Dagger

Volume 2 came in the mail recently, and I'm just starting to sink my teeth into it. I'm really impressed with what FUNimation has done for this series. The extras are well-organized and very interesting. I liked hearing the English VA's thoughts on their characters (and I normally find dub-centric interviews, commentary, etc. to be pretty boring; this segment, called "Meet the Real Gunslinger Girls," was much more focused and interesting than the norm--it helped that the actresses were all quite articulate). The "Building Rico" feature was just as fascinating as the corresponding one for Henrietta which was included with volume 1. Basically, it shows how many different levels of detail & shading are needed simply to complete one still image of the character. This is the weakest part of the show, as far as I'm concerned (which is part of the reason that I'm still only halfway through the disc), but I'm looking forward to watching things start building up to the ending. ~Dagger~

If you would like to discuss anything Inuyasha-related, please post in the official Inuyasha topic, which can be found by browsing the Directory sticky thread located at the top of this forum. It would help to bear in mind that OtakuBoards places a strong emphasis on post quality; this includes not only using proper grammar, punctuation & etc., but also trying to set a good example when you start a thread (in this case, you should have at least answered your own question in your original post and provided a few reasons for said answer). Of course, it's not just thread starters who we encourage to promote an in-depth discussion. Had you read the rules, you would be aware that double-posting is forbidden. I strongly suggest that you give them a look; just click on the link located in the blue navigation bar to your left. If you have additional questions, feel free to private message me or one of the other staff members. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Sage']Btw, I understood the word as a synonym to "consistent", I'm sorry if I translated it wrong...[/quote] Mm... it can be used like that, but in Zeekan's post I read it as meaning something like "heavy" (in a metaphorical sense) or "really interesting" (a sort of slang-ish usage). So to me it seemed as if you were chucking out the entire Bible based on that one tiny thing (or any number of similar examples). I hope that helps explain why I responded the way I did. :animeswea Anyway, thanks for your post. It's fine that religion isn't a super-somber issue for you, but the tone of this thread is such that "snarky retorts" risk being misinterpreted and/or sparking some real vitriol if they aren't easily identifiable as being non-serious. ~Dagger~

[CENTER][B]Official OtakuBoards Graphics Tournament[/B] [IMG]http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y170/retri_trib/OBGFXofficial.jpg[/IMG][/center] Welcome to the first annual OB Graphics Tournament! This contest is open to everyone, and there will be no qualification round. Your participation is encouraged; all you must do is post a reply stating that you plan to enter the tournament. [B]How it will be organized:[/B] First of all, there will be no limit to the number of entrants. Brackets are going to be organized by the Tournament Committee, which I will discuss in greater detail later. The brackets will be posted here several days prior to Round One. The tournament will formally begin on ([i]date to be determined[/i]), at which point I will create all the threads for those competing in the first round. Thread titles will resemble the example below: [CENTER][I][B][OBGT] Retribution v. Rising Sun[/B][/I][/CENTER] Keep in mind that not everyone will have a first round match; it is possible that there will be bye-rounds (bye-rounds are rounds where you do not have a match, and automatically progress to the next round). After your designated thread is created, you will be given two days to create your submission and post it therein. The Tournament Committee will decide upon the following fields: Date Due, Dimensions and Theme. Once you have posted your submission (fulfilling the mentioned criteria), other members will vote on your work. We permit those who are participating in the tournament to vote as well. There will be no poll option – you will be required to post a paragraph at least four sentences in length, explaining why you voted the way you did. If you fail to type a complete paragraph, your vote will not be counted, and you will receive a PM saying so. The Tournament Committee will count votes, and their final tally will be the official result. [B]The Tournament Committee:[/B] A group of three anonymous OB members who are not participating in the tournament. Syk3 has hand-picked them, and no one knows who they are (except me, obviously). Their role is to officiate the tournament, as previously described, and also settle disputes. Their verdicts are final. [B] Bracket Layout:[/B] The bracket formation will be set up by the Tournament Committee and posted by me. The method is single elimination, and there will be no losing bracket. I will edit this part of my post to include those who sign up before the [B]August 12th[/B] deadline. [CENTER][IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/OBGT-winbrac.jpg[/IMG] [/CENTER] Thank you to all who plan to sign up and to those who are working on the tournament behind the scenes. I hope that the tournament will be enjoyable for everyone. Best of luck to all the entrants! ~Dagger~

