Note: I am still learning how to edit pictures so please bear with these pics. Some of the pics are also made 2 years ago so… yeah.

The Adventure of the Demigods

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The Orion Zodiacs/The 12 Zodiacs

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Cry of a Nymph

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Cover Requests

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Others:

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Backgrounds and Edits

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Under the Dog is a science fiction anime OVA about government conspiracies and experimentation gone wrong.  It channels a mixture of Evangelion and Ghost in the Shell, both in the art design and the world, including a shady pseudo-governmental organization that uses teenagers as its operatives for reasons that remain unclear.  Episode 0 was just released following a 2 year production period after the Kickstarter, with no future episodes planned.

The production values were good but not gorgeous like the first few episodes of Evangelion, or what you would expect from a movie.  Avoiding spoilers, the episode’s plot surprised me.  Under the Dog plays with the “chosen hero” and “government conspiracy” tropes in a way that feels fresh.  The ending leaves an opening for a series but stands well enough on its own, feeling a great deal like a classic science fiction short story- briefly exploring the consequences of a theoretical technology on people’s lives and society as a whole, with disturbing implications.

The acting had its moments, though the subtitles in some scenes give the usual feeling that there is a subtext that has been lost in translation.  Some character speak only in English, with the quality of acting varying wildly.  The fight choreography is good, better than what you would expect from a series, though not as good as Darker than Black or the trailer for Under the Dog.

Character development and world building are both excellent, showing rather than telling what is happening, and paint a rich yet fleeting picture of the world without an exposition dump. Under the Dog Episode 0 is well constructed with good animation and a fresh plot and if there were later episodes I would watch them based on the strength of the first.

Yet as a Kickstarter backer, it feels like a raw deal.  The single episode produced is good,  but for $25 and a two year wait I was hoping for more than 28 minutes.  This is probably a failure to manage expectations on my part, but to people uninvolved with the Kickstarter I would not recommend paying $25; wait for it to hit a streaming service or go to retail.  My disappointment is with the Kickstarter process, which was expensive, long, and created inflated expectations, rather than Under the Dog itself.

Under the Dog stands well on its own, telling a satisfying story in a skillful way that could be continued but doesn’t feel like it has to be either. The main complaint being there isn’t enough of it speaks well about the quality.  It works as a unit and I want to see more of it not because it ended on a cliffhanger, but because it is well done and interesting.

TL,DR; Under the Dog is good and worth keeping an eye on in the future if the series is picked up, especially if you like classic dark science fiction.  Don’t back Kickstarter projects.

Welcome everybody, to another review! Today we will be covering the first season of Noragami, an anime I surprisingly enjoyed more than I thought I would. We will be covering the second season, Noragami Aragato, at a later date, but it will definitely be happening. As always, beware of minor SPOILERS!

Now without further ado, let us begin the review!

Summary: Yato is a minor deity who lacks even a single shrine. In order to build his own shrine, he scrawls his cell number on the wall of a downtown bathroom telling people he will help them in exchange for a 5-yen offering, becoming a self-styled “delivery god.” Hiyori, the daughter of a respectable family, is almost killed in a traffic accident, but is rescued by Yato. This causes her to become a “hanyou,” a person who can easily lose her soul. She chases Yato down, and they begin to work together. Yato also finds a boy named Yukine who becomes a “sacred treasure” that can be used by a god. The three of them battle “Phantoms” who bring harm to humans as Yato’s hidden history is gradually revealed. -Anime News Network

Plot: 6/10

Going into Noragami, I assumed it would feel like the multitude of other anime out there that are based around the Shinto pantheon. Turned out it was much better than the other similar premise anime I’d seen before. It had a strong focus during the story telling, especially between the arcs. However, the last arc in particular felt disjointed and forced from the rest of the anime. The anime also devoted excessive time to explaining everything that was happening, instead of letting viewers piece stuff together themselves. There were also heavy use of flashbacks, to the point where there were flashbacks to earlier points in the same episode. Noragami basically was baby stepping the viewer through the plot. The overall mix of comedy and serious moods were generally done well. While it is good to defuse a serious or dramatic mood with comic relief, it should be once the danger has passed. Noragami occasionally set the comedic moments in when the atmosphere should have remained tense, making the comedy feel out of place and cringe worthy.

