Sorry for not posting in forever! I lost track of time cramming studying among other things (like getting addicted to Tokyo Majin, experiencing second-hand male PMS, getting the dog vaccinated, work, etc. ).
Heads up: Stray Love Hearts Room #11 will probably be available sometime this week (most likely late Friday since that’s when I usually have time off some school). I managed to get about 1/4th done before I other stuff demanded my attention (I should have asked off from work >_> I never feel like doing anything after work. Forcing myself to study was not pleasing…)
On the plus side, my order from bk1.jp came ~ *heart*
My dog was not pleased when I put these manga on her bed XD
Books bought:
- Pandora Hearts (I got this mainly due to the CRACKED subs of the Pandora Hearts‘ anime omake I saw on namelissis’s blog. They were so awesome I had to read the source material. Plus there are bishies galore!)
- Clover no Kuni no Alice ~ Waltzing with the Chester Cat (Naturally as a Boris x Alice fan I got this manga when I saw it listed on bk1.jp. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have the little hiragana next to the kanji! No! Oh well, at least I have the pictures to admire until my reading skills improve more I guess…;_;)
- Heart no Kuni no Alice vol 4 (Yeah! More Heart no Kuni no Alice goodness
I was surprised to see Joker on the cover. Heck, he’s hot so I don’t care. You can never have enough bishies!) - Stray Love Hearts vol 1, 2, & 3 (Finally! I got the beginning volumes! Now I can figure out what in the world people are talking about in the later chapters I summarized. Yet I’m also pissed at SLH because it was the reason it took so long for my order to get shipped out. Never will I order a ‘bundle’ set again. I’ll put each volume in individually; may take me 10 more seconds to do but it’ll save me 20 days of waiting >_>;)
- Otomen vol 1 (I’m normally a little hesitant to read Hana no Yume titles because I’m still a novice but reading scanlations showed this isn’t too text heavy so I decided to give it a try. Plus I liked her other work, Soul Rescue, for all the abrupt ending it had :/. And how can you not be interested in a manga that has a cover of a guy with flowers in his hair? XD)
- Shugo Chara vol 2 (Since I read #1, time to continue with #2 )
- Kitchen Princess vol 2 (I’ve decided to give this series one more try. I kind of liked #1 but if this is just about people beating on Najika then I’m out >_>; Hopefully this will stand past my 2 vol test…)
- Megane Prince (Four Eyed Prince) vol 1 (I saw this as one of Del Rey’s new line up series awhile back and the title caught my eye :3 What can I say? Guys look good when wearing the right pair of glasses or at least IMHO XD)
- Hakuouki Artbook (I like the artist who draws the illustrations so I got this book just for that purpose. It’s hardcover too which impressed me greatly. The other I have is just soft cover)
This is something new I want to try out. I figure if I call my blog “Spoils” I might as well live up to the name. Sometimes, before I read or watch a series, I want to know what happens in the end. Like, is the ending good or will it end up sucking? [I've had too many experiences where the series I'm reading just completely blows or the ending is something I don't like]
Or I’m too lazy to watch or read the whole thing and I just want to know the meat of things so I can understand what people around me are talking about ^^
For my first rendition of Spoilers, I’m going to write a quick summary about the end to Tokyo Majin.
Just to let you know I already forgot the names of most of the characters so I’m going to use nicknames or quick descriptions :p
You can probably already tell the reason I watched this anime was cuz I thought Kyouichi and Tatsuma looked cute XD
Title: Tokyo Majin
Summary:
Tokyo. A wave of mysterious deaths ripples throughout the city. Corpses of the un-dead, controlled by monstrous creatures, scour the urban underworld at the bidding of their dark master, seeking a power that could bring about the final apocalypse. With the police helpless in the face of these unnamable horrors, the fate of the world hangs on five unlikely saviors: the students of Tokyo Majin!
Armed with their own incredible powers, they must battle an unholy swarm of evil beings; everything from Alchemists through Zombies! It’s a deadly war fought in shadows, and they’re completely outmatched except for one thing: they never learned when to say die! The back alleys of Japan’s largest city are the site of the biggest supernatural rumble ever in Tokyo Majin!
