Before we delve any deeper into this conversation, let me be clear though, I only re-watch the first few arcs. These episodes are the ones that hooked me to the series many years back when everyone refers Bleach as one of the Big Three shounen series.

I had followed Bleach beyond that until I stopped at some point. Since 2015 is coming to an end and in the spirit of reflecting, I decided I wanted to remember why I liked Bleach in the first place. Excuses, I know.

Skills

I won’t lie. Much of what I feel about liking Bleach is the eagerness to see different Shinigami unleashed the hidden powers of their Zanpakutou. The moment it is revealed that the swords these Shinigami are holding have more than what meet the eyes, I began waiting to see the different Shikai forms. Most excitingly, I love it when they roared “Bankai!”.

I dare say this is the single one most important factor what drove me to marathon Bleach on those late nights many years ago. And I guess I wanted to feel that excitement again.

Story

Believe it or not, Bleach started with strong storytelling. In my humble opinion, the events unfolded in a way that is surprising and thrilling. I’ve forgotten many events that had happened in Soul Society Arc and watching it again, I thought the story is well constructed and thought-out. It’s not just all about actions.

The first time I watched the series, I was caught by surprise when Aizen was revealed as the ultimate villain. He was painted as a kind and thoughtful character at the beginning and even thought to be dead. It was his manipulative skills that constructed the chaos that fell on Seireitei. In what was thought to be a “rescuing Rukia” plot, it turned out to be something much deeper than that.

Being the viewer that I was about a decade ago, I never suspected Aizen to be the antagonist. Of course now that I’m re-watching Soul Society arc, that element of surprised is much reduced. There are things that I’ve forgotten and re-watching Bleach still retains some of its element of surprise.

Cool Factor

Unlike One Piece and Naruto, the other two big names Bleach often mentioned alongside years ago, Bleach is staged in a much relatable world known as Karakura Town.

Kurosaki Ichigo is a high school student. Much of his daily activities are similar to ours. He has to answer to his parent, classes to attend, etc. And yet he is caught up in this fighting-hollow-saving-Rukia mess. While in series like Naruto and One Piece, the characters are set in a far-fetched, dreamlike adventures that make it much less relatable.

And the OP and ED songs tend to paint the “cool kids” picture of the cast, with each of them wearing fashionable clothes, putting on headphones, etc. That’s my definition of “cool kids”. Yours may be different.

I guess what I’m trying to say in this point is merely because I thought Bleach is a pretty cool series back then and wanted to find if I still find it cool.

I think that pretty sums up why I wanted to re-watch Bleach. I wanted to remember what drew me to the series in the first place, rather that remembering why I hate the series years after.

Friendships, unspeakable bonds and trusts are one of the major aspects of shounen series. This is especially true when one has been watching Naruto, One Piece and similar titles. Naruto is famous for chasing after Sasuke in the name of having strong bond with the later and Strawhat pirates trust each other with their lives.

In Fairy Tail, there’s this sense of strong, unbreakable friendship serve as a living force not only among Fairy Tail guild members but also seen in among other guild members too.

I had been catching up with Fairy Tail these past few weeks. Words are spoken over and over again in present fights or flashbacks that more or less speaks of the importance of friendships.

Erza Scarlet was really beaten up by Kyoka. She loss her give sense and according to Kyoka, Erza couldn’t have been able to continue their battle. Seriously, if you lose all of your senses you logically shouldn’t be able to fight. However, defying all odds, Erza stood up and fought not with her senses but her fear of pain of losing her friends. In other words, her friends gave her the strength to see through the battle with her opponent.

Even while Sabertooth was still consider the bad guys, Sting was despair when Lector was apparently killed by then guild master Jiemma. The pain of losing a dear friend drove him to kill Jiemma, a man he revered. His whole being changed when he thought he lost his Exceed friend: filled with pain, despair, anger and sadness. It was perhaps then he finally understood friendships, commitment and bond that are shared among Fairy Tail guild members.

Over and over again, Natsu showed how important Happy and Lucy are to him as friends. He’s often seen regain strength, power and motivation to fight a formidable enemy when they are hurt. He’s most powerful when someone he cares about was threaten with death. I believe the same goes to Happy and Lucy. Despite Happy is often seen teasing Lucy, he showed great sadness whenever Lucy is in pain.

This act of trust and care is not only seen within a guild but also among different guilds. I rarely see different villages work with each other except for the last war in Naruto nor do I often see different crew work together in One Piece, but in Fairy Tail, the guilds are often seen working together for common cause.

Friendships. What defines it? Who do we call as friends? Why do friendship mean so important to these characters? Each of us has different definitions of who we call as friends. But seeing it as a driving force in so many things in Fairy Tail, I think it makes a word that very much appeal to its fanbase.

The photo above is a very good representation to a good start to a new year. Why? Because I took a freakin’ four years to take this photo with the shrine diorama and what not. I bought the figures in AFAMY 2012 and never bothered unwrapping the shrine thingy until now…Here’s to a good start indeed.

Happy New Year everyone! Let’s watch more awesome anime this year!

2015 has come and gone. A new anime season is coming with more titles and fun. But before we delve any deeper into new series that will air in 2016, let’s take a moment to see what 2015 had for us.

Once again, the criteria is that the anime series must end in 2015, regardless of when it started airing.

So this is it! The annual Hoshiko’s Best Anime list has returned.

Shirobako

Shirobako reigns this year. Without a doubt. The anime brought light to many challenges of anime production and let us anime fans have a glimpse of what’s life behind the scenes. Furthermore, having likeable characters with strong passion adds icing to the cake.

I often find myself really drawn in by the intensity of the episodes and rooting for the characters to overcome a wall, whatever it is, and grow as the series progress.

