Starting this year, I’m going to be listing my top media experiences of the year. I’m breaking them down into the categories of anime, music, and games. The only criteria for these lists is that they had to be completely new to me this year, so no going back to oldie but goodies that I’ve experienced in the past. If you’d like to take a peek at my lists and take some suggestions from it, please feel free to click past the break and leave some comments!

Anime

Bakemonogatari

I first encountered BMG when it was being discussed as a TL project for QQ. I ended up passing on it to focus more on my studies, and only ended up watching it at around the time episode 7 or 8 was coming out. Having said this, I regret not coming around much sooner, since I was completely enthralled by the quality of this anime.

BMG’s detractors will point out the “generic” nature of the anime, and the large number of placeholders instead of animations, but despite all this, I really developed a strong liking of the characters, especially the stapler-wielding Hitagi.

BMG also had my favorite OP and ED of the year, with OP4 (Ren’ai Circulation) and Kimi no Shira nai Monogatari. I think the entirety of Rizon is salivating over the prospect of the full OP being released, and I don’t think you’ll find many people who will argue that the ED was much worse.

Music

Lady GaGa

Just looking at my last.fm, this is a definite shoe-in. As of the time of this writing, I have 1,022 plays of her music, making her my top overall artist by over 150 plays. While the music that she cranks out may not be the most complex, there is definitely enough there to make me want to just veg out at my computer, close my eyes, and just enjoy it. As an added bonus, a lot of it makes me want to dance as well.

Of her work, I’d probably put “Just Dance” right at the top, just because I’ve spent so many hours listening to just that song. I’ve taken some time to listen to her new album, and I really like some of it, but none of it is as hypnotic as that.

Game

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic

This was too easy. I’d love to just give the award to BioWare in general, because I’ve really come to enjoy a lot of their works. KOTOR is not a new game, but I didn’t get to play it until I bought it off Steam on Black Friday. I loved every little bit of it, from the plot, to the characters (besides the whiner with the double blasters), to the way you could flourish your lightsaber while you ran.

I really dig BioWare’s branching dialogue trees and it’s definitely something that I also enjoyed in Jade Empire. KOTOR2 has definitely proven to be a disappointment (gg to my save game bugging out and being unplayable after NINETEEN hours), but I’m definitely looking forward to The Old Republic. Go BioWare!

]]> http://huntfornovember.wordpress.com/2009/12/26/the-a-list-2009/feed/ 1 sakagami http://huntfornovember.wordpress.com/2009/11/01/fall-watch-list/ http://huntfornovember.wordpress.com/2009/11/01/fall-watch-list/#comments Mon, 02 Nov 2009 06:28:17 +0000 sakagami http://huntfornovember.wordpress.com/?p=189 ]]>

So apparently people actually read this blog, so I’ll do my best to keep you guys entertained with tidbits from my life as I enjoy time off from fansubbing. To start this off, here’s what I’m watching this season. Lemme know what you guys think and tell me what you guys think could be good!

Well, this season looks pretty bare for me. I have two shows that I’m watching right now (not counting the continuation of Bakemonogatari), and one that I’m following in my free time.

The first of these is the second season of Darker than BLACK. This show was introduced to me by some of my friends on rizon, and I loved the first season, though I felt it ended pretty abruptly. This second season has not disappointed me at all thusfar, and I’m looking forward to seeing the rest of it.

The other one I’m following seriously is A Certain Scientific Railgun. I liked the “main” series that this was an offshoot of (A Certain Magical Index), despite it’s many faults, and I really feel like this offshoot executes a lot better on the promise that the universe has. It features Mikoto as the protagonist and I feel like her personality (hello, tsundere-chan) is a lot more compelling than either Touma’s or Index’s, who really should have been supporting characters in the first place. The battles thusfar lack the ludicrous amount of dialogue and time-stretching, and I’m really loving the humor (both intented and unintended).

I’m also watching the second season of The Secret of Nogizaka Haruka as a “why not?” anime. I thought the first season was absolutely adorable, and the second one promises to follow in it’s predecessor’s footsteps. Mika is still the best character in the anime, and I really hope the other characters get more depth as time goes on.