Tokyo Majin was a slow start for me but once I got into the rhythm of things, I couldn’t stop watching. I ended up marathoning the second season instead of studying (I’m bad but I couldn’t concentrate on Cell Biology when I wanted to know how the fate of the earth would turn out). Unfortunately, the ending left you with more questions than answers. Also, the ending is left open, such that maybe a third season could be possibly planned (but given the big time gap since the second season’s release, my hopes are slowly dying). The ending was akin to anime version of Venus Versus Virus, both which left me going WTF that’s it!?
What I enjoyed about Tokyo Majin were the characters. I don’t care if they are stereotypes or cliches. They entertained me. I loved them all save one character – Aoi. The reason it took me so long to finish the first season was Aoi. Just seeing her made me go U-G-H! At first I liked her approach of we need to save everyone. But when you say that then throw yourself at the enemy (not to attack or anything – just jumping right out there) so your friends end up having to save your stupid ass and get hurt in the process, that’s when it just got annoying. Defeat the guy first then have a talk with him. Don’t try and reason with a person while they are currently under the influence of their dark side! Especially not when they have powers that left people dead! >_> Sorry for the bitching. I just had to get that out.
Ah-hem. Of the characters, I loved Tatsuma and Kyouichi the best. Tatsuma was so adorable while Kyouichi was a lovable douche-bag. Those two together just made me enjoy the anime (and helped overcome the stupidity of a certain someone)
Another plus Tokyo Majin had was the visuals. The fighting scenes were just down right awesome. The camera was flying all over the place, giving great dynamic angles. Weapons and blood are flashing all over the scenes. It just drew me in – I was hypnotized you could say XD Even when it wasn’t used to show battles, the animation was still very impressive.
In the end, Tokyo Majin impresses visually while failing story-wise. I think had I more experience with the video game I’d understand the hidden references made. References that should have made me go OMG it’s you! or So THAT’S what that meant! just went over my head and left me staring blankly at my tv thinking, why do I even care about that? I don’t get it…Even with it’s poor story I still loved Tokyo Majin. I liked the characters (except for Aoi, she needed to go away (＃￣З￣)) and the way they interacted with one another. I also liked the humor, although subtle sometimes. And who can forget the battles >:D Though I liked it, I’m not sure how others will feel about the anime. It’s something nice to try if you like seeing people beat up shit.
Tatsuma, giving finger and looking awesome
Apparently my scanner does not like neon pink...>_> Pucho...your hair...
Title: Pixie Pop (Gokkun! Pucho)
Author: Tooyama Ema
Summary (for the Tokyopop version):
Mayu, the daughter of a cafe owner, is down-in-the-dumps and unlucky in love…until she meets Pucho, the magical fairy of beverages. Now, whenever Mayu drinks something, she transforms! But there’s a catch–milk makes her grow, water turns her invisible, and pork soup turns her into a cute little piglet. But what will help her win the man of her dreams?
I forgot about this manga XD I got it a while back and left it on my shelf to gather dust.
I was waiting for my package from bk1.jp to finally ship (it did yesterday *throws hands up in joy*) and was looking at my shelf for something to read. The bad thing with Nakayoshi releases is that if you look at a bunch of Nakayoshi series from the spine only, they look all the same (unless you get the special editions). I was going to grab Kamichama Karin when I noticed Gokkun! Pucho. Hey! I bought that and never read it! XD
Feeling bad for neglecting it, I finally cracked it open for a read.
The artwork is VERY cute. Cute big eyed girls (esp Mayu – her eyes are seriously huge; 2/3’s of her face is eyes) and cute not-so-big-eyed-thankfully guys. Everything in this manga screams cute and sweet. You can get diabetes from reading this manga – that’s how sugary sweet it is.
Story wise, Gokkun! Pucho starts when protagonist Mayu’s hope of recovering from a broken heart is turned to roadkill when the guy she was rejected by ends up being her new seat mate in her new year in school. While drowning her sorrows with carbonated beverages, she ends up drinking a special droplet that grants her special powers depending on whatever it is she ingests. Naturally this causes problems. But each time she transforms, she gets a little closer to the guy who she likes and gets to understand him better.
