Top 10 best-selling manga by series in japan are,
01) One Piece (32,343,809 copies!!!)
02) Naruto (7,409,068 copies)
03) Kimi ni Todoke (6,572,813 copies)
04) Fairy Tail (5,739,526 copies)
05) Bleach (5,204,193 copies)
06) Fullmetal Alchemist (5,165,052 copies)
07) Gintama (3,978,439 copies)
08) Katekyo Hitman Reborn! (3,479,219 copies)
09) Nurarihyon no Mago (3,269,379 copies)
10) Nodame Cantabile (3,246,355 copies)
aside from doubling the figures from last year, One Piece dominates once again. which is totally amazing because from what i understand, in Japan, it's more common for most to read only the JUMP magazines and not buy the tankoubon unless they really want to collect the series.
that's how many people thinks One Piece is worth collecting!
Bleach has been upstaged by Kimi ni Todoke and Fairy Tail. totally predictable since the whole Aizen arc was uber draggy and boring. thank goodness it finally ended! the new arc just started, so it's up to Ichigo "recovering" his shinigami powers to help pull the statistics up for next year.
Nodame is also in Top 10 series. good sales is most likely due to the two movies released this year.
probably why Kimi ni Todoke is doing well too. besides the live-action movie released in September, there was also the anime that ended in late March. i'm so looking forward to season 2 in Winter 2010!
Showing posts with label nodame. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nodame. Show all posts
Friday, 3 December 2010
Thursday, 2 December 2010
2010 Top-Selling Manga
news from ANN,
Top 10 best-selling manga by volume in japan,
01) One Piece #59 (2,593,580 copies)
02) One Piece #57 (2,578,730 copies)
03) One Piece #58 (2,557,356 copies)
04) One Piece #60 (2,492,183 copies)
05) One Piece #56 (2,480,124 copies)
06) Fullmetal Alchemist #25 (1,340,772 copies)
07) Fullmetal Alchemist #24 (1,298,292 copies)
08) Nodame Cantabile #23 (1,241,997 copies)
09) Fullmetal Alchemist #26 (1,214,468 copies)
10) Naruto #49 (1,211,849 copies)
obviously, all the One Piece volumes released this year earned top placings. maybe there should be a competition of "Which is the best selling One Piece volume" instead. wahahahhaha.
and Nodame squeezes in to win one for the girls. MU-KYAA power~
Top 10 best-selling manga by volume in japan,
01) One Piece #59 (2,593,580 copies)
02) One Piece #57 (2,578,730 copies)
03) One Piece #58 (2,557,356 copies)
04) One Piece #60 (2,492,183 copies)
05) One Piece #56 (2,480,124 copies)
06) Fullmetal Alchemist #25 (1,340,772 copies)
07) Fullmetal Alchemist #24 (1,298,292 copies)
08) Nodame Cantabile #23 (1,241,997 copies)
09) Fullmetal Alchemist #26 (1,214,468 copies)
10) Naruto #49 (1,211,849 copies)
obviously, all the One Piece volumes released this year earned top placings. maybe there should be a competition of "Which is the best selling One Piece volume" instead. wahahahhaha.
and Nodame squeezes in to win one for the girls. MU-KYAA power~
Monday, 21 June 2010
Monday, 3 May 2010
Nodame Finale OVA
YAY! another Nodame OVA.
i was laughing from start to finish. too bad it was only a short 12 minutes OVA.
i only wanted to capture a few screencaps, but ended up doing the whole episode.
Chiaki is pissed/jealous at someone.
i was laughing from start to finish. too bad it was only a short 12 minutes OVA.
i only wanted to capture a few screencaps, but ended up doing the whole episode.
Chiaki is pissed/jealous at someone.
Monday, 26 April 2010
Nodame Finale Special
the Finale Special that was bundled with the first DVD was finally subbed and released last week.
titled "Mine to Kiyora no Saikai" ("Mine and Kiyora's Reunion"), i'm very happy that it followed the manga as it is, with Kiyora's competition and Ryuu visiting her in Paris.
though the focus on them had always been very short, i love this coupling. and the Special showed how even Kiyora is not immune to separation from Ryuu.
hopefully the 2nd movie would play that out well too. cos the live-action Kiyora, Mizukawa Asami, has always given off a very aloof vibe when she is actually quite passionate.
here's a few screencaps of the couple.
Ryuu crying at Kiyora's recital.
empassionate Kiyora.
Kiyora surprising Ryuu from behind.
Ryuu doing a Chiaki moment.
Kiyora asking Ryuu about going back to Japan.
my favorite scene.
titled "Mine to Kiyora no Saikai" ("Mine and Kiyora's Reunion"), i'm very happy that it followed the manga as it is, with Kiyora's competition and Ryuu visiting her in Paris.
though the focus on them had always been very short, i love this coupling. and the Special showed how even Kiyora is not immune to separation from Ryuu.
hopefully the 2nd movie would play that out well too. cos the live-action Kiyora, Mizukawa Asami, has always given off a very aloof vibe when she is actually quite passionate.
here's a few screencaps of the couple.
Ryuu crying at Kiyora's recital.
empassionate Kiyora.
Kiyora surprising Ryuu from behind.
Ryuu doing a Chiaki moment.
Kiyora asking Ryuu about going back to Japan.
my favorite scene.
Sunday, 28 March 2010
Nodame Finale
as i've been expecting all along, Chiaki's dad didn't appear at all in the Finale.
it did irked me as i've previously blogged about, but the last episode sort-of made up for not extending it to a 24-episodes series.
i thought it was very fitting that they ended with Mozart's Sonata for Two Pianos in D major, which Chiaki and Nodame performed in the very first episode in Season 1. thankfully, they did a totally different arrangement and not use the same one from before.
and yes, i'm still hoping for another season or at least an OVA. like i said, there is the Opera-hen side story that is currently under-going in KISS magazine, so not that they would have a lack of materials to work on.
for now, we can just wait for the second movie and the unaired episode that will be bundled with the first DVD that will be shipping out on Apr 7.
it's titled "Mine to Kiyora no Saikai" ("Mine and Kiyora's Reunion"). not sure whether it will follow the manga story, but at least it redeems pulling Kiyora out from the Finale series.
it did irked me as i've previously blogged about, but the last episode sort-of made up for not extending it to a 24-episodes series.
i thought it was very fitting that they ended with Mozart's Sonata for Two Pianos in D major, which Chiaki and Nodame performed in the very first episode in Season 1. thankfully, they did a totally different arrangement and not use the same one from before.
and yes, i'm still hoping for another season or at least an OVA. like i said, there is the Opera-hen side story that is currently under-going in KISS magazine, so not that they would have a lack of materials to work on.
for now, we can just wait for the second movie and the unaired episode that will be bundled with the first DVD that will be shipping out on Apr 7.
it's titled "Mine to Kiyora no Saikai" ("Mine and Kiyora's Reunion"). not sure whether it will follow the manga story, but at least it redeems pulling Kiyora out from the Finale series.
Wednesday, 24 March 2010
Winter wrap-up
so these two weeks would be all the wrap-ups of most Winter series, and some others from last Fall.
shows that i am hoping for a Season 2,
1) Kimi ni Todoke!! (come on! everyone wants to see them really together!)
2) Kobato (an OVA perhaps? since it's already an anime-original ending)
3) Nodame Cantabile!! (hey! they definitely should continue the Opera-hen side story)
i'm kinda excited for the upcoming Spring season, even though the number of shows that have sparked my interest have decreased significantly over the years.
either i'm becoming more picky, or the number of shows being released every season have decreased.
