Gen X Otaku 1971: the OG blog

Finished Cazador de La Bruja

Should mention in passing that I finished El Cazador de La Bruja.  It is a very emotionally satisfying conclusion and very good story telling right to the end.  Nadie and Ellis deepen their relationship in the face of adversity.  There's also unspoken romantic tension between Nadie and Ricardo, which provokes Ellis to become consciously jealous and slightly clingy towards Nadie.  There's some level of sexual ambivalence about Ellis, and she seems to develop some homo erotic longings towards Nadie, reminiscent of the character Chloe in Noir. But Ellis also loved her mentor Dr. Heinrich "Heinz" Schneider (ハインリク "ハインツ" シュナイダ Hainriku "Haintsu" Shunaida^?).  On some level as a father figure, sure, but also more intensely romantic as well.  *Spoiler* we learn that it was Rosenberg and not Ellis who actually killed the doctor.  Rosenberg was deliberately attempting to provoke Ellis' deepest emotions, which are connected to her witch powers.

Vol. 2-El Cazador De La Bruja

Early on, in the first volume or so when Ellis is starting to use her powers in times of extreme stress, she enters into an almost sexually orgasmic state...and seems to provoke an equal reaction of arousal and ecstasy in her male witch counterpart, agent L.A.  

 

Ellis is a genetically engineered witch and and it is part of Mr. Rosenberg's plot to awaken Ellis powers but control them for himself.  Ellis would rather die than let that happen, and there is a tear-jerker "gotcha" that threatens to turn into a bummer ending along the lines of Chrono Crusade.  Luckily "Blue Eyes" also awakens her latent witch powers and, deus ex machina style manages to save the story from a rather grim ending.

 

Be sure to listen again to the director commentary on the last volume of the series, along with the voice actors who voiced Blue Eyes (Clarine Harp) and Douglas Rosenberg (ダグラス・ローゼンバーグ Dagurasu Rōzenbāgu^?) voiced by actor Ian Sinclair.  Rosenberg is out and out evil, while Blue Eyes is on the "bad" side for awhile, but also has her own agenda and ends up following her heart and switching sides to join with Nadie and Ellis...a common trope in many anime series (old foe becomes new friend to face new enemy, etc).

 

Ellis learns eventually to control her powers of her own volition.  She and Nadie settle down but eventually realize their lives are destined to be on the road...but it sure is nice to have a place to hang your hat and be able to call home in between.

 

The story also has a supernatural episode where they visit the home of a retired novelist who actually died some years before.  It's a very trippy story but very well done, and fits in well with the magical realism and mysticism of the series overall.  I love Ellis' mild Aspie nature as well.  I'm going to start looking for more characters like this in Anime.

 

Also, at the series climax, the mute girl Lirio does finally speak---Monica Rial's only actual line in the series.

At the series conclusion, Nadie and Ellis, after finishing up some hilariously unfinished business, hit the road to go team up with Ricardo and Lirio again.  It's speculated that Nadie and Ricardo might end up together...if Ellis permits it.

 

I loved this show from start to finish---it's very well done and the characters are very emotionally appealing as well.

 

Full House beats a pair; Shuffle! Vol.1

I'm finally getting around to watching the harem-anime Shuffle!  I was expecting an outrageous sex farce like Magikano! or Maburaho! but have been pleasantly surprised.  Sure, it has its supernatural elements and comic relief characters but it also is otherwise a slice-of-life Japanese high school story with a heart.  The story centers on male protagonist Rin Tsuchimi (土見 稟 Tsuchimi Rin^?), who lives together with his friend-since-childhood Kaede Fuyou (芙蓉楓 Fuyō Kaede^?).  Rin is an orphan who lost his parents in an accident (I swear, you'd believe Japan was made up of 1/2 orphans if the world of anime were to be taken for reality), while Kaede lives with her father (the mother is presumed dead as well) but he is often on long business trips, leaving Kaede and Rin alone.  They are platonic friends and Rin looks at Kaede more like a sister than anything, but we get the sense that Kaede is growing dissatisfied with this and has longings for Rin that transcend mere friendship.  Indeed, in the later episodes of volume 1 of Shuffle!, we can see Kaede begin to well up with feelings of jealousy toward the other girls in Rin's life.

Shuffle, Vol. 1

Depicted above is Nerine, Daughter of the Demon King, whom I discuss in more detail below.

The most amusing character is Rin's sempai, Asa Shigure (時雨亜沙 Shigure Asa^?).  Slightly older than him and a bit of a tomboy, she's President of the Cooking Club at school and sometimes flirts with Rin in a joking, playful manner.  Once when Rin was hiding from a gang of jealous fanboys, he hid under Asa's table in the school break room and she grabs his head and shoves it under her skirt so he can't help but see her panties.  Asa is voiced by Monica Rial in the English dub and I love Monica's bubbly laugh that she imbues Asa with.  They are also friends of long standing, Asa having taught Kaede how to cook back in middle school, with Rin in tow.  Asa admired how devoted Rin seemed (and still seems) to Kaede and admits she wished she had someone that devoted to her.  In one of the last episodes of Volume 1, Asa's desires for Rin become awakened and inflamed, and she, too begins to suffer from the torment of jealousy toward the other girls in Rin's life, specifically Princess Lisianthus/Kikyou (リシアンサス / キキョウ Rishiansasu / Kikyō^?), a.k.a. Sia for short, voiced by Brittney Karbowski...Sia is the daughter of the King of the Gods. She's a fiery red-head, full of passion but a bit of a ditz. 