Characters: 9/10

The show is heavily character driven, and makes good use with strong characters. The main three are especially applaudable, possessing great depth as they all struggle with very human things. This makes them decently relatable. The side characters all served their purposes, with many of their motivations being explained. One issue that I found was that Noragami really tried to reinforce that the hero was Yato, though from a literary perspective this is not true. Much more time was spent with Hiyori and Yukine in developing them with Yato, who was a relatively static character throughout the series in terms of character growth. Occasionally, the characters seem to stray slightly from their established personalities as well.

Animation: 10/10

Noragami takes full advantage of its animation by crafting atmosphere through the colors and backgrounds that action scenes take place in. The regular animation is great, and the contrast between the Phantoms and other characters was cleverly done with the Phantom’s somewhat translucent and brightly colored bodies.

Soundtrack: 8/10

A solid opening and closing prove that Noragami has a pretty decent soundtrack. A lot of the actual tracks, especially during fight scenes, contain a lot of vocals, which can detract from the actual action. Additionally, the soundtrack does fall a bit short in certain scenes, like aforementioned fight scenes.

Themes: 10/10

Despite all the action, Noragami does tackle a lot of themes during its run. These mostly manifest themselves in the woes and worries of the characters. The themes can be divided between two categories: those concerning the present and one’s own existence, and those concerning the past. Yukine covers much of the former category. Much of his character is a result of his own concerns about loneliness and acceptance. He serves to represent themes of acceptance of the present. Yato also deals with themes of loneliness, but more in relation to fighting against being forgotten than lacking anyone to be with. Additionally, he is the classic archetype of a character who is also fighting against their past. The show also toys with the ideas of ethics, and about where they come from. Ethics are a central discussion in most worldviews and theology, and while the show seems to draw lines in where ethics come from, it does leave it open ended in some ways. I say this because even though the gods apparently are not bound by the ideas of right and wrong, they still seem to subscribe to them in some situations. Thus, Noragami makes excellent use of exploring themes through its many characters.

Final Score: 8.6/10

Final Grade: B

B-Ro’s Take

Noragami was an anime I really enjoyed. It is very much an anime about finding one’s self and coping with the past. The characters were really interesting and deep, and I like the concept of the gods a lot more than I thought I would. They interact in ways that are kind of out of character for what you would think of for gods, but it gives them a more relatable feel. It is also cool to see how they deal with the phantoms and how they defeat them. It can be a care free show, but it is not afraid to get dark. IT is also a good mix of comedy and action. Out of 10 I would give this anime a 9. I highly recommend you check this anime if you have not already done so. – B-Ro

LowKev’s Take

Noragami was a bit of a mixed bag to me. There were definite elements I liked, but there were parts that I wasn’t as much a fan of. The premise was cooler than i thought it was on paper. Hiyori’s storyline specifically was extremely interesting. She was by far my favorite character. If you had made the show just about her learning to cope with her situation, then I would definitely be cool with it. However, i didn’t like Yato and Yukine as much. They weren’t bad characters, they just annoyed me at times. But once they developed more, I actually learned to like them. The supporting cast was a mixed bag for me, with some really cool characters and some who were not so much…. Then there’s the Ayakashi, which i thought were mostly cool. There was one moment where I was genuinely creeped out by an interaction with them, which was awesome! I do wish the show as a whole was darker and creepier though. That scene I mentioned and a few others showed that they were definitely capable of it (maybe get rid of some of the at times repetitive humor). The soundtrack was mostly good. I thought the opening and closing were good, and I really liked what they went for with the background music. There were a lot of really cool vocal and electronic elements in it, and they worked well. However, there were some tracks I wasn’t as much a fan of. It was kind of strange to hear battle music with auto tune that sounds like Eiffel 65’s “I’m Blue”… and I deeply apologize if that song is stuck in your head now… I was kind of on the fence about the whole show until the ending. The ending was really well done. By then I had learned to like the characters, and it all came together in a really cool way. So I somewhat take my first statement back. Noragami is a good show with some personal annoyances that ends up coming together quite well

Final Comments: While it does suffer from somewhat significant flaws in its storytelling style, Noragami easily redeems itself with complex and relatable character who each present deep themes to engage the viewers with.

Thank you for reading our review! What are your thoughts on the first season of Noragami? Be sure to let us know, we would love to hear your thoughts! And as always, we will be back next week with a review of Tanka-kun Is Always Listless, an anime from just this past season.

