KarmaOfChaos

[color=deeppink][size=1]Well, the midnight showing was lots of fun, despite the fact that I am now utterly exhausted. I hadn't slept two nights ago (at all), and then to stay up until midnight, and then turn around and be woken up at 11 AM...let's just say, it's not pleasant. I will sleep well tonight. One of my friends dressed up as a Cornish blue fairy (sp?), and got runner up in the costume contest, and thusly recieved a free copy of HBP, aside from the one she was already buying. So, there are a total of 3 copies of the book in the house now. My friend is behind me on her bed reading one of them now, I don't know where the other two copies got to. But I'll eventually read it. I'm pretty lazy, even about going to any sites on the internet, so I think my only danger is reading something on ff.net. So I'll keep away from there until I read it. Oh, we also grabbed a few of the boxes that the books came in, the ones that said "Do Not Open Until July 16th". Ah. True pot-heads. Yeaa! And now I'm off. To forage for food. (There are currently nine people living in a three bedroom house here.) -Karma[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]She breathed in his strange scent, a mix of unearthly angel smells, a soft spice like cinnamon, lavender, and green tea, stirred with an psuedo human scent, something they called "cologne" which Johana had left them, among other things called "shampoo" and "soap". Her arms barely reached around his waist, while his arms swallowed her tiny body entirely. They let go, and she looked up at him with eyes overcast with a sense of lost sadness. She couldn't explain why she felt so empty, why she felt as if she was bound to eternally search for something, or someone. Gabriel asked her if she was okay, and she expressed her vague feelings, but quickly reassured him. She didn't want her brother to worry over her, especially over something so undefined. Besides, his presence, as well as Metatron's, was very comforting to her--she felt extremely out of place on Earth; so having fellow angels here, especially Gabriel, who was so experienced with humans, and Metatron, who could take command of any situation with grace and ease, made her feel quite protected. She and Metatron were the first down the stairs, assuming they were going to see Johana again. [b]"Good morning, big brother, how are you?" [/b]she asked, looking towards him. [b]"Fine, little sister,"[/b] he said with a smile at their simple nicknames for each other, [b]"I just hope we can find--"[/b] he stopped short. God had given them specific instructions not to mention Azrael or their search in front of her. He had told Raphaelle that Gabriel and Metatron were there to observe humanity and see how it had changed, and to watch out for Hell's demons appearing on Earth, and to stop them if they could. Which wasn't really a lie. [b]"Find what...Metatron?"[/b] she looked up at him with almost knowing eyes, as she was expecting an answer that she had been waiting for for forever. [b]"Johana. I hope we can find Johana soon, this human body of mine is hungry, and there's nothing in the kitchen,"[/b] he said, plastering a half-smile on his face. Disappointment flashed in her expression for a moment, and then she smiled widely back at him, laughing a bit. He looked away, wishing more than ever he could relieve his dear sister's anxiety. It made him almost phsyically sick to lie to her, she who was so trusting. Raphaelle looked down at her feet. She knew something was bothering Metatron and Gabriel, and that it had something to do with why they were here on Earth. And, her heart seemed to add, something to do with why she felt so lost. But she knew better to question her orders, or her brothers. All would be revealed in due time. On the walk to Johana's house, Gabriel and Metatron were lost in some strange debate about humanity, while she walked silently behind them, watching people and buildings, depressed by the cold and dark way this world looked and felt, and trying to get used to her human body. She was still exhausted from her trip down, one she hadn't made for at least a millenia, and one she was not built for. Gabriel, who came down to Earth much more often, was completely at home in his human form, and Metatron, although he didn't come down as much, still seemed to handle his body with some decorum of grace. After the third time she stumbled, Gabriel turned around and looked at her with concern, [b]"Do you want me to carry you, Raphaelle? I know the trip down was hard on you, and it's no trouble at all..."