'No.6'

I hate stories that both succeed and fail. Or maybe this does neither. I honestly have no clue anymore.

The premise touches upon a theme that you usually like, and you assume it'd be an easy ride. Then you realize ten minutes in that it focuses on another theme that sets off every alarm bell in your mind. Despite your discomfort, you press on because the cast endears you enough to give them and their story a chance. Then about halfway through the journey as you make friends with the passengers, the main plot train breaks are busted. The narrative steamrolls towards a huge crash after it climbs a steep hill. Impact is immanent, but you hang on anyway because, as your life flashes before your eyes, you realize the main characters and the secondary theme that initially terrified you are the only reasons you're still on the damn ride in the first place. Finally, the train derails. But by some divine miracle the passengers you grew to love are safe and unharmed. You share tearful farewells as everyone is taken to the hospital. And as you look back at the burning remains of the plot, you wonder if the memory of this strange, avoidable catastrophe is even worth remembering.

That was my time with the anime and manga adaptations, as well as the original light novels, of No.6.

Spoilers, cursing, rage, and feels aplenty.

How to Wish Me a Happy Birthday, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and Happy Valentine's Day with $65

Well, I guess I have no right to bitch about something I was asking for and whining about for six months.

Still, it's such a shame. Just when my brain and heart have successfully completed couples therapy, amicably decided not to file a divorce, and happily started to get along again... my best friend repaid me for my dragging her into the insane maelstrom that this show birthed by sharing the news of this super special awesome DVD/Blu-ray box set the other day.

I guess I still have a lot of recovering to do from the hard punch to the face my arrogant ego deserved.

... And did I say I need twenty lifetimes worth of showers to purify my soul? I actually need a million. And that still might not be enough.

Personal crack... too powerful... must... resist...

*weeps at the email receipt from PayPal and Funimation*

Looking on the bright side, at least the box set uses my favorite promotional image of Yuuri and Victor. Might as well have something nice to look at as I complete my nosedive into obsessive fangirl hell.

Seriously though, thank you, Em, for my early birthday gift. The last time I squeed so loudly and uncontrollably was when I saw HIM perform live in 2010.

Honestly, I really am extremely happy I can finally buy Yuri!!! on Ice. The wait for February will kill me, but at least I know it'll be totally worth it.

Yet Another Guilty Pleasure: Romance and 'Yuri!!! On Ice'

...

... I love Yuri!!! On Ice.  It's better for me to come out and say it on my own platform rather than on Twitter or Tumblr. Oh god I can't make myself look up YOI on Tumblr or Google without safe search...

Please don't ask me to rate this. I've no clue how to rate it anyway. This isn't a review. If you want to watch Yuri!!! On Ice, go forth and watch. If not, don't watch it; that's perfectly acceptable. If you're undecided, well, don't feel the need to watch it because of me or anyone else who asserts that this is the best thing ever (SPOILER: it isn't). This is not a show you need to watch right now, because it already has deserved more than enough praise. SERIOUSLY, this show does not need any more fans and/or attention.

Yet here I am, a fan, blushing uncontrollably as I'm typing this. I am ashamed. So very ashamed. I tried to resist this damned anime, and I have never failed so spectacularly in not giving a shit.

Yuri!!! On Ice, you broke me. You fucking broke me. You have left my brain and heart at odds over your stupid existence. I want those 30+ hours and five weeks worth of repeated binge-watching back. And you owe me a million grams of insulin for the diabetes you inflicted upon me. And I need directions to the nearest volcano to throw myself into.

There be SPOILERS ahoy... if you care enough. Seriously, please don't read beyond this point. You don't need to see me at my most pathetic. Seriously, read one of my older posts instead. You'll get more use out of my badly written high school drivel than this. Please. don't read any further. I beg of you. Don't do it.

The Hunger Games... Maybe I'm Just Too Cynical

I guess I couldn't ignore this for long...

I saw The Hunger Games the other day... Where to begin.

I think may have mentioned at least once that when it comes to majority opinion, I tend to get very skeptical. When people were raging over the books, I backed off without hesitation. Twilight fooled me once and I was not going to fall for another trap. This series is more than likely far better written but I was not ready to examine the bandwagon. An overreaction? Perhaps. It didn't help that one of my friends obsessed about it, because I'm not always as impressed by the stuff she loves. I try her cup of tea, enjoy it mildly, and return to mine.

