Higanbana's Blog

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Dagashi Kashi: First Impressions

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Dagashi Kashi: First Impressions

As the winter 2016 anime season is starting, multiple new animes are coming out that catch the attention of any type of anime genre viewer. Whether they deserve for you to anxiously wait until they are released in a week’s time is all up to you. This season I have choosen to anxiously wait for the premiere and run of the anime, Dagashi Kashi, literally translating to cheap sweets candy. The premise of this anime follows Shikada Kokonotsu and his father,owner of a rural sweets shop, and his plan for Kokonotsu to take it over one day. However, Kokonotsu drem is to pursue his manga career, to which his father believes is not the best path for his son. One day in the summer, a cute but weird girl Shidare Hotaru,the heir to a famous candy operation, comes to visit the Kokonotsus. Apparently, Kokonotsu’s father is famous and she wants him to join her company. The story of this anime begins to unfold with the contract of Kokonotsu’s father to Hotaru, the only way for him to join her is persuading her son to inherit the family shop.

So far, the anime has a very captivating plot that although it is masked behind the enormous amount of forced and genuine humor, still reminds you the main objective of this show and this story. The plot doesn’t seem to let go any hint of any romance between any of these characters, but it is possible as many jokes were made about relationships throughout the course of the show. Characters seem to have room for development throught the course of the series.The animations are pretty good and the opening song is cute. As a result I award the story with a 4/5, animation with a 3/5 , characters with a 3/5, sound with a 2/5, and my personal enjoyment 4/5.Giving this anime a 3.75 , rating of watch it and await its release.This is definitely going to follow and await its release. If you enjoy slice of life, and comedic animes check this one out. And even if you don’t still check it out. Tell me your feelings about this anime in the comments.

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Ryuji's Blog

A blog by Ryuji in General

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Kanon Character and Ending Thoughts – Spoilers

Hello and welcome to my Kanon 2006 Article! I can’t remember the last time I had enough time to write an Article for Anime Forums. Life has been crazy but it has slowed down for the time being for me. So here I am, back with another Article! This Article will be different from my previous Articles. (if anybody who has read those is still here xP) I will not be doing an episode guide. Instead, I’m going to discuss the main characters of Kanon 2006.

Do NOT open the spoiler tags unless you’ve already watched Kanon 2006 as they contain MAJOR SPOILERS.

Aizawa Yuuichi

Aizawa Yuuichi is the main character of Kanon. He used to visit the city but, after a terrible tragedy, he leaves and doesn’t return for seven years. When he finally goes back, he hardly remembers anything from seven years prior. He lives with his cousin, Nayuki and her mother. As he interacts with the people he met in the past, he slowly starts to regain his memory. Yuuichi is this fun guy who teases all the main girls but he has a good heart and often acts like an older brother and protects them. He does choose a girl towards the end which I’ll discuss later on.

This whole person going to a city, leaving for seven years and returning with few memories really reminded me of the anime Celestial Method which I absolutely loved so that alone instantly got me hooked on Kanon. I seriously would love to be Yuuichi. All he does is go to school and then wander around talking to beautiful girls xP He’s a really great guy.

Yuuichi’s Ending

Later on, Yuuichi realizes he is in love with Ayu. They share a kiss. Ayu’s ending occurs and after lots of tears, heartaches and a miracle, they end up together.

I’m not going to go into this too much since most of it involves Ayu’s route and I’m going to discuss it later. It’s really sweet and a good pair up for Yuuichi. (although not the best in my opinion but I’ll get to that later. xP)

Nayuki Minase

Nayuki is Yuuichi’s cousin. She loves strawberry sundaes. She’s such a heavy sleeper that she has to have a plethora of alarm clocks and even then, they don’t always wake her up and Yuuichi or her mother has to get her up. Even when she gets up, she is often in such a sleepy daze that, she can eat, get dressed for school and head out to school with Yuuichi before she even wakes up. Then she’s confused as to how she got to where she was fully dressed xP This often causes her to be late for school and she often ends up running. She runs to school so much that she became the school’s star runner and captain of the track team. She loves cats despite being highly allergic to them.

Nayuki is an extremely fun character to watch. Her sleepy dazes are always so amusing to watch because she usually passes out again, often while eating or walking. xP Her “neko mode” is pretty adorable as well. She easily has the best facial expressions out of every character in Kanon.

Nayuki’s Ending

After a request for strawberry cake leads to Nayuki’s mother getting in an accident, Nayuki shuts down and completely blames herself for what happens. She tries to pretty much cut herself off from all her friends saying that she doesn’t deserve to be happy since it was her fault that her mother was in the hospital. It’s mainly due to the intervention by Yuuichi and some of her other friends that snap her out of it. Her mother survives the incident. It is also revealed that Nayuki is in love with Yuuichi.