[/b] [b]"Oh, no no, I'm fine, I promise! I just need to get used to this body a little more. I'm really okay. You don't have to carry me,"[/b] she reassured him feverently. She hated when people had to worry about her, especially because she was more fragile or delicate. She was determined to be strong, so that her brothers and God could be proud of her. Gabriel didn't look convinced, but he turned around anyway, and continued his debate. Before they knew it, they were at Johana's house. She was waiting for them outside, car keys in hand. For a moment, it was awkward and strange, these three angels and a human girl, brought together in something so much bigger than all of them, in this ageless battle between Heaven and Hell. When they had first met last night, the angels had been utterly exhausted, and it was all they could do to follow Johana to their apartment and collapse in the beds. Now, they were awake, and aware. The silence, for a few moments was complete. Then Raphaelle stepped forward with a smile on her face, and embraced the girl. Stepping back, she said, [b]"Hello Johana. I want to thank you for welcoming us here, and for taking such good care of us last night. We are eternally grateful."[/b] Johana smiled widely, blushing, and waved her hand, [b]"I was more than happy to help you. I mean, come on, how often do you get a chance to help out a bunch of angels on a mission from God??"[/b] They laughed, and relaxed.[b] "So, you guys must be pretty hungry, right?"[/b] she asked, jingling her keys, [b]"I know this great place that has the best pancakes ever. D'you guys wanna go?"[/b] They nodded simulatenously, and got into the car, Gabriel taking what she called "shotgun", while the two more reserved angels sat in the back. [i]God told me that I'd have to start going to the hospitals and clinics as soon as I was well enough...to help the stillborn babies. And he told me to watch out for anything my intution told me was strange, and to follow any feelings I had. I know God has a purpose in everything he does, but I wish he'd just've told me what we were really doing down here...[/i] Her thoughts receeded as she drifted further and further from consciousness, finally falling asleep in Metatron's lap to the soothing sound of quiet conversation and the running engine. - - - - OOC: Oh my freaking gosh guys. I went to the Harry Potter release last night at midnight. I am sooo tired. Thus the reason for the late in the day post, lol. /end OOC.[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]There are just so many things to be excited about in this next book, I don't see how anyone could [i]not[/i] be anticipating it. Personally, the only thing that deeply bothered me about book 5 was [spoiler]Sirius' death[/spoiler], but Harry's angst/anger was something I guess I had been waiting for almost, kind of like 'dude, get angry already. please. you're entirely too passive.' Lol. Anyway. I will most definitely be going to the midnight showing, and possibly dressing up as well (my friend wants to go as the Fat Lady in pink), and I'm considering going as a snitch. * giggles * Imagine me covering in gold face paint and wearing a gold sequin (sp?) skirt and tights and a shirt, like something out of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. XD Ah, crazyness. Still, you should be a kid while you can be, you know? -Karma[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]My favorite songs from an anime would have to be Tank! from Cowboy Bebop, and Ride A Shooting Star from FLCL. I love a lot of the music off the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack, and have a special place in my heart for Freckles (it's just so damn catchy) from Kenshin. Also, it's not from an anime, but Simple and Clean from Kingdom Hearts is a really beautiful song. And, oh my freaking gosh, I can't believe I forgot the opening to Fruits Basket, "For Fruits Basket". That's my favorite song of all time. As for songs I hate...the opening to Samurai Champloo. It just annoys me to no end. -Karma[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]As Dagger and others have said, it's probably a good idea to catch at least some of the series, before watching the movie. I still am of the belief that while the series, especially towards the second half, was highly the result of some major acid trips, the movie takes it to a whole new level of bizarre. And, again as Dagger said, while the series gives you the weirdness/LSD-induced scenes in smaller portions, slowly building your ability to look past the 'what the crap are they even doing?' and see the symbolism, the movie is like a straight glass of vodka all at once, and you're left with a distinct feeling of "WTF." I was fortunate enough to watch the entire series (all at once. in one day. not the brightest idea my friends and I have ever had but.) before seeing the movie, but one of my other friends was not, and the only way she was able to make sense of it was to think of it in what she calls "dream sense", where you take for granted that none of the even slightly normal rules apply and nothing makes sense and it's all symbolic. But it really is a great movie, and has some of the most gorgeous artwork I've ever seen, and if it's just not possible to watch the whole series first, it's still worth seeing, if just for the eye candy. -Karma PS: Don't watch this series if you have gender issues though. :)[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]Name: Archangel Raphaelle Age: Immortal, although she is one of the younger angels. Gender: Neutral, appearing female. Species: Angel of