Kuroko no Basuke

It felt like ages ago that this series has ended although it only just ended this year. I’ve detailed the reasons why I love Kuroko no Basuke so much and I believe this is a series I would re-watch again many years down the road. It has characters with tenacity, drive and matches that are captivating.

It’s a love or hate series for basketball game lovers, but for me, it’s a series I’ll never forget and will always think fondly of.

Subete F ni Naru: The Perfect Insider

I find this series interesting primarily because of the mystery behind a locked room murder case. It always pique my curiosity whenever there’s a locked room mystery. How did the killer get in and out? How did the killer manage to cover their tracks? My brain will always try work out the puzzle. Can’t say I succeed, but it’s interesting how the characters managed to come out with the theory behind the mystery.

Besides that, the constant debates of opposite opinions between the two main characters Saikawa-sensei and Nishinosono-kun are something worth ponder on. I find Saikawa-sensei a rather odd character. I supposed being at a different level of intelligence, he has different views on many aspects of life and tend to answer questions in a vague way.

The pacing of the series started to become intense after Saikawa decided to resolve the mystery and this is when the series gets even more exciting. I will recommend this to all viewers who enjoy mystery genre.

Wakako-zake

Short, simple and sweet. This is easily the only short series that I enjoy to date. And even eagerly waiting each new episode because it’s simply that much fun to watch.

Honestly, watching this series gives me the urge to fly to Japan, go to places and taste the food like how the character did.

Young Black Jack

This may come off as a surprise for some people, but I seriously enjoyed the series. I always thought of multi-tasking going into any episode, but end up only watching Young Black Jack without doing anything else. It’s that captivating. Part of it is because it has an intense storytelling tendency in each episode. There’s always a new medical case to challenge Hazama’s talent as a blossoming surgeon as well as his ethical grounds.

Time after time, Hazama proved that he is willing to get caught and lose his one chance of getting a medical license in order to save lives and learn from renowned surgeons. Perhaps this is also one of the attractive points of the series. Not sure if it’s recommended to practice such attitude though.

So that’s my top 5 for 2015! What’s yours?

In the spirit of revisiting old anime starting by re-watching Bleach, I continue on to attempt watching other old anime still in my possession. Let me repeat, attempt to watch.

Why attempt? Because for some series, I gave up after only watching few episodes. For other series, I continue to enjoy watching or even have a newfound understanding of what I’m watching.

I find this odd because I only keep anime I really, really like in my possession. There’s no point to keep meh titles right? They only take up space. So naturally, I thought I’ll still have that same amount of enthusiasm that I had coming into any given anime series.

In this post I’ve written ages ago, I listed five anime titles I know I’ll re-watch with the same amount of enthusiasm no matter how much time has passed. I didn’t revisit the list as often as I should have, but four years gone, the list is still somewhat valid.

Lucky Star is an anime I re-watch the most due to its slice-of-life nature. It’s also one of the anime series I watched in the earlier part of my anime fandom. There are a lot of references that I didn’t understand, but would later laughed out loud after watching whatever anime series they referenced to. This is the best part of re-watching an anime.

Other anime titles I often re-watch over the last few years are Skip Beat!, Hidamari Sketch and Nodame Cantabile. They never bore me. That’s a good thing.

Now onto the dark side.

I have fond memories of Bamboo Blade and in fact had re-watched once years ago. Having that thought in mind, I picked Bamboo Blade over the Christmas holidays last year and wanted to watch again. Lo and behold, only seven episodes into the series, I’m feeling bored. What happened? I used to enjoy the series very much.

Lovely Complex is another anime I really like and had also re-watched before, but only to recently find myself not being able to get pass the first few episodes.

Perhaps it’s due to change of preference in anime. Perhaps it’s knowing a story all too well. Needless to say, by re-watching I now have a different impression of those anime series. Now this isn’t a good thing.

I mentioned earlier that my list is still somewhat valid because I still haven’t attempt to re-watch Kimi ni Todoke even though the manga is my all time favorite. Yes, I’m still reading the manga and yes, I’m still getting the fuwa-fuwaness from the series. Whatever that means. So should I really list Kimi ni Todoke as one of the anime I will re-watch over and over again? I don’t know. You tell me.

Honestly, I have this crazy idea of re-watching One Piece once the series ends lord knows when. At the time of writing this post, the wildly popular shounen series has 722 episodes. Perhaps I should re-think the thought to preserve the good impression, lol.

Anyway, have you guys attempted to re-watching a much loved anime series only to find out that you don’t like it as much as you think?

I gotta say this: it’s feels extremely good to be able to sample most new episodes in this new winter anime season. It’s something I haven’t been doing for quite a while. And I said most because I don’t sample second seasons of anime I never watched.

For the past three years or so, I haven’t been spending enough time doing things I enjoy most such as this hobby here. Getting back to this one hobby that serves as stress reduction will always be a positive thing. Believe me, this is not just an excuse to watch more anime!

Sampling new anime episodes regardless of genre, I’ll call this experiment. Experimenting with different genre and not letting short summary of an anime defines a particular title allows me to discover anime I otherwise wouldn’t watch.

Speaking of genre, I noticed my anime list last year revolves around sports and mystery (or detective series to be precise) genre. The easiest explanation to this is because they’re genres I enjoy most and have higher chance of following. Slice of life is kind of a miss or hit thing so I found myself moving away from the genre.

In the midst of this habit of selection, I’ve forgotten the thrills of discovering little gems. I don’t remember what’s it like to watch a fun Japanese high school series. By going through the first episodes this season, this sort of brings back the familiarity I once had with anime.

How so? For example, when I was sampling Musaigen no Phantom World, the first thought that crossed by mind was how I’ve forgotten the prestigious feel of private schools in anime series. Like the one I remembered from Ouran High School Club.