The other supernatural girl in Rin's life is Nerine/Lycoris (ネリネ / リコリス Nerine / Rikorisu^?), Daughter of the Demon King, sometimes called Rina for short.  Rina is much more shy and gentle than Sia.  Sia is fun-loving and brash but not as smart as Rina.

The final girl in Rin's immediate circle is the slightly under-aged Primula (プリムラ Purimura^?) who is about the age of a mature 8th grade middle school girl. Primula is quiet and almost never smiles and speaks very few words.  She comes  from the Demon World like Nerine, who knew her back then, too.  She listened to Nerine talk about Rin all the time and was filled with a desire to see him for herself.  Primula is sort of disconnected from other people; very reminiscent of the character Ellis from El Cazador de La Bruja...in that same kind of mild Asperger's syndrome way.  Primula is more quiet than shy.  She can be very clingy to Rin.  She's very innocent and unaware of her own budding sexuality.  Very moe.  Kaede takes Primula under her wing and lets her stay in her father's house with her and Rin.

This series originated as dating simulation game, and obviously the point of the game was to choose one of the girls and see how far you can get in a dating relationship with one or more of them.  All of the characters are very likable.  The series reminds me most of School Rumble! with the exception of all the girls being focused on Rin instead of the complex interweb of relationships that makes up School Rumble!  Still, all these competing desires...someone is  going to get their heart broken.  Kaede and Asa both begin to suffer the pangs of jealousy by the end of Volume 1.

Looking forward to the emotional fireworks.

Irresponsible Captain Tyler, OVA, vol.1

Decided to go with an old skool Anime, with veteran voice actor Crispin Freeman in the lead;  Alas, even Freeman can't save this horrible, cheesy script.  He cut his teeth on roles like this one, so he wasn't a veteran actor when he did this show.

The Irresponsible Captain Tylor - Complete OVA Collection (Vols 1-3)

I tried hard to like this show; tried hard to laugh--once--and failed.  The jokes fall flat, there's not enough fanservice to grab the eye, and the Captain's "victories" rely way too heavily on Deux Ex Machina plot devices to even be remotely believable. The premise was promising, a clumsy anti-hero who comes out on top by sheer dumb luck...the kind of show I would ostensibly like...but it severely fails to deliver.  I only managed to make it through Disc 1 of the OVA and deleted the rest from my Netflix queue.  My time is limited and there are far better shows I'd rather devote my time to than finishing this OVA.  Judging by Disc 1, these episodes were clearly produced by sincere (if muddle headed) Japanese pacifists...which stretches the believability past the breaking point.  The intellectual poverty of pacifism is a weakness in more than a few Japanese anime productions, and I really appreciate it when Japanese auteurs steer clear of pacifist themes and thinking, because it only serves to drag down an anime when they decide to "go there".

I know that pacifism remains an ascendant philosophy in Japan, and was encouraged by General Douglas MacArthur as a corrective to Japanese fanatical militarism of the 1930s and 40s.  But it really has, I think, gone too far in the opposite extreme.  When Japanese anime auteurs try to push an overtly pacifist message in their anime, it always fails and cheapens the enjoyment of the show, precisely because it pushes the believability past the breaking point.  Suspension of disbelief is one thing, but things still have to make coherent sense on some level.  Pacifism fails this and only works in ham-fisted fiction relying on Deux Ex Machina.  Irresponsible Captain Tylor just relies to heavily on this as well.  There's a way to do a dumb-luck anti-hero correctly; Captain Tylor fails.

Finished Vol.2 of Clannad

Continuing to watch the series Clannad in between other DVDs from Netflix.  Last night I finished off Volume 2 of this series.  Things definitely take a hard turn into supernatural territory, and the story begins to turn darker and more tragic.  Not quite Rumbling Hearts levels of tragedy, but definitely qualifies as a bona fide tear-jerker in its own right, especially with Volume 2.

Clannad: Collection 2

After the whole weird drama surrounding Fuko, the girl in a coma voiced by Hilary Haag, who disappears for a time only to re-appear in one of the last episodes of Vol.2, the focus next shifts to genius quasi-recluse Kotomi Ichinose (一ノ瀬 ことみ Ichinose Kotomi^?), whom Tomoya Okazaki (岡崎 朋也 Okazaki Tomoya^?) manages to pull out of her shell a little.  With his prodding and encouragement, she leaves her haven in the library and begins to try and make friends with other girls in the school and even joins the Drama Club, reconstituted by Nagisa Furukawa (古河 渚 Furukawa Nagisa^?).

Tomoya and Nagisa seem to be drawing closer and becoming more affectionate towards each other, but they remain "more than friends but less than a couple", to borrow a line from Kare Kano.  However, over the course of the latter half of volume 2, it becomes clear that Kotomi Ichinose (一ノ瀬 ことみ Ichinose Kotomi^?) is developing feelings of her own for Tomoya but having difficulty expressing them to him.  *Spoiler* In the very last episode of Volume 2 we learn that Kotomi Ichinose (一ノ瀬 ことみ Ichinose Kotomi^?) and  Tomoya Okazaki (岡崎 朋也 Okazaki Tomoya^?) have a connection stretching back to their childhood that Tomoya suddenly realizes.  The connection remains mysterious and serves as the cliffhanger for this part of the story.