Seeing that expression on Nayuki’s face, in the above picture, nearly destroyed me the first time I was watching Kanon. She’s such a sweet girl that I just want to save her from the pain although that pain does make her stronger in the end. With this being based on a Key VN, I was soooo afraid Nayuki’s mother was going to die. I was so relieved when it was revealed that her mother didn’t die.

Mai Kawasumi

Mai Kawasumi is a mysterious girl. Due to her disregard for what’s considered “normal behavior”, she’s viewed as a delinquent by the other students. She can usually be found with her best and only friend Sayuri. She doesn’t talk much and even when she does, it’s usually brief responses. After meeting Mai in the hallway of the school at night, Yuuichi starts eating lunch with Mai and Sayuri and Mai slowly warms up to him.

Mai is the cute, quiet type in Kanon. Don’t let that disguise fool you though because she’s a badass with a sword. She is extremely protective of Sayuri and let’s just say you wouldn’t want Mai to catch you being mean to or hurting Sayuri. It won’t end well for you xP.

Mai’s Ending

It is revealed that Mai’s mother became ill when Mai was younger. After her mother is miraculously healed, we find out that Mai has the power to heal anybody and anything. This power made the townspeople fear her and as a result everybody except her mother ostracized her. Mai was told that she would meet someone who would be able to put aside her powers and become a great friend and that friend was Yuuichi. Soon after, Yuuichi had to leave town and return home. This made Mai sad and, out of desperation, she made up a story about demons invading the field of wheat where they played together. Soon afterwards, a school was built on that field and Mai started walking the grounds at night, sword in hand, fighting off the demons. It is revealed that the demons are the manifestation of Mai’s power. Together with Yuuchi, Mai defeats each of the demons and afterwards, she tries to commit suicide but fails which lands her in the hospital.

Mai’s ending is okay. You basically just find out that the destruction is caused by Mai not accepting her healing powers and the fact that she missed Yuuichi. Each time a demon was killed it hurt Mai. She survives her suicide attempt due to something I’ll discuss later.

Shiori Misaka

One day, while adventuring with Ayu, Yuuichi meets Shiori, although during the first encounter, Yuuichi doesn’t get her name. A few days later, as Yuuichi is staring outside the window during class, he notices that Shiori is standing out in the snow right outside the school. When lunch comes, Yuuichi goes outside to talk to Shiori and learns her name and that she is outside waiting for somebody. He also learns that she is a student there but she is sick with a cold and that is why she isn’t in class. Yuuichi tells her to go home since she is sick and it’s snowing which isn’t going to help her get better. Nevertheless, she shows up every day waiting for somebody.

Shiori reminds me a lot of Nagisa from Clannad (Nagisa’s character may have been based on Shiori since they are both Key titles) She’s sick, sicker than what she tells Yuuichi at first. She has a dream and that’s why she’s waiting for someone everyday at school even though she is too sick to actually attend. She’s a really sweet girl.

Shiori’s Ending

Shiori is expected to die before her next birthday. We also find out that Kaori Misaka (Yuuichi’s classmate) is Shiori’s older sister but because she knows Shiori is going to die, she acts like Shiori doesn’t exist. Yuuichi eventually gets Kaori to acknowledge and to spend time with Shiori which makes both girls much happier. The person Shiori was waiting for was her sister Kaori. It was her dream to go to school with her sister. However, Shiori does not die and starts to get better due to the same reason Mai didn’t die which I’ll discuss later. This leads to Shiori returning to school and fulfilling her dream.

Now you see why Shiori reminds me of Nagisa: the lasting sickness, potential death and wanting to fulfill her dream. I was so happy she didn’t die. Her playful personality despite the fact she knew she was dying was beautiful.

Makoto Sawatari

Yuuichi meets Makoto when she attacks him out-of-the-blue in the middle of town. She was then carried her back to his cousin’s house (where he is living), where she lives as a guest for the remainder of her story. Despite having lost her memories, she eventually remembers her name and is sure that she holds a grudge against Yuuichi from the past when he visited the city back when he was younger. Makoto’s amnesia, is much more severe than Yuuichi’s or Ayu’s, but from an entirely different source. It takes her a while to warm up to a stray cat she finds and taking Yuuichi’s suggestion, names it Piro. Makoto loves Piro very much and will often carry the cat around on her head. Makoto has a mischievous personality which leads to her performing various pranks exclusively on Yuuichi during the middle of the night due to her strong dislike for him, something she constantly reaffirms. Her pranks vary in severity, such as simply dropping food on him or once even throwing lit firecrackers into his room. Yuuichi always counters them and as a result, Makoto is the one upset in the end. As time passes and Makoto starts feeling more like a member of the Minase family rather than a stranger, she honestly grows to like Yuuichi, effectively looking beyond her latent distaste for him. Makoto has an idiosyncratic expression, “auu~”, which she says when she is frustrated or sad. It has no real meaning. Another unique speech pattern of hers is that she always refers to herself in the third person. Near the end of her story, Yuuichi buys a present for Makoto, which she chooses. It’s a bracelet with two bells on it. Makoto enjoys the sound they make.