God Appearance: White-blonde hair down to her ankles, with wide bright blue eyes. In Heaven, where she often stays, she dresses in long trailing white gowns, with ornate decorations, made of very soft material, often draping off her shoulders. Her hair is let down, but also very decorated with various ornaments and ribbons. She is small in comparison with the other Archangels, and delicately proportioned, appearing very fragile and doll-like. She has an almost childish face, heart-shaped, with pink pouting lips and a brush stroke of a nose, and pale porcelain skin. Her wings while also delicate, are magnificent, a brilliant white, with silver rings binding some of the feathers. On Earth, she dresses in a plain white summer dress, and has a bob hair cut reminiscent of the 1920's. Her wings obviously disappear, but everything else about her phsyical appearance remains the same, except for a splash of freckles, which appear. Side: Heaven Powers: As an elemental angel of air, she posseses powers over the skies and weather, both in Heaven and on Earth. She also has great powers of healing, which are enhanced by her compassionate and empathetic nature. Like Gabriel, she can also use telepathy. Although she does not often fight, when faced in battle, she uses a set of bells, ranging in sizes from 8 x 8 inches, to 1 x 1 inch, which, depending on which bells she rings and in which sucession, can paralyze, poison, put to sleep, wound, confuse, and even kill her enemy. There are six of these bells, named from smallest to largest, Obyn, Gaen, Kalil, Irieal, Etsukae, and Mi. The bells can also be used for other purposes, such as to to heal, or send an angel, demon, or human, from one place to another, and sometimes even between Heaven, Earth, and Hell. Personality: Raphaelle is shy, kind, and naive by nature. She is perhaps the sweetest of the angels, and the most trusting. She loves her fellow angels, and is deeply saddened by the ones who have fallen. She is enamoured of God, and is frequently found by his side. Heaven is truly her home, and she does not like to leave to travel to Earth, although she knows that it is sometimes her duty. When she must go to Earth, her shyness turns into reclusiveness, and she often becomes bitter by all the deciet, apathy, greed, destruction, and hedonistic practices and beliefs that exist there. It is this bitterness that fuels her desire to fight the fallen angels, because she believes that they have turned not only from God, but from goodness itself, and that they now worship and are worshipped in the evil temples on Earth. Raphaelle is also very humble, and only fights when she is called on by God to do so, because as much as she incensed by the things she sees on Earth, she knows it is not her duty to judge or give punishment. Biography: Raphaelle was the last of the four elemental archangels to be created, after Gabriel, Micheal, and Uriel, and is thus the youngest. Although wise in her infinite years, it remains the wisdom of a child, and she is also incredibly innocent. God granted her the most beautiful voice of all the angels, and it was her voice that always sounded it out high and clear when the choir sang. She was beloved not only of God, but of all angels, and was still cherished even by Lucifer and his followers when they began to question God. During the time of The Great Fall, Raphaelle's up until then completely pure view of existence became forever tainted, and although she still retained her naive perception of life, she was plagued with visions from the battlefield, knowing how Lucifer's own greatness and pride had eventually betrayed him and lead to his fall from grace. She had been introduced to the idea then of evil, and of sin. At first, God kept her away from the fighting, knowing that the beauty of her child-like and utterly trusting nature would be shattered, at least temporarily, if she was allowed to see the horrible slaughter of those she had loved deepy, who had been her elder brothers and sisters. However, the fighting eventually became very intense, especially when Azrael left the side of God. It was then that he called on her, and bestowed upon her her set of bells, while simple and indescript in apperance, held a terrible power. He then sent her to the battlefield, and she, enforced with the powers of God, made an awful, but beautiful song, banishing her brother Azrael from the Heavens, and throwing him down to Earth, a fallen and lost angel. With the last notes of the song, she sang out a curse, "The Breath of God", stripping from him his immortality and power. Raphaelle returned from the fight, with hollow stare in her eyes and an empty soul. Although Azrael had always been a black sheep among God's beloved, before the The Great Fall, she had loved and adored him, awed by his power and devotion to God, even she even idolized him somewhat. She often spent a great deal of time with Azrael, telling him stories that she had heard from other angels, first of Heaven and creation, and later that of man. When she banished and cursed Azrael, part of her soul died, and