This series continues to tug at your heart strings and it remains to be seen how all of this will play out.  Ryou Fujibayashi (藤林 椋 Fujibayashi Ryō^?) also harbors a deep crush on Tomoya, which makes 3 different girls who all like Tomoya, who are friends but would like to be more than friends.  There is an almost Rumbling Hearts twist where it is feared that Ryou Fujibayashi (藤林 椋 Fujibayashi Ryō^?) has been injured or possibly killed in a horrific bus accident, but later it is revealed that Ryou was on a different bus and that the bus involved in the accident was out of service and empty, and the driver escaped unhurt.  The stress of this incident causes Kotomi Ichinose (一ノ瀬 ことみ Ichinose Kotomi^?) to completely flip out and she collapses and faints on the sidewalk.  It is revealed at the last that the parents of Kotomi Ichinose (一ノ瀬 ことみ Ichinose Kotomi^?) have passed away some years before and that she lives alone now.  Tomoya had just assumed they were working university professors (which they were in life) but did not know they were dead until he pays Kotomi a visit at her home after the accident that triggered Kotomi's mental breakdown (possibly PTSD related).

This series is kind of hard to classify; it's a kind of magical realism; It's a slice of life story, yes, but also with subtle, supernatural elements, but these to not overpower the story or detract from the emotional impact.

El Cazador de la Bruja, Eps 1-7, "The Hunter of the Witch"

Began Disc 1 of the anime series El Cazador de la Bruja ("The Hunter of the Witch"), which is the story of a strange blond haired young teen girl, Ellis, a poor, out-of-place gringa in Mexico with a mysterious past with a hefty bounty on her head.  Bounty Hunter Nadie is the first one to find her and ostensibly capture her, but in a kind of reverse Stockholm syndrome, Nadie begins to sympathize with her bounty and take her side.  Nadie is meant to be a variant of Nadia, but it also means "nobody" in Spanish.

El Cazador de la Bruja hails from the same Japanese studio that produced Noir and Mad Lax and there seems to be a common atmosphere and "feel" shared by each of these shows.  All involve pairs of women united by mysterious pasts overcoming enormous obstacles in search of the truth of that past.  Do be sure to listen to the director commentary and voice actor commentary that come with Disc 1, as this sheds a lot of light on the series as a whole and puts things in a bigger context.  The ADR director describes Ellis as having almost a mild Asperger's syndrome insofar as she seems distant and disconnected from those around her at first.  The truth, we learn, is far darker than this.  Hints are dropped at genetic experiments and artificial life forms.

But the series is not without its "buddy cop" / "road movie" features...it has a lot of heart and humor along with the darker main narrative running beneath everything.  There are some mighty entertaining, over-the-top villains, witty dialog, comedy-of-errors, etc.  The story unfolds in Mexico and Latin America, the only destination is "El Sur", to the South.  The dialog throws in a few Spanish words and phrases but only the "grandma" of Ellis, an elderly Indio woman who looks after Ellis, actually speaks with an hispanic accent.  The ADR Director mentions that we should assume all of the characters are actually speaking Spanish, but that for the purposes of narrative, we are told the story in English, which we understand as if by some weird universal translator device.  Ironically, many of the background signs and advertisements are in English instead of Spanish..."Drinks" versus "Bebidas", etc.

Vol. 1-El Cazador De La Bruja

It seems Nadie is Mexican herself, but I suspect Ellis is from Los Estados Unidos, in all probability from Los Angeles, California.  She seems to have come from the major high-tech city where the scheming character of Dr. Rosenberg is located, from his corporate laboratory in all likelihood.  Nadie once loved a man, a rascal named Miguel who dreamed of becoming a Mariachi but in fact remained a talentless hack and a womanizing schemer. There's a somewhat melancholy episode that reunites Nadie with Miguel, and their backstory is told in flashback. *SPOILER* Miguel tries to sell Ellis and Nadie out but ends up getting himself killed.  Nadie tries to come to his rescue but Miguel is killed in the crossfire.  On the bus the next day out of town Ellis tries to process all she's born witness to, with Miguel, and with Nadie, and upon reciting a line from the trashy romance novel she read days before, starts to cry.  Nadie sees her and starts to cry herself, getting angry at Ellis and telling her she has no reason to cry, but by now Nadie can't hold back her tears either.  Part of her still loved Miguel, to the end.  It's a very tender moment at the end of the episode.

I think the ADR Director succeeded in giving the story's location a Mexican/Spanish atmosphere but without giving everyone a heavy accent, which has pitfalls and problems unless done extremely carefully.  It's one thing to have one Mexican character with a pronounced accent like Lara from School Rumble, voiced by Monica Rial, who is herself Hispanic (though in most shows and in real life she has a normal U.S. North American manner of speaking).  Monica plays a mute girl named Lirio in this show, incidentally.  But for this show it is enough to throw in a few words and phrases in Spanish, commonly known to the Texas actors and actresses voicing the parts, to give it the right "flavor".

This is a recent title and in rather high demand on Netflix so I'm glad I was finally able to get a copy of Disc 1.  I'm looking forward to finishing the series as more discs become available.

