February 2nd, 2010
Tag Explanation
This is an explanation of the many weird tags I have for my manga and anime. These tags are the way they are because they're incredibly opinionated -- meaning my opinion may not be the reality for you. Not that I really care...
I'll only be listing the tags that aren't totally obvious here. ;D (While I'm discussing them, my tags will always be in these [brackets] here.
[Romance Delay]
This happens when the story doesn't decide to instantly (a few chapters in) pounce into a love story without any serious trials or believable challenges to grow on. On the contrary, the "main couple" might take quite a while to get together. Usually for me it's 'the longer the better', and I'm talking like [Take the Ring to Mordor] then they can be together kinda thing. The more story that happens, the more enabled growth and festering affection, the better. xD My favourite example of this is unrequited love; on the guy's side. aha.
[Underlying Darkness]
This is for a series with a generally bright or happy atmosphere; a story you don't expect sudden angst or tragic back story. But, it happens anyway.
[Angst and Rainbows]
This is almost the same as the previous tag, but the difference is the intensity. Full Moon wo Sagashite is the perfect example of this,
[Take the Ring to Mordor]
I always think of LotR when I think of overcoming great challenges and succeeding in the end... it's a very intense example for me, though it's fun to use. I always say my ideal story is one where they have to take the ring to Mordor before they can be happy... only through great tragedy, great angst, great trial -- when it's all over, gazing at the light is sharper, clearer than anything you've ever beheld. The freedom and empowering sense of success. Once you've tasted the darkness, nothing makes you crave more for the light. Or it could be something more simple like life is hell and then happiness is shoved in your face. This type of story is crazy satisfying for me.
[CLAMP]
Oh my gaaash, these ladies. The anime version of their works is 99% of the time 100% better than the manga. (Yes, in my opinion, you remember.) They come up with excellent ideas that are unpolished until receiving an anime. Angelic Layer, for example. One of my favourite animes, but the manga was so awful I couldn't stomach finishing it.
[Too many males]
I hate that.
[Suddenly in love]
Most popular boy in school meets most popular girl in school. Both are so stunningly beautiful, they fit together like missing puzzle pieces. Or maybe one is gorgeous and the other is homely. Whatever the circumstances, love at first sight is an icky plot basis. Uwck. Most of the time this turns me off of a series, but rare cases have pulled it off decently.
[Magical World]
There's our world, then the other world the main character is pulled into.
[Dodgy Subjects]
Why does CLAMP adore these? Take CCS. Syaoran's initial crush on Yukito has alwaaays creeped the crud out of me. Amongst other things. (Terada and Rika... ohh my gash) Putting it in a manga directed towards older audiences is one thing, but an 'innocent' manga that I can find in the kids' section at Chapters...? Granted, kids probably don't have an inkling to understand that type of thing, though.
[Quirky Characters]
I love them! I've always been extremely fond of character driven stories, so when characters are colourful and interesting; avoiding cliches and harbouring personality, I eat it all up.
[Awkward Character Models]
Some mangaka toss me an inevitable chuckle with their art style, and Yoshiki Nakamura (Skip Beat!) is certainly one of many. Just... the chins of the males. Their... height? Freakish skinniness? Of course to be fair, anorexia seems tradition in pretty much every manga ever drawn.
[Eyes are too Big]
Freakishly so. Sometimes they take up MORE than half the character's face.
So, the award goes to Arina Tanemura~! Though, this is a common problem in a lot of manga.
[Fab Chara Designs]
hee. Hello, Pandora Hearts. Why can't the stuff I really like ever have amazing character designs like that?
[Aww-factor]
Squishy cuteness... feels as though you can reach out at touch it. Very heartwarming and sweet. Has nothing to do with the physical appearance of the characters, unlike [Cuteness Overload].
[Directionless]
[plot] and [romance]
How I hate it when a story spends time building up to something and nothing even happens. Like they once had an idea where to go, but then it evaporated, and shoulders were shrugged; out came a new, random idea to replace it. Though, this happens about 75% more often in video games, so I should complain about it there with the rest of the rabid fans. Especially with romance.
[Easy Personality Transition]
Have you ever encountered a character so transparent they felt as if they were carrying a bag of blank masks around? yep. I sure have. One day, there is no personality, the next they've pulled out a package of rainbow smelly markers to scribble a quick expression onto one of their masks. Who in the world are they, anyway? So wishy-washy. Is anything consistent? Usually I stop caring pretty early on.
