Awesome romance anime

*Includes spoilers. All media credits go to their owners.*

First of all - I know I missed last week, my conscience told me. But since I needed sleep between sessions of hardcore studying, I couldn't help it :( Anyway, this week I'm continuing with my practical writing exercise, so yay for me!

I've never really liked full romance animes. I mean, I've always LOVED romance in animes - but only if the anime was of any other genre than romance itself. The school-love combo just gives me nothing - it's full of horrible melancholic moments and weird choices by the main characters, from wether to admit their feelings to bla bla bla...

Please don't be offended

But! This season I've been forced to eat my words - I think probably for the first time ever. Because I'm sorry to admit it, but I didn't really like Clannad. The After Story was great (let me specify - the marriage story was great), but the regular Clannad was so damn boring. Seriously, I considered skipping it all in all. Eventually I had to force myself into watching it because I wanted to properly see what After Story, the nr 1 spot on ANN was about. But it was just another story about how people form groups in a collectivistic society that will likely be their only network of connections next to their colleagues for the rest of their lives... damn I'm glad I live in the West.

After Clannad I've seen a bunch of faliures - that at least I thought were meant to be romance animes. Like Chihayafuru - okay, maybe it was meant to be a 'sports' anime, but seriously, wasn't everyone hoping for the storyline they began with the triangle to evolve.... ? Was that just me...? Woopsie... <.<
And then Natsuyuki Rendezvous. Bad. So bad. I had such high hopes - I was cheering for it until the very end. But it ended in complete randomness. I would like to take this time and ask: Excuse me, but what was the point of that entire anime? We all knew the ghost would have to give up Hazuki's body in the end, we all knew how sad that whole situation was... what exactly did this anime give us? The ghost was still floating around even after his wife had died after living decades and decades with another man.... So in the end there was no closure, no nothing. Stupid.
I also checked out Arcana Famiglia, which I knew was shoujou, but I tried anyway.... was bad, so whiny. Yuk!

Junjou Romantica

Okay, I guess I did like one romance anime, but that was probably because I had never seen one like that before. And it had sex, lots of sex. I like sex :x
I'm not even entirely sure this should be counted as romance - but they are doing romantic stuff, right? And the title says so... Perhaps a pretty straightforward anime pick for my very first yaoi, but then again it had some mushy feelings in it and all that. It's not like it was Ai no Kusabi reborn :D (oh yeah, those who have seen it blushed a little there). Didn't have lots of school in it - still evolved around a university, so I'm guessing that counts. Anyway, that was kind of fun and fresh. So, coolio. I'm borrowing this phrase from a friend. Cooli-o. Coolio.

But other than that I had never seen a traditional romance anime that I'd actually like. Until Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun (My Little Monster) came along! Alright, maybe it's not very traditional in the sense of what goes on in there, but basically - it has romance, it has school life - I think I've found my perfect traditional exception, finally! 

First of all, it's funny - anyone who sees it and isn't completely derived of a sense of humor, should see that. Sometimes the fun is situational, sometimes it's just the things they say and the responses they give. The characters are special and not your typical: worn out hero-type gentle high school guy, who keeps coming to the rescue with only pure thoughts in his head; and the kind and useless lead female. No. This time the hero is a genius-boy who has extremely weird tastes, is brutal, a bit dirty-minded and actually has feelings he's not afraid to admit. But for a change, the girl doesn't get overshadowed - she's smart, blunt, knows what she wants and isn't afraid to say it either. Basically they're both downright honest - not such a common thing in anime, eh? So throw in a bunch of rich delinquents, a nice baseball dude, a cute but dumb girl who is also incidentally an internet geek, and a shy class-rep who isn't so shy after all when she falls for the male lead - and you get a mixture crazy, funny and romantic that actually resembles real life. Oh, and don't forget the rooster - the rooster is important!

I mean it isn't so unusual to kind of fall for your best friend, now is it? And it isn't unusual to tell the person you like them, try to figure things out. So where the regular romance anime goes on for episodes and episodes of denying their feelings, trying to be just friends, this one comes right out and says it: "Now that I realised I have feelings for you, I want to do all kinds of things to you..." - Haru.

So far in this show, they've confessed like four times, changed their priorities, realised the world isn't black-and-white, kissed, gone on dates, stopped dating - and it's still at episode 7! Every week I just cannot wait for another episode, it's freaking awesome! I'll throw in a few pics to illustrate my point.

