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Smashing Manga Records, Tentacle Satire, Emotional Games, and More - Fun Link Round-Up
I think the “person” behind you wants to be your friend, so go talk to him/her/it. Here’s some links to read for the weekend.
The Boundaries of Humor: An Interview With John Cadice, Creator of Tentacle Bento - I’m sure most you have heard about this card game that recently got their funding shut down by Kickstarter. Now, this interview is pretty bias as the interviewer, Brandon Sheffield, wanted to say “HA! I WIN BECAUSE I HAZ MAINSTREAM INTERNETZ POINTS”. It just felt like a huge flame war done in a professional manner. Though I have to say, Sheffield got Cadice good with that video demo of two people playing the game in action. The lesson of this story: the Internet is truly a frightening beast for EVERYONE involved.
Social Manga Project Aims For Guinness Record - Three of the most epic mangaka, Hirohiko Araki, Takehiko Inoue, and Hiroshi Motoyoma, team up to smash a Guinness World Record? Consider me sold. I love how all types of artists are invited to join them. This is what gets people more interested in the world of manga.
The Influence of Genes on Psychological Well-Being - Reading this makes me think about Naruto and his parents. Naruto and his mother, Kushina Uzumaki, definitely share some similar traits.
How Can Otaku Stay Enthused About Anime? - You know, I do wonder why I still watch anime despite the quality of series decreasing ever-so-slightly. Though as John says, shows like Oreimo and Puella Magi Madoka Magica definitely keep people’s spirits alive.
Why I Stopped My JManga Subscription - I have not subscribed to JManga at all. There’s nothing I really want to read there honestly. Om brings out an interesting point about its PC-viewing preference being a flaw. I still believe JManga will evolve into something greater.
A Personal Journey: Jenova Chen’s Goals for Games - Just like how some folks want emotional substance in anime and manga, some folks want to feel inspired through video games.
Finally, anyone who talks like the third guy in the video below deserves to get chainsawed.
Have a wacky weekend, everyone!
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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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Idols, Hostesses, Animal Manga, And More - Fun Links To Read
And we’re back with another variety of articles to read!
Japan Times does not like the front-page attention that AKB48 is getting - Good grief, how much attention is AKB48 really getting? Weren’t those candy-sharing commercials and an upcoming Wii game featuring the girls enough? Then again, idols are very important in Japan and it’s pretty unfortunate that they are forced to uphold a “clean” image to maintain that importance, don’t you think?.
Look, a hostess video game for kids is on the Nintendo 3DS! - Level-5, makers of Professor Layton and White Knight Chronicles, released a new portable game called Girls’ RPG: Cinderrelife where you play as girls trying to be hostesses. What would be hilarious and sad is if all the young girls start having this fantasy of being hostesses from this game. However, low sales seem to indicate that this will not happen. Only in Japan, folks.
Manga Xanadu celebrates Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month - Lori Henderson spotlights a few manga titles that focus on animal cruelty. As Lori says, pets deserve the same love and respect from their owners and people.
Japan’s population hits biggest drop since 1950 - I think most of us knew this was going to happen, given the state Japan’s in these days. Many things in Japan (like manga sales) are going down. How can we encourage Japan to REALLY step up for the people?
New Ways To Happiness With Strengths - Because I want each and every one of you to find ways to be happy in life.
Finally, now that Bakuman’s over, what do you think the next title from Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata will be about?
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Exploring Manga, Vocaloid is ALIVE!, Happy Tearjerkers, And More - Fun Links To Read
Here are some fun links to read for the weekend.
“What’s up with manga? A comics fan’s deep dive” - As someone who grew up reading American comics first, I found this article to be enlightening. Much like Christian, I learned a lot about what makes Japanese manga more unique than comics in the West. There is also a good point brought up about how manga remains popular in a society that’s very strict. The end question in the article is extremely important. Certain manga titles may not always appeal to someone who reads comics.
Is Hatsune Miku more ‘authentic’ than Lana Del Ray? - Umm, yeah. She is. I don’t know too much about Lana Del Ray, but I heard she was considered to be one of the worst musical guests to perform on Saturday Night Live. The lesson is that if you really want to be successful, you have to create an emotional bond with your audience members.