Finally! I’ve gotten to my favorite girl in all of Kanon! Makoto is so adorable and her failed attempts at pranks usually in up with adorable scenes with her. Auuuu~ She’s so adorable when she says Auuuu~ I just LOVE IT!!! Her interactions with Piro are always super adorable too! She’s easily the best character in all of Kanon in my opinion. I don’t think I mentioned it earlier but she eventually becomes addicted to manga and meat buns and she eventually gets Yuuichi to read to her. So adorable I could die xP

Makoto’s Ending

We find out that Makoto is not a human but instead a fox that Yuuichi found ten years ago when he came to the city as a child. Yuuichi first found Makoto, back then a young fox, injured on Monomi Hill and he took the fox back and kept it in his room for the rest of the summer. One day, Yuuichi tells the fox about an older girl that he had a crush on named Makoto Sawatari, which is where Makoto’s name is derived from. At the end of summer break, Yuuichi takes the fox back to the hill and he runs away soon after releasing her, leading her to be angry with Yuuichi. Her desire to see Yuuichi again was so strong that her wish was granted…..at the cost of her memories….and later…..after her humanistic qualities start to fade and all she can say is Auuuu~, Yuuichi takes Makoto to Monomi Hill and pretends to marry her, making her final wish come true. Soon after, Makoto dies fulfilling the final requirement of the miracle.

Makoto has the saddest route in Kanon because she actually dies. My heart broke and I hated that the cost of her miracle was her memories and later her life….Even now, I can barely type my thoughts on the matter because being reminded of it just makes me want to cry :’( :’( :’( :’( :’(

Ayu Tsukimiya

Ayu is a rather short, strange, energetic, and a very mysterious girl who literally bumps into Yuuichi early on in the story. She is easily recognizable by her winged backpack, and her red hairband. Ayu is left handed and loves to eat taiyaki. Ayu often takes out her frustration by using the idiosyncratic expression “uguu” much like Makoto with her “Auuu.” She is searching for an item that is important to her but she doesn’t remember what it is only that she’ll know it when she sees it. She has a severe lack of present day knowledge such as she doesn’t know what a cell phone is. She has memory loss as well.

Ayu is really adorable and my second favorite girl in Kanon. Her “Uguuu” makes me die of adorableness just like Makoto’s “Auuuu~” did. Encounters with Ayu are pretty funny because she usually runs toward Yuuichi trying to hug him and he dodges which leads to her hitting a tree or falling over. She never stays mad at Yuuichi for too long though because he buys her taiyaki which she loves. And now onto the final ending of Kanon.

Ayu’s Ending

Seven years before the story begins, Ayu falls out of a tree and hits her head on the last day Yuichi was going to be in town. At first, he believes she died, but Akiko reveals she is in the hospital and has been in a coma for the past seven years. The Ayu Yuichi has been meeting in town is actually an astral projection of herself (similar to Fuuko in Clannad). Later on in the series, with Yuuichi’s help, she breaks out of her coma, and gets her hair inadvertently cut too short when she goes to a barber shop, leading him to comment how much she looks like a boy like he did before. The item she had been looking for was a small angel doll that Yuuichi had given her telling her that it would grant three wishes as long as Yuuichi could make the wishes come true. She uses two of them and then her and Yuuichi bury the doll in a jar as a kind of time capsule. While Ayu is in her coma, she gains the ability to have one wish granted and she chooses for the one she cares deeply for to always be happy; that’s why Nayuki’s mother, Mai and Shiori didn’t die.

I was heartbroken when I thought Ayu was dead. I was so relieved to find out she was in a coma and when she finally awoke. If Yuuichi couldn’t have Makoto, I would settle for him loving Ayu. I don’t know why Ayu’s wish didn’t extend to saving Makoto….maybe the cost of the Makoto’s miracle overrode the effects of Ayu’s wish. I just don’t know…..

It was a pretty good ending to a great anime!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this journey I’ve taken you on through the lives of the main cast of Kanon and I hope that you’ve either watched it or that this Article will inspire you to watch it! Thank you so much for taking the time to read it! I hope you have a great day!

~Ryuji

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Evil Bunny of Doom's Blog

A blog by Evil Bunny of Doom in General

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Carnival in Greece

ETYMOLOGY
Over the years, I’ve heard one too many different opinions about the origins of the word ‘canival’. However, it appears to hail from the late latin words ‘carnem’ (meat) and levare (to remove/ take away) which actually sums up the purpose of the carnival period: to prepare yourself for the Easter fast. The greek word ‘απόκριες’ (apokries) also indicates an abstinence from meat.

