eleanor

[color=firebrick] I love silhouettes. ^_^. Definately keep it as it it, it's a wonderful banner. It gives you a very simple feeling [though I don't know how hard it was to make it] and it has this kind of uneven balance...if that makes sense. >_>. Awesome job.[/color]

[color=firebrick] Yeah...I don't think anyone [b]cares[/b] about Britney Spears anymore. Yeah, we make cracks about her Onyx Hotel tour now and then, but no one really thinks about it anymore. In my opinion, Britney Spears has no singing talent [and she sure as he** can't act] that will make her noticeable. I watched this VH1 show and it showed Britney Spears singing some some at a town fair and it was just plain horrible. Like Semjaza said, she doesn't compose any of her songs [and ones she does probably suck more than her others ones or something]. I mean, Jesus Britney, put like a freaking age-limit to your concerts. A person at my school went to her Onyx[XXX] Hotel Tour and she claimed that 'it was the most vulgar public concert I've ever been to.' I believe her, nonetheless. I don't care if she has nice abs or whatever, don't try to make up for your lack of talent by other means. *rolls eyes* Hi, I'm Britney Spears and welcome to my tour! I will now lip-sync horribly and wear two-inch thongs to make up for it! Woo-hoo! I even like Christina Aguilera more than her- at least that girl has a talented voice. I don't care if I've never 'met' her or I don't 'really know her', wearing that kind of clothing and having modified sex onstage in front of ten-year-olds isn't something I like to see. Besides, kids probably think marrying your best male friend for a day is ok now.[/color]

[color=firebrick] I just got [b]RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE TSUBASA[/b]

[color=firebrick] Where on earth is it written that good cartoons have to make you cry or get overly emotional? What I like about my favorite American cartoons [Invader Zim, Family Guy, etc.] is that they make you [b]laugh[/b]. I have yet to see an anime that has made me laugh out loud like American cartoons have. And is there a rule that says in order for a cartoon to be 'good', it has to be complicated as well? Try this one for thought- if it wasn't for American cartoons, anime would never have been created. The big eyes small mouth theory came from Walt Disney, and anime is based off of that. Now you're pissed off that some American cartoons are using anime elements? *rolls eyes* The time Walt Disney produced his first motion picture [1937] with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, anime hadn't been created. The first Bambi came out [1942] Japan had barely even begun animation production. Yeah, let's blame Americans and flame their animation when THEY were practically they ones who first created sound and colored animation. [/color]

[color=firebrick] I wouldn't say it out loud, but Jesus Christ, if the only Japanimation I saw were dubbed Pokemon and DBZ shows, I would secretly think anime was a load of crap, too. Fortunately, I didn't. *shrugs* The point? Who cares? They're not going to go away. You can't [b]MAKE[/b] them go away. They'll [b]PERSIST[/b] if you make them try and go away. I-G-N-O-R-E T-H-E-M. Wow. What a concept. Ok, on to other subjects. I love some American cartoons more than most anime, [even the most dedicated otakus will learn that 99% of anime is bad as it is sooner or later], like Invader Zim and Family Guy and such. There's such a huge discrimination against American cartoons by anime fans because they think they're crappily made and have stupid plotlines [cough] and the moment they see an expression related to anime they go ballistic and start some stupid petition or whatever. American cartoons are actually usually better quality, too. *coughcough*TEENTITANS*coughcough* [i]I don't hate anime, but I dislike a LOT of it. Why? simply because they aren't very original or full of a lot of depth. Sure you have your wierd and orignal series like NGE but then you have your simple, fun but stupid shows like Fist of the North star or Kenjitsu Zan or something. Sadly one FAR outweighs the other. It seems many series don't put a lot of effort into it or suffer from predictable stories. But there are some true gems that push to border and make you go 'wow'. Look at Vampire Hunter D and VHD: Bloodlust both follow the amazingly dark novels well and keep the complexity of the character. Or the Wings of Hommenase, Roujin Z, Princess Mononoke etc. These are the things that keep me hooked, looking at these things I see that Japanese Animation is much like live-action filmaking as it is a true artform that can capture the imagination and hearts of people rather than just try to make them laugh or decide which super hot chick the geeky kid chooses or something.[/i] ^ SO true. Even thought anime import is slow, America only gets anime that was popular or at least semi-popular [something just plain stupid] in Japan or Korea or some other place. Can you guess what the other 95% of anime is like? Dull, stupid, things like HAMTARO/SD GUNDAM/FFU. Don't get me wrong, I adore some anime, but I also hate people who think all anime is supreme.[/color]