I dabbled a bit with Seitokai no Ichizon and Kimi ni Todoke, but ended up dropping it because I realized that for character-driven anime, I really didn’t feel an attachment to any of them.

Anyways, what do you guys think? Am I missing any diamonds in the rough?

So what do you guys think will be good this summer?

So I’ve looked at the schedule for summer, and I’m not really interested in anything beyond Spice and Wolf 2. Bakemonogatari has a good VA cast, but it looks like it’s gonna be a summer of reruns and dota for me…

Best line I’ve ever seen during a QC pass.

After finishing my epic marathon (well sorta, fifty eps over 3 days or so is nothing to sneeze at!), I was struck by a few things in this anime that will stay with me for quite a while. Would I like to share them with you? Of course! Of course, there will be spoilers, so if you haven’t watched, but are planning to, do not click. This will be the first part of a (probably) two part retrospective. (EDIT: realized the original image was too spoilery, so replaced it with a SS from ED4)

I first got the idea to watch Eureka Seven after looking up Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch on anidb.net and using their link to “similar anime” at AnimePlanet. Eureka Seven was the sixth in the list, behind animes like Death Note, Black Cat, and Full Metal Panic! (which I still have yet to watch). What caught my eye about the Eureka Seven were the tags:

• Mystery,
• Mecha,
• Sci Fi,
• Romance,
• Military

Now, I had just come off of re-watching Code Geass (both seasons) and a healthy dose of Macross Frontier ahead of that, so a mecha-romance with a light coating of miltary sounded like fun. After asking around in IRC, people told me to watch it, so I proceeded to download the torrent.

A few things caught my eye immediately, the first being how young the character was. Renton was only a 14 year old kid, a bit younger than most of the protagonists in the anime that I have watched recently. He came off as a really naive and impressionable guy who had never seen much of the world and was still full of hopes and dreams. Living in the shadow of a “heroic” father and apparently stuck in a dead-end town, I saw a few things that I could relate to.

The anime soon shifted gears as Eureka was introduced, and instantly I knew I’d enjoy this anime. Renton was obviously smitten with her, and she seemed like an incredibly likeable character. Add in Nirvash and the few mecha combat scenes, and I was good to go.

Fast forward to last night, when I finished off Eureka Seven, and I was struck by a few ideas.

The first message that the anime sent that really resonated with me used the Vodarac as a vehicle. The Vodarac were reviled by the general public in the anime, and were generally regarded to be terrorists. Obviously, this parallels the problems that Muslims face today, as the actions of a few extremists have caused the public to fear and hate all Muslims.

I’m a tremendously judgmental person–this is a fact that I have never tried to hide, as I feel like it’s an integral part of my value system. I don’t follow a religion; rather I have my own code of ethics, where I carefully pick and choose my actions based on one simple question. That question is: “Can you look yourself in the mirror tomorrow?” I’m ignorant of many things, the intricacies of Islam being one of them. Yes, I have feared Muslims inside after the events of 9/11 and as an effect of pop culture devices like Call of Duty 4.

However, after seeing the horrible things done to innocent Vodarac who had nothing to do with any kind of terrorist acts, I think I now better understand the troubles of Muslims in the United States, and my fears are replaced with compassion, something that I believe has made me a better person.

The second thing I took away from this was the harsh realities of warfare. Renton joins Gekkostate as a wide-eyed adolescent, ignorant of the horrors of war or the consequences of Gekkostate’s actions. Gekkostate is an independent paramilitary organization that wages a private war with the state military, in the name of their ideals. Renton sees this, yet he does not realize that there are real human casualties in battles until he learns of Eureka’s past career in the military and when he goes berserk while saving Holland.

Eureka Seven is clever when depicting warfare, because it shows many aspects of it. The first is from Gekkostate’s point of view, which sees its actions as necessary to protect “the future of the world.” The LFO pilots of Gekkostate feel no guilt when killing soldiers of the military, seeing them as nothing more than obstacles in their path.