HISTORY
The celebrations that accompany carnival originate from ancient Greece and the Dionysian rites, that took place in late winter and symbolised the coming of spring. In Athens, specifically, a chariot would make its way to the city while being followed by dancers and singers, who were dressed up in costumes that resembled goats and sang satyrical songs. After the prevalence of Christianism, pagan elements were fused with the new traditions, thus indicating the beggining of the Lent.

Modern carnival started appearing in Greece during the 19th century, after the Ionian islands were unified with the mainland. The Ionians, that were under heavy italian influence, contributed greatly in shaping contemporary celebrations.

DURATION
The duration of the carnival period can vary, depending on Easter. The opening ceremony always takes place on a Saturday night in mid January. The same doesn’t apply for the closing ceremony, though. The Burning of the Carnival King, that marks the end of celebrations, is exactly seven weeks before Easter. If Easter comes late, like this year, carvival can last up to two months!

CELEBRATIONS
Different cities host different events and, honestly, there are too many of them to be written here. Therefore, I will only focus on those that take place in the city of Patras, where I live.

Organisation:
In order to take part in the parades, you need to sign up in a crew. Crews can be found anywhere in the city and each of them has their own set of costumes for males and females (you can choose whichever you want). Sometimes, crews have more than one costumes to choose from (mostly for females, though :P). You need to pay for your costume (duh!) and price depends on quality as well as the number of members. (If you go with friends as group, you get discount, discount good! *said in russian accent* 😛 )

Events:
Opening Ceremony
One would think that the opening ceremony of such a grand series of events would be rather extravagant and it would feature a variety of shows but, actually, it’s more of a warm-up. It lasts for a few hours only and usually features singing by local singers/bands as well as dancing by some of the cities dance schools. A fireworks display couldn’t be missing of course (this time they went a bit overboard with it, making it even more gorgeous!). This year, we also had an acrobatics show that was a really nice addition

It’s also the first day we can dress up, although most people go for a simple pair of animal ears or a mask rather than a full costume (at least I think it was, because I’m short and couldn’t see well ._.)

Smoky Thursday
After the start of the carvival period, no major events take place until the famous Smoky Thurday. Every meat lover lives for this day. Just like the name says, it’s a Thursday…. a barbequed one! Every store, wheather it is a hair saloon or a bookstore can set up their rotisserie (is this even a word? that’s what google gave me…) and roast dozens after dozens of souvlakia, selling them ridiculously cheap to passerbys, with loud music blasting out from the speakers.

At schools, students and teachers can dress up however they want. In some elementaries, parents and teachers come and set up the rotisseries in the school yard and give children souvlakia for free, while they are having a party dressed up in their costumes. In middle schools, teachers usually order from a store and students have to pay a small price to get their souvlakia. In high schools…. well, they just let the students off much earlier without giving them any meat. It is a great chance to go out and eat with your friends, though.

In the city center, certain events are organised for this day. This year we had a comedy wrestling show, in which various weirdos engaged in fake fights to win food. Later in the day, we have the annual ‘Marriage of koulourou*’ (*erm…that can be translated as ‘a woman who sells buns’ or something…?). It’s an old custom that presents a marriage and it takes place in the old part of the city, near the Roman Conservatory. It is based on a local myth, of a naive old woman who fell victim to the pranks of her fellow citizens and was lead to believe that the president of America, Wilson (1913-1921), was going to marry her.

Hidden Treasure
It’s a game played by the crew members. They are given hints and visit different locations in the city until they find the treasure and win the prize. Unless you have a ride, don’t participate, it’s suicide.

Chocolate Wars
People throwing chocolates. Just that… JUST THAT!!!!

Children’s Parade
Also called the ‘little’ parade. Hundreds of children in their costumes join a parade along with their parents. They dance to the music or board one of the floats and lazily wave at the crowd…. (my parents never let me go when I was young…..). The little parade happens a week before the end of carnival.

Float Parade
Floats designed by the city’s artistic workshop have their own time in the spotlight the last Friday night before the ending ceremony. They usually feature satyrical themes such as …..wait for it…… politicians! What else?

Night Parade
The Saturday night parade is the biggest and most important of all (Note that Patras has the biggest parades in the country 😛 ). You see people flocking downtown in large masses, only stopping to take a selfie or two with their friends. The center gets closed down so cars won’t enter and everyone is able to roam the streets freely. Colorful and creepy costumes flood the place, as everyone is striving to look unique. It’s a great opportunity for otakus to cosplay without getting any odd stares (ok, I take that back, I got a lot of odd stares 😛 ). It’s also not strange if a person completely unknown to you comes to chat or ask for a picture with you because, clearly, your cosplay is so awesome (it’s not like I’m bragging about myself here….). Alcohol is abundant and so are whistles and all kinds of trinkets that make noise. If you’re an old man living downtown, don’t even consider sleeping. Partying lasts until morning 😉

Big Parade
I don’t really get why they still call the Sunday parade ‘big’… It’s much smaller that that of the previous night for one simple reason: hangovers!
Even so, it’s still pleasant to watch or take part in, whatever you prefer.

