You know something’s up when I post this early, when I go out of my way looking for a way to watch this in the office because the raw got released while I was asleep! As such, the screencaps are all crappy, bear with it till I get the actual raws.

Don’t expect any coherent summary (head over to Aroduc’s for that), nor a coherent episodic thoughts/impressions either. I was on fangirl nirvana while watching this, so yeah

I’m as happy as Kyoko was when she got this poster of Shou now that I watched the anime

The long wait is over, Skip Beat fans! The anime has arrived!!!! And, I’m very very happy with how it turned out (tears of joy), makes me feel positive about how the whole series will go. Konishi was right on the spot when he said “…I think the original manga was adapted well” in the interview. I was getting goosebumps while watching, right when the OP sequence was shown (the music is funky~ love it), and that continued on till the end of the episode.

The seiyuus are great!! Looks like Miya lived up to his erotic “Shouko-san is my type~” dialogue That, and the flawless (I might be overexaggerating this, but it’s what I personally feel) portrayal of the SD scenes — Kyoko’s litil divils and overall ebilness, Shou’s haughty arrogance, etc. — the effects they used in order to bring the manga to life, made up for the not-so-stunning character design of Ren. He was the one who lost the most bishie-cool-factor points, but Konishi’s voice would make up for that I guess

Episode 1 shows us how the timid wallflower Kyoko transforms into her spunky somewhat yandere self. Prepare to see the great feats of Kyoko-sama from hereon, as she undertakes the challenges of showbiz, and a whole lot more! It might sound a bit cheesy if I say that “Kyoko has long dreamed of becoming a princess, and she gets a step closer to that childhood dream when she steps into showbiz”, not to mention misleading, because there’s more to this series than that. It’s intricate, complicated, well-thought, and I just love it to bits.

Don’t mess with the Kyoko!!

Those looking for fluffy romance might end up being disappointed with Skip Beat, because it’s screaming more of Kyoko shoujo GARR power more than anything shoujo-ey. Feminists like me, however, are always happy to see heroines who totally KICK ASS!

I am currently (and forever will be?) on a total Skip Beat high mode. Everyone should watch Skip Beat!!! It’s crazy, it’s fun, it’s entertaining, but more than that, this series has a whole lot of depth and a HEART. There’s more to the characters (and the story overall) than meets the eye, all thanks to Nakamura-sensei’s greatness! Well I just hope you guys will love the characters in this series the way we Skip Beat fans do, and love the series too of course. That said, I am sooo gonna pimp this in the office, or wherever Till the next episode, yosha!

P.S. I’m not the first one to provide coverage on the Skip Beat’s premiere episode, but this other blogger

Apologies in advance to those who will be offended by this post. I know I’m taking this too seriously for my own good, but I just can’t help it. Incoherent ranting ahead!

Why you ask? Coz she’s obviously “in love”~

You know Kotoko, you should’ve asked that wayyyyy back when Naoki proposed to you.

My gripe with ItaKiss throughout the 19 episodes I watched, is nothing else but Kotoko, the only character in the show with less than 0 development, IMO. I watched more than 2/3 of the series, and still she remains as stupid, and as hopelessly and blindly in love with Naoki~ Well yes she realized how foolish she was for holding on to her one-sided love thanks to Keita’s blunt words, but DUH, that was something she should’ve asked herself wayyyy before the marriage. “Just being able to look at him (Naoki) is enough~”, is what Kotoko had in mind before and after marrying Naoki, and what do we call this again? TRUE LOVE? Total bullcrap, I say.

Can you blame Naoki for becoming THIS confident?

Most people agree that Naoki is an ass, that’s a fact. But one of the very reasons why Naoki continues to act as tsuntsun and as asshole as he is, is because Kotoko tolerates it. Right from the start, after the outright rejection of Kotoko’s confession, till the time she moved into the Irie household, Naoki never lost his hold on baka Kotoko. That’s why he’s so confident that no matter what he does, no matter how he treats Kotoko, she’ll stay with him. He had her swaying right in the palm on his hand, right where he wants her, providing him entertainment with her hopelessly-in-love antics, or her Naoki-hate act which he can so easily see through. No one else would be as foolish as Kotoko to persevere through everything Naoki’s doing, without giving him the constant slap he needs for his character development.