When time permits, I pick one or two anime titles from the winter list and watch. I try not to let preconceived opinion about a series refrains me from discovering interesting titles. By doing so, I found out that a short series called Ojisan to Marshmallow’s first episode was one of the most enjoyable I had so far. So was Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu. Plus, Hai to Gensou no Grimgar has such beautiful scenery artwork, I’m falling in love with the series. By the way, the screenshots here are all from that series.

I’m glad I’m running on a slower pace this month in all aspects of my life. This way, I’m able to rediscover the joy of discovering anime. The good ones and the bad ones. The weird ones and the funny ones.

Wanna know what I’m watching this season? Head over to my MAL account! What are you watching this season?

When the winter anime season started this year, I followed 15 series including the leftovers from previous season. And then I dropped the total to 13 series after a weeks. I kept watching the 13 anime series until now, but of course not all episodes have been absolutely fun.

As usual, some series will have good episodes and then some bad ones. It’s the overall premise of a series that keeps me going. Anyway, I’m here to write about some of the series I’ve been following this season thus far.

Feeling Lukewarm

To pack my week this season, I’ll schedule in an episode or two each day so not all anime that I watch are interesting. Yes, I have some free time on hand right now and this is how I spend my free time!

One of the series I scheduled into my week just because I have free slot is Prince of Stride: Alternative. If I am to describe the series, it reminds me of Free! except the runners has a cuter coach. And similar to Free!, the episodes over the weeks are not particularly stellar but watchable. What made me continue to watch the series is the adrenaline rush I get that comes with its running races.

Feeling Disappointed

When the season started, Dagashi Kashi was one of my top favorites. It did a great job introducing me to snacks like Umaibo and Fry Potato. Just the first episode alone got me craving for junk foods. As the series progresses though, it started incorporating sexually suggestive acts on snacking scenes that sort of turn me off. I personally find the series educating in the sense that I learn about a different side of Japanese culture, or rather upbringing, but with scenes like that it’s a lot less fun.

Besides Dagashi Kashi, I had high hopes for Ojisan to Marshmallow. I know it’s weird, but the first two episodes were interesting. Weirdly interesting. But as the series continues, it became just a plain weird anime. Because it’s less than five minutes long, I didn’t drop the series. I have one reason and one reason only: I wanted to know what happen to the odd couple! Not that they’re a couple yet…

Feeling Surprised

The pacing of Hai to Gensou no Grimgar reflects that of Tamayura. I wouldn’t go as far as to categorize it as a healing anime or something in similar veins, but the episodes made me feel relax. I blame the artwork. Grimgar has one of the best background sceneries in this season. I’d probably continue to watch the series like why I love to watch most P.A. Works’ titles: the art. However, midway through the series something unexpected happened. I was touched by how the series portrayed emotions and got pretty excited about the series itself.

Another anime series that got my attention is Nijiiro Days. It is shaping up to be one of my favorite shows this year. I was a little hesitant at first since I’m not really into watching a series featuring high school boys. The story tends to feel a little different than those featuring high school girls. I mean, try comparing Daily Lives of High School Boys and Hidamari Sketch. All I can say it is different, but I can’t pinpoint exactly what. With Nijiiro Days, this problem is solved perfectly.

My thoughts on other anime series I’m following remains the same since the first episode aired. Current favorite is Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu, which continues to wow me. It is one of the best storytelling anime and I find myself captivated and hang on to every scene.

Anyway, this is just some of my thoughts on some of the anime series I’ve been following this season. Anything that particularly stands out for you?

For as long as I can remember, watching anime influences my spending one way or another. It can be an anime figure or related merchandises such as DVDs. You have no idea how much money I spent on this hobby, directly or indirectly. I lost count.

Watching Dagashi Kashi though prompted me not to buy any related merchandise or figure but a bunch of Japanese cheap snacks. The first episode really made me crave for Umaibo partly because I have childhood memory of eating something similar. I don’t know the name of the version we have in Malaysia but I remember it costs at most 20 cents. That was when I was about six or seven. I have no idea how much it costs or if it still exists today. Trust me, I tried to find.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the snacks anywhere and our local Japanese snack-centric stores only sell stuff like KitKats, Pockys (Lucky Star made me crave for this at one point) and a bunch of other snacks I never heard of so I resorted to eBay. Ha! I bet you didn’t know eBay sells stuff like this (maybe you do, but I didn’t. And it sounds nicer if I say it like that). While searching for the perfect snack package offer, I stumbled upon it. You see, most websites I saw are subscription based and I don’t want that. I have no desire to snack on these stuff every month! Just a few would be enough to satisfy my craving.

Enough of me babbling. Now, let me show off my dagashi!!

The first ones I tried are of course Umaibo. My flavors are teriyaki, cheese, chicken curry, shrimp mayonnaise and pizza. I love cheese flavor the best. From what I gather, pizza is the more popular flavor, but it has a sour taste that I’m not fond of. Shrimp mayonnaise has the weirdest taste of all that I can’t even describe. It’s just weird. Chicken curry tastes more like curry powder than curry paste while teriyaki tastes like teriyaki!

Besides Umaibo, I also wanted to try Potato Fry, which was also featured in the first episode and I’ve got two flavors in the box. I like Calvi grilled flavor more than chicken and the prior has more french fries taste than the latter.

Among other stuff in the box are items like KitKat and Daifuku. However, they are too common in my hometown to deem special. We used to only have original KitKat flavor. These days though, we have flavors like cheesecake, strawberry, matcha, etc. Besides, I bought a whole bunch of other flavors when I was in Japan last year.