she was, in some ways, as lost as he. God, in act of mercy, and as a reward for her show of utter devotion, wiped her memory of Azrael, and of his banishment. She soon returned to her innocence and joyful nature, but she was still changed, and never quite as pure as she had been before The Great Fall. Although God erased her memory, in a sense, it had been bonded with such love in her heart and soul, that the most he could do was force it to lie dormant, hoping it would not awaken. However, He knew that she would be drawn to Azrael, out of love and out of the tragedy of when they last parted ways, and could possibly find him, wherever he was. She would be of great use to Gabriel in so doing, so he sent her down with Gabriel, giving her the mission of collecting the souls of stillborn children, who were often very confused in death, and to ease their passing between Earth and Heaven with her bells. Although she felt out of place on Earth, and longed to return to Heaven, she felt deep sorrow for the children, and accepted her mission dutiful and determined. And it was during her years on Earth that she eventually found him, so to speak, by discovering the dear Dr. Allington. OOC: 1) I'll try to add a picture later. 2) I hope you don't mind the gender change. 3) Yes, I got the bells idea from the book Sabriel.[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]Hey, just letting y'all know there's already a thread with this topic that's been started (by me actually, which is what brought it to my attention). Just a heads up. -Karma[/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]In general, I prefer to keep my focus on one book and be able to appreciate it fully and then move on the next one. Of course, if a book isn't intresting enough or is too content heavy for me to be able to read it without pause for hours and hours on end, then I have a bad tendancy to drop the book for a like a month, read other books, then pick that book back up again and scan the chapters I had read before, and then carry on from there. But when I do get into the situation where I'm reading several intersting books at a time, which usually happens when my aunt sends me to the book store with 50$ and I just don't know which one to keep reading so I try to read them all at the same time, I find that while I don't get plot lines confused, it's more difficult for me to remember exactly what happened in one particular plotline or another. Which can be frustrating, so I try to avoid it. Although in the end it really depends on what kinds of books you're reading. For example, reading a tutorial on HTML at the same time I'm reading a fantasy book for pleasure and biography for school doesn't cause hardly any confusion for me at all. But, say, reading a realistic fiction, a fantasy, and a sci-fi all at the same time has the potential to slightly mar my reading experience. To sum up - I like extended periods of non-stop reading focusing on one book, so that I am intensely into that book for 1-3 days, have a couple days to digest it, and move on. But other methods of reading aren't disasterous for me. -Karma[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]Interesting beginning. I liked how you managed to use the accent fairly well, without making it utterly obnoxious to the reader, so that the story is a chore to read. I'm also curious about the mayor, and more detail and background of the situation and of the narrator. These are my criticisms: "Oh, but we tried. Oh, we tried. " The "oh" here sounds too repetitive, and makes the accent seem out of place rather than working with the story. Maybe change it to "'Oh, but we tried. We tried and we tried." The other thing is, the narrator seems to go on and on about Mr. Jones. I honestly got a little bored hearing the same things over and over again. I understand the effect you were going for with the way the narrator speaks, but maybe cut it down just a bit, or elaborate on exactly why Mr. Jones is so important that he deserves to be talked about for so long (ie: his relationship to the narrator), especially compared to the other four that died. I'd like to see you continue this Alex. :) -Karma[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1] Charles, you're great. I have to spend all day with these super-emo kids who write all this crappy poetry about how horrible their life is, and then I get to come home and read good poetry about simple, happy things (even though the ducky is dead...which is sad). You make my day. :) I enjoyed what you did with this part: "But then one day I found you belly up--deflated! Our happy baths in one fell swoop annihilated! The precious sanctum that is my tub--violated!" It made me visualize someone reciting the poem while dancing melodramatically around a bathtub. Very funny and a nice way to mix up the rhyme scheme of the poem. -Karma[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]Honestly, there are a lot of movies that I think could have a lot of potential to be awesome as anime movies as well as live-action. But I'll try to just name my top ones. I