The second would be from Renton’s point of view, which evolves over the course of the series. Renton first sees the battles as nothing more than wonderful displays of mecha and ingenuity, much as we ourselves see. However, he realizes the toll that war takes on the human soul, when he sees Eureka still scarred from her past, when she was a remorseless killer for the military, and when he sees how pathetic the Vodarac are.

The third would be from Dewey’s view, who saw warfare as nothing more than a tool to further his own goals. Dewey coldly orders his “Orange” attacks, knowing how many civilian casualties would be inflicted. To him, the death toll was meaningless and the numbers were only significant in that it would capture the imagination of the public. Dewey was the embodiment of the sentiment that “the ends justify the means”.

The last would be from the eyes of the public. Through media manipulation, Dewey is able to cleverly hide the truth from the public and instead incenses them to support his coup and the resulting government, with him at the head. Despite this, ray=out is able to publish the real “truth” of the events, and a portion of the public is able to shake off the mass media story and see the truth version of the events.

I have long believed that war was a good thing. Not because of the glory or the destruction, but because it has historically driven innovation for humanity. Huge leaps in the fields of medicine, electronics, and warfare of course are achieved through human ingenuity driven by the needs of war. However, I can no longer wholeheartedly support any war, as I have realized, just as Renton did, that the cost to the psyche is tremendous. I know that warfare is necessary in many situations, but if it can be avoided, it should be. No capital gains are worth the losses and damage inflicted on the soul.

I hate to end this first part on a low note, but I promise that I’ll make a rosier post on romance next time. Thanks for reading!

QQ has undergone some huge changes, and we’re excited for our future projects, starting with K-ON! in Spring 2009.

First things first, we’ve parted ways with ilifin. In our minds, he’d decided to prioritize his IRL over his fansubbing (which is perfectly alright), so we decided to go with Thoreau as our chief translator. We’ve picked up some new faces, MisterHatt as our encoder, as well as adding Blue-kun as a timer and Plorky as TS. We’re still sticking with me at editor, Cat_Megex/Kaze/windex/Disland as our QC team, though we’re also adding the fabulous CC to bolster our QC corps. In my mind, we let down a lot of people with the Toradora project, and I hope we see K-ON! to the end,  though it seems to be way oversubbed.

This weekend, I was seized by a sudden desire to play some Pokemon, and not the new crap (Diamond, Pearl, Ruby, Sapphire, etc.). These are my thoughts on the 3rd Gen remix of Pokemon Red.

First things first–if I didn’t want to play those newfangled versions of Pokemon (Diamond and Pearl specifically, though Emerald was also incredibly frustrating), why would I play Pokemon Fire Red and not just Pokemon Red?

Basically, Fire Red and Leaf Green are just Red and Blue with the same tech improvements that the series brought in with Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald (The 2v2 battles most notably). To me, it was an opportunity to play the game that so captured my imagination back in fourth grade (over 10 years ago). I can still remember my first experience with Pokemon, at lunch on one spring day. I was so engrossed by it that I missed the bell to go back to the classroom, and had to be found by one of my classmates who had noticed me totally sucked in and deaf to the world.

Most of all, Fire Red didn’t have all the weird ass Pokemon brought in during the 2nd and subsequent generations. I was shocked to find out that there are almost 500 different pokemon now, dwarfing the 151 offered in the inital releases.

Fire Red drops you into Pallet Town, where you meet Prof. Oak, who gives you your first pokemon. You still have the classic choice of Charmander, Squirtle, or Bulbasaur, a real interesting choice. Charmander in the original game was a tough pokemon to pick first because of the pokemon you’d face in the gyms at Pewter City and Cerulean City. That Pewter City gym had a number of Geodudes and an Onix, which would snuff the life out of your puny Charmander, Rattatas, and Pidgeys. Similar deal with the gym in Cerulean, though your flying pokemon would actually have a shot against the horrifically overpowered Starmie. However, Fire Red’s new Charmander had a “Metal Claw” ability, which would be super effective against rock pokemon. This, and the reality that Charmander would be the best for middle and rest of the game, led me to once again pick Charmander.

If you’ve played any of the previous games, the rest of the game is pretty by the book. There’s no real pressure to train a full squad of high level pokemon, because by endgame (Elite 4), you can choose to go out and catch the legendary bird pokemon, Zapdos, Articuno, and Moltres. Using these to supplement your starter pokemon and whatever other workhorse(s) you used to get to the Elite 4, you’ll do just fine.