That aside, I heard and read everyone's outcry on the whole issue of a "lack of racial diversity" and "twenty black people in the background doesn't count as diversity." Because I have not read the books, I have no comment. While watching the film, I saw nothing of that nature to complain about.

Now, as a "typical movie fan", The Hunger Games was rather entertaining. The pacing and build-up was nearly flawless, the set was fantastic, the second half was more suspenseful than a horror film, and the costumes were great. The shaky camera was very annoying in the beginning and during some of the action scenes, but it did help to hide some of the gruesome murders.

The best part of the film was the commentary on the reality TV-crazed American media. Everyone is obsessed with sitting back at home and watching the drama, death, and violence the kids face during the game of survival. The well-off citizens in the Capital looked like overdressed candy wrappers in an elegant, futuristic store shelf. Despite how ludicrous appearances were, this aesthetic was surprisingly... beautiful. This was far more appropriate and tasteful than Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland.

The world of Panem is very easy to understand, even if you never touched the books. For all of these, I was very pleased. Honestly, I was looking forward to the later films just to see this where this political dystopian universe will go.

But I walked out of this film pissed off.

I'm sorry, who are all of you again?

Despite the easy-to-follow plot, most of the characters fell dangerously behind. Other than Katniss, Gale, Rue, and Peeta, I cannot remember anyone else's names. I'm not sure if it's the actors' faults for poorly enunciating (for a while, I heard Cinna being called "Sinner") or the writers' faults for not clearly defining who was who. We never get to know any of the other kids fighting in the games, except Rue and the generically aggressive blonde jerk. The former gets fleshed out too late, but still done well enough; the latter was essentially pointless.

Out of the entire crew, only Gale and Katniss made great first impressions through their believable dialogue. But only Peeta stood out as the most likable character despite his quiet introduction. Everyone else was forgettable, especially Haymitch, who only served as the stereotypically incompetent mentor. Even Naruto pulled off that trope better... twice.

Above all else, I absolutely despised every single moment Katniss and Peeta exchanged words. Katniss treated him like crap in the beginning for no clear reason. I get that she's not exactly into having a relationship with anyone, but here she looked more rude than self-confident or being a "survivor." Even when everyone tells the two to pretend to have a "star-crossed romance" for the sake of entertainment for the Hunger Games, I could not take them seriously. Their "romance" was almost at Twilight levels of aggravating and sugary mush. Though I was glad Katniss went out in the midst of danger despite Peeta's whiny protests like most guys are portrayed in romances, I struggled to contain my frustration.

*sigh* I'm just so cynical and nitpicky.

I'll pass.

Look, this movie is worth checking out. Seriously. After the lack of good movies after the last Harry Potter film and Chronicle, this is worth two and a half hours of your life. All my complaints aside, this was a well-made movie that's fun, easy to follow, suspenseful, and emotional. Don't take my mixed feelings to heart.

There's only one thing I know for certain. I am still not convinced to read the books.

3.3 out of 5

'Clannad'

(CREDIT: to the makers.)

Rank: 4.9 out of 5 <-- ...

Okazaki Tomoya is a delinquent who finds life dull and believes he'll never amount to anything. Along with his friend Sunohara, he skips school and plans to waste his high school days away. One day while walking to school, Tomoya passes Nagisa Furukawa muttering quietly to herself. Without warning she exclaims "Anpan!" (a popular Japanese food) in self-motivation which catches Tomoya's attention. Soon after, they become friends at school. Tomoya learns Nagisa has been held back a year due to a severe illness and that her dream is to revive the school's drama club. Claiming he has nothing better to do, he decides to help her achieve this goal along with the help of four other girls.
As Tomoya spends more time with the girls, he learns more about them and their problems. As he attempts to help each girl overcome her respective obstacle, he begins to realize life isn't as dull as he once thought.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]

This show was far more brutal than Ef - A Tale of Memories. Clannad is such an emotionally stimulating clusterfuck that I have died of dehydration. I have lost the ability to cry...

And I HATE THIS SHOW. TT-TT

So yeah. Here it goes. I might as well break everything down into categories for the sake of covering a two-season anime.