This is something I’ll only do once in a blue moon and won’t be splurging on these anytime soon. If I’m having my next dagashi, I hope it’s on my next trip to Japan. Whenever that is.

Dagashi Kashi started off as one of my favorites. However, the series gets progressively boring as the weeks go by. I’m still watching though because there are many more snacks to be discovered!

Anyway, any anime that made you crave for something before?

For those who are already watching Hai to Gensou no Grimgar, we all learned about the unexpected death of Manato several episodes ago. Several episodes later, Manato is still very much present in the series, in the hearts of his beloved comrades.

When it comes to death in anime, I can’t help but being reminded of the many deaths in Akame ga Kill.  Unlike Grimgar, the characters in that series seem to be dying for shock value rather than as plot device. And the characters who died are easily replaced by another new member and quickly vanished from the minds of viewers.

I believe this is where Grimgar excels.

I don’t know what to call Manato’s friends since they don’t officially carry a team name, but let’s call them Haruhiro and gang. It’s easier to refer. From watching Haruhiro and gang making their first goblin kill, it’s evident that death in the world of Grimgar carries a sense of heaviness.

When they made their first goblin kill, Haruhiro and Ranta were visibly shaken by the fact they just took the life out of a living creature. This reaction is quite different from the many series I saw in which characters are found rejoicing in killing a monster. I mean, Bleach’s Kurosaki Ichigo didn’t even flinch when he sliced his first hollow. The guys at Grimgar certainly don’t take deaths lightly.

So when Manato unexpectedly died, they didn’t handle his death too well too. Watching them dealing with the reality of Manato’s death is especially painful. Haruhiro was angry and confused. Shihoru was despair and cried loudly. It was a tear jerking, heart wrenching scene.

While Mary was quickly invited as a replacement for Manato’s position as priest, but she wasn’t invited to replace Manato himself. Haruhiro and gang are still coping with the loss of their leader. Shihoru being the most affected.

Personally, I like that Mary is a girl and has a completely different characteristic compared to Manato. She was cold and unfriendly. For this reason, I miss the old dynamics of the original team even more. And when Haruhiro struggled to lead his team, I miss Manato being in charged. The direction of Grimgar made Manato irreplaceable. With this heart of heaviness, viewers are able to relate to the extended mourning of Manato’s death.

Besides that, Haruhiro is often found having conversations with Manato inside his head. He’s still figuring it out. And this habit is a reminder of Manato’s lingering presence in Grimgar. He’s gone but not forgotten. His comrades are still mourning for him. It’s touching to see that Manato was even given the badge of Volunteer Soldiers after his comrades finally made it there.

Precisely because of Manato’s death, Haruhiro and gang became who they are today. Without his death, perhaps there will never be growth. Haruhiro is slowly stepping into the shoes of being a leader while Shihoru is slowly opening up to her team and is now stronger and a little more useful. Ranta, Yume and Moguzo changed as well.

I’ve watched death being tackled in many series and in many different directions, but I particularly find death in Grimgar is painted a little more realistic. It doesn’t really send out messages like don’t take life for granted as sometimes seen in Death Parade or tackles survival as seen in Tokyo Ghoul. Heck, it doesn’t even talk about how to get over the pain of Manato’s death.

Haruhiro and gang simply get by by remembering Manato. It’s a painful journey, but it’s something everyone has to go through at some point in their lives.

To really appreciate Tamayura movies, one really has to start watching the franchise from the first episode of the anime series. Otherwise, whatever emotions the characters are going through in the movies will have lesser impact.

One of the best things about all the three movies released to date is the focus on emotional struggle the characters are going through. Tamayura has always been focusing more on playing with emotions, but the third movie, Tamayura: Sotsugyou Shashin Part 3 – Akogare, is especially emotional because it’s about uncertainties, separation and longing. Nothing is more conflicted than those three combined, I think.

When Sawatari Fuu first returned to Takehara, she was still mending her wounds as her father has passed away. Coming back to his father hometown, she had hoped to learn more about her late father. She did that and much more.

Fuu rekindled her friendship with Kaoru and made new friends along the way. When she finally moved on from her father’s death, Fuu embarked on a journey to start a photography club. Honestly, when a series starts becoming about a club, I get worry. But Tamayura survived that.

All the memories Fuu has made are precious to her. She captured every moment. If there’s anything I learn from watching her is her resistance to change. She’s always found spacing out, stressing out when something’s changed. Her father’s death. Her life before Takehara. Her inspiration and friend Shihomi leaving Takehara. Her life after high school.

Here in the third part of Tamayura: Graduation Photos movie series, Fuu has finally crumbled under her fears of changes. The life she has built since returning to Takehara will eventually change. She and her dear friends will part ways as each works to pursue their respective interests. Deep down inside her, she’s aware of these impeding changes and had managed to push her fears aside. Until now.

Watching Fuu accepting it all is emotional. At the same time, I keep thinking that breakdown there feels so like her. That fragile yet brave girl. That unchanging yet ambitious girl.

The first two movies may be focusing on the girls figuring out what they want to do in the future. It’s kind of like prelude to what the movie series is really all about. This third movie, especially the second half, is preparing me to a heart wrenching end of a much loved series.

I finally watched The Last: Naruto the Movie after it was released more than a year ago in December 2014. Well, it’s better late than never. I’m interested in this movie primarily because it’s marketed as the story that happened before the last chapter of Naruto manga. Also, Naruto mangaka Kishimoto Masashi plays an important role in the movie production. For the most part, the movie feels a lot like any other Naruto movie in the sense that there are events outside Naruto’s world’s norm.

Personally, I see The Last more of a love story between Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuuga Hinata.

When the last Naruto chapter revealed that Naruto ended up with Hinata, I wondered if that happened only because Hinata confessed. I questioned this only because the series has always emphasized on his crush on Haruno Sakura.

