tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-234462092024-03-06T20:21:09.171-08:00Like Water: An Anime BlogNo longer updated as of 21 November 2006.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger37125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1168554107235703382007-01-11T14:14:00.000-08:002007-01-11T14:21:47.260-08:00Clearing things up...Since "retiring" from blogging two months ago, I've seen a couple of posts pop up that referenced my blog or that dealt with some things I said. One in particular brought a flood of visitors, Stripey's post. Curious to see what had caused all the fuss, I dropped by Stripey's blog and checked it out. What I saw was, I felt, a misinterpretation of what I had meant to say in my final parting words (Unknownnoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1164085834517178642006-11-20T21:10:00.000-08:002006-11-20T21:34:51.186-08:00Sayonara, and KemonozumeIt's been a bit over eight months since I first started writing posts for this blog, and I'd like to think that it has contributed a little something to the anime blogging community through its presence. At all times I have tried to escape the common mold that plagues the anime blogging community, ridden as it is with episode summaries. To this end I focused on the editorial side of the house, Unknownnoreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1161878180187619332006-10-26T08:46:00.000-07:002006-10-26T12:26:21.080-07:00Addicted to the Internet (specifically MMORPGs)Everyone has a particular area in which they tend towards obsession. For some it's cigarettes, for others food. Anime, girls, drugs, all of these can become the center of a person's world. And then for some, it's the internet.I just finished watching the latest episode of NHK ni Youkoso!, in which Satou finds himself addicted to an online game loosely based on Final Fantasy XI (Red Mage, Vina Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1161406634366930742006-10-20T21:26:00.000-07:002006-10-20T22:00:09.090-07:00Fate / Stay Night - the game -Note: This may come as a shock to many people who have been reading this blog for a while now, but I have posted two posts on the same night. Yes, it's true. Two. This is the second one, so if you haven't already, check out the other post below (on the "Blogger Identity").I bought the game version of Fate/Stay Night this past week, and received it via EMS on Thursday. There was no choice in myUnknownnoreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1161404747540629522006-10-20T21:10:00.000-07:002006-10-20T21:57:51.943-07:00The Blogger IdentityThis post comes because of a long-running history of efforts to "individualize" myself on the internet. By individualize, I mean that I have made an effort for other anime bloggers to know me by the alias I use. It's not really all that difficult, since the only thing truly involved is making enough intelligent posts for the blogger to take notice and say, "hey, [alias] is involved in my blog Unknownnoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1160712455137000082006-10-12T20:08:00.000-07:002006-10-13T22:25:18.516-07:00Episodes that Stand Out - Samurai XSo...more great episodes (well, one this time, at least). I have another entry that I'm dying to write (about the whole loli fetish thing) but for now this will do.First, why am I devoting a whole post to just a single episode? Well, it comes down to a comment that J. Valdez posted on my last entry, saying that he was just waiting for the Samurai X episode to appear. And here it is. However, I'm Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1160355182826707462006-10-08T16:55:00.000-07:002006-10-08T17:58:04.550-07:00Episodes that Stand OutI think we all have an episode or two from every series we watch that really stays with us, that personally hits home in some way or another. And in some cases, a particular episode from one series will resonate with many people. It doesn't always make sense why those episodes hit us so hard, but usually they speak to a universal human quality - true love, devotion, sacrifice - that epitomizes Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1159974316122341352006-10-04T08:02:00.000-07:002006-10-04T08:05:16.140-07:00On Hiatus...again...Well, I'm getting eye surgery tomorrow, so I won't be able to see for a while (at least not well enough to write a post). Probably a week, maybe more, until the steroids fix the cutting that's going to be done on my poor eyes. Not that this is bad news or anything, considering my sporadic update schedule. I've been trying to get some posts thrown together, but everything I write seems forced Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1158870435280760432006-09-21T12:47:00.000-07:002006-09-21T13:28:23.826-07:00Watching the good stuff...It's been a while since my last post (as usual, this shouldn't be anything new to people who've been with this blog from the beginning). In fact, for a while I've been contemplating doing away with the blog, maybe starting from scratch, or broadening the content. However, this blog was created out of my love for the Japanese animated format of storytelling, and for that it will remain.This time IUnknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1156992505300871122006-08-30T19:12:00.000-07:002006-08-30T21:01:45.860-07:00Blood+: Mediocrity, sadly...Ten episodes away from the end, ten away from what will likely be a lackluster ending. Even after all this time, watching the characters go through struggle after struggle, I can't connect. I've felt this way for a long time, watching this show, and I've been contemplating what might be the cause. Anime, unlike typical film or American cartoons, relies upon the characters above all else to propelUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1156825333576312302006-08-28T20:56:00.000-07:002006-08-28T21:23:58.173-07:00Watching blogs succeed and fail...This post comes as a reaction to the fact that I have not, in fact, returned to my weekly posting schedule unlike what I said earlier this month. There has been no resumption of regular updates, no deluge of intellectually stimulating posts, no return to the "routine." In fact, as I speak, I am as far out of "routine" as I can possibly get. Life seems to be like that boat in The Perfect Storm, Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1155764315439119422006-08-16T14:36:00.000-07:002006-08-16T17:11:43.343-07:00Death of the Hit...Considering the fact that NANA is a part of the genre of manga that is taking the American industry by storm, it isn’t doing so well. At least, not that I’ve seen. I’ve spent the past few days checking the web for indicators of its success state-side, as the level of its success in Japan is already clear to me (twenty-five million copies or so as of the last announcement I heard). However, every Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1155158844310376302006-08-09T14:26:00.000-07:002006-08-09T14:28:39.516-07:00Otaku: