Dub Disappointment

“Yona of the Yawn,” Christian has been calling my latest obsession, Yona of the Dawn.  I had watched it a couple months back in subtitle, hoping it would help my ear for the Japanese language, and I loved it.  Christian won’t watch sub so when we found out it was to be released in dub on Funimation, I was super excited to share my love for the show with him.  We watched the first few episodes the weekend after the release and it was…. slow.

I did not remember it being like this!  I remember being caught up in the whirlwind of emotions Yona had experienced at the death of her father, the betrayal of her close childhood friend and potential lover, and the terror of being hunted by those she had considered loyal.  What happened?

My first thought was that Christian’s cynicism had dampened the excitement I had for watching the show with him.  Now, he had already been calling it “Yona of the Yawn” for a couple months just to annoy me.  I really wanted to prove him wrong and I didn’t think my expectations were too high.  You know how you feel when you’re excited to share something and the person you try to share it with is just not open-minded about it?  It’s a downer to say the least.

After that initial night of watching the first few episodes, I had a hard time convincing him to finish it.  We did eventually, after a few weeks’ break.  It bothered me to think that maybe I had been wrong about the show, so I went back and watched the sub again.  I still had all the same feelings as the first time I watched it in sub.  Nope, it was definitely the dub.  Something was off about it.

Now, I’d like to point out that I have not watched a whole lot of sub/dub versions, and certainly not with the purpose to compare the two.  Typically I watch anime in sub if they seem really interesting to me and maybe would not appeal to Christian.  That way, I know I won’t get an ear full for watching something cool without him.  Hey, I need something to do while he’s playing some Blizzard game or another on his PC.

Snow White with the Red Hair was a great example.  I binged that one in one weekend and really enjoyed it.  When it released in dub, we watched it together and it was a winner.  I liked both sub and dub equally.  Alternatively, I watched part of Wolf Girl and Black Prince in sub, rage quit, and now I won’t have to watch it with him because I told him – or more accurately, ranted- on how awful it was.  So Yona of the Dawn is the first that I was actually disappointed in the dub version.

The only other explanation left is the voice acting.  Right off the bat, we recognized voices and familiar names in the credits.  They really sought out some well known voice actors for this show!  Christopher Sabat, Eric Vale, Monica Rial, Ian Sinclair… those are BIG names, some of which are in our favorite anime.

I don’t think it is so much the voice acting that was off but maybe the fact that I was so hung up on deciding if the voice matched the character based on what I already knew- sub and manga.  I didn’t think Yona’s voice matched, she was just way too whiny.  Of course, she’s supposed to be whiny at first, as a spoiled princess, but as her character developed, I still found her voice grating on my nerves.  Yoon did not match either, but I could get over that.  My love with the show and my love for the main character Yona, were one in the same.  If I had a hard time relating to her in the dub version, it did not have the same emotional effect it had on me from the sub version.

As for Christian, he also found it lacking, but not in the same way.  Sadly, like many of the new anime out there, it’s a teaser for the manga series (which is awesome, I must add!).  There is no word on a season 2 and the last episode of season 1 is far from a closing to the series.  Season 1 seemed more like a prequel leading up to something greater than an actual storyline.  Final verdict from Christian: It was okay.

There was a OVA that he has not seen, which centers on Kija, the White Dragon.  It has not been dubbed that I know of.  Just announced is a 2nd OVA, in 2 episodes to be released on DVD August 18-19, 2016, featuring Zeno’s story arc.  That’s nice since he only got about 30 minutes air time at the very end of season 1.  But I digress.

Twitter- Kusanagi Mizuho

So while I still can’t put my finger on the exact reason that the dub was disappointing, perhaps it’s a little of everything I’ve mentioned above.  Perhaps Christian is partly right, that the ending is not an ending but a beginning (season 1 ends around chapter 46 of the manga, there are currently 126 chapters).  And the best is yet to come, if it comes at all.

What do you think?  I know we all have our personal preferences when it comes to sub/dub, and while I don’t want to get into which is better, etc, I’m curious to know if any of you have watched an anime in both sub and dub and what conclusions you came to on it.

