Comments on: A Koushien-esque Cross Game Blogging Ambition Once Forgotten

By: KayDat

KayDat — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 22:30:19 +0000

@usagijen
Yeah, about the mangaka style improvement: one thing I noticed about Adachi Mitsuru, is that he almost hasn’t changed at all! Some see this as a good thing, while most (the unwashed masses!) see this as a bad. One slight criticism though (and I really wish it wasn’t so), is that many of his character designs are similar, if not identical. I also found that he has many similar plot developments, with death being the most common. I remember reading H2, laughing on one page, and the next, feeling the emotions drain from my smiling face, staring at the black page. That’s one thing I love about Adachi, he takes you on a wonderful ride in his stories.

Haha, I think there are Chinese subs for almost anything. I wish I paid more attention in Chinese school…or maybe I should just learn Japanese instead! =]

Sorry, kinda my fault for going off tangent. =P

Just one more tangent then…

[tangent]
I LOVE 5cm/s. Watched Bokura ga Ita, thought it wasn’t bad. I think I liked LoveCom more though. I’ve heard of Tokyo Marble Chocolate, never really knew/bothered to check what it was though. I’ll have to put it on my Plan to Watch list. Same with Kimi no Todoke. =]
[/tangent]

Ahem. Yes, Cross Game.

@Theowne’s second post
Not to spoil anything, but just let me say this: things mix up quite a bit, relationships don’t turn out as you might have thought they would at the start. Then again, the manga isn’t exactly finished, so I can’t say for certain.

By: Theowne

Theowne — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 18:58:33 +0000

[woot Cross Game]

(I’ve been hearing that Kimi no Todoke is just a little bit awesome. Have high hopes for that in the fall.)

[/woot Cross Game]

By: usagijen

usagijen — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 18:45:42 +0000

KayDat: Yeah, manga is pretty standard, except for some artwork improvement as the mangaka’s style evolves. The “age” of an anime is indeed easy to figure out simply judging by the animation style and music, though it adds a “nostalgia” effect to a series when you watch it years after it first aired. Of course the downside of that is that not all people would welcome ‘ye olde artwork’ =/

I think I’ve seen H2 fansubs, chinese though lol.

@Theowne: Oh I get what you mean, older series tend to have a more down-to-earth feel to it, portrayed naturally too. Do be careful though, sometimes when we hang on to the glorious past we run into the possibility of looking past the charm that newer animes have.

Then again, I can’t really remember any romantic anime in the recent years that I’ve come to love, except maybe Tokyo Marble Chocolate and 5cm/second. And if I were being nitpicky I’d say I would’ve loved to see that ’90s romance magic’ in Tokyo Marble Chocolate, but that might be an unrealistic expectation.

Bokura ga Ita is melodramatic and really angsty, that’s probably why you didn’t like it, not necessarily because of its modern portrayal. Makes me wish more timeless romance stories would show up though, I’m hoping Kimi no Todoke can shape up to be one Before this comment gets any more off-tangent let me just say Cross Game is love yes~!

By: Theowne

Theowne — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 15:17:14 +0000

Personally I really prefer the older series, like Touch and Maison Ikkoku, to most modern romance stories like Bokura ga Ita. I dunno, I find something more sincere/charming about them. I guess that’s why I like Cross Game so much. Even though it’s airing now, it feels like one of those classic romance stories like Maison Ikkoku or Touch. Before this ADD age of text messaging and internet.

By: KayDat

KayDat — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 15:11:33 +0000

Ohh, Touch. It’s interesting looking back on older manga works, the only thing that tells you “hey, this is from the 70’s/80’s” are the hair styles and the technology shown. Touch had turntables and H2 assumes the reader knows mobile phones were expensive, few and far between. I found that anime, on the other hand, is less timeless. Animation quality and music really reveals that 20 or 30 years has past since the show was first made.

As a side note…why are there no H2 fansubs?? =[ H2…Hideo and Hiro, two heroes!!

By: usagijen

usagijen — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 14:20:06 +0000

I did, about 4 years ago, and I’m ashamed to say I never got around finishing it I got exposed to Mitsuru Adachi’s works in manga form, it seems… Rough, Itsumo Misora, also Miyuki… but that’s not really relevant to the question now isn’t it lol.

By: Theowne

Theowne — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 07:50:13 +0000

usagijen: You ever watch Touch?

By: usagijen

usagijen — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 19:04:01 +0000

sure thing, no need to ask permission for that! Makes me happy and honored :3

By: UmiMizuno

UmiMizuno — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 17:49:27 +0000

Hey! This is unrelated to your post but do you mind if I add you to my blogroll? I’ve ~~stalked~~ read your blog since you use to blog about the Shugo Chara anime!

By: usagijen

usagijen — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 17:23:15 +0000

@Theowne: Part of me wants to say “who cares if it sounds like a laundry list of favorites!”, but then sounding monotonic isn’t exactly a good thing.

While it is “easier” to blog and especially discuss about action-packed shows because fans can easily relate to what you’re talking about, I love how Cross Game moves viewers on a deeper, emotional level because it makes the whole experience personal. And that’s exactly what I want to do, continue relating to it on a personal level and write about my personal thoughts on it. In the end, I’m doing this for myself.

Just because something is “more of the same” doesn’t mean you won’t be able to say anything noteworthy about it anymore. Sometimes just a question of, “Why do we love Cross Game despite its predictability?” can open up a flood of thoughts and emotions. It’s good to be your own curmudgeon at times too, or see different point of views on what you watch for your own growth as well. I find myself gaining better appreciation for a series when I do that

@KayDat: That’s actually the reason why I’m avoiding the manga like a plague atm, because as much as I want to watch/read MOAR Cross Game, anticipating what happens week after week adds some sort-of magic to my appreciation of this. Probably because then I’d be savoring the moments as if I’m seeing it for the first time, and the episode/s get to linger in my mind a LOT longer too

@gaguri: I believe in Mitsuru Adachi, and I believe Cross Game will be awesome until the end because of that. Not really much of a credential, but we have faith in him and the producers of the anime adaptation