The Gods of ConsumerismI heard a story once, about how once an otaku stood up to boast to Hideaki Anno of how much money he spent on anime. In response, Anno told the young man that he should use that money to continue his education. More people should have listened to Anno.The otaku culture is spreading, gaining more and more converts in this day and age. There are manga and anime that celebrate it (the Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1152151239479104182006-07-05T18:57:00.000-07:002006-07-05T23:08:41.470-07:00Zegapain: Style over Substance - the Sunrise wayEvery anime studio has some sort of reputation associated with it, and a certain style they try to go by. For manglobe, it's highly stylized shows with a strong thematic base, whereas GONZO is known for putting together very appealing beginning and middle portions of series before faultering at the end. And Sunrise - they do giant robots, whether it be in the traditional sense or the Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1152014858000298652006-07-04T04:35:00.000-07:002006-07-04T05:33:57.070-07:00HYDE concert, Anime Expo 2006 (and why it doesn't matter to you)...Long post. Haven't posted a real good solid post in a while though, so this should make up for my lack of activity.So first, the HYDE concert (sadly, I did not bring a camera with me to this, so instead I present you with pictures from the DVD that comes with the FAITH album).So yeah. Just imagine that guy, on a stage, in a relatively small venue (with a couple hundred people packed inside), Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1151513305818582632006-06-28T09:43:00.000-07:002006-06-28T09:53:04.383-07:00The iPod revolutionI managed to sneak an internet connection long enough to post this to the internet. Hope you enjoy it, just four more days till AX 2006!If you don’t have a video iPod already, this should convince you. One day, I was getting ready to embark on a fourteen hour plane flight to China (my third within the past year). I had finished packing my clothes, thrown some books into my backpack, and laid downUnknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1151199538463106142006-06-24T18:36:00.000-07:002006-06-24T18:38:58.476-07:00Still on hiatus...Yep. I just got back today from Air Assault school (if any of you need something airlifted by helicopter, let me know), and tomorrow morning I'm off to China. If I can drag myself away from the sights of Shanghai long enough, I may throw out a quick post, but otherwise you won't be hearing from me until the 3rd of July (after I go to HYDE's concert and check out the Anime Expo in Anaheim).Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1149865037117178132006-06-09T07:56:00.000-07:002006-06-09T07:57:17.116-07:00RSS mistake...Okay, yeah, I screwed up and had my RSS feed supplying the entire post when called upon. Big oops right there. Now I've got my first post to appear on animenano...and when you expand it...it's huge. I feel like an idiot.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1149820465588166212006-06-08T19:20:00.000-07:002006-06-09T07:29:34.180-07:00So you want to be a Japanese rock star?Well, it turns out it's a lot more accessible than it used to be. Still not a walk in the park, but accessible to whoever wants to be one. The funny thing about the Japanese rock scene is that it didn't really kick off until the mid-90's. Not unless you count company-owned talent as "real" rock music. In the past, entertainment companies would scout out talent and then begin the corporate Unknownnoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1149619996963345742006-06-06T11:50:00.000-07:002006-06-06T20:42:05.716-07:00Inspiration Part Three: Jin-Roh The Wolf BrigadeNote: Before I get into the regular post, I'd like to take a moment and thank everyone who reads this blog. I put up a tracker to see how many people were dropping by, and more importantly, how many people were coming back. For the group of you who do keep returning, thanks so much, it really makes doing this worthwhile. I know my method of blog writing is not for everyone, and tends to focus on Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1149083596340241072006-05-31T06:47:00.000-07:002006-05-31T06:53:16.343-07:00Improving the site...Okay, so I'm making some actual changes for once to the site layout, so don't be suprised if the site looks a little wacky for the next few hours or so as I experiment. Up until now I've been using the default blogger settings, but now I'm branching out. One of the most obvious changes is that now the entire post is not displayed on the main page - my posts have been getting longer and longer, Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1149026386509373962006-05-30T14:19:00.000-07:002006-05-31T06:24:14.606-07:00Inspiration Part Two: Wolf's RainNote: This post goes into similarities between Wolf's Rain and Hinduism - I do not claim to be an expert on Hindu philosophy. There are undoubtedly many things that I'm not getting right, or which appear right only on a surface level. Please point those things out.There have been a few forays by anime into mythology. The feeling of mysticism and fantastical unreality pervades Texhnolyze, for one.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1148618592348483182006-05-25T20:00:00.000-07:002006-05-31T06:23:38.716-07:00Inspiration Part One: Haibane RenmeiNote: Okay, first off, my apologies for being so late with this. I said Wednesday would be the day I did this, and now it's Friday (technically) and I finally have posted this. Well, it's going to be a multi-part post, first of all. I'm going to first do this piece on Haibane Renmei, then follow it up with Wolf's Rain, and hopefully finish up with one of my favorite anime films: Jin-Roh: The WolfUnknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1148444737010241532006-05-23T21:24:00.000-07:002006-05-23T21:25:37.020-07:00InspirationOkay, so tomorrow this will become an actual post. I feel like I've been getting worse and worse at updating on time, as the weeks have passed. Last week I missed posting on Tuesday, and put it off till Wednesday also. Well, starting next week I will post on time again! As for this week, I'm going to be discussing literature that served as inspiration for anime series.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23446209.post-1148004705553257302006-05-18T18:47:00.000-07:002006-05-31T06:23:06.420-07:00The Five Most Memorable Scenes in AnimeThe main thing that got me thinking about writing this post is the fact that tj han over at Riuva keeps on talking about Last Exile...and I love that series. There are many reasons for this, but one of the things I love most about it are the memorable scenes - from Mullin's heroic effort to prevent the departure of the Guild pod, to the charge of the Silvana on the Guild mother ship. And then Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7