Kurenai 4 Koma No.4
Terrible

I wanted to do an Pop Idol parody with a face-palm Steve Cowell face-palm but despite the habit he has of doing it in real life, I couldn’t find one from the Simpsons.

This was the best image I could find, featuring Simon with an expression of utter disdain.

Thanks to BSS for the subtitles used in this 4-Koma. The last image is, of course, a reference to Chi from Strawberry Marshmallow. Loli splat is just what misbehaving children deserve!

~ Teeif

Kurenai Sixth Episode
The light above you is shining

Normally I would complain when one on the very few episodes in a short series is filler. I find it’s like the pointlessness of stuffing Turkey with shrapnel and then tying it together with a thin pretence for a plot. However, this time, I think the packed 25.42 minutes of Kurenai (not even an OP and ED) was pure entertainment.

When compared to other rubbish plot devices which evolve into epic singing, primely Buffy the Vampire Slayer with it’s excuse that a demon is making them sing (WTF!?), this was not bad. Benika hires some people to persuade Shinkurou’s insane asylum to participate in a fake musical. Cos…. it’s for lols and kicks, you know? No, really. This is reasonably plausible. Wasting money and screwing around with subordinates fits Benika’s snobbish, commanding profile very well.

At the point where the cast line up for practice, I realise what a motley crew the characters of Kurenai really are. When objectively viewing the characters of Kurenai in this light, who are nonetheless individually wonderful, they are somewhat setup artificially thus exposing Kurenai’s heart as a situational comedy.

Like Will and Grace demonstrates, putting some gays together with straights is guaranteed fun but not alot of wit. Frankly, getting a Goth, a Chav, a reverse-trap and a Loli together to sing, would ensue comedy even at a funeral! But it wouldn’t ever happen.

The reverse-trap by the way, is Shinkurou Kurenai him herself. This character is voiced by a girl, Sawashiro Miyuki, not that I would have guessed it especially after her top quality singing so more credit to the seiyuu is due.

Even though an inspired 2 minutes of song was acceptable quality at best, I still congratulate Kou Matsuo for the effort. It doesn’t feel forced either, at least not in the sense that Macross makes Ranka or Sheryl randomly stage a concert in order to sell moar CDs (to fund the animation of Ranka’s hair, of course).

The original quartet are later backed up by Yayoi, probably the most unlikely reservoir of singing talent since the little mermaid; and Yuuno who is Tsuntsun so can’t sing for cookies, but will still glomp Shinkurou like a nasty rash. But at least then, Shinkurou would be more visible; she comes with a glow-in-the-dark dress. Overall Yuuno was really annoying, she acted like a drunk attention whore the time. The stocks in my opinion for that girl has went down.

~ Teeif

This reminds me of that old joke about windows. If Microsoft made houses, every time you want to move something, you have to go outside and come back in again!

I’m still toying with the layouts and the formats of my blog posts. The pictures are now hosted by WordPress so should load faster and enlarge when clicked, giving everyone access to my 1280×720 screenshots in some cases.

Thank you for your patience.

~ Teeif

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 Turn 6.
Surprise attack in the pacific ocean.

I think the Siskon Madman has lost it. Love for his sister’s DFC (and I mean pancake flat) has clouded his judgement and is causing him to take ridiculous risks. The surprise attack was no such thing, Britannia knew about it, and lelouch barely escaped the ambush with Kallen’s Guren as the only surviving unit.

Although Lulu’s attempted abduction of Nunally was foiled by a Guildford’s mass produced evas Lancelots and the three knights of the round, he did at least converse with her. I liked how the tranquil, yet emotional conflict of minds inside contrasted with the violent drama outside. It is somewhat similar to The Empire Strikes Back, with Lulu struggling with his darkside siskon feelings. Nunally is the emperor observing the conflict between Lulu and Suzaku, just substitute the father revelation for a subtext of Nunally expressing her preference for Suzaku, leaving Lulu to scream “NUNALLIEEEEEEEE” as he falls into vacuum.

The idea that Nunally is Lulu’s weak point has become the rule and it may even prove to be his Achilles’ heal. Lulu, with all the verve needed to assault a Britannia escort fleet was flabbergasted in front of Nunally - not the only time I’ve seen this.