Magikano: Vols 2-3; Magic & Pussy jokes.

Finished up Volumes 2-3 of Magikano!  This is only a half-season show so it ends with Episode 13.  The character that steals the show are Ayumi's talking cursed panties that are inhabited by a somewhat pervy cat spirit (yes, pussy jokes galore--though it could have been worse than it is).

Magikano: The Complete Series S.A.V.E.

One of the funniest lines in these last two volumes is by Ayumi (Jessica Boone) referencing Maika (Kira Vincent Davis) and her disturbing level of affection for her brother...Maika walks up and Ayumi declares "Oh, I thought I smelled incest..."  I LOL'ed.

Monica Rial gets some good screen time as the villainous younger sister of Ayumi, the scheming, power-lusting Michiru. Monica usually plays sweet characters, but she can pull off a convincing psychopath when the role calls for it.

Michiru is a foreshadowing of Monica's later role in Rin -- that character is slightly similar to Michiru, or at least has her roots in Michiru.

There's sort of a Deux Ex Machina conclusion involving reversing the arrow of time...*spoiler* it's revealed that the past year in the lives of Haruo, his sisters, and Ayumi, have been repeating for quite some time.  It seems that Haruo is the human vessel containing the sealed-away spirit of the nearly all-powerful Demon King.  Apparently it only takes a lap dance from Monica--I mean Michiru--to awaken him, though.

There's more comic relief by way of much of the action taking place inside the girls' heads...namely their fantasies about themselves with Haruo, including his sister's own slightly twisted fantasy, each of them idolizing Haruo.

This is a mildly entertaining show; I bet it put a lot of strain on Jessica Boone's voice, since her character frequently screams and yells at the top of her lungs.  I actually don't get to hear Kira Vincent Davis play very many female characters--I usually hear her voice when she's playing little boys.  But I do like it when I am fortunate enough to hear Kira play a girl character.  Luci's character is very happy-go-lucky, nice but not so bright...almost like Tenma from School Rumble only not interested in anyone romantically, and no one particularly interested in her either.  Hilary Haag's child character is a little businesswoman, very greedy and ambitious.  Cute but sarcastic.  Sort of a cross between Tessa of Full Metal Panic and Becky from Pani Poni Dash!  She definitely rounds out the cast.  This show basically features the top female voice talents of ADV Films, as far as I'm concerned.  That reason alone make it worth watching, but it's also entertaining as well in its own right.

I don't find Ayumi's final confession of love to Haruo particularly convincing; it seems rather forced and melodramatic.  When time re-sets, though, she looks as though she plans to be more genuinely affectionate the next time around.

Magikano, Vol.1 - New Witch in Town

Watched the first volume of Magikano!, which is a witch and magic fantasy reminiscent of Maburaho; both involve wimpy guys with latent magic powers living with a harem of magic using girls.   The girls of Magikano! differ insofar as three of them are the main protagonist's sisters.  The main protagonist in this case being Haruo Yoshikawa (吉川春生 Yoshikawa Haruo^?).  The sisters are voiced by veteran ADV Films actresses; Kira Vincent Davis voices oldest (and most possessive) sister Maika Yoshikawa (吉川舞夏 Yoshikawa Maika^?).  Luci Christian voices the middle sister Chiaki Yoshikawa (吉川千秋 Yoshikawa Chiaki^?), while the kid sister, Fuyuno Yoshikawa (吉川冬乃 Yoshikawa Fuyuno^?), is voiced by Hilary Haag.  The Yoshikawa household is turned upside down one day when rival witch Ayumi Mamiya (魔宮あゆみ Mamiya Ayumi^?) arrives in town, banished from the magic realm and assigned to the human realm.  She is voiced by the lovely and talented Jessica Boone.  Her scheming younger sister, Michiru Mamiya (魔宮みちる Mamiya Michiru^?), is voiced by Monica Rial.  Michiru has the ear of her father and doesn't want Ayumi to succeed, and acts with cruelty towards her sister.

Magikano, Vol. 1: A New Witch in Town

Unlike Maburaho the twist here is that Haruo is blissfully unaware of the magical realm and is constantly targeted for memory erasure by his sisters to keep him unaware of their lives as witches.  Episodes 4-5 introduce a witch hunter character named Marin Nijihara (虹原真鈴 Nijihara Marin^?).  She's every bit as incompetent and klutzy as the vampire hunter Winner in the series Karin.  She exists to mainly to frustrate Ayumi and to provide comic relief.  She has an unusual fixation on Haruo and thinks he is heaven-sent and that it is her holy mission to protect him, which runs at cross purposes with not only oldest sister Maika but also Ayumi and also class president Yuri Kurosu (黒須ゆり Kurosu Yuri^?), who has long harbored a secret crush on Haruo since childhood.  The last episode of volume 1 is all about a struggle between Marin, Maika, Ayumi and Yuri over who will give their prepared lunch to Haruo.

The story is mildly amusing, though some of the characters are more annoying than funny.  It's all very over the top and kind of an acquired taste.  It's light comedy and farce at this point.  What I enjoy most is that I love the work of the voice actresses playing the lead roles.  I love hearing the voices of Luci, Hilary, Jessica, and Kira.  Greg Ayres also voices a male schoolmate of Haruo and is pretty funny and over the top himself.