In the movie, Sakura mentioned that Naruto’s crush on her is a direct result of his competitiveness against Sasuke, the only guy that Sakura had eyes on. That sort of make sense. Naruto had always challenged Sasuke in the most childish, craziest ways so trying to earn Sakura’s affection may be one of the many things he could think of.

Now, let’s go back to Naruto and Hinata.

Perhaps the only time Naruto started to pay attention to Hinata is when she confessed and protected him against Pain. What I find weird though is after her confession, nothing really happened. But the again with the chaotic state the whole Naruto world was at, it probably isn’t a good time to sort out romantic feelings of oneself. If anything, there were subtle hints of Hinata’s growing presence in Naruto’s life. She was the one who jolted Naruto back from devastation after Neji’s death and she was the one who stood beside him during Neji’s funeral.

Two years after the war, which is when the movie is based on, Naruto only then started to sort out his own romantic feelings. Does he like Sakura? Does he like Hinata? To know this, once again we have to look back at the dynamics of Naruto and Sakura’s relationship.

After Sasuke left Konoha, Naruto and Sakura are each other’s support system. As part of Team 7, they have utmost trust and respect for each other. When they’re in trouble, both Naruto and Sakura know that they have each other to lean on. Even though she had thought of him as nothing but a nuisance, Sakura knew that Naruto will always be there for her. In The Last, Naruto didn’t hesitate to save Sakura when she was in trouble. Same goes to Sakura whenever Naruto’s in trouble.

Regardless what had happened, Sakura’s feeling for Sasuke never wavered. Naruto understood this when Sasuke left the village even though he still showed romantic interest in Sakura in many instances.

These two had gone through many hardships together and the special bond they share is irreplaceable. What they have stands the test of time and distance. They’re protective of each other, they care for each other. Like it or not, their state of relationship is an indirect result of their devotion to Sasuke.

In the end though, it makes sense that Naruto ended up with Hinata after realizing the nature of relationship between Naruto and Sakura. This is not to say Hinata is a consolation prize. She simply lacks presence in Naruto’s story to really understand why Naruto ended with her.

There are two things very obvious at the start of Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu: Sukeroku did not live til old age and Kikuhiko did not end up with Miyokichi. And these are the two things that would pop up in my head trying to figure out the how and why as I continue watching the series.

Both abandoned at young age and apprenticed by Yakumo to study rakugo, Sukeroku (Shin) and Kikuhiko (Bon) have a lot in common only on the surface. In reality, these two men couldn’t be more different.

Sukeroku is a rugged man who loves to drink, seeks pleasure of women companionship and simply living the carefree lifestyle. He loves to challenge the authorities and gets into trouble for being overly ambitious. On the other hand, Kikuhiko is more refined, often described as being feminine. He is more organized and listens to his superiors.

If there’s anything that keep their friendship going is their equal passion for rakugo.

At the early part of the series, it feels as though Kikuhiko is extremely jealous of Sukeroku. Sukeroku displays great amount of talent in rakugo and is always a few steps ahead. He shows deep knowledge in the art and is often found giving advice to Kikuhiko while the latter had struggled to find his form, often fell short of expectations and feeling left out.

The direction of earlier episodes made me question Kikuhiko’s motivations and motives towards Sukeroku. Is it jealousy that caused the brotherly relationship between these two men to fall apart as indicated in the first episode? Did Kikuhiko steal Sukeroku’s rakugo’s style? What did Kikuhiko do?!

However as the series progresses, while there’s this subtle rivalry between Kikuhiko and Sukeroku, it’s mostly one-sided. Sukeroku felt no pressure and always outperform Kikuhiko. He found success much earlier and is well received by the crowd. Kikuhiko is never a threat and will never be because he believes in his own rakugo. Whatever Kikuhiko lacks is what he has.

If there’s any indication that Sukeroku feels the same way as Kikuhiko is when Miyokichi comes into the picture. That’s perhaps when audience would soon realize Sukeroku has his own insecurities when it comes to Kikuhiko. Turns out, feeling left out is not only limited Kikuhiko. It’s precisely because these two characters are poles apart that they envy what they don’t have.

I really enjoy watching this series purely because of these two characters. Their story, their journey together is what make this series so special. I love watching how they slowly make their mark in the industry, navigating the different challenges life threw at them and ultimately falling for the same woman. Their characters are different yet they make their relationship work. They give and take. If one person put a steps forward, the other would automatically take a step back to give way. They’re always giving honest opinion of each other, maintaining the trust they built since childhood.

Being introduced to a rakugo, a Japanese verbal entertainment I never knew existed, is the reason I picked up this series. Shin and Bon are the reasons I continued watching. Rakugo Shinjuu is made special purely because of their unique relationship.

Endless eight. Steins;Gate. A lot of words relevant only to anime fans popped up in my head when I watched the first episode of Boku dake ga Inai Machi, or also known as Erased. Fujinuma Satoru’s revival threatens to repeat events over and over again since he’s reliving the past with chances of changing them.

Thank goodness none of events were repeated and Satoru’s revival still happens.

Satoru started off as someone who’s just going through life’s motions. After being framed for the death of his mother, he sought to rewrite history with his gift even if it means there’s some serious consequences.

With that, he changed his own future. Drastically.

By reliving the past, Satoru was given the chance not only to save his mother and other victims but also himself. The 29 year old Satoru described himself as insincere. Since returning to the past, Satoru learned to open up or in his words: stop pretending. Instead of pretending to be a friend, he became a friend. A simple change such as that brought big changes in his future. When Satoru was hospitalized earlier in the series, he had no one but a colleague by his bedside. Later on in the series when he was hospitalized once again, he was surrounded by friends and family.