Keita’s arrival in the scene shook Naoki’s confidence, for once he had a formidable rival! But, Kotoko never changed a bit.

Kotoko just gets what she deserves.

My Kotoko hate started with episode 9, if I remember correctly. I hated how she joined the tennis club, just for the shallow reason of wanting to stalk Naoki, spend time with him, and all that~ She’s disillusioned, and that episode clearly shows that.

Uh-huh. And still you went along with the unbelievable dream and agreed to the marriage without thinking of the consequences. Yeah right.

zomgz kisses galore! *sarcasm*

But more than that, I honestly can’t find any substance in Kotoko’s “love” for Naoki. Right from the start, her love was but shallow. Why did she like Naoki? Because he’s the “perfect man”, the envy of every woman. He’s got the looks and the brains, it just so happens that his character is spoiled rotten. Perhaps Kotoko wanted to prove the world that even a stupid normal girl like her can end up with someone like Naoki, who’s supposedly out of her reach. But has her love for him grew? She’s too blinded to even see the gradual change happening in the Tsunderella, and continues to hold on to her love based solely on superficial criteria. In Kotoko’s narrow mind, she is THE MAN. Who cares if he treats her like crap, that doesn’t matter! One kiss is all it takes to reaffirm his love for her, and make her forget how much of an ass Naoki is~ how romantic. NOT.

If it wasn’t for Kin-chan, Naoki wouldn’t have realized that he’s jealous orz.

Silly drama. I really have no sympathy for Kotoko anymore =.=’

On the bright side this actually shows how good-natured Kotoko is, because she’s not holding any grudge against Naoki despite EVERYTHING. But then this also means that she’s really stupid to let go of what Naoki has done to her throughout the years and treat it as nothing. Have you no respect for yourself, woman?! I would’ve liked it if Kotoko actually got to know Naoki better the more he becomes tsuntsun, like understand that the reason why he’s such a jerk is because he doesn’t know how to express himself well. But as episode 19 shows, Kin-chan has come to know Naoki way better than Kotoko.

I know I’m breaking many taboos here by juxtaposing this fictional romance comedy with RL love stuff, but I’ll go on anyways.

Oh gee, you think so, Kotoko???

People often say that being in love in unexplainable; it makes you lose sense of rationality. Ah the euphoria of love~ But you know what I think, love founded with reason, not just the pure emotional high “in love” state, is what will make a relationship stay solid and strong. I’ve often emphasized in my love rant posts that friendship is a strong pillar for romantic relationships, and I know I’m asking too much by wanting to see that kind of bond between Kotoko and Naoki. But at least, it would’ve been great to see them foster something close to that kind of relationship. It’s for this very reason that I can’t be happy for these two, even if they’re now expecting a baby or whatnot, it’s all just meh to me.

To push things further and all the more show how no fun I am, I’m gonna quote this from the book The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman:

Our most basic emotional need is not to fall in love but to be genuinely loved by another, to know that a love grows out of reason and choice, not instinct. I need to be loved by someone who chooses to love me, who sees in me something worth loving.

That kind of love requires effort and discipline. It is the choice to expand energy in an effort to benefit the other person, knowing that if his or her life is enriched by your effort, you too will find a sense of satisfaction – the satisfaction of having genuinely loved another. It does not require the euphoria of the “in love” experience. In fact, true love can not begin until the “in love” experience has run its course.

Unfortunately, Kotoko has yet to learn what having faith really means.

The anime is ending, but I don’t think Kotoko ever snapped out of her “in-love” state. She’s still immature as ever and gets all jealous when she sees Irie with another woman (I took a peek at episode 23). Sigh. She got married to a guy who’s constantly being flocked by women, she should’ve known that right from the start, and worked on her confidence so as to not be affected by the ‘rivals’ she perceive =.=; She still haven’t learned to have faith in Irie, up until this point. At this rate, I think it’s highly possible that Kotoko will even get jealous of her very own baby, especially if Naoki pampers him/her. Then she’ll start thinking, “How come Irie-kun isn’t that kind to me~” *boohoo* Ugh.

