Down from the brink...

[felis_ultharus]

Three hours later, and I'm doing a lot better. I just nearly snapped when I read about that blow to Medicare. Plus I got into an argument with a right-winger on the SDMB this week, which is never good for my disposition. I have a hard time keeping calm in a political argument.

The Intergovernmental Affairs minister is talking about using the "notwithstanding clause" to fix the problem (never thought I'd be glad to hear those words). Plus, on the larger level, the latest polls include good news: since the last poll I saw, the Conservatives have dropped 4 points in popularity, and the NDP have risen 3. The two parties are now neck and neck. If the election were held tomorrow, we could conceivably form the opposition and get the country on track.

A long talk with Matt, and animé helped. We saw two episodes from jenjoou's shounen ai sampler. The first was called Loveless -- visually amazing, very surreal both in image and storyline. The cat ears and tails are a strange touch. I think I'd have to see more.

The other one was Meine Liebe. I'm convinced they spent a month on every scene -- the level of detail is dizzying. For the story, I'll wait and see. It looks like it has the potential to be very convoluted or very interesting, depending on how they take it.

I liked it, though. The voice actors helped. Japanese voice actors are worth listening to, while English ones all sound like they were rejected from porn films for lack of acting skill. This one had a couple of my favourites -- the sibillant friendly-touched-with-danger voice of Akira Ishida (best known as Kaworu Nagisa from Evangelion), and über-genki voice of Takahiro Sakurai (who's also Yuuri from Kyou Kara Maou, and who'll be Cloud Strife in the eagerly-awaited Advent Children).

I'm not sure if he's right for Cloud -- I can't imagine Cloud's voice like that -- but I'll wait and see.

On top of it, they have my favourite voice actor, Tomokazu Seki -- aka Shuichi from Gravitation, aka Touji from Evangelion, aka Dee from Fake, aka Kyou from Fruits Basket, aka Kamui from the X movie. I can even forgive him for having been in those two awful, sprawling Yuu Watase soap operas -- Fushigi Yuugi and Ceres: Celestial Legend.

The only way to make that lineup better would be to throw in Megumi Ogata somewhere -- she's best known as Shinji from Evangelion and Sailor Uranus from Sailor Moon. She played both roles at the same time in 1995, both of which had queer subtext, and was quite irritated when she heard that they edited it out of Sailor Moon (Her exact words were, "What are you afraid of, my cute American kittens?"). She played opposite Akira Isheda in Evangelion, and she played the boyfriend of Tomokazu Seki's character in Card Captor Sakura.

Or so I hear. I haven't seen it, yet. Canada Customs won't let the uncensored version of Card Captor Sakura into the country because it portrays one little girl who has a crush on another little girl >_<

But I better leave this off before it turns into politics again.

Comments

[felis-ultharus.livejournal.com]

"I think that in the end of Yami they sort of got together... no? Okay, I haven't read the manga, but I was just told that there's a scene in vol. 2 or so where Tsuzuki undresses at the pool and Tatsuya goes all *nosebleeeeeed*... so there's something at least >.>"

True, but that is more subtext. Loud subtext, but still subtext.

('course, we all know what subtext is an anagram for 0_o)

(And I have to agree with Yoko Matsushita's comment from the third or fourth book -- I love a man who looks good in a hakama ^_^)

"Well, I'd offer on the comic, but I can't draw backgrounds worth sh*. And yeah, I probably wouldn't do your head justice either."

I had an unusual idea for backgrounds -- an idea stolen, actually, from occasional uses in 8-Bit Theatre. It involves taking photos of objects, bluring them, and putting them against a deep background of plain black.

I like the effect. Not sure if anyone else would like it, but I always have. The blurred images make for a background that's simultaneous realistic and dreamlike.

And thank you, by the way. I asked for three titles, and you gave me four. I may break down and buy Card Captor Sakura, si9nce it's easier for an individual to get things over the border unnoticed than it is for a store. It sounds good, if a little sugary.

Kizuna is always recommended to me by people, but I don't think it's ever been commercially released, and being old, might be hard to find.

I've never heard of Ryokohunohara Labyrinth. What's it about?