*shrugs*
oh well, all the more reason for me to watching more dorama.
ohohohohohoho.
shows that i am hoping for a Season 2,
1) Kimi ni Todoke!! (come on! everyone wants to see them really together!)
2) Kobato (an OVA perhaps? since it's already an anime-original ending)
3) Nodame Cantabile!! (hey! they definitely should continue the Opera-hen side story)
i'm kinda excited for the upcoming Spring season, even though the number of shows that have sparked my interest have decreased significantly over the years.
either i'm becoming more picky, or the number of shows being released every season have decreased.
*shrugs*
oh well, all the more reason for me to watching more dorama.
ohohohohohoho.
Wednesday, 17 March 2010
a test of patience
that's what the Nodame movie is about.
because there's at least a 3-month wait before anyone in SG will get to watch the grand finale in the 2nd movie!
well, at least the 2nd movie is going to include the Kiyora violin competition. that'll make up for not seeing it in the anime finale. HA!
and, i could recognize at least one voice seiyuu, Fujita Yoshinori, that dubbed for one of the french oboe player in Marlet orchestra. incidentally, he is also the seiyuu for Masumi-chan in the Nodame anime.
Tamaki Hiroshi has also improved his "conducting" skills. it actually looks like he's really conducting a proper orchestra now instead of just flapping his hands around. mwahahaaha!
but me and lydia concluded that he lost a bit of weight since the last time he was in the special. he really needs to put it back on.
*sighs*
3 months.
because there's at least a 3-month wait before anyone in SG will get to watch the grand finale in the 2nd movie!
well, at least the 2nd movie is going to include the Kiyora violin competition. that'll make up for not seeing it in the anime finale. HA!
and, i could recognize at least one voice seiyuu, Fujita Yoshinori, that dubbed for one of the french oboe player in Marlet orchestra. incidentally, he is also the seiyuu for Masumi-chan in the Nodame anime.
Tamaki Hiroshi has also improved his "conducting" skills. it actually looks like he's really conducting a proper orchestra now instead of just flapping his hands around. mwahahaaha!
but me and lydia concluded that he lost a bit of weight since the last time he was in the special. he really needs to put it back on.
*sighs*
3 months.
Wednesday, 3 March 2010
Nodame Cantabile The Final Score Part 1 Trailer
in anticipation of the movie opening next week.
NEXT THURSDAY!!!
WOHOO!!!
think i'll go re-watch the special just to recap.
MU-KYAA!!!!
Tuesday, 2 March 2010
Roar Roar's Top 10 Bishojos (2010)
the ladies are out~~
Roar Roar's Top 10 Bishojos (2010)
01) Noda Megumi (Nodame Cantabile)
affectionately known as Nodame, i’ve been hooked since the very first episode. almost always associated with her trademark “MU-KYAAs!” and “GYA-BOs!”, you will love her for all her funny antics, just like Chiaki did.
Roar Roar's Top 10 Bishojos (2010)
01) Noda Megumi (Nodame Cantabile)
affectionately known as Nodame, i’ve been hooked since the very first episode. almost always associated with her trademark “MU-KYAAs!” and “GYA-BOs!”, you will love her for all her funny antics, just like Chiaki did.
Wednesday, 24 February 2010
Roar Roar's Top 10 Bishonens (2010)
many of the bishonens from the first list may not be here anymore, but that doesn’t mean i like them any lesser. it just meant they’ve taken a backseat to the newer bishonens that have emerged in the past 5 years.
Top 10 Bishonens (2010)
01) Sanji (One Piece)
HA! as if anyone thought for any moment that Sanji was gonna move down from his top place. nope, he’s still my man. i’m getting withdrawals though. he and the other Strawhat crew have been missing for the longest time. *sighs* Odacchi needs to get back to them soon.
Top 10 Bishonens (2010)
01) Sanji (One Piece)
HA! as if anyone thought for any moment that Sanji was gonna move down from his top place. nope, he’s still my man. i’m getting withdrawals though. he and the other Strawhat crew have been missing for the longest time. *sighs* Odacchi needs to get back to them soon.
Saturday, 20 February 2010
i hate it...
... when they remove manga parts i like in the anime version.
they are totally skipped Kiyora's violin competition part (Chp111-114) in the Nodame Finale.
this is why it should have been a 24-episode series! they're gonna be blazing through the manga at this rate!
now the chance of seeing Chiaki's dad in the series is getting even more bleak.
*sighs*
they do realize why Chiaki is how he is now because of him right? they should give him more backstory!
they are totally skipped Kiyora's violin competition part (Chp111-114) in the Nodame Finale.
this is why it should have been a 24-episode series! they're gonna be blazing through the manga at this rate!
now the chance of seeing Chiaki's dad in the series is getting even more bleak.
*sighs*
they do realize why Chiaki is how he is now because of him right? they should give him more backstory!
Tuesday, 19 January 2010
Winter 2009
all biased opinions are up!
posted 19 Jan,
Dance In The Vampire Bund
a vampire princess and her werewolf protector. sounds similar to Underworld anyone? though the vampire princess definitely looks more like Kirsten Dunst from Interview with the Vampire compared to Kate Beckinsale.
at least i wouldn't need to read the manga, given that it's not following the manga story, just using the settings and characters. the first 2 episodes were good, so it's safe to say i will continue watching to the end.
Nodame Cantabile Finale
once again, i'm not happy that it is another 11-episodes season. i mean, this is the Finale, how are they gonna round everything in 11 episodes? they have at least 5-6 books of materials to cover!
they've also changed the flow of the story, as i've noticed from the Paris-hen, so i'm not very sure how they're gonna fit Chiaki's dad back into the story.
well, as long as they don't have to rush through it. seriously though, it should be a longer series.
update on Haru Toki 3:
turns out, this is only a 1-hr special!! i totally missed all the parts that said it was only a special!
the only decent news is that the DVDs that ships in March will extend the special to 1.5hr. but still, this is somewhat depressing.
i need
posted 12 Jan,
Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu
although this has the magical aspect that usually appeals to me, i'm not very convinced by how the "summoning war system" is being carried out. each team "fight" by summoning chibi-versions of themselves, but there's really no actual fighting involved, even though they went to the extent of having battle systems in place.
once in a while, there'll be that one harem show that will interest me enough to watch. like Toradora, or Tokimeki Memorial.
this just happens to be it. at least for now.
as long as it doesn't irritates me as it progresses, i will probably follow through to the end.