Ayumi inexplicably becomes the maid of the Yoshikawa family, barely tolerated by the Yoshikawa sisters.  Ayumi schemes constantly to get into Haruo's pants and "make him a man" (i.e. have sex with him).  In Maburaho all of the girls had this object, but Magikano! only Ayumi and Yuri have this goal (though Yuri's desire is more sublimated and repressed).

Ayumi desires this because according to her best intelligence, Haruo has immense untapped magical powers that he hasn't learned of yet and that his powers can only be awakened when she "makes him a man"; If she is successful, Haruo will give her the power she needs to reclaim her proper place in the magic realm and win the approval of her warlock father and challenge her sister for his approval.  Ayumi was cursed by a magic mirror when she was a little girl and that curse has endured; Ayumi knows that only an awakened Haruo will have the power to lift this ancient curse.

I'm looking forward to Volume 2.

Sneak Peak: Clannad Vol.1, Eps. 1-4

Just got back from a special showing by Section 23 Films (aka Sentai Filmworks, formerly known as A.D. Vision films) of the English dub of Clannad, volume 1, episodes 1-4.

I was definitely impressed.  This was a joint Section 23 / FUNimation event, and the FUNimation host (formerly the ADV Films host--same dude) passed out tickets and I won myself this purdy thing right here:

Clannad: Complete Collection (4pc) (Dub Sub)

Yep, that's right, I won myself the box set....aaaww yeah!  Thank you crappy Houston weather for keeping most people away from this special screening which really improved my odds of winning.  Last time I won anything was Volume 1 of Gilgamesh way back when.  This series features the voice talents of such stalwart ADV Films veterans as the prolific Luci Christian, the super-sweet Hilary Haag, and the sensual Shelley Calene-Black.  For the guys we have David Matranga and Greg Ayres.

This series is a visual mega overload of Moe (萌え^?, pronounced [mo.e], literally "budding", as with a plant or adorable).  Every single character just makes you well up and say "Kawaiii!!!"

Or in more comprehensible English..."she's so FRIGGIN' CUTE!!!"

All anime females are generally attractive on some level, but Clannad really ups the cute factor by an insane degree.  Even past Lucky Star levels of cuteness.

The story centers around a boy, Tomoya Okazaki (岡崎 朋也 Okazaki Tomoya^?), voiced by David Matranga, with an alcoholic dad whose mother died in a car wreck.  He meets a lonely, sickly girl, Nagisa Furukawa (古河 渚 Furukawa Nagisa^?), who is repeating her junior year (3rd year) of High School, voiced by Luci Christian.  I was immediately reminded of her character "Duck" from Princess Tutu.  She has the same demeanor and overall general sweetness.

Hilary Haag plays an eccentric student, Fuko Ibuki (伊吹 風子 Ibuki Fūko^?), whose big sister was formerly the school's art teacher about three years ago.  She spends most of her days carving crude wooden stars to give away as objets d'art to anyone who might be interested.  Again, I couldn't help but think of Haag's role as Becky from Pani Poni Dash, especially when she gets wound up and emotional.

Brittney Karbowski plays Ryou Fujibayashi (藤林 椋 Fujibayashi Ryō^?), the class rep and younger sister of Shelley Calene Black's character, Kyou Fujibayashi (藤林 杏 Fujibayashi Kyō^?), who is an upperclassman and extremely athletic, and over-protective of her younger sis.

I've only seen episodes 1-4 but do intend to watch the full series now that I own it on Box Set, and a fuller review will be forthcoming on this blog at a later time.  Before then, I will be starting and reviewing Magikano! first.  Apparently Clannad is immensely popular in Japan, and reportedly initial sales of the sub here in the USA did better than expected.  I am glad I won the dub, though.  And I'm also glad to hear Section 23 Films is going to be ramping up and being competitive again, which means all the Houston-based actors I know and love can get gigs closer to home and not have to always drive to Dallas for anime work.

The series so far leaves me with the impression that it's going to be a light, sentimental slice-of-life school drama.  It has comedic elements that provoke laughter, but it's not a straight comedy.  It has some very earnest emotions as well.  Luci's character Nagisa is fragile but adorable, and there seems to be a hint of romance developing between her and the male protagonist, though no doubt it will take the both of them a long time to become honest about their feelings and finally confess to each other.  There will be lots of accidental touching and blushing, per the usual anime formula; that's my prediction right now, at any rate.  The opening music is nice; the closing music is a little annoying but cute.

I predict this story will have about the same level of emotional intensity as Kare Kano (His and Her Circumstances) but  may fall short of Suzuka and Peach Girl ; not for lack of trying, mind you, but because the overwhelming sweetness of the series' visual elements, and the nature of the principal characters' personalities will undercut the drama and suspense...unless things and events go in a Rumbling Hearts direction.  Still, the main male protagonists' inner demons sound formidable with potential for dark story telling ahead.  I predict an emotionally satisfying climax when the lead female character and lead male finally end up kissing...if it comes to that.

There's also some really weird metaphysical aspects to the show afoot, with a separate narrative occurring at each opening episode, told by an external narrator, and with a different, semi CGI-style of animation.  Evidently this anime was based on a dating sim, not unlike Rumbling Hearts.  This would explain the over abundance of overly cute girls, since in the game no doubt the player can choose to try and date any one of them and see where it leads, which is the whole point of a dating sim.  It would be nice if such Japanese dating sims were well translated into English, but I don't know if any of them ever are.  I'd play it, but only if it was in English and if it was done well in English.