This is the biggest flaw in the game to me; by the end of the game, I had 3 high level pokemon that I had leveled my self (Charizard, Vaporeon, and Scyther), with two others tagging along in my party for the ride (and the HM’s). As Charizard and Scyther were both hovering around level 50 and Vaporeon was riding along at 61, I probably could’ve tried out the Elite 4, but realistically, there was no chance I’d win. So really, I was forced to head out to Cinnabar Island to talk to Bill, who took me to 1 Island. After a few missions, I was able to head to Mt. Ember and waste a ton of Ultra Balls to catch Moltres. Then I headed to the Power Plant to catch Zapdos. Finally, I went to the Seafoam Islands and nabbed an Articuno. Net time to catch all 3 (who all come at level 50)? About 30 minutes. Then I was able to fight the Elite 4 with Charizard, Vaporeon, Scyther, Articuno, and Zapdos. This breaks the balance of the game, really. I easily toppled the Elite 4 and Gary, ending the game.

While this isn’t really the end (there’s Mew Two to catch, etc.), I was unable to finish-finish it, as my save file became corrupted.

Overall, I felt that the “end” of the game was a bit of a downer to me, because for the most part, the game was really rewarding. I was able to kill a ton of time playing the game, and I loved most of it. I’d have loved to tackle the rest of the game, but these things happen.

Yeah, so this post sucked. But I did crank out ~700 words about Pokemon Fire Red.

So, here’s a tentative list of what I’ll likely be watching this spring season.

This list is essentially a knee-jerk reaction to the little preview blurbs that I’ve seen.

Red indicates certainty, Orange is likely, Yellow is questionable.

• Fullmetal Alchemist 2
  
• Hayate no Gotoku 2
• Spice and Wolf 2
• K-ON!
• Hatsukoi Gentei
  
• Natsu no Arashi
• Asura Cryin’
• Tayutama -Kiss on my Deity-
• Pandora Hearts

As noted on the site, we are not dead. However, I’d like to apologize for the delays so far (we have yet to release 11), and I’d like to give some reasons and the current status of QQ. Read more by clicking below.

First, we were hit pretty hard on the holidays. A lot of the staff were traveling or otherwise on vacation and unable to work on the subs, and the lethargy that settled in for the winter break (xmas, new years) has lingered. We’re still missing a member of our staff who went overseas for the holidays and is long overdue for his return. He should be back in a few days, but we were unable to finalize episode 11 because of his absence.

ilifin (small i) has been ill or busy with 3D life for extended periods of time as well, and we all agreed to let him take it as his pace, seeing as how this group is kinda centered around his incredible dedication in researching every joke or reference, which you can see in the form of his notes at his blog.

Status-wise, the script for episode 11 is complete. The only reason we haven’t released yet is because of an audio problem at the end of our encode, which we’ve been unable to address because of the problem listed above. We’ve enlisted the help of another encoder, and we’ll be releasing as soon as the new encode is complete and the TS is shifted suitably to match. To reiterate, we’re going to be releasing episode 11 in a different encode, as stated above.

We’ve also been mostly deprived of suitable workraws to use for the process, but this is also being rectified; we should be up and running as soon as we all settle back into the groove of things.

Thanks for sticking with us (I assume you have if you’re reading this post), and expect the release of 11!

The end of the second season of Code Geass, R2, generated a tremendous amount of controversy about the exact circumstances of the end. Koda from GG has written long rants and a commendable dissertation about whether or not Lelouch died at the end or, as has become popular, he is alive and well enough to drive a cart into exile with CC, the erstwhile witch. I’ll take a look at Koda’s arguments and just ramble on about my thoughts and questions. Read on!

First, my thoughts. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not the most dedicated of Geass viewers, and I didn’t do a ton of research into the methodology of Codes getting passed, or whatever else.

1. Nunnally is completely aware of Lelouch’s ultimate goal, the fulfillment of Zero Requiem, and the circumstances surrounding it when Lelouch dies.

