Anime

Movies and TV

~ shawnaborman ~ 10 Comments

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing? Are you ready for turkey day (or just Thursday depending on where you are)? It’s going to be another small one this year with the lady across the street as well as my minion and one of his spawn (if they show up on time. If either of you are reading this, here’s an additional reminder that dinner is at 4). But I’m not here to yammer about Thanksgiving! It’s time for another number. Jenae (hugs, sis!) picked number 8. So far, we’ve covered 13 (you can find the prompt list there), 7, and 2. Numbers 3, 10, 6, 14, 11, and 1 are all going to be answered in the coming weeks. There are a few left, so feel free to pick one and let me know. Today’s prompt: Tell me which book had the best movie or show adaptation. Yikes.

I’m not really qualified to answer this one. I mean, I watch a lot of stuff based on books, like most of the cozy mystery stuff and British mysteries. Midsomer Murders, Shetland, Vera just to name a few. The shows are great. Are they good adaptations? I have no clue. I’ve yet to read any of the books they’re based on. And the shows that I should have some experience with the accompanying books, I either haven’t read or read so long ago that I remember nothing. I vaguely remember reading an Agatha Christie book featuring Poirot, but have no clue if the series with David Suchet did it justice. It probably did because it was a good series, but I don’t really know. Shame on me for not reading more.

And if we’re talking movies, I’m even worse because I don’t watch many. Sure, I could talk about Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings or the Hobbit (none of which were super great, though LotR was by far the best of these). That’s about it, though. Oh! Coraline was a pretty good adaptation. It held the creepy air of the book. So that was fun. But mostly I can’t think of movies based on books that I’ve actually read the book version of. I don’t know if I should read more mainstream stuff or what.

Manga to anime is a little better for me. I love both of the Fullmetal Alchemist anime, but prefer Brotherhood as an adaptation. The original is wonderful and I’ve watched it so many times, but it was created alongside the manga and when it reached the end of what was available in the manga, it took a turn and became its own story. Brotherhood follows the manga more closely. Sailor Moon is another one where I prefer the newer releases as adaptations, but still love the original anime for what it was. The original used the manga as a guide, but there was a lot of padding and fluff added in. I love it, though. Cardcaptor Sakura was a fun adaptation too. And please be aware that I’m not talking about the old Americanized versions of SM (with the creepy cousins thing because cousins who flirted with and blushed at each other was somehow less disturbing to kids than lesbians) and CCS (with the random blushing between dudes because they were “jealous” of each other or some similar BS and totally not crushing on each other). Those were awful. But anyway, my knowledge of adaptations is weak even with manga/anime.

Best cousins ever.

I admit it. I’m not a movie or TV buff. I’m not even good about reading things that are popular enough to be turned into movies or shows. Oh well. What are some of your favorite adaptations? Did you see the movie/show first or read the book first? As always, feel free to leave your questions or comments here or on my social media pages!

Top 5 Anime Sorted By Favorite Characters

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! How’s everyone doing now that we’ve entered the second month of the year? I’m doing okay. In one of those hurry up and wait situations, so that’s always fun. But otherwise, things are normal here. Except, I somehow ended up with books to review every week this month after today. I don’t know how it happened, but it makes my blogging life so much easier. Don’t worry. I’d never be able to keep up with a book a week, so that’s not going to happen. I’ll be reverting back to having no clue what to ramble about come March. But today, I’m taking a topic idea from my friend Jenae. She wanted me to list some of my favorite anime/manga by hottest character. I’m just going to call them favorite characters though, because many are under age and if people realize that, I don’t need them thinking I’m creepy. So, here are my top 5 anime (in no particular order) by favorite characters.

1. Angel Sanctuary (Kira Sakuya, Lucifer, Rosiel). So, it’s hard to pick just one character, especially when you love angsty and/or psycho males. This series is chockfull of them. And I know it’s more of a manga, but they did release a three episode OVA, so it counts as anime too. What with the corrupt angels, incestuous love story, and cross-dressing demons, it’s definitely not for everyone, but I love it. It’s one of my favorite end-of-the-world stories.