Dark Matter

There’s been a void in the sci-fi universe since the ending of Firefly nearly 15 years ago. Who would’ve thunk a mashup of two opposing genres resulting in a cowboy in space would have actually been successful? Cowboy Bebop anyone?
Getting a little tired of anime (hey, it happens), I fell upon Dark Matter on Netflix. It’s a bit more space punk than space cowboy, and it’s got nothing on Firefly, but I binged season 1 in one day so…

The show opens on the crew awakening from emergency pods aboard their ship. They have no idea who they are, where they are, or where they were headed. Not even knowing their names, they decide to refer to themselves by number in the order in which they woke up, One through Six, plus an android.  Luckily, their skills and talents are still intact and they are able to ascertain pretty quickly what each of their roles on the ship are; however, the majority mostly function as muscle for the team. More specifically, all four men are the muscle and don’t seem to be much useful for anything else. The two women have more defined roles. “Two” knows everything about flying and comes out on top as the leader immediately. On top of that she can really kick some ass. “Five” has some skill with tech and maybe some medical knowledge, though that really never gets tested.

Their identities are not mystery for long as the android is able to pull profiles from the data system once the ship has been repaired. Most of the crew do not like what they learned and try to come to terms, either by attempting to right the wrongs of their former life or pretending like it never happened at all. The only mystery that remains is which of the crew stole their memories and why?
We see bits and pieces coming back as they discover their past or it comes back to haunt them in the form of enemies. Just when you think you’ve figured out one, some part of their past rears its ugly head and surprises you. The best part about this show is that it never got boring, though with only 13 episodes, there’s not much time for that.

In short, it’s a pale comparison to Firefly’s legacy, but there’s not much out there to fill that void. Give it a try and see how you like it.

Watch season 1 on Netflix or watch episodes on syfy channel’s website syfy.com. Season 2 has already begun so I’ve some catching up to do.

Manga Minute: Ookami-Heika no Hanayame

For the past six months or so, I’ve been reading plenty of manga, so I thought I’d start a little series here to discuss these little gems (or horrors!) I’ve found.  We did a quick spotlight on one for Valentine’s Day, Shiawase Kissa Sanchoume (Happy Cafe), which is a cute shoujo romance/comedy about part-time cafe worker Uru and her weird co-workers.  I don’t know why I read shoujo when the main character never chooses the love interest I would like to see her pick.  I guess I just like the cutsie art.

Moving on to the latest manga I’ve been working through: Ookami-Heika no Hanayame (Wolf King’s Bride), another shoujo romance/comedy with historical charm.  To stave off marriage proposals of ambitious government officials, the king’s aid hires a part-time consort.  Yuurin is a city girl with a father who is constantly in trouble with the debt collectors and a younger brother with school tuition to pay.  In need of the money, she takes the job with the belief that the Wolf King is just an act to secure the throne, and  the king is truly a puppy, only showing this side of his personality to those he trusts completely.

Sensing the loneliness of the King, Yuurin pledges to be there for the King when he needs her.  He comes to her after his work is finished at the palace and they often drink tea together and talk before he retires for the night.  It remains chaste and pure behind the scenes for all the acting they do in public. Over the course of the manga, Yuurin must overcome many obstacles, some as small as acting her part well, and others as dangerous as assassination attempts.  We discover soon enough, that like the King, Yuurin’s personality also has another side, a fierce and strong side.

Her greatest fear though, is when the “Wolf King” personality comes out.  Yuurin is known in her hometown as not being very popular with the boys, so when handsome, forward Wolf King so much as pays her a compliment, she panics.

Unfortunately, Yuurin is constantly getting into trouble and breaking things, resulting in her need to continue to work as a part-time bride for the King.  The King grows very fond of Yuurin so some of these misfortunes seem almost planned.  Eventually, Yuurin figures out that the quick beating of her heart means she has fallen for the King and tries desperately to talk herself out of such foolish feelings.  After all, she is a lowly commoner and he is way above her station.

This manga is still ongoing and currently in the 43rd chapter as translated on Manga Fox.  If you like slow building romance with a sprinkling of humor set in historical scene, then this one is for you.  It reminds me a little bit of Kamisama Hajimemashita minus the reverse harem aspect.  These two are the only love interest in this story with the only things coming between them is politics, intrigue, and their own stubbornness.

