Author Archives: Jon

About Jon

Jon is a Japanese culture enthusiast, professional pervert and roleplaying fanatic who appreciates flexible gender identities. He enjoys science fiction, Gunpla, classical music and Red Stripe.

Project Haruhi Fall Anime Preview, Part 2

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Send in the clones.

In case you missed it, Part 1 is here.

The second half of our anime preview focuses on what you might call our “second string” authors. Jake and Eric are both new to the site, although they do have extensive anime blogging experience. As for Chris, he’s a regular guest on the podcast, but has been too disillusioned with recent anime to do much reviewing. However, with a little coercing from my taskmaster whip, they should all be writing weekly anime reviews for the fall season. As for which shows they’ll be covering, we still haven’t worked out those details yet. However, you can get a fairly good idea of their tastes by reading their short previews below. I’ve also included a preview by a special guest, Janai of the eponymous Janaiblog. Enjoy, and be sure to leave your own thoughts in the comment section!

Note: Before reading this, it might be a good idea to check out Random Curiosity’s preview. It has descriptions and trailers for each of the shows we’ll be talking about, and is generally an excellent resource for keeping track of the new fall season anime.

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Project Haruhi’s Fall Anime Preview, Part 1

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You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile.

We are Project Haruhi. We are not one, but many.

That’s right! Contrary to popular belief, this website actually has several different authors writing for us. And we’re not just a bunch of emotionless clones, either… we each have unique opinions and aesthetic preferences. Despite what some of our readers believe, we’re not all grumpy moe-hating oldfags or fanservice-bashing puritans. Our tastes are as diverse as the colors of the rainbow.

To help emphasize that fact, I’ve asked each of our authors to write up their own short fall anime preview, detailing which shows they’re interested in and why. The first four of these previews are in this post; the rest will come tomorrow. Hopefully, this should give you a good idea of what to expect in our upcoming episode reviews and podcasts. Maybe our opinions will help you decide which shows you want to watch as well. So read on below the break, and let us know your thoughts in the comment section.

Note: Before reading this, it might be a good idea to check out Random Curiosity’s preview. It has descriptions and trailers for each of the shows we’ll be talking about, and is generally an excellent resource for keeping track of the new fall season anime.

[OP image by bbmbbf]

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Madhouse Earns My Forgiveness With Epic New Film

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I have immense respect for the prolific anime studio Madhouse, but their offering this season has been a total disappointment. Highschool of the Dead is one of the worst anime I have ever seen; a veritable ordeal to watch. If it wasn’t for my duties as chief editor of this site, I would have dropped it weeks ago. The K-ON!! finale might have been a wrenching roller-coaster of emotion, but the last episode of HOTD is what brought me to tears… tears of joy, that is. I’m so very happy that I don’t have to watch another episode of that garbage.

So, as you can imagine, I’ve been pretty disappointed in Madhouse lately… that is, until I saw this little trailer for something called Redline.

Freakin’ epic.

Seriously, this is one of the most visually stunning anime projects I have ever seen. I especially love the bits which display an aesthetic I can only describe as “LSD cyberpunk.” I think this film is worth watching for the animation alone. Madhouse, you have redeemed yourself.

You can learn more about Redline at ANN.

Otaku Debate: Did the Summer Anime Season Suck?

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Surprisingly, last week’s debate didn’t generate the knee-jerk negative reaction towards obesity that I expected. Most of the poll respondents said they preferred their girls anywhere from “meaty” to “slightly chubby,” which could be considered average weight for most people. It’s nice to see our readers have rejected the “thin = sexy” message of pop culture and formed more realistic standards of beauty!

This week’s topic is a bit of a painful one for me. In my humble opinion, this anime season has been a total letdown. Most of the shows, such as Seitokai Yakuindomo and Ookami-san, were just too bland to be worthwhile… and the few that showed promise, like Occult Academy and Highschool of the Dead, turned out to be total duds. The only show that’s marginally entertaining at this point is Mitsudomoe, but the very risque humor makes it appealing to only a small subset of otaku.

Now, I don’t think this means anime is doomed or anything silly like that. We’ve had bad seasons before, particularly in the early nineties after the last economic crash. Still, that doesn’t make it any less depressing to slog through such mediocrity. Has this season left you in a similar state of despair? Or do you think that I’m being overly negative? Are there any anime this season you did enjoy, or are you taking refuge in old classics like Dirty Pair and Gundam while this storm blows over? Vote in the poll below, and share your thoughts in the comment section!

(Just FYI: I consider K-ON!! to be a spring season show, so it doesn’t figure into this debate.)

[poll id=”17″]

Otaku Debate: Can Fat Girls Be Sexy?

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You cannot unsee this.

Last week’s sexy hair poll was so popular, I decided to make a weekly poll-oriented debate column. Welcome to the inaugural edition of Otaku Debate! Here, we will discuss the hard-hitting issues facing the otaku community today, while oogling as many sexy ladies as we can. Let’s begin!

When I posted this image to Twitter last night, I was surprised when many of my followers expressing support for fat fetishism. Quite a few people thought that pictures such as this one (VERY NSFW) and the one above were sexy, often repeating the catchphrase “Big girls need love too.” This got me thinking… last week’s poll seemed to indicate a certain sense of conformity with regard to hairstyle preferences, with twintails and waist-length hair being the most popular. Are there a significant number of otaku who go against the norm and enjoy a nice, fat anime girl? Or is this particular fetish relegated to fringe status, supported by a small but vocal minority? Vote in the poll below, then let me know your thoughts on the matter in the comments!