This is complete different from character development, which produces complexity. This I like.
[Can't Stay Awake]
Self-explanatory, but... xD Usually this frustrates me, because it's a series I really want to finish thanks to high recs from people I respect.
[Genre Coup d'etat]
This is a favourite, but also a pretty rare tag. It happens when a series amazes me enough to feel like it's overthrowing its genre with a melange of new and crazy ideas, cutting cliche corners and getting to the point... doesn't have to be consistently thrilling, but it plays a part in my addiction to it. xD Yes, anything that dodges cliches and introduces fresh and new ideas to the genre can earn my respect pretty quick (when done properly).
That's it for now!
I'll only be listing the tags that aren't totally obvious here. ;D (While I'm discussing them, my tags will always be in these [brackets] here.
[Romance Delay]
This happens when the story doesn't decide to instantly (a few chapters in) pounce into a love story without any serious trials or believable challenges to grow on. On the contrary, the "main couple" might take quite a while to get together. Usually for me it's 'the longer the better', and I'm talking like [Take the Ring to Mordor] then they can be together kinda thing. The more story that happens, the more enabled growth and festering affection, the better. xD My favourite example of this is unrequited love; on the guy's side. aha.
[Underlying Darkness]
This is for a series with a generally bright or happy atmosphere; a story you don't expect sudden angst or tragic back story. But, it happens anyway.
[Angst and Rainbows]
This is almost the same as the previous tag, but the difference is the intensity. Full Moon wo Sagashite is the perfect example of this,
[Take the Ring to Mordor]
I always think of LotR when I think of overcoming great challenges and succeeding in the end... it's a very intense example for me, though it's fun to use. I always say my ideal story is one where they have to take the ring to Mordor before they can be happy... only through great tragedy, great angst, great trial -- when it's all over, gazing at the light is sharper, clearer than anything you've ever beheld. The freedom and empowering sense of success. Once you've tasted the darkness, nothing makes you crave more for the light. Or it could be something more simple like life is hell and then happiness is shoved in your face. This type of story is crazy satisfying for me.
[CLAMP]
Oh my gaaash, these ladies. The anime version of their works is 99% of the time 100% better than the manga. (Yes, in my opinion, you remember.) They come up with excellent ideas that are unpolished until receiving an anime. Angelic Layer, for example. One of my favourite animes, but the manga was so awful I couldn't stomach finishing it.
[Too many males]
I hate that.
[Suddenly in love]
Most popular boy in school meets most popular girl in school. Both are so stunningly beautiful, they fit together like missing puzzle pieces. Or maybe one is gorgeous and the other is homely. Whatever the circumstances, love at first sight is an icky plot basis. Uwck. Most of the time this turns me off of a series, but rare cases have pulled it off decently.
[Magical World]
There's our world, then the other world the main character is pulled into.
[Dodgy Subjects]
Why does CLAMP adore these? Take CCS. Syaoran's initial crush on Yukito has alwaaays creeped the crud out of me. Amongst other things. (Terada and Rika... ohh my gash) Putting it in a manga directed towards older audiences is one thing, but an 'innocent' manga that I can find in the kids' section at Chapters...? Granted, kids probably don't have an inkling to understand that type of thing, though.
[Quirky Characters]
I love them! I've always been extremely fond of character driven stories, so when characters are colourful and interesting; avoiding cliches and harbouring personality, I eat it all up.
[Awkward Character Models]
Some mangaka toss me an inevitable chuckle with their art style, and Yoshiki Nakamura (Skip Beat!) is certainly one of many. Just... the chins of the males. Their... height? Freakish skinniness? Of course to be fair, anorexia seems tradition in pretty much every manga ever drawn.
[Eyes are too Big]
Freakishly so. Sometimes they take up MORE than half the character's face.
So, the award goes to Arina Tanemura~! Though, this is a common problem in a lot of manga.
[Fab Chara Designs]
hee. Hello, Pandora Hearts. Why can't the stuff I really like ever have amazing character designs like that?
[Aww-factor]
Squishy cuteness... feels as though you can reach out at touch it. Very heartwarming and sweet. Has nothing to do with the physical appearance of the characters, unlike [Cuteness Overload].
[Directionless]
[plot] and [romance]
How I hate it when a story spends time building up to something and nothing even happens. Like they once had an idea where to go, but then it evaporated, and shoulders were shrugged; out came a new, random idea to replace it. Though, this happens about 75% more often in video games, so I should complain about it there with the rest of the rabid fans. Especially with romance.