Hanamaru Youchien
4-year-olds starting kindergarten with a new male teacher in tow. how they're gonna create havoc in school is basically what this show will be about.
i'm loving this for the same reason why i love Potemayo.
cos it is just too kawaii!
it's not as brainless as Potetan is, but it is definitely a more refreshing one, especially with the overload of ecchi/moe fanservice shows this season.
someday, they will have a season where it's fanservice for the ladies.
bring out all the BLs and romance dramas that wouldn't show any part of the female anatomy!!
posted 11 Jan,
Durarara!!
set in Ikebukuro with lots of urban legends and other supernatural encounters, it has a very Bakemonogatari feel to it even though it is by separate production companies. which hopefully wouldn't kill my interest in it since it looks quite promising for me to keep watching.
episode 1 was a major character-intro, so much so that i'm abit confused/overwhelmed. i'm sure future episodes will go into the characters in more details.
i'm quite happy to hear Miyano Mamoru back. and not just back, but voicing the more "genki" type of character that i prefer him in. although with this kind of genre, i wonder if he will have a different side to him halfway through the show.
posted 06 Jan,
So-Ra-No-Wo-To
a more serious version of K-ON. that's the first thought that came into my mind after episode 1. and i'm sure everyone else who've watched this will do the usual comparison between these two.
story-wise, i'm quite happy with the pace. but then again, i'm also more used to these slice-of-life dramas than anybody else i know.
i'm also starting to love trumpets more than the usual piano/violin/guitar that appears frequently in most music-based anime. especially after watching the Macross F Galaxy Tour where they had 2 fantastic trumpeters who totally stole the concert right under the divas' (Megumi and May'n) noses.
so yes, i think i'm gonna enjoy this show quite well.
posted 05 Jan,
Harukanaru Toki no Naka de 3: Owari Naki Unmei
final anime to come out of the whole franchise. looks to be a direct sequel of some sort to the special from 2007 (HaruToki: Kurenai no Tsuki).
episode 1 was one-hour long instead of the usual 20min, which totally threw me off since i kept thinking it was gonna be a series. after checking again, found out it is actually a TV special. not sure how many episodes it will be, neither when the next episode will be out.
it's not just me. the boys are really getting cuter.
or maybe because it's been ages since i last saw them. in any case, i'm still swooning all over the place.
the other good thing is that they tend to bring back all the seiyuus for HaruToki, so many of my favorites are back together again.
No.1 pulling factor: Seki Tomokazu as Minamoto no Kurou Yoshitsune. seriously, i'm getting addicted to him voicing nobles/kings.
Monday, 21 December 2009
Nodame Film comes to SG
it might be due to the success of Gokusen: The Movie.
but yes, you read that right.
they are bringing Nodame Cantabile to SG cinemas!!
YAY!!
for those that still don't know what's going on, Nodame Cantabile Saishū Gakushō (Nodame Cantabile: The Final Movement) will be released as two movies. much like how 20th Century Boys was split into three.
the 1st movie opened last Saturday in Japan, but the SG release is on March 11 2010.
well, i should be thankful it's not like 6 months later.
so i'm guessing the 2nd movie will also be released 3 months later after the Japan premier, making it either a June or July release.
Nodame-lovers, don't forget to mark your calendar.
MU-KYAA~~
PS. and in case you still need something to tide you over, there's the 3rd anime series to look forward to in Jan 2010.
but yes, you read that right.
they are bringing Nodame Cantabile to SG cinemas!!
YAY!!
for those that still don't know what's going on, Nodame Cantabile Saishū Gakushō (Nodame Cantabile: The Final Movement) will be released as two movies. much like how 20th Century Boys was split into three.
the 1st movie opened last Saturday in Japan, but the SG release is on March 11 2010.
well, i should be thankful it's not like 6 months later.
so i'm guessing the 2nd movie will also be released 3 months later after the Japan premier, making it either a June or July release.
Nodame-lovers, don't forget to mark your calendar.
MU-KYAA~~
PS. and in case you still need something to tide you over, there's the 3rd anime series to look forward to in Jan 2010.
Tuesday, 28 July 2009
return of J-drama
ever since K-wave came to sg and caused the decrease of j-dramas on local TV, the only ones i've been watching faithfully are either Kimura Takuya's shows, or any random ones that catches my interests.
well recently for the past 2 years, i've been somewhat hooked on watching the less serious and more comical j-dramas. many are adapted from popular manga series and usually showcase lots of up-and-rising young stars.
although the japanese always have adapted manga into live-action before, it wasn't until the recent years in which we see this sudden influx. i think they finally saw how successful the taiwan market has been in using this to promote their new actors/actresses.
between the japanese idol dramas (日本偶像剧) and taiwan idol dramas (台湾偶像剧), i very much prefer the japanese ones. it might just be plain biased, but i much prefer to watch manga adaptations in their original country and language.
so anyway, here's what i've watched over the last 2 years. have included various links to the dramas and cast so i don't have to do any summary.
disclaimer: as usual, only very biased opinions ahead.
Yamada Taro Monogatari (贫穷贵公子)
the very 1st idol-drama i watched. the japanese version was way funnier than the taiwanese version. the guys and kids were also much cuter.
starring Arashi members Ninomiya Kazunari (二宮和也) and Sakurai Sho (櫻井翔), together with Tabe Mikako (多部未華子) whom i always think resembles doreen alot.
Proposal Daisakusen (求爱大作战)
i couldn't resist the cute guy that looks like Takuya (Yamapi), so ended up watching this, which was quite funny given all the back-to-the-future stuff.
starring Yamashita Tomohisa (山下智久), Nagasawa Masami (長澤まさみ) and a favorite veteran actor of mine, Fujiki Naohito (藤木直人).
Nodame Cantabile (交响情人梦)
of course, i only knew of the existence of the live-action only after watching the anime. this j-drama needs no introduction here since i practicallyswoon rave about it every time something new pops up.
there will be 2 more live-action movies coming up soon (within the next 6 months) and the final anime series will be airing in Jan 2010. the manga will also be ending its run in Spring 2010. big year for Nodame in 2010!
starring Ueno Juri (上野樹里) as our beloved Nodame and Tamaki Hiroshi (玉木宏) as wonder-whiz Chiaki.
Zettai Kareshi (绝对男友)
the very 1st show i watched that stars Mizushima Hiro, although i didn't really thought much about him then. only watched it cos it was an adaptation of a Watase Yuu manga. had doubts on how they could pull off the whole robot lover thing but i think Hayami did a good job as Night.
starring Hayami Mokomichi (速水もこみち), Mizushima Hiro (水嶋ヒロ) and Aibu Saki (相武紗季).
Hanazakari no Kimitachi e (偷偷爱着你/花样少男少女)
i've blogged about this before. and really, this is a fantastic adaptation. so much better than the taiwanese version which was much too whiny and had too few cute guys.
Ikuta Toma was the best person to bring Nakatsu to life, and Hiro was much better than the taiwanese Nanba-sempai. though i wonder why both the taiwan and japan versions made Sano so emo, cos he's really not supposed to be like that.
starrring Horikita Maki (堀北真希) who did a great job as Mizuki, Oguri Shun (小栗旬), Ikuta Toma (生田斗真) and of course Mizushima Hiro.
Yasuko to Kenji (暴走兄妹)
seeing Hirosue Ryoko acting as a ex-gang leader was kinda weird at first cos i could never picture her as anything but polite. hilarious nontheless, especially her confrontations with Masahiro's character.
starring Matsuoka Masahiro (松岡昌宏) of Tokio, Hirosue Ryoko (広末涼子) and Tabe Mikako once again as a daydreaming high school girl.
Mei-chan no Shitsuji (我的帅哥管家)
finally finished this on monday night. not as light-hearted as the rest, cos there were lots of scheming and back-stabbing involved. but i still got to see Hiro in a butler uniform for most of the time, so i'm still relatively happy.
starring Eikura Nana (榮倉奈々), Mizushima Hiro and Sato Takeru (佐藤健).
---------------------------------------
and against my better judgement, there's still many more which i'm trying to find time to watch, aside from all my unfinished anime and various movies.
listed in order of importance,
1) MR BRAIN - Takuya and Hiro all in one show. YUMMY!
2) Hachimitsu to Clover (Honey x Clover) - Toma! i've heard that it's quite good. let's hope it's comparable to the anime.