[color=firebrick] An online friend of mine [she's an artist] drew this picture which led to ask her what it was based on, and then I got sort of obsessed with [b]Matentai Lord Ragnorak[/b]. It's also known as [b]Demon Detective Loki Ragnarok[/b] or just [b]Matentai Loki[/b]. :3 NO, this has no relation with the online game Ragnorak Online. The anime series is 26 episodes, which is based off the manga. Straight off the bat, there are [b]two mangas[/b] of this show. The first series, called [b]Matentei Loki[/b], is seven books long. After that, it was liscenced by another comic company and is currently printing its continuation, called [b]Matentai Loki Ragnorak[/b]. [Confused yet?] The story basically follows as [b]this[/b]: Loki is the Norse God of Mischief, and his arrogance has got him kicked out of the land of the gods, and he's know in a child's form to boot. In order to be accepted again, he has to fight and trap demons that take over humans, so he creates a mystery agency. Soon accompanied by a hyperactive girl, he finds out that some Norse gods keep coming down to assassinate him for unknown reasons. The first seven mangas just follow this story, and then the current ones are planned to have more story arcs and more characters. I've gotten the chance to read a fair bit of translated mangas of this, but I have not seen the anime yet. It's about to be liscenced by a small American company, but I don't know anything more about it. :3 I hope the manga gets picked up by Tokyopop or something. The art is very pretty and clean in the manga, and so far from the pictures I've seen the anime looks pretty decent as well. I picked [strike]some[/strike] a boatload of pictures...mainly because they're so cool. :) [img]http://www.tangerinecafe.net/rakuen/files/005.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.tangerinecafe.net/rakuen/files/010.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.tangerinecafe.net/rakuen/files/008.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.tangerinecafe.net/rakuen/files/b010.gif[/img] [img]http://www.tangerinecafe.net/rakuen/files/b005.gif [/img] [img]http://www.tangerinecafe.net/rakuen/files/b022.gif[/img] [img]http://www.tangerinecafe.net/rakuen/files/b027.gif[/img] [/color]

[color=firebrick] Like 'em a lot. :toothy: I've never done much with watercolor so I can't say much, but I really like the colors you used for the bottom girl's hair. ^_^ Very soft-looking and shiny. Her dress looks pretty and feminine, reminds me of Arwen every time I look at it, lol. Your main problem that I can see is the shaping of the limbs, such as legs and hands. *shrugs* No biggie, though.[/color]

[color=firebrick] In my book, nothing will ever beat [b]Cowboy Bebop[/b] and Yoko Kanno's music when it comes to good anime music. She has a hold over numerous music styles, varying from jazz to classical and vocals to techno. The songs can be exciting and fun to listen to, and probably one of the biggest pro I have about the music is that it really matches what's going on in the show. I [b]hate[/b] it when they put random music on that doesn't match the anime. But anyways...I'm in love with the Seatbelts. *gush gush* There's no real CD soundtrack to my knowledge, but [b]King of Bandits Jing[/b] has very nice music as well. The music in both the opening and ending themes are very well-suited to my tastes and the background music is also put together well. [again, it matches. ^_~] [b]Gravitation[/b] also has a good soundtrack, although in my opinion the background music for the ending theme lacks a bit. I just really like layered techo music, lol. In the anime, anywho, the background music is also pretty good when you listen to it. Can't say much for the vocals, though. :/[/color]

[color=firebrick] I let my best friend climb all over me whenever she wants [granted she's not trying to steal something from me], and unless it's someone I don't like, I basically don't care how close anyone is to me. My friends and I [b]always[/b] end up having a giant sleeping bag fight whenever we sleep over together and we're usually piled on top of each other laughing ourselves silly. I mean, I'm not going to let guys jump on me and start harrassing me, but I'm usually very carefree about personal space.[/color]