Lulu’s mistake today was to trust the Chinese. Everyone knows that the nationalist Japanese producers at Sunrise dislike the Chinese and will do anything they can to make China appear like a back-stabbing, anarchic, incompetent regime!

To be honest, I think Japan is really ambivalent towards nationalism which can often be mistaken for social cohesion and filial piety/loyalty. In any case, analysis shows that Code Geass’ scattergun alternative history is too inconsistent to be a statement of any sort, much less a overtly nationalistic one.

Nevertheless, I will still futilely attempt to prove a case anyway. I call upon Everyman’s favourite Animé stereotype: the Loli.

When you compare each side’s mandatory Loli, you will find that the Japanese one is better than the others. For example, the Chinese Empress is a bit of a crybaby and nowhere near as Lolicious as the Japanese Empress. Meanwhile, the Britannian loli is a heartless Twitter addict with overpowered, monstrously huge guns on her Mech; probably to boost her low self-esteem due being flat, and a geek. The Japanese Empress goes around with a purpose, dignity and some power, albeit she is a bit of a figurehead. In contrast, the Chinese Empress is like the boy-emperors before the revolution: powerless and confined to the ‘forbidden city’ by fugly, castrated, Eunuchs and their annoying voiceovers. Now, tell me which side has is the superior Loli?

The real power in China is still hidden, regardless whoever rules is incompetent, leaving Li Xingke to freely tip-off Britannia as soon as Lulu turns his back. This leaves the question: is China protecting the creation of the United States of Japan or not?

~ Teeif

In this season’s battle of the Shojos, Vampire Knight has become my knight in shining armor, Itazara na Kiss is an enjoyable flirt and Special A gets a special spoon. There is a cool aura about every episode of Vampire Knight and I even like the random fanservice of bishounen Vampires licking each other. Vampire Knight still suffers from points of rubbish animation but hey, it’s a limited budget because the sale of 1:10 scale Kaname figures is limited.

Maybe a Megami Magazine Yuki Cross Poster is relevant to your interests?

It looks like the job of selling toys falls onto Yuki’s shoulders. Unfortunately Yuki’s sense of danger is minutely better than a blind rabbit on a runway. She gets chomped on by Nothing (Sorry, Zero) every other episode. Then, when she bleeds, every vampire in the building can smell it! Weather she bleeds or not doesn’t seem to affect the hordes of random level E vampires assaulting her down every back alley she’s been to so far. Even worse is her complete inability to put up a fight, well, not when there are legions of hawt bishies queuing up to rescue her.

Will she die? I don’t actually know because I refuse to read the manga even while it sits there on a website (that is not exactly called Ichi Manga ;-)) waiting for me to gawk at it’s beautiful images. Though I did risk myself slight exposure to spoilers when I went to fact check the levels of vampire society:

Vampire Society -
A - Pure Blood
B - Noble
C - ‘Normal’ Vampires
D - Human Vampires
E - RWAAR Blergh! Kill!

Pure Bloods to remain pure, must marry each other and apparently marrying your sibling is common. If I was a skeptical person, I would say it’s blatant attempt to create a sis-kon scenario. Oh wait! I am. This is sooo gonna end with lots of “Oni-sama, Aisteru!”

50 word Summaries:

Vampire Knight Forth night
Trigger of Conviction

Yuki gets sucked by nothing so invades Moon Hall to satisfy her masochistic urges. Unfortunately Kaname saves her from being raped by Idou as well, so she goes back to nothing who also runs off to be emo. Poor Yuki.

Vampire Knight Fifth night
Feast in the moonlight

There’s a new teacher for defence against the dark arts ethics, he wears an eyepatch and a stern gaze – a vampire hunter then. Yuki follows nothing’s boycott of his former master, but he chomps Yuki, so Vampire Hunter returns to shoot nothing and save Yuki. Poor nothing.

~ Teeif

Kure-nai Fifth Episode
Wish.

Last weekend gone was a bank holiday in Teh Olde Green Isles, with 3 whole days off work, it’s often a chance to go on short break. Although I would rather sleep off work fatigue, there are some Brits who actually do go outside. Goodness knows why, most will discover that the transport system is retarded and the weather is random, but the most unfortunate of them will discover how retarded and random their in-laws are!