Ending Ceremony
The ending of the carnival period is signaled with the burning of a large gag-statue, the Carnival King. Every year, the artistic workshop makes a different King to be burnt, although it’s usually a famous (and hated) person…like……. wait for it….. a politician! What else? Once the King is on fire, there’s another fireworks display. And after that, it’s all over. See you next year!

Others
In between the major events, lots of others are being held like plays, concerts etc.

THE GOOD SIDE
Carnival, unlike the western Halloween, lasts for a long period of time, allowing people to live it to the fullest and take part in more events that they can count. You can look however you like and really be yourself without a care in the world. It’s also a huge financial relief to the city since tons of tourists come to visit.

THE BAD SIDE
Obviously, all big events have their downsides. The night parade especially, can be quite dangerous. Lots of people means lots of perverts as well. Stick close to your group! And, for God’s sake, when will people realise you can have fun without getting drunk? The 2-3 months after carnival are the ones when the majority of abortions take place….. guess why…

OVERALL
Carnival is something I both love and hate at the same time. I love the freedom it gives you but I hate noise and crowded streets. Still, if anyone asked me when is the best period to visit the country, I’d definately choose this (summer sucks). As long as you’re careful, it can be a most joyous experience.

Stay safe and happy!
Evil Bunny, signing off~

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Kourin Tatsunagi's Blog

A blog by Kourin Tatsunagi in General

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Aikatsu | Thank you for all my precious days

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Aikatsu | Thank you for all my precious days

Ichigo was a normal middle-school girl that was rope into the world on idols after watching Mizuki’s performance. It was then when Ichigo’s passionate idol activities started. For 2 season + a movie, we saw Ichigo’s journey from rookie idol to the #1 idol in the country. Her passionate idol activities, captivated everyone, and in the end, Ichigo became part of everyone’s life. The emotion of sadness when she lost to Mizuki at the s1 finale, to her finally achieving her dream of becoming the #1 idol in the Movie. Ichigo’s journey was shared by many and in the end everyone from /ai/ (a community in 4chan that started because of Aikatsu) loved Ichigo.

In season 3, Ichigo was replace as the main character by Akari. Akari was obsessed with Ichigo, even using Ichigo’s named to introduce herself during her audition. Akari was different from Ichigo, Akari had very little talent, she sucked at dancing and was just horrible around. In season 3 she improved every step of the way to fulfill the promise she made to Ichigo during the Aikatsu movie, that she would meet Ichigo at the top of the Idol world. Was she able to fulfill this promise? In episode 177, the penultimate episode Aikatsu, Akari pulled off a Special A appeal, making her the only idol in history that was able to pull off that kind of appeal, thus winning the Starlight Queen competition. This scene said it all.

Then the final episode, I woke up at 5:30 am est, to watch the livestream of Aikatsu with my fellow /ai/. The final performance by Luminas x Soleil, playing Calendar Girls, it hurts so much. Not only because Calendar Girls was Aikatsu’s 1st ED but its the last time Ichigo and co will take the stage. In the end Ichigo stayed true to her playful self and never changed during the performance.

Now the show that officially started /ai/ and brought us all together is now over.

It’s been a great 3 and a half years. Thanks to Mezashite for being the reason we could all get into a cartoon from Japan about middle school girls who sing and dance.

Next week, Ichigo won’t be part of /ai/ or my daily life. Next week, Aikatsu Stars starts a whole new journey for myself and everyone who enjoyed Aikatsu. In the end, Ichigo and Aikatsu taught me a lot of things during that 3 1/2 years.

So before I end this, lets do this one last time.

MY PASSIONATE IDOL ACTIVITIES

AIKATSU!

IS ABOUT TO START!

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Nectar's Corner

A blog by Nectar in General

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Music, Part One.

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Music, Part One.

Now, if you're not really interested about music, don't read this post. I'm not going to persuade you that music is brilliant, because you won't believe me and that's not what this post is about.

Also, I will warn you, in case you haven't scrolled down. This post is LONG. It has had countless hours pumped into it. (Actually, not countless, more like 3.)

If you aren't comfortable reading loads and loads about music, why I like it and what examples I can give of music I like, then this isn't the blog for you.

If you don't mind, or are instead smiling at the thought of reading Nectar's very detailed thoughts on music, then do please continue. I would love for you to hear what I have to say.

Nectar - Music

Part One

(of two)

I want to talk, in this post, very generally about Music. Notice the capital 'M'.

Just "Music".

It's a wonderful thing, and it also plays a massive role in my life.

I've estimated that I spend around 13 to 14 hours a day with Apple EarPods inside of my ears on a weekend.