At first I thought the guy was a turd. But then as you continue to read, you understand why he rejected her. He didn’t even know who she was (she always watched from the shadows) so why accept a love confession from a complete stranger? (she could be a crazy…rapist…or something >_>; this would work better if the roles were reversed) However, the more Mayu interacts with him, the more you can see his feelings for her are changing – this is especially evident in the final chapter when Mayu, who ends up staying in the same room with Amamiya because she drank an energy drink that turned her into a boy and Amamiya’s friend mistakes her for his childhood friend, asks Amamiya how does he feel about Mayu. It was very cute :3 Until the last page when of course a love rival has to make an appearance (sigh).
The other characters were interesting. I like Amamiya’s friend, for all the 5 pages he has an appearance, the best. Not only does he think a random stranger is his BFF from elementary school or whatever, but he also cried when going through the test of courage XD
At the end of the volume are two bonus chapters – one about Pucho (the drink spirit) falling in love and another about Amamiya’s friend and his crush on Mayu’s friend. Both were funny (and of course cute. I don’t know how many times I’ve said that now).
Overall I enjoyed Gokkun! Pucho. It entertained and provided me with a cute romance story. I’m dreading the love rival part but what’s a shojo without a love rival? I’m looking forward to volume 2.
You can preview the series on mangafox: click here
(I added this random post because I wanted to push Wicked City down. Down into the lost darkness of my archives…>_> FYI)
For some odd reason, I love this opening. I don’t know why. I think because the opening animation fits it so well.
Just ignore the guy screaming in the beginning, and periodically during the song. I think he’s just trying to alert his other band mates he got his balls caught in his zipper and needs medical attention to extract them out XD
The song comes from the anime Tokyo Majin Season I.
Title: 0:00 AM
Artist: ACID
This is the anime opening (note the lyrics are a little different)
Found the lyrics somewhere on the internet, with minor revisions
Translations are mine ^^ so sorrys if they suck
月明かりの下で君が震えていた
Beneath the moon’s light, you were shaking.
傷だらけ悲しそうな君の表情
沈黙と雑踏の中
狂いそうで壊れそうな現状かい？
君はそうさ君のまま生きて…
Covered in scars, the mien your melancholy figure wore
- In the midst of silence and turmoil -
Was it one of insanity – that you were breaking?
But that’s you – your way of living
始まりは君の中全ての夜が明けるように叫ぼう
ひざ抱え悩むより全てが朝へ向かうように 叫ぼう
Let’s shout as all the nights dawn – for the beginning inside of you
Rather than hug our knees, lamenting – let’s shout as it all turns to face the morning
君が怯えていた 0:00A.M. ほえる様に囁いて
最悪の状況が今 窓ガラスに映る星が流れてた
0:00 AM – the time that once filled you with fear – was whispered like a roar
The window pane – once showing the worst pictures** – now reflected a sea of stars
目を閉じたら 君の空は落ちていく
カメレオンじゃなくて 心から変わろう
When you close your eyes, your sky continues to sink
We’re not chameleons – let’s change from our hearts
輝きは君の中 全ての夜が 明けるように 叫ぼう
終わり無き風になろう 全てが空へ 向かうまでに 叫ぼう
Let’s shout as all the nights dawn – for the light inside of you
Let’s become a wind that never ceases, shouting until it all turns to face the sky
誰だって迷うのは当然 悩んで前向くんだ
君だって枯れたくは無いだろう 動き出す前に枯れたくは無いだろう
It’s natural for anyone to lose their way – worry and face those worries
I have no desire for you to wither away, understand? No inclination to see you fall apart before you can start, alright?
心から変わろう
Let’s change from our hearts
始まりは君の中 全ての夜が 明けるように 叫ぼう
ひざ抱え悩むより 全てが朝へ 向かうように 叫ぼう
Let’s shout as all the nights dawn – for the beginning inside of you
Rather than hug our knees, lamenting – let’s shout as it all turns to face the morning
全ての夜が 明けるように 裂けるように 叫ぼう
全てが朝へ 運命を超えて 向かうように 叫ぼう
Let’s shout – as all the nights dawn, as it all tears apart
Let’s shout – as it all faces a morning that exceeds destiny’s reach
Notes
** Picture as in situation
Title: Wicked City: Black Guard
Author: Hideyuki Kikuchi
Truth be told, I was debating whether to put an opinion of this light novel on my blog. I didn’t want to be responsible for the masses of people that will go WTF!? after reading this. But it’s a light novel and that’s one of the things I put up on my blog so…here it is…>_>;
Wicked City...