3) 1 Pound no Fukuin (1 Pound Gospel) - romantic comedy about a young wrestler and a young nun. hmm.
4) Code Blue - Yamapi as an aspiring flight doctor. can it hold up to the other medical series Kyumei Byoto 24 Ji?
5) Kyumei Byoto 24 Ji (Season 4) - incidentally, as i was browsing through the dramawiki webpage for Kyumei, i discovered that there's gonna be a 4th season starting in 11 Aug. yeah!! i love this show!
6) VOICE - another Toma show.
7) Majo Saiban -Witch Trial- - yet another Toma show.
hopefully, i'll have at least watched half of what i've listed by the end of the year. =P
for anyone interested, go to DramaCrazy.net. link also provided in sidebar.
well recently for the past 2 years, i've been somewhat hooked on watching the less serious and more comical j-dramas. many are adapted from popular manga series and usually showcase lots of up-and-rising young stars.
although the japanese always have adapted manga into live-action before, it wasn't until the recent years in which we see this sudden influx. i think they finally saw how successful the taiwan market has been in using this to promote their new actors/actresses.
between the japanese idol dramas (日本偶像剧) and taiwan idol dramas (台湾偶像剧), i very much prefer the japanese ones. it might just be plain biased, but i much prefer to watch manga adaptations in their original country and language.
so anyway, here's what i've watched over the last 2 years. have included various links to the dramas and cast so i don't have to do any summary.
disclaimer: as usual, only very biased opinions ahead.
Yamada Taro Monogatari (贫穷贵公子)
the very 1st idol-drama i watched. the japanese version was way funnier than the taiwanese version. the guys and kids were also much cuter.
starring Arashi members Ninomiya Kazunari (二宮和也) and Sakurai Sho (櫻井翔), together with Tabe Mikako (多部未華子) whom i always think resembles doreen alot.
Proposal Daisakusen (求爱大作战)
i couldn't resist the cute guy that looks like Takuya (Yamapi), so ended up watching this, which was quite funny given all the back-to-the-future stuff.
starring Yamashita Tomohisa (山下智久), Nagasawa Masami (長澤まさみ) and a favorite veteran actor of mine, Fujiki Naohito (藤木直人).
Nodame Cantabile (交响情人梦)
of course, i only knew of the existence of the live-action only after watching the anime. this j-drama needs no introduction here since i practically
there will be 2 more live-action movies coming up soon (within the next 6 months) and the final anime series will be airing in Jan 2010. the manga will also be ending its run in Spring 2010. big year for Nodame in 2010!
starring Ueno Juri (上野樹里) as our beloved Nodame and Tamaki Hiroshi (玉木宏) as wonder-whiz Chiaki.
Zettai Kareshi (绝对男友)
the very 1st show i watched that stars Mizushima Hiro, although i didn't really thought much about him then. only watched it cos it was an adaptation of a Watase Yuu manga. had doubts on how they could pull off the whole robot lover thing but i think Hayami did a good job as Night.
starring Hayami Mokomichi (速水もこみち), Mizushima Hiro (水嶋ヒロ) and Aibu Saki (相武紗季).
Hanazakari no Kimitachi e (偷偷爱着你/花样少男少女)
i've blogged about this before. and really, this is a fantastic adaptation. so much better than the taiwanese version which was much too whiny and had too few cute guys.
Ikuta Toma was the best person to bring Nakatsu to life, and Hiro was much better than the taiwanese Nanba-sempai. though i wonder why both the taiwan and japan versions made Sano so emo, cos he's really not supposed to be like that.
starrring Horikita Maki (堀北真希) who did a great job as Mizuki, Oguri Shun (小栗旬), Ikuta Toma (生田斗真) and of course Mizushima Hiro.
Yasuko to Kenji (暴走兄妹)
seeing Hirosue Ryoko acting as a ex-gang leader was kinda weird at first cos i could never picture her as anything but polite. hilarious nontheless, especially her confrontations with Masahiro's character.
starring Matsuoka Masahiro (松岡昌宏) of Tokio, Hirosue Ryoko (広末涼子) and Tabe Mikako once again as a daydreaming high school girl.
Mei-chan no Shitsuji (我的帅哥管家)
finally finished this on monday night. not as light-hearted as the rest, cos there were lots of scheming and back-stabbing involved. but i still got to see Hiro in a butler uniform for most of the time, so i'm still relatively happy.
starring Eikura Nana (榮倉奈々), Mizushima Hiro and Sato Takeru (佐藤健).
---------------------------------------
and against my better judgement, there's still many more which i'm trying to find time to watch, aside from all my unfinished anime and various movies.
listed in order of importance,
1) MR BRAIN - Takuya and Hiro all in one show. YUMMY!
2) Hachimitsu to Clover (Honey x Clover) - Toma! i've heard that it's quite good. let's hope it's comparable to the anime.
3) 1 Pound no Fukuin (1 Pound Gospel) - romantic comedy about a young wrestler and a young nun. hmm.
4) Code Blue - Yamapi as an aspiring flight doctor. can it hold up to the other medical series Kyumei Byoto 24 Ji?
5) Kyumei Byoto 24 Ji (Season 4) - incidentally, as i was browsing through the dramawiki webpage for Kyumei, i discovered that there's gonna be a 4th season starting in 11 Aug. yeah!! i love this show!
6) VOICE - another Toma show.
7) Majo Saiban -Witch Trial- - yet another Toma show.
hopefully, i'll have at least watched half of what i've listed by the end of the year. =P
for anyone interested, go to DramaCrazy.net. link also provided in sidebar.
Tuesday, 6 January 2009
2008 Top-Selling Manga
news from ANN,
the Top 10 best-selling manga by series in japan are,
01) One Piece (5,956,540 copies)
02) Naruto
03) 20th Century Boys
04) Katekyo Hitman Reborn!
05) Bleach
06) NANA
07) Soul Eater
08) Nodame Cantabile
09) Rookies
10) Gintama
as for the Top 10 best-selling manga by volume in japan,
01) One Piece #50 (1,678,208 copies)
02) One Piece #51 (1,646,978 copies)
03) NANA #19
04) One Piece #49 (1,544,000 copies)
05) NANA #20
06) Nodame Cantabile #20
07) Nodame Cantabile #21
08) Naruto #43
09) Naruto #42
10) Fullmetal Alchemist #19
somehow, i'm surprised that Nodame and Nana got into Top10 for both lists.
hmm.
maybe i shouldn't be surprised, since both series had anime and live-action adaptations that were immensely popular.
but all in all,
ONE PIECE (still) RULES!!
WOHOOOOO!!!
^_^.``
the Top 10 best-selling manga by series in japan are,
01) One Piece (5,956,540 copies)
02) Naruto
03) 20th Century Boys
04) Katekyo Hitman Reborn!
05) Bleach
06) NANA
07) Soul Eater
08) Nodame Cantabile
09) Rookies
10) Gintama
as for the Top 10 best-selling manga by volume in japan,
01) One Piece #50 (1,678,208 copies)
02) One Piece #51 (1,646,978 copies)
03) NANA #19
04) One Piece #49 (1,544,000 copies)
05) NANA #20
06) Nodame Cantabile #20
07) Nodame Cantabile #21
08) Naruto #43
09) Naruto #42
10) Fullmetal Alchemist #19
somehow, i'm surprised that Nodame and Nana got into Top10 for both lists.
hmm.
maybe i shouldn't be surprised, since both series had anime and live-action adaptations that were immensely popular.
but all in all,
ONE PIECE (still) RULES!!