Haru and Shizuku

Haru forces Shizuku to go eat out with him

Oshima having a moment with Haru... and Nagoya

A bit of the philosophy that drives Haru

Shizuku announces her ambition, Haru backs her up

Shizuku and Haru, almost there...

Shizuku flushed after a kiss attempt

Haru thinking about Shizuku

Basically - watch this anime or you'll miss out on a helluva lot of epicness!

More grains to spill next week - share your thoughts in the meanwhile!

Stupid love in anime

*Includes spoilers. All media credits go to their owners.*

AaAAaaaarrrgghhh! What's up? Well, I watched the latest Fairy Tail episode and so I'm pissed off. Like WTF??? What the eff-ing crap?? Double-uuuu-teee-eff. Stoooopid sh....
If you're any kind of romance-in-shounen fan like me, you will immediately know why.
It's not very often we get to witness our favourite characters in shounen animes finding happiness and getting together with someone. So this week, when there was a chance that the magnificent and awesome Erza would actually be seriously reunited with probably the love of her life, the creators of the manga decide that: Nope. No, sorry, ma'am, that will not happen.
Now why the hell would you even go through the trouble of inserting a kissing scene into the show when you're going to fuck it up anyway? Seriously, it's almost as good as throwing those minutes into the bin. Maybe it's okay on paper, in the manga, but the anime crew has to do it too then!
Also, what the hell is the logic behind this kind of behaviour? Let me break it down for you:
Jellal did all kinds of BS to Erza and then, when they finally meet again, and know they both have feelings for each other, he decides on the last second that not only is he going to brood over the evil stuff he did in the past while he was possessed, but also he is going hurt poor Erza even more by rejecting her with a stupid excuse. So dude... basically you first bash her faith in you and then bash her feelings... 
Instead of redeeming yourself by making her happy... you just... aaghhh... I don't even...
Well done - well done! Today we salute you, irrational logic guy!

Erza rejected by Jellal

But that's not really unusual in anime, is it. Japanese people find ALL kinds of retarded excuses why it's not possible for the two lovers to be together. Like in 5 Centimeters Per Second - which is a very good movie and extremely beautiful, 12/10 on the visual. But oh my fking ... - that synopsis is completely stupid. Ok, so the boy falls in love, there's a huge depressive adventure and some happiness and then BOOM! Suddenly they stop writing and calling and everything. True - at first the time was in the 80s-90s, there were no mobile phones. But then he gets a mobile phone TO NEVER CALL OR TEXT HER ANYWAY. He writes texts to no one. Never sends them. 
Dude... what the hell is your problem? If you're going to spend years and years thinking about her and being horribly sad over not being able to be with her, then how about you call her?? Call her, maybe? I cannot emphasize this enough.
Maybe you shouldn't sit around and wait for life to happen and be depressed all the time. Maybe, just maybe you should go and try to - oh I don't know - DO something so that you wouldn't regret it forever and ever? I mean, he knew what was gnawing at his soul. Might as well have gone and tried. Right? Right?!?! Yeah, you better agree or angry Rika is going to come hit you with a shoe :x

Alright, so besides not anything whatsoever in anime, they then go to the entire other end of the scale. 
Which might actually be even worse. Because in the first case they're scared or vulnerable or whatever wimpy reason they have (seriously, am I the only one with balls around here?? And I don't even fucking have them), but in the second case they're just plain dumb. Like in Zetman. They met, he didn't even like her. He wanted to throw her out. And then...

...Hai?

He saved her - sure, sounds nice. They kissed - great. Must be hard living alone all the time, so a little smooching might cheer poor Jin up, eh ? 
But then suddenly they're creating a family and all. What the hell did I miss exactly?? In that picture above you can see a better translation, but in my version there was:
"I want to try the family thing with you."
Hello?
Yes, this is dog?
Crazy.

At least they have sex after that scene, so I'm happy with that. I'm always happy when the main character gets laid. Yay for you, Jin!

In general, I'm still too angry to write any further, so I'll see you next week.  

The Hero

*Includes spoilers. All media credits go to their owners.*

Before I start, lets make it clear what I mean by 'The Hero'. Since this is an animeblog, the topic here is obviously not DC and Marvel superheroes. And although I'm sure there are lots and lots of awesome male leads in short animes, this time I'm addressing the more popular shounen ones - which leads us to the creation of 'The Hero'.

The Hero

Notice how there isn't a Goku in there? Yeah. It's because he's the daddy of all epicness. Competing against him would be futile. End of that story.