A Sunday according to animu is for families to spend time together, so Shinkurou drags the little one off to visit Yuuno, the virtual in-laws who live a train plus bus ride away in her beautiful house of Zen. Murasaki and Shinkurou’s visit to the Houzuki’s, in many ways, reminded me instead of a horrible trip to the in-laws. Everyone’s formal, awkward questions are mandatory, there is edgy tension, you have a fight with your partner and then your kid breaks something!

Despite Shinkurou and Yuuno having grown up together and Shikurou being an adopted Son, surprisingly, there’s none of the rather-convenient-not-blood-related-cute-sister scenario. This is serious anime! Lesser anime (Yes you, Da Crapo!) would have already milked this situation for “Oni chan, daisuki” till the cow moos. Of course, we later learn that Yuuno belongs to a family of self-confessed killers (Dai Crapo!), so maybe Shinkurou wasn’t so keen to join the family.

Regardless of their official relationship, I think Shinkurou and Yuuno are almost destined to be married. Their little flirts, moments of modesty and embarrassment are so much cuter when Yuuno isn’t being so assertive. Houzuki-sensei certainly approves. Exactly why Yuuno turns to her father when she spuriously decides to follow Shinkurou at the end, I do not know. But he approves :). I’ve warmed up to Yuuno this episode, she was quite aggressive and jealously maternal to begin with, but now I know that her attitude comes from pseudo-sisterly love, she’s pretty awesome. All that, or I just like her Kimono.

A Sunday in the life of Shinkurou Kurenai reiterates the joy of having a slice of life anime of a most unusual life. I’m starting to come round to the perspective that Kurenai is good enough as one of those plotless slice-of-life shows.

This Week’s 4-Koma:
It’s only a game (Click Read More)

This week on Kids Say The Funniest Things:

~ Teeif

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 Turn 5
Knight of the rounds

Take a break fellow citizenry of Britannia for the rebellion is on hold! Fear not! For the public propaganda service has arranged mild titillation and slapstick comedy to placate the rowdy plebs. Advert your eyes from the open rebellion within the borders of area 11 and never should you let barbarians disrupt your plans to attend the Ashford Academy Suzaku’s homecoming festival. Rest assured in knowledge that last year’s invasion by the Black Knights was a frivolous affair and another gathering the country’s ruling elite is entirely safe. For your protection this year’s festival will be guarded by samurai knights, pizza and cats!

I for one, is among those peasants who actually enjoyed the break from the relentless pace since the first episode. I applaud you, man who came up with a chase scene involving a cat, a roboto, a gay, Godzilla, Asuna Kagurazaka, Little Bo Peep and Lulu (in order of finishing). I even give you plus points for ripping characters from the ill fated Mahou Sensei Negima:

Yue,

Asuna,

and Chachamaru (credit to Kurogane!)

Yes, this episode’s plot can be written on the back of a postcard. No, nothing notable happened beyond the return of Suzaku and Nunnally as the governor. However this episode marks the restoration of Zero’s rebellion to a state close to as it was before the transition of season 1 and 2.

The sides have been reassembled; Brittania holds the initiative by moving Nunally in place but Zero now has a few useful pieces in Rolo and Villetta. For the forseeable battle, it’s Geass V.S. Knightmare Frames, magic against machine, irresistible persuasion against indomitable force. But Suzaku is brewing a betrayal and the king of Brittannia will do well to remember it was Lancelot, Arthur’s right hand man who brought about the downfall of that kingdom.

This Week’s 4 Koma
A new challenger appears!!! (Click read more)

Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults.
(Psalm 19:12)

~ Teeif

“Rollo, what is the future? The future is hope.” - Lelouch (4:36)
I can only hope there is less faggotry!

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 Turn 4
Counterattack at the gallows

Lelouch pulls a fast one on Rolo and no Geass was even needed. This is the power of LOVE! In many more ways than one, Code Geass Lelouch the rebellion has made an about turn and has become, well, a bit gay really.

