Category Archives: anime/manga

Probably my biggest hobby/vice–I particularly love anime, but manga is fun too (especially electronically vs. having to store tons of books).

Anime: Gravitation

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Here’s the first-ever review of an anime title I ever did. I put it up on the publisher’s (Right Stuf) website as well as Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. I’ll probably come back and add to it as I complete the series.

Absolutely Astounding!
As a brand-new fan of Anime, I count myself particularly lucky for having “Gravitation” as my first real exposure to this art form. I’ve read the Manga and was completely absorbed by the story and the characters. Buying the long-awaited DVD was just the next step…

Imagine my joy at coming home after work yesterday and finding my Gravitation Volume 1 DVD waiting on my doorstep. Before I went to bed, I’d watched the whole disk 3 times–twice in English and once in Japanese (and I don’t even understand Japanese) and was so totally hooked it’s almost scary. I instantly fell in love with the characters all over again now that they moved and had voices; I found myself in a panic that I’m going to have to wait a couple of months before the next volume comes out. I can’t get enough!

The story is incredible: the irrepressible Shuichi Shindou is working toward his dream of being a rock star, but on the way he meets intense, mysterious (and way sexy) anti-hero Eiri Yuki. Gravitation is the force that pulls these opposites together and the love story that emerges is nothing short of brilliant. While there’s a lot of material from the Manga that is left out of the series, the crucial elements of the story are there, shining through for us to experience. The general goofiness of Shuichi and the anime stylistic gags don’t overshadow the deep, yet simple beauty of two people–in this case, two guys–falling in love and seeing where it will lead. Thanks SO MUCH to Right Stuf for bringing this to America!

While I’m not yet an expert, I know something great when I see it, and this is it. RUN out and buy this DVD for the story, the characters, the artwork and especially the music (as an aside, I can’t get the title tune out of my head and am already well on my way to memorizing the Japanese lyrics–the closing end credits music too). It is beautiful, addictive, meaningful and just a lot of fun, if nothing else.

Let’s start with a list…

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I figured a good place to begin was with an inventory of my current manga and anime titles.

I’ve only recently got started in this, so my collection is still growing. These are what I currently have on my shelves:

Manga
Banana Fish (my favorite artwork)
Comic Party
Eerie Queerie (my favorite story)
Fake (the one that started it all)
Gravitation (overall favorite)
Hikaru no Go
Kare Kano
Mars (truly romantic and riveting)
Rurouni Kenshin
Tokyo Babylon
Wedding Peach

I’ll be adding: Kizuna (comes out starting in August)

Anime
Angelic Layer
Azumanga Daioh
Comic Party (awesomely funny)
Fake (OVA)
Final Fantasy: Unlimited
Gravitation (the one that started it all for me, and an awesome series—I’ve got an “eBay Dub” of the OVA too)
Hikaru no Go (unfortunately, a Chinese dub with mediocre subtitling—don’t know if/when it’ll get a US release)
His & Her Circumstances (a totally incredible series!)
Kaleido Star
Kizuna
Rurouni Kenshin
Samurai X
Wedding Peach (so goofy it’s funny—”I am the love angel—I am Wedding Peach—And I am EXTREMELY angry with you!” Tee hee!)
Wolf’s Rain
Yukikaze

Things I might add: Gundam Seed, Happy Lesson, Last Exile, Pretear, Shingu (if/when Right Stuf actually announces it and doesn’t just tease me with an awesome trailer), Tokyo Babylon OVA.

You notice that the lists pretty much correspond, though I didn’t necessarily buy the Manga before the Anime or vice versa. As I discover new things, read Shonen Jump or Newtype USA and most importantly view more and more trailers, I discover new things. You can probably tell already, though, that my tastes are rather eclectic but lean toward the romance side especially Shonen-ai—I guess I’m just an old romantic! But I’ve seen some cool things so far and learned a lot.

Yay! It’s ready!

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Welcome to my newest blog category for my newest hobby and interest—everything to do with the world of anime, manga and Japanese pop music.

Those of you who know anything about the topic already recognize Chiyo-chan from Azumanga Daioh as the cherubic little avatar I’ve chosen for my category photo, and are probably chuckling at her tagline (cooking is so fun! cooking is so fun! Now it’s time to take a break and see what we have done!). Isn’t she cute!

As I already wrote elsewhere, this is something new for me and not only snuck up on me, but hit me over the head with a big old baseball bat. My bookshelves and DVD cabinet are becoming better stocked than some of the local bookstores, and just yesterday I started wondering if I can lose enough weight so that I can make a cosplay costume for Halloween (I’m leaning toward Lord Makenshi from Final Fantasy: Unlimited, and he’s pretty skinny…). If not, perhaps Angel Limone from Wedding Peach, mostly ’cause I like the colors and he’s not as skinny.

Anyhow, look forward to reviews, links and opinions in this section.

An unexpected catalyst

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One of my strong beliefs is that our lives are made up of a series of changes brought about by ‘catalysts’—people, events, experiences. An unexpected one has completely hijacked my imagination: the world of Japanese manga and anime.

Okay, so I’ve discovered YET ANOTHER new interest. More money to spend, more space taken up in an already cluttered house, more time and energy devoted to the pursuit of something new.

Who cares! I LOVE MANGA!

I got wind of a “Shounen-ai” series called “Gravitation” when I was in Washington, so I bought a couple volumes with a Borders gift card. I couldn’t put them down! I had to make two more trips during the week until I’d bought all the currently-released 5 volumes—plus the 7 volumes of another series “Fake”, and the two released volumes of “Eerie Queerie” for good measure. I can’t believe that I got so hooked so fast!

Like most Americans, the whole genre—big-eyed kids, transforming robots, characters who routinely changed shape, form, and sanity from one frame to the next—just seemed too bizarre. I remember “Speed Racer” and “Kimba the White Lion” when I was a kid, but somewhere I’d lost the enthusiasm. It just appeared too goofy for the “adult” me.

WOW, was I wrong! The stories are sometimes really cool and once you understand a little bit about how the artwork “works” (), then it makes a while lot of sense. Even barring any deeper meanings, it’s a lot of fun! Believe it or not, the “Eerie Queerie” manga is my absolute FAVORITE so far, despite the really lame title. The story is so wonderful and surprisingly deep—I was actually moved to tears on three separate occasions as the story unfolded, and that was just in the first volume. (If you’re remotely interested in manga and want to take my advice, RUN out and buy EQ…)

Then came my first Anime purchase: the volume 1 DVD of the “Gravitation” TV series. OMG!!!! I’m so totally in love with the characters, the music, the story—everything! I can’t believe I’ve got to wait until AUGUST for the next DVD. It also came along at a pretty good time for other reasons—I’ve sorta been “turning Japanese” for the last few months as it is. But now this has clinched it: I’m going to study Japanese this fall in school both for personal and career development reasons. I’m already eating vast quantities of Japanese food, and have even resorted to preparing Japanese-style meals at home. YIKES!

But back to the “catalyst” thread. This is just another case in my life where something unexpected has produced a sea-change in the way I look at and interact with the world. In my advancing age, it gets harder and harder to take advantage of those moments and they don’t seem to come around as often, since I’ve been jaded by my 41 years on the planet to one degree or another. It also gets harder, because I now look back—sometimes with a degree of emotional pain—and say things like “Damn—why couldn’t I have figured this out x years ago?”

But still, it’s such great fun when things like this happen. I just thank my parents most of all, and my teachers through the years for somehow instilling in me the driving need to learn and experience new things. I try to maintain a sense of wonder and excitement with everything and it’s always so much fun when it pays off. Thank you Mom & Dad!