DonKangolJones’ Images of the Week: January 30th (chill out man, enjoy the ride!)

After a week off to right a little for We Remember Love, I get to come back to my hobby of summing up what I’ve watched in blog format.  I got to enjoy a pivotal moment in a manga I’ve been following for near a decade.  I discovered a comedy that has made me laugh in harder in two episodes than anything else I can remember watching in a long while, maybe since Fumoffu.  And I witnessed the end of an “age” of anime.  So then, here are the my images of the week!

Anime Images of the Week

I’m having a hard time figuring out where to start, so since the anime image of the week comes from this series, I’ll start with The Daily Lives of High School Boys,or the appropriately nicknamed, Nichibros.

It’s about damn time a show showed up and gave us a perspective on the less than mundane lives of a group of anime dudes in high school (yes I’m blatantly ignoring another series, we’re moving on).  And I swear, this show lives on the nectar that is British comedy and one of its best traditions; dudes in ladies undergarments.  And though I’m only two episodes in, that doesn’t seem to make the show a one trick pony.  It sets up its jokes well, and so far doesn’t seem to be trying to wear away one gag or another.  It’s just nailing its damn comedy and I’m very glad I’m catching this series on the ground floor.  I have high hopes for Nichibros.

I don’t usually have to say much about Nisemonogatari.  Of course if you saw Bakemonogatari and liked it than this is a slam dunk for you (& me).  There haven’t been any real shockers so far in the show despite all the unusual characters and its “flamboyant” directing style.  Well that changed this week when everyone’s favorite loli vampire hops out of Araragi’s bathtub and starts talking.  And she’s not just saying cute things or adding “nyah” to the end of all her sentences either.  What ever trauma made her the way she is, she’s maintained her faculties and is SHARP!  Oh and Hanekawa cut her hair.  Yes.  You may begin crying now.

Speaking of shockers, Symphogear came out H.A.M. for its fourth episode!  There were buckets of blood loss and we learned that Zwei Wing’s fiery Kanade did not have an easy road towards being a mahou shoujo.  As if she needed to do anything to show us she was pure badass after that spectacular finale in the first episode.  And I even thought her partner was gonna buy the farm that episode, too.  Not too many people survive their own suicide attacks.  I expected to be laughing at this show and maybe dropping it by now,  I’m having way too much damn for that right now.

On the legacy side of things, Macross Plus continues to kick ass and balls, and give me wonderful flashbacks to that era of cinema.  I get a delicious Top Gun, big budge movie vibe from this show.  And while Sharon Apple still creeps me out and turns me on a bit, she’s proving to be a surprisingly  important and involved character; interloping in the already hot blooded love triangle.  Perhaps while the pilots battle it out for title of best pilot and man-whore, Sharon is taking on the role of judge.  It’s getting all so interesting as bit by bit, pasts and grudges are made more and more clear.  I have a feeling that by the end of this we’re gonna see some dead bodies and lots of tears.

I made my feelings and hopes/fears for Rinne no Lagrange and Gundam AGE known on We Remember Love under their respective posts.  I kindly ask you to check those out.  I hardly ever guest write anymore, but it does feel good to come back to the blog that got me started.  And I don’t have any pics from (Badass) Space Pirates because nothing really exciting happened this week.  While I’m still enjoying the show for its very Star Trek-like attention to detail and techno babble, it’s slow pace is dividing the people watching.  Some people have been fooled by the show’s name (actually I think everyone was fooled) and expected more insanity in the first few episodes.  I think they feel a bit of betrayal.  The ones defending the show are saying to enjoy it for what it is, and to have a little patience.  Neither side is wrong, but I don’t think anyone wins if enough people don’t give it a real shot.  Twenty-six episodes leave a lot of room for improvement and world building.  Besides, it can’t be worse than Guilty Crown guys.

Manga Images of the Week

Why hello there god-mode Naruto.  I’ve waited a long time to meet you.  I actually got an inkling of the excitement I got from this series when Naruto went into Sage mode against Pain.  For weeks I’ve been making fun of the kyuubi, now known under its given name of Kurama, as a grouchy Pokemon that doesn’t want to come out of its pokeball and share its power of friendship with Naruto.  Well all that has passed now and I’m looking forward to seeing how this “fusion” works.  It looks very complicated.  And I’m not sure if that’s Kurama in Naruto’s form with Naruto next to  him holding Sage mode, or what.  But for now I don’t see anything holding them back.  Naruto is finally cashing all the checks its made in this decade long run of manga.

Hunter X Hunter has finally gotten to what looks very near to being the climax of this current arc.  Aside from one missing participant from the original three heroes who accompanied Gon through the Hunter Exam, everyone is present and accounted for.  Killua has gone through hell and put is entire family  in danger by attempting to save Gon.  And seeing those broken slivers of a character on that hospital bed was almost enough to bring a tear to my eye.  Gon you WILL be resurrected!

I was only able to get a sliver of pervy manga in this week.  But I’m glad those manga were Girl Friends and Hanjuku Joshi.  One couple frustrates me, while I find another rather cute.  Girl Friends’ Mari and Akko frustrate me to no end.  Even after what I think is a game changing moment for the couple, they’re still pussy-footing around their relationship and feelings.  Perhaps this upcoming field trip will yield some interesting moments.  As for Chie and Yae’s relationship in Hanjuku Joshi, they’re not much better, but at the very least their still just starting to figure each other out.  I’m not even sure they think they’re gay, as everyone seems to want to hide behind the fact that they’re going to an all girls school and that lack of testosterone makes them turn on each other.   Sure.  You idiots are in school, not jail.

Pervy Manga of the Week

I think I got a little bit of everything this week.  Bras, panties, butts, boobs, thighs, booty (I guess that’s the same as butts, but you can’t blame me for liking butts), even some sticky opaque fluids.  Totally pervy.  I even allowed some dudes to be in here to be fair to any female that comes to this section.  With Nisemonogatari obviously being the perviest (or as Ghost would say, SMUTTIEST) of the anime circulating this week.  It doesn’t completely blow away Nichibros perverse love of wearing ladies undergarments (though I can’t believe someone would wear their little sister’s undergarments), or Symphogear‘s less than discrete love of close up crotch shots and big power boobs in tight battle armor.  And Hanjuku Joshi just being ero for the sake of being ero and a renegade.  I think this may be another case of yuri meant for dudes and not gay chicks.  I’m just saying.  *shrugs*

Well, I couldn’t go an entire month without interrupting my weekly posting schedule, but I still had a lot of fun this week with the anime watching.  Things are coming a long nicely, and there is a hell of a lot more to like this season that I was expecting.  And while it’s hard to get anybody to agree on any one show, aside from Nisemonogatari, it appears everyone has found at least one series to stand by.  Winter season is going to be fun, and so is next week.  Expect a lot of Gundam, especially as AGE slides into its second… uh, age.  I see the sign of Zeta!  See you guys next week!

Further Reading:

• Like I said, not everyone shares my cautious optimism for (Badass) Space Pirates.
• I couldn’t agree more with Scamp’s “terribad” review of Sankaku Complex.  He should do more of those.  A lot more.
  Terribad Anime Website Review: Sankaku Complex
• I’ve  long since given up on Guilty Crown.  Hell, I can’t believe I made it as far as I did.  But perhaps Shinmaru is on to something.  If you still watching that horrible piece of flaming corpses and plot contrivance, then you should vote on his website.  Thinking of it kinda like betting on a sports event to make it more interesting.