The Otherworld in Anime: Demons

 

Nearly every culture has stories about demons or malevolent entities that plague the lives of humankind.  For this post, we’ll concentrate on the Western demon archetype.  We’ll cover traditional Asian spirits and creatures in the next installment of the series.  If you missed the last one, read it here: The Otherworld in Anime: Vampires

The stereotypical western style demon is dark and scary, with red eyes.  Sometimes sharp teeth, sometimes long clawed, but they all have one thing it common- they’re evil.  Once again, anime pushes the boundaries and takes cliches just a little bit further into the realm of obscurity with these character types.  Here are our favorites:

Good Demons?

Sadao Maou (Satan), The Devil’s a Part-Timer

Our first glimpse at Satan is in his powerful ‘true’ form, down to red eyes, horns, and cloven hooves.  He is forced to retreat from the world of Ente Isla as the Hero’s forces of good advance.  Satan and his sidekick somehow end up jumping dimensions straight into Japan.  Needing some way to sustain themselves, Satan gets a part-time job at MgRonalds, flipping burgers and peppering fries.

Satan’s seeming transformation into a gentle, generous, kind-hearted person confounded the Hero, Amelia, who had followed Satan through the portal to Earth.  The series follows her as she tails him, convinced he’s up to no good as he attempts to climb MgRonald’s corporate ladder to world domination.  It is as ridiculous as it sounds and it’s fantastically funny.  This anime makes fun of itself!

 

Demon Club

High School DxD

Rias Gremory is a demon of noble blood and president of the school’s Occult Research club.  She takes a special interest in Issei, a boy she revived after he was killed by his first girlfriend, and makes him her demon pawn in this anime.  The club members’ roles are named after chess pieces, Rias being the King.  They engage in battle against demons, angels, and fallen angels.

There isn’t really anything evil about these demons, unless you count all the naughty “humor”, most of which got nothing more from me than an eye roll.  Now, I don’t mind some fan service, and dirty humor I typically find hilarious, but this anime bored me to death.  Don’t get me wrong, I really like some of the ecchi anime out there such as Is This a Zombie, Rosario + Vampire, and Heaven’s Lost Property, but this one disappointed me.

I did enjoy the fighting scenes and the chess piece take was interesting, but the characters and plot fell flat for me.  I just did not care if any of them died so I was not invested at all.  Christian did like this anime though, so it made our list.  It was probably all the boobs.  And yes, you will need to keep this away from the kiddo’s eyes as there is a whole lot of nipple in this anime.

 

Demon World

Blood Lad

Blood Lad’s story actually follows a vampire, but I wanted to mention the world that it is set in because it’s probably the best thing about this anime.  The land is divided up into territories, with a boss over each territory.  Anyone can take over a territory by defeating the local boss in combat.  With a walk down the street, one can encounter any type of strange being on the sidewalk.  Kinda like LA.  Except more colorful.

Anime Adaptation

Disgaea

Ahhh, this one makes me nostalgic for the good old days when I wasn’t so far in debt and actually enjoyed cooking diner for my husband… I was usually watching him play this game between intermittently stirring the pasta.  I enjoyed the anime just as much, along with this entertaining character:

Mid-Boss

The anime takes place in the Netherworld, as demon prince Laharl tries to secure the throne as Overload with traveling companions Flonne, angel in training, and not so loyal demon Etna.  Flonne attempts to turn Laharl into a caring, loving being as Etna schemes for the throne with her army of prinnies.

Dood!  Sorry, I couldn’t help myself!

And the one we’ve all been waiting for….

Favorite Demon

Sebastian Michaelis, Black Butler

 

Sebastian is the demon hungry for Ciel’s soul, in the guise of the Phantomhive household butler.  Ciel sealed a contract with Sebastian to ensure his vengence of his family’s death and his own mistreatment, in return, Sebastian will devour his soul.  We see many different sides to Sebastian through the series, taking on many different roles.  Cooking, cleaning, gardening, and dog taming. Most of the time spent at the countryside house is spent cleaning up after his subordinates messes and caring for Ciel’s immediate needs.

However, once Ciel is called to investigate on behalf of the Queen, Sebastian’s role changes drastically.  And if the glove comes off, you know shit just got serious.  Aren’t we all just waiting for that moment when Ciel commands him with his cursed eye and Sebastian slides his glove off to reveal the matching symbol on his hand?  Yes!

A musician, tall, dark, handsome, and he loves cats!  Winner!  …Besides, ya know, the demon thing.  He’s just one hell of a butler.