Call me no fun, but I think I’ve outgrown this kind of enjoyable-but-without-much-substance shoujo stuff. T__T; I partially blame my brother

Phew, rant over. Now I can finally… rest. Comments, flames, negative reactions… are more than welcome >:)

I’ve been silently praying for Sora x Gouta ever since I could remember, but I didn’t expect it will happen this way… like THIS much rabu rabu! Way to go Gouta! It was a pleasant surprise to see this romance in full bloom, though the viewers who were paying attention to the subtle details in each episodes would’ve most likely seen this coming. The blushes say it all.

Episode 9 ended in quite a WTF note, so I decided to watch until episode 10 before doing this post.

Yes, I’m actually skipping posting about episode 8 to go fangirl mode with episode 9. Episode 8 is a masterpiece in itself, as hashihime has very well said. It shows us both Gouta and Kuroda who have overcome one of the greatest hurdles in their lives. And much of the events in that episode helped a lot in shaping the romance angle as well.

After what happened in the last episode, Gouta takes this opportunity to thank Sora, by asking her out on a date~ Well Gouta only said he “wants to take her somewhere…” and didn’t outright say it was a date, but during the train scene…

Sora: Going out with only the two of us makes this seem like a date.
Gouta: “seem like” is unnecessary.
*Sora blush*

It was great to find out more about Gouta in this episode, his decision to stop surfing (at least for the time being) so he can single-mindedly focus on magic and not use it to escape his fate, and the cold attitude he showed when he first met Sora, which was understandably due to the problems he had that time (meh, I still hate Gouta’s mom for abandoning her family T__T)

yaru wa ne, Gouta!! Now that’s what I call smooth~

And of course seeing Gouta and Sora going all HHWW (holding hands while walking) made me a really happy fangirl~ X3

Yamabuki calls, probably to ask Gouta out on a date? Unfortunately, he’s already taken. Poor Yamabuki, but knowing her, I’m pretty sure she’ll recover from this soon. I think she already recovered with Asagi’s ice-cream escapade invitation

I thought it was sensible and sensitive of Gouta for telling Sora who he was in the phone with. Dense or dumb pricks could so easily forget that they’re actually with someone, on a date too.

Sora and Gouta meets a lost little kid on the beach named Souta, whose name they found to be amusing because it’s the combination of their name ‘So(u)’ra and Gou’ta’. Perhaps they’re gonna name their future child Souta too, lolz. The scene that followed after was much more amusing:

Sora: Souta-kun is so cute~
Gouta: …so is her mom
Sora: *pouts*
XDD

Sora and Gouta ride the esca(lator) for the very first time, then head to the restaurant overlooking the beautiful sunset harbor~ Sora marvels at the little kid there, then gives Gouta a little thank you present.

After that, we get to see this romantic kissing scene… *swoons*

The next day in school, Asagi and Kuroda teases Sora about her date with Gouta~ And we see the other couple in their own blush-fest moment.

So anyways, the speed of development in this episode was amazing. BUT, as I’ve earlier said, it also ended in quite a WTF cliffhanger. After this sudden rain scene, Gouta comes home, only to see Sora being ‘treated’ by Seiichirou, which he misinterpreted to be something indecent. Gouta no OOBAKA!

Instead of going to Sora’s room and finding out exactly what was going on, he leaves and decides to mope somewhere else, drown his “problems” in alcohol. As if being a loner will solve his problems! This attitude of his reminded me of a character I’ve grown to hate, Yuu from Marmalade Boy, in the episode where sees his girlfriend in the arms of another guy, and he immediately thought she was two-timing him (when she just fainted due to working too much). *facepalm*

Thankfully enough, all that was cleared up in episode 10, and much to Gouta’s shock when he found out that Sora is actually dying. She has the same illness as her father, and won’t live very long, they say. Sora wants to live of course, so does Gouta. It pains my heart to see episode 10 end this way… but seeing Sora’s name in the spoilers (up until the last episode) gave me that faint hope that this series will end in a happy note. Please let Sora live

On a totally unrelated note, they seem to have used thick outlines (or outlines with varying thickness) in episode 10, a change that’s very much welcome.

