Ramblings about Manga, Magical Love, and Crazy Akashi

Wow. It's Friday night again already? I know I don't have time for Rewind posts anymore, but I'm just not ready to let go. So I won't. Instead, let's talk... manga.

I don't read manga very often, because it's not easy to get ahold of freely and legally. But Crunchyroll recently made their manga collection accessible to all premium members, including us just-anime members. Previously, most of the manga was only available for the all-access folk. So I downloaded the app on my phone and browsed the inventory.

I'm now on the 15th chapter of Kiss Him, Not Me. I probably should be embarrassed admitting that, but it makes me laugh... a lot. At first, half the reason I laughed was its cheesier elements. I mean, it's a reverse harem manga, and that genre is hit-and-miss, but often miss. Plus, the main character, Serinuma, lost a lot of weight within a week while she mourned the death of her favorite anime character. There was never a chance I'd take this seriously... which is partly why I'm reading it.

The heroine is a fujoshi who has four guys (and, it appears, one girl?!) fall in love with her. She fantasizes a lot about BL, something I usually avoid, but oh well. I identify with the rest of her otaku habits to at least some extent. And some of the guys are really cool. They don't just tolerate her otakudom—they start to learn more about the anime and manga she likes. One of them has been particularly great in recent chapters, borrowing manga after manga. Dream guy, right there. He's won me over. I still wouldn't call this an amazing manga, but I don't think I'll drop it anytime soon.

Eventually, I'd like to read Attack on Titan and Space Brothers, as well as some of the other serious and decent-looking manga available on Crunchyroll. But for now, I need humor. I have a lot on my plate, so I favor lighthearted anime and manga.

Speaking of lighthearted, cheesy anime... I decided to keep watching Cute High Earth Defense Club LOVE!. It's still fun. Some of its elements imply inappropriate humor, though. Like a lot of magical characters, the Defense Club boys use English words to describe their magical deeds. I'm 99.99% sure that the resulting puns are intentional and understood by most Japanese fans. For example, when the boys transform into their magical selves, Yumoto yells "Love Making!" —meaning, of course, that they're made into Magical Boys who defeat evil with the power of Love. Perfectly innocent love. Yeah. And I'm pretty sure that when the innocent, childish Yumoto cuddles Wombat (the alien who gave them their powers), it's supposed to look a bit like molestation—especially in episode 6. That, I'm not okay with. But obviously I'm not bothered enough to quit watching.

What else is going on in my anime world... Last Saturday, when I deluded myself into believing I didn't need to do homework, I watched several shows, both anime and not. Kuroko's Basketball continues to enthrall me. I know the new episode comes out in less than twelve hours, but let's return to episode 6 for a minute to talk about Akashi.

Dude, you are not God. You're rich and talented, and you're doing a fine job of subjugating some of the greatest young basketball players in Japan, but you are not absolute. And I think Kuroko and Kagami will prove it to you. Somehow. Within the next 16 episodes, anime logic will humble you... I hope.

Also, you should never promise to gouge your eyeballs out if you lose. What if something unexpected happened, like half your teammates twisted their ankles and had to be taken out? Or all of your opponents got into The Zone? Besides, that's just a nasty image. So chill, your majesty. You can inspire your subjects without getting gory.

I like to imagine meeting Akashi in real life. He'd be a short sixteen-year-old... though he might just appear short compared to his teammates, it which he could be my height (about average for a woman). He has muscles, but he's still not a grown man. He'd look rather ridiculous in his pink hair, trying to bend me and my friends to his will. I might offer him a cookie, and if he stuck around, my big-sister-urges might eventually take over, and I'd start to meddle about how he treats Midorima and the rest.

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Aaaannnd I rambled too long. I should have stopped after talking manga. I'd best scramble to do something responsible before bed.

Anyway, do you read manga on Crunchyroll? Are there any titles on there you recommend?

Also, if you watch Kurobas, do you have any thoughts now that we've finally watched Akashi play a game?

Swamped: Changes, Magical Boys, Kuroko, and Other Thoughts

The Change is here! Last Monday, I started my weekly column at Beneath the Tangles. I can't balance both that and my Rewind posts. In fact, I won't even call these other posts "Swamped" anymore. I might still write the occasional Rewind post, and I have one series I might adapt from an essay, which might work better here than at BtT. But none of that is happening this week.

Instead, a few quick responses to the anime I've been watching lately...

Hakone Yumoto attacks the chikuwabu monster with a loving kick,
soon to be followed by love-powered magic. (ep 1)

I just watched the first episode of Binan Koukou Chikyuu Bouei-bu Love! (aka Cute High Earth Defense Club LOVE!), because I wanted to laugh. I went to the right anime. It's a parody of magical girl anime, and wow... those magical boys are downright ridiculous. I'm not sure if I'll watch more, but I had fun with the first episode. Their serious discussion about oden reminded me of food discussions in Lucky Star. And the chikuwabu (an oden ingredient) that came to life reminded me a little of the vegetables in Dai Mahou Touge.

It occurs to me that I've watched more magical girl parodies than magical girl anime that take themselves seriously.

Kuroko's Basketball continues to excite me. Also, I am still convinced that Akashi is secretly an alpha dragon. Or a vampire. He has hypnotic cat eyes. That's not natural! Anyway, this dude is scary. I kind of expected him to be a decent fellow, despite the scissors incident in the second season. Kuroko followed him for a long time, after all. But now...

Akashi orders his opponent to lower his head. Look at that shadowed
face and those feline eyes... (ep 5)

Akashi, kiddo, you need an attitude adjustment. For your own good, I hope Kuroko and Kagami manage to defeat you. This whole "emperor" act won't fly in the workplace. Just saying.

I'm trudging through Log Horizon 2. I'm six episodes behind, and it'll be a while before I catch up. I really like the world building and the scenarios. I like learning more about the characters' RL pasts, too. But something about it just doesn't excite me. It's probably the pacing. I mean, one secondary character spent an entire episode reflecting on his past and then giving a speech about it—a long, stereotypical, rally-the-troops and reflect-on-our-friendship speech.

I'm caught up on Daiya no Ace again. My favorite thing about this show is the team and the way they rally together. Not much more for me to say on that front right now.

I just watched the first four episodes of Death Parade so that I could read Japesland's post about it at Beneath the Tangles. So far, I'm not a huge fan. But I'm intrigued by the way they portray human nature. Every episode, people are put into extreme circumstances, and their true nature comes out. The fear, deceit, suspicions, and warped self-images come to the forefront, and it can paint a disgusting picture (the husband in the first episode had a few particularly unflattering close-ups, involving sweat, tears, and saliva, I believe). As I watched, I thought, "Yep. This is what sin looks like."

I finally finished Zankyou no Terror (Terror in Resonance). I went a couple months between the tenth and eleventh episodes. It's a serious, rather dark anime, and I wanted a break from such things. But I still like it. The story and characters are intriguing, and my mind actively works to pull the puzzle pieces together. And the animation is great. If you watch the edges of the screen, you'll realize that "camera" is unsteady... in fact, it seems to be resonating with something, like the air after an explosion.

I'm also watching Shirobako and Durarara x2, but I've written enough for today. What's your favorite anime this season?