This was a real exchange between Jeff Lawson and J. Valdez:

Jeff Lawson: I watch a lot of slice-and-life shows.
Jeff Lawson: And by “slice-and-life”, I mean “slice-of-life”.
J. Valdez: Do you mind if I start calling shows like Higurashi no Naku Koro ni and School Days, “Slice-and-Life?”

Fun times. I reserved the slice of life shows for the last because I had a nagging feeling I was going to like them regardless of when and how I saw them, to say nothing of how viewable subs for Minami-ke were only made available some time back. The wait was worth it, in any case, since I can’t remember the last time I laughed till my chest hurt.

Much like my fellow bloggers, I was given the privilege not too long ago of reviewing Dave Boyle’s to be released movie, Big Dreams Little Tokyo. Much unlike my fellow bloggers, this review is late for a variety of reasons, all too embarrassing to mention here.

I digress. To say that BDLT is a comedy would be like saying that Hayao Miyazaki makes Japanese cartoons, or that Akira Toriyama draws Japanese comics. Nevermind how it’s true, the deliberate phrasing in conventional terms make for something that’s a little awkward on the ears (as opposed to “makes anime”, or “draws manga”).

Even if you have to grudgingly admit that BDLT has comedic trappings, of course, there’s always the weighty subject material it deals with which makes the journey through through issues of displacement and cultural identity a heartfelt, if understated, experience.

from left to right: Rachel Morihiro as Mai, Dave Boyle as Boyd, Jayson Watabe as Jerome, and Drew Knight as Andy

As I write this I’ve just finished viewing the last few episodes of Lucky Star. a.f.k. has been good and all, but unreliable and temperamental (you know it’s getting dumb when they delay subs due to “it being licensed”… twice) when it came to the last stretch. Props to Guerrand for giving us that final lap, and Moogy for mirroring the downloads on his server.

Lucky Star, in my opinion, exceeded all expectations. Paradoxically, this would only work if you had no expectations to begin with, because it was that type of anime that could only work under a lack of preconceptions. Of all the posts I’ve read about, the most appreciative ones were those who didn’t stuff LS into a box and still expect it to work its magic, namely because LS was something that just couldn’t operate under those conditions.

I’ll be honest upfront and say that this review’s one of those largely starry-eyed types. I found no problems with it whatsoever, but that might have been due to my approach to it, and how I chose to not let what the community at large perceived as problems interfere with my assessment of it. I say this in confidence, surely, for I know that LS will be one of those anime that I’ll be able to re-watch a year from now.

In my idealist world of adaptations, movies like the abomination that was the Death Note live action would never exist. It was good as a movie for movie’s sake, but not good enough for my higher standards. Neither was it a case of source material fan bias — for what it’s worth, the only thing an adaptation should do is contain the essence of the original, the brilliance that made people sit up and gape in wonder, and this is where the Death Note movie didn’t work for me.

If it isn’t obvious already, neither did the Honey and Clover movie. Sitting down to watch it with a small group of close friends, I viewed it again through the eyes of a newcomer to Chika Umino’s colourful little world. Yes, it’s very pretty, but what does it do? A convoluted, dizzying effort that tried to cram in the heartbreak of 36 episodes or 10 volumes, which just didn’t seem right to me. Maybe it’s the cynical bias, but I’ll leave that to you to decide.

Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei is classy, gorgeous, ironic, outrageous, fantastic — all of that at the same time, and whoever disagrees with me obviously lacks good taste. Personally I don’t really think much of the Summer season no thanks to Spring’s prolific QUALITY that ensured anything making its debut now would be overshadowed, but SZS is a good show to debunk that type of thinking.

I’m not sure where exactly to begin, because it’s taken me by the neck and then pinned me against the wall in its strong grip — the art, surely? The colours are of an enchanting, multi-faceted palette, and remind me of Kemonodzume, another series I’ve yet to touch on my backlog. The animation is a noticeable cut above the usual industry standard, with the animators going all out for even the small things, from minute sakura petals to fragments of splintered chalk, and it shows.

If rational, level-headed opinions (and sarcasm) offend your conservative, illogical sensibilities, you can still turn back. You don’t have to read beyond this. No one’s forcing you to do anything, no sirree. Exit’s that way.

It’s easy to spin anything. Bet you didn’t know that. The witch-hunting, pitchfork-waving mob gets their kicks from taking things out of context. I blame the rise of a post-modernist society. Because, you know, things should be taken at face value and all that. The importance of looking at something from a structured perspective, or in context, is antiquated fundamentalist bullshit; the new way to go about things is to analyse things on the surface level. Nevermind differing cultural norms, I mean, since it’s being published in my country I must be able to hold it to my own set of personal values, and say things like “I’m fully aware this isn’t part of my culture, but the PERVERTS! How DARE they!”

That’s brilliant reasoning there, if I say so myself.

This is about how Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! was pretty much like Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad. By “pretty much” I mean “a lot”, and if you’ve seen both like I have you should be able to see the connection. It’s damn obvious if you ask me. Pity not many saw the glory that was Ray and his Engrish, because as far as mainstream tastes go Beck failed. Explanation after the cut.

no, I wasn’t expecting this either, despite the huge warning signs and how I seemed to have missed the glaring fact that Seioh High was an all-girls school.

My first ever Manga post is about lolicon. Awesome.

This is in response to a recent Mr Answerman column (scroll down) where Zac Bertschy, the writer, basically goes off on a tangent about Kodomo no Jikan because of the presumably pseudo-paedophile vibes the manga gives off which his perfectly normal, non-fetishist heterosexual nature can’t endorse. Nevermind how the manga isn’t even released yet.

It so happens I’ve got volumes 1-3 raw, and having read them before I’d seen the column, not to mention how Google actually fails for once at providing proper information in English about it, this would be a great opportunity to explain what KnJ’s really all about. Some spoilers after the cut.

this screencap is justice, like Light

So after watching the entire season, let’s talk about what I think of Azumanga Daioh. It didn’t improve after the first episode, but considering the pathetic waste of time that was most of the series, I guess that was to be expected.

Azumanga Daioh is, at best, an average show. At worst, it’s like Charlie Chaplin trying to cheer up a little girl post-rape with his legendary slapstick humour, which is technically funny, but really sad when you look at the bigger picture.

I know this seems like a terribly opportunistic time to start my blog given the topic of the moment, but I guess it’s better than nothing. So everyone’s got an opinion about Lucky Star, with the lovers going “MOAR” and the haters going “NO MOAR”, and while I found the list of reasons for not liking it to be pretty acceptable, lolikitsune’s post left an awful taste in my mouth and I thought a more positive take on the whole thing would be appropriate.

I know coloured hair’s there for character differentiation, but…