[quote name='Sage']Like the parts where it tells you to stone your wife if she cheats, while in the other parts it tells you not to kill? Very solid, indeed...[/quote] Not to butt in, but that's a cheap shot. It would be a fair point to raise in the context of other debates (i.e. whether or not homosexuality can ever be compatible with Christianity). However, it doesn't strike me as being a valid response to what Zeekan said; even from the standpoint of a non-believer, the Bible is a literary work whose historical & philosophical importance cannot be over-emphasized. And people aren't talking about Leviticus when they say things like that, either. In other words, there's more to the Bible than stoning and the usual stories kids learn in Sunday school. Speaking generally, one may disagree with some, most or even all of it (which would startle me--I don't see how a person could be totally opposed to the description of love found in 1 Corinthians), but trying to [i]understand[/i] it--either for the purpose of arguing against it or for figuring out what the big deal is--can nevertheless be beneficial. ~Dagger~

It took me forever to get past the first two episodes, but once I finished the disc, I was hooked. I started off watching it in English. While the dub is excellent and I would love to hear more of it eventually, I ended up switching to Japanese halfway through because the thought of not hearing Mitsuki Saiga as the Countess (I originally wasn't sure if she was going to be a major character, just from looking at cast lists, but she's had a lot of lines so far) was killing me. I'm also enjoying Kouki Miyata as Toru. For the most part the dub seems to be quite well cast, but I thought the dub director really erred in choosing a lower-voiced, much more masculine voice actor to play him in English. Some speculation based on the first five episodes (who knows, I'm probably completely off): [spoiler]Although I'm not sure if everything corresponds perfectly to the legend--it surprised me that Tatsuya and Kiyoko's father is identified with Enkidu rather than Gilgamesh--I'm almost positive that the Countess is supposed to be the Ishtar figure. Theoretically, that would make her the main antagonist. But I have no idea whether or not they're going to twist things around or if they plan on following the mythological story closely. I guess one other thing to keep in mind is that if they do follow it, the professor (Enkidu) will eventually die.[/spoiler] I have to admit that I'm sort of hoping the twins will end up on Gilgamesh's side... in part because it would be nice to see the main characters side with the [spoiler]freaky monsters[/spoiler] for once, and in part because that blond guy is really cool. :animeswea ~Dagger~

[quote name='duoikari']...the only really bad yaoi Ova that i can think of at the moment is Sexual harassment, which haven't seen but i know is quite bad.[/quote] Trust me, there are plenty of others out there (though not as many if you're only taking North America into account). Hardcore BL--in either anime or manga form--isn't exactly my cup of tea, and I usually avoid it, but I guess I do surprise myself from time to time... Though [b]Ai no Kusabi[/b] is pretty tame by today's standards, it's nevertheless a lot more explicit than, say, something like Gravitation. And I love it, although that's due to its superb animation, character designs, voice acting and story, not its sexual content. As for manga, I'm a pretty big fan of [b]Haru wo Daiteita[/b]. It's much, [i]much[/i] more graphic than I would normally be comfortable with, but the artwork is stunningly good and the story--while typically implausible--is surprisingly emotional. That's the aspect of it which drew me in: the character development and the well-done melodrama. The excellence of the art also helps make the pornographic scenes seem a little more palatable, haha. I wish there were more female characters, though. It annoys me when BL series basically ignore the existence of women. ~Dagger~