Undoubtedly the largest contributor of anti-hetrosexual behaviour is Rolo the Shouta Fag (being scary makes him little different to transvestites). He overshadows the rest of the cast with an aura of Pink through his is performance, his cockpit drama and his impression of the world renown angst-king, Shinji. Not since Neon Genesis Evangelion have I seen so much faggotry at the controls of a giant mech with big guns.

Seemly not happy with just being a Sis-kon, Mr Lamperge is ready to take his rebellion and shove it up his little brother’s ass in a bid for freedom and liberty. Rolo was disappointingly powerless against Lelouch’s promises of a family, C.C and buttsex. While Rolo’s sentimental flashbacks and mid-battle emotional turmoil wasn’t actually that bad to watch, it was just a bit lame.

Egotistical domination, mecha and war are characteristics normally considered a male orientated themes for a show and Code Geass has done well so far to stay manly. However, lately the show has been developing some touchy-feel emotive plot and teenage angst characteristics which are more commonly associated with men who are effeminately homosexual. That’s entirely Rolo and his gay little arc. Unfortunately there’s going to be more of this because at one point he’s going to turn and say “OMG Oni-chan, you lied!”

For Lelouch it’s all going well but he’s been lucky, Rolo’s proved to be a moron and Britannia never learn from their mistakes. But his success has not gone unnoticed, we see in the preview that Suzaku is back at the academy. Wait, Suzauku is back? Oh great! Code Geass is definitely gay.

This week’s 4-koma
Is 5pm a watershed?

~ Teeif

 
Naruto Shippuden 56 (Naruto 276)
Squirm

They say there is a bullying problem in Japan and that the problem may even be institutionalised in schools and organisations. The Japanese government have perhaps a more difficult problem dealing with discrimination that western countries but at least they don’t have to deal with Narutards.

Narutards are a western phenomena that is causing kids up and down the land to be endlessly bullied because they are stupid and they like Anime (even thought they only watch one). Just imagine yourself discretely discussing Japanese Visual Arts, then out of the blue a Narutard comes over and shouts something that ends with -Jutsu. That’s it! Narutard becomes the bully magnate in the class and you’re collateral. Of course, as the teacher would hopelessly preach to the class, bullying is neither funny nor clever. Too bad no one listens.

In a way, Naruto Shippuden is like bullying; it’s not funny or clever. But it doesn’t listen and keeps torturing you anyway. The fillers are like the Narutard that comes over and ruins your nice life. It’s not alot of fun but you put up with it anyway.

In this episode, basically, nothing happens. Sai sits in a forest and draws Naruto sweating and groaning while training hard. Team Kakeshi Yamoto gets assigned a mission. Blah, Blah, Blah.

~ Teeif

Kure-nai Forth Episode
Talented Person.

While there is no doubt that the loli steals the show with her ability to bring cuteness to a godly level (move over, baby Jebus), even when mortally endangering herself and her minder, there is another rather insignificant character who might deserve some of your attention. What’s his name again? Oh wait, isn’t it on the cover somewhere?

The talented person referred to in the episode title is of course, our versatile supernanny, Kurenai Shinkurou. We finally get some a few pages of Shinkurou’s Biography, despite Murasaki’s efforts to best to make it his obituary!

Despite Shinkurou’s obvious talents for dispute mediation, he doesn’t get paid enough, in fact he seems to get paid far less than Benika-san who drives around in a sports car when she’s not at home in her luxurious home being watched by her lesbian bodyguard. Shikurou, as we know, has to make do with the 1 room condo where the trash never gets taken out. Why is this? Does he owe a debt?

Unfortunately the explanations for the reason why Shinkurou is like the poor-son-of-wolverine has been reserved to tantalise us in a future episode. For now, we have that ever useful narrative tool which I LOVE :(, the flashback.

Previously we’ve seen Liddl Shin lose his parents in some sort of tragic incident involving airport bombings, fire and a mobile phone. We saw how this experience helps Shinkurou relate to Murasaki because she also lost a parent and has a mobile phone. In a flashback, Shinkurou is also in a state of Emo that he doesn’t wish to happen to his plucky little charge. Although I’m not sure he prefers that Murasaki tries to get others killed rather than try to kill herself.

