School supercedes Social-life

Wow, it’s been too long… too, too long. School started, and then everything went to HELL. (Not that I had a social life before.. but…)

Also, I mean, I’ve got Lady R onto the otaku ship, so… Ouran HSHC every Friday night over Skype – we read it and fangirl, what can I say? I’m a good friend, I know.

Then, we had a sleepover for her birthday, and it turned into a ‘LET’S WATCH LOTS OF ANIME ALL DAY-DAY!’ A feel of it would be… Watching: Ouran HSHC, including the English dub bloopers (the only thing good about the English dub compared to the Japanese), Ghost Hunt (it was near Halloween and we turned off the lights…), Free! (because it’s Summer and light-hearted and now Lady R ships MakoHaru!),Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou (it’s hilarious) and Shingeki no Kyojin (most epic anime of all time… and I’ve watched a lot of anime)!

So.. the overall reaction was good, and honestly I was just happy to have an otaku friend… *sniffs*, it’s hard when your friends don’t appreciate the finer things in life like anime… And  just you wait Lady R… Ereri will be a thing for sure! *cue evil laughter* Hint: we just need to watch a little more SnK.

 Just looook at them *coughs* where was I?

So, essentially, between school, Access to… schemes, tests, and Fangirling to keep myself sane. The blog has turned into a neglected Animal Crossing town… overrun by weeds… (copyright amazing metaphor much?!)

How do I rectify this? Well, we’re doing a lot of wider reading for the English scheme at AtB, and waddya know? Lady R has taken up the challenge of NaNoWriMo… soo, WATCH THIS SPACE.

May the odds be ever in your favour (because Catching Fire is coming out soon),

~ Persephone

Weekend Manime Club

So, what do you do, when you’re an otaku but you have no friends who share the same interests as you? Scream at the World about how unfair it is?

Nope, I decided to turn one of my best friends into an otaku – Lady R! >_<

Now, when you’re a sixth former, you find yourself inexplicably more busy than ever before, and as for free time? Let’s just say aside from fangirling, *cough*so, actually, this ‘club’ would be a great way to stay in touch, and perhaps teach the ways of Japanese culture to a friend.

Since I’d be throwing her into the deep end, I though that I should start with something relatively ‘family-friendly’. (You know, no yaoi, or excessive gore just yet) so I decided on.. Ouran High School Host Club. Okay, the title sounds odd and misleading, but if you know about it, you realise it’s not as bad as it sounds!

Starting a club sounds easy and all, but when you have to face the fact that we were not going to meet up, but use technology (Skype) to video chat and read it together. Yay! -_-

So, we decided on Friday nights, at 6pm, to just call each other, and read together. No, we have to read together, after all Lady R is uneducated in all Japanese references! I just couldn’t throw her in the deep end!

Now, Lady R’s opinion after reading a whole volume in one sitting? (About 3 hours… on Skype). It was very, very funny! And she even has established ships! (So proud). Even though I had to explain (uncondescending, I really wanted her to like it, after all) some things like why Haruhi is a girl, but it’s okay for her to be a boy in this, and the usage of ‘ore’. However, there were things that I see now, were actually weird to her, but not someone exposed to every sort of archetype for a manga plot possible. The ‘rich and poor’ thing, the ‘weird caste system’ <– actual quote, didn’t sit well with her though.

In teaching a friend about otaku culture, I have realised, no, not that I use too many images and gifs in my posts, but that manga is really weird. Now, where was I? The club! It was a success, especially how we agreed over the ships, TamaHaru, of course, MOney (Honey and Mori), and Kyoya x self (we didn’t argue over him, but I guess we’ll have choice words later on). But the obsession they had with ‘peasants’ didn’t seem right to her. I guess? It’s a romantic comedy, so I assumed that was part of the humour – the misunderstood view of the poorer people in rich people’s minds. And the thing some girls have with a possibly incestuous set of twins.

It’s going to be a thing, regardless of the little setbacks. And after I showed her the bloopers to the English dubbed version of the anime, I think that I have officially assimilated her into the fandom. Success!