This reminds me of a certain [url=http://redwing.hutman.net/~mreed/index.htm][u]link[/u][/url] in my signature... although I suppose that could qualify as a different topic altogether. :animesmil My take on this is probably quite different from that of most OB members. Obviously there are plenty of people I like and respect here, but although I do go on AIM and so forth, I rarely interact with anyone outside the forum itself. I'm open to chatting and such, and I hope it doesn't make me come across as being unfriendly--yet still, I'm not really someone to initiate conversations/relationships, and because of that I mostly stay out of the fray (or whatever one would call it). ~Dagger~

angela is a two-person J-pop group (consisting of a female singer, Atsuko, and a male guitarist, Katsu) that has produced OPs, EDs and/or image songs for several anime series. Not so long ago, Geneon released the North American version of their debut CD, [url=http://www.rightstuf.com/cgi-bin/catalogmgr/XAsqC6uyCgtW-rqAAt/browse/item/64386/4/0/0][u]Voice of the Sky[/u][/url] (originally Sora no Koe), which includes a card-sized pencil board and a booklet with both romaji & English-translated lyrics. angela's second album, [url=http://www.rightstuf.com/cgi-bin/catalogmgr/XAsqC6uyCgtW-rqAAt/browse/item/66565/4/0/0][u]I/O[/u][/url], will become available domestically on August 16. They also performed at Anime Expo 2005 (and I am, by the by, incredibly jealous of anyone who got to hear them live). Their most recent release is a Japanese CD single related to the upcoming Soukyuu no Fafner: Right of Left OVA. It includes the normal and vocal-less versions of two new songs, Dead Set and Hana no You ni. I'm not particularly into Japanese music, or even music in general, but I love angela. Although it's pretty rare for me to like most of the tracks on an artist's CD--and even then, I rarely enjoy listening to it all the way through--I can't get enough of Voice of the Sky, and I'm really looking forward to I/O. The first angela song I ever heard was Asu e no Brilliant Road (Brilliant Road to Tomorrow), the Stellvia OP. It's still one of my favorites. Others I particularly enjoy are the four pieces they recorded for Soukyuu no Fafner (the series, not the OVA): Shangri-La, Separation, Proof and Fly Me to the Sky. As far as I'm concerned, Shangri-La is their best song. But I'm also growing to like Over the Limits, the first track on Voice of the Sky, as well as nearly all of the other songs on the CD (including quite a few Stellvia-related ones). And Dead Set is excellent. It would make my day if there were other angela fans here, although I'm not going to get my hopes up, haha. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Chabichou][COLOR=#004a6f']If you don't like the laws of a country, well, leave.[/color][/quote] I'm surprised no one has challenged this statement yet. It's rarely as easy as that, especially for those who are younger (like the two in the article presented by the original poster), live in an oppressive country, or are stricken by poverty. [quote][COLOR=#004a6f]So no matter what you say, no matter how hard you try, you're not going to make them (including myself) accept that homosexual acts are okay.[/COLOR][/QUOTE] To draw an analogy, I don't think that adultery (heterosexual or otherwise) is okay, but this doesn't mean I necessarily want it to be punishable by torture and/or death. Siren's post about what constitutes a just law is perhaps the clearest and most relevant argument which has appeared in this thread so far, I think. From a religious perspective, wouldn't it be better to treat "wayward" sexual tendencies with attempts at rehabilitation? ~Dagger~

Remember, anime-related games should be discussed in Play It. Thanks. I noticed that Adult Swim is starting from the beginning again tonight--just how far have they gotten in the series? Are they taking a break, or is it already finished? Either way, I recently breezed through volume 4. Now we're getting to the good stuff! Every single one of the episodes on this disc is entertaining and eminently re-watchable. Also, two of my favorite supporting characters are featured (in episodes 15 & 16, respectively): the [spoiler]secret police[/spoiler] lady, also known as Yatsuya, and Jin's vengeful-because-he-was-jilted boyfriend, Yukimaru. Actually, I'm only halfway kidding. :animesmil Champloo really gets the blood going. There was an excellent mixture of dramatic tension and comedy in these episodes, too--from the stunning sequence with the enka song at the end of episode 14, to Yatsuya's hysterically skillful manipulation of Mugen, to the usual bouts of ***-kicking. In honesty, I enjoyed revisiting this part of the show a lot more than I had thought I would. I don't envy those who will have to wait out the weeks between volume 4 and volume 5, though. It was pretty devious of Geneon to break up the two-parter spanning episodes 16 & 17. I'm still amused by the fact that Mugen is arguably the most spiritual member of the cast. I mean, he's the only person who we get to see [spoiler]communing with shinigami... or, well, whoever those guys are supposed to be.[/spoiler] ~Dagger~