[color=firebrick] Most of the time, there are only two types of books I read. It's either [b]sci-fi/fanstasy[/b] or the, er, [i]novel[/i] novels. O_o. [b]Orson Scott[/b] got into sci-fi after I read [b]Ender's Game[/b] at an academic camp I went to. So far I've finished the Ender Quartet and the whole 'Bean' book-things, but I haven't gotten to read anything else by him except for his short stories and this 'How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy' book. Anyways, I fell in love with the [b]Redwall Series[/b] about three years ago, and that counts as fantasy I guess. The only other fantasy book I've read so far is [b]Eragon[/b]. What I mean by 'novel' novels are books like [b]Catcher in the Rye[/b] or [b]Of Mice and Men[/b], just to name a few. Goerge Orwell is one of my favorites with [b]Animal Farm[/b] and [b]1984[/b]. I'll finish up this post later, I must go. =_=[/color]

[color=firebrick] Um...seven gals magically turning into enemy-fighting super-people isn't really practical either. I don't think you should worry about making it practical, that would turn it into this giant comic filled with random scientific theories...which is not good. It [i]is[/i] pretty original if you think about it. You really made a nice plot about this gray dome using the whole 'god' base. If I'm allowed to, the story would obviously be set in a futuristic setting, but klinanime1 asked some very nice questions. *ponders* Well, I'd guess that the people behind this whole clone thing would probably be going mad right now and trying to find where she is [unless I'm missing something here], so that can be tied in. Of course, you'll have to put in the difficulties of the clone learning how to adapt and learn customs and such [i.e. Chi from 'Chobits']. The only good thing I can think of right now is that events will lead up to Carrise's final decision between a crosspath. Very common, but nonetheless very effective. Good luck! ^^[/color]

[color=firebrick] O_o I'm sorry if you were offended or anything, but it was meant to be taken as a joke. The only reason that I've changed the title of my 'club' is because I didn't know the difference between shounen-ai and yaoi a long time ago. And as I wrote in my previous post, the relationship between Kaworu and Shinji is very controversial. You can take it one way or another, I could care less. Trying to disprove or persuade a fan of a pairing is basically as useless as flaming. [/color]

[i]*gasps* You bought a bootleg!? Well, I hope you'll invest in TSRI's domestic DVDs when Gravitation finally receives its North American release. [/i] [color=firebrick]Haha, well, not really. :3 It's the real deal from Japan, but it's like uber-cheap on this website. You can PM me for the address. I [b]did[/b] get a bootleg Cowboy Bebop CD, though. >_>[/color]

[color=firebrick] Yum, non-canon. Lol, [b]so[/b] many people hate non-canon shounen-ai/yaoi pairings, though. First off, not many anti-shounen-ai/yaoi people say much about shows/mangas like [b]Graviation, Yami no Matsuei, FAKE, etc.[/b] but they do anything to protest about even the slightest non-canon. My interests border non-canon and semi-canon, because it's not a split line. For example, probably my favorite shounen-ai pairing of all time is Kaworu and Shinji from [b]Neon Genesis Evangelion[/b], but it's such a controversial relationship that there are tons of rants/essays that try to persuade either way. Shinji shows signs of homophobia with Kaji yada yada yada Kaworu said "I love you" to Shinji blah blah blah. I've read most of them, and you can't really tell if love was intended or not. Another one I like is Satoshi/Daisuke, but [b]DN Angel[/b] shounen-ai hasn't gotten that popular...yet. I don't like any canon shounen-ai pairings...really. :/ Hey, I even got into Harry Potter stuff once. I do think that RPS sort of gets out of hand, though. Then you can take shows like [b]Gundam Wing[/b] and [b]WeiB Kreuz[/b]. Puh-leeze. Five very handsome guys, practicaly no girls [in case you haven't noticed, a majority of GW fans [b]loathe[/b] Relena Peacecraft], and before you know it a giant mass of obsessive fangirls will jump on it and suck it for all its worth. Definately non canon, but it can't be considered way, WAY non-canon if you get what I'm saying. There's even a official picture of Heero and Duo is this bone-curnching hug [not in the friendly way] and about four Kaworu/Shinji official picture that lean toward shounen-ai. Weib Kreuz is just self-explanatory if you have the slightest idea what the anime is about. Then there is the obvious non-canon. Some favs are Vash/Wolfwood, Inuyasha/Miroku, Kenshin/Sanoske [O_o;;]... I mean, crap, there's even Invader ZIM slash and video game shounen-ai/yaoi. [b]*cough*FINALFANTASYSEVENANDKINGDOMHEARTS*cough*[/b] I really like Cloud/Sephiroth now that I think of it. *coughs* You know...even though Cloud [spoiler]impaled Sephiroth[/spoiler]...but there's a perfectly good explanation! O_O I think. I used to be this ravenous obsessive fangirl, so I don't mind definate non-canon pairings, but a lot of people mind them. I guess it's pretty silly to people to complain about it, though. We're talking about the internet here, you're not going to stop every fangroup that you dislike. It's pointless and all you're going to do is make a fool of yourself if you're flaming them. [they either attack you violently or ignore you. *shrugs*] I've seen my fair share of anti-shounen-ai FANFICTIONS on fanfiction.net [stupid, eh?]. To end my crappily put together post, I love shounen-ai to death. The only thing I'm against is yaoi. *shrugs*[/color]