P.S. When I get another chance to go to Japan I might just go on a Natsu no Sora pilgrimage

(Yes, I decided to make use of the super long title again because it captures this series best)

Under normal circumstances (or at least before I got into slice-of-life shows), I would’ve easily labeled Natsu no Sora as totally deadpan boring and dropped it without remorse, because I’ll most likely be watching it with the wrong mindset — with a desire to see awesome magic action or romance, in the same way I watched Aria (and slept through it >.>). But as the past 7 episodes have shown, this anime isn’t just about magic per se, or at least not in the magical extraordinary way we know it. As coburn puts it, magic is naturally part of the world of Natsu no Sora, embedded into the characters and the very society where all this takes place.

With each episode, we get to know the young mages, how their characters are being molded with each task they accomplish (or otherwise), in the same way ordinary people get shaped by the various trials and experiences they go through in life. Mages the characters might be, but their worries mirror that of people like you and me — stubborn idealistic young’ns who refuse to let go of ideologies they fervently believe is right, egotistic know-it-alls who possess a certain complex contrary to what other people perceive them to be, lost little kids stuck at the crossroad of life — people who are ultimately in search of their identity and place in this world.

Random episodic babbles

In episode 5, we see a Sora who so stubbornly wants to cling to her idealistic belief that her magic SHOULD fulfill her client’s wish and ultimate happiness. But as Sou-kun has very well said, magic is not absolute, not the be-all and end-all solution to problems. And especially as a young mage in training, there’s only so much that Sora can do to fulfill her client’s wish (though she actually did fulfill it, her standards for ‘quality’ just makes her refuse to accept it).

Sora knows well how much she still lacks, and it’s exactly why she became so frustrated after that incident. Thoughts like “What if I had more power, what if I was a full-fledged magician? Would I have been able to bring back her memories?” must’ve been running through her mind the whole time. While it’s good to see just how dedicated Sora is in her desire to be the best mage she can be, it was also frustrating to see her wallow in her guilt-ridden pessimistic thoughts. She was far too focused on what she can’t do, and lost sight of what she was able to do or what she can do.

Episode 6 brought Sora back to her genki self, thanks to her fateful encounter with the little Ruriko, whose naïve stubbornness allowed her to reflect on her similar outlook on the stumbling block she met. As Asagi said in this episode, “You must have learned that things in life don’t always go your way”. Nothing will happen if Sora continues to blame herself, and after having realized this, she was finally able to move on. It took one little child to make her gain this wisdom, since she was turning a deaf ear to Sou-kun last time, despite being her elder.

This made me look back at the times I become so egotistic and deem my opinion to be far more superior than my elders, especially when we’re talking about close-minded elders. When I get to think of it now, how can I be so sure that I am right and they are wrong? By being such an elitist about my views, I’m being a close-minded fool myself.

There’s this question they posed in episode 6, about how [young] mages will be able to discern whether it’s necessary for them to use magic even without requests from clients, and the answer Sora gave to this was “That’s up to ourselves.” And in order for you to make sound decisions in these situations, you need wisdom, which you either gain by experience, or from mentors you meet throughout your life.

Please are prone to make mistakes, and experience failures. [but what matters most is what comes after the fall] -Asagi

In episode 7, we see the fall of Kuroda, which shouldn’t come a surprise considering that overconfident people like him are usually the ones who possess that certain inferiority complex (which they try to cover up with being know-it-alls). The higher your pride, the higher you fall, right?

I was actually expecting Asagi to have a similar inferiority complex, but as it turns out, she is by far the most remarkable (and stable) character among the cast of Natsu no Sora. She’s strong-headed and blunt, and the way she talks (and gives advice to people or scold them) is always so poignant. I doubt Kuroda would’ve been able to change if not for what she said in this episode. It was a humbling experience for Kuroda, and that just made him fall in love with Asagi more

Closing thoughts

Being stubborn and close-minded will get you nowhere. By being humble, you accept the fact that there’s so much more you have to learn, and in the process, continue to gain knowledge and wisdom in life. This, for me, is the message behind these episodes

P.S. Am I one of the few people who thinks Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsu na Koto ~Natsu no Sora~ > Natsume Yuujinchou? The excitement I have while watching and anticipating this anime is comparable to how I felt with True Tears, despite the disparity of their genre. This show also evokes far more emotions in me than Natsume Yuujinchou, it reacher down to the core of my being, while Natsuma Yuujinchou just reaches the tip of the iceberg of my soul, so to speak.

P.P.S. I watched episode 9 earlier and I say, MUST FANGIRL! And… go WTF! O_O With the ending.