[quote name='kayutori_sama']Actually, I was the Tokypop website a few weeks ago and I did see something there being a fourth volume, but if I'm correct the fourth volume (if there is one) would be the last instalment in the Legal Drug manga.[/quote] No, what I'm saying is that as far as I know, a fourth volume has never been published in Japan. There are only three tankoubon available, in other words. As for the intended span of the series--I've seen a CLAMP interview in which the ladies stated that the part of the story currently available was only 1/5 of what they had planned. I've gotta say that ~15 volumes of Legal Drug would be pretty awesome, although it seems unlikely that the manga will start up again in the near future. ~Dagger~

Please visit [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=87][u]OB Anthology[/u][/url] if you would like to post or discuss fanfiction. It would behoove you to give OB's [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/rules.php?][u]Rules[/u][/url] and [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/faq.php?][u]FAQ[/u][/url] some scrutiny before posting again; you may also find the Anthology sticky threads to be rather helpful. Here at OtakuBoards, we place a strong emphasis on post quality; proper spelling, proper grammar & general coherency are encouraged, while using long strings of smilies is frowned upon. Additionally, double-posting is not permitted. Try to keep in mind that posts which fall far short of our standards run the risk of being deleted as spam. If you have any questions, feel free to private message me or one of the other staff members. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

It's mahn-ga. When looking at romaji, you should usually pronounce the vowels a, i, u, e, and o as ah (same sound as in with "saw"), e, ooh (rhymes with "you"), eh (same sound as in "hey") and oh. ~Dagger~

A few months ago, I read something interesting about the fate of X/1999 and Legal Drug. I'm not sure quite how true it is, but I suppose it has as much of a chance of panning out as any of the other rumors swirling around CLAMP's various abandoned manga. Apparently Asuka saw the ending (or future chapters, or something) CLAMP had planned for X/1999, declared it too violent/morbid/whatever, and refused to run it. CLAMP had already altered their original ending for Wish to please said magazine, and X was where they put down their collective foot. Due to the dispute over X, they also refused to continue serializing any other manga in Asuka, so Legal Drug (which was also running there at the time or shortly after, if what I've been told is correct) was dropped as well. There's some reason that the whole thing continues to be at a standstill, but I can't remember the other details, haha. Anyway, if I manage to find the main source for this information again, I'll post a link. True or not, it sounded believable and made for a pretty interesting read. EDIT: Whoa, whoa. Fourth volume!? I'm not sure why this never occurred to me before, but as far as I know, there [i]is[/i] no fourth volume. Tokyopop is being awfully Pollyanna-ish about this... :animestun ~Dagger~

Let's not. :animeswea As a side note, I deleted the two threads you had posted in the Anime Lounge. There seems to be something of a misunderstanding at work here. OB places a strong emphasis on post quality; we encourage thoughtful discussion, and it's always appreciated when people take the time to write out articulate, point-ful (well, substitute in your preferred antonym for pointless) posts. This applies to the Arena just as much as to any other section of the forums. Thus, it would greatly benefit you to peruse the Arena's various sticky threads, which offer deeper explanations of how RPing here works (from our basic expectations & requirements to the ratings sytem, which is mandatory). If you simply want to call out specific people (as you have attempted to do here), PMing is the way to go. If you have any questions, feel free to private message me or one of the other staff members. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Docbatman']I've heard the word before and I think that it's a flashy word for a board but does it remind anyone else of star trek?[/quote] Yep. That's the first thing I thought of when I saw the name, actually. I'm not much of a Star Trek fan myself, but I did enjoy that movie; it was really rather well done. Anyway, if you want to learn more about OB's Nexus (besides what it's called), browsing through some of the later posts in this thread might help. ;) ~Dagger~