I won't give too much away, but there seems to be a supernatural element to the show that is introduced as early as Episode 4, at least by way of suggestion. I'm eager to see how this plot wrinkle is integrated into the rest of the story.

Suzuka, Vol. 6 : Yamato FTW!

Finished the 6th and final volume of the emotionally wrenching series Suzuka.  We finally get, in flashback, the full backstory of Suzuka's first love and tragic loss and why it's keeping her from forming a more intimate relationship with Yamato.  She wants Yamato to just stay friends, like she had with Tsuda before he was killed in that traffic accident; but Yamato is living, breathing, and a passionate human being and this is no longer acceptable to him.  It doesn't help that Yamato increasingly reminds Suzuka of her lost love.  Miki knows that Yamato still likes Suzuka and tells her she should give him a chance, but doesn't push the issue.  It takes a confrontation by Honoka for Suzuka to hear the truth and to get called on her b.s.

Suzuka, Vol. 6

These four last episodes ramp up the emotional intensity to 11.  Yamato continues to meet with difficulties on the track but still has amazing potential.  His sempai is able to take the long view--after all, Yamato is still only a freshman.  In part he's trying to impress Suzuka....unfortunately this is exactly what Tsuda was doing before his death, and it sort of freaks Suzuka out.  Suzuka at one point comes over to Yamato's apartment after he loses the big race and starts to cook for him.  She's not very talented in the kitchen, she really only knows how to make boiled eggs, but she does what she can.  Unfortunately, Yamato trips on his tongue again, but more to the point, he triggers some unwanted memories in Suzuka.  Suzuka, not unlike the male protagonist in Rumbling Hearts suffers in her own way from post-traumatic stress disorder.  She doesn't want to commit to another relationship out of an irrational fear that she'll end up losing Yamato the same way she lost Tsuda.  Suzuka flees from Yamato's apartment, very upset.  When she's gone for some time and still hasn't returned,  Yamato becomes concerned and tears after her in the blinding rain, and enlists Miki to go look for her as well.  Suzuka flees to the local shrine and sits on the steps crying and remembering Tsuda.  Honoka is about to close the shrine gate for the evening and discovers Suzuka.  Suzuka tries to brush off Honoka's friendly queries about what she's doing there so late, but Honoka pieces together what happened.  She tells Suzuka pointblank that she's deceiving herself; that she does have feelings for Yamato and that she's just lying when she says she doesn't.  Honoka says she's going to quit as team manager because although she still likes Yamato, he only has eyes for Suzuka and probably always will.  Suzuka angrily tells Honoka that she doesn't know what it's like to have someone you love die.  Honoka allows that this is true, but counters that she DOES know very well what it feels like to get her heart broken.

Honoka implores Suzuka:

"He's a great guy and he's been waiting for so long.  He deserves a little happiness.  And so do You."

At this Suzuka yells a final protest and runs away, crying.  Yamato arrives seconds later and Honoka tells him which way to go.

Actually in the anime, Suzuka has already left by the time Honoka manages to say "and so do you".  I would have changed the lines to make THAT line the one that makes Suzuka run off.  Small quibbling detail, but I think THAT would have gotten to the core issue...that Suzuka is undermining and sabotaging her own happiness.

Yamato continues to pursue Suzuka;  Suzuka, believing she's evaded him, sits down in the pouring rain and contemplates that tomorrow she'll apologize and then she can go back to being Yamato's friend.  She's had to walk a tightrope...to be just enough of a bitch to keep Yamato at a distance from her, but not too much that she destroys their fragile friendship.  There's no happy medium here and Suzuka is causing heartbreak to everyone around her, Honoka says.  This is bigger than her and her problems.  Yamato has gone all in, and won't take the friendship consolation prize anymore.  Yamato catches up to Suzuka and they start arguing again...impulsively Yamato grabs Suzuka mid-sentence and kisses her, sending her into emotional overload.  She takes a second to recover from the shock then slaps the hell out of him.  Repeatedly.  Calling him a "jerk!" then running off in tears.  Yamato thinks for that moment that's he's blown it and lost, for good...but in actual fact Suzuka is on the edge of surrender.

Earlier in the volume Suzuka was chewing out Yamato and he eventually loses his patience with her and demands to know why she hates him so.  He turns to leave in a huff and Suzuka grabs his shirt from behind and pleads with him to stay....apologizing for her rude remarks in a kind voice, quivering with emotion.  It's a beautiful scene I could watch over and over...because Suzuka is being authentic for once.

After the kiss, Suzuka makes it home and curls up on her bed, crying.

A day passes and it's the weekend and Suzuka, we are told, is headed back to her parents, to go visit Tsuda's grave again.  Yamato goes up to confront Suzuka and tell her she needs to stop doing that; it's not healthy and it won't help her get on with her life.  Even if she rejects him (Yamato), there's something messed up about Suzuka, he says, and she needs to face it.  Suzuka ignores Yamato's provocations and says calmly "Perfect timing.  I was going to ask you if you want to come along.";  Yamato reluctantly agrees.