Summary on the back:
Another world exists beyond the one that humans can see a world populated by demons. For centuries, demons have crossed into our world, some looking for a new life, adventure, or just a job. But many are intent on causing chaos and destruction, feasting on human flesh and fear. A tenuous Peace Treaty is the only barrier between the worlds, the only thing protecting humankind from utter devastation.
Every hundred years the Treaty must be renewed and the time for that secret ceremony is at hand. Violent demonic splinter factions that are hell-bent on destroying the ancient pact are preparing to assassinate a key figure who is vital to the signing ceremony.
Enter the Black Guard, a secret police force that protects the boundary between the dark world and our own. It’s the job of two Black Guard agents Makie, a gorgeous demon, and Taki, a hard-boiled human to form an unlikely partnership, stop the assassination, and avert an all-out war. But to save both their worlds, they must risk not only their lives, but their very souls
I was surprised to run across this book on amazon. I had originally had this pre-ordered a LONG time ago on rightstuf but the listing for the book was removed from their site awhile back and so did my order. It was because I was looking at Spice and Wolf reviews that I saw Wicked City under someone’s listamania for upcoming light novel books.
I was even more surprised to find the publisher of the book is Seven Seas. I liked their translations for Boogiepop and Shinigami no Ballad (though I do wish the rest of the books had gotten released but what can you do?) so I decided to give Wicked City a go. Now before I go into my opinion, I need a disclaimer:
IF YOU ARE A CHILD OR SOMEONE REALLY YOUNG THAT PROBABLY HASN’T HAD SEX ED, HAVEN’T BEEN MENTALLY SCARRED BY THE WORLD, AND AREN’T AT LEAST IN HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL, GO BACK TO YOUR NARUTO! THIS IS NOT MEANT AS AN INSULT! THIS BOOK IS NOT FOR THE YOUNG! SERIOUSLY! DO NOT READ THIS BOOK UNTIL YOU ARE WAY OLDER AND CAN HANDLE THE WEIRDNESS IN THIS BOOK. GO BACK! GO BACK!
Okay, now that I’ve said that and hopefully prevented the children of the world from losing their purity (who am I kidding; that disclaimer probably did nothing. Maybe it even sparked their curiosity. Or pissed them off. -_-”), on to my opinion.
Shugo Chara
Title: Shugo Chara! volume #1
Manga-ka: Peach-Pit
Summary on the back (Del Rey version):
Everybody at Seiyo Elementary thinks that stylish and super-cool Amu has it all – but nobody knows the real Amu, a shy girl who wishes she had the courage to truly be herself. Changing Amu’s life is going to take more than wishes and dreams – it’s going to take a little magic!
One morning, Amu finds a surprise in her bed: three strange little eggs. Each egg contains a Guardian Character, an angel-like being who can give her the power to be someone new. With the help of her Guardian Characters, Amu is about to discover that her true self is even more amazing than she ever dreamed.
♪:;;;:♪:;;;:♪:;;;:♪:;;;:♪:;;;:♪:;;;:♪:;;;:♪:;;;:♪:;;;:♪
Truthfully, I’ve read up to volume #4 of the Del Rey edition of Shugo Chara but now that I’m trying to bone up on my translation skills, I’m using the English edition against the Japanese one. This helps me not only to see how certain sentences are conveyed in English, but also helps me to understand types of ’slang’ that I can’t find in any dictionary or textbook (at least not easily).
This is the 3rd Nakayoshi title I’ve practiced with – Kitchen Princess #1 and Kamachama Karin #1 being the other two (as of this review, I’ve got Kitchen Princess #2 on order along with Shugo Chara! #2; and Kamichama Karin #2 sitting on my shelf). Of the three, I have to say Shugo Chara is my favorite so far 
Amu is a likable heroine. She’s insecure about herself and has trouble being her true self – traits I can relate to that quite easily. I’m enjoying seeing her break out of her fake self and becoming the person she wants to be. The other side characters are also amusing, especially when their Character Change. It’s usually a complete 180 personality wise. My favorites so far are Nadishiko (cuz of her Character Change), Ikuto (I have a thing for guys with cat ears XD), and Kuukai (just cuz I like energetic happy people).