That is a massive portion of my day. And yes, this does mean that there is music playing in my ears most of the time.

It is rare for me to not be listening to music. I'm not listening to anything right now, because I really wanna focus on this post.

However, I still have the earphones in my ears, though I'm not listening to anything. I mean, why remove them? I'll probably listen to something soon anyway.

What all this means, is that I listen to music a hell of a lot.

You may be wondering because of this, why does Nectar spend so much of his time listening to music? What does it mean to him? What does he listen to? Why that music? Is there anything he doesn't like?

These are all perfectly reasonable questions. I discovered halfway through a reply to a thread that my reply was too long for a forum post. This is my third attempt and rewrite to actually respond to that thread, and it has taken me 19 days to make any kind of response at all. But I'm free from the confines of a thread here, so I'll address all of these questions without feeling guilty.

Why does Nectar spend so much of his time listening to music?

It has become a sort of habit, recently. I've been having trouble being productive for the last few months, actually. Music has become one of the few driving factors that have actually improved my productivity, and I had may as well mention why. I spend so much time listening to music because... well... it interests me. I like listening to stories. Music is the ideal medium for storytelling in my opinion. A good musical story has very few dependencies. You don't even have to be able to play an instrument, be able to sing, or read musical notation to tell a story with music. You don't have to be able to read, write or be literate in any meaningful way. It's easy. Here are the simple requirements for composing music:

You understand the concept of pitch. Some noises have a higher and lower frequency to other noises.
You understand timings. You understand that if you make a few noises, it sounds better if you leave equal or divisible gaps between them.
You have a story you want to tell. You might hate society, you might really really like the female anatomy, or you might just want to tell someone you love them.
You have a thing that makes noises. There was that one song that got around this rule, but generally you're gonna need to either use your voice, whack a thing, or twang a string.

That's all you really need. There's nothing in there about what language, if any, you speak. You don't need me to tell you that it doesn't matter what background you're from. Practically everybody is capable of appreciating music and creating music. Not everybody can write a book, not everybody can paint a picture. There are more people in the world that fit the above requirements than there are people capable of producing any other art form.

That is why it is the ideal storytelling tool.

Let's get interactive for a moment. (holy shit)

Imagine grass. You know grass.

Imagine a 1m square lawn.

Try to imagine how many blades of grass there are in that lawn.

It's hard to imagine even 1m squared's worth of grass blades.

Now try to imagine how many blades of grass there are in the whole world.

You done it? No? Failed miserably? Same.

Well, here's a little secret for you.

There are more songs, written, unwritten, imagined, and unimaginable, than there are all of those blades of grass.

Now that's a fancily huge amount of music to listen to. Try fitting that on your iPod.

Good Lord I've strayed away from the topic. I like stories, and I find that music is the best way to access great stories. (anime is fun too)

You can express so much more in music than just your thoughts. Here in this post, it is difficult for me to convey much tone. I find myself putting slants on words, making some words have thicker letters, adding emoticons, and all just because there is only so much you can do with writing alone. Plain text bores me far faster than music does. I can read a book, but then that's it. I don't read it again unless it's fucking Harry Potter. If I watch a film, it is very rare that I'll ever watch it again, unless it's fucking Harry Potter. Music, on the other hand, can last me weeks, months of replaying. Now, my mileage varies with what I'm listening to, but I'll discuss why later on. The stories that music can tell you can be so complex that replays are actually necessary in order to get the full experience without it.

The first time I listened to The Dark Side Of The Moon, an album by Pink Floyd, my first impression was that it was hugely unremarkable. It wasn't catchy, it wasn't clever, the lyrics were boring, it just kind of droned on and finished. I went to sleep the night I heard it, thinking exactly that. It was the following few days that I actually went back and listened again, and it was on around the 3rd complete playthrough that I realised how great it is.

Good music often takes time to get into your head properly. And that's because it's sneaky. Music is a massive tease. It plays with your head and your heart, and it only gives you small amounts of the full story in each play. The reason you listen to songs more than once, and in rapid succession, is because you want to hear more. When you finish a book, you have the same feeling. You just want more. But do you read the book over and over, 10, 20, 30 times? No, of course you don't. But you'll listen to your favourite song again. Why? Because every time you hear it, you hear more of the song than you did last time.

If you listen to your favourite song on repeat for too long, you'll get bored and it won't be your favourite any more. No song that I've ever found is indestructible when faced with the replayability test. They never last forever. But they last longer than other mediums do.

So back to the question. Why indeed do I spend so much of my time listening to music?

The simple answer now is that I have the means to, there's plenty of it and it's damn interesting.

That answer isn't long enough. There are more reasons than that. Looks like I had better keep talking.

What does it mean to him?

Music is a very expressive medium. I think I've probably said that enough times now that you understand what I mean.

It is cheesy, but the music that I listen to is both the soundtrack, and content, of my life.

