[AOW] Gakuen Babysitters (1/21-27/2018)

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There once was a time where I really wanted to not like cutesy anime because I felt that it was hard to explain how anime "was not just for kids, nor perverts" when I myself was watching anime that could fall in one if not both of those categories. One day I decided to stop defending my tastes (a big example of this is I really enjoyed the anime 07-Ghost which I was constantly teased for because my friends considered it a perverted boys love anime where as I completely disagreed); I decided that there was (and continue to be) plenty of anime that fell out of those categories that in order to defend all anime I'd also had to admit there existed the cute and the pervy along with the more series plot-line driven ones. Anime honestly wouldn't be anime if the extremes didn't exist! 

These days I don't have the time to watch every anime that is playing. Instead of trying to do this I watch the titles that I initially want, then if a series has enough hype I try to go back and watch after about half the episodes are released. It's hard to watch a toddler when you're trying to read subtitles on a screen. So lately I've also been watching complete, dubbed series on Hulu that I didn't get to watch when initially released (such as My Hero Academia and Accel World). When I have some time to myself I'll watch a few subbed episodes or while watching my tot I can watch simple anime that I don't really need to read to understand. That's where a series like Gakuen Babysitters is perfect! I have a part time job watching kids ages 6 weeks to 9 years old so in a way this show is a bit like my working life... though I'm 27 not a teenager.

Type: manga adaptation

Genre(s): comedy, school, shojo, slice of life

# of Episodes: to be 12

Synopsis:

This anime centers on the brothers Ryuuichi and Kotarou Kashima. Ryuuichi is in high school and Kotarou is still a toddler. After their parents are killed in a plane crash, the two brothers find themselves living with the chairwoman of the Morinomiya Academy, who herself lost her son and daughter-in-law in the same accident. The chairwoman, however, has one stipulation for the brothers in order to live with her: Ryuuichi has to work at the academy's daycare center as a babysitter. (Source: Anime News Network)

Desk Diary #2

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My desk was starting to be overrun by books so I decided to add a plastic shelf to it for the figures... I was also having a hard time seeing them when my laptop was open! I love looking at my figures, it's like they're giving me encouragement to get up and do something with my life which lately has been doing a lot of cardio to shed some weight.

Been digging KanCole art lately so set one as my wallpaper.

 Using one of those plastic shelfs for garage storage cuase I'm

not made of money. Have had this shelf for almost 5 years.

From left to right:

Miyuki from Lucky Star with my fav Fruits Basket couple.

Elsie from The World God Only Knows.

Koaru from Evangelion and a Clamp chess piece.

A Lucky Star x Haruhi prize figure.

From Left to Right:

My stack of books containing ones from my 100 Book Challenge and more.

My workout mini-journal.

Still using my Saber Lily mouse pad.

Haven't changed my Mushi-uta lock screen.

[MangaSpotlight] AoT: Before the Fall (Kodansha Comics)

The first adaptation of Attack on Titan I tried to read was Junior High, oh boy it was BAD! The jokes were forced to a point where they became so bad they weren't even badly funny. I think the problem mainly was that manga was meant to be a parody of the original, but ended up as a bad parody I really do not recommend anyone torture their-self by reading. What I will recommend is reading Before the Fall. I've only read one volume so far because the second came out while I was out of town for two months. I hope to buy the second one really soon (if my local Barnes has it). So far this has been as exciting as the anime for me (I've read very little of the original manga), in fact I'm liking the main character a bit more in this than the original. I can't wait to read the next volume to see what happens. 

Genre(s): Action, Drama, Fantasy, Shounen, Super Natural

Rating: 16+

Type: Novel Adaptation

English Publisher: Kodansha Comics

# of Volumes: 3+ (ongoing)

Synopsis:

1. Anheru works at a workshop creating protective gear/weapons for the scouting legion (the story is set before the 3D maneuver gear was invented). Anheru is a first class weapons craftsman, and therefore has direct access and also is involved in the ongoings within the scouting legion. In the story, people still didn't know about the weak points of the titans; the story is about Anheru beginning to work on the ultimate weapon/gear to fight the titans. So essentially we learn about how the 3D maneuver gear came about.
2. A baby is found crying in a mass of Titan vomit, amidst the dead titan flames. The child is called "child of titan" and is essentially hated by the people inside the walls. He also seems to grow unnaturally fast. Named Kyukuro, he parts himself from his past/upbringing and gambles on the fate of humanity by enlisting in the scouting legion.
3. Kyukuro has survived from the outside wall: in order to defeat the titans, he gets his hands on the 3D maneuver gear. Although the gear is still imperfect and causes a troublesome incident for Kyukuro, he fights the titans. Whether it is because it is his fate to fight them, or it is because of his past, he fights against them.