This news got past my TS radar, and was brought to my attention by fellow Toshokan Sensou evangelist fan haya5hi of Akiba-Station. Basically, Toshokan Sensou bags the stellar 星雲 (Seiun) award in the recently concluded Japan SF (sci-fi) convention Daicon7, an award whose awesomeness I won’t be able to fathom had I not read haya5hi’s post about it being a semi-illiterate and all lol. Congratulations to ToshoSen and of course, its author Hiro Arikawa, for bringing us this wonderful novel. I promise, I’ll get to reading ALL of it after I finish studying for JLPT1 also because I’m currently sidetracked with speed-reading the Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu novels >.>

And of course, now all my novel pimpings won’t be in vain because of fans with much more BURNING PASSION than I am who generously translated the novel. Credits to the ToshoSen novel translation project staff for the great work. I urge you to gogogo read it. The Chinese ones out there (or at least those who can understand Chinese) can go grab the Chinese version of the novel, volume 1 of which has been recently published (thanks to jinya for the heads up on this one).

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu has gone past that dramatic arc that was episode 3, but still, I’m loving it. I’ve heard many people (guys and girls like) say that it makes them go “Kyaa~!” or “Awww” with each episode, and I couldn’t agree more. The big grin on my face every time I watch this series serves as the ultimate proof of that. Yuuto and Haruka’s rabu rabu is just too sweet and cute for words. It’s cliché, says the wise anime sages, but it’s good cliché fluff that actually breaks the stereotypical harem genre mold in which it was placed under.

First of all, unlike most spineless harem leads like Bakayuki and Bakoto, Yuuto is such a swell guy, the type whom girls would easily fall for, especially otakus like you and me who actually longs to end up with someone who at least accepts their otaku hobbies, no matter how ludicrous they seem to others. Where else have you seen a guy so brave as to talk to a girl’s yakuza-like father for the sake of defending her otaku hobbies (refer to episode 7)?! That’s Yuuto for you. Also, the supposedly ‘haremettes’ in this series divert from their usual role of (1) giving the lead guy a hard time choosing from among the girls flocking to him, or (2) providing challenges for the OTP to end up together. They even cheer Yuuto x Haruka on!

While Shiina is the closest thing to being Haruka’s rival, I do believe that Yuuto has set his eyes on Haruka right from the start, hence she serves only to fuel more Yuuto x Haruka raburabu. Given that the title features Haruka, it’s but right that she gets the happy ending, otherwise this would’ve been better named “Nogizaka Haruka no Yuutsu (The Melancholy of Nogizaka Haruka)” Sad to say that Shiina’s fate in love has already been sealed off even before the actual fight. No offence, Shiina worshippers

The loli imouto Mika has also fallen for Yuuto (episode 8), which no longer comes a surprise given his Casanova-qualities. If Yuuto didn’t have glasses and was portrayed to be much more of a smexy bishie, no doubt he’d already be the school’s ultimate heartthrob.

Also, for a change, this series actually shows that not all high-school guys are perverts with boob and older women fetishes, because the sex appeal of the teacher / Yuuto’s sister’s housemate has no effect on them at all. They’re even disgusted by her flirtatious acts lol.

And since I miss doing a character-pimping post (also due to Stripey’s prodding :P), I thought I’d delve into the awesomeness of Haruka-sama and rave about how perfect she is for Yuuto. Foreword: I have nothing against Shiina, and like most people, I find her a good girl, for the lack of a better word. But deep in my heart I believe that Haruka and Yuuto are meant for each other~

Haruka is such a sweetheart. She’s a multi-talented super moe dojikko ojousama, and she’s an otaku. And that, in my opinion, is what sets her apart from most doormat characters like Belldandy and Aoi (of Ai Yori Aoshi). A girl who holds passion for something apart from wanting to serve her master the guy he loves speaks volumes about her sense of identity, dignity, and self-respect.

What’s more admirable about Haruka is that she never lost her otaku passion even after having been ostracized because of this peculiar hobby. After that bitter experience, she could’ve wallowed in self-pity and abandon her otaku hobbies all for the sake of pleasing the majority of society, but no she did not. She became a closet otaku because of people’s unfavorable view on this minority, but still, her steadfast love for anime/manga/etc. persisted on. She’s an Akiba-type and she’s damn proud of that.