CHARACTERS: Clannad does have a lot of characters in stereotypical roles (a punching bag, a lolita, a shy girl, a sweet girl, etc), yet they still come off as endearing. Each character has at least some development and relevance despite the large cast. Each arc focuses on one of the friends Tomoya makes through the end of his high school life; however, the delivery is a hit or miss. One of the biggest offenders is Fuko's arc which took up nearly half of the first season. Although it was the only time when I considered dropping the show, the slow pacing was not easy to sit through. Otherwise, the stories are taken care of very well, although some characters have not much screen time ever again.

Hands down, I liked Tomoya the most. He's blunt, cynical, and loves to pull pranks every now and then (wait... that's like me kinda... o_O.) He is a love or hate sort of guy and many don't like him for his distance from his dad and how Tomoya is willing to help his friends but not his dad. As someone who is going through family difficulty, I can understand his unwillingness to deal with his issues. I loved him the most in Clannad: After Story, where he matures so much and becomes a very strong protagonist despite his double whammy downfall near the end...

Nagisa, on the other hand, is Tohru Honda... minus the strength and the "fixing up" duty: they are placed all on Tomoya. Nagisa is a decent character, but she is significantly weaker and is quite needy. Sometimes I felt that Tomoya should have stopped taking care of her like a lost puppy. Though she gets stronger and more confident, she still feels like a passive Tohru Honda for no reason. In fact, all the characters - except Tomoya a good chunk of the time - is passive. I forgot how many times an "'I'm sorry!' 'It's okay!'" moment occurred in 50 episodes!

PLOT: Have a box of tissues with you. Clannad is very emotional roller coaster ride, even to the point that you become numb in a time when you should be bawling your eyes out. It's very annoying, especially near the end of Clannad: After Story, when Tomoya is in the darkest moment in his life. To sum it up, I was so stuffed from the appetizers that I had little room to enjoy the main meal. At least I threw a teary-eyed hissy fit at episode 21; oh, the foul language that the neighbor's heard at 3 in the morning... But since Arkada marked that scene as the 2nd saddest moment in anime... I should have been better prepared.

Despite the fact that some arcs are not well paced, and some characters have a far better story than others, Clannad does well in delivery on an emotional level. So much so that I can't really critique it to the fullest; I can agree that this show is manipulative with emotions, but I still gave a crap anyway. Just like me with Naruto.

ART: Fluid and beautiful! Despite the "moe" character designs of the females, everyone moves naturally. In After Story, we get to see Tomoya fight a gang member, and hands down that scene was executed far better than one in any action anime I have seen. Even in the "parallel world" where there is a young girl and a robot, everything felt so real and not stiff and choppy. Otherwise, not much can be said here. It's not groundbreaking, but it was truly a new experience for me.

SOUND: The opening songs of both seasons are wonderful; I have "Megumeru" on my iPod and "Toki wo Kizamu Uta" fits season two in a bittersweet way. The ending songs are okay, with "Dango Daikazoku" as a strong highlight. That song appears many times as an instrumental in some sweet scenes and is sung a few times by some characters in After Story. Background music was fitting and noticeable, but nothing award-winning.

As for voice acting... I stuck with the English dub, which was done well. You could go with Japanese subtitles or English dub depending on what you stick with because you can't go wrong. But be warned that the dub started off pretty shaky at first, but things settled down relatively and quickly.

Overall, Clannad has some rehashed story elements, but is delivered in a very emotional fashion to make you love it or hate it. I'm tempted to call it a masterpiece in its own way, but at the end of the day, I felt it was realistic at first with cynical Tomoya, but the show progressed into an idealistic fashion. Honestly, that was why I loved Ef - A Tale of Memories so much; it was surreal and trippy at times, but the events and interactions were realistic. Despite that, on a subjective level, I want give Clannad a 6 out of 5 for my expectations being blown out of the water. But my objective side would probably rate this as a 3.8. So I'll compromise the two by giving Clannad... a 4.9 out of 5.

Geez, this show makes Titanic look like a comedy... I gotta stop giving these romance stories high praise. Dammit...

'Ef - A Tale of Memories'

(CREDIT: to the creators. duh.)

Rank: 5 out of 5 <-- Guess I'm not a heartless biatch after all. :P

The anime revolves around two protagonists, Hirono Hiro and Asou Renji. On Christmas Eve, Hiro meets a girl named Miyamura Miyako who was chasing a purse snatcher. He later finds out that Miyako also goes to the same school as he does and they start hanging out together, making Hiro's childhood friend Shindou Kei jealous.

