Dagger

[QUOTE=foolycooly6363]Thanks for clearing that up. Also, are spin-offs such as Gundam Seed Destiny still posted under the original Gundam Seed thread?[/QUOTE] This kind of depends. I figure that since SEED Destiny is essentially a continuation and prominently features many characters from the first series, we might as well stick them together. In some instances, shows and related movies/OVAs are also lumped together (like Evangelion and End of Evangelion, or R.O.D and R.O.D the TV, or X TV and X: The Movie). In other cases (like Revolutionary Girl Utena and Revolutionary Girl Utena: Adolescence Apocalypse), they're kept separate. I don't really stick to a specific set of criteria when judging this sort of thing, since it isn't an issue that pops up too frequently. Obviously the more different from each other the two works are, the more likely it is that they will be kept in separate threads. Usually there's no reason to create a new topic for a direct sequel. Spin-offs and AUs and side stories offer a little more wiggle room. You can use your discretion; if a mod merges your thread and you strongly disagree with the decision, you can always PM him/her to say why it might be better to leave it as two topics. ~Dagger~

Good grief. $30 for 13 episodes? Is Viz [i]trying[/i] to lose money on this series? I just find that amusing because it approximately matches Bandai's price point for Avenger, a 13 episode show that they've all but admitted was not the best licensing choice. Cheaper prices (the better to compete with live-action box sets, and all that) might be just the thing to put some life into the market... still, I hope they know what they're doing. :animeswea ~Dagger~

Lady Halo, we require all RPGs to be marked with a specific rating. To learn more about the ratings system and our other Arena requirements, please be sure to read [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=44317][u]this[/u][/url] sticky thread. OtakuBoards places an emphasis on well-written posts (with correct grammar, punctuation, etc.), and this applies just as much to the Adventure Square as to every other forum. If you have any questions about our policies, feel free to private message me or one of the other staff members. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

What are some of the worst cliffhangers you've experienced, and how long did you have to wait before seeing the next episode? For me, the ending of [b]Fafner[/b] episode 23 ranks pretty high in terms of being both exciting and sublimely frustrating. It left me all but frothing at the mouth with impatience, despite the fact that (if I remember correctly) I had to wait less than a week before I was able to watch episode 24. It felt as though all the high-tension drama and tragedy which had been doled out in increasing measures since fairly early on in the show was finally coming to a climax--and then the episode just [i]stopped[/i]. The little scene right after the credits only made it worse. [spoiler]Soushi's "death"[/spoiler] was brutally sudden and (for me, at least) completely unexpected. Ending it there was cruel and evil in the best way possible. ~Dagger~

Earlier tonight, I managed to catch episode 41 on TV (which--ads and all--is a vastly superior experience to watching it on one's computer, I can assure you). Unfortunately there's a fairly sizeable gap between that and whichever episode I watched last, but Bleach isn't exactly a super-complicated show, so I managed to figure out what was going on. More or less. I love Noriyuki Abe. He has such a great sense for what works and what doesn't, when it comes to this kind of show--that's why Yu Yu Hakusho is so amazing, and that's why Bleach just keeps getting better and better as it goes along. Episode 41 reminded me of this because it contained several of the striking, well-animated set piece scenes that really help set this show apart. I'm sure this owes a lot to the visual composition and panel layout of the manga, but I think Bleach's director also deserves some serious credit. I can't wait to get home and catch up on what I missed. Also, (major spoiler for episode 41) [spoiler]that Yoruichi-san is one fine-looking woman.[/spoiler] :animesmil ---------------- EDIT: Okay, I [i]know[/i] I'm not the only person out here watching this show. And if the incredibly, ridiculously kick-*** battle in episode 44 (Ishida~! Ishida~!) doesn't get all you lurker fans to post, nothing will. The animation was appropriately awesome, and Ishida royally [spoiler]owned. There were some surprising romantic vibes between him and Nemu, too.[/spoiler] It's too bad that [spoiler]his sacrifice will inevitably lose some of its meaning & weight, since Bleach being the type of show which it is, he's going to get his Quincy powers back somehow.[/spoiler] What on earth was with Mayuri's sword's [spoiler]second stage of release?[/spoiler] I hope Ichigo's, at least, doesn't turn into a [spoiler]colossal caterpillar-baby hybrid.[/spoiler] :animeswea ~Dagger~