And unlike other girls who search for their prince charming in the hopes that they will fill in whatever voids in their sucky life, Haruka was already happy and contented with her own little otaku world. At the back of her mind was that longing for a kindred spirit who will accept her for who she is, but before that fateful encounter happened, she was making the most out of her life, growing healthy in much about every aspect. Winning world-class piano competitions at that.

Haruka might seem like a weak heroine at first, given her really sweet nature, but she proved herself to be both moe and GAR with the feats she has shown us throughout the series. Initially portrayed to be the damsel in distress, protected by Yuuto, we see her transform into a protector who would readily fight for the sake of her friends and for what she believes is right. As we’ve seen in episode 7, she can even stand up against her scary father if need be. And with Yuuto’s GARness, much about every obstacle becomes surmountable.

Her trust in Yuuto is really admirable, exhibited in how she even helps out Shiina, without any traces of malice and jealousy. Then again this could also be because of her naiveness and denseness. She does feel envious at times, like in episode 5, when Yuuto saves Shiina from drowning, but the thoughts running in her mind back then was “It would be great if Yuuto will do that to me too~”, and not “damn Shiina, taking advantage of my Yuuto’s kindness!”. Hence, a few words of assurance from Yuuto was all it took to relieve her of that little sadness.

Haruka also redefines the meaning of being timid and shy. She’s a timid-aggressive type She does things oh so subtly, in the guise of friendly invitations and sweet little requests, and in the process she managed to get Yuuto all by herself throughout their dates. Not once have I seen Yuuto inviting Haruka out, it’s always Haruka asking Yuuto to accompany her somewhere. They’ve held hands, embraced, and Haruka is usually the one who made the first move. You go girl!! And remember what she said in episode 3, about Yuuto being the “only thing that she can’t hand over” to anyone? That certainly made me admire her more, as it proved that she’s not the type who’ll easily back down in a fight, especially for Yuuto!

And if there’s one greatest reason why I support Yuuto x Haruka rather than Yuuto x Shiina, it’s because of the simple fact that the bond between Yuuto and Haruka has far more depth than the ‘fateful-pantyshot-encounters bond’ that Shiina holds on to. Yuuto x Haruka goes way way back, as the flashbacks have shown us. I’m just happy that the couple I’m supporting in this anime is the OTP, unlike my horrible shipping experiences in the harem animes I’ve spent my pimping energies to T__T

It took me quite a while to churn out another Neo Angelique writeup, all because I felt guilty after poking fun at this series in my previous posts. Not only did I insult this anime with my sarcastic comments, I also scared off guys who I should’ve helped become more open-minded about this under-appreciated show. My sarcasm basically clouded the rest of the serious opinion I had for the series, and it makes me ashamed of having churned out that kind of post. This show deserves far more than that kind of bastardization, it needs MOAR LOVE, and so I took the time to do some soul-searching with regards to what I’m gonna write, not just another uninspiring LOL kind that I have written in the past.

Neo Angelique has been serious from the start. It’s just that much of the redeeming qualities of the series have been clouded with cheesiness and a chunk-load of bishounens, so it’s not surprising how only a handful of guys (and even girls) would watch and enjoy this.

This series knows well the weaknesses of its characters, especially the baby goddess Ange. Throughout the series we witness her development, from being a pampered [little orphan] girl blessed with bishie guardians (the Orb hunters), to an empowered woman who understands the true essence of being a goddess, both the pros and cons that comes with the desire to bring happiness to the people of Arcadia. She faced tremendous pressure due to people’s expectations of her abilities and came across this one antagonist who wanted to prove himself more superior than the goddess that Ange is (and more superior than just about anyone else).

By the end of the first season, the aforementioned problems were resolved, in a simple and straightforward (though not exactly ‘action-packed’ exciting) manner, and we also get to know much about the bishies (except Hyuuga, Bernard, and Nyx, whose characters were more fleshed out in the second season) who had an episode or two dedicated to them. The theme of friendship is continually explored in this series, hand-in-hand with Ange’s self-discovery.

