Check-in Station: 500 posts Special

Hey guys! As of the episode 10 post of Golden Time, I’ve hit an amazing 500 posts for my three (almost four) years of doing this for my own blog. I want to say thanks to any and everyone who has commented, viewed, reblogged or even retweeted my material. I’ve been doing this for as long as I have purely out of love, and a need to keep my mind active. And I’m honestly amazed that my modest blog has survived this long.

When I started, I had one goal. I wanted to share my love of Japanese animation and illustration. I had no real road map, but in a way I was given the building blocks to do this when I was starting with nothing but hopes, dreams and a sack full of ignorant ideas. It was my fellow blogger (now retired) Ghostlightning who took guided me through the set up process (using Google WAVE of all things), and essentially gave me a home on the internet. Allowing me to set up a humble shack of a website next to his popular and critically acclaimed one. To this day, We Remember Love is still this blog’s sister website. And I take pride in the fact that I helped even a little to modestly share and exchange opinions there.

It was the series Bakemonogatari that inspired me to share my thoughts about anime on my own. The series was already being admirably covered on WRL, so I saw no point in doubling up on that stuff, and I wanted to do things my own way, with my own style. I also figured (and take this as a hint to anyone who wants to blog) that if I was going to be leaving all these really long comments on posts, I may as well make a post myself. I told myself that I wasn’t going to ask someone to cover something, or to hurry up and give their opinion on a piece of material; I would handle that task on my own. In a way, it’s simultaneously very natural, and very American of me.

The design of this site, the style of this site, is always changing and being tweaked. This is because of my influences and opinions on what I think pleases others, and what I want for myself. I always hated to look at websites with simple and generic designs, especially if were personal websites. I wondered what the point of a personal site was if you couldn’t tastefully tailor it to your own whims and tastes. Surely a person could do more then add sparkles to a background, or make confetti perpetually fall from an imaginary internet sky. The Myspace example of bedazzling your own web space didn’t appeal to me at all. So as far back as I can remember, I’ve aimed for a professional or at least artistically designed web space. When you read my words, I don’t want it to be giant screenshot -sentence(s) – giant screenshot – sentence(s) – grid of screenshots. I want you to look at the pictures and be intrigued. I want to avoid spoilers while showing those that visit what exactly is going on in that episode or series.

One of my biggest influences in anime (aside from actual anime and manga), is Newtype USA.  I adored that publication and gladly paid the 10+ dollars for it every month I could afford to do so.  I was excited to pick up that magazine no matter what it covered, and if it covered a series I liked or was excited about, I would get almost light-headed in anticipation of breaking the seal and reading about what was going on inside.  Any chance that publication could, it would slather the pages with giant bold artwork, official artwork for the various series it would cover.  There were even articles with concept art for series that were still in production, or hadn’t been released stateside, yet.  No matter what the material was that was covered, it got you excited for anime.  And that’s what gets me excited about the medium.  The illustrations and animation – the visuals are what marries my obsession to those good feelings and gives me a real, physical reaction to what I care about.  The rubber meets the road when my eyes meet a beautiful drawing.  I still love my wonderful soundtracks, the opening and ending songs and all the BGMs (see .hack//SIGN’s American DVD release with the music only track for an example of that love).  But the absorption of the medium through my eyes is where the love begins.

If I could afford to feed my family doing so, I would gladly pack up shop and start another Newtype USA-like publication talking about all the anime that has and has not been released stateside, the culture, the sub-culture and everything else that can be encompassed within the medium and fans’ love for it.  Alas, this blog and the meager amount of time I can devote to it is the best I can do.  Everything I do on this blog is a result of my mind wanting to express itself on these pages in a pleasing and coherent way.  I’ve tried many different ways to do so.  I’ve tried doing reviews (obviously not my forte), I’ve tried to do posts on the funny, the pervy and moving.  I’ve tried different styles, hell I’m still struggling with my weakness of keeping my entire post in the proper tense (generally present tense).  And visually, I’m always trying to make things look better and more interesting.

The purpose of this post has been to inform and thank anyone who has visited this blog dealing with Japanese cartoons and comics.  It’s something that’s important to me, because I have no idea how long I will be allowed the time and opportunity to keep doing this.  But I’m grateful that I have been this fortunate.  My consistency and time may waver, but my passion for anime and manga won’t.  And as I continue to do this, I hope that shines through.  And despite not being able to know if this next month of blogging will be my last, or next will be it, I will continue to do my best expand my blog, my mind and become a better writer  Whether I’m adding reviews of American cartoons, or to my new hobby of enjoying tea, or if I just go on a rant about something gaming related, the main focus will always be there.  I want people to hear my opinion of anime, and share in it or learn about it.

Thank you for reading.

Below are some blog posts of note that illustrate  how I got to this point, previous posts of mine and others.

Further Reading:

• Check-out Station: Record of Fallen Vampire
  My first blog post on the Check-in Station, I don’t think I’ve read it since I posted it.  I still find it kinda funny that my first blog post on my own site is for a manga when I read manga so much less than I watch episodes of anime.  I also find it ironic that it’s about a vampire when since then I’ve become so very sick of material that covers vampires at all.  I still do recommend the manga though.
• “Coachy!” Gunbuster tells you to aim for the top! But you won’t believe what you find there! (gunbuster)
  My first blog post on We Remember Love.  My passion for Gunbuster and all things GAINAX fueled me all the way through this.  Actually, Gunbuster was a gateway to quite a few other series that I ended up loving and watching.  If it wasn’t for Gunbuster, I may have never watched the hilariously dramatic 70s sports anime known as Aim for the Ace! that so heavily influences Gunbuster’s early episodes.
• Authenticity, How Beatiful You Are (Bakemonogatari 12)
  This is likely the post that and episode that convinced me to try taking up blogging.  I don’t know what it was, but that episode and subjects in it really made me think about stuff.  Vague as hell I know, but it’s the best I can do to pinpoint my feelings on it.
• Blogging Legend of the Galactic Heroes 
  I see Lower Mid-Table as a sort of fellow companion site.  The main author there has given me ideas for various posts.
• Anime Audiolog
  The main author of Anime Audiolog, Joe Animated is a fellow disciple of We Remember Love, like me.  I’ve enjoyed seeing him and his comrades put together their vision.
• This week’s Images of the Week (SissKiss, Love Devils and Angel Frog Pandering)
  The first of my Images of the Week posts.  A series that I enjoyed greatly doing, as it allowed me to recap my feelings on an entire week of anime, while also displaying some of the best I had seen.  I would like to do these again, but it is surprisingly time and effort intensive.  I’m sure a few people would at least enjoy it if I brought back the Pervy Images of the Week.
• #OreImo ep12: this is the height of unreasonableness. This series can die in a fire. #anime
  Perhaps my most bitter and jaded post.  I can’t believe I left the hashtags in the title.

• Guest Review – Wild 7
  My first and so far only guest post on Prede’s Anime Reviews.

• Check-in Station: Hajime no Ippo ch398 – 900+ (Going the distance)
  Probably my favorite post that I’ve done on the Check-in Station so far.  I really would like it if you checked it out.  Maybe it will convince you to give the stellar long-running manga or its anime adaptations a shot.