Of course, you told me about Get Backers, and it's been on my list ever since. I have to say the hair styles look hypnotic.

[jenjoou.livejournal.com]

mmmmmm Hakama.... ok, I'm back. ;)

I've had no trouble getting stuff like Level-C and Skyscrapers of Oz over the border so I doubt they'll give CCS a second glance.

Kizuna is commercialy available. Both the OVA and the manga. But again, it being Canada, they're a bit harder to track down. Although I believe I have the OVA on CD... somewhere.

[seal7.livejournal.com]

Ah okay, if that's still subtext. I'm not sure where the border is, I thought maybe obviously intended, barely otherwise-interpretable things might count for a little more than subtext.
And.... the anagram... ? Omg. O_O *scandalized* I NEVER NOTICED THAT! Bwahahaha. XD

As for doing that to the backgrounds, no. I mean, I've seen it too, and it really can look good. And I guess I'd allow myself to pull it for humorous reasons, but not as a general thing. Because it's just plain cheating.... I'm not looking down on anyone who does it well, but I couldn't do that with a project I'm involved in. -_-

It's definitely sugary, CCS. It's, despite all, still a magical girl show. Should be good though.

I do think Kizuna was commercially released... well, I'm sure jenjoou can help you.

Ryokohunohara Labyrinth is about two boys who are just about to graduate from school and realize their dreams and things. Enter some disembodied girl that lives in the darkness for some reason, who wants one of them to herself. She works to drive the two of them apart, even sets up a ploy that gets the one she wants hit by a truck. He doesn't die there but his soul is knocked out of his body, though his body continues to act like him. He's so attached to the other boy though that his soul doesn't leave but stays there too, and eventually the other boy realized. Etc.
I *adored* their names! They're Hiroki and Kanata. Wah. If I ever did an anime, really, my characters would have to be named that >_>
Um. Anyhow, there's two things this anime doesn't have, which is smut and angst. Therefore, it's rather refreshing, since most of today's yaoi is set on smut and angst. However, as I said. It's weird. There's a random music sequence with a flying school in the middle of it, and the plot is never really resolved - we never get to know who the girl actually is, or why she is where she is, or even why the movie is named that. It's also really old, so I don't think it's available in very high quality... but ya. I really enjoyed it.

And do get GetBackers from your goddess :P You won't regret it. I think the main characters are not a couple but most likely friends with benefits. There is so much official art that has them all over each other in compromising situations.
Like this
or this
or this.
I've heard from people who read the manga first though that the anime is very distracting, since the girls get to keep their clothes most of the time and that takes some getting used to :P

[jenjoou.livejournal.com]

Great pics! Though Ban and Ginji rarely do anything like that within the anime itself. It's mostly in the artwork with suggestions in the story. Although, does this look like a marriage to anyone else?

Now these two are definately more than friends ;)

Yeah, the clothing is very distracting. Plus in the animated form, Hevn's boobs move, very hypnotic. :P

[felis-ultharus.livejournal.com]

Where are those two from?

[jenjoou.livejournal.com]

They're from Getbackers too, just not the main characters.

[felis-ultharus.livejournal.com]

"As for doing that to the backgrounds, no. I mean, I've seen it too, and it really can look good. And I guess I'd allow myself to pull it for humorous reasons, but not as a general thing. Because it's just plain cheating.... I'm not looking down on anyone who does it well, but I couldn't do that with a project I'm involved in. -_-"

Ah, well. To each their own. I like the idea of cartoon characters against a somewhat realistic background.

Wow. Ryokohunohara Labyrinth sounds weird. But interesting.

It's also really old, so I don't think it's available in very high quality... but ya. I really enjoyed it.

You have me convinced. I shall endeavour to find it ^_^

I like those pics, though. Especially the first one. I think I can rent that one. It's been ages since I rented anime, since we had to stop two series in the middle (Excel Saga and GTO -- in both cases, the disk seemed to be damaged. It's really jarring to have to stop an anime right in the middle)

[jenjoou.livejournal.com]

You don't need to find it, I have it. :)

And you can rent Getbackers, although ADV hasn't released everything yet. Anyways Lu probably has it :) I have the whole thing on CD if you get impatient and want to see the end though. ^_^