I mean, how could she not laugh at Tamaki and his sulking in the corner? Or Honey-senpai and his Usa-chan ❤

~ Persephone

 

Duet of the Century, courtsey of Shingeki no Kyojin

Fangirling about Shingeki no Kyojin aside, this is an amazing song. Played by two people whose piano skills are out of this World.

Of course, this theme is perfect for SnK regardless. The amount of ass kicking involved suits this adrenaline filled song entirely. Mostly done by the almighty Corporal Levi-sama. And maybe Eren as a Titan. Maybe.

  and then much …  spinning, more spinning~

And generally, a short but hot guy with this unexplainable attractive haircut that pwns all.

(At this point, I realised I should do separate posts about all my fandoms before my brain explodes with their sheer awesomeness.)

Not even kidding. I personally have Grade 8, which already stretch me too thinly and I can’t even explain how that miracle happened, but only that it did. However, we’re talking about another level entirely. When you reach this level, it’s almost as if you’ve achieved the status of a deity. Animenzzz and Tehishter. You guys deserve a -sama after your name.

Technically, this is a challenging piece of music for sure. The duet also means it’s not easy having to cooperate with another person, tempo wise – it’s a tough job. Then, let’s not forget that this song is sung with a whole host of guitars, drums etc. etc. You’re doing this on a piano. All of it. And it sounds good. Scratch that. OUT OF THIS WORLD, AMAZINGLY AWESOMESAUCE.

When I  listened to this (for the first time, of many)…

When can we start building the shrines and worshipping you guys?

Studio Ghibli Forever

So, what am I talking about today? Since I was most inspired by the amazing Studio Ghibli 25th Anniversary Concert, I decided I would do a post about my favourite film studio – yes, I grew up with Studio Ghibli and not Disney. Problem?

Now, I wasn’t even remotely joking when I said that I grew up with Studio Ghibli films. A good description of my childhood would be watching ‘Grave of the Fireflies’ and not something like ‘Dumbo‘. Actually, speaking of which, I don’t recall ever seeing ‘Peter Pan’ or ‘Bambi’, but I remember watching ‘Laputa: Castle in the Sky’ and being rendered inconsolable for a few days.

Why are the works of Hayao Miyazaki (-sama?) so powerful and profound? There are light-hearted moments in every film. But if one should ever look at the symbolism behind every scene, they would find much darker tones, such as the violence and wars in the background of ‘Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind’. There are many lessons to be learned, and even if you’re not of the right age to appreciate the message put out by Studio Ghibli – there is always a chance that you would pick it up during another viewing later in life. Proof? I did. (And this applies not just to films, but many books as well.)

In films, one of the key factors in creating the perfect atmosphere, is the soundtrack. Studio Ghibli is no different, except they had an exemplary composer – Joe Hisaishi. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve listened to his works, and remembered scenes from films I don’t think I would ever forget. The OST (Original Sountrack) for ‘Spirited Away’ for example, has a piece, Waltz of Chihiro, which need only to be played, and I would recall the feeling of joy at the precise moment when Sen, remembers Haku’s real name.

Similarly, in ‘Howl’s Moving Castle’ – which is based off a series of books by Diana Wynne Jones (which I would recommend reading for another experience entirely) when the Jinsei no Merry-go-Round (Merry-go-Round of Life) plays, my heart pangs at the feeling of riding high in the sky, on the balcony of a rickety castle, controlled by a fallen star – Calcifer.

Forever is a long time to hold something close to your heart. But if it is the works of Studio Ghibli, I don’t think it would be difficult at all. Thank you, ‘My Neighbour Totoro’ for making me smile, even though you’re basically growing seeds at night… I will always wait for the Catbus to arrive, when it’s late at night, and the rain falls so strongly, you’d think someone jumped really hard to make it so. Thank you Hayao Miyazaki and Joe Hisaishi, for making my childhood so wonderful, and giving me many fond memories to look back upon.

~ Persephone