think [b]Donnie Darko[/b] would make a really trippy anime movie. Of course, there would have to be some serious changes made, especially during the "normal" interaction scenes, maybe spice them up them with interesting screen shots and well placed pauses, but you could do so much more with the theory and magical-science-theological mix aspect of it. Donnie could have a lot more strange and confusing visions, and the characters could be exaggerated quite nicely. And Frank could be made to look way freakier. And they could create so much in the way of location eye candy. Another movie that I think would make a very interesting anime movie is [b]The United States of Leland[/b]. It would make a great dark psychological movie, and I think if someone like the director of Bebop (I forget his name) and the guy who did the anime sequence in Kill Bill I got a hold of it, they could do a LOT with the characters. Lastly, [b]The Labyrinth[/b]. This movie is so great to begin with, but I think the realm of anime could take it to new heights entirely. There's just so much you can do with animation, and this movie could be made even more magical and outrageous and entrancing. Of course, you'd lose some of the quirkness by no longer having the puppets, but I think that that would be well worth it, to see an anime version of this. Yea that's all I've got to contribute. :o -Karma[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]Okay, so I'm a bit late, but I managed to catch the second episode. And let me say, I'm impressed. A lot of anime that had come out recently has just had ****** animation, so this was a really nice change. Anyway, as others have said, this seems to be a nice blend of Kenshin and Bebop, but with its own elements as well. It seems a little more humor focused than either anime, while still maintaining a serious attitude when it needs one. I also liked Dag's comparison of Mugen and Jin as a split of Spike - very accurate, I think. But, at the same time, both Jin and Mugen have their personalities exaggerated somewhat (the wildness of Mugen and quietness of Jin), and have their own quirks. Jin seems more antisocial, and distant. I confess, Jin is definitely my favorite character. There are so many wild characters out there that are the center of attention of an anime show, that it's getting pretty old. Don't get me wrong - I think Mugen's great and brings his own to the table (As Dagger pointed out - episode II hardly had the cliche happy ending), but Jin seems a little farther from the cliche 'quiet dude with long black hair and glasses'. Yea. Anyway. Looking forward to seeing the rest of this! Maybe I'll just move in with Dagger or something. Then I'll never have to wait to see an anime ever again. ;) -Karma EDIT: Not sure how I feel about the hip hop aspect of this anime yet...it really could go either way. If they emphasize it too much, I'm probably not going to like it, but if it's there enough to be an influence, but still is toned down and diversified by other music styles (like they did in bebop), it could be really awesome.[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]Color me morbid, but this was definitely my favorite chapter. My only problem with it was, as Godel said, you did get a [i]little[/i] carried away with description at times, which would temporarily throw off the flow, but honestly, it barely bothered me. What I really love was how you drew the reader into the emotions' Chris was feeling, keeping at first a very seperate wall between Chris telling the story (regular font) and how Chris is really feeling (The italicized and parenthesized

[color=deeppink][size=1]The one thing that really stood out for me while reading this was how you let each little detail develop into a story of its own, each element of Molly's surroundings had life. The step turned into a story about the sidewalk, about its history and current involvement as she stumbles down upon it. The sidewalk is given a personality. The same with the bakery, the cake, even down to Molly's skirt. Everything has life. As Azure said though, it seemed to quite abruptly end. I'd like to see where the rest of the story is going. You get the feeling of a girl very jaded and distant from the world, she goes so far as to even resent meeting a figure from her past, because it somehow is making a judgement on who she is now. Overall, well-written. Good stuff. -Karma[/size][/color]

[color=deeppink][size=1]As Azure noted, I guess this can be considered a mixed blessing. Because, I mean, come on. Art is a huge part of why people buy manga. Of course, having a good story is must for most people too, but the art is what will make or break a manga. So I think they're going to have to develop the story a lot more, and not have the typical stale nature of translations, especially translations done in a rush. But at the same time, there are several mangas and animes that I would love to see/read in novel form. Vampire Hunter D, which Dag mentioned, is an excellent example. So I guess this could go both ways. We'll see. ;) -Karma[/size][/color]