---

 

There were a surprising number of demons to choose from so we had to break up the subject into two posts!  Next post we’ll discuss Asian demons and entities, so watch out for that one.  What are your favorite demons in anime?  I actually had a difficult time thinking of a truly evil demon.  Help?

Erased: It’s a Wild Ride

On a side note, this would make a great drinking game… take a shot every time you hear this line!

Let me just gush about this anime for a minute.  You’ll find no in-dept analysis or theorizing here.  I just wanted to express how much I loved this series!  It follows Satoru, who experiences what he calls “revival”, in which he is transported back in time to prevent some tragedy from happening.  We never do learn how this is done, but there is a brief comparison toward the end of the series to “The Spider’s Thread” which is an old Japanese short story.  I really know so little about Japanese culture that this confused me more than explaining anything to me.

Despite that, the mystery really had me thinking, so much so that I had difficulty falling asleep at night after watching the show!  Can one change the past?  What consequences will this have in the future?  I had a strong suspicion of who the big baddie was, and then something would happen to make me doubt, and I’d have to rethink it.  I was hoping so badly that Satoru could save the people he cared for, only to be devastated, then hope reborn again.

Why are you jerking me around with this anime?!?  I laughed, I cried, I cheered, was elated and crushed, all within an hour’s time.  I completely forgot I was even watching an anime, I was so engrossed with it.  I was sucked into their world, into Satoru’s story.  I really cared about the characters, especially the children, and I really enjoyed the show while he was a 10-11 year old.  The art is amazing, all the facial expression and body language really pops out to me.  I had been rationing the episodes, only watching 2 episodes per night, but last night I had to watch all of them and put myself out of my misery!  I was starting to feel bipolar.

I liked the ending.  It wrapped up the story and actually felt like an ending, which seems so rare these days.  There were surprises all the way to the end and I loved that!  I’m not really one for mystery and suspense but I’m rethinking that now.  I know there are extremes out there in the way of reviews for this anime.  So I wanted to ask you all: Did you watch Erased?  Did you ride the crazy train?  Did you love it or hate it?

Lvl Up Expo Final Recap

Final impressions: it really could have been more organized. With the event center hosting a culinary school graduation in the morning, parking was a nightmare. Then we waited in line for an hour to get in. We missed most of the Ouran High School Host Club panel.  The panel I was so excited to see was entertaining but not what I expected at all. It was made up of cosplaying teenagers that I think had a lot more fun than the audience.

They had a difficult time with this game because they couldn’t see the floor!

There were a lot of cosplayers, some of them really putting though and effort into their costumes and makeup. I’m glad there was such a good turnout in that arena.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

There were a lot of vendors, which is good to know for next year when maybe we’ll have the funds to splurge on such things. The original art was very impressive but some of the figures and kits were pretty expensive.  We are thinking sometime in the future we would be able to sell some of our own product at events to give convention attendees a less expensive alternative.  The aisles between vendors needs to be wider because there was major crowd control issues and it was difficult to get from one area to another.

The voice actor panel we attended featuring Steve Blum and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn was the highlight of the expo for us and we wished they had more panels like this one.  I think the expo was primarily created for gamers and not for anime, so we were not their target audience and it showed.  Next time I think we will skip the Lvl Up expo and save our convention funds for Anime Expo Los Angeles, which is one we’ve really been wanting to attend for a couple years now.

VA Steve Blum: “I’m a terrible anime fan”

Steve Blum and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn

Today’s panel at Lvl Up expo featuring voice actors Steve Blum and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn was the hit of the day.  After a quick introduction by both, it went immediately into a Q&A session.

First, for those who don’t know who each are, let me share our favorite characters voiced by each actor:

Steve Blum- See a list of all his work here at Behind the Voice Actors

Mary Elizabeth McGlynn- See a list of all her work here at Behind the Voice Actors

 

They were not at liberty to discuss all the projects that they are currently working on but Mary Elizabeth McGlynn shared that she is directing a new animated 2017 Tangled series featuring the original cast of the movie plus Steve Blum as a new character.  She is also the singer in Silent Hill.  Ms. McGlynn also directed Naruto for 10 years, and is still doing the voice of Katsuyu, the “slug that has a sphincter for the mouth.”

“That is so hot” Steve commented, laughing, before telling the audience that he is working on some Toonami projects, some video games, the animated series Star Wars Rebels and Transformers Rescue Bots.