Anyway, in most shounen animes we follow the male lead through his ups and downs, victories and defeats, training and battles - you get it. This continues up to a point where the entire anime is actually about this one boy/man and we start seeing everything from his point of view. So when I think of Bleach, I automatically form the connection in my head: 'Ok, this is Ichigo's story'. It becomes rather hard distinguishing the hero from the anime in general. Like: there would be no Naruto, the anime, without Naruto, the hero - the boy who carries Kyuubi inside him.
While that seems clear and natural - 'Yea of course this particular anime is about this particular hero, what's your point?' - it becomes a little bit disturbing when I start thinking about character compilation in these stories.

I already know what I'm getting for the hero: lean guy, ridiculously ripped for his age (I mean really - the others - okay maybe. But Ichigo is 15? Being currently almost 10 years older, I feel like I'm on the borderline of pedophilia here, looking at his massive abs), never gives up, soul of the group, cares for his friends, wants to protect and/or be the best. So the main lead kind of blurs into the anime - you obviously have to like the protagonist or you wouldn't be watching it at all. 
Based on this deduction, what makes up the rest of the story are the characters gathered around the Hero. Let's say you take Edward out from FMA and stick him into Bleach. He'd probably go protecting his town and family and saving Rukia all the same, with a few minor variations compared to Ichigo (hihi, he'd probably marry Rukia afterwards, eh?). In that meaning, the rest of the characters make up the entire environment of the anime, determine the style of it. Wether it's Sakura-Kakashi-Jiraiya, Mustang-Armstrong-Winry, Rukia-Urahara-Renji or any other combo.
Right? Sense, it's making it.

And so, when someone asks which characters I like in animes, this typical setup automatically makes me skip the hero and think of other, more memorable personalities. I'll give a few examples.
"Do you watch Naruto?" "Yeah, sure!" "Which character you like best?" "Well Kakashi is awesome!"
Or similarly:
"Who do you like in Once Piece?" "Zoro!"
Do I think the main characters aren't good enough? No. It's just so apparent that it's not even worth mentioning.
Maybe it's just me, I don't know.

But now, I'll try to set my usual mindset aside and actually look at the Hero. You will not see this happening very often as I'm way more likely to rant on about magnificent supporting characters, who are usually more interesting - or less mainstream.
When I do think about them one by one, I guess the heroes are pretty amazing. Strong-willed, powerful, skilled. But today I'll set aside the regular reasons - since everyone already knows how well they fight and how fast they learn.
Today, I'm approaching from a female perspective.
Let's pretend for a moment that we're actually in a setting with 'the Hero' - and within a reasonable age difference. Seriously. None of us wants to get locked up over this.
Would we fall for the hero? I think we would. And when I say that I mean we would even if there are other very eligible candidates around. Even if we don't find him to be the most interesting or intelligent one. Sorry other nice and awesome guys.

I mean, he's passionate, strong, probably saves us a few times... Even if he is silly, eats like a horse and rushes head first into the dumbest situations. Of course at the same moment we'd be doomed, since 'the Hero' has no such feelings to return (with the exception of Edward and maaaybe Naruto). What would probably make matters worse is that when normal guys realize a girl likes them and they don't feel the same, they'll start avoiding the girl. 'The Hero' would probably be just as kind and awesome as he has always been - and so wrap us in deeper and deeper. And there's very little we could do about it too, since there would probably either be another female character ahead of us or if not, he could just completely ignore our efforts.
So keeping that in mind, which one would you choose? And how would you handle it?

 I'm guessing my choice would be:

Natsu

Why? I'm not entirely sure.
Maybe it's because he is portrayed through Lucy's journey and that gives him a wholesome character instead of becoming blurred in with the anime. Although he is the living representation of the Fairy Tail spirit, he also has a dynamical connection to the female lead Lucy, and together they manage to pave a wider than usual path into the story. He may be oblivious to the emotional part of life, but he did have a make believe family with Lisanna and he treats Lucy as his partner. So where the other heroes are shown to be very narrow-minded, Natsu dislpays a wider range of probable evolving directions while maintaining the carefree image of a young hero.
Or maybe it's cause he's the son of a friggin' dragon. And he breathes fire. GG.

How would I handle it? Uhhh... I really feel sick even thinking about it. I think there would be nothing else to do than to keep my mouth shut and remain very good friends. I mean even if I were to confess, it'd likely have no effect at all. If he at some point discovers that he's not a child anymore and/or becomes interest - great! If not, well... then I guess I'm not the heroine of this story.

I have more grains to spill next Friday. In the meanwhile you can share your opinion  - who would you choose and how would you handle it?