Enter here, Benika, who slightly redeems herself for child exploitation by being the saviour of Kurenai, both physically and emotionally. Benika is responsible for rescuing Shinkurou, and also-ran megane-ko childhood friend Ginko, from err… Terrorists in suits!? Benika is also responsible for introducing Shinkurou to Houzuki-ruu martial arts, and the other childhood friend who’s a bit of a slut, Yuuno.

That’s hardly redemption for you Benika-san, in fact, that’s almost entrapment!

~ Teeif

This week’s 4-Koma:
Who’s the daddy?

Vampire Knight: The 3rd Night
Fang of Repentance

One of the things I really like about romantic comedy Shojos is the high possibility of getting caught out. Sadly, I am set in my expectations of social norms, so that I still find deviance of normal sexual behaviour exciting and amusing even when used in predictable comical fashion. I’m talking about the transgender jokes that never-gets-old, how men never seem like men, how straight always has a bend and how you never know when it’s a trap or a reverse-trap.

I love traps! Mako-chan and Yoshino-kun are the only reasons Miname-ke should exist. I love Mako-chan! But I mean this in an entirely objectified point of view, of course, like how I love life-threatening traps in Indiana Jones. There’s something rather fun about those man-made traps designed to crush, poison or kill their unfortunate guests. But as much as I love the ingenuity behind these traps, I like to watch them from my crouch, rather than actually risk my ass being physically buggered - I’m not as handy with the whip as Mr Jones is.

So, then I was wondering how long it’d be before we’d get some social deviance to make Vampire Knight more like clown Town than clowning around. It can’t possibly take long, Vampire Knight is about vampires who, as Yuki exclaims while she masturbates, are all beautiful people. Why are the vampires at school anyway? What can they possibly learn in class? They might as well just Fuck each other, really.

Last episode was a terribly dull Shojo set piece event and I’m glad that all it took was some plot to make right that terrible waste of time. Also, there was a trap! But, shockingly, the traps weren’t laid as expected:

The early man-trap failed, but Hanabusa is number one grade faggot material - why does he collect junk?

The janitor of the Vampire dorms is definitely a pedophile. He lures the girls and boys into his/her/its dungeon. Taihen Trappu desu!

Zero could be a trap, given the way he acted like a girl and had a strop because Yuki finds out he’s a junkie.

I thought the restaurant Chef was a trap in disguise. He’s serving Japanese food in a Baroque style Bohemian town! Should I expect the Russians not to notice if MI5 opened a fish and chip shop in the middle of Prague back in the cold war? In addition, the Chef kept trying to offer Zero free eggs - don’t eat those eggs Zero, this is a trap!

The big trap was a regular trap, played by a boy who later turned into, not a girl, but a vampire. How rather ordinary!

No worries about getting bored though, the last trap turned out to be Zero himself! But he’s not a girl, he’s a Vampire! While pretending to be emo, he loses control and before you know it, Yuki is Zero’s next happy meal.

Although Zero lets Yuki go with only two major punctuations in her vertebral artery, lets hope not too many more traps find themselves inside Zero.

~ Teeif

Kure-nai Third Episode
The Fraud’s face.

This week, the director sticks to his über cute strategy and sends the Loli off to the wrong school. Since day-time TV isn’t thrilling in Japan either, Tamaki convinces Murasaki to go cock hunting at Kurenai’s school. And so the abuse of Murasaki continues as the crazy neighbour leads her there and then disappears - probably on the hunt for Shota, she did say she was non-conformist. If Tamaki was supposed to be the baby sitter, which I doubt, she wants to be arrested for Child abuse.

Nevertheless, Murasaki is left to go on her cute, cute adventure at Kurenai’s school, wearing a jump suit of horrible contrasting colours and what looks like a diaper.

Murasaki is really a bit of an unfortunate little rich girl, really. But after having lost her biological mother in acrimonious circumstances, having been kept in confinement within the Japanese version of the neverland estate and now being left home alone, she’s surprisingly O.K. She’s come out only slightly abnormal. Maybe she was rescued in time? If this was a Hideo Kajima game, Murasaki would turn out to be one of his batshit insane badguys with an extra-curricular appreciation for severing limbs and revenge.

