12daysofxmas2008

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12 Days of Xmas: Throwing In The Towel

December 21, 2008 in Specials by Tom Langston (calaggie) | No comments

Slowly progressing through the second floor in Etrian Odyssey [pixiv link]

I have yet to compose parts seven and eight of this year’s series of memorable things and as I am already two days behind, I decided to end it early with a single post listing what I might have written about individually if I cared enough to do so:

  • Nagi’s frustrated “I’ll grow into it!” assertion in Kannagi ep. 6 when she goes clothes shopping with Tsugumi.
  • The bullfight in Michiko to Hatchin ep. 6 for the rescue and the scene’s entertainment value
  • Winning a game show during AOD 2008 and getting a Bleach pin (which I have since lost)
  • Seeing Evangelion 1.0 on 35mm with a large crowd at AX, admiring the visual updates, and cringing a little during that awkward Rei-Shinji scene (you know the one)
  • Being included in the special thanks section of the Emma Season One Set [pic]

I don’t feel too bad about calling off the remainder since many other writers are still proceeding on schedule and I think I did a good job with the ones I did finish. I felt pressured to catch up on more than I could actually manage; now that has lessened, though still lingering, and I will pass along my relevant feelings as I finish each. I still plan to do the regular predictions/resolutions posts.

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12 Days of Xmas Day 6: Burning Down Her Own Mansion

December 20, 2008 in Specials by Tom Langston (calaggie) | 2 comments

In Monster episode 14, Eva sends off a married businessman after a night of intimacy then notices her gardener saw him leave and knows of her dealings with numerous men so she asks him if he has the confidence to make her happy. (His wife hangs around with different men and hasn’t come home for a while.) The next day, Eva invites him out to dinner at a classy restaurant and he wakes up in the middle of the night next to her in her bed.
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12 Days of Xmas Day 5: Techgal Webcomic

December 18, 2008 in Specials by Tom Langston (calaggie) | 1 comment

During last year’s set of reflections, three of the “moments” were from real-life events, two involved websites, and almost all of them were concepts about series rather than specific moments within them. I have been trying to write this year’s posts with a narrower focus (and I think I’ve done fine so far) but today I will stray from that trend and mention something that didn’t come from proper anime or manga but rather came to my attention while attending a few conventions.

I previously wrote about meeting artist Tim Ferriera at Sac-Anime, where I found his influences include Range Murata and Yoshitoshi ABe, and briefly mentioned getting volume one of his webcomic Techgal (which I can’t seem to find at the moment) at Animation on Display a month later but I didn’t talk about the comic itself.

It centers on the eponymous gearhead Kristi, her brother Derek who tries to protect her, and the attempts of a company to steal her inventions for their own purposes. It’s light-hearted and doesn’t try to position itself as OEL manga or manga at all since it’s a webcomic and only a side project of his when he’s not doing comedy magic shows and other things. You can read all of what has been posted so far on the comic’s website.

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12 Days of Xmas Day 4: Bad Convenience Store Clerking

December 17, 2008 in Specials by Tom Langston (calaggie) | 1 comment


The beginning of Gintama episode 26 has the Yorozuya working in a convenience store and, as one would expect, they piss off a customer.

He first complains that Kagura is leaving crumbs in his bag while she’s eating an nmaibou (lit. delicious bar) over it, then that irritation intensifies when he asks for the manager and Gin-chan appears gnawing on a similar bar. After the two have a brief conference under the counter, Gin comes back up and explains they are temporary employees and thus don’t know the hard stuff but promises they will work really hard. Kagura then places the customer’s bag in the microwave and when asked what’s she zapping, she replies that she doesn’t know but that she’s working really, really hard at it. (I’ll have to remember that excuse next time I ruin a heat up meal.) The customer realizes his JUMP is in the bag and after that mention, something else inside the bag explodes and ruins his weekly manga magazine.

The rest of the episode continues with Shinpachi discovering one of his old friends has joined a gang in order to get tougher and culminates in a madcap drag race with Otae as one of the drivers. My anime club really enjoyed watching the first twenty-eight or so episodes during the previous school year (here is what they’re screening this year) and remembering this moment makes me want to pick up where they left off.

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12 Days of Xmas Day 3: Flying Kicks Are Legal In Basketball

December 16, 2008 in Specials by Tom Langston (calaggie) | 1 comment


Of the anime I initially sampled this fall, Hyakko was the one that had the most slapstick/physical humor and though I enjoy a variety of comedic styles including dry, pun-filled, and ironic, slapstick and the like garners the most immediate and primal reactions of laughter from me. (It doesn’t hurt that “stupid” comedies Wayne’s World and Dumb and Dumber are among my favorite films.)


Episode 2 was full of these moments as Torako and Tatsuki competing against each other as the quartet tries out different sport clubs. First, they try baseball and Torako pegs Tatsuki in the upper thigh. Next, they attempt to play doubles tennis but Torako double faults by missing the ball she throws up as part of her “Tiger Smash” serves and accidentally throws her racket at Tatsuki’s face on her second whiff. Basketball follows and they decide to have a free throw match. Tatsuki blocks Torako’s attempts with her own shots and Torako does the same to her when she’s up at the line. Torako spikes a jump ball into Tatsuki’s gut then Tatsuki chases her attacker around for a few seconds before landing a flying kick to Torako’s back.


The group decides to give sports a break and moves on to arts clubs, like calligraphy and plant arrangement, but the bad blooded rivalry continues. Finally, they go down to the soccer plain to stage a penalty kick showdown with aloof Suzu acting as impartial goaltender and Torako slide tackles Tatsuki as she is about to take her kick.

Koji Oe made the connection two months ago between Torako and Azumanga’s Tomo – the irritable relationship between her and Tatsuki is similar that of Tomo and Yomi or Pani Poni Dash’s Himeko and Rei. In fact, Torako’s seiyuu – Fumiko Orikasa – also gave voice to Himeko. But, while there is that sort of annoyer-and-the-annoyed relationship, I think of it more as a conflict between an honorable, mannerly upper-class girl (who happens to be the daughter of an electronics company president) and a risk-taking, combative, dimwitted, not particularly ambitious girl who presumably comes from a working class family. Also: Tatsuki’s anger seems to be more bitterly expressed than in the other two duos, which makes it more entertaining to watch IMO.

Anyway, I have enjoyed the four episodes I have seen so far and look forward to finishing this short series over the next few weeks.

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