Meanwhile, Asou Renji meets a girl named Shindou Chihiro at an abandoned train station. He soon learns that Chihiro suffers from a type of amnesia where her memory span only lasts for 13 hours. He also discovers Chihiro's dream of writing a novel and decides to help her fulfill it due to her condition.

(From Anime New Network.)

The anti-romantic Fangirl has been defeated again. No, more than that. I was stabbed in the heart, beaten to a bloody pulp, and left on the side of the road as a testament to all about what happens when someone disses romanticism. And to that, I apologize to the world... now, you must pay my medical bill. But let me say a few things before I get pummeled again. This show is so sappy, it's almost as bad as Titanic and The Notebook. Something like this should set me off, make me blow up every red heart [the shape - not the organ] on the face of this planet. I should complain about how wimpy the characters (especially the guys) were. BUT I CAN'T.

Ef - A Tale of Memories has pretty much left me almost nothing to say about it other than it was far better than I expected. I was only initially interested because Arkada mentioned the show TWICE in his Glass Reflection videos: once on a list of sad moments in anime and another on 10 anime that should be dubbed. If a guy admits that he enjoyed a romantic drama anime enough that he cried... yeah... a few points given already.

Yes, A Tale of Memories made me freaking cry a few times. It was wonderful to finally watch a show where there is no filler content whatsoever, the characters are likable, and the plot moves quickly, but smoothly. How Ef could tell two storylines in 12 episodes and deliver both of them so beautifully and emotionally is way beyond what my brain can wrap around. There were loads of moments where I should have made fun of the characters for being melodramatic, but those scenes would make my heart heavy instead.

Once I got a sense of where the story was going, everything about the show seemed nearly perfect. The overall soundtrack is very good as well with various opening and ending songs; although, it took a while for the music to grow on me. And the animation. Holy crap. Every scene is gorgeous and is truly an artistic feast, and I felt very content every time. The voice actors were phenomenal because almost every thing they said felt so raw and natural. I could go on and mention the memorable scenes for their music, imagery, and emotion, but I would take too long: A Tale of Memories is THAT good.

Complaints? ... ... ... 12 episodes is way too short. And it NEEDS to be dubbed in English. By professionals. None of that 4Kids quality garbage or else I will take back every nice thing I said about this show.

Because the scenes can be surrealistic and it's a romance drama, Ef - A Tale of Memories might be good to try out for some and not for others. But if romance or drama is up your alley... why the hell haven't you googled this show yet? I can't quite call this show a masterpiece, but if it can ever be distributed on the western hemisphere, I'd probably put this show on my shelf within seconds. I'll go back to watch the show again for sure, but for now, Ef - A Tale of Memories deserves a perfect 5 out of 5.

Are there memories you do not want to forget?

'Midori no Hibi'

(CREDIT: to the mangaka. I can't draw and write a story simultaniously!)

Rank: 2.8 out of 5 <-- unexpectedly sweet

Reading manga has been something I have enjoyed for nearly four years, but I am anything but loyal to this hobby of mine. I go through a number of phases thanks to numerous series I find and look up frequently (ex: Naruto, Fruits Basket, etc.) For a while, I hit an unmotivating period when nothing pushed me to consider looking up new or updates of ongoing manga. Thankfully Mars kicked my lazy butt and I've been on a mini manga spree again. While roaming around the wonderfully worldly web, I ran into an anime review of Midori Days.

It wasn't the first time I heard of it. Back when I used to buy manga frequently, I finished a volume of Zatch Bell and at the last pages of the book were ads for other manga to try out. Midori Days was one of them and my WTF radar nearly fried. I mean, honestly: a romantic comedy about a boy with a girl on his right hand. Who could NOT see that and call it a joke? At least now that I have read all 85 chapters, it's a good thing it wasn't a joke.

Despite the silliness of the premise, Midori Days is a very fun and satisfying ride from start to finish. Seiji can almost fit in the "bad boy with a good heart" box, but how he is like a real teenage boy makes him very memorable. And if not that, he can be very cartoonish, which is hilarious at the right times. But a great bit of humor comes from Midori and how she interacts with Seiji. Depending on whether you read the manga or watch the anime, there are some moments that are greater than others (ex: the nightmare episode in the anime, the dragging unconscious Seiji to school chapter, etc.) Because of the days they spend together and his obliviousness to the girls who like him, Seiji and Midori's growing bond is very enjoyable. To be honest, I cried at one point at the end of the manga.