Murasaki has only a slight delusion of megalomania. Hopefully she will learn not to treat everyone like servants before everyone gets a turn at the Kurenai punch bag.

Murasaki reminds me of another brave, independent, headstrong if unfortunate little Loli in silly baggy clothes: Final Fantasy IX’s Eiko Carol. I remember that Eiko developed a crush on the protagonist of that game after being rescued by him. That really could happen here! Yuuno is already considering the idea and has her defences up. The three-way argument during the middle of the episode made me giggle, Yuuno is definitely Yandere material.

This week’s 4-koma:
Not my fault!

~ Teeif

“Oven, Salt, Flying pan, Eggs, Béchamel Sauce. The gelato goes on another plate. Take the rosemary and put it in the sorbet. And the sauerkraut with the dill seeds. And the Schwarzwalder Kisch torte…” - Milly (4:41)
Sounds like a recipe for a giant fuck up to me… -_-

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 Turn 3
Imprisonment at the academy

Without that reminder at the beginning of the episode, I wouldn’t have thought there was a crisis and a new country was on the brink of being blown to extinction. C.C is playing Zero on T.V. (Isn’t anyone going to notice this one has new tits?) and maintaining relations with the Fugly Castrated Chinese Monkey while Lelouch is busy; he is going on a date!

Lelouch’s planned switch plays out well, he’s already back at the academy and under surveillance when he calls Rolo back. Lulu even uses Villetta as an alibi, so he must already suspect her as a enemy.

The siege at the Chinese embassy drags on so Britannia takes the initiative. They decide to begin murdering all the precious resistance people from the last series whose names and faces I can’t recall, and don’t really care about. Unfortunately for Lelouch, morale in the resistance will drop along with the dead bodies so he has to rescue them. Too bad for him.

In order to escape his ‘imprisonment’, Lelouch goes shopping for a present with Shirley. Obviously, this is an animé and two school kids can’t go on a date without a line of comedy stalkers following. To shake off his followers, Lelouch Geasses the Cell Phone Salesman using his magic eye after magically removing his special contact lens. I can say, from first hand experience, that it is inhuman to take your contact lens out like that because it feels like you’re gorging your eye out and you blink. But hey! Lulu’s no human; he’s a monster.

Monster hunting is Rolo who, despite the pandemonium, catches Lelouch at the end. Rolo uses his Wide Area Effect Geass or a Geass bomb to gain the upperhand but Lulu should be able to con his way out of this one. Rolo’s shouta Faggotry doesn’t work on everyone unlike in another animé.

This week’s 4-Koma:
Spycam

~ Teeif

“Did you not read your student Handbook?” Yuki (19:09).
Serious? Who actually, ever, reads their school or college handbook!? You could print Loli manga in it and no one would notice…

Vampire Knight: The 2nd Night
Memories of Blood

As much as I want some frilly dresses, vampires and sucking of bodily fluids, I get Shojo mediocracy interspersed with precious moments of plot. In between did hide a story about the white haired reclusive human, Zero, and the mysterious mark on his neck. His abrasive dislike for vampires and occasion lust for Yuki’s neck apparently owing to a brush with vampires, not just an excess of manliness. I should have known; bishes don’t exactly look the manly type.

There’s not actually much new here but I did say not to expect too much. Bishie vampires getting swamped by fangirls on White Day (Oh Wow!), Yuki abashly making and giving chocolate (Never seen that before!) and stillborn animation. I’ve seen this all before, in just a every other Shojo! It’s also quite weird how reminiscent the story is to a certain short lived American TV series aimed at teens.

Even beyond copycats, copyninjas, and photocopiers, Vampire Knight really makes a good copy of Vampire High. So good, you could probably swap the Vampire Knight synopsis for the Vampire High one!

Vampire Knight?

The series is set at Mansbridge Manor, an isolated boarding school that is the last-stop haven for privileged teenagers of the wealthy and influential. That’s the Day School…but it’s the Night School that is the real focus of the show - a Night School that secretly houses a daring experiment to civilize vampire teenagers.

Vampire High?