As requested... [B]Name:[/B] Itsuki Kisaragi [B]Age: [/B]29 [B] Country:[/B] Japan [B]Languages:[/B] Japanese [B]Race: [/B]Human [B]Description: [/B] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/itsuki.jpg[/IMG] [B]Personality: [/B] Despite his outward friendliness, Itsuki often comes across as being slightly aloof or detached. Calm and highly intelligent, he possesses the knowledge to oversee Terra's most critical scientific research. Though he does not show any dislike for socializing, he is someone who appreciates the benefits of solitude. He enjoys teasing others but is rarely provoked himself, perhaps because he considers public emotional outbursts to be somewhat vulgar. His conversations tend to be subtle, and at times this lends him an air of mystery. He seems to have an unusual interest in the young pilots, perhaps because of his research. [B] Rank:[/B] Terra scientist [B]Bio:[/B] Itsuki has a fairly strong relationship with Haruka and Ayato, having known them since he was a teenager. [size=1][Note: Domon, some of the stuff in your intro post confuses me (like the fact that people seem to be aware the world was tuned--although, granted, having Itsuki & Ayato be separate people post-tuning is a bit of a stretch to begin with, so there's no reason not to play it by ear). I'm trying to go along with your version of canon, so let me know if there's anything inconsistent here.][/size] He also attended the same university as Haruka, although their academic interests diverged sharply. He and Ayato share similar tastes in art, although Itsuki paints far less frequently. It was at university that he met his assistant (and now wife), Sayoko. Their relationship is slightly bittersweet, due to the fact that Sayoko is borderline codependent, while Itsuki prefers maintaining a cool and analytical facade to actually becoming emotionally invested in anyone. Nevertheless, he does care about her. Itsuki was recruited by Terra not long after graduating top in his class, and has worked there ever since. He still maintains close ties with some of his childhood friends (including Makoto Isshiki, also a member of Terra), though there tends to be a rather peculiar dynamic between them. [CENTER]---------------------------------------- [/CENTER] [B]Name: [/B]Megumi Shitow [B]Age:[/B] 15 (?) [B]Country: [/B] Japan [B] Languages: [/B]Japanese [B]Race: [/B]Human [B]Description: [/B] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v632/DaggerIX1/megu.jpg[/IMG] [B]Personality: [/B] Very [i]genki[/i]. Though a little simplistic, Megu is likeable, impulsive and sweet, though rather opinionated. She tends to rely heavily on her first impressions of people, and if those first impressions are a bit on the negative side--well, so be it. She is sometimes mischievous and has no qualms about saying exactly what she thinks. Because of her cheerful nature, she connects easily with her classmates at school and tends to serve as a bridge between different groups of students. Of course, since she judges people quickly, she clashes with others quite often as well. [B]Rank:[/B] Civilian student [B]Bio: [/B]Haruka's younger sister, Megumi is in most ways an ordinary teenager leading an ordinary life, although she's far more informed about Terra than most. There is some tension between her and Haruka: Megu used to have a crush on Ayato, and she has still not quite gotten over her inferiority complex regarding her older sibling. She plans to enter Terra when she graduates from high school--or perhaps even earlier. The Angel attacks have made her consider applying to Terra early. [CENTER]----------------------------------------[/CENTER] I can beef out the bio sections later, if more information is needed. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Syk3]BTW, Dagger, if you wanted to merge this with the Anime Conventions 2005, you can find that [url="http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=47906"]here[/url'].[/quote] I think I'll keep them separate for now. Thanks for the link, though. In my case, Otakon is getting trumped by other priorities this year (for the nth time in a row--I'll go someday, I swear). But it's not like I'm swimming in money at the moment anyway, so it's probably for the best. I really hope the new licenses are more exciting than those that came out of AX... it's a pretty depressing sign of the times that the only series ADV announced there was Macross SDF--which has already been previously released by at least two different companies. Meh. At the moment I'm mainly interested in seeing what FUNimation comes up with. They've told us about all their new GONZO series, so perhaps now it's time for some shoujo. They took a chance on Kodocha--maybe they'll take a chance on Full Moon wo Sagashite. Hope springs eternal, I say. And of course I'm rooting for them to announce Hunter x Hunter and/or Bleach, if only to prevent either series from going to Viz. I'd be incredibly happy if Geneon snapped up Emma (and the second season of Kyo Kara Maoh), or if anyone got AIR. Seems pretty unlikely considering the current market, however. :animesigh ~Dagger~