I recommend [b]Gunslinger Girl[/b]. Though on the whole it's more thoughtful than violent, it's definitely dark and really quite disturbing, at least in some parts. You don't have to worry about the loli factor, if that's not your thing; the girls aren't sexualized at all, and the male characters aren't just throwaway cut-outs. The artwork is excellent and the action scenes are superb. The anime basically only covers the first two volumes, so if you're watching it, you don't have to worry about there being much of an overlap. [b]Peacemaker Kurogane[/b] can come off as being light-hearted and has plenty of comedic moments, but don't be fooled. It becomes increasingly emotional, brutal and bloody as it progresses. The main drawback in this case is that it's the sequel to a previous manga, Shinsengumi Imon Peacemaker (which is not licensed). It can also be thought of as being the sequel to the television series. Reading a brief synopsis or summary of Shinsengumi Imon Peacemaker should be more than enough for Peacemaker Kurogane to make sense, though. How about something by [b]Kaori Yuki[/b]? Angel Sanctuary is quite dark, as are both of the Count Cain series. Same goes for another popular manga-ka, [b]Kazuya Minekura[/b]... Saiyuki may not quite fit the bill for you, but Wild Adapter has vastly superior artwork and is much more moody and serious. Bus Gamer (licensed by Tokyopop but not yet released) might also be worth considering. [b]Banana Fish[/b] has a gritty, seedy, absolutely excellent storyline and great dialogue. People might refer to it as being shounen-ai, but don't let that put you off; the BL-ish themes are easily ignored. As for unlicensed manga, have you read [b]Anne Freaks[/b]? I never could quite get into it, but it's definitely very dark. What about [b]Elfen Lied[/b] and [b]Gantz[/b]? EDIT: I forgot to mention [b]Alien Nine[/b] and [b]Shadow Star Narutaru[/b]. I think the American version of the latter features some minor edits, but I don't know much about their nature. ~Dagger~

[quote name='ChibiHorsewoman][color=darkviolet']Ryan's right. we've definately gotten taller over teh years.[/color][/quote]That's purely a function of environmental changes & better nutrition, however. It has nothing to do with evolution. :animeswea ~Dagger~

I post with some regularity at a forum that uses spoiler buttons. Speaking personally, I hate them with a passion. They interrupt the flow of the post and, as Helba mentioned, make it inconvenient to spoiler-tag things like a single word (such as a character's name) or even just part of a sentence. Because of that, I think they actually end up discouraging their own use, if that makes any sense. In my opinion spoiler buttons do have at least one excellent use, but it's not related to spoilers. If one wants to stick large images within the body of one's post, it saves a lot of space to hide them inside a spoiler button box, making viewing them optional but not a hassle. Pale/white spoiler blocks--as opposed to the black ones we have now--might be a little easier on the eyes, although I can't say I've ever had much of a problem with the current set-up. @Tony: Spoiler buttons can also be set up to look like [url=http://forums.animesuki.com/showpost.php?p=530388&postcount=349][u]this[/u][/url], so that the same amount of space is consumed regardless of the length of the spoiler or the size of the image posted within them. ~Dagger~

[quote name='sakurasuka][CENTER][SIZE=1]There are a different number of alliels in the DNA of each species. There are two crucial factors in this that force me to believe that evolution isn't the pony to bet on...[/SIZE'][/CENTER][/quote] Each variant of a gene occupying a specific locus on a chromosome is known as an allele. As things stand, your reasoning doesn't really click. It makes a little more sense if I substitute "chromosomes" for "alleles," but nevertheless I can't help but suspect that your argument is not based on the best of research. Anyway. I recently had the pleasure of reading the English translation of the novel "Silence," which was written by Shusaku Endo, a Japanese Catholic. The moral climax occurs in the final few pages. The main character, a Portugese missionary who came to Japan during a period when Japanese Christians were being mercilessly persecuted, is forced to come to terms with the fact that he has essentially apostatized by giving into his tormentors and treading on an image of Christ. Despite this act of betrayal, he decides to continue playing the role of a priest by hearing out the confession of a fellow apostate. The book ends with these lines: [I]"The priest had administered that sacrament that only the priest can administer. No doubt his fellow priests would condemn his act as sacrilege; but even if he was betraying them, he was not betraying his Lord. He loved him now in a different way from before. Everything that had taken place until now had been necessary to bring him to this love. 'Even now I am the last priest in this land. But Our Lord was not silent. Even if he had been silent, my life until this day would have spoken of him.'"[/I] I'm not a religious person. Still, there's a unique beauty in faith that I can appreciate even if it's not something I find myself able to participate in. ~Dagger~