Cross Academy is attended by two groups of students: the Day Class and the Night Class. At twilight, when the students of the Day Class return to their dorm, they cross paths with the Night Class on their way to school. Yuki Cross and Zero Kiryu are the Guardians of the school, there to protect the Day Class from the Academy’s dark secret: the Night Class is full of vampires.

So many similarities: School, Night class, Day class, secrets, vampires, rich and elite, forbidden romance and saving the world! As I have said before though, the Japanese have proven to be good at taking western things and making them much better. I can only hope this becomes like Sony Blu-Ray rather than Sony Betamax.

Thank you to Garten for sharing the PV for the ending theme of Vampire Knight, Still Doll by Kanon Wakeshima. That, with the OP theme, the ED for Kurenai and are emerging as my favourites this season.

~ Teeif

Kurenai is so good I’m going to triple the number of screencaps and make a story!

Kurenai Second Episode
With the drain and the stream

OMG! What kind of sick, voyeuristic show has children bathing stark naked in public? Just look at this! That child is completely exposed and not only that, he’s on his phone which could give him brain cancer!

The Japanese created a completely pointless bathing scene without much thought. That I had a voice (there are many) in the back of my mind telling me the censors won’t like this, speaks volumes about the cultural differences.

That is because today Britain is a society run by your mum (Really!). It’s a touchy, feel nanny state with knee jerk over-reactions, to for example, “child” and “Internet” being mentioned in the same sentence. Should you dare re-enact Kanokon spanking, you will most likely spend 6 months in a dark cell where you’ll be forced to endure YAOI everyday.

But if you get over the Loli-kon and have finished ogling on Murasaki’s daily life with occasional exclamations of “Kawaiiii” and “awwww”, you get the delightful interaction between Murasaki and Kurenai. The pair already act like brother and sister. Murasaki is perhaps a little unrealistically mature. Murasaki’s lesson today was commoner manners 101 - arguably a lesson too many people skipped on their first year. Kurenai was forced to dish out his first bit of discipline because Murasaki was treating everyone like servants, so he hit her and forced Murasaki to apologise properly.

Murasaki took it well, perhaps too positively. I would have expected her to be afraid of her new surroundings, be disobedient and be difficult to teach. Maybe Japanese children or this Japanese child in particular, with her unique maybe even abusive upbringing in her secluded environment is different.

Who can verify this!? It’s not like the writers are able to make more observations on the high-class loli they’ve kidnapped.

~ Teeif

“I am saddened at war and discrimination. The evil intentions being brandished by those with power, the tragedy and comedy allowed to go on in error!” - Zero (18:25).

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 Turn 2
Japan Independence Plan

As Hanners wrote here, Zero didn’t actually come back last episode, he came back now! Code Geass is at it’s best when Zero is topped up with Russian Anabolic Steroids and making outrageous claims. After a thankfully brief flashback, where the Geass powered Emperor of Britannia rewrote Lulu’s memory and sent him back into the world, Lelouch is back for revenge.

Or I would have hoped. For some reason, Lelouch is clinging onto his idea that he can create a safe, better and brighter world for his Sister Nunnally by bringing war to and demolishing half the city she lives in. Even when he doesn’t even know where Nunnally is, he slaughters untold thousands in an ironic attack on the tower of Babel before declaring a free United States of Japan. Master tactician he maybe but that is a rubbish strategy.

Zero also claims he is a champion of freedom and then makes a deal with the homosexual, slitty-eyed, pansies: the Chinese - who no doubt want Area 11 for themselves. By the way, the director wasn’t being racist at all when he came up with the ugliest character design since Godzilla and then got a castrated monkey to voice him, was he!?

This leaves only one possible two logical reasons for lulu’s crazy actions and given that the medium is Japanese Animation, it is quite possible that Lelouch is in love with his sister! Trust me on this, I’ve been good at spotting Siskons so far. My Incest-dar lit up like a Christmas tree way before Jun came close to the confessional in True Tears. Lulu’s light got brighter since his reaction to Kallen in a bunny costume, with something shiny shoved between her breasts, was something short of a bloody nasal spasm. It does kind of make sense if the house of Lamperouge loved each other because the lot of them are off their rockers!