Which anime guy ...?

*May include spoilers. All media credits go to their owners.*

Since I've been an anime fan for a long time, I must admit that over the years I've had a few crushes on anime characters. Although obviously not to the extent of going completely mad and getting myself a dakimakura or marrying a life-size poster. But yes, I've tried to imagine what it would be like to:
a) meet these characters while being an anime character myself
or
b) meet them in real life.
I'm sure some of you ladies - or gentlemen, I wouldn't mind - out there have thought of the exact same thing. "Damn, that Chi-Chi, lucky woman" or "Rawr, Goku so ripped" right? Well here I've made a little compilation of who I would like to spend some time with.

Urahara Kisuke

The Handsome Genius

Provided there isn't a very jealous Yoruichi around ready to claw my eyes out, Urahara would be probably one of the most amusing and intelligent companions. He'd be dangerously aware of everything that is happening, yet treat it with a light humor and throw in a few butt grabs in between. Of course, there would probably two directions this could head off to: awesome or disaster. If he'd find me boringly inferior, I'd probably be in for a rough ride on his scheming roller coaster. Still, I bet he would be one of the most colorful characters and pleasently grown-up enough to enjoy it. Other similar choices would be Kakashi, maybe Roy Mustang (or maybe I'm just charmed by the seiyuu Shinichiro Miki) and just maaaybe Lelouch vi Britannia.

Mashima Taichi

The Best Friend

He's kind of a tsundere, isn't he? Liking Chihaya so much and still trying to honor his silent agreement with Arata. Anyway, provided there isn't a Chihaya around to catch his eye all the time, this one I would definitely need 'wow' somehow - and I'm guessing licking his retardedly gorgeous face isn't a valid option. If I'd manage that, then this one would be a very loyal and loving companion, sticking out for me and accepting all my quirks. Buuuut if I'd fail, he'd maybe go out with me and pretend to be interested until he gets mesmerized by some karuta player. Damn it!

Kamina

The Super Man

See how I've underlined 'man'? That's how manly he is. Not quite the hero of the show but rather the inspirational character, Kamina would be one of the most thrilling - and annoying - companions. Sure, I'd have to endure a constant verbal diarrhea about manliness and manhood, but I'd get to experience one of the most sincere philosophies of all time. How many times have dark-deep-emoish guys swept girls off their feet by being mysterious and complicated? Well with this Man you'd get exactly what you bargained for - and more since he can actually back up the nonsense he spouts with his down to earth nature and beliefs originated from his very core. I wouldn't call that a bad deal at all.

Maddo Saientisto

Okabe Rintarou

Although kind of a combination of the handsome genius and the super Man, Okabe Rintarou or Hououin Kyouma would make the best one-man show for me to watch all day long. His boundless creativity and kind caring soul form a combination that would drive the gray out of everyday life, making him probably the most desirable of candidates. He's obviously dependable and able to handle both the softer and weaker representatives of the female species as well as the mighty and ambitious ones. Really, the only problem with this beautiful man would be that he's too amazing in every aspect and the competition would probably be severe. Also, I'd be scared to take him into bed - who knows what science tricks his got up his sleeve.

Namikaze Minato

Mister Perfect

Where the other characters become valuable due to their unusual or strong characteristics, Minato is just perfect to begin with. I'm serious - has anyone noticed that he's actually just plain perfect? No joke. He's handsome, skilled, powerful, subtle, fearless, a great husband - and probably would've been an awesome dad (I personally don't like kids, but I'm sure it's a great feature). So to sum it up - he's the Yellow Flash, the Fouth Hokage, protector of Kushina, happy daddy... you catch my drift, yes? Actually, he's perfect to the point where I would feel horrible approaching him at all. I'd think to myself: "Dammit, woman, didn't his family suffer enough?! Leave him be!" Bah. I know I'd have to step aside for Kushina on this one - or I'd feel too guilty. With that said, he'd likely be my best match since I'm kind of a fierce type myself - blurting everything out, starting fights where I feel like it. Oh well.

Zaraki Kenpachi

And then there's
Kenpachi

Not much to say here, except for: "Please, sir, I have already removed my clothing."






I have more grains to spill next Friday. In the meanwhile you can share your opinion - which anime guys do you like?