This must be true. Even without the little visual highlight reel of the events leading up to Lelouch’s death, it’s clear from Nunnally’s expression and words that she is aware. When Lelouch first falls down to her platform, she’s a bit aloof and still shocked by the turn of events:

She looks down at him, and her face is devoid of any sympathy or compassion, as you’d expect from the way he’s treated her up until that point. Then she reaches for him arm and murmurs:

“Onii-sama?”

At this point, her hand touches his and she’s given the memories of what has transpired and led Lelouch to sacrifice himself “for the greater good.”

“Brother… you were… all along…”

She then takes his hand and proclaims her love for him, and Lelouch reflects that he has both destroyed, and created worlds. Nunnally breaks down when he dies, and is the only one (save Kallen, who has seen through Lelouch’s schemes on her own) mourning his death as the world celebrates.

“I would’ve been happy just being with you, Brother.”

“I can’t bear a future without you, Brother…I just can’t.”

Unless Nunnally can somehow read minds and hasn’t been as sheltered as we’ve been led to believe, Lelouch’s memories were given to her via his Code. She clearly was not aware of his overarching scheme when he first tumbled down to her; this is clear from her expression and actions. She only understands his scheming and loves him for it after their hands touch.

This would point to Lelouch having a Code and passing on his memories.

2. C.C. is talking to Lelouch, not just having a conversation with his memory or however else you want to justify her words as the cart moves along the road.

The scene begins as the concluding part of the “epilogue”, where the viewers are all shown what happened to the characters depicted in the show. The scene opens with the sky, then expands and pans lower, showing the cart, being driven by an unseen (oh, how you did love masks and disguises, Lelouch) driver, with C.C. lazily lying on top of the hay being transported by the cart, accompanied by a trunk, her hat, the erstwhile Cheese-kun, and a single paper crane. C.C. then begins her dialogue, or soliloquy if you believe Lelouch is dead.

The power of Kings, known as Geass, brings one solitude.

Not quite accurate, is it?

Right, Lelouch?

C.C. is not a schizophrenic. She might be a little wacky, but a schizo she is not. She also does not talk to the other deceased Geass-users or to any other people that she’s met. She does not talk to Charles or Marianne, both of whom she’s known for a lot longer than Lelouch, nor does she talk to the dead V.V. I’d argue that she was actually closer to Charles and Marianne than to Lelouch, despite her ultimate betrayal of them. So why would she be talking to herself or a dead Lelouch about the solitude which Geass brings? If Koda is correct and Lelouch is dead, Geass did bring solitude. For now C.C. is truly alone, without Charles or Marianne, with whom she was working, without Lelouch whom she perhaps loved, and without the shadowy organization that supported C.C. and V.V. She would truly be alone. Yet, she is not alone on the cart. She is accompanied by a mysterious cart driver, Cheese-kun, and of course, the crane. Wait, the crane? If C.C. was truly alone, why would she need the crane, a relic from another relationship gone sour for her? I don’t think she idly brought along knicknacks from her previous lives; in fact she’s only brought Cheese-kun and a small trunk of belongings. Yet, why the crane? I can only imagine she brought it for Lelouch, who should treasure it as his last memory of Nunnally, for he’ll never see her again.

Okay, on to Koda’s arguments to the contrary.

Her first argument is about the actual process of getting the Code.

When you take into account the contents of doll #5, this means that the process goes like this:
- 2 eye Geass.
- Get Code.
- Die.
- You are now a Code Person.

And yet, by saying that Nunnally seeing his memories was a result of him gaining a Code, it means the process went like this:
- Lelouch’s Geass leveled up into his other eye.
- Lelouch got a Code.
- Nunnally saw Lelouch’s memories.
- Lelouch died.
- Lelouch is now a Code Person.

In other words, it insists that Nunnally was able to read his memories before he died and got Code Powers. He was kind of talking after she saw this so we know he hadn’t died yet. I’m able to shoot down the entire Code theory using its own “evidence” by merely laying out the order of events.