Sure, little Satoru’s heroic actions saved a few lives but it’s his sharp and observant mother that stole the show. That’s my personal opinion anyway. Because if Sachiko is the  protective mother most media paint them to be, I’d think events would’ve unfolded differently. She wouldn’t be as open to Satoru’s borderline criminal acts even though it’s for the greater good. Her generosity, warmth and emotional strength made her an outstanding character in this series.

The series also highlights the effects of household abuse, whether it’s child abuse or spousal abuse, and the toxic effects it has on the victims. Flashbacks suggested that the relationship between Hinazuki Kayo and her mother did not started abusively. Kayo’s mother was a victim of abuse herself and Kayo tried to protect her. When her mother finally broke free from the abusive spouse, she channeled her anger and resentment towards Kayo. Only by Kayo’s sheer determination did the loop stop.

Satoru said something rather meaningful at the end of the series. It’s something that I never really ponder on and feel that his words there hold truth. And I’ll leave that screencap here for you to ponder as well.

This post captures some of the thoughts I have after watching the series. Boku dake ga Inai Machi is an anime I’d recommend to anyone. Have you watch it? If yes, what do you think of the series?

Anne Happy is an anime that follows a class of unfortunate students in Tennogofune Academy. They’re deemed to have bad karma and attract misfortune. Among a class filled with such students, Hibari, Hanako and Botan seem to have the worst fortune of all.

While Hibari and Botan are aware of their unfortunate situations, Hanako insists she’s lucky and sees good in everything. Depending on how one handles misfortune, something bad can be viewed as something positive. And that’s how Hanako handles her misfortunes.

Let’s talk about how Hibari and Botan handle their misfortunes first.

Besides her unusual crush, which she is very sensitive about, I don’t see anything out of the ordinary for Hibari. She’s cautious about her little secret and would often be embarrassed and reacted defensively if she thought she’s been exposed. Because of that, she’s always on the edge and would jump onto conclusions of how people view her.

As for Botan, she’s well aware of her frail state of health. She refers to herself less kindly than the rest of the unfortunate class members, always thinking she’s a useless person. Prone to accidents and lack of stamina, Botan is always complaining about her misfortune. As a result, she’s often gloomy and takes pity on herself.

These two characters dwell on their misfortunes a tad too much and it’s affecting their self-esteem. Their mutual friend Hanako, on the other hand, doesn’t see all the weird things that are happening to her as misfortunes but signs of good luck.

When she’s unable to get the drinks that she wanted from a vending machine, she didn’t curse her bad luck or blame the machine or the supplier (familiar?). She simply wished her prayers are answered. Also, when attempting to save a cat, Hanako ended up stuck in muddy field. She was prepared to spend the night in the muddy field before Hibari was there to save her. In this unfortunate situation, Hanako manage to smile through it all and still thinks she’s lucky.

Hanako, unlike her two friends, simply moved on from one situation to another without dwelling too much in the moment. And because of that, she’s carefree and happy.

I think I’ll probably side with Hibari’s more calculative nature, thinking about the consequences before mindlessly taking actions. Whenever bad things happen, I always think about the worst case scenarios. It’s my natural reactions to seemingly grim situations. However, Hanako is a classic example of how she’s turning her misfortunes into good fortunes.

It really isn’t about fortunes at all. It’s all about positive attitude!

Compared to last season, this spring anime season I’m only following five new series. Perhaps subconsciously I was feeling a little burn out by the amount of titles I was watching so I made an effort to scale down the number of series to remain on my list. That being said, I find myself not knowing why I following some of the series I follow…

Anyway, I shall share with you (I know you’re not asking but I still want to) my thoughts on the anime I’m watching thus far.

My favorite titles so far are Kuromukuro, Flying Witch and Joker Game.

Kuromukuro

Watching the first episode of Kuromukuro brought back the feeling of how I once loved P.A. Works series so, so much. The production values, the superior quality its anime exudes and storylines normally become secondary to me when it comes to P.A. Works. How else am I able to finish Glasslip?

Kuromukuro has a good blend of comedy, action and drama. I especially enjoyed the action scenes as they’re all very engaging and visually spectacular. It doesn’t hurt that the background music complements the scenes very well too. The series also cleverly blends in comedy that fits well with the scenes such as Kennosuke’s encounter with all things in modern world. I had a good laugh watching that episode.

I’m pretty stoked that this lovely series has 26 episodes. At least I know I have an anime I’ll look forward to each week next season!

Flying Witch

Flying Witch is exactly the type of anime I enjoy watching. It’s what they call the healing anime apparently. I love the calming, peaceful atmosphere surrounding the series making it the perfect anime to unwind with after a long day. Never mind that the story has a witch as a main character. It still managed to stay simple and fun with mini expedition trips around its small town in Aomori. For some reason, it made me wanna live in that town with the tranquility and laidback lifestyle.

Anyway, Flying Witch only makes me smile each time I turn it on.

Joker Game

Personally, I like Joker Game a lot. I don’t read a lot about them on my Twitter timeline so I’m not sure what’s the following of this series. What I like about Joker Game is how it shows another side of actually being a spy. I said this because Hollywood flicks tend to paint the more lavish and cool side of being a spy. In this anime, however, it tells the struggles and challenges of being one without all the fancy gadgets and pretty women. Of course I’ll never know what’s it really like being a spy but I like Joker Game’s interpretation better.

Others

Now that I’m done talking about the series I’m following because I actually really like them, I’ll move on to the two series I’m not really sure why I’m watching but at the same time, it’s kinda fun watching them. The two series are Anne Happy and Sansha Sanyou.