[Easy Personality Transition]
Have you ever encountered a character so transparent they felt as if they were carrying a bag of blank masks around? yep. I sure have. One day, there is no personality, the next they've pulled out a package of rainbow smelly markers to scribble a quick expression onto one of their masks. Who in the world are they, anyway? So wishy-washy. Is anything consistent? Usually I stop caring pretty early on.
This is complete different from character development, which produces complexity. This I like.
[Can't Stay Awake]
Self-explanatory, but... xD Usually this frustrates me, because it's a series I really want to finish thanks to high recs from people I respect.
[Genre Coup d'etat]
This is a favourite, but also a pretty rare tag. It happens when a series amazes me enough to feel like it's overthrowing its genre with a melange of new and crazy ideas, cutting cliche corners and getting to the point... doesn't have to be consistently thrilling, but it plays a part in my addiction to it. xD Yes, anything that dodges cliches and introduces fresh and new ideas to the genre can earn my respect pretty quick (when done properly).
That's it for now!
Posted by roseice | Feb 2, 2010 10:10 PM | 0 comments
April 28th, 2009
*tear* SA ends!
Anime Relations: Special A
Today was the day SA ended for me, as I hid from all summaries and raws until the scanlations were posted. ;__;
Today is a very sad day in me-land. Honestly, I'm kinda in a dreamy mood as if I can't come to terms with the fact it's over now. It was excellent and fabulous and very impacting and inspiring. How was the ending?
Well, it was good. It was the end. Endings are hard, very hard for stories that carry such lovable characters and epic circumstances (imo!). With a long story like SA, it's almost impossible to end it properly because a proper ending doesn't exist.
I think you're only able to understand that once you've written your own story. I'm not saying my stories are fabulous like SA, but I'm saying I know it's hard to end something you've worked hard on in a way that will truly satisfy you. I'm not sure whether or not Maki Minami is happy with her ending, but regardless that's how I feel right now.
It was a happy ending. I'm very sad, actually... not looking forward to another SA chapter in the future, oh my goodness it's kinda a depressing thought! I only hope one day I can find another manga that has as much to love as SA does for me... if not, I will still be able to re-read it for the rest of my life...
Today is a very sad day in me-land. Honestly, I'm kinda in a dreamy mood as if I can't come to terms with the fact it's over now. It was excellent and fabulous and very impacting and inspiring. How was the ending?
Well, it was good. It was the end. Endings are hard, very hard for stories that carry such lovable characters and epic circumstances (imo!). With a long story like SA, it's almost impossible to end it properly because a proper ending doesn't exist.
I think you're only able to understand that once you've written your own story. I'm not saying my stories are fabulous like SA, but I'm saying I know it's hard to end something you've worked hard on in a way that will truly satisfy you. I'm not sure whether or not Maki Minami is happy with her ending, but regardless that's how I feel right now.
It was a happy ending. I'm very sad, actually... not looking forward to another SA chapter in the future, oh my goodness it's kinda a depressing thought! I only hope one day I can find another manga that has as much to love as SA does for me... if not, I will still be able to re-read it for the rest of my life...
Posted by roseice | Apr 28, 2009 8:17 PM | 0 comments
June 12th, 2008
Detective Conan
Anime Relations: Meitantei Conan
Conan is my latest addiction~ やれやれ。
I'm having so much fun watching it though, way more than expected. There's a lot of things I love about it, mainly the characters. The cases are sometimes repetitive and there's PLENTY to be had of them for certain, but even so they're entertaining. Everything in the cases have a good introduction, Conan is flippin brilliant for a 17 year old mind, and I prefer the cases that don't have to do with murder. xD The vaaast majority of them do, but that seems to be changing lately (I'm on episode 110) so good news! :D
Anyway, the best part -- characters. A lot of people wait for the plot to move forward but it not doing so in Conan doesn't bother me one bit... I'm beginning to think it should, though. ha. Right, so my favourite character is Kaitou Kid, who doesn't appear until episode 76... way too put off for a fangirl like me but I survived. ^^ "Kid" is, like his name implies a phantom thief, and he came before Jeanne, Dark and all those other... characters, so that wins him more points I suppose. And he is flippin faint worthily awesome. In my opinion. hehehehe. <33
But alas, his appearances are rare, so my love for Shinichi tides me over. Shinichi/Conan is an awesome character... I feel like I'm repeating myself but it's so true. I love the situations his kid form puts him in, and of course, his relationship with Ran. The two have long since fallen for each other but both are too shy to do anything about it. Even after Ran tells Conan her feelings for Shinichi, him being stuck as Conan prevents his reply. But he wasn't supposed to hear anything in the first place, so heh.
