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Toonami Rap, Chi at Toronto, Unforgivable Characters, And More - Fun Link Roundup
Nope, you can’t have my soul. Here are some fun links to read for the weekend.
BRING BACK TOONAMI!! - For those who were watching Cartoon Network on April 1, Toonami, the famous animation block that brought a whole slew of anime, replaced the Saturday block of Adult Swim. “Otaku King” Richie Branson enlightens us with his wonderful rhymes on why Toonami should come back. Man, we need more afterschool moments with Toonami cuz anime ain’t dying yet, yo.
Kanata Konami Visits The Toronto Comics Arts Festival - Most of you have heard that the mangaka of Chi’s Sweet Home, Kanata Konami, was at Toronto this past Saturday for TCAF 2012. Enjoy this brief recap of her event hosted by Vertical, Inc along with a couple of photos taken there.
Should You Read The Sailor Moon Manga? - Yes, for the most part. Otaku no Video reviews Volume 1 and recommends it to those who are fans of shoujo manga. Though I believe it can be a tough sell to fans of the Sailor Moon anime.
Japanese Fans Name Anime’s Most Unforgivable Characters - The number 1 choice totally deserved the top spot, wouldn’t you say? I’m interested to see who else you guys think should have also been on Biglobe’s fan poll on unforgivable characters.
Geek to Geek: Utopias and Dystopias - An interesting discussion about what would happen if utopias and dystopias existed in reality. Those two themes have been subjects of anime and manga series. Reminds me of Crocodile’s “Operation Utopia” plan from One Piece.
Girls with Fangs Take A Bite Out of Japan - Does anyone understand why Japanese men find “yaeba” (crooked teeth) to be attractive? I hear it’s mostly because fanged teeth makes women look young. Maybe perhaps they’re into vampires and don’t mind getting bit by cute looking ones. Still, it’s a trend that seems to be extending (and growing) beyond anime/manga into reality and another unique quirk to add onto Japan’s pop culture resume.
If anyone loves that Kyubey design, you can purchase SuperOrange’s t-shirt (ladies only) featuring the design at their store website. Ladies, you know you want to run back to him.
May Kyubey make your weekend full of troll-rific awesomeness.
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The 2011 Great Manga Holiday Gift Guide!
It’s that time of year once again. The season of giving. Time to find out who’s been naughty or nice. Thankfully, there are a variety of manga series that appeal to folks who’ve been good all year or just a bit bad. In collaboration with the 2011 Great Manga Gift Guides, it’s time to present Manga Therapy’s 2011 Great Manga Holiday Gift Guide!
Here are a few manga titles that I feel make great gifts for readers.
Blue Exorcist (Volume 1-5+) by Kazue Kato, VIZ Media
Does it make sense that I have to start off with one of the hottest shonen titles in 2011? Blue Exorcist is a manga that continues the dominance of female mangaka writing shonen manga. The characterization is very well-done and the plot is original. Also, girls will fall in love with Rin and Yukio Okumura.
Fullmetal Alchemist Complete Box Set (Volumes 1-27) by Hiromu Arakawa, VIZ Media
Hiromu Arakawa’s grand masterpiece in one box set. Do I really need to say anymore? FMA is arguably one of the most epic manga series ever written. This series has everything you want in a shonen manga. From start to finish, you will enjoy the journey of the Elric brothers as they show off the power & perseverance of humanity.
Drifters Volume 1 by Kohta Hirano, Dark Horse Comics
Time travel? Check. Historical figures? Check. Lots of violent fighting to stop evil? Check. Drifters is an interesting title that highlights how cruel people can be. Plus, it’s from the same guy who did Hellsing. The main villain also looks like a Nazgul from Lord of the Rings.
The Drops of God Volume 1 by Tadashi Agi & Shu Okimoto, Vertical Inc.
This is for those who want to read a manga title that doesn’t focus on violence & sex. This international phenomenon has impacted reality in many ways and has received much press attention from popular media outlets. If you’re a wine enthusiast, you will LOVE this manga. For anyone else, it’s a nice change of pace from the usual manga you see everyday.