They don’t exactly stand out. They are the average comedy, slice of life anime that I love to watch. Flying Witch is slice of life too but Anne Happy and Sansha Sanyou lacked the peaceful atmosphere I like about series like Flying Witch. The two series are also less relatable than some of my favorite slice of life anime.

However, I still watch them because 1) they’re light and 2) they do make me laugh. Do I really care about the characters? No. Will I remember them in future? No. Will I re-watch them? No.

There you have it! My thoughts on the five titles I’m following this season. What are you watching this spring and would you recommend anything that’s not on my list?

For those who watched Yowamushi Pedal anime series and enjoyed the thrills of its inter-high competition might be disappointed with this movie as I did. This movie takes place after the inter-high competition and the different school teams once again gathered to participate in a smaller scale race. Here’s one fact: Not all characters from the series will make appearance in the movie.

Before I go on any further, let me warn you that I don’t attempt to not spoil it for you.

What I didn’t like about the movie the most is how it rushed through the races. Given the limited time, I really shouldn’t be expecting much. The movie is about an hour and 30 minutes long. What sort of adrenaline rush can they offer? For those who never seen the series, the cyclist hidden skills and abilities may also seem confusing. I do believe that this is a movie for Yowamushi Pedal series followers, not casual movie goers. Or maybe it has always been intended as such…

Still, Yowamushi Pedal: The Movie offers insights into some of the things I might have overlooked when watching the two seasons of anime series. Because the series put a lot of time and effort into building the character Sohoku’s first year students, I didn’t really noticed how deeply attached the juniors were to their respective mentors: their seniors. When Makishima started acting strangely and subsequently withdrew from the club, it was his mentee Onoda who felt the most impact.

Perhaps it was Onoda’s natural character who isn’t as confident as he should’ve been that this impact was felt. If he’s Naruko or Imaizumi, maybe the outcome would be different. His fellow first years are more confident about themselves. Seemingly losing his sense of direction and purpose in the cycling club, Onoda struggled with his training and also in the actual race day itself. The strength of Onoda isn’t really his high cadence riding ability, if this is the correct way to describe his most valuable skill set. His strength lies in his loyalty to his teammates. His strength lies in his enjoyment of riding with all of his teammates. Any one of them missing, he lost his value. That’s Onoda.

Nonetheless, Yowamushi Pedal: The Movie remembers to entertain the crowd with its famous “hime” song, which by the way, can be addicting. And the fact that all Sohoku members sang along in an off-tune voice is just icing on the cake.

I’m not sure what the purpose of this movie is besides adding another name of its franchise. But I don’t think anyone would miss out anything if they don’t watch this movie.

So I was watching Itachi’s story as part of Naruto Shippuuden anime lately and thought why not make a list of Itachi’s awesomeness? While Uchiha Itachi isn’t my favorite character in the popular shounen series, he’s one of the well-liked characters by fans worldwide. I know I have a few friends who think he’s so cool too.

The list is based on the episodes of Itachi’s story I’d watched recently. Without further ado, here’s why Uchiha Itachi is so great!

1. Observant

In the first episode, a very young Itachi is already seen questioning about life. He sees the joy of new life as well as the sorrow of deaths. Itachi notices changes around him at such young age.

2. Skilled Fighter

You throw stones at me? I’m gonna throw stones at your stones – Itachi’s thoughts. And he silent his enemies with just that. Even he isn’t a skilled fighter, I don’t think he can so easily rise through the ranks in ninja world eh?

3. Peace Lover

Itachi’s a natural peace lover, always looking on the bright side of things. He was excited to explore Uchiha’s new living area after the clan was assigned to stay at a place outside the village.

He was also seen hating his father for asking him to focus on improving his skills instead of mourning the death of his teammate when he first unlocked his sharingan.

4. Family Guy

This is especially apparent when Sasuke was just born. Itachi would take care of his little brother when their parents are out and about. He’s always seen taking care and protecting Sasuke.

It’s true that he turned his back on his clan when he became a double agent. However, that doesn’t change the fact that he’s always looking out for his dear brother. Even after his exile.

5. Quick Learner

Now we know why Sasuke’s father is so disappointed with him when he couldn’t do their family’s jutsu at first try. Itachi managed to successfully perform Fireball Jutsu even before their father teach him. He only saw the old man doing it once and he scored!

He also impressed Shishui with his quick learning abilities too.

6. Hero At Heart

Since he was a kid, Itachi’s already a little hero. He was first seen playing hero to that little girl during Kyuubi crisis. But we already know that he’s a hero, don’t we? He sacrificed himself for the greater good of Konoha when he chose the most difficult path of life to walk on.

7. Smart

Longtime followers of the series already know that Itachi’s a smart guy. He graduated from the academy after just one year! Not long after that, he activated his sharingan and recruited to be an ANBU captain.

But he’s not just book smart, so to speak. He’s also smart enough to make clone of himself to attend boring classes on his behalf!

8. Kind

Itachi seems to be always blaming himself when he couldn’t help others. Everyone thought he’s an exceptional ninja, but he thought otherwise. He always refer to himself humbly and wish he can do more things for other people. He’s constantly wishing to be useful and helping those in need.

On that bloody night, his father also noted that he’s a kind child as Itachi cried before taking the lives of his parents.

There you have it! 8 reasons that made Itachi so, so great!

Note: Itachi’s story runs from episode 451 to 458 in Naruto Shippuden.

Aside from male dominated sports anime, rarely do I pick up a series with male lead characters and actually enjoy watching it. Nijiiro Days, or Rainbow Days, is one of the rare anime series led by four bishounens that I had a lot of fun watching.

So what made Nijiiro Days so special? How is it different from other male led slice-of-life anime?