In one episode where drinking a bit of alcohol by accident changes Conan back into Shinichi momentarily, he only has enough time to solve a case in the form before changing back. And in angst he says, "Not yet! I want to tell her... to tell Ran... with my own voice..." something like that. *pokes Shinichi*~ Gah, even one time when a girl who had feelings for Shinichi in high school tells Ran what he'd said to her in rejection of her confession... "Sorry, I already have someone I've liked since I was a kid." and then goes on to describe Ran's bad points, lawl. But anyway, even after that, Ran is clueless! "Did he know someone like that?" *face palm* Ran, Ran, Ran. Gotta take her as she comes~
Anyway, it's great! I can't explain how super it is in words. I feel so slooow in getting into Conan, but it might be for the best because I have tons of episodes to watch without waiting a week for each one~ squee! (I'll admit though, with the TV series I skimmed some of the episodes... the more boring ones. xD)
The movies are amazing as well, the first one is probably my favourite thus far out of the three I've seen. I've watched both the live action movies and they... really aren't anything special, imo. The acting is a little bad, especially Conan. :\ Luckily they managed to make both movies revolve around Shinichi... unrealistic, but okay with me! ;D Shinichi's powers of deduction feel dumbed down and the cases aren't impressive at all in the live action movies, but... they were decent. ^^
I'm having so much fun watching it though, way more than expected. There's a lot of things I love about it, mainly the characters. The cases are sometimes repetitive and there's PLENTY to be had of them for certain, but even so they're entertaining. Everything in the cases have a good introduction, Conan is flippin brilliant for a 17 year old mind, and I prefer the cases that don't have to do with murder. xD The vaaast majority of them do, but that seems to be changing lately (I'm on episode 110) so good news! :D
Anyway, the best part -- characters. A lot of people wait for the plot to move forward but it not doing so in Conan doesn't bother me one bit... I'm beginning to think it should, though. ha. Right, so my favourite character is Kaitou Kid, who doesn't appear until episode 76... way too put off for a fangirl like me but I survived. ^^ "Kid" is, like his name implies a phantom thief, and he came before Jeanne, Dark and all those other... characters, so that wins him more points I suppose. And he is flippin faint worthily awesome. In my opinion. hehehehe. <33
But alas, his appearances are rare, so my love for Shinichi tides me over. Shinichi/Conan is an awesome character... I feel like I'm repeating myself but it's so true. I love the situations his kid form puts him in, and of course, his relationship with Ran. The two have long since fallen for each other but both are too shy to do anything about it. Even after Ran tells Conan her feelings for Shinichi, him being stuck as Conan prevents his reply. But he wasn't supposed to hear anything in the first place, so heh.
In one episode where drinking a bit of alcohol by accident changes Conan back into Shinichi momentarily, he only has enough time to solve a case in the form before changing back. And in angst he says, "Not yet! I want to tell her... to tell Ran... with my own voice..." something like that. *pokes Shinichi*~ Gah, even one time when a girl who had feelings for Shinichi in high school tells Ran what he'd said to her in rejection of her confession... "Sorry, I already have someone I've liked since I was a kid." and then goes on to describe Ran's bad points, lawl. But anyway, even after that, Ran is clueless! "Did he know someone like that?" *face palm* Ran, Ran, Ran. Gotta take her as she comes~
Anyway, it's great! I can't explain how super it is in words. I feel so slooow in getting into Conan, but it might be for the best because I have tons of episodes to watch without waiting a week for each one~ squee! (I'll admit though, with the TV series I skimmed some of the episodes... the more boring ones. xD)
The movies are amazing as well, the first one is probably my favourite thus far out of the three I've seen. I've watched both the live action movies and they... really aren't anything special, imo. The acting is a little bad, especially Conan. :\ Luckily they managed to make both movies revolve around Shinichi... unrealistic, but okay with me! ;D Shinichi's powers of deduction feel dumbed down and the cases aren't impressive at all in the live action movies, but... they were decent. ^^
Posted by roseice | Jun 12, 2008 6:43 PM | 0 comments