WOHOOOOO!!!
^_^.``
Friday, 10 October 2008
Fall 2008
i haven't had such a swarm of anime for ages. and i reckon i'm following more than half of the season's shows. most of which, if not all, i'm quite reluctant to drop after the 1st ep.
for a most comprehensive guide, you'll have to head down to RC. you'll just be hearing very biased opinions of some of the shows i'm watching. and i've also decided to categorize them into my own genres, beginning with...
the comedies...
1) Nodame Cantabile Paris
obviously, there's no need for any introduction to this one. like the live-action drama special, it picks up exactly where season 1 had stopped, with our crazy duo heading to paris for more great music, nodame antics and finally, the romance we've all been waiting for.
i'm still disappointed that it's only a 11-episode series, cos that meant they wouldn't cover all the way til where the manga is now. but at least, they should cover up to where Chiaki and Nodame finally get together as a couple. =)
2) Hyakko
for once, a show that has an all female main cast, without any wimpy male lead. ep1 was not bad, since it was an introductory episode to the main characters. hopefully this no-brainer will be fun and entertaining to watch. if not, there's always Kannagi (see below).
3) Toradora!
i really was gonna stay away from another Kugimiya-Rie-voicing-spoilt-brat show, but i couldn't help liking this after ep1. boy and girl help each other win the hearts of their respective best friends, which probably will turn out with them getting together eventually. Ryuuji reminds me of Kasanoda (yakuza guy that likes Haruhi) from Ouran High, and it's not just their intimidating eyes that's similar.
4) Kannagi
my Wagaya no Oinarisama replacement for Fall. so instead of a fox spirit, we have a local deity goddess that came alive after the male lead, Jin, craves out a statue of her from the recently chopped off holy tree in the local temple.
Nagi didn't come off as a total dork who doesn't know anything of the real world, which is a nice change from how other series always portray their deities (think WnO, Ah! My Goddess), though her purification method (sailor-moon-styled magical wand) had me rolling my eyes for an instant. i'm gonna assume that if Hyakko fails to amuse me, i still have this to hang on to.
5) Tentai Senshi Sunred
the ultimate no-brainer show of the season, sunred is a gag comedy that has the "hero" in a red mask (hence the name sunred) going around (supposedly) to take down the bad guys (who recruit other bad-asses from the sideline). in reality, sunred seemed more like the bully as he goes around kicking the bad guys for turning up late for their "battles".
i waited very long for this to come up on tudou and it was well worth it. though only 15min long per episode, they made it so funny, you'll wished it went on for a good 30min.
for romance...
6) ef - a tale of melodies
i did a S1 marathon of ef - a tale of memories when i was sick at home last week. i probably could have ignore S1 and just watch melodies, but principle-wise, i always need to watch everything in sequence. (which is why i'm still stuck at S3 of Sex & the City although everyone said i could've just watched the movie by itself.)
i have no idea why the hype over it though. other than the beautifully animated scenery and character designs, the story was quite draggy (i fast-forwarded alot in every episode) and boring. thankfully this time, the focus is on the other couples that didn't get much screentime in S1. and i am interested to know what is going on between Yuu & Yuuko, so i probably will do a marathon run instead of watching it every week.
7) Skip Beat!
because of the not-so-fantastic drawing, i was never tempted to pick up the manga even though i always flipped through it in Hana to Yume mag. i thought i should give it a chance and watch the anime instead.
but the real reason is that Miyano Mamoru, Inoue Marina (Yoko in Gurren) and Konishi Katsuyuki (Komui in D.Gray-man) are voicing the 3 main leads. i'm still skeptical of whether i will follow it to the end, but i found how the characters switch personalities from serious to funny amusing to watch. so maybe, maybe, it will grow on me like what Special A did.
a magical interlude...
8) Hakushaku to Yousei
9) Yozakura Quartet
10) To Aru Majutsu no Index
i've decided to mesh all 3 shows together and give a general idea. obviously, all of them have some form of magical involvement, be it in the form of a "fairy doctor" in Hakushaku, a group of teenagers battling against youkai in quartet, or a girl who stores the entire collection of the church's sacred books in her mind in index.
among the 3, index is the one i'm most interested in, where as i might boot Hakushaku if the story doesn't pick up over the next few episodes.
for the fantasy lover...
11) Tales of the Abyss
Koyasu-sama and Yukana are voicing characters in this PS2-game adapted anime. but way before that, i'd already seen the trailer. it just helps that my 2 all time favorite seiyuus are in the cast.
ep2 was aired back-to-back with ep1 on MBS and CBC, and the pace seemed to be set exactly as if you were playing the RPG. i get the distinct feeling that the end of each episode is a particular save-point in the game. haha, maybe that was the feel the producers are aiming for.
the slight creepy...
12) Kuroshitsuji
kinda like xxxHOLIC, where they mix in a little bit of humor with loads of supernatural stuff. it is supposed to have much more blood and action, though not much blood was seen in ep1 yet. but the creepy index is high so i probably will refrain from watching it too late at night as like what i did with xxxHOLIC.
the definitely creepy...
(new category cos it can't fit into "slight creepy"!)
13) Mouryou no Hako
i got freaked out 5 mins into the show after seeing the head-in-the-box scene. definitely way way way up in the creepy index, i'm just glad i watched the show in the morning. i probably wouldn't have slept well if i had watched it at night.
the only reason why i even ventured into this was cos CLAMP was doing the character designs. after ep1, i'm so creeped out, i wonder whether i should continue on cos it's definitely not doing good on my heart. however, there's still the pull with many of my fav seiyuus (Morikawa Toshiyuki, Suwabe Junichi, Kuwashima Houko) in the cast list. i might just watch another episode or 2 before deciding whether it's worth creeping myself for CLAMP.
vampires lovers...
14) Vampire Knight Guilty
this is probably the closest i could find to a male harem series this season, what with all the yummy-looking bishonen vampires. our favorite vampires are back in S2 which will probably wrap up the story seeing that the manga looks like it is might be nearing its end as well. but they might use an original anime ending, cos i doubt the manga will really end before the anime finishes in 3 months' time.
15) KUROZUKA
i was hoping for a more romantic love story between a (maybe) star-crossed vampire lovers, instead it looked much more like blood-fest than anything else. there's so much blood being used, possibly the bloodiest yet this season, it makes Shikabane Hime looks tame.
i'm still hoping for some form of romance, since the lovers are supposed go through a 1000-year long journey.
for the action dramas...
16) Gundam 00 S2
fantastic start to a hopefully fantastic S2, ep1 was all action with Setsuna trying to retrieve Gundam Exia from its holding point on some remote colony. i would've thought that Saji was already integrated into Celestial Being, (i blame all the trailers) but it seemed that he's still unhappy and angry at the gundam fellows.
anyway, they will probably dedicate at least another episode or more on how Setsuna is going to restore Celestial Being along with Tiera, with Saji probably joining somewhere in the middle. i'm still not happy with them bringing Lockon back though. can't they just introduce a new character? i'm getting kinda bored with the whole revival-from-the-dead routine.
17) GA-REI -zero-
i almost thought i was watching the last episode when all the main characters were killed off in the last 5min of ep1. a big "HUH??" resounded in my head, with loads of question marks on what is heck is going on. thankfully, this only piped my interest, plus the action scenes are really great, with good bgm that helped to enhance each scene. by right, this should put this under the "slight creepy" section, but it's not even remotely scary, even with the evil spirits involved.