Review:

I’ve probably said it every week, but Soran is a moron. Other than the initial fight against the zombies he hasn’t won a single conflict and yet he still carries on like he’s all powerful. And when he finally unleashes his ‘full power’ this episode it still isn’t enough and he has to get rescued by Houhou. This week, other than an invitation to some sort of competition to determine a successor, all we get is a strung out series of battles as various groups apparently try to get Soran only none of them do because Houhou is there and apparently she’s amazing. Oh, I forgot an incredibly lame gag back at the office where what’s-his-name deliberately takes a sip of coffee before reading a memo just so he can spit it at the other guy who showed up last week. I really should add this one to the dropped list and if this goes into tournament mode (which that whole choosing a successor thing kind of indicates it might) I will definitely drop it at that point. While Asterisk War and Food Wars get away with tournaments because I like the characters and am invested in the overall plot, Hitorinoshita does not have that advantage.

And in relation to the quote above, maybe people should have a conversation with Soran first. Then they won’t want to get their hands on him or even be in the same anime any more.

Hitorinoshita is available on Crunchyroll.

Oh my God! How did this movie even happen? It was so fr ahead of it’s time and certainly a precursor for The Matrix. The concepts and ideas discussed within the film are still very relevant and unanswered. What is the difference between being alive and and simply being a program?

Aoi Miyamori, Ema Yasuhara, Midori Imai, Shizuka Sakaki, Misa Toudo, the five members of the Kaminoyama High School Animation Club made their very first amateur animation and showed it to an audience at a culture festival. Their work turned out to be a success and they later turned what they did into their dream – to get jobs in the anime industry and create astonishing things.

Two and a half years later, Aoi Miyamori and Ema Yasuhara, two members of the club, have made their dreams into a reality. Now they have a job at a known production company called Musashino Animation. Working at an animation industry may seem really easy at first, but the girls later discovered that the animation industry is a tough job to have. The dream of working in the anime industry turns out to be one of the hardest and stressful jobs that you can ever think of.

PROS

+ Depicts how the anime industry works.

+ You will watch an anime in an anime.

+ You’ll learn how an anime is produced or created.

CONS

– Some episodes can get boring sometimes.

Many anime protagonists begin as the underdog, amateurs who must experience various trials and tribulations before overcoming a heavy obstacle in the climax. This is what I would call the default setup for a series, simply because this approach works. Viewers love rooting for hardworking characters who begin at some type of disadvantage. In fact, my favorite anime Hunter x Hunter follows this precise setup with the audience watching Gon’s journey of becoming a hunter and his adventures afterward.

Akagi is different. I recall the explosive popularity of Death Note because its main character Light Yagami was so confident, ambitious, and powerful from the beginning of the series. In a similar vein, Akagi is just as brilliant, a mahjong prodigy from Episode 1. He appears arrogant, but this confidence arises from his unwavering trust in his instinct and judgement. These types of protagonists are also relatively easy to root for, or at least admirable, as they command an awe-inspiring presence on screen, demanding full attention from the audience.

Such characters are entertaining to watch, not just because of their early-established brilliance, but also because their sense of justice is atypical. Gon’s ideals of justice are quite mainstream, as he seeks to destroy villains and abides by heroic principles of righteousness. On the other hand, Akagi or Light resemble anti-heroes, with questionable morals. These motives, which lead to their surprising actions, are interesting case studies presented to the audience.

However, despite an unique approach to character development in Akagi, I am still unable to fully appreciate the series because it requires a certain level of knowledge regarding mahjong. Though I am acquainted with the basic rules of the game, some moves in the anime are just too complex for me to understand, so I can only rely on other characters saying things like “What reckless luck!” to determine the progress of the game. Even after trying this series for a second time, I can’t seem to watch past Episode 5.

Anime: Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan (The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.)

| Episode: 31

Sound of Love (Part 10) – On Mirrors

We can attack Episode 10 from a few different angles. Characters like Asuka and Kaori get some needed development; a new conflict for the band is born; some interesting directing stuff is going on. But as interesting a topic of Asuka is at this point, I still don’t feel like there’s enough evidence to properly analyze her/her actions (especially considering how large a role she’ll play in Season 2). I also feel that any analysis of other specific topics would be redundant at this point. Instead, Episode 10 is best investigated as a figurative mirror of past conflicts and drama.