Story-wise, we get introduced to Amu’s situation, learn a bit about Shugo Charas and the Embryo, and also about another organization out to get the Embryo. The only thing that bothers me is the reason the guardians are helping Tadase find the Embryo. World domination is kind of out there…>_>; I’m not sure I’d like to be ruled by someone who still has a bed time curfew set by his parents…
But this is fiction so it’s best to let go of the rules of reality and just go with it.
Overall, Shugo Chara! is a wonderful read if you like Nakayoshi titles or are in the mood for a light shojo. It’s aimed at kids (though there are some…unique situations between Amu and Ikuto >///< Maybe PG rating) so don’t expect make out scenes or body parts flying around (though truthfully, what shojo has the latter in it).
Alright, with this chapter I finally have a bridge between the first chapter I summarized for Stray Love Hearts – Room #12 – and the Room #15. I still regret not having read the earlier chapters because of the details concerning Kitoo. Meh. What can you do? Well, enjoy:
Title: ストレイ・ラブ・ハーツ！ (Stray Love Hearts or S.L.H.) Room #14
Manga-ka: 硝音あや
From: コミック・シルフ (Comic Sylph) vol. 9 (2009 November)
If anyone is interested, Kissmygeass has uploaded RAWs from the newest issue of Comic Sylph, including Room #16 of Stray Love Hearts. Those who read Room #15 must have suffered a small heart attack from the way it ended. Now it’s time to see what’s going to happen to Hiyoki! (Nice room by the way Kitoo…and a pool also included inside…>_> rich people and their money…)
Here’s a link to Kissmygeass’s livejournal account here. She also has some RAWs of G Fantasy stuff if anyone else is interested. Please don’t forget to leave a thank you on her site for her hard work (and also so we can get RAWs of Room #17 when it comes out in March! )
Title: Rune Soldier Louie
Summary:
Armed with Merrill’s cunning, Genie’s strength, and Melissa’s prayers, this all-female band has no trouble raiding ancient ruins, unless a magic seals blocks the way. They set out to hire a magician, but all the magicians they meet prefer ereading to raiding-except Louie, a brash novice who seems to do better with his fists than his spells!
After watching Gungrave, I was planning on watching Full Metal Alchemist. However, I wasn’t expecting the emotional rollercoaster Gungrave would bring me. I heard later on in the series, Full Metal Alchemist would go the same way. Wanting something a little more lighter and would give me some laughs, I instead turned to Rune Soldier Louie.
Basically the whole anime follows the misadventures of a magician named Louie and a bunch of girls whose party/team – due to certain events – he ends up joining. This wasn’t a hard anime to follow. Really. No brain cells were used when watching this anime. And that was fine by me.
Character wise, I liked Louie the best. He’s an idiot with heart. That and we had the same thoughts on things (like when Genie said she was attacked by slimly worms, everyone felt bad thinking of her getting beat up. What I thought was of something akin to tentacle rape and so did Louie! Haha! Perverts think alike XD) The girls took awhile for me to like. At first I thought they were all angry bitches. It was like they were all PMSing at the same time. Later in the series, the girls became more bearable – but they were still PMSing; just taking turns on who was going to be the angry one in this particular episode. I also liked Ila for some reason – maybe it’s because she wasn’t angry all the time?
There’s no real story in Rune Soldier Louie, though the last 4 episodes did deal with the kingdom going to war. I loved how Louie ended up saying the day. I have to say that I have yet to see a hero use the tactic Louie did (and really, it was an accident). I had to pause the DVD for a minute because I was laughing so hard at how completely random it was (and also the way Louie said it. Like, what? It’s not a big deal. We all have to do it at some point. And it was there. So…yeah.).
The ending kind of sucked. It just…ended. I would have liked a bit more – like what happened after everything transpired, who the heck is Louie (I mean, seriously; you don’t have an orphan in an anime without some shocking past history), etc. I guess since this anime was based off a still ongoing light novel series (or so wikiepedia says), you can only have so many answers provided. The ending does leave it open for a sequel, which I doubt but you never know!
Overall, Rune Soldier Louie was an average anime that didn’t require too much thinking and provided me with some laughs along the way. Louie’s stupidity made the show fun for me and kept me watching just to see what troubles he’d dig himself into. If you have low expectations, like fantasy RPGS, and don’t mind angry abusive women, then this show is for you (also, there’s fan service for the guys. And Louie going shirtless for the girls Rune Soldier Louie caters to both sexes haha).