If you watch a movie that contains not a single second of musical score, it doesn't have nearly as much life as one that does. The Dark Knight is a good example of a movie made 10x better with it's soundtrack. TRON: Legacy, is another one.

Hans Zimmer and Daft Punk use music to symbolise every emotion in the movies that they composed the score for. Every thought can be made so much more apparent when paired with a musical sequence.

Imagine a bird's eye view over New York City. Straight away, if you imagine the camera moving slowly over the city, you can hear music. Of course, the pigeons that orbit the city don't have earphones in, listening to dramatic movie scores. And yet, it is natural for us as humans to imagine an orchestra scratching some strings with horse hair in a lot of different circumstances. This shows that music has very deeply established itself in our subconscious and our culture, that there is a soundtrack buried deep within everybody.

And there's a soundtrack buried deep within me also. Hans Zimmer doesn't compose it for me, I discover my own.

I am very aware that the music an individual listens to forms a soundtrack of their life. Something I have more recently realised, however, is that that soundtrack is a fairly accurate mirror of the content of that person's life also.

The music that I listen to represents me. I gravitate towards music that is relatable to my exact circumstances. Sort of like how humans tend to fall in love with people that are similar to themselves and their parents.

I know that I've listened to wowaka's UNHAPPY REFRAIN because I've had direct frightening experience with depression.

I know that I've listened to Wintergatan because I dream of life in a peaceful Eastern European style village full of bicycles and cobblestone roads.

I know that I've listened to Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here because I've had to deal with the loss of somebody I love very dearly.

I could point at every album in my iTunes library and tell you why it's really there. It has taken me a very long time to understand that, but I know now that there is something that subconsciously draws me to certain music. And it's probably because I recognise that that I spend so much of my time with EarPods in my ears.

Sometimes I go outside, late at night or early in the morning, with a coffee and an album/song. I'll sit and listen to it, and reflect on the parts of my life that it reminds me of. Music that is visually engaging really shows you a lot about who you have been, who you are, and what you want to be.

That's what it means to me. It's a tool I use to gain a deeper insight into my life that no person's words could possibly provide. It only takes a few minutes of my attention to learn about entire years of my life. If you've read this far, you're interested in what I'm saying. I encourage you to go look through your music library. Look at the album covers. Look at the titles, remember the lyrics and the music. Think about why it got into your library. Think about what it shows about you. When I did that, I woke up the following morning knowing more about myself than I ever had before.

I intend to post Part Two at some point. It could be soon, or it could be a while. I wanna cram as much content into it as possible. So yes, a part 'three' might end up coming to be

Regardless, I'm gonna talk about specific bands, their stories, and what they have shown me. I will talk in detail about the precise things that I look for in music. I'll talk about what I don't like. I'll talk about the music industry, and my thoughts on it's direction. And more.

Thank you a whole bunch for reading this so far.

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Lunchmeat's Blog

A blog by Lunchmeat in General

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Anime that will make you rethink your life

Latest Entry

Anime that will make you rethink your life

So in my experience of watching anime I have been deemed a feels addict. I have been all over the battlefield that is anime. These are some of the titles I have seen that will make you think about things you never thought you would think about by the end of them.

1. Your Lie in April

Without spoiling anything, this anime is about a boy who plays piano and the things he needs to overcome to keep playing. The setting is amazing, the art is wonderful, and the story it tells is one that you will remember. By the end of this anime, you will have rolled through so many different emotions that you won’t no what you are doing any more. I Highly recommend Your Lie in April.

2. Say I Love You

Say I Love you is about an outcast girl who meets the most popular guy in school and he falls for her. At this point you are thinking greeaaaat, another romance anime, but this title is more than that. It tells the story of how an outcast is able to make new friends, build trust in others, and forge new relationships and feel things she has never felt before. This anime will take you on a 13 episode emotional roller coaster and leave you smiling at the end.

3. Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions!

Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions is a very light hearted anime that delves into some interesting topics to say the least. This anime starts off nice and easy and then brings you into the feels zone. You will laugh and cry with the characters and generally be glued to the screen. This anime will make you feel very happy at the end and it will also teach you some lessons, such as to accept people as they are.

And so ends this list. If you like this list and would like to see another please let me know. I had fun writing this and I would very much enjoy writing another. See ya!

Sincerely,
Paladin Lunchmeat

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SayuriChan's Blog

A blog by SayuriChan in General

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Latest Entry

Top 5 Survival Games That’ll Make You Rethink Life

5. Death Parade
Okay, I know this isn’t exactly what you would call a Survival Game, but it’s somewhat similar to it.

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Genre: Drama, Mystery, Psychological
Episodes: 12
Aired: Jan 2015 – Mar 2015
The anime plays in the bar Quin Decim and follows a bartender, who makes his guests play games for their life – well, that’s what they think. But in reality they’re already dead and in the afterlife, competing against each other to see who deserves to go up or down.
The 2 competitors are always related in some way, but they lose their memories about how they died and can only gain them back, if they play the game. This gives the anime a good dose of drama and you notice how you start feeling with the characters after just one episode.