As the Anime Lounge is a discussion-based forum, any thread that teeters on the line between something which might spark an interesting exchange and something which would be better suited for typing into Google's search box will have to set a good example for subsequent posters in order to remain open. This particular thread does not fulfill that criteria. If you have any questions about our policies, feel free to private message me or one of the other staff members. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

Okay, I just killed about half of this thread. The next time it starts going downhill, it's going to be closed. Please, everyone, remember to try and write clearly. More importantly, if you're just going to post a sentence, the [i]least[/i] you can do is make it a complete sentence. Because versus topics tend to attract spam, we usually ask that you give a reason for your choice when posting in one... a reason more substantial than "Kenshin has cooler hair" or "Jin pwns." Thanks. [quote name='Kyuui Me-Ka][COLOR=Navy']Though, the thing that confuses me is that Jin has yet to defeat Mugen in the series.[/COLOR][/quote] I would argue that (some spoilers for the last episode, don't say I didn't warn you) [spoiler]Jin's superiority is implied, though never shown outright. He is the one who ultimately defeats Kariya, after all. I'm pretty certain there's other evidence pointing toward the idea that Jin would win if he and Mugen had a serious fight, but I'd have to re-watch the ending to tell you.[/spoiler] I also agree with AzureWolf in that these two characters are really apples and oranges. The Rurouni Kenshin television series is totally all over the place in terms of fancy special abilities and emotional power-ups and getting up to fight again while half-dead and so forth. Obviously Champloo has its moments of wild unrealism as well, but in the serious episodes it is by comparison far more down-to-earth. It would make more sense, as far as I'm concerned, to set Jin against one of the characters from Peacemaker Kurogane. ~Dagger~