[AOW] Ouran High School Host CLub (8/17-23/2014)

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I guess these past few weeks have made this "hype anime month"... which has not been my intention for August at all! Personally I don't like Host Club as much as most fans of anime who live in the states do... but it is a very enjoyable anime when you want to be cheered up. I decided to have it as AOW because I'm in the middle of re-watching the series as I work on Yugioh videos (I have a YouTube channel that's been more coverage of my antics in the TCG world than anime lately). I tend to "watch" things in English when I need to focus on multitasking. ANYWAYS, I decided instead of including a trailer this time around that you should enjoy 34 minuets of bloopers from the series :D

Type: Manga Adaptation

Genre(s): Comedy, Slice of Life, Reverse Harem

# of Ep(s): 26

Synopsis:

Unfortunately for Haruhi, her high school days take a sudden turn when she stumbles upon the Host Club, an elite club filled with super rich and beautiful boys who use their specific traits and charms to entertain young ladies. Even worse, Haruhi accidentally breaks an 8-million yen vase in the club. Since she is unable to repay her debt with money, Haruhi finds herself with no choice but to work for the Host Club, becoming a male host herself.

[AOW] Akame ga Kill! (8/10-16/2014)

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Hype anime usually isn't my cup o' tea until years down the line after all the hype has died for the most part down (I didn't watch SAO nor Attack on Titan until they had been put on Netflix because I just don't like people being so hype about a piece of animation only to have that animation not be as good as its hype suggests)... but for Akame ga Kill I knew it would be hype yet I decided to watch the first two episodes when I didn't have anything to do at my local card shop. When I was about to finish episode two one of my friends came up to me and said "don't watch that anime unless you've read the manga." I looked at him, asked "Why" only to be told it has Game of Throne syndrome... well, I had just started reading the first volume of GoT sooo I knew of the syndrome, just hadn't experienced it. Needless to say, I've decided to go ahead and watch this anime because it seems to be the only anime people are talking about (which is pretty shocking considering SAO II is also playing this season).

Type: Manga Adaptation

Genre(s): Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Rating: 17+

# of Ep(s): 24

Synopsis:

In a fantasy world, fighter Tatsumi sets out for the Capitol to earn money for his starving village, and finds a world of unimaginable corruption, all spreading from the depraved Prime Minister who controls the child Emperor's ear. After nearly becoming a victim of this corruption himself, Tatsumi is recruited by Night Raid, a group of assassins dedicated to eliminating the corruption plaguing the Capitol by mercilessly killing those responsible.

[AOW] Kill la Kill (12/1-7/2013)

[Previous AOWs][Akia's MAL page]

Nothing like featuring an anime that's about crazy amounts of action and fan service to start off December. ANYWAYS, I am really late to the game with this one because I've been spending too much of my time trying to finish the story mode on Persona 4 Arena and lots League of Legends in between looking for a new job or two as well as getting through finals (I really want this semester of college to be over). This has resulted in a service lack of my watching anime. During this time, Kill la Kill has been the have to watch anime this season. It's pretty much as crazy as Panty and Stocking; no surprise considering a good chunk of the staff that worked on P&S is working on this anime as well.

Type: I'm not really sure how to classify this since this manga has been coming out since around the same time the anime started... this could be the same thing that happened with Evangelion

# of Episodes: 25

Synopsis:

Ryuuko Matoi carries a large weapon shaped like half of a pair of scissors. She's looking for the woman with the other half, who killed her father. Satsuki Kiryuuin, student council president of Honnouji Academy, is said to know the woman's identity, so Ryuuko transfers there. Those who arrive at the school receive a special "goku uniform," and Satsuki has used that power to rule the school in fear.

The story is set on a high school that the student council president Satsuki Kiryuuin rules by force. Wielding a giant Basami scissors sword, the wandering transfer student Ryuuko Matoi brings about upheaval on the campus. Ryuuko searches for the mysterious figure who caused her father's death, but confronting her are the student council's "four divine kings." Fortunately, Ryuuko is aided by a talking sailor uniform who tells her, "Wear me. When I am worn by you, this power will become manifest."
Read more at http://myanimelist.net/anime/18679/Kill_la_Kill#XrYEVjwEJmOlD23V.99

High School of the Dead Returns

If there is one anime that people keep saying "Hey Alicia, do you know if High School of the Dead is going to get a second season? That anime is kick ass!" well... the anime was named in the question. Now I can finally answer with "possibly". Still no solid green-lit for a second season of the hit zombie anime HSoTD buuuut after a 2 year hiatus the manga is finally returning to serialization via Dragon Age manga mag in Japan. This could only mean if the manga gets popular enough, or the demand for season 2 is just so overwhelming, we could see a second season by 2014. Fingers crossed.

