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I do read books that aren't manga and watch movies that aren't anime (though not much TV that isn't anime, I confess.) But I 1) am trying to learn Japanese, 2) have a meeting in a few weeks with a TV VIP to inform him that he should hire me as an anime scout so am frantically trying to watch as much as I can to get prepared, 3) like the stuff.
Although it does make me wonder if I have _any_ interests that are not generally considered geeky: anime, manga, fantasy and sf, karate, white girl who's into Japan--even my pets advance the stereotype. The last time I was in Japan I had a conversation with a woman who had a shop where everything in it was related to rabbits. We started talking. (About 95 percent in Japanese, but it was much more stuttered and awkward than I'm making it out to be.)
Bunny woman: "Do you like rabbits?"
Me: "Yes, I like rabbits. I was a child, a rabbit... A small rabbit, I was a girl..."
Bunny woman: "Petto?"
Me: "Yes, petto. I had a rabbit petto."
Bunny woman: "Do you have a rabbit petto now?"
Me: "No, now two cats."
Significant pause.
Bunny woman: "I see. Are you single?"
Now back to reviewing my solitary (except for those cats) pursuits:
READ OR DIE (anime): Yuriko Readman is a sweet-natured bookworm who lives alone in an apartment that looks much like mine, being absolutely stuffed with books. She bumbles around, engrossed in books, buying books she can't afford, peering over her glasses when monsters invade Tokyo, then returning to her book when it doesn't look like they're going to attack her. Forget all those "what anime heroine are you" quizzes that say you're Utena, Faye, or Rei Ayanami: I think all of us reading this journal are actually Yuriko Readman.
Except that she's also The Paper, a secret agent who fights book-related crimes with her power to control paper. (Everyone addresses her as "The Paper," in English: "Hon wa doko desu ka, The Paper?") If you like books (and who doesn't?) this is charming stuff, packed full of obscure references. The animation is beautifully detailed and an episode set in India actually looks like India.
SAIYUKI (anime) episodes 1-3: In a land called Shangri-La, humans and demons have lived in peace and harmony. Until the demons all go berserk and start killing people! Three demons and a human are sent on a mission to India to stop the black magic which is causing this. The plot so far is very simple, although I expect it to get more complex momentarily: The buddies stop somewhere, demons attack, they rescue the locals and move on.
The characters are great fun: one blonde bishonen human with a magic sutra, one red-headed bishonen demon who likes to party hard, one dark-haired bishonen demon with an eye-patch who has a pet miniature dragon that can turn into a Jeep, one hotheaded demon kid. They bicker, smoke, drink, gamble, wisecrack, guard each other's backs, and drop dark hints about their dark past. I'm really enjoying this.
Although it does make me wonder if I have _any_ interests that are not generally considered geeky: anime, manga, fantasy and sf, karate, white girl who's into Japan--even my pets advance the stereotype. The last time I was in Japan I had a conversation with a woman who had a shop where everything in it was related to rabbits. We started talking. (About 95 percent in Japanese, but it was much more stuttered and awkward than I'm making it out to be.)
Bunny woman: "Do you like rabbits?"
Me: "Yes, I like rabbits. I was a child, a rabbit... A small rabbit, I was a girl..."
Bunny woman: "Petto?"
Me: "Yes, petto. I had a rabbit petto."
Bunny woman: "Do you have a rabbit petto now?"
Me: "No, now two cats."
Significant pause.
Bunny woman: "I see. Are you single?"
Now back to reviewing my solitary (except for those cats) pursuits:
READ OR DIE (anime): Yuriko Readman is a sweet-natured bookworm who lives alone in an apartment that looks much like mine, being absolutely stuffed with books. She bumbles around, engrossed in books, buying books she can't afford, peering over her glasses when monsters invade Tokyo, then returning to her book when it doesn't look like they're going to attack her. Forget all those "what anime heroine are you" quizzes that say you're Utena, Faye, or Rei Ayanami: I think all of us reading this journal are actually Yuriko Readman.
Except that she's also The Paper, a secret agent who fights book-related crimes with her power to control paper. (Everyone addresses her as "The Paper," in English: "Hon wa doko desu ka, The Paper?") If you like books (and who doesn't?) this is charming stuff, packed full of obscure references. The animation is beautifully detailed and an episode set in India actually looks like India.
SAIYUKI (anime) episodes 1-3: In a land called Shangri-La, humans and demons have lived in peace and harmony. Until the demons all go berserk and start killing people! Three demons and a human are sent on a mission to India to stop the black magic which is causing this. The plot so far is very simple, although I expect it to get more complex momentarily: The buddies stop somewhere, demons attack, they rescue the locals and move on.
The characters are great fun: one blonde bishonen human with a magic sutra, one red-headed bishonen demon who likes to party hard, one dark-haired bishonen demon with an eye-patch who has a pet miniature dragon that can turn into a Jeep, one hotheaded demon kid. They bicker, smoke, drink, gamble, wisecrack, guard each other's backs, and drop dark hints about their dark past. I'm really enjoying this.
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From:
no subject
You're A Hero!
You live to save the world! You are honest, true,
and always victorious! You may not always get
the girls/boys, but all you really want to do
is battle the bad guys.
(http://quizilla.com/users/mangacatgirl/quizzes/What%20Type%20Of%20Anime%20Character%20Are%20You%3F/)
From:
no subject
I almost checked that I wanted the super power to transform into a midget at will, but some would say I already have that.
From:
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---L.
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Once I was in a supermarket (supaamaketto) trying to explain to the clerk that I wanted something heated in the microwave. I kept saying "atsui," which means "hot" but I was either mispronouncing it or using it in the wrong context, so she had no idea what I meant.
"Hotto," I tried.
"Hotto! Hai!" Into the microwave it went.
From:
no subject
BTW, yes, I really am Utena, viz. I have no idea how to use a sword, but am under the delusion that I can. And I suck in dresses.
Actually, no. I have never been popular nor athletic. Too uncoordinated, except at tennis, and that's only because I sweated my heart out learning from my dad.
Dangit. :-)
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So I started buying Louis Cha novels in translation.
---L.
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Ah, that reminds me of so many conversations with my Japanese senseis.
Me: "Anoooo... sono, eh, sono koto wa... anooooo...."
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I'll definitely look up Saiyuki based on your recommendation. The Seattle library system has a lot of manga, so I can keep up on things a little even when I'm flat broke, like now. (I just need to wait for them to be over this idiotic closure they're doing. Grr.)