I don’t believe that the actual process of getting a Code was explained in the anime. At best, we are given C.C.’s memories of the nun betraying her and giving her Code so that she might die. I don’t believe C.C. had to die in order for the Code to kick in, why would that be the case? This is just speculation and proves nothing, as none of this is expressly said in the anime, nor has any of it been confirmed by the Geass producers. True, the producers stated that Lelouch died so that the new world would be a better place, but this happened regardless. Lelouch died when Suzaku ran him through, true. This does not preclude him coming back to life. When C.C. “dies” at the beginning of R2, she is, to all eyes, dead. However, she is actually alive, and communicates through touching Lelouch.

In episode 21, when Charles was being absorbed into the World of C, he rocketed over to Lelouch and gripped him around the neck and passed his Code to Lelouch.

This assumes that a Code Person can forcefully pass on their Code to someone, which is certainly arguable. However, if C.C. has been able to forcefully transfer it, why didn’t she force transfer it away a very, very long time ago?

I believe the Code can be passed on forcefully. How else could C.C. have been given the Code from the nun?

Charles gave Lelouch the Code to defeat Schneizel. From the dialogue in that scene, it’s clear that he doesn’t want Schneizel’s world, a world where Schneizel rules as a tyrant with Damocles and FREYA cementing his rule. Remember, Charles wanted a world where nothing changed and everyone was happy. This would is not the one that Schneizel is creating.

Also, C.C. has been grooming a successor to take her Code for a long time. Mao, Charles, and Lelouch were all possible recipients of the Code. C.C. regarded Mao as a mistake of hers, and perhaps felt too guilty to pass such a curse onto him. C.C. chose not to support Charles in the end because she was persuaded by Lelouch to renounce his plan. C.C. didn’t pass it to Lelouch because she loved him, and would’ve preferred to live with him. If you don’t believe they loved each other, you’re missing everything. The kiss at the end of season 1. The tears shed at the end of R2. Lelouch’s rejection or loss of all the rest of his harem. Lelouch telling C.C. to smile as she dies. They loved each other, get over it. In fact, the very fact that C.C. is chillaxing and taking it easy makes me believe that she is with Lelouch. Living together forever with the one man you love doesn’t sound like too bad of a deal.

When you get a Code, a Code does not activate immediately, you have to die first before you are immortal and Geass-immune. This is why C.C. is covered in blood in the church. This is also why Charles was able to be commanded by Lelouch’s Geass after taking V.V.’s Code in R2 15.

Again, show me conclusive proof that the Code requires a death to activate. Even Koda concedes that it is impossible to prove with the facts given to us by the anime.

Lelouch wouldn’t let C.C. be lonely.

This assumption is built on the assumption that C.C. and Lelouch are a couple, and Lelouch took daddy’s Code for her sake. And then, based on that assumption, it goes on to further assume that Lelouch would want to be with C.C. for all eternity. This also assumes that C.C. would actually be lonely without Lelouch. However, like the Nunnally shit, this also pretty much rejects what the creators have said about C.C. and her finding a reason to live on her own thanks to her time with Lelouch.

Again, I believe Lelouch and C.C. are a couple, but I believe Charles gave Lelouch his Code to defeat Schneizel, who would’ve created a world that was the opposite of his dream’s. Lelouch’s vision of the world was, as we call it, a “HAPPY END.” I believe that Charles wanted Lelouch to triumph, rather than Schneizel. C.C. did find a reason to live on, it’s called love, something that she never truly understood until she met Lelouch.

Lelouch is the cart driver. C.C. was talking out loud to herself and clearly addresses Lelouch in the end.

Apparently, C.C. looking up at the sky = C.C. addressing the cart driver, or did I miss the frame where C.C.’s eyes somehow go to the back of her head? Or where the cart driver quits driving the cart and goes and stands over C.C.?

Give me something better than this. This proves exactly nothing. People don’t necessarily talk face to face. See: Cellphones. Also, C.C. is behind Lelouch and he’s the only one (besides Cheese-kun or herself) to whom she can speak. I know that I often look up and examine particularly interesting clouds when I talk to friends and we’re both bored.

Anyways, I’m amazed i can write ~1820 words about whether or not a fictional anime character is alive or dead. But I felt like writing, and I think he’s alive Eat your heart out.