[poll id=”16″]

Yen Plus adds K-ON! and Yotsuba&!

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Yotsuba doesn't like being upstaged.

The launch of Yen Press’ online magazine Yen Plus went unnoticed by most otaku, mainly because the titles it included were exclusively Korean manhwa instead of manga. However, this month’s issue remedies that by adding two very well-known manga titles to the roster; the ever-popular slice-of-life series K-ON! and Kiyohiko Azuma’s beloved Yotsuba&!. But are these two manga really worth the subscription price?

Well, I decided to check out this month’s issue for myself. After hassling with the Yen Plus online reader’s annoying lag for a bit, I jumped straight to the first chapter of K-ON!. I must say, I find the manga to be much better than the anime, if only because they ditched the psuedo-character development and focused purely on the personality-driven gags, especially those involving Yui. The 4-koma manga essentially distills the plot, cutting out all the fluff and making for a much more lighthearted and enjoyable experience. As for Yotsuba&!, it remains one of the best manga of this decade. If you’ve never heard of it, this excellent article explains exactly why it’s so awesome. Frankly, I think the inclusion of Yotsuba&! chapters alone makes this magazine well worth the price of subscription.

At only $2.99 a month, subscribing to Yen Plus is a good way for even the poorest manga enthusiasts to support the series and artists they love. With two great new titles, I definitely think it’s worth your time and money. One Manga may be gone, but the phenomenon of online manga has a bright future.

Past Masters: Dirty Pair

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Introducing Kei and Yuri, also known as the Dirty Pai... er, Lovely Angels!

Space is the final frontier… and these two girls are about to destroy it!

If you’ve ever hung around with oldschool anime fans, you’ve probably heard them mention Dirty Pair. This science fiction buddy-cop comedy has a huge American following, enough to make it one of anime’s best-known cult classics. In fact, this show’s popularity led Nozomi Entertainment to go through all the legal hassle of licensing it nearly twenty-five years after it originally aired. But why exactly is this series so beloved? Well, to answer that question, I just need to make one simple comparison.

Dirty Pair is the Japanese version of Star Trek.

Like Gene Roddenberry’s classic 1960s TV show, Dirty Pair is anachronistic. The look and feel of this anime is incredibly dated, mired in that campy mid-eighties culture that we all enjoy mocking. However, this campiness is part of the charm; the space bikinis, short miniskirts, moon boots and outlandish hairstyles just add to the sense of unrestrained fun that permeates this show. Just like Star Trek, this series’ strengths lie in snappy writing, loveable characters and great stories, allowing it to rise above its sillier qualities and become a true science fiction classic. Despite being a relic of another era, Dirty Pair is still a timeless anime that everyone can enjoy.

Find out more after the break.

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WTF? Panty & Stocking Trailer Revealed

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Ladies and gentlemen, may I present… the official trailer for Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt.

I’m not sure what I just watched, but I know it was AWESOME. After seeing this trailer, Sheentaku on Twitter described this show as “an adult version of The Powerpuff Girls,” an assessment I agree with wholeheartedly. It appears that my earlier prediction was correct; Panty & Stocking is indeed a Gainax-style tribute to the great American cartoons of the 90s. The implications of this are clear. In my humble opinion, this is the must-watch show of the 2010 Fall anime season.

Notice the audio track may not be suitable for the work /open public environment.

Bakacast Briefs – Metroid Rage

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iTunes | Direct Download | RSS

The last Metroid in in captivity… but the fanboys are not at peace.

On this week’s Bakacast, we delve into the world of video games and examine how the new Wii game Metroid: Other M completely destroys Samus Aran’s character. Since both Dustin and I are pretty big Metroid fans, there’s plenty of hilariously impotent fanboy rage thrown around. After that, we get around to our usual anime reviews, wherein we address whether or not protagonists such as HotD’s Takashi should have sex. Finally, we answer some decidedly serious Twitter questions as best we can.

  • Highschool of the Dead #9
  • Occult Academy #9
  • K-ON!! 22 (We didn’t review this because Jeagle was absent. Hopefully we’ll get to it next week.)

A list of our Bakacast Affiliates can be found here. Be sure to check out their blogs!

Opening music is “Menu Theme” from Metroid Prime. Ending music is “Samus’ Lonely Waltz” by blackguitar.

Which Hairstyle is Sexiest?

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In episode 21 of K-ON!, the girls try out a variety of different hairstyles in preparation for their class photos. One commenter, Don Kangol Jones, mentioned that he thought this was a subtle commentary on how a character’s design and, by extension, personality is defined by their hairstyle. This got me thinking about past anime and manga where characters have changed their hair. One example that stuck in my mind was the final volume of A.I. Love You, where Cynthia trimmed her long locks into a bob cut that, frankly, didn’t suit her at all. Although her personality technically stayed the same, she just seemed like an entirely different person based on appearance alone. I think Don hit the nail on the head; hairstyle is the most important aspect of any anime character’s design.

So, what kind of anime hairstyle do you like best? And what type of personality do you think that hairstyle suits? Do the twintails make the tsundere, and do all tomboys sport short haircuts? Should an elegant bushido girl wear a ponytail, or let her flowing tresses fly free? I’m interested in hearing your thoughts. Vote in the poll below, and leave your opinion in the comment section!

[poll id=”15″]