Suzuka prays at Tsuda's grave for a long time in silence, letting the incense burn all the way down.  She then speaks to Tsuda aloud, so Yamato can also hear her...."I'm sorry, Sempai...but I can't go out with you.  You see, I like someone else.  Yeah, we fight a lot about everything, and he's kind of irresponsible and immature, but I really, really like him.  Goodbye, Sempai."; She stands, turns, and looks at Yamato warmly.

Again, minor quibble, but I would have had Suzuka kiss him there, on the spot.  Instead, the two leave in awkward silence after that.  Well, actually we don't know how the rest of the day goes, as there's a jump cut to Monday morning, and Suzuka is waiting for Yamato at the bottom of the stairs.  Yuka Saotome (早乙女 優花 Saotome Yūka^?) and Megumi Matsumoto (松本 恵美 Matsumoto Megumi^?) see her and ask speculatively if she's waiting for Yamato, and if so how cute that is; Suzuka gets embarrassed and starts off for school alone.  Yamato is late and comes bounding down the stairs.  He runs to catch up with Suzuka.  He reaches her and makes small talk.  He takes a risk and goes to hold her hand.  She's a bit startled but instead of pulling away, she changes their grip and locks her fingers into his and smiles and blushes.  At long last, after the longest, most grueling race of his life, Yamato has finally won the biggest prize of all...Suzuka's heart.

In the voice actor commentary, Brina Palencia and Caitlin Glass gently chide Yamato for blowing off Honoka in favor of Suzuka, stating that Honoka is the better of the two girls.  Perhaps.  But Rob McCollum states (and I agree with Rob's reasoning here), that he's with the Suzuka faction.  I also think despite the pain and suffering and effort, that in the end Suzuka was worth it.  Yamato had a choice--sort of...settle for silver and or go for the gold.  He went for the gold and won.

Although we'd like to believe we're completely autonomous with free will, there's a lot going on in our subconscious minds over which we have no conscious control...and who we like and who we love are often part of this.  As much as Yamato wants to believe he's over Suzuka and has chosen to dedicate himself to Honoka, his subconscious mind and his body beg to differ.  His behavior towards Honoka is erratic because while his conscious mind wants one thing, the rest of him is still bewitched by Suzuka.  He honestly can't help it, either.  And Honoka understands this better than either Yamato himself or Suzuka.  Honoka recognizes and is the only friend with the guts to tell Suzuka she's lying to herself.  Before Yamato kisses Suzuka for the first time in the pouring rain, Suzuka blurts out the honest truth that she's been awful to him on purpose, to keep him at a distance.  "If you keep being nice to me, I'm going to fall for you.", she cries, between sobs.

I kissed a girl once in a similar, though not identical situation.  I didn't force myself on her like Yamato did (and which I do not endorse), but I did catch her completely off guard, and she reeled from the shock of it; "Why did you have to kiss me?!" she yelled, her voice shaking....before kissing me back if a fit of suddenly released passion.

The anime could have ended with this episode, with Suzuka capitulating to Yamato's kiss...but in all honesty that's been done to death and would have been a clichéd ending.  I wouldn't have dragged things on to Monday morning the way it was done...I would have finished things off in the graveyard with a fully willing second kiss from Suzuka, initiated by Suzuka, but whatever.  In any case, we can imagine them walking to school hand in hand, intimately...and everyone will know, some will be quite relieved, that these two are finally a couple.  I can imagine them getting a standing ovation in the lunch room or homeroom or whatever, with everyone breathing a collective sigh of relief and/or satisfaction, with a collective "Finally!!!"

Again, I know what that feels like, having asked a girl at someone's birthday party to dance with me who'd been treating me not unlike how Suzuka typically treats Yamato for the whole evening.  She agreed with an emotional "yes!" and crumpled into my arms...the room exploded into applause and she buried her face into my chest from embarrassment as we swayed to the music.  Still one of my fondest memories of High School.

Suzuka is one of the very best Japanese High School Anime Romances out there.  Very realistic, and definitely pulls at the viewer's own heart strings.  I guess because I'm a guy, I still think Rumbling Hearts just barely packs more emotional punch, but mainly because the character experiencing the heaviest loss is a guy.  In this story, Suzuka suffers in ways similar that character, Takayuki Narumi (鳴海 孝之 Narumi Takayuki^?).  The main difference is that Suzuka's love dies, while Takayuki Narumi (鳴海 孝之 Narumi Takayuki^?)'s love clings to life in a coma.  Suzuka is able, with difficulty, to put the loss behind her, because of its permanence, while Takayuki Narumi (鳴海 孝之 Narumi Takayuki^?) is not so "lucky" as that.  His love, Haruka Suzumiya (涼宮 遙 Suzumiya Haruka^?), didn't die but lives on in a coma, clinging to life, in a fate literally worse than death.  Suzuka is more fortunate than Takayuki, comparatively speaking.  His difficulties exceed hers and his pain is that much greater.  I wouldn't wish Takayuki's hellish fate on my worst enemy.

Just a quick post addendum...one thing I like best about the series Kare Kano (a.k.a. His and Her Circumstances) and about Rumbling Hearts is the tacit acknowledgement that yes, even Japanese teenagers have premarital sex.  These two shows are among the few Japanese High School animes to tacitly acknowledge this fact of life, and do so in a beautiful, tasteful manner.  Rumbling Hearts even includes an actual love scene that is very tastefully, tenderly done and not at all vulgar.  Kare Kano is more circumspect, but it does make it clear when and where Arima and Yukino made love for the first time.  Suzuka only obliquely references sex, via the character of Yasunobu, who asks Yamato pointblank if he's gone all the way with Honoka yet.  We can only speculate if, after the series, Suzuka will go all the way with Yamato before graduation, but looking in my Magic 8 Ball, I'd say "Signs Point To Yes".