Here are some Q&A highlights:

If Spike met Space Dandy what would happen?

Steve Blum replies, “They’d probably fight and then go out for beers. That’s what I imagine. Yeah, and Spike would learn about the value of boobs, Spike doesn’t seem to pay much attention to them too much.”

Mary comments, “That’s because he’s in love with Julia.”

“That’s what it is, ” Steve agrees.  “He’s in love with Julia.  He only thinks of Julia’s boobs”

The response by Steve for the following question astounds me: Do you watch the anime you voice act in?

“Very seldom.  I’ve seen a few of them.  I’ve seen Cowboy Bebop for the first time 4-5 years ago out of sequence.  I’m a terrible anime fan. I need to watch that again.  The ones that I’ve watched end to end, I was working on as a writer.  So Digimon, I’ve watched that, seasons 3-4.  Naruto I’ve seen maybe 5 episodes.  I haven’t seen Samarai Champloo (lots of gasping from the audience here!) I feel terrible about that, I know, I know.  I have them carefully tucked away in my office, still shrink wrapped and carefully preserved so when things settle down and I have time I’ll do it.”

Steve Blum on Keaun Reeves, the script for Cowboy Bebop, and prospects of a live action film:

“Well there was a script written for Cowboy Bebop live action. Keanu Reeves was attached to that.  And he was actually-”  Lots of grumbling from the audience here.

Ms. McGlynn jumps in here. “No, he optioned it.  He has the option.”

From Steve,

“Yeah, he has the rights for this thing, or he did at one time.  Like you , I had the same reaction as you to this.  This was many years ago, but I actually met him at an airport a few years ago and we had a conversation.  First of all, I was shocked that he knew who I was. I was his fanboy and I had to have that moment.  I see him standing there buying some gum or something and ‘Uh hi, I’m Steve and I worked on Cowboy Bebop.’ And he says, ‘Oh, I just watched the whole show, I know who you are man!’

And we had this great conversation, but I’m so impressed on how invested he was in the project.  And just looking at him and his body type, his tall lanky body type…and the investment he had, he just had this child-like interest in the show.  And for me, as an actor, when you have that kind of passion going into any project, I felt like he could have done a really good job.  What he told me was that the script was so great, but it was going to be so expensive that he was afraid it would never get green lit, and if it ever did get the green light that he would be too old to do his own stunts.  And that was really important, that he does his own stunts.  So if it ever does get green lit, and he’s not a part of it, hopefully he’ll find somebody who can do all their own stunts.”

The fan asking the question suggested crowdfunding.

Ms. McGlynn then says, “That script is about $500 million, so that would be a big go-fund-me.”

“Yeah, he said it was massively expense,” Steve agreed.  “But to do it right, it would have to be a very expensive film.  It would have to have that epic, it would have to have a great soundtrack, you would have to get Yoko Kanno on board.  I would have loved to do a cameo in it.”

A fan asked if Steve Blum could give us his favorite lines from Bulletstorm:

(sorry for the shoddy video people!) Watch it on YouTube here!

One fan asked what Mr. Blum would look like as a woman and what Ms. McGlynn would look like as a man:

“Well we know because we do it at home,” Steve Blum joked.

Ms McGlynn says, “I know I’d probably sound the same because I have a deep voice.  Yes, I was an alto, that’s true!  Um, I don’t know,  I’d look like Troy Baker.  I have no idea!  In my mind I’d look like Troy Baker but in reality I might look like the comic book guy from the Simpsons. I have no idea.”

Mr. Blum replied, “I would still do you.”  Which resulted in lots of laughter from the audience.  “Oh, I said that aloud, I’m sorry.”  Then answers, “I’d look like a female version of the Thing probably.”

Another fan asked how do you feel when you see people cosplay as characters you voice acted for?

“Squeeeee!” Mary Elizabeth McGlynn answered.

Steve Blum added, “It’s pretty awesome.  It was so surreal to see that for the first time, when it first started happening.  I’m finally getting used to it now.  I still get really excited.  I take pictures with those that dress up as my characters.  Yeah, I love it.  I think it’s amazing.  I wish I could pull off the look of one of my characters.”

Mary Elizabeth McGlynn said, “We did go to the ren fair a couple weeks ago and I did dress up as Johanna from Diablo 3.  I did go as a female crusader, which was really fun.  She was a drunk crusader.”