‘A Bride’s Story’ Volumes 1-2 by Kaoru Mori, Yen Press
A title that has won critical acclaim in both Japan & America. The story focuses on a young lady named Amira, who marries a younger boy named Karluk in the Middle East. The artwork is gorgeous and realistic. This is a cute and fascinating title that takes a look at the structure of family and marriage.
20th Century Boys (Volumes 1-15+) by Naoki Urasawa, VIZ Media
One of the most suspenseful manga I have ever read, period. The Eisner Award-nominated 20th Century Boys is a title full of mystery and intrigue. If you want a title that throws crazy plot twists and you love crazy cult figures, then this is your book.
Sailor Moon (Volumes 1-2+) by Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha Comics
This is the female role model that all the little girls should look up to. All I can say is that it’s a good title to show to young teenage female readers interested in manga. It’s also a great history lesson for them as well as they get a chance to read one of the most influential shojou manga out there.
Princess Knight Volume 1 by Osamu Tezuka, Vertical Inc.
A gem that would help set the tone for shoujo manga. You can’t help but admire Princess Sapphire and her determination to be a hero to others. This is another influential title that I feel young female manga readers HAVE to read.
The Book of Human Insects by Osamu Tezuka, Vertical Inc.
An intense, thought-provoking story where you see how certain people can be very manipulative towards others. The main protagonist isn’t someone you can actually root for. This title is recommended for those who love complex characters in their stories.
This is just a small sample of what I would recommend. What other manga titles do you think would make great gifts for readers? Post in the comments section below and let me know what you would give!
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Sweet Anime/Manga Characters That Love Sweets
If you’re a sugar lover, you might find this interesting. A study published in the Journal of Personality & Social Psychology states that people who love sweets tend to be nice people overall. They are more likely to help others & are more sociable than those who don’t like sweets. With that said, this study makes me wonder about anime/manga characters who love sweets and are sweet-natured. Let’s look at a few notable characters that fit the mode of loving sugar and giving some sugar.
Mitsukuni “Honey” Haninozuka (Ouran High School Host Club)
He LOVES cake. Honey is generally a happy, go-lucky character who would be nice to you if you don’t piss him off. If you like cute things, he will be your best friend for life.
Gintoki Sakata (Gintama)
The only hero in Shonen Jump that needs sugar before a big fight with bad guys. He’s often seen eating parfaits and sweet red bean rice bowls. Also, the word “sugar” is put as a banner in his office. Despite his lackadaisical & goofy nature, Gin is an honorable man who deeply cares about the people in his life.
Tony Tony Chopper (One Piece)
His wanted poster has him listed as “Cotton Candy Lover” Chopper. What more can I say about his cute & courageous behavior? Chopper can be a coward at times, but his goal to become the best doctor drives him to help sick parents.
Usagi Tsukino (Sailor Moon)
She eats a lot of food, which includes sweets. Usagi is a very caring friend to those who are fortunate to associate themselves with her.
Xerxes Break (Pandora Hearts)
Probably one of the biggest sugar fiends in all of anime & manga. He is very protective around Sharon Rainsworth and her family.
Yui Hirasawa (K-ON!)
When she gets depressed, sweets really cheer her up. Yui is very affectionate towards her friends, especially Azusa.
Misaki Shima (Futaba-kun Change!)
Her love of sweets is a running gag (i.e. anything she cooks becomes sweet) in the series. Misaki loves Futaba and grows to accept his female form. She even joined the wrestling club alongside Futaba to watch over his female form (although this was before she realized that Futaba was also a girl).
That’s about it for now. I know I didn’t list certain characters, like L from Death Note. He’s not really that nice of a person.
Regarding the study, I do think that a decent amount of sugar can do some good for people. Face it, if we don’t satisfy our sweet indulgences from time to time, then we could end up killing ourselves mentally.
If you know any other characters that love sugar and are friendly, list them in the comments below!
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Sailor Moon Sailor-Bration!
Earlier today, I went to Forbidden Planet NYC to check out the Sailor Moon Sailor-Bration! event. Area was small (if you’ve been to FPNYC like I have, then you would agree) & a decent amount of people came. 6 people entered the cosplay contest. Unfortunately, I missed the panel where the hosts talked about the history of Sailor Moon. They did do some trivia with attendees & gave them prizes. The girls from the (possibly upcoming) American live-action Sailor Moon movie were there too.