2. Yuri on Ice (Victor, Yurio). This anime is adorable and fluffy and I’d give it all the cuddles if it were a plushie. Victor is a flaky idiot who seems to do things on a whim. Yurio’s random violent outbursts are hilarious. Plus the animation is lovely. Who doesn’t want to watch something about the lives of figure skaters? It’s just a super fun show with lots of lovable characters. Judge me all you want.

3. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (Ed, Winry, Hawkeye). Don’t get me wrong, either version of FMA is great and worth watching. I just prefer Brotherhood because it follows the manga and I feel like that’s a better story line. But I adore both the original and the remake. Ed’s hilarious and Winry and Hawkeye are a couple of my favorite female characters in general. If you haven’t watched either version, pick one and watch it! Then watch the other one.

4. Sailor Moon (Saturn, Prince Demande). Unless you’re new to stalking me, this one should be no surprise. It was my introduction to anime, so it will always be a favorite. Saturn is my girl because she’s sickly, but can destroy worlds. And Prince Demande was one of my first favorite psychopaths. Actually, this shows explains a lot about my weirdness. It’s the best.

5. Attack on Titan (Levi, Mikasa). I struggled choosing between this one and a few others, but decided I should include something that’s still on. It’s a bit confusing and I will probably rewatch it all once this season is over just to put together anything I miss/don’t understand. But it’s gory fun and we all know how much I like that. As far as the characters go, I think we’ve established that I have a type. We’ll see if this one stays on the list when it’s over, but I’m enjoying it for now. Also, I’m watching the dub with Dad, so no spoilers from anyone watching the sub or reading the manga.

There you have it. Some of my favorite anime sorted by favorite characters. You can blame Jen for this post. What are some of your favorite anime and which characters do you love? As always, feel free to share your thoughts or comments here or on my social media pages!

Rainy Day Relaxation

~ shawnaborman ~ 2 Comments

Howdy, howdy!  It’s been kind of rainy and dreary here the last couple of days, which always makes me feel sleepy and blah.  Productivity is the last thing I want to achieve.  So, even though I’ve been adulting and all that good stuff, I’ve also been super lazy.  That’s not going to change today!  Instead of coming up with some random topic related to writing and rambling about that, I thought I would just give you a list of my five favorite ways to relax on rainy days.  It’s all stuff you’ve seen before if you follow my blog regularly.  Otherwise, enjoy reading about my laziness.

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Rainy Day by RHADS.

1. Netflix/TV binge-watching.  This can be done solo or with Dad, depending on his level of productivity on a rainy day.  Sometimes, we catch up on all the stuff we’ve recorded.  Other times, we pick random movies or whatever on Netflix and watch them.  If I’m on my own, I watch stuff Dad would have no interest in or I rewatch old shows (still usually stuff he has no interest in).  The only bad part about binge-watching is that by the time it’s 11 at night, it feels like you’ve done nothing all day.  Which you haven’t, but still.  Where’d the day go?

2. Mindless games.  Yes, I still play mindless games.  They’re a decent way to waste time, but I do get bored after a while.  It’s like I start playing and by the time I run out of lives, I’m sure it’s almost time for bed, but it’s only been like ten minutes.  I guess I should start playing some new games that I’m not bored with yet.  The only problem with that is that I don’t want to fall down the “new game” rabbit hole and get lost.  Maybe I’m just super lazy, even too lazy for games. 

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Pretty accurate.

3. Reading.  I’ve been reading a lot for the book group and to review on here, but I haven’t really read anything lately just because.  Because I want to.  Because it’s fun.  Because I thought the cover was pretty and bought it.  Rainy days remind me that I have books I wanted to read before I started reading everything I was told I should read.  They’re the kind of days that remind there are things I want to re-read.  And it’s totally okay to read or re-read things for fun.  I need to remember that on normal days as well.