Steve Blum said, “I’ve actually walked behind people and voiced them.  I used to do that before I was a voice actor.  I would do that at Disneyland.  I would walk behind Goofey [does imitation of his voice] ‘Wow, you look great from behind!'”

So you want to be a voice actor?  Their suggestions are to go to iwanttobeavoiceactor.com created by Dee Bradley Baker.  Also, do a lot of reading aloud, putting voices to the different characters.  And do it because you love it, not because you are looking to get rich off of it.

A couple comments made by the actors on their visit to Las Vegas: Mary loves Game of Thrones TV series but apparently the casino game devoured $20 so she doesn’t recommend it.  (But thanks for that.  Tourism revenue means we don’t have to pay state taxes in Nevada!)  Steve didn’t particularly like the game either since the it doesn’t show a single boob.

If I had to guess, I’d say he’s a boob man! ;-P

As you can tell, it was a really great panel session with lots of laughs and lots of interesting conversation.  They were extremely open to the crowd commenting on their reaction and it was just a really nice back and forth interaction.  I would love to see more panels like this one at future events!

Ouran Panel

Coming to you from Lvl Up Expo for this quick post.  Unfortunately, we missed the first half of this panel.  Entry into the expo was unorganized and extremely frustrating.  Apparently there was a culinary school graduation that morning so there was no parking until that let out and a looooong line to get into the building for the expo.

Anyway, long story short, the part of the panel we were finally able to see was pretty disappointing.  It was a group of kids dressed in cosplay as the host club doing all sorts of ridiculous things that the audience dared them to.  I thought maybe it would be a discussion about the animation, music, maybe even the manga.  It was a little bit entertaining, probably would have been more so if I had visited the bar first, but I think I was about 15 years older than their target audience for this one.

Sigh.  Now I’m incredibly depressed.

Lvl Up Expo

Just a quick post to share with you all that we will be attending this gaming/anime convention here in Las Vegas for our first time.  We’ve always wanted to attend so we are super excited!  I’m really looking forward to the Oran Panel tomorrow afternoon!  I’ll be posting throughout the weekend on all the awesome stuff we see so you all can live vicariously through us!

The two special guests that will be appearing are the voice actors of this duo:

On the same stage.  Together.

Steve Blum and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn!

PLUS- gaming tournaments through the entire convention

 

It’s going to be a great weekend!!

6 Feel-Good Anime

You come home from a long, rough day at school/work with barely enough mental power to change out of your clothes.  You’re so stressed out that even the 5 o’clock news makes you want to cry.

Time to lose yourself in a feel-good anime and leave this messed up world behind.  Here are 6 anime that are like a good stack of pancakes, light and fluffy with a touch of sweetness.  I mean, come on, what’s better comfort food than a nice stack of pancakes?

Baka and Test

This is our #1 go-to for decompressing.  There is no negativity or darkness in this rainbow themed anime.  Follow the adventures of Akihisa Yoshii, probationary student and lowest scoring student in the school.  It is quite entertaining to watch how truly stupid he is, not just in academics, but also in dealing with this fellow classmates.  Class President Sakamoto Yuuji often takes advantage of Akihisa’s gullibility and the effects are hilarious.

Not to mention our favorite FFF inquisition, group of hooded figures with red eyes that punish guys that get attention from girls.  Akihisa is often their target, being a love interest of two classmates, a classmate’s little sister, and also a male classmate.

 

The main plot in season 1 (there are 2 seasons), is to show the school that class F is not as stupid as everyone believes and that book smarts aren’t the only kind of smarts that are important in life.  Students in each class wage wars on other classes, sending game-like avatars to battle for them.  Cheering for the underdog will not have you disappointed here as in so many other anime.  And there’s nothing like seeing someone come from the bottom of the totem pole to wreck the top half to give you some hope for your own situation.

*Shameless plug, we have Baka and Test figures in our ebay store at the moment Otherworld Otaku Ebay* 🙂

My Bride is a Mermaid

Another school themed anime, this one revolves around the “engagement” of middle school kids Nagasumi and Sun.  Sun is a mermaid who saved Nagasumi from drowning on his family’s vacation to visit his grandmother.  Anyone who sees Sun’s true mermaid form must die or become part of the family through marriage to keep the family secret.  It so happens that Sun’s father is a powerful and scary looking mob boss, so Nagasumi is forced to ask Sun’s hand in marriage to save his family, and Sun herself, from death.