[B]Code Name / Call Sign:[/B] Sabbath [B]Gender: [/B] Male [B]Location:[/B] Düsseldorf, Germany [B]Age: [/B] ~160 [B]Personal Appearance: [/B] [url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/loungingaround.jpg][u]Lounging around[/u][/url] [url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/traditional.jpg][u]Shinsengumi uniform[/u][/url] [url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/modern.jpg][u]Modern clothing[/u][/url] [B]Personality/Behavior: [/B] Essentially, Sabbath is lazy and apathetic. The laziness manifests itself as a sort of preternatural calm; he comes across as being almost impossible to upset, which can be amazingly frustrating for potential antagonists. The apathy accounts for his lifestyle: drifting aimlessly from place to place, dipping his feet in all sorts of entertainment and, despite the unique historical perspective with which his age has provided him, doing almost nothing of real consequence. He kills the occasional criminal or low-life because it is a necessity for him, being a vampire, but he hardly aspires to become a vigilante. What he truly wants, consciously or unconsciously, is to be among equals--he's simply too set in his ways to go to the trouble of actually seeking them out. [B]Personal History: [/B] In the mid-1800s, [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okita_Souji][u]Okita Soujirou[/u][/url] was a brilliant young swordsman and a key member of the Shinsengumi, the Japanese government's special police force. Despite the danger of his position and the violence sweeping the country, it was tuberculosis which killed him in 1869, at the age of 25. Thus ended the story of Okita Souji, a tragic and easily romanticized historical footnote; thus began the story of Sabbath. One might presume that Souji sold his soul to a devil, exchanging all the things which composed his identity--his memories, his personality, his desires--for the chance to continue living, even if it were the life of a beast. Even if it were the life of a mannequin. Or perhaps it was an act of ironic charity that saved him: perhaps, on a whim, some passing sorcerer damned him to exist forever in the space between the living and the dead. Many would consider this sort of gift to be a curse. Not Sabbath; he savors life all the more for knowing that what he experiences is not really life at all--that though he will perish if stabbed, just like anyone else, his heart forgets to beat when he sleeps, and his blood has a peculiar sweetness to it which isn't at all reminisicent of copper or salt or any of the usual things, not that he goes around sampling others' blood... At least, that's what he used to think, before the fragments of his mind slowly coalesced and he began to recognize the symptoms. Food was pleasant as ever, yet he never felt hunger--only a kind of piercing, indefinable thirst which sank its claws deeper at the taste of water or wine. The problem became exquisitely clear when his throat began aching at the mere sight of dead animals, and more strongly at corpses. He remembered nothing of his past life, but he felt an odd conviction that he must have been someone civilized, or at least someone kind--not the sort of person to skulk around in the night touching his tongue to congealing blood and thinking, his stomach twisting, how very close it came to what he really desired. Maybe this was the reason the undead were known to crave blood; was it not, for a few minutes or even hours, a sort of vicarious life? The first ten years of Sabbath's afterlife were occupied with finding his creator. He experienced little difficulty in uncovering his past identity, though he was disappointed to find that the facts failed to spark so much as a second of deja vu. The young man called Okita Soujirou might as well have been a stranger to him. He found the issues surrounding his present--he now knew who he was, the question remaining was why--to be far more engrossing. Vampires beget other vampires. He had turned out to be a perplexing breed, and he wanted answers: he was pale, but probably no paler than when he had been in the Shinsengumi, and the sun failed to make much of an impression on him; besides that, religious symbols were seemingly no cause for concern. This troubled him, primarily because it gave him hope--how much of his humanity had he been permitted to retain? He taught himself to master the thirst, to shape it until it became a tool just as obedient and keen as his sword. He prided himself on not killing innocents. As Okita of the Shinsengumi, he would not have been permitted that choice. After a few decades, Sabbath grew weary of such questions, content to let them lie. He travelled; he watched history march past; he tried to pick up a new language every couple of years, and discovered he had quite an aptitude for it. Encounters with others of his kind were few and far between, and on the whole unpleasant. Vampires were, he discovered, territorial and by nature incorrigibly solitary. Sabbath could not flatter himself into believing he was an exception. He kept his swords sharp and his skills sharper; he dabbled in magic; he decided that hallucinogens and frowned-upon substances in general were for the most part highly overrated. As the years meandered by, as was perhaps inevitable, he became deeply, [i]astoundingly[/i] bored. [B]Special Skills or Abilities:[/B] He's just as good a swordsman as Okita in his prime--perhaps better. He's had longer to practice, after all. His reflexes and most of his senses are superior to that of a human; however, though his sense of touch is heightened, it tends to give out in moments of serious pain. That is perhaps Sabbath's greatest weakness--when severely injured, he can't judge his condition by pain. He putters around with magic--or, at least, occasionally does things which can only be explained by some sort of talent for the supernatural--but almost wholly in a passive/defensive capacity. Apparently he also has a gift for (inadvertently?) passing as a woman. [B] Player?s Availability:[/B] Twice weekly at the most, weekly at the least. [B] Which Otaku Thread Rating Do You Expect Your Posts To Fall Under?: [/B] Generally PG. Possibly M at times, but only for violence. [size=1]My sincere & humble apologies to the real Okita Soujirou, who is probably thrashing in his grave even as I type this. I am not worthy. As a side note, let me know if someone used this call sign earlier in the thread and I didn't see it, or anything like that.[/size] ~Dagger~

[quote name='MidoriWaterfall][SIZE=1']I'm trying to teach myself Japanese. I think I know a good amount of Japanese, but I don't know how to say Japanese in sentences. Well, only one... but it's not really a sentence: "Que serra, serra." It means: "What's done is done".[/SIZE][/quote] "Que sera, sera" is French. I think it's actually supposed to be Spanish, once you add in the proper accent marks (which I'm unfortunately not familiar with), but... yeah. What on earth gave you the impression that it's a Japanese phrase? :animeswea ~Dagger~