This mirror is most apparent in the main conflict of the episode: the band’s suspicion that Taki played favorites in the audition for the trumpet solo. Back when Taki threatened to keep the band out of SunFes, the band reached an impasse where practice halted and the section leaders met to plan their course of action. The band (with a few exceptions) unified against Taki until the conflict was resolved. In Episode 10, the band has likewise reached an impasse and has returned to playing in sectionals. What is different from last time is that a band member (Reina) is also a target for the band’s animosity. Additionally, Taki was in control of the band at the start of the season, but has lost control of the audition situation.

There was conflict before, but Taki created it willingly and used it to his advantage by unifying and motivating the band. This new conflict is out of control, largely because of the band’s increased passions towards music. As the band members walk along the painful path, the stakes of their journey increase. They care more about the music they make and the chances they’re given. Yuko doesn’t make a fuss about the audition simply because her friend didn’t win, but rather because Kaori’s dream was (presumably) related to playing the solo in her third year.

In this way, the mirrors of Episode 10 exemplify the struggles of failure and setback that one encounters on the painful path. As Kumiko says, the characters learn “how arduous it is to try to be strong, to try to be special.” True as that may be, these characters don’t encounter only failure on their paths. Let’s look at a few more mirrored moments to clarify.

Although I don’t wish to analyze Asuka just yet, we can spend some time on Haruka. We know that Haruka only took the position of club president because Asuka wouldn’t and that (from her breakdown when Aoi quit) Haruka doesn’t feel she lives up to the position. This feeling still plagues Haruka in Episode 10, but she does begin to step forward despite it. She sees that Asuka doesn’t care about the conflict over the trumpet solo, so she accepts that she’ll have to handle the situation alone. We never learn whether she’d fully follow through with her plan because she’s interrupted by Taki before getting a chance to speak to the band. Still, Haruka’s certainly improved from earlier when all she could do was doubt herself and stay at home. I do feel Haruka is cheated out of part of her development here, but it’s a nice precursor to someone who does clearly develop.

Kumiko, of course, takes a major step forward this episode. She actually has two mirrors associated with her, and both resolve cleanly. The first comes in the form of a flashback to middle school when an upperclassman raged at Kumiko for making the “A” group while she did not. This informs Kumiko’s expectations of Natsuki’s reaction to the same situation this year. However, Natsuki does not lash out at Kumiko and, in fact, cheers Kumiko on. This is partly because Natsuki inherently isn’t the kind of person to act that way, but also because of Kumiko’s actions earlier in the series. Kumiko was the main force that inspired Natsuki to start practicing, so she’s “glad” that Kumiko received the just reward for her hard work.

I’m really not crazy.

Natsuki’s talk reinforces the belief that reaching out to others will enable you both to step forward in life (in Kumiko’s mind certainly, if not also ours). Thus, when Kumiko encounters her second mirrored moment—Reina storming out of practice—she reaches out once more. This scene mirrors Aoi’s departure from the band in both action and direction. This time, as Kumiko runs out of the band room, she’s able to respond to Reina’s emotions. Whereas she couldn’t provide a reason for Aoi to stay in band, nor an attribute that made Haruka a good president, she does provide support for Reina. The lighting in this scene actually helps display this difference, too. Kumiko again approaches from the light, and she and Reina hug just at the edge of the shadows. Previously, Aoi retreated to darkness as Kumiko could do nothing.

So, these mirrored moments prove that the path towards being special is difficult, but also show that there are victories to be had on the way. Those little victories are what allow us to continue down this “arduous” and painful path. A brief execution of the perfect play can make months of training worth it to an athlete. A single moment where you succeed where you previously failed can give you the strength to carry on into the future. Sometimes all the motivation you need can be found in a mirror, where you see a brand new you. Where does that motivation take you? Into the next piece, of course.

remember, these sorts of blogs are under fair use

yes, that is really is the title of the show

so i just finished watching the devil is a part -timer and its really good; there was some really good scenes in the show, trying to choose one was impossible for me, they were just too good to chose from xD

all the characters were memorable, the devil was amusing, chiho was silly to watch but she is one of the more memorable characters in anime, lucifer was by far my favourite character (yeah, he was just a cool guy, i’m a lot like him too, i just browse the internet alot and don’t really take part in any conversation)

emilia was such a bad-ass in this show, everything she did was awesome!

this is a show that tries to take itself seriously as well as take the p*ss of satanic…stuff, and it did a great job on that, much unlike the sh*t show Mr Pickels