18) Shikabane Hime Aka
this was initially the show that could have won the award for largest-amount-of-blood-used, but now it's just been overtaken by Kurozuka. supposedly categorized as horror action, which it probably should be since the main protagonist is a corpse princess hunting other evil corpses.
though other than that, nothing else seemed really "horror-ish", unless of course, they haven't begin to pack it in ep1 yet. well there's still tons of action, and it always looks good to have the female protagonist weaving a set of killer machine guns.
and last but not least, for the BL lover...
19) Junjou Romantica S2
i probably don't have to say much about this. i love junjou to bits and i can't wait for more Misaki-Usagi and Hiroki-Nowaki interactions. *grins* S2 will continue where S1 left off, and hopefully we'll see more characters like Usagi's brother and father.
somehow, tudou has removed all the links for S1 which just irked me to no end cos that meant i have to wait for the eng subs to come out on veoh. i'm just hoping aarinfantasy will do the subs fast enough so i don't have to wait so long. >_<.``
----------------------------------------------
if Fukuyama Jun was Spring's hottest seiyuu, Miyano Mamoru has gotta be Fall's favorite. from brooding (G00's Setsuna), to arrogantly cocky (Skip Beat's Shou), to emo guy (VK's Zero), or just downright cranky (Soul Eater's Kid), this guy is practically everywhere!
here are the shows he's in currently:
Sun: Gundam 00, Skip Beat
Mon: Vampire Knight, Soul Eater
Tue: Hakushaku to Yousei, Kurozuka
ok, i probably shouldn't put Soul Eater in, since that was from Spring, but you get my drift. like Koyasu-sama, he has a very versatile voice which is great cos you get to see him in all sorts of different roles. i still love him the most as Tamaki in Ouran, but his Death the Kid character in Soul Eater is also fantastically funny.
----------------------------------------------
so there you have it. all 19 shows that i will be watching for Fall, together with the on-going shows like One Piece, Bleach, Soul Eater, Reborn, Maoh and Xam'd.
that's 25 series in total!!
wow! i think that's a personal record.
and i'm still itching to watch another few more on crunchyroll that have had good reviews, but i'm trying to restrain myself or i might just go overboard.
i probably have already done it anyway.
*shrugs*
anyway, more good news for all.
seems that Bleach is finally coming back to the Hueco Mundo saga. thank goodness.
i basically skipped the whole filler arc. cos even reading the summaries on RC was a torture.
ugghh.
for a most comprehensive guide, you'll have to head down to RC. you'll just be hearing very biased opinions of some of the shows i'm watching. and i've also decided to categorize them into my own genres, beginning with...
the comedies...
1) Nodame Cantabile Paris
obviously, there's no need for any introduction to this one. like the live-action drama special, it picks up exactly where season 1 had stopped, with our crazy duo heading to paris for more great music, nodame antics and finally, the romance we've all been waiting for.
i'm still disappointed that it's only a 11-episode series, cos that meant they wouldn't cover all the way til where the manga is now. but at least, they should cover up to where Chiaki and Nodame finally get together as a couple. =)
2) Hyakko
for once, a show that has an all female main cast, without any wimpy male lead. ep1 was not bad, since it was an introductory episode to the main characters. hopefully this no-brainer will be fun and entertaining to watch. if not, there's always Kannagi (see below).
3) Toradora!
i really was gonna stay away from another Kugimiya-Rie-voicing-spoilt-brat show, but i couldn't help liking this after ep1. boy and girl help each other win the hearts of their respective best friends, which probably will turn out with them getting together eventually. Ryuuji reminds me of Kasanoda (yakuza guy that likes Haruhi) from Ouran High, and it's not just their intimidating eyes that's similar.
4) Kannagi
my Wagaya no Oinarisama replacement for Fall. so instead of a fox spirit, we have a local deity goddess that came alive after the male lead, Jin, craves out a statue of her from the recently chopped off holy tree in the local temple.
Nagi didn't come off as a total dork who doesn't know anything of the real world, which is a nice change from how other series always portray their deities (think WnO, Ah! My Goddess), though her purification method (sailor-moon-styled magical wand) had me rolling my eyes for an instant. i'm gonna assume that if Hyakko fails to amuse me, i still have this to hang on to.
5) Tentai Senshi Sunred
the ultimate no-brainer show of the season, sunred is a gag comedy that has the "hero" in a red mask (hence the name sunred) going around (supposedly) to take down the bad guys (who recruit other bad-asses from the sideline). in reality, sunred seemed more like the bully as he goes around kicking the bad guys for turning up late for their "battles".
i waited very long for this to come up on tudou and it was well worth it. though only 15min long per episode, they made it so funny, you'll wished it went on for a good 30min.
for romance...
6) ef - a tale of melodies
i did a S1 marathon of ef - a tale of memories when i was sick at home last week. i probably could have ignore S1 and just watch melodies, but principle-wise, i always need to watch everything in sequence. (which is why i'm still stuck at S3 of Sex & the City although everyone said i could've just watched the movie by itself.)
i have no idea why the hype over it though. other than the beautifully animated scenery and character designs, the story was quite draggy (i fast-forwarded alot in every episode) and boring. thankfully this time, the focus is on the other couples that didn't get much screentime in S1. and i am interested to know what is going on between Yuu & Yuuko, so i probably will do a marathon run instead of watching it every week.
7) Skip Beat!
because of the not-so-fantastic drawing, i was never tempted to pick up the manga even though i always flipped through it in Hana to Yume mag. i thought i should give it a chance and watch the anime instead.
but the real reason is that Miyano Mamoru, Inoue Marina (Yoko in Gurren) and Konishi Katsuyuki (Komui in D.Gray-man) are voicing the 3 main leads. i'm still skeptical of whether i will follow it to the end, but i found how the characters switch personalities from serious to funny amusing to watch. so maybe, maybe, it will grow on me like what Special A did.
a magical interlude...
8) Hakushaku to Yousei
9) Yozakura Quartet
10) To Aru Majutsu no Index
i've decided to mesh all 3 shows together and give a general idea. obviously, all of them have some form of magical involvement, be it in the form of a "fairy doctor" in Hakushaku, a group of teenagers battling against youkai in quartet, or a girl who stores the entire collection of the church's sacred books in her mind in index.
among the 3, index is the one i'm most interested in, where as i might boot Hakushaku if the story doesn't pick up over the next few episodes.
for the fantasy lover...
11) Tales of the Abyss
Koyasu-sama and Yukana are voicing characters in this PS2-game adapted anime. but way before that, i'd already seen the trailer. it just helps that my 2 all time favorite seiyuus are in the cast.
ep2 was aired back-to-back with ep1 on MBS and CBC, and the pace seemed to be set exactly as if you were playing the RPG. i get the distinct feeling that the end of each episode is a particular save-point in the game. haha, maybe that was the feel the producers are aiming for.
the slight creepy...
12) Kuroshitsuji
kinda like xxxHOLIC, where they mix in a little bit of humor with loads of supernatural stuff. it is supposed to have much more blood and action, though not much blood was seen in ep1 yet. but the creepy index is high so i probably will refrain from watching it too late at night as like what i did with xxxHOLIC.
the definitely creepy...
(new category cos it can't fit into "slight creepy"!)