The other reason is, as Shirukii says, is that Lelouch is gay for Suzaku. But I think that’s going to be a stretch now that Suzaku traded Lelouch in for a chance to be the emperor’s right hand man. Besides Suzaku already has a new bum buddy within the hastily invented mid-bosses, the knights of the round. If that doesn’t suit Suzaku’s tastes, there’s always the obligatory Loli (Anya is quite prominent actually: she makes it onto the front cover).

First up though, Lelouch has to tackle a geassed-up Rolo, boss No.1

~ Teeif

“With a thousand clones, something that would normally take you twenty years would take you a week.” - Kakashi (17:56) I need a kage-boushin to help me write this blog! -_-”

Naruto Shippuden 55 (Naruto 275)
Wind

I’ve finally figured out who actually buys those embarrassing Dakimakura or hug pillows - Naruto does! There was rumour of a Hentai dressed in black and orange popping into the Konoha branch of Animate and purchasing a hugging pillow printed with a life-size image of the cosplayer ‘Sakura’ but he escaped out the back. Now we know who it was!

Reverse Dakimakura!

Beware, the following image may cause loss of innocence and a slight chance of gastrointestinal regurgitation.


In Soviet Russia, dakimakura hugs you!

Back to this episode…

Once everyone got chucked out of hospital for being hentai, Kakashi took Naruto to a field of recycled background art. They are here for that long awaited (sex) training so Naruto can overcome Sasuke next time they meet. Naruto says it’s been a long time since they’ve trained and he’s happy. Kakashi says this is the best time to laugh because training is hard!

Apparently, we are now heading into the uncharted hell of filler territory. This is a land where time slows down, you feel tired, your thoughts become retarded and your vision is distorted. Here, Naruto is as dumbass as the day is long and you will be forced to watch him take 10 minutes to work out 1 + 1 = 2. If you do venture outside beware of the monstrosities spawned by junior-artists like the girl with glowing hair and orange statues.

~ Teeif

“I’ll also show you a sweet dream next night.” - (22:24)
Engrish for “To be continued”, apparently!

Vampire Knight: The 1st Night
Night of the Vampires

I’ve always found something glamorous about Gothic romanticism, there’s something in the aesthetic that is really cool. I will watch Vampire Knight just for all the music and the art. Let me explain.

It’s quite concerning how many things are invented in Britain and made better by the Japanese. Take for example, Steel, Trains, Cars and Goths. Goths have found a better life in the land of the Rising Sun. Partially because being a Goth is likely to get you tragically kicked to death by the nearest Chav but mostly because being a Neo-Goth, an Emo, is just being vain. Gothic Lolita, which is Goth without the straightjacket, is far better!

Although I say Goth has turned into something better in Japan, the Goths probably wouldn’t like it. Probably the only place in the world where you could turn something as dark, rebellious and anti-establishment as goth rock into sexy frilly costumes, stripped of all statement (although Goth was not supposed to have a political statement), is Japan. The Gothic Lolita or style of fashion is adopted mostly by adolescence from the epicentre of Harajuku, Tokyo. Those crazy kids have somehow managed to make the Gothic horror and romanticism into something cute.

Vampire Knight is the condensation of Japanification of old Vampire and Goth themes. The Vampires here are far removed from the Bram Stoker Transylvanian variety; they go to school and are told to get along. While I can see the influence of gothic iconography plus themes of horror and romance, it is all relentlessly cute and Bishounen, although not arguably worse for it.

Vampire Knight is like taking Victorian Gothic stories and discovering that they’re not really scary. Take Jane Eyre, which is supposed to have Gothic themes, only I never realised because the mad woman in the attic is no worse than the old lady down the street. So, by softening all the Horror, we are left with the Romance and this is what Vampire knight really is about.

It’s somewhat a new undertaking for animé. While there have had anime about Vampires in Blood, Hellsing and Karin or Loli-goths in Le Portrait de Petite Cossette and Rozen Maiden, none have attempted to replicated the Gothic atmosphere. I don’t expect too much in the way of substance in this animé and to go into doing so would be expecting too much. From the beginning, Goth has been about the aesthetic.

~ Teeif