4. Music videos/eye candy.  I haven’t sat around watching random music videos in a really long time (like so long I forgot certain bands existed).  It’s one of those things I always say I’m going to do, but life gets in the way.  Rainy days are a good chance to catch up on old bands’ newer music and looks (because visual kei is awesome, or it used to be. I don’t really know anymore).  I should make time for that.

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One of the last pictures I have of D and I don’t even know what song/album it goes with.

5. Anime/manga.  No, it’s not the same as Netflix and reading.  It’s its own thing and I’ve been slacking on it.  I haven’t read any manga in about a year.  And I don’t watch anime as much as I want because I always save it for after I’m productive, then I don’t have time for it.  Rainy days when Dad is doing his own thing are the perfect time to catch up on anime at least.

What are your favorite things to do on rainy days?  Are you a napper or do you like to catch up on fun things?  Perhaps you’re more productive on gray days.  Feel free to share your own list, comments, or questions here or on my social media pages!

Love Is All You Need

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy!  Happy Valentine’s day!  Or Singles Awareness day, or VD day, or Chocolate Appreciation day, or Wednesday, or whatever.  Since it’s a special, lovey-dovey day and I’m sitting over here all single, I thought I would take a moment to treat myself.  I know I’ve said it before, but self-care really is important.  And I’ve kind of been neglecting myself lately.  Sure, I’ve been playing my mindless games, but Sunday was the first time I’ve watched anime in at least a month, probably closer to two.  I can’t even remember the last time I read manga.  Honestly, I’ve just been a bit blah towards everything lately.  I need to change that.

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Sounds like a good plan to me.

So, after I write my words, I think I’m going to take the day off from my usual routine.  I won’t worry about reading the things I’m supposed to be reading.  I might even put writing on the novel to the side and write a random flash fiction piece or something.  Instead of worrying about my goals, I’ll write whatever I feel like writing.  But I’m coming up to a good part on the novel, so it’ll probably be that (I’m boring, I know).  Then, who knows where the day will take me.

I might rewatch some Ouran High School Host Club.  That’s about as close to romantic as I get, and it’s mostly because I adore the twins.  There’s also Yuri on Ice.  I could probably rewatch all of those episodes if I don’t procrastinate on my writing.  Maybe I’ll just find something completely new to binge watch.  On the other hand, I still haven’t finished rewatching Cardcaptor Sakura, which means I haven’t had a chance to watch the new episodes either.  I was super excited when I first heard about the new episodes, but I even got blah over that.  Shame on me.

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I totally squee-ed a little the first time I saw this, so I’m not too far down the blah road.

Then again, I might not watch any anime.  I might decide to read some manga instead.  I’m so far behind on it all that no matter what I choose to read, I’ll have to start over again.  I could always just stick with some old favorites.  It has been a few years since I reread Angel Sanctuary.  That’s always super fun.  There are a couple of other titles I’ve been thinking about recently too, so I might try them again.  Who knows?

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This gets all the d’awwws!  By Paluumin.

The point is, I’m actually starting to miss some of the things that used to entertain me.  What better day to get back to some old loves than Valentine’s day?  What are your plans for the day?  I know it’s a Wednesday, so many of you are probably working, but do you have any tiny (or huge) plans to pamper yourself or your loved one(s)?  Feel free to comment here or on my social media pages.  Even if you don’t like the holiday, I hope you have a wonderful day full of all kinds of good things!