Overall, it was a pretty average event. Here are some photos that I took.
Oh yeah, Sailor Moon Vol. 1 was sold out at Forbidden Planet. There was also only one copy of Codename: Sailor V left. The spirit of the Sailor Scouts is strong within fans to this day.
Who agrees with me that the Sailor Saturn in my photos looked super-awesome? Also, DAT CHIBIUSA LUNCHBOX.
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Psychology of the Planets Starring The Sailor Scouts (Sailor Moon)
“GWOtaku: Sept 14, 10:45 AM. A day after release Sailor Moon Volume 1 jumps up to #46 on Amazon’s list of top-selling books…mercy!”
It looks like the manga blogosphere & fans have been enthusiastic with the return of Naoko Takeuchi’s influential & groundbreaking shoujo manga classic, Sailor Moon, to North American manga shelves after years in limbo. With the return of our favorite Sailor Scouts (or Sailor Senshi if you would like to call them that), I wondered about the actual planets the girls represent and if the planets’ psychology reflected the girls’ personalities. Let’s take a look at our magical heroines, shall we?
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Sailor Moon & Me!
Found this old photo of me with a Sailor Moon cutout back in 2003 at the Big Apple Anime Festival (Anyone in the East Coast remember that?). Looking at this picture makes me realize how old I am. Good grief. Funny thing is that I still look the same after all these years too. This was my first anime convention.
I joked about Sailor Moon being my “first love” in this picture. It’s a tie between her and Chun-Li.
So, to you males out there, which of the Sailor Scouts you had a thing for?
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Remembering Sailor Moon From My Childhood
MOON CRYSTAL POWER! MAKE-UP!
Everyone in the manga world knows that Naoko Takeuchi’s famous series, Sailor Moon, is making a triumphant return to the United States. Kodansha Comics will be releasing enhanced versions of the Sailor Moon manga and the prequel series CODENAME: SAILOR V this September.
This series actually brings a small tear to my eye, since I grew up with both Dragon Ball Z & Sailor Moon before they made it big in the States. Sailor Moon was first released in 1992 in Japan. Around the time, I was introduced to the first Sailor Moon series and also part of the Sailor Moon R series. A friend and his sister both were into anime since they rented Chinese-dubbed anime from Chinatown, so I frequently went to his place to watch. It’s funny because I got into DBZ while my younger sister was into Sailor Moon. We even made fanfiction stories in which both series collided.
When Sailor Moon finally made it to the States in 1997 on TV, I decided to give the English version a try one weekday morning. My first impression was “Wow, the voices sure sound funny!”. At the time, I was mostly used to watching Chinese-dubbed anime. Never would I have thought that Sailor Moon (and also DBZ) would engrave themselves into American pop culture.
Watching episodes of Sailor Moon also made me develop a crush on Makoto Kino, also known as Sailor Jupiter. Honestly, I don’t even know why I liked her in the first place. Was it because she was the first tomboy cartoon character I seen? Or maybe because she was a tall girl? Yeah, Rei Hino (Sailor Mars) was supposed to get the guys bothered. But, to me, it was Sailor Jupiter. She was the start of my love for “tough girls”, alongside Chun-Li of Street Fighter since SFII was insanely popular around the time Sailor Moon began airing in Japan. Seeing cute girls kick ass became quite the fascination for me.
Also, Tuxedo Mask. Oh man. A guy coming in like that to save the day. It was kind of badass to me. I didn’t care too much about the relationship between Mamoru Chiba & Usagi Tsukino, but I liked how he made his appearances to save the Sailor Senshi when they’re getting their butts kicked by monsters. That developed another fascination with roses. Roses are filled with thorns and you have to be cautious when dealing with such beauty.
Sailor Moon will definitely be on my to-watch manga list for this Fall. This was part of my early childhood and it is wonderful to see a new generation of female readers see the series that truly revolutionized the “magical girl” genre.
So, for the haters out there, under the name on the Moon, I WILL PUNISH YOU!