Sprite. :catgirl: I only drink soda when I go to the movies (which is usually about once every few months), but I do love Sprite; Sierra Mist is, however, an acceptable alternative. Clear soda is pretty much the only type of soft drink I derive any enjoyment from--Coke & Pepsi are tolerable, but I wouldn't seek them out of my own accord. When forced to choose between them I usually gravitate toward Coke, more out of habit than because it actually tastes better. ~Dagger~

I [i]hated[/i] Lucy the first time I watched that episode--and I hated her even more afterward, when [spoiler]the show delved a bit more into Nana's point of view.[/spoiler] The fact that I'm voting for her anyway sort of goes to show what an emotional rollercoaster Elfen Lied is. Only those who have seen the full series should read this: [spoiler]the puppy scene is what made me (grudgingly) forgive Lucy. I mean, I'd probably become pretty homicidal too, after witnessing something like that, and Dicloniuses are naturally a little sociopathic to begin with.[/spoiler] It's a true shame that the OVA episode, which explains [spoiler]how Kurama captured Lucy, and why she didn't kill him in episode 1,[/spoiler] appears to remain unlicensed. Maybe I'll break out volume 2 tonight... ~Dagger~

[quote name='Killer7']Actually I was talking of region 1 or region 0 anime dvds. Nowadays thier alot of good region 1 or 0 dvds with Japanese voice and english subs. Now I don't know much about bootlegs, but I will buy it as long as it has an actual customized case.[/quote] Region 0s are basically always bootlegs. And you can pretty much assume that anything with tri-fold packaging is a bootleg as well. And aside from a couple of scattered DVDs from FUNimation, no 4Kids series is legitimately available in uncut/bilingual form in North America. That's part of the reason people complain about the company so much. ~Dagger~

Welcome to OtakuBoards, Chobits15. One of the members here is currently holding a "Best Anime Girl" tournament, so I'm afraid we can't really afford to have too many similar threads floating around. If you are interested in discussing either Chi or Chobits in general, please head over to our official Chobits topic. It may also benefit you to glance over some of the forum-specific sticky threads, as well as OB's [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/rules.php?][u]Rules[/u][/url] and [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/faq.php?][u]FAQ[/u][/url]. If you have any questions, feel free to private message me or one of the other moderators. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~

Let's try to watch the post quality in this thread. Not all one-liners are by definition spam, but those which totally lack substance, are littered with misspellings or are just plain difficult to read will certainly risk being deleted. I'm going to consider this a general warning, so please don't make me act on it. [quote name='Kai123']:animeangr theres nothing worng with that because they changed their names to english. so u just cant blame them for that :catgirl:[/quote] Name changes, while irritating, are a small issue compared to some of the other things 4Kids has done--a vast slate of offenses ranging from horrifically ugly visual edits to excessive localization to completely bastardizing the storyline/characters of a show in order to best suit their nefarious purposes. (Wanting to turn a profit is far from being truly nefarious, when you get right down to it, but I've always wanted to use that word in this context. Do forgive me.) If name changes were all 4Kids did, people would still complain, but I doubt the company would be as passionately hated. [quote name='Killer7']Really if you hate thier Dubs that much, just buy the Japanese version with subs. [/quote] I assume you are referring to FUNimation's uncut DVDs? Unfortunately, those seem to have stopped coming out, at least for the time being. If you don't have Funi's stuff in mind, I can only suppose that you must be talking about bootlegs, since I can't think of any 4Kids anime whose R2 DVDs come with English subtitles. And obviously bootlegs aren't even worthy of being a last resort. :) ~Dagger~

Since we try to maintain one dedicated "official" thread for each specific anime series, movie or OVA, feel free to post in [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=17042&page=9&pp=15][u]this[/u][/url] pre-existing topic if you'd like to discuss Spirited Away. Additionally, please keep in mind that OtakuBoards has rather high standards when it comes to post quality. We ask that you make your posts as clear and readable as possible, which includes using proper grammar, spelling and punctuation. If you have any questions about our policies, you're welcome to private message me or one of the other staff members. Thanks. Thread closed. ~Dagger~