[color=firebrick] I'm not trying to insult anyone here, but most beginning artists that begin to try our original drawings have a hard time of doing it. *shrugs* Most anime artists only do fanart, but in truth the people who start creating original characters/etc. are usually the ones that have more experience and such. There's no problem with copying for now. ^_^[/color]

[color=firebrick] Schweeet, [b]DN Angel[/b] has finally come to US shores. ^_^. The anime will probably come as well, although it's not nearly as good as the manga. :/ I can't judge it too much, because I've seen so little, but other people say most of it is filler and it gets sidetracked from the manga. *shrugs* [b]Gravitation[/b] is coming, and it's really a great anime. :toothy: I managed to get this cheap version boxset from the internet, I love it so much. It's hilarious and a well-made anime/manga, but it depends if you're into shounen-ai or not. For some reason I don't know a whole lot of people who have watched [b]3x3 Eyes[/b], which is a really great anime classic. I'm sort of surprised many people don't know about it...you have to check it out.[/color]

[color=firebrick] You can take Queen Asuka's comment one way or the other. Most anime artists start out by copying offical artwork and focusing on fanart, because everyone [i]should[/i] know that the jump from fanart to original art is hard. It's been known that tracing some pictures helps tremendously as well, although I've never tried that myself. Original art is hard to make good and pleasing to the eye if someone has been doing fanart for a long time, especially if fan artists copy exact poses etc. To be honest, all of the amateur [sp?] cartoon artists I like focus heavily on their own characters and such, because fanart is so much easier than originals. But I don't expect beginners to develop their own style and characters in the first months at least. Like I said, it's hard.[/color]

[color=firebrick] Um...no, it's not a contest or some sorts or anything. I just thought it'd be a neat idea. ^_^[/color]

[color=firebrick] This is just a neat little idea that popped into my head today, so be warned, lol. As everyone [i]should[/i] know, everyone has their beginnings, so I thought it'd be cool if people posted one of their very first pieces of art and then remake it and see how much you've improved. ^_^ Sort of like a small ego-boost for everyone. [/color]

[i]That would be funny if the next story I wrote ended up being a really happy story. We'll see what happens. My inspiration works in strange ways, I can assure you. lol[/i] [color=firebrick] Heh, actually, now I'd be sort of scared if you wrote a happy story. :P You're a great writer as it is, though. [/color]

[i]The FLCL manga.. Is a very stylized series. It's very sketchy and the shapes are simple. Personally, I wouldn't copy FLCL manga pictures and think that it would help me improve. I can't think of any particular images in that series that are really worth drawing, if you want to get really good. Perhaps one should start out on a basic level, but this might be a little too simple. Try copying more from Hikaru no Go and Naruto to get a feel for more generic manga styles, then go into stylized stuff so you can create your own personal look.[/i] [color=firebrick] Yeah, listen to Sennen. If you're going to start off learning how to draw by using other pictures as a resource, don't pick a manga/picture that shows an artists' definate style. I don't mean your run-of-the-mill anime stuff, but the really original styles that you've never seen before. FLCL manga books are drawn by someone who has developed a totally different thing...another example is 'World Record' from the Animatrix. [/color]