4. Deadman Wonderland
This anime stayed in my memory mostly because of the character designs – not only did they have very unique looks, but their personalities also differ.

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Episodes: 12
Aired: Apr 2011 – Jul 2011
Genres: Manglobe

The teenage boy Ganta is sentenced to death after he was the only survivor when a mysterious man killed every student of his class. He then has to go to the craziest prison you’ve ever seen – Deadman Wonderland.

The prisoners of this disturbing place are forced to compete against each other in many different death matches.

3. Danganronpa: The Animation
I never thought this anime would actually become one of my favorite animes so far. The mix of mystery and survival game is great and makes you want to continue after you’ve finished an episode.

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Genres: Mystery, Psychological, Thriller
Episodes: 13
Aired: Jul 2013 – Sep 2013
Naegi Makoto was invited to enter a high school for people with special talents – even though he has none.
Soon enough this school turns out to be a survival game: 15 students are captured and the only way to get out is to kill someone without anybody noticing. But if someone finds out, you die.

2. Mirai Nikki
The anime, that is famous for its yandere character, Yuno Gasai.

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Genres: Action, Mystery, Psychological, Thriller
Aired: Okt 2011 – Apr 2012
Episodes: 26
The story follows the student Yukki, who writes everything he sees around him in his phone diary. One day he gets a strange message from his imaginary friend, that he is supposed to participate in a survival game.

If you’re the last participant alive, you become the God of time and space. Later he finds out, that his diary can suddenly tell the future – but he’s not the only one who owns something as powerful as that; Every participant has their own unique diary, that gives them a different advantage or disadvantage in battles.

1. Btooom!
No matter how often I watch this anime, it never gets boring!

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Genres: Action, Psychological
Episodes: 12
Aired: Okt 2012 – Dec 2012
Ryouta is a NEET – he doesn’t go to school, doesn’t have a job, the only thing that is on his mind is the famous game Btooom. In this game you try to kill people with different types of bombs.

Suddenly Ryouta finds himself on an island with many people trying to kill each other. He then finds out that somebody he knows sent him there to die. But there is still one chance to get out of this survival game: You have to kill seven people. And the only weapon you have is bombs – just like in Btooom.

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Yuuki_Radosian's Blog

A blog by Yuuki_Radosian in General

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Five Great Starter Anime

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Five Great Starter Anime

We all have to start somewhere and it’s not easy with so much great anime out there , it makes it a little hard to choose what we want to start with.
There are many genre’s to choose from and depending on where people start they may have a fractured view on the world of anime , especially if the first is not to their liking , so the first is quite important.

In that regard it is important that the first should have a large enough range so that you can find some part of it to your liking and from there find out more about your own taste in anime , knowing what you like in movies series and books helps quite a lot as well as you can direct yourself more towards what you know you like and develop your palate from there.
For instance , if you like romance you start off watching romance and as you go on you diverge into romance + mech , romance + supernatural , romance + SoL and so on so that you can find something that you enjoy and from there explore the new genre that you have an interest in and grow more interest in anime as a whole.

No one ever stops changing so your current favorite series or genre might not always be the same but if you explore and find more that you enjoy you will never find yourself unable to enjoy anime as there will always be something that will interest you.
Here are a few anime I believe are great for new anime fans or people who want to start watching anime.
[In no particular order]

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso

Drama , Romance , Music , School
This series shows a lot of emotion and is a great starting point if you enjoy drama , music or romance. The music is also brilliant and if you enjoy the music genre it will not disappoint.

Magi -The Labyrinth of Magic

Action , Adventure , Fantasy , Shounen
This series has a lot of action , adventure and magic and is a great starting point if you enjoy fantasy. In addition to it’s brilliantly done fight scenes it has some powerful scenes that tug at your emotions.

Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica

Drama , Magic , Psychological , Thriller , Magic Girl
This series is a great place to start for people who want to get into the Magical Girl genre as it is both a brilliant Magical Girl anime and has a serious tone to it that allows even those that are not fans of the genre to truly enjoy it. It is also a brilliant thriller and psychological theme anime and should not be overlooked even if you doubt Magical Girl anime.

Bakemonogatari

Mystery , Romance , Supernatural , Vampire
This series is a grate starting place if you enjoy mystery or the supernatural. The use of the vampire genre is not over used , though not forgotten or neglected and the series is that much stronger because of it.

Love Hina

Comedy , Ecchi , Harem , Romance , Shounen , Slice of Life
This series is a great place to start if you enjoy the comedy , SoL , ecchi , romance , or harem genre’s. The comedy is great and the harem and ecchi scenes are done well all while being grounded in real life so that it is not too outlandish.