In the Manga we know that Suzuka and Yamato eventually get married, but the Anime doesn't take the story that far.

Suzuka is one of those series that I would probably break down and buy, so I could re-watch it.  It's such a lovely story, so well done and so emotionally gripping.

Finished His & Her Circumstances / Kare Kano

I finally finished the last volume of Kare Kano, a.k.a. His and Her Circumstances, the English version of which was done by Right Stuf!; they do pull in Liam O'Brien to voice one of the supporting characters, however.

The ending is mostly ambivalent and inconclusive with respect to Yukino and Arima; they remain together as a mostly happy couple, but Arima remains plagued by doubts and his internal turmoil is never really resolved by series end, while Yukino has learned to create a world and life for herself with her friends outside of school work and her romantic relationship with Arima, which Arima mildly resents, though never saying so aloud.

The last few episodes of the last volume shift the focus away from Yukino and Arima and on to the supporting characters.  There's a funny episode of titillating quasi-lesbian flirtation between Yukino's youngest sister Kano in the 8th grade and the new girl at school, though this mostly turns out to be based on a misunderstanding, and a prank played by her older sister Tsukino (who is the middle sister).

His and Her Circumstances (Vol. 5)

More interesting is the resolution of the sub-plot between Yukino's tomboy friend (and sort of lesbian, or at least bisexual) Tsubaki Sakura (佐倉 椿 Sakura Tsubaki^?) and the all-grown-up-now Takefumi Tonami (十波 健史 Tōnami Takefumi^?) who was partly a childhood friend of Sakura but also tormented by her, since even then she was much more muscular and well developed than he.  Sakura saved him from bullies, only to have fun at his expense herself later.  She doesn't recognize him now that both are in High School.  Takefumi Tonami (十波 健史 Tōnami Takefumi^?) begins to understand that his intense feelings about Sakura are not, in fact, because he hates her per se for those past resentments, but because he LIKES her.  Tonami catches Sakura when she slips and falls on the stairs...he notices her arms are thin compared to his own now.  She's more girlish than the tormentor of his memory.  Sakura's heart is racing and she looks into Tonami's eyes after he catches her.  Still unsure of his feelings, he pushes her away, evoking a rebuke from Sakura, basically WTF?!  Later Tonami approaches Sakura, who is sitting in a tree and has thrown down an apple onto his head.  Tonami climbs the tree to talk to Sakura.  They converse, converse some more, then out of the blue Tonami kisses Sakura.  Sakura allows it, not resisting, but tells him it's her first kiss and wants to know what that was all about.  It takes Takefumi Tonami (十波 健史 Tōnami Takefumi^?)  time to realize that he does actually like Sakura very much, much to the relief of the viewers, who've seen this moment coming for quite some time.  Takefumi Tonami (十波 健史 Tōnami Takefumi^?) also runs afoul of Arima, since he spends a little too much time with Yukino.  Arima trusts his other friend Asaba not to touch Yukino, but he does not trust Tonami; He also fails to recognize Takefumi Tonami (十波 健史 Tōnami Takefumi^?) as being a classmate from middle school, and did not know or did not remember that Tonami used to idolize him.  Takefumi Tonami (十波 健史 Tōnami Takefumi^?) seeks to defuse Arima's jealousy over Tonami's friendship with his girlfriend Yukino, and wants instead to become friends with the "real" Arima.  This will be an uphill struggle and is left to the viewer's imagination as the series ends.

No one knows what the future holds, and when the series ends all of the characters are just beginning their sophomore year.  They have two more long years to get through before High School is over.  Yukino already lost her virginity with Arima, and he lost his with her...the memory weighs on him, and he concludes he can never be happy again without Yukino.  The ending is very open ended and deliberately so.

I've heard the original Manga creator and the Anime director had a creative falling out, which is why the Anime differs from the Manga, especially in the later episodes, and the Anime's style changes radically in the final volume...becoming very minimalistic and abstract.  According to Wikipedia, the Manga creator felt the Anime creators were over-emphasizing the comedy and not spending enough time on the romantic story lines.  To be truthful, I welcomed the comic relief.  Some of Yukino's crazier rants and episodes were really laugh out loud funny and I wouldn't have wanted them dropped at all.  They help balance out the seriousness of the romantic relationship that is at the heart of the series.  I love the episodes where Yukino learns to be more normal and experience what it's like to actually have good friends...when she learns to drop her facade and just be herself in public...and makes old enemies into friends, especially Maho Izawa (井沢 真秀 Izawa Maho) and Tsubasa Shibahime (芝姫 つばさ Shibahime Tsubasa^?).  

This is a very good High School romance/drama/comedy.  It is very Japanese and very fixed in time in the late 1990s.

It lacks the emotional punch and force of later series like Peach Girl, School Rumble, Rumbling Hearts, and Suzuka, but it has a tender charm all its own just the same.  Yukino is one of my favorite female anime characters...hilariously flawed but also very smart and sassy.  Every bit the stereotypical fiery, passionate red-head.