13) Mouryou no Hako
i got freaked out 5 mins into the show after seeing the head-in-the-box scene. definitely way way way up in the creepy index, i'm just glad i watched the show in the morning. i probably wouldn't have slept well if i had watched it at night.
the only reason why i even ventured into this was cos CLAMP was doing the character designs. after ep1, i'm so creeped out, i wonder whether i should continue on cos it's definitely not doing good on my heart. however, there's still the pull with many of my fav seiyuus (Morikawa Toshiyuki, Suwabe Junichi, Kuwashima Houko) in the cast list. i might just watch another episode or 2 before deciding whether it's worth creeping myself for CLAMP.
vampires lovers...
14) Vampire Knight Guilty
this is probably the closest i could find to a male harem series this season, what with all the yummy-looking bishonen vampires. our favorite vampires are back in S2 which will probably wrap up the story seeing that the manga looks like it is might be nearing its end as well. but they might use an original anime ending, cos i doubt the manga will really end before the anime finishes in 3 months' time.
15) KUROZUKA
i was hoping for a more romantic love story between a (maybe) star-crossed vampire lovers, instead it looked much more like blood-fest than anything else. there's so much blood being used, possibly the bloodiest yet this season, it makes Shikabane Hime looks tame.
i'm still hoping for some form of romance, since the lovers are supposed go through a 1000-year long journey.
for the action dramas...
16) Gundam 00 S2
fantastic start to a hopefully fantastic S2, ep1 was all action with Setsuna trying to retrieve Gundam Exia from its holding point on some remote colony. i would've thought that Saji was already integrated into Celestial Being, (i blame all the trailers) but it seemed that he's still unhappy and angry at the gundam fellows.
anyway, they will probably dedicate at least another episode or more on how Setsuna is going to restore Celestial Being along with Tiera, with Saji probably joining somewhere in the middle. i'm still not happy with them bringing Lockon back though. can't they just introduce a new character? i'm getting kinda bored with the whole revival-from-the-dead routine.
17) GA-REI -zero-
i almost thought i was watching the last episode when all the main characters were killed off in the last 5min of ep1. a big "HUH??" resounded in my head, with loads of question marks on what is heck is going on. thankfully, this only piped my interest, plus the action scenes are really great, with good bgm that helped to enhance each scene. by right, this should put this under the "slight creepy" section, but it's not even remotely scary, even with the evil spirits involved.
18) Shikabane Hime Aka
this was initially the show that could have won the award for largest-amount-of-blood-used, but now it's just been overtaken by Kurozuka. supposedly categorized as horror action, which it probably should be since the main protagonist is a corpse princess hunting other evil corpses.
though other than that, nothing else seemed really "horror-ish", unless of course, they haven't begin to pack it in ep1 yet. well there's still tons of action, and it always looks good to have the female protagonist weaving a set of killer machine guns.
and last but not least, for the BL lover...
19) Junjou Romantica S2
i probably don't have to say much about this. i love junjou to bits and i can't wait for more Misaki-Usagi and Hiroki-Nowaki interactions. *grins* S2 will continue where S1 left off, and hopefully we'll see more characters like Usagi's brother and father.
somehow, tudou has removed all the links for S1 which just irked me to no end cos that meant i have to wait for the eng subs to come out on veoh. i'm just hoping aarinfantasy will do the subs fast enough so i don't have to wait so long. >_<.``
----------------------------------------------
if Fukuyama Jun was Spring's hottest seiyuu, Miyano Mamoru has gotta be Fall's favorite. from brooding (G00's Setsuna), to arrogantly cocky (Skip Beat's Shou), to emo guy (VK's Zero), or just downright cranky (Soul Eater's Kid), this guy is practically everywhere!
here are the shows he's in currently:
Sun: Gundam 00, Skip Beat
Mon: Vampire Knight, Soul Eater
Tue: Hakushaku to Yousei, Kurozuka
ok, i probably shouldn't put Soul Eater in, since that was from Spring, but you get my drift. like Koyasu-sama, he has a very versatile voice which is great cos you get to see him in all sorts of different roles. i still love him the most as Tamaki in Ouran, but his Death the Kid character in Soul Eater is also fantastically funny.
----------------------------------------------
so there you have it. all 19 shows that i will be watching for Fall, together with the on-going shows like One Piece, Bleach, Soul Eater, Reborn, Maoh and Xam'd.
that's 25 series in total!!
wow! i think that's a personal record.
and i'm still itching to watch another few more on crunchyroll that have had good reviews, but i'm trying to restrain myself or i might just go overboard.
i probably have already done it anyway.
*shrugs*
anyway, more good news for all.
seems that Bleach is finally coming back to the Hueco Mundo saga. thank goodness.
i basically skipped the whole filler arc. cos even reading the summaries on RC was a torture.
ugghh.
Monday, 7 July 2008
Wrap-up of Spring and start of Summer 2008
what has ended in Spring 2008...
1) Toshokan Sensou; so it might not be a winner hit like Honey and Clover, but i still enjoyed it. and yes, Dojou still reminds me of Sousuke, maybe more. even meow meow thinks so!
2) Amatsuki; total waste of time. i am so disappointed with how it turned out.
3) Angelique; still good enough for another season in summer 2008. still love the ED song. though that might change with the new season.
4) xxxHOLIC Kei; i always wondered why they never do more than a 12-episode season everytime. but judging from how slow CLAMP is reproducing, i guess i can't be greedy.
5&6) Junjou Romantica and Vampire Knight will both be airing part 2 in fall 2008. i have no idea why they're all following the footsteps of Geass and G00. especially since i'm so hooked on both.
total cliff-hanger endings. well, more for VK than JR, but still! they were juz getting to the good parts in JR!
surprisingly, i only dropped druaga and crystal blaze. or rather, i didn't manage to pick them up after the 1st episode.
so whatever is left of Spring 2008, that you've seen me write about, even a little bit, i'm still watching.
and omg, CLAMP is seriously going all out on Geass. just check out the latest OP & ED. instant drool-fest. i can only dream-wish for the same quality of artwork in Tsubasa RC. (CLAMP hasn't done a proper RG Veda since Chobits)
the story, as usual, is twisting as much as it can. as much as i don't like Shirley (ie. she's fan-fare), i was totally taken by surprise when they killed her off after making her relationship progress so much with Lelouch during the last few episodes. but then again, there were other surprises in Ep13 (credits as usual to RC).
Macross Frontier will definitely be getting my votes for best Anime OST 2008. with the way they keep churning out great songs, i'll be surprised if they don't. they have great mechas, and all the good songs. if they could just keep their animation quality consistent, it'll be a total joy to watch.
-----------------------------------------
with the end of such a great Spring, i'm not surprised that Summer 2008 had little to offer me. especially since there's still so many series that are still on-going from Spring. so the ones i'm planning to watch are...
Someday's Dreamers S2
alright, alright, i admit it. i am the ULTIMATE sucker for sequels. even if they might be terrible. frankly, ep1 was wayy boring. yet, i'm still gonna continue. at least, i'll stick around for another episode or two and see if they'll kill me with boredom. =\
Antique Bakery
now this, i'm looking forward to. many many many years ago, i bought and watched the live-action j-drama cos it had both Hideaki and Naohito. after watching ep1, you realized how much they down-played the shonen-ai aspect in the live-action, seeing that Naohito's character Yusuke is like totally gay!
anyway, this is as close as i can get to getting some BL action this season. i've actually checked out how the manga looks like, and the drawing seriously wasn't that fantastic so i didn't buy it.but who knows, i might change my mind after watching the anime. i'm most definitely not buying the manga, the drawings really aren't worth it.