Romance in shounen anime

*May include spoilers. All media credits go to their owners.*

I've been a fan of Japanese culture - and especially anime - since I was a little girl. I believe I might have been around 6 or 7 years old when Sailor Moon was teh l33tzor for me. While others ran home to watch Mexican soap operas or hang out with friends, I just had to be home by 4 pm so that I could see my very favourite girl with buns on her head waving her magic wand around in the faces of some very peculiar monsters. Did I ever stop and think "Hey, wait, what is this show about exactly? How is it logical, that EVERY TIME they just happen to meet the people that get in trouble later on?" No, sir! What mattered was that evil could never win against the purity of the soul and good intentions! ... Who am I kidding - I just wanted to see Usagi and Mamoru kiss.

Over the years I've seen quite a few animes. Some of them were good, some were great or even magnificent - and some were so idiotic that I'd caught myself wondering how the hell I'd even start watching them. Although there wasn't one particular genre or theme that I'd watch, I usually tried to avoid pure shounen animes - mainly because it confused me when softer emotions were purposely left out of the picture. What bothered me was just that: "How can it be that such powerful heroic men don't want to claim their princesses in the end?" (Ok, it was actually more like: Y U NO wanna get laid :S?)

Now don't get me wrong - I'm not a fan of that drooly-blushy romance BS that some of the shows are focused on. Love Hina, Chobits, Negima and so on just leave me thinking "Right, whatever." What I do love are battles and mind games and sword techniques and magic and power-ups and supernatural beings and monsters and... you get the drift. Of course, being into the named themes, I ended up watching shounen animes anyway. And I really like them too - except that I still get ticked off by the lack of honest emotions from time to time.

Naturally in time I realised that romantic emotions were never really left out, just a bit concealed so that they wouldn't scare off poor insecure teenage boys. Just a few examples.
Bleach. I sincerely doubt a man would go rampaging through a combat oriented society if he had no deeper feelings than debt of gratitude on his mind. I mean sure - Ichigo would definitely save any other friend of his just the same. But even if he didn't have any deeper feelings at first, the constant reminding of why he was on his quest is bound to generate some sort of deeper emotions - in anyone. Not to mention the obvious Renji-likes-Rukia, Ishida-maybe-likes-Orihime, Orihime-likes-Ichigo, Ichimaru-Matsumoto, Hitsugaya-Hinamori. Yoruichi lives with Urahara, for goodness sake.
Naruto. Now here, on the other hand, they've gone and made a complete mess out of the display of romance. The constant reminder of how Sakura loves Sasuke and begs him to take her with him when he leaves the village - and Naruto always wishing the best for Sakura. I agree, it does show a higher form of commitment to be looking out for the happiness of the person you love. Except that they were, what, freaking 12 when they "fell in love"? Then again, one of the best usages of romance also comes from this anime. The story of Minato and Kushina was very captivating and the way they finally managed to deliver their feelings and wishes to their son was truly moving.

So why does it even anger me at all?
Because the main characters are usually shown as if they have no other feelings than "Protect my nakama! Got to win and be the best! Everyone is equal!"
And because there are several shounen oriented animes that achieve showing this important piece of life very naturally and I do not understand why it has been made into such a taboo or embarrassing thing in the rest of them.
Fullmetal Alchemist (I'm thinking mainly Brotherhood). Edward wants to protect Winry. They marry in the end. No mushy talk about feelings or confessing etc. Still has epic battles, abilities, strategies and lots more going on. GG well played.
Rurouni Kenshin: Trust and Betrayal. Ok well this one might be categorised as romance on it's own, even if the main thing is shounen. Still - simple, clean, no retarded yapping. Kenshin wants to protect her, Tomoe is his sheath. They even threw in sort of a sex scene for the dummies.
Ao no Exorcist. Well bit of a love triangle (rabutoraianguru, ne) there but in general pretty well done.
Even Berserk managed to do it rather tastefully - well up to the point where everything went mental and newly awakened Femto starts raping Casca... like seriously, was that really necessary?

I guess what I'm trying to convey here is:
More honesty regarding male lead feelings in an environment of serious action is very welcome and does not ruin the entire genre of shounen. In fact, it adds a little something for people who don't find action and friendships to be the only part of life. Why is it not okay to have a certain someone you really care about?
I do understand that shounen is a bit of a shelter for boys to hide under, when the rain of  'y u no has gurlfriend' pours down. They can say: 'Hey, look, Luffy and Ichigo and Natsu and Naruto are so awesome and they don't have girlfriends!'. But who knows - maybe if there was more sincere romance in animes, those poor otaku who find it hard to even talk to women would manage to pull themselves together and live up to their hero's standards.

Natsu and Lucy

I have more grains to spill next Friday. In the meanwhile you can share your opinion  - what do you think about romance in shounen?