawn to frequent screen tone usage like... er, a moth to flame. Or something. There's (almost) no real BL content so far; I'm assuming there's a reason DMP is releasing it under their Yaoi label, though. To me it feels kind of like a bishounen version of Maria-sama ga Miteru, what with the Catholic school setting and the main character's earnestness & purity. On the other hand, Robert is certainly no Sachiko... *sighs* Another month until Loveless volume 1 and Earthian volume 2. At least they're coming out on the same date. EDIT: Not BL, but I had to mention it. Mikiyo Tsuda's (that is, Taishi Zaou's) [url=http://www.pri-pri.jp/][u]Princess Princess[/u][/url] is being made into an anime, with [i]gorgeous[/i] character designs by Atsuko Nakajima. Whee. ~Dagger~