Zero no Tsukaima S3
like i said, sucker-for-sequels. hopefully, this time they would really round up the story. it was interesting at first (S1), then it got slightly tiring and irritating (S2). but if they're really going to give it a good finish, i guess i can stick around for another 12 episodes or so.
so, that's just 3 shows, one of which has a high probability of getting the boot. well, at least that means i'll have a more fruitful Fall 2008 since there's much more sequels coming up then.
especially...
NODAME!! WoHOO!!
S2 is all about London! and hopefully, they'll follow the manga closely. as much as i liked the live-action interpretation of the London-arc, it was only two 1-hr specials, in which they tried to cram as much stuff in as possible.
so, as joey would say it, "it's London baby!"
-----------------------------------------
and i have to say this.
bleach is terribly terribly boring again. i can't decide what's worse, the Bounte filler or this current one.
seriously! what is wrong with juz stopping the series for a season? they did it for all the other shows!
1) Toshokan Sensou; so it might not be a winner hit like Honey and Clover, but i still enjoyed it. and yes, Dojou still reminds me of Sousuke, maybe more. even meow meow thinks so!
2) Amatsuki; total waste of time. i am so disappointed with how it turned out.
3) Angelique; still good enough for another season in summer 2008. still love the ED song. though that might change with the new season.
4) xxxHOLIC Kei; i always wondered why they never do more than a 12-episode season everytime. but judging from how slow CLAMP is reproducing, i guess i can't be greedy.
5&6) Junjou Romantica and Vampire Knight will both be airing part 2 in fall 2008. i have no idea why they're all following the footsteps of Geass and G00. especially since i'm so hooked on both.
total cliff-hanger endings. well, more for VK than JR, but still! they were juz getting to the good parts in JR!
surprisingly, i only dropped druaga and crystal blaze. or rather, i didn't manage to pick them up after the 1st episode.
so whatever is left of Spring 2008, that you've seen me write about, even a little bit, i'm still watching.
and omg, CLAMP is seriously going all out on Geass. just check out the latest OP & ED. instant drool-fest. i can only dream-wish for the same quality of artwork in Tsubasa RC. (CLAMP hasn't done a proper RG Veda since Chobits)
the story, as usual, is twisting as much as it can. as much as i don't like Shirley (ie. she's fan-fare), i was totally taken by surprise when they killed her off after making her relationship progress so much with Lelouch during the last few episodes. but then again, there were other surprises in Ep13 (credits as usual to RC).
Macross Frontier will definitely be getting my votes for best Anime OST 2008. with the way they keep churning out great songs, i'll be surprised if they don't. they have great mechas, and all the good songs. if they could just keep their animation quality consistent, it'll be a total joy to watch.
-----------------------------------------
with the end of such a great Spring, i'm not surprised that Summer 2008 had little to offer me. especially since there's still so many series that are still on-going from Spring. so the ones i'm planning to watch are...
Someday's Dreamers S2
alright, alright, i admit it. i am the ULTIMATE sucker for sequels. even if they might be terrible. frankly, ep1 was wayy boring. yet, i'm still gonna continue. at least, i'll stick around for another episode or two and see if they'll kill me with boredom. =\
Antique Bakery
now this, i'm looking forward to. many many many years ago, i bought and watched the live-action j-drama cos it had both Hideaki and Naohito. after watching ep1, you realized how much they down-played the shonen-ai aspect in the live-action, seeing that Naohito's character Yusuke is like totally gay!
anyway, this is as close as i can get to getting some BL action this season. i've actually checked out how the manga looks like, and the drawing seriously wasn't that fantastic so i didn't buy it.
Zero no Tsukaima S3
like i said, sucker-for-sequels. hopefully, this time they would really round up the story. it was interesting at first (S1), then it got slightly tiring and irritating (S2). but if they're really going to give it a good finish, i guess i can stick around for another 12 episodes or so.
so, that's just 3 shows, one of which has a high probability of getting the boot. well, at least that means i'll have a more fruitful Fall 2008 since there's much more sequels coming up then.
especially...
NODAME!! WoHOO!!
S2 is all about London! and hopefully, they'll follow the manga closely. as much as i liked the live-action interpretation of the London-arc, it was only two 1-hr specials, in which they tried to cram as much stuff in as possible.
so, as joey would say it, "it's London baby!"
-----------------------------------------
and i have to say this.
bleach is terribly terribly boring again. i can't decide what's worse, the Bounte filler or this current one.
seriously! what is wrong with juz stopping the series for a season? they did it for all the other shows!
Monday, 22 January 2007
Nodame Cantabile
since this will probably be the only winter 2006 anime i'm picking up, i'll give a more detailed write-up...
Nodame Cantabile is a story about a guy, chiaki shinichi, who inspires to be a orchestra conductor. though he's talented in both the piano and violin, he is also very arrogant and offended the piano lecturer in the music university that he's studying in...
as revenge, the lecturer transferred him to the rejects class where he meets the female lead, noda megumi (who insist everyone calls her nodame), a pianist who prides herself on her ears, more than the music score, for her good piano skills...
slowly, indirectly due by nodame, he starts to gather people around him which i'm guessing will start to form his little orchestra... nodame herself, is smitten with him, and almost always hangs around his apartment after school... especially when she only lives next door to him...
i really love all the music that they're playing, though i'm not a classical music person myself... very interesting and funny... in the 1st episode, chiaki had to clean up nodame's super messy and stinking room when the odour actually drifted over to his apartment... and the part where he starts washing her hair because she hasn't washed it in 4 days was hilarious...
all in all, i think this will be a great anime to keep... pity non of the other winter anime seemed to interest me much... oh well...
in other anime news,
saiunkoku monogatari will be ending in 5 week's time... however, the 2nd season will start in the coming spring, so i would still be able to get my saiunkoku fix... i hope the focus will be more on the relationship between ryuuki and shurei in the 2nd season though...
the latest PoT OVA episode 10 & 11 will be coming out this friday... more fuji and gang to look forward to...
Nodame Cantabile is a story about a guy, chiaki shinichi, who inspires to be a orchestra conductor. though he's talented in both the piano and violin, he is also very arrogant and offended the piano lecturer in the music university that he's studying in...
as revenge, the lecturer transferred him to the rejects class where he meets the female lead, noda megumi (who insist everyone calls her nodame), a pianist who prides herself on her ears, more than the music score, for her good piano skills...
slowly, indirectly due by nodame, he starts to gather people around him which i'm guessing will start to form his little orchestra... nodame herself, is smitten with him, and almost always hangs around his apartment after school... especially when she only lives next door to him...
i really love all the music that they're playing, though i'm not a classical music person myself... very interesting and funny... in the 1st episode, chiaki had to clean up nodame's super messy and stinking room when the odour actually drifted over to his apartment... and the part where he starts washing her hair because she hasn't washed it in 4 days was hilarious...
all in all, i think this will be a great anime to keep... pity non of the other winter anime seemed to interest me much... oh well...
in other anime news,
saiunkoku monogatari will be ending in 5 week's time... however, the 2nd season will start in the coming spring, so i would still be able to get my saiunkoku fix... i hope the focus will be more on the relationship between ryuuki and shurei in the 2nd season though...
the latest PoT OVA episode 10 & 11 will be coming out this friday... more fuji and gang to look forward to...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)