Nagasumi and family return to their everyday life after vacation, bringing Sun to live with them in the city, and so comedy ensues.  Keeping Sun’s secret safe is difficult enough, as her legs turn to a mermaid tail whenever wet, but add the overprotective, overbearing Seto family into the mix and it’s non-stop laughs as Nagasumi tries to keep from being shark food.

 

Oran High School Host Club

Somehow this anime falls into the category despite the fact that the main character is pretty much indentured to servitude to the host club for breaking a valuable vase. (“Beware of vases!”)  It is pretty light-hearted until the final episodes which are surprisingly dark with some family secrets revealed.  Otherwise, most episodes entail the host club members making sure their clientele- mostly female, but not always- get their happy ending, sort of speak.

This reverse harem anime features the cliché prince type, cool type, boy lolita type, strong silent type,  and troublemaking type Hitachiin twins, who always keep it entertaining along the way.  What sets it apart from the rest is that the female main character, Haruhi, isn’t buying any of it.  The difference between her, as the poor scholarship student, and the rest of the characters, boys of rich families with too much time on their hands, is comical.  They often refer to her as a “commoner” and the prince character, Tomaki, has a strange fascination with commoner activities and products.  Despite this, Tomaki is actually a very kind person and a lot sharper than he appears.  All the club’s antics keep the series moving and interesting through the season.  It’s a good anime to binge.

 

Haganai

Social outcasts Yozora and Kodaka form the Neighbors club in attempt to make friends with the “normal” people.  Yozora, according to Kodaka, always looks like she wants to murder someone.  And new student Kodaka immediately gets a bad boy reputation on his first day of school through a misunderstanding.  The first classmate to join is Sena, daughter of the school headmaster.  Sena is beautiful, smart, athletic, super popular with the boys, but resented by the girls for her arrogance.  Sena and Yozora bicker throughout the series exchanging witty comebacks and insulting barbs.  Kodaka’s narrative is icing on the cake.  As the story progresses, they gain more eclectic members, and their attempts at activities normal friends engage in continue to fail on an epic scale.  Their social awkwardness, relatable on some level, is incredibly fun to laugh at.

A bit of a warning here though, this anime does have adult language which is surprising as the meetings are held in a church rec room.  Also, I don’t recommend that you binge this one.  These two’s constant arguing can get grating over time, as well as Kodaka’s continual impassiveness toward the situation.  But if you like dirty humor, you’ll get a lot of laughs from this anime.

Snow White with the Red Hair

The animation and colors in this anime are so beautiful, it’ll have you relaxed in no time.  If the above titles annoy you with all the kiddie drama, this is your anime.  There’s no bickering or stupid misunderstandings.  It’s about a girl forging her own path in the world, one of her choosing.  And also of a prince growing up into his responsibilities.

Sometimes the romance portion gets a little cheesy but it’s worth it I think.  I wish I could climb through the tv and wander through their world for awhile.  It seems so peaceful.  Maybe because when Shirayuki isn’t getting kidnapped, she is busy gardening.  The outdoor scenes are so lovely with all the blues and purples.

 

Kamisama Kiss

Another pretty animation with an uplifting story.  I love anime where you can follow the main character as she learns and grows as a person.  This is one of those anime.  Nanami is abandoned by her father and homeless at the beginning of this story but is chosen by Mikage to take over as the new land god.  Nanami makes the best of a bad situation and does her best as a human god with the help of Tomoe, and the shrine spirits Onikiri and Kotetsu.  Nanami consistently rises to the occasion, whatever it may be for that episode, with kindness and grace.

Tomoe also is incredibly entertaining with his dry humor.  Although Tomoe is very powerful as a land god’s familiar, Nanami learns she can boss him around however she wants with the power of word binding.  She doesn’t use it very often and it seems to have the strongest effect when she’s upset.  There are also a lot of secondary characters that add a lot to the story, such as poor Misake, Nanami’s second familiar, a white snake that couldn’t play the flute to save his life.  hehehehe

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We actually almost have Baka and Test completely memorized, this is how much we watch it!  “Please put up with it,” is probably the most used quote in our house.  I could use some more of these to watch the way my day job is going!  Readers, what anime would make your list for relaxing and decompressing?