I’m a sucker for romantic comedy shoujo anime series. Nijiiro Days is exactly that. There’s nothing fancy about its story and you can say that it’s the average, common story pieces you’ll get from other similar series but it manages to stay fresh, lighthearted with quirky humor and fun.

It doesn’t hurt that I found all characters likeable. Yes, Keiichi has an unusual taste for certain fetishes but he’s overall nice guy. I still find it strange on the cute nicknames the guys are calling each other but I guess they’re supposed to be cute? There’s very little to no character development, but in slice-of-life series one shouldn’t be expecting much in the first place and I’m okay with that. At least, some of the relationships is progressing…

As an added bonus, Nijiiro Days seem to spread out the focus on its characters. We know the characters, their love interests, their strengths and weaknesses, etc. Even supporting characters such as Tsutsui Mari gets some background. I’m not saying all the characters get equal screen time. I’m only saying that not one of any eight characters is neglected.

I love how the series paired up the (would be) couples. They complement each other pretty well and each pairing is different from the other. My favorite pairing happens to be Mattsun and Mari. I like them primarily because they’re much more hilarious to watch and compared to other pairings, there is a lot more tension going on in their current state of relationship. The other pairings are leaning more towards just being plain and fluffy (I’m not complaining).

If I have to pick up one thing to complain about the series, it’s the slow pace of relationship development. Given how short the series is, once again, it’s given. Although there are 24 episodes, it’s only roughly 13 minutes per episode. That’s not a lot of time there, unfortunately.

One thing’s for sure – I’ll certainly be waiting for the announcement of a new season!

There are many anime titles out there focusing on what we would change if we’re given a second chance to relive our past. The best recent example that came to my mind is Boku Dake ga Inai Machi. ReLIFE carries a similar tone except it doesn’t emphasize too much on what the main character, Kaizaki Arata, would change when he was given the second chance to be a high school senior again.

Instead in ReLIFE, while also sorting out his personal issues, Kaizaki remembers to treasure the moments at what is his second time as high school senior.

Be warned though, from hereon there may be spoilers here and there.

When Kaizaki took the pill given by Yoake Ryō, he unknowingly became a high school senior. Initially, I thought this is going to be another anime about rewriting what he did wrong in the past to start all over again, but I was wrong. ReLIFE turned out to be quite a different journey.

Despite being what society refers to as failure in his adult life, Kaizaki succeed on being a high school student. He is observant about his surroundings, lends a listening ear and is always enjoying the time he has in this fake life. He’s the main reason why his fellow younger classmates are enjoying their youth to the fullest when they’re at it.

Because he’s roughly ten years older and more experienced in life, Kaizaki is often the voice of reason for Kariu Rena, Ōga Kazuomi and socially awkward Hishiro Chizuru. Using his experiences, he advised Kariu to never give up, stop running away and stop trying just because things are hard. He also pushed Ōga to actively living the “ideal” youth by making him realize his romantic feelings for Kariu.

Above all, Kaizaki is always encouraging Hishiro to take a small step toward being more socially adept. Through her, he’s able to help other students to resolve their issues and ultimately treasuring their limited time at school. And it is with her, Kaizaki shines on learning to treasure the current moments, actively reaching out even though he knows he’ll be forgotten after one year.

Throughout its 13 episodes, ReLIFE always drops reminders on learning to enjoy the time when you have it or you may end up regretting it when the time has passed. Things may not be going on well for Kaizaki in adult life, but he never forgotten the importance of living in the now. And that makes for a positive character!

I couldn’t be more happier to finally see the end to one of my most favorite titles of all time. Yes, that’s right. Last week, I finally saw the final installment of Tamayura movies: Tamayura: Sotsugyou Shashin Part 4 – Ashita.

It’s really bittersweet to see this series ends. As I look back on all Tamayura episodes I watched since it first burst into anime scene with a four episode OVA back in 2010, I couldn’t help but to feel I grew with the characters as well. In literal and non literal sense.

Tamayura is perhaps the first healing anime that got me hooked. It showcases the lives of Sawatari Fuu and her three friends going about with their days in a quiet town called Takehara. It certainly helps that the scenery of the town was beautifully captured in the series, constantly making me feel like I want to be there. In fact, I should put Takehara on my places to visit in Japan list.

In the series, we see Fuu, Kaoru, Norie and Maon navigate the challenges of what normal high school students can bring. Often they’re seen dealing with uncertainties when it comes to making critical decisions especially in regards with their future. It takes courage to make unfamiliar choices and it’s absolutely inspiring to watch them brave it all.

Tamayura wouldn’t be as wonderful a series if it wasn’t for the friendships of the four characters. It goes to show the importance of friendships in human lives. They are each other support systems, always readily giving each other the helping hand or the shoulder to cry on. They certainly made many wonderful memories together, whether it’s something as grand as holding an exhibition or as simple as having a sleepover party.

As a fan or simply an audience, it’s a wonderful feeling to see the girls transition from their days as freshmen to finally graduating high school and entering college. Despite being just characters, there’s this weird sense of attachment on my part. Perhaps they’re relatable and they have always been since day one.

I feel lucky actually that Tamayura is given the opportunity to present the girls’ journey in a full circle, thus giving the series a much deserved proper ending. In my opinion, the ending is appropriate as it signifies Fuu’s beginning and end as a high school student and her journey to mourn the loss of her father in Takehara.

Tamayura will always be remembered fondly by me and it’s definitely a great anime to binge watch on a rainy day, wrapped in blankets (Yeaps, that anime gives me that sort of vibe). And if you haven’t already watch this amazingly fulfilling anime, I recommend you to start now.

Oh, and there’s one more thing: As a note to myself, I will one day visit Takehara to experience the breathtakingly beautiful bamboo light festival!