How Tearjerkers Make People Happier - While the article talks about tragedy movies, I think the same can be applied for anime and manga as well. There were many flashback scenes for certain characters that have moved me. Any tragic moments in manga that may have moved you positively?
Whose Digital Manga is it Anyway? Publishers vs. Scanlations - And the battle goes on and on…Is it really scanlators’ fault that the digital publishing push was delayed until now? I hate to say this, but piracy isn’t ever going to fully go away. The least people can do is limit it to a huge degree. Also, what about series that may never get licensed, but are scanlated? As another writer indicates, some scanlations happen when a manga series is not licensed in a certain country and/or if a manga series ends its run prematurely (i.e. VIZ Media ending Gintama). Things look to be really tense going forward for the manga industry….
Finally, check out Google Maps 8-Bit. So worth it!
Have a fun weekend!
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Europe, Piracy, A Cardboard Wife, and Shorty Power - Fun Links To Read
Manga Grows In The Heart of Europe - CNN Geekout reports on the popularity of manga in Europe. I do admit that France seems to REALLY love manga more than any of the other European countries. Though I have heard stories from commenters on my blog that not every European country is up-to-date with manga and some are stuck with old-school material. Can anyone clarify?
Why Piracy Is Not Responsible For ‘Ruining’ Comics - David Brothers of the Comics Alliance talks about how piracy hasn’t really caused fits for the comics industry. If you ask me, the ’90s totally destroyed American comics because of publishers’ focus on so many damn incentive covers. Love the use of One Piece pictures in this article.
Man Takes Cardboard Anime Character on Honeymoon Around Asia - I really have no idea what to say about this. My reactions are “Should I laugh?” and “Awwww, Horo is so cute!” I do want to do something anime-related at the Great Wall of China the next time I decide to go back there.
Power Makes People Feel Taller - I wonder if we know any anime/manga characters like this, maybe our favorite runt, Edward Elric, perhaps?
Also, as a special treat, more Gintama trolling:
I’m sure you all recognize these characters. :]
Now, if you must excuse me, I am getting excited for Berserk, ZETMAN, and other seinen-related material. BLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD.
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NYCC/NYAF/FETES 2010 Photos →
Photos of my adventures from this past weekend are now up on the Facebook Fan Page. If you have any problems viewing the photos and/or the album in general, please comment below.
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Interesting Manga/Video Game Links At the Moment
Hey everyone, just wanted to share a few, worthy links. Enjoy!
The Manga Critic’s Review of Hetalia: Axis Powers Vol. 1 - I’m on the same boat with Katherine. I don’t understand what the point of Hetalia is. You can do a series of pretty boys running around and harassing each other without all the political mumbo-jumbo. Then again, controversy creates cash. I still find it interesting that people create real event gatherings involving Hetalia.
ANNCast Episode 51: Super Manga Pals - Ed Sizemore & Deb Aoki talk about manga fans vs. anime fans. This is an amazing podcast. If you are a manga fan (like myself), you might actually agree with some of the points they make.
Japanese Playing A New Video Game: Catch-Up - A feature on the Tokyo Game Show 2010 expo by the New York Times. It talks about Japan and how they’re struggling to capture the overseas market. I’m not a huge fan of Western games, but I do wish that Japanese games were more virtual and filled with more open worlds. Monster Hunter is a good attempt, but I think Western culture is more obsessed with hunting demonic/alien creatures.
Is the Age of Exclusives Over? - With Metal Gear Solid 4 being the last big third-party exclusive, I think companies are thinking the bigger picture. Hey, they’re human too. Though at the same time, there is a valid point made about Gears of War and how its exclusivity has helped Epic Games & Microsoft. I do think that game companies should just focus on their OWN exclusives more than anything else.
Anime Running Out Of Ideas - There is a good point made about the anime adaptations of Beezlebub and Bakuman. Both manga series haven’t been running that long. This is really frightening. What do you guys think?
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Manga Therapy Facebook Fan Page, Twitter, & New E-Mail Box
Hey everyone, just wanted to let you guys that there are now links to my Facebook fan page, Twitter, and a new box that allows you to subscribe by e-mail if you guys don’t like using RSS Feeds and easier access for e-mail subscription. They’re all the way to the left.
In any case, if you like, here’s physical links to my social media outlets.
Manga Therapy on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/MangaTherapy
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http://www.twitter.com/MangaTherapy
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