Blah Days Binge Worthy Shows: Anime Edition

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello!  This week has been pretty blah so far.  Monday, I was the kind of sick where you feel mentally fine and physically okay for the most part, but you have to keep leaving the computer (or whatever you’re doing) because of reasons I won’t get into.  Needless to say, I wasn’t very productive that day, though I did finish reading a book (Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman.  Message me on Facebook if you’ve read it and want to discuss).  As I’m writing this (it’s Tuesday), I woke up with the general blahs and am blaming ragweed and allergies for it.  Normally, I’d put off working in favor of binge watching something when I feel this cruddy, but I figured I should attempt a blog anyway.  So, here’s a list of five anime I’d rather be binge watching (again) than writing this!

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1. Fullmetal Alchemist or FMA: Brotherhood (whichever one I can find the dub of at the time).  I’ve seen both versions multiple times, but I still come back to it every couple of years.  The only problem with them is that I can only get through so many episodes before I hit the first one that turns me into a sobbing mess (if you’ve seen it, you know the one I mean).  Who wants to melt into a puddle of tears when they already feel like crap?  So, I usually save these two for when my nose isn’t already leaking like faucet.

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2. Ouran Highschool Host Club.  It’s stupid and hilarious and usually easily found on Netflix, so it’s perfect for when the blahs strike.  I know it’s full of typical shoujo goodness (commoner girl gets roped into spending her days with the hot rich guys and falls in love), but it totally makes fun of all the usual tropes along the way, which is why it’s awesome.  Granted, the ending was rushed because they decided not to do a second season, but you can always read the manga too if the blahs hold onto you for a few days.

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3. Yuri on Ice.  I actually only watched this for the first time a few months ago on a couple of my blah days.  Who wouldn’t want to watch a bunch of male figure skaters with vaguely yaoi undertones?  Okay, maybe just me.  But it was lovely and I really want to watch it again even though I saw it not too long ago (which is actually really weird for me).

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4. Cardcaptor Sakura.  I’ll watch the whole thing, but I prefer the episodes after Yue shows up, especially when I feel blah.  I love the show, but it’s mostly on the list because Yue is my eye candy.  I know that’s not an appropriate reason to watch something, but I don’t really care.  Also, I can’t wait for the new CCS series coming out soon!

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5. Sailor Moon.  Specifically, the Black Moon Clan arc.  Why?  Because even though he’s a villain and an idiot, Prince Demande/Demando/Diamond was my favorite bad guy (still is when it comes to SM).  I might have an eye candy problem when I feel blah.  I also just noticed that I apparently have a type.  I’m okay with this.

So, that’s one of my go-to lists for binge worthy shows when I’m not feeling 100%.  What about you?  Do you have any shows you go back to when you’re not feeling well and don’t feel like following new story lines?

J-Rock: How I Became A Fangirl

~ shawnaborman ~ 4 Comments

Howdy all!  Last week, I asked for some suggestions on what to blog about, so Lew and Joe asked how I got into J-Pop/Rock.  It’s not really that long or interesting of a story, but they wanted to know.  So, please excuse me while I fangirl (get overly excited, squee, and babble on about a certain subject) over some of my favorite music and musicians while I relive those early days.

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And there are definitely some pretty men.  That’s Miyavi, by the way.

 

I guess I got into Japanese music the same way a lot of people do: anime.  I grew up with the Americanized version of Sailor Moon, then Pokémon and Digimon and Cardcaptor Sakura and all of that came along.  But it wasn’t until I was sixteen or seventeen (around the time I started looking to the Internet for friends instead of hanging out with my sister and her friends) when I began searching for fansubs and the original versions of the shows that I started my brief voyage into the world of J-Pop, then my descent into J-Rock.

It wasn’t just anime exposing me to the music, but also the friends I was making by hanging out in anime chatrooms.  (Do you even remember those?  The Yahoo chats?  Oh how I miss those days.)  It takes a lot for a theme song to entice me into looking it up, so I was a total n00b to the music compared to most of the people I met.  So, I listened to every song people recommended.  For example, one of the people I hung out with was a rabid fan of Neon Genesis Evangelion, so for a while, I knew every song (and every version) in that series because he would insist I listen to them.  It wasn’t that I enjoyed everything I heard, but I was open to the possibility that I might like it.

