Year in Review: She’s Going the Distance, a Great Feat of Strength
Going to mention a list of 12 lists of 12 items each. So a nested list. All 144 items. Annotated for the most part. Don’t ask me why I use these pronouns the way I do…
Singing to the End of Spring
This is part 2 of a series of posts inspired by Aria anime. Hopefully each iteration is more embarrassing than the previous! This one might be a bit of a spoiler, hopefully very minimally.
It just occurred to me just now that I’ve never really gave Aria a proper shakedown. It is still a story about a girl, for a very simplified description. Plus, it’s a good excuse to reminisce. Aria is all about reminiscence after all. That said, this post isn’t about that even if I reminisced a lot while writing it.
(Hmm, another story about a girl. Guess what kind of song matches her?)
An aria is a song. A typical aria is a solitary vocal accompanied by instruments. It is no surprise that there were a few of them in Aria itself. I was trying to figure out if I can apply the same musical dynamics to the structure of Aria itself, and I think there’s definitely a case to make. For starters, a lot of classical arias are pretty yawn-inducing. It definitely helps if you are awake when you listen to them.
Traditionally, arias are also something beautiful. It’s a passive sort of beauty that beckons you by its subdued but fierce tension, almost a mystery-like substance which lures the listener to follow the music at its own pace. That is the first step to submergence–the key ingredient to a slice-of-life anime.
Unlike a typical world-building story, however, a slice-of-life show lays its foundation not through suspense and mystery, but child-like curiosity and a penchant for something fancy and new. An aria drives on to establish its idea, but it doesn’t take the effort to explain itself; no more than a sonnet would. The audience listen and understand it because there is an established method to do so, and the audience are given all the tools they need to think it through. What’s more, arias have narratives, driven by a performer’s voice. The vocalist is our undine; the accompaniment, the sea; the aria is Neo Venezia.
Yep, promotions for Alice was in order all right.
Is it so corny to equate Alice’s love for her own song matches Akari’s love for her new home? Isn’t that the trick after all?
Perhaps where my own opinion of the quality of Aria deviates is where an aria ends–namely, arias are not huge-longcat-long. Operas can go on for hours but arias are short pieces within. Aria the anime, on the other hand… Well, that’s why it is like watching paint dry. It is something of an acquired taste to have the endurance to keep with it for so long, over so many moons. Maybe Aria is a substance that is best tasted over time, perhaps repeatedly. Even if it is quite pretty.
At the same time, because arias are pieces that don’t jump on the audience, the audience have to take an active step to walk at its pace. It’s the same for Aria. Maybe the analogy is like a skipping stone, jumping across a quiet lake; sometimes you just can’t get into it. Perhaps at the end of its tiresome journey? I guess it is time to find a grassy, flowery knoll and feel the breeze; to enjoy a beautiful, simple song.
The Basics of Basics - Mid-Season Update
I’ve been busy lately; and during this time I appreciate my anime viewing habits all the more.
In some ways, as adults, anime is a luxury that few can afford in excess–and it’s not so much a cost issue but a time and effort issue. Thanks to things like fansubbing and lawless digital distribution a person like me can afford both the technical complexity (like, not have to deal with DRM) and easy access to a large library of works. With the help of my anime-watching brethren, bloggers, and like-minded internet peeps, I can even fine-tune my selection with helps of all kinds of review websites, blogs, and old fashion word-of-mouth.
And because my anime watching is limited I treasure the few shows I get to watch even more. It’s lovely how scarcity makes you look at something in a different light.
I wish I also had the time to share all my insights, but why blog when I don’t even have the time to watch the show I like? It’s a puzzling dilemma.
Still, it’s important to sing praise where it’s due, so to get on with it:
Macross Frontier - Amusingly, despite its imperfections, it delivers. Maybe the magic behind Macross is that it is a fairly silly and flawed, but entertaining adventure with drool-worthy toys to sell and the generic aspiration of an (American) idol. And it just happens that idol entertainment is really in these days. Anyways, not complaining about how I love it when a plan comes together. Few franchises that span generations are so unashamed and so blatant. From the get-go we are asked which one to kiss!
Kurenai - Those who have traversed through the magical land of New York City of Red Garden can attest to how you take your weaknesses and forge them into new strengths in Kurenai. Granted we’re no longer talking about walking dead people but some kind of strange and mystical feudal Japan lineage problem, but its unique production style and sharing of artistic designs invariably link the two shows together. It’s even MORE like Gilmore Girls than ever before, which isn’t a bad thing per se. It just makes it no easier to stomach than Red Garden.
Kaiba - There’s just as much intrigue with this show as with Kurenai. The difference is that there’s only one-tenth of the dialog and one-half the laughs. It also reminds me I really should buy those Tweeny Witches DVDs. I have to say that I like this more though.
Tower of Druaga - How many people have actually played the original game? I have faint memories of it, but why would anyone evoke random 80s video game names with their shows? Leaving the novel release format aside, the show is a very hearty, non-serious adventure that should charm most viewers. And it is all about charm. For what it is worth I did buy the season pass for the show from Bost TV, even if somehow my home internet connection have problems with that site.
Code Geass R2 - Mai Hime of 2008. Now with more slutbiri.
Soul Eater - I can care less about shounen adventures but I really like stylish visuals and killer animation. Soul Eater delivers this in spades. In fact, it even knows that people don’t really care about shounen adventures.
Toshokan Sensou - If Tokyotosho goes to war, will you pick up your rifle? I jest, but between the great voice acting and the heart warming, but crappy excuse for character drama, I have unconsciously pushed this title on the top of the to-watch pile.
And I have a large to-watch pile. But a smaller pile of praises. So I’ll stop here.
Miyuki Sawashiro’s Desirable Pigeonhole
Just looking up some basic information on Sawashiro surprised me. For starters, she was born in 1985, so she’s just 23 this year.
And already she is so prolific…albeit mostly in otaku-ish productions. Typecasted in the Oujo-sama type roles, she is definitely one of the go-to girl when you hear one of these characters.
What made me took note, however, is her Library Wars performance. That was definitely, by far, her best oujo-sama voice ever. And I mean, wow, that was her? Hawt.
I think my first extensive experience with her acting was back in her Broccoli days with Galaxy Angel and Di Gi Charat. Back then she did seem pretty much just like yet-another-high-strung-typecasted person. Today Sawashiro is in a bunch of different kind of roles, and surprisingly she’s doing fine even in a challenging role like Shinkuro from Kurenai. But I think her oujo-sama voice has definitely grown to differentiate itself too.
I guess you are forced to improve yourself when the subtlety of a Reika Houjo voice is merely the same nasal pitch laid a bit thickly to signify a hint of selfish immaturity? Versus a much lighter voice of Mint Blancmanche to reflect her age and attitude? Or a deeper voice to signify a touch of wisdom behind Shinku? I can only guess. I have no idea what Hagino Senkouji was doing–she was the younger pair acting for the older character? Weirdness.
Does it strike you interesting that Claire from Red Garden was by the same voice? I have to say she sounded more manly than Shinkuro >_> Or Kotarou from Pita-Ten. I think that was her best boy-role ever.
She needs to do more voices like this, I think, just to break things loose a bit more.
But if she can land more roles where she can sound like Asako Shibasaki, that is desirable IMO. Talk about a sexy librarian type!