[color=firebrick] You know, I really can't think of anything to say right now. I think you did very well in making most of the story like a though process, and it actually sounds like real thoughts- not the weird stuff most people put out just for the sake of making the story seem smoother and more intelligent...or whatever. *shrugs* But, I still think you can work making your actions seem smoother. It's not choppy, but I get the impression that you have the ability to make the actions flow together. To tell the truth, the only stories I've read from you were all about death or something closely related to it, so maybe it'd be better to concentrate on something different? Nothing is really wrong with writing about death, but I just think you should make your stories vary from theme to theme. Nice story, anyways. ^_^[/color]

[color=firebrick] When I was little, my career goals went from: archeaologist, artist, lawyer, surgeon, nurse, artist, surgeon, writer, artist, and video game designer. Well now I know I want nothing to do with medicine or law, and if I do become any sort of video game designer I'd kill myself before making my first one. [I hate math and complicated computer things] I still have a small stirring in my that wants to make a comic series, but if that happens it'll probably be something I do when I have free time. The only thing I can think of myself doing is becoming a novelist, which I have no problem with. ^_^. I know for certain, though, that my career later on will most definately lie somewhere in literature or the liberal arts.[/color]

[color=firebrick] 'Well, it's not too surprising.' Syft thought to himself miserably as he sat sullenly in the dank, dark cave. 'But why would these people be searching for me?' Syft barely opened his eyes as he took yet another quick glance about his surroundings. A relentless chase through the fields some days later had left him weak and dehydrated, his body sore and barely able to defend himself. That dragon. It was like his chasers knew...[i]something[/i]. Syft shook his head. He felt dizzy again. 'Have I done something?' A million questions and worries that he had tackled earilier came flying into his mind again, making the young man even more weary. 'Maybe it's her.' Syft rested his head against the cold stone of the cave. 'Maybe it's her...' Syft mumbled to himself as he stared mindlessly into the ceiling. 'Would she want to know...so badly?' Syft's head pounded with pain, each thud making him wince and close his tired eyes over and over. He thought he heard something rustle in the corner. Soft footsteps from far away. They wouldn't be getting any answers from him soon, that was all Syft knew.[/color]

[color=firebrick] In all respect, I haven't seen the actual 'uncut' DBZ and Sailormoon anime, but the dubbed ones are horrible. I still have some respect for DBZ because it was the first thing that actually got me into anime. Sort of like a stepping stone of some sort...a [b]lot[/b] of people have gotten into anime by DBZ and Sailormoon, actually. *shrugs* I don't want to start a giant debate here, but I'd just like to address some of the answers to this thread. Neon Genesis Evangelion is usually a split anime- either people hate it or like it. [to the extent of my knowledge, at least] The same could go for .hack//SIGN, I guess. Most of the people I've talked to who don't like NGE is because they see the show as some 14-year-old who gets on their nerves and talks half the episode anyway, not to include the fact that there's barely enough action to suit their tastes and the psychological mumbo-jumbo isn't that appealling to them. [And they always complain about the ending, of couse. :P] Same for .hack//SIGN. Less action than Evangelion, slow, more deeper meanings, etc. [No, Azure, I'm not trying to insult the anime.] I was just wondering if the people who don't like either of the two shows don't like them because of those reasons. P.S. Call me too-defending, but I have to spit this out. The ending of the Evangelion TV series is absolutely perfect for the anime. A lot of people point fingers at GAINAX and claim that they put together the two last episodes so quickly and sloppily that they hardly even worked on it. [People say End of Evangelion was Hideaki's way to saying 'Fu** you' to those fans] I mean, these same people say that Evangelion mainly revolved around psychological themes and philosophy, and they didn't expect an ending like that? I mean...the last two episodes are perfect to me. The anime was not about the Angels or the Evas, it was simply about Shinji and his interactions with other people. [/end rant][/color]