(trust me, you don’t want to watch this show, this is a show that will make you feel sick, and not in a good way…no! stop googling it! i’m warning you! don’t do it….and you still watch it. And for those who did not google it “good boy”)

also who does not love the intro? it may not have very much to do with the anime itself, but its one of my favourite anime intros by far, seriously, I immediately downloaded the song for osu!, thats how good it was

so why did i say it was very good? well the content of the show was very slow, and sometimes there were episodes that did not have much to offer at all sadly, which is why i did not consider it “brilliant”

do i recommend the show, yes, will you be satisfied with this show? maybe not 100% but none the less its worth buying (hey, and its cheap, i only spent £9 for the complete collection)

this is a show that anyone who is into dark, but silly shows….or just a better way to watch Mr Pickles

This is Flying FoxBat. He is going to show up in the next part of our story! His colors are orange, white and black. He is much bigger than the FruitBats. Learn more about real flying foxes here:

http://bats.org.au/about-bats/flying-foxes.php

Kingyo/ Watercolor / August 2016

I have been sick the past week so forgive my absence. But in my absence, I was very productive with studying watercolors.   This painting, Kingyo (Goldfish) was long coming. It was a concept from way before which I didn’t know if I had the skills or the guts to do.

The concept is a Matsuri/ Japanese festival where the girl won a goldfish. And I had some idea of goldfish swimming around her playfully as she recalls the memory of how she won her trinket. I wanted to do playful primaries. I did this on Arches Hotpress and I loved the experience

I want to redo the concept to make the kimono prettier  and the goldfish brighter. I also can’t decide on which scan to use since the scanner kills my colors.

Lamplighter/ August 2016

The next watercolor illustration is done one arches coldpress paper , 300 GSM. The painting turned out smoother than the first one although the background employed the same techniques of salting and wet on wet.

The painting is still a Matsuri painting where the girl is holding a lamp for a festival dance or parade. I did the galaxy background on it to show the evening sky. I was trying to emphasize the lamp light and I think I did ok with it. The hair was my biggest decision. I wanted somethign that wont distract from the rest of the picture and I hope I did the right thing by pulling in the colors of the bg.

I still have a lot to work on with folds and cloth and I need patience to do kimono design.

I think I will do more studies on cloth and learn more watercolor blending in the future. Hopefully I willmaster this illustration tool.

The Eccentric Family – Episode 6

Score: 8.75/10.

Fate/Zero – Episode 6

Score: 6.5/10.

ZAC EFRON ZAC EFRON ZAC EFRON…

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Thanks ‘Nah Mean’ with their song “Wasted(Hello)” that we used for out outro. Find them on sound cloud at:

http://www.soundcloud.com/nahmeanbrah

MEDIA ENCLOSURE: Download

Anime: Teekyuu 4

| Episode: 47

You have some balls Ken. I mean, you really have some balls. How the hell are you going to ask your previous girl (cause we all know he likes her) to help you get the other girl that you like back (cause we all know that you like her too). That’s like asking your ex (that you haven’t gotten over) to help save your current girlfriend. If that isn’t one complicated love triangle, I don’t know what is. Ok, maybe there might be more complicated love triangles. All I know, is that I wouldn’t trust her. Something about her accepting to help Ken doesn’t seem right. Not to mention, it’s not like she won’t cut your ass if she felt like it, cause we all know she is a footstep away from giving you another love tap with her sword. Now that I think about it…that sentence doesn’t sound right…and I am going to keep it. Nothing like ending your first paragraph with some harmless perverted creepy stuff. ^~^

Also, what did this girl do? She stabbed the water tank once, and it ended up spilling over two different parts? Is this the Pirates Game where if you stab the wrong part, you lose? Did you stab the wrong part?

Yukina, I think you were better off just sticking with no clothes. I mean, the outfit you got on girl, reminds me of some of the girls who walk around parts of Jersey. Not hating though,

Also, just as a heads up, don’t try to look up for that scene where Yukina was walking around with barely any clothes. I just Googled it, and had to say…Yukina has a small rack. Ken…I hope you’re not a boobies person. Kind of ruined my night though. Damn Google for messing with me. So instead of finding something related to Yukina being kidnapped, while naked, here is a random picture of a monkey with a towel on. :-D Pretty much the same thing.

Also as a heads up, remember to check out the role play blog. I will continue with it, but you guys control the outcome.

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The Phantom Files: Eve