The second season continues with a rather serious and dark tone, with revelations from the pandora’s box kept subtly concealed during the first series’ run. And more than friendship, we see the series delve into the issue of fate and freedom, in the case of Ange and Lune (and also Nyx). Instead of straightforwardly revealing this super spoiler tidbit, let me just ask you this: What would you do if you found out that you were fated to be the ruler of your country, which gives you almost absolute awesome powers to help alleviate the oppressed people in the land (assuming that you have a really noble malice-free mindset), but with this great power comes great responsibility, and one of the sacrifices you’d have to make in light of this fate is to seclude yourself from the rest of the world, and dedicate all your life for your people and your people alone. Will you be so altruistic as to accept the job at the cost of your own happiness, knowing well that this will make your people happy? (take note that you are a really kind and noble person, not just a nonchalant apathetic person that most of us are – me included).

So yeah, that pretty much sums up the major dilemma faced by Ange this time around (the same dilemma of Princess Emeraude of Magic Knight Rayearth). Not much has been said about this topic after 3 episodes, but I do believe it’s gonna be a major turning point for the second season. And I’ll certainly be looking forward to it, together with the development in the rest of the characters. I don’t really care if Angelique doesn’t end up with anyone, because that’s not really what this show is about.

[DISCLAIMER] Before you go on blaming me for giving a misleading review, let me just say that a tolerance for cheesiness, lousy fight-scenes and open-mindedness would be necessary for this anime to have the pathos-inducing effect it had on me (a great bias for bishies and smexy seiyuus would greatly help too). I personally loved episode 7, where we see the bittersweet past of the reject android artifact (or ‘Jasper doll’ as the series calls it) J.D. and understand how he became as human as he is. The same goes for episode 4 of the second season, where we see Hyuuga freed from the shackles of his past. And of course there’s Nyx who is in constant battle with his other self

Neo Angelique tells a wonderful story. The overall presentation and packaging is just… not so general-audience-friendly, so to speak, hence the very niche demograph that actually spends time watching this show.

Hinano has pretty much summed up what the whole chunk of the latest two chapters are, so I think I’m just gonna go emo and say my thoughts over the latest revelation about Ikuto’s past.

Watching episode 43 of the anime (the end of the Amu x Utau epic battle) while knowing the bits and pieces of Ikuto’s awfully sad past makes quite a difference, if I might say so myself. Watching the anime while knowing beforehand the train of thoughts running through Ikuto’s mind added layers of complexity and depth that I would not have imagined if I didn’t read the manga. Why Ikuto is so eager to obtain the Embryo, why he turned out to be the Ikuto that he is now. Manga spoilers, in this sense, prove to be beneficial in that it gives you the privilege of having ‘omniscient eyes’, making for advanced epiphany moments when you watch the anime.

Like Amu’s moment of epiphany in chapter 32, the moment she found out Ikuto’s past and finally understood the burden he’s carrying all this time, I found myself crying over episode 43 when I get to think about all he’s been through I won’t be able to see Ikuto the same way, that’s for sure, and right now, all I’m hoping is for Amu to kick Gozen and his minion’s ass and bring back Ikuto!! I’m really glad we have the Shugo Charas and also Yaya who quickly turns the mood of the series from sad emo angst-filled, to genki optimistic. That’s one of the things I really like about this series, it’s brimming with positive love energy

On a side note, the mysterious boy who appeared a few chapters back makes another appearance in chapters 31-32. Much is yet to be revealed about this little boy, whether or not he’s related to the Embryo (or Amu and Ikuto?), etc., and we’d just have to find that out as more chapters come out.

While I’m still in a Toshokan Sensou novel reading slump mode, it looks like a group of enthusiastic TS fans finally decided to join forces and translate the awesome novels for other fans and cynics to see. Thanks to AniSuki member Kakulukiam for the heads up, otherwise I wouldn’t have known about this project which started out a month ago. Now you guys can read it and see the true Library War for yourself~ :3

Meanwhile, I’ll be continuing reading Skip Beat till the latest chapter, hopefully churn out a manga pimping post about it real soon, and work on our Fall anime preview. Then review the Toshokan Sensou Love & War vol.2 by next next week, if I don’t get lazy

On a completely unrelated note, I sighed at the sight of yet another Toshokan Sensou sick pic (of Shibasaki), while searching for images in moe.imouto.org T__T Sick fags and their bondage fetishes! >E