Then, I got into YouTube.  Back in the day, before Google and Vevo and all of the legal stuff, YouTube was a wonderland of obscure music.  Plus, it was great about recommending things based (no matter how remotely) on whatever you were watching instead of just suggesting whatever happens to be popular that week, which is how I found my way into J-Rock and all its lovely subgenres.  I had my first brush with bands like Dir en grey (awesome if you like metal), Buck-Tick (kind of an 80s vibe), Versailles (symphonic metal), and Miyavi (guitarist).  From there, I just kind of dug around on my own to find things that I adore.  It also doesn’t hurt that most of the beautiful women are actually men (a fangirl topic for another day).

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Versailles.  They’re all men.  Yes, even him.

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Exist Trace.  And they’re all women.

 

It was just something that happened.  There was no big plan involved.  It was just a new obsession stemming from an old one, like a slow descent into madness.  We all have these types of love, so tell me about yours.  What’s your random obsession that makes people wonder how you got into it?  And how’d it happen?

A Month of Giving Thanks (Part Four)

~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello hello!  Happy Thanksgiving to all of my readers who celebrate!  The month of thanks is drawing to a close, which means I will have no idea what to post about again starting next week.  Ah well.  I’ll worry about that then.  For now, let’s get back into a thankful mood.  As always, feel free to join in!  Here are my last five choices for this year:

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This.  So much this.

1. Books!  I feel like any good writer would have mentioned this weeks ago, but whatever.  Books are awesome covered in awesome sauce.  Not only do they teach us things, the really good ones do so without us even realizing it until it’s too late.  And they provide us with escapes to other realities.  We get to experience a lot of things we would never otherwise experience.  Not only that, but we get to see life through the perspective of someone else.  So yeah, books are great.

2. Pets.  I mentioned stuffed animals, but never real ones.  Shame on me!  I actually adore most animals (until we start talking bugs anyway), but this section is reserved for furbabies and the like.  Some people I know are hesitant about getting a pet because of the pain of losing them, but I’m not one of them.  Yeah, it hurts when they die (they’re family, so of course it does), but there’s nothing like the unconditional love of an animal.

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Chewy (unknown-…), Dame Julia (2001-2014), Toto (unknown-2011)

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Speedy (1993-2010)

 3. A dad who can cook.  He spoils me with smoked meats (including homemade pastrami), pasta, breakfast, and basically everything he makes.  I see all these Thanksgiving specials where the women are in the kitchen, but it was always Dad who did most of the holiday cooking.  Mom cooked most of the rest of the time when she was alive, so Dad’s cooking was always a treat.  Now, he wonders why I’d rather he make something instead of going out.  Because you make it better, that’s why.  And yes, the rest of you should be jealous.

4. Anime and manga.  On top of providing all of the goodness of books, these also have pictures.  If you’ve read through earlier posts, you know that many of my favorite heroes and heroines come from anime and manga.  Like many, it was also my gateway into Japanese culture, so you can blame it for a lot of my weirdness.  My writing has also been majorly influenced by the stuff.  I mean, one wouldn’t expect too much of a difference in character archetypes and plot development and the like, but there’s actually SO much to learn from anime and manga as a writer.  It’s mind blowing.  Really.

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From Neon Genesis Evangelion (aka my first experience with a series where I despised the main character but loved the story and the other characters, which wasn’t an abnormal reaction at all).

 5. Deadlines.  I know the good majority of creative types are supposed to hate the pressure of a due date, but not me.  I’d never get anything done without some kind of time constraint.  Whether it’s my self-imposed word count or someone else telling me I need to get something done, deadlines and goals are my friend.  It’s okay to admit it.

I think that’s it.  Time to prepare to eat myself into a food coma, then eat some more!  Have a safe and wonderful holiday!  See you next time.