[source: Sankaku Complex]
[source site is NSFW]

[AOW] FMA: Brotherhood & Star of Milos (10/7-13/2012) [#64]

Image copyright goes out to BONES

I remember being excited every Saturday to watch the original Fullmetal Alchemist anime on TV. While that series was not canon (it didn't follow the manga for the most part, especially in regards to how the humunculi were created), it still retained a fairly big following even to this day. I thoroughly enjoyed the original  and was told that it did not compare to the remake, Brotherhood. Brotherhood is a more mature version of the anime; this time being based on the manga (well, more of it than the original was based on). When people say the original doesn't compare, they mean it! There's way more story behind how the humunculi were created, how Ed/Al are tied into this whole alchemy mess and even a whole lot more characters (which for the most part all are like able despite being "good" or "evil"). If you watched the original and like it, I highly suggest giving Brotherhood a watch as well!

Oh, and in regards to the movie (Star of Milos) I haven't seen all of it yet. As of posting this, I'm on episode 48/64 of Brotherhood. After finishing the anime, I plan on giving the second movie a watch but I was told the movie is not canon soooo my hopes aren't as high for it being as good as the anime has been thus far.

Best part about this series is that FUNimation has it streaming (for free and dubbed in English or subbed if you so prefer) online and on Netflix! The only downside to Netflix is only 39 episodes of the 64 are on there (well, at the time of posting this), so you will at some point have to switch to FUNi's website (which is what I had to do).

OH, and last thing! This time around I'm writing the summaries myself (well not the Milos one because I haven't seen the movie). Usually I take them from ANN or Wiki, but I've decided in order to make this articles more personal and cool that making my own summaries is  a good way to do that.

~FMA: Brotherhood~

~FMA: Movie- Sacred Star of Milos~

Type: Manga adaptation

(the movie is a non-canon side story)

Genre(s): Action, Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Sci-fi

# of Episodes: 64 + 4 OVA

Summary:

~FMA: Brotherhood~

Edward and Alphonse Elric are two brothers who were seemingly abandoned as children. One day their mother passes away from an incurable disease  Stricken with grief and loneliness, the two boys perform a taboo in the alchemy world known as human transmutation; in the process Edward lost an arm and leg while his brother Alphonse lost his entire body. In order to gain their bodies back, Edward becomes a state alchemist in order to find out how to make a philosophers stone. What the boys don't know is making such a stone could cost them more than they would ever know....

~FMA: Sacred Star of Milos~

[ann]

[GIS] What is a "Gundam"?

The simple answer to this question would be "Gundam are giant robots that are piloted in some sort of fashion." but that answer doesn't really tell you much, especially if you aren't even familiar with the American counter part that is Transformers. Another way to answer this question would be "a mechanical, walking vehicle that is similar to the shape of a human" (even though there are some Gundam that have more of an animalistic shape). Gundam them selves are usually referred to as "mobile suits" and are inspired by power armors from the American novel Starship Troopers [thank you wiki]. 

You might be familiar with a little show that used to play on Cartoon Network called Megas XLR. While not the best example of an "american gundam like series" (in fact, this follows more of the format that Macross does considering the aliens versus humans and all)  it is one that from my experience a lot of the 90s cartoon watching generation have seen. While there are also no model kits that I know of from this series, and while the series itself doesn't really follow the same format as Gundam does (heck, Megas XLR focuses more on fighting an alien race rather than fighting with humans who happen to just not live on Earth) it's easier to tell people Gundam is similar to Megas XLR because it is a bit more Gundam like than Transformers because there IS  a human pilot rather than an intelligent life form that happens to take on the form of a giant robot.

I wouldn't mind fighting off aliens in a giant robot.

Want to know something interesting? The Gundam anime actually could be considered a flop- well, pre-model kit introduction. In Japan the anime (I'm of course referring to the first Gundam series, not any of the recent ones) was actually cancelled. Originally intended to be 52 episodes, the show ended at 43. It wasn't until Bandai started released kits based on the mecha designs that the show actually became popular.

Cartoon Network has played a few Gundam series over time most notably Gundam Wing and Gundam SEED. Oh, and lets not forget about that lovely little gem us Gundam fans love to hate- SD Gundam. You may have also seen Gundam 00 on Sci-fi (back before it got changed to SyFy.... sigh). Overall, Gundam has made it's way to American audiences. 

Now, there is so much more I could go into Gundam wise even just to explain the different aspects such as manga and anime that compile what is modern day Gundam, but I'll spread those out into different entries. Thank you for reading the first part of what I'm calling GIS- Gundam Info Series (well tech the second but I'll be redoing the supplies part).