The Viz brands don't need to be kept separate. They all clearly fall under the Viz umbrella anyway. It might be wise to separate CPM from Be Beautiful, though, and possibly Tokyopop from Blu (not that the latter is really a factor at this point). One or two others you missed... [B]CMX:[/B] From Eroica With Love, Swan, Tenjho Tenge [B] DMP:[/B] Only the Ring Finger Knows, Yellow, Desire [B] Be Beautiful [CPM]:[/B] Embracing Love [Haru wo Daiteita], Kizuna, Finder [B]Broccoli: [/B] Until the Full Moon, Aquarian Age: Juvenile Orion, Kamui Also, isn't Di Gi Charat published by Broccoli? My favorite manga company would probably have to be [b]DMP[/b]--or, more specifically, their Yaoi Manga imprint (although they've licensed at most one or two non-BL series, and both are on hold, so the difference is negligible). Their translations are written solidly, and their product quality is vastly superior to that of most other companies, Broccoli excepted... but Broccoli doesn't hold the license to any series I'm interested in, so DMP has the advantage there. DMP is an extremely fan-friendly company, and they do stuff that makes me happy--like licensing the original Only the Ring Finger Knows novels and Il Gato Sul G (G-senjou no Neko). They're my brightest hope for quite a few other niche BL titles. I have lost a lot of respect for [b]Viz[/b] due to their haphazard censorship--and, well, the fact that they're censoring their manga at all. I think [b]CMX[/b] is the scum of the earth for what they did to Tenjho Tenge, but I am forced to concede that they've treated From Eroica With Love beautifully and have also gone where few other companies dare to tread (the realm of old-school shoujo). [b]CPM[/b] isn't any better for how they've edited their adult BL series... if the content makes you that fearful of a lawsuit, just don't license it to begin with. [B]Tokyopop[/B] sometimes puts out pretty shoddy-looking books, but at least they usually refrain from visual censorship. Inexplicable dialogue re-writes, on the other hand... :animesigh ~Dagger~

I bought the first issue, but I think I'm going to hold off on subscribing. Godchild is by far my favorite series (at least with just that first chapter to go by) in the magazine, although I hear that Nana gets much more interesting after the second Nana is introduced. I found the concept behind Absolute Boyfriend to be simultaneously hysterical and repulsive; while there's a sense of glee and vindication to be discovered in reading such a shameless reverse Chobits, I would be quite surprised if the novelty didn't wear off two or three chapters in. Baby & Me struck me as being out of place amongst the other offerings--that is to say, no bishounen, no adorably hapless Everygirl or name-taking role model to serve as a heroine. Neither of these things is an automatic strike against it, obviously, but it didn't do much to distinguish itself in general. I just don't see why Viz couldn't have replaced it with Full Moon wo Sagashite (which rocks) or one of their other non-serialized SB manga. Crimson Hero was surprisingly fun--I'm not one to follow most sports manga, shounen or shoujo, but I might take a look at the graphic novels if I can get them cheap. Kaze Hikaru only managed to annoy the heck out of me, possibly because I've read vastly superior Shinsengumi-centric manga and possibly because getting a woman in the group is just such a ridiculous gimmick... even more so when they make the burgeoning romance with Okita (and of [i]course[/i] it had to be Okita) so very, very obvious. In conclusion: Godchild is excellent and everything else can go rot, with the potential exception of Nana. I'm glad the mag has been done well so far, and I hope they will continue to keep edits to a minimum and successfully sell ad space to mainstream companies like Sephora. I'm also quite pleased that they haven't ruled out the possibility of running material related to BL series, contrary to what was reported at an earlier point; in the back of the third issue (which I glanced at because of the lovely Cain cover, but didn't end up purchasing), there's a full-page ad for La Esperanca. Also, it vaguely bugs me that Viz spells the title with "shojo" instead of "shoujo," because now it seems like every other company out there is following their lead. I assume they don't seriously want to call it Virgin Beat... ~Dagger~

[quote name='Generic NPC #3']If "anime" basically just means animation, doesn't that imply that the Japanese would call any animation "anime"? Regardless of where it is from?[/quote] Yes. For example, you might hear people referring to classic Disney movies as "Disney anime." I'm pretty certain that the more recent CG stuff like The Incredibles and Robots are also generally termed anime. But I can't help you with the comics question, heh. ~Dagger~