Great character development, however, is only present with the two leads, and that's it. For the rest of the cast, you either like them for their main traits, or you don't. It's not that they are bad, but they are two-dimensional

at best: nearly all of them has a small backstory and know about Midori. That's about it. Again, it's not horrible, but it can be dissatisfying at times. At the end of the day, the only secondary characters I found memorable were Ayase, Rin, Kuota, Miyahara, and Lucy.

I would prefer one to read the manga, because the story is better told in this medium. Seiji's emotional development is handled slowly this way, but the results are all the more satisfying. On the other hand - no pun intended - the anime deals with Seiji and Midori catching up with each other in real life in a more interesting fashion. The comedy is far better here too (the first episode. PERIOD.), but the plot suffers much more in the anime and in the manga. It might not matter too much, but I would go for the manga if I were you.

Two last things. There is some perverted humor albeit far more clean and refined than one might expect. Also, there is some fan service here too, but - like the perverted jokes - it is more of the fact that "it is there" than vulgar. Fangirl tends to hate crudeness (even mild stuff), but these two things did not take away the fact that Midori no Hibi is a very sweet and touching story.

Overall, Midori Days - the anime and the manga combined - deserves a solid 2.8 out of 5.

It'll take a while until I find another unique concept like this. Hopefully my manga/anime spree won't end soon...

'Mars'

Yes, I am aware of the inconsistency. But believe me: no "star-crossed lover" BS. The cover lies!!

(CREDIT: due to the creator. not mine.)
Rank: 5 out of 5 <-- So much fun in so little volumes T-T

My friends often accuse me of being extremely unromantic. Just because I hate Valentine's Day and find a boy handwriting a Shakespearian sonnet in a special card to be very cheap, that doesn't mean that I'm heartless! My favorite band plays nothing but love songs! I cry when I watch Titanic! I think about getting married sometimes! I have my own "perfect guy" image in my head! I read and watch romantic books, movies, manga, and anime! Is that unnatural and heartless? :P

But really, it takes a little bit to impress me; so how could Mars earn a perfect score from picky Fangirl?

I might have heard of this series while exploring Mangafox, but I never was introduced to it until a few months ago. I have taken private art lessons for a long time, and my teacher and I get to chat a lot when I work. We often talk about movies and TV shows; one she brought up was a live-action Taiwanese series based on this manga and shares the name Mars. Although she did reveal big parts of the plot, I was still very interested in one of the characters she described.

To describe what this series is like, I could call it a blend of Fruits Basket, Dengeki Daisy, and a cousin five times removed of Black Swan. I would use Fruits Basket because of the smooth flow of the story and the beautiful balance between the light and fluffy moments and the dark and eerie ones. Dengeki Daisy had some really sharp turns in mood within two panels that would often make my stomach drop, something Mars has in a less overwhelming way. Black Swan and Mars have one thing in common: ALMOST ALL OF THE CHARACTERS ARE MESSED UP.

Sure, the romance in this story is basic and a bit cliche, but the combination of characters, interactions, and situations made this series extremely impressive. There is A LOT of psychological tension going on throughout the story, and each character has his or her own issues. And believe me, fights, anger, and deaths balance out the cheesy romance. Just to give a hint of how bad some characters are:

There is one character who is a complete sociopath. He not only toys around with Rei when he is overcoming grief and shock, he also manipulates Kira to the point of nearly reenacting Rei's brother's death. That same character has no problem with treating people like they are less than garbage. Hell, he even killed a guy!

However, not to spoil too much, but I think Sei is the most f'ed up character of all.

But if you ask me, throwing characters with psychologically and emotionally traumatic pasts into a 15-volume romance series makes Mars all the more intriging.

Overall, Rei might be my favorite character, even though I dislike guys like him in real life (at least the playboy part of him.) Although the events and characters might not be completely realistic, everything worked well for what they did. I can't say Kira and Rei are the best couple ever, but their relationship was very cute and enjoyable. (And there is no destiny bullshit! WHOOT!)

My only regret is that I read this too quickly: it took me two days to finish. :'(

For a long time, Fruits Basket was one of my favorite manga for the well developed characters, holeless plot, and beautiful storytelling. But now I think Mars will take its place, because it does all of those things better and then some. This series, which I highly recommend to almost anyone, deserves a perfect score.

Now I really need to find that Taiwanese version so bad. My art teacher said it was hilarious...