I'm Korean on my mother's side and Polish (with some other random European stuff thrown in there) on my dad's. I don't look especially Asian as far as most people are concerned, but I did inherit the nice dark hair--which is extremely easy to manage, even when long, so I guess I should be grateful for that. ~Dagger~

Just [b]Kingdom Hearts II[/b] for me. But I'm not much of a gamer to begin with--I only want to see how they handle the new Pirates of the Caribbean world (at least, the one screencap I saw of it looked pretty enticing). Captain Jack Sparrow, ahoy! :animesmil ~Dagger~

Right now, I'm crossing my fingers that maybe they're planning to wait until the manga is finished or close to finished before announcing a second season. Obviously I'm of the school that sooner is better, but this gives me an excuse to continue hoping in case months and months pass by without any word about new Loveless. Yep... :animeswea In more positive news, Tokyopop holds the license to the Loveless manga (as well as Earthian; apparently they'll be released under different labels, which is kind of interesting). ~Dagger~

Both. It's indisputable that many anime are not aimed at capturing a young audience, even if their actual content is perfectly child-friendly--those which air at 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning (in Japan), for example. A Little Snow Fairy Sugar is an amusing example of this, if I recall correctly; it could function nicely as a children's show in America, but its original intended audience would have been composed of cuteness-starved male [i]otaku[/i]. Conversely, there are also plenty of anime which squarely target little kids. In response to a point you raised in your original post, Little Slugger, I would argue that rather than trying to get more adults or people from any other demographic into anime, it would be best to start convincing more of the current fans to actually spend money on it. ~Dagger~

Little Slugger, your posts are becoming increasingly garbled & incoherent. Please attempt to start instilling them with some sort of basic order. I used to waver on this topic a lot, until finally I just got fed up with the whole thing and reverted to the stricter definition--that is, "If it's Japanese animation, it's anime." Actually, it was witnessing a debate over the status of manga and manga-influenced comics which led me to that point. Attempting to distinguish anything on the basis of an ultimately amorphous visual style is just going result in frustration--and roping in other elements like plot, common themes, etc. can only lead to even shakier ground. The words manga and anime are not sacred; they only connotate superiority by a very subjective sort of association, not by definition. There's no reason for foreign creators of anime-influenced works to covet the label; animation of any nationality should have to stand up on its own merits, anyway. In other words, French wine can't be French if it was made in California. ~Dagger~

Naruto-related games, like all other types of videogames, should be discussed in Play It. Additionally, please try to keep in mind that OtakuBoards places a strong emphasis on post quality; this includes utilizing proper punctuation and many other lovely things which are so often neglected... such as capitalization and complete sentences. You are quite welcome to private message me or one of the other staff members if you have any questions. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

[quote name='mew-berry][COLOR=Pink][SIZE=4]I don't want to be a know-it-all, But it's actually pronunced Mayn-gah. Becuz itthe original word is NOT romagi. I've been to tokyo and they say manga with an eh. :catgirl: [/SIZE'][/COLOR][/quote] Mayn-gah, pronounced like the month? That's new. :animestun Written in hiragana, the "original word" is まんが, or ma-n-ga. I'm not really sure how else one is supposed to interpret that. During my stay in Japan, I always heard it pronounced with the "ah" sound. But personal experiences count for jack in this sort of argument, I suppose (as is evidenced by the fact that people still wrangle over whether yaoi is supposed to be said as "yowie" or "ya-oy"). ~Dagger~

[quote name='kayutori_sama']Agreed, 15 volumes would be nice, but basically what your're saying is that Legal Drug was abandoned ?[/quote] Yes. The series is incomplete, but there have been no new chapters for quite a while, and the prospects of seeing it continued (at least in the near future) seem pretty dim. Still, I wouldn't lose hope completely. Maybe CLAMP will decide to pull a Maki Murakami. :animesmil ~Dagger~

In the future, [b]RavenDragon[/b], please don't revive topics that are over a month or two old. Especially not ones which date all the way back to 2002. If you have any questions, you're welcome to private message me or one of the other staff members. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~