ceruleangel

Look, I'm a big fan of Japanese animation, affectionately termed 'anime'. A HUGE fan. I have been for many years. But I'm starting to notice a trend that, to be entirely frank, annoys the devil out of me.

Does a show have to go on FOREVER to be cool?

I will admit to watching the occasional stray episode here and there online. I will even confess to having read a manga or two. But I do go out and buy the ones I love. I have thousands of dollars of Japanese export in my room as I type. I'm sure I'll add more. But several series that I love, and own the first few bits of, will never be part of a complete collection. The reason is simple. I just don' have the kind of money. Few of my fellow otaku (borderline-obsessed anime fans) have that kind of cash just lying around. Right now, my favorite series, Bleach, is somewhere around episode 210 online, and still going strong. Great for Kubo Tite, the creator. As good as the series is, all props to Kubo. But this translates to roughly...too many dvds. Just calculate the time a person would have to dedicate to this show! Each episode is around a half hour. Multiply that by 210--you have around 6300 minutes, 105 hours. That's several days of anime, people--and still counting! For one series. Naruto is even longer. Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh march forward. And if you both read and watch, as I do, there is no foreseeable end to this.

Somehow, I have to factor in time to work, eat, sleep, live. Mostly, though, these things are neglected. I survive on a potent cocktail of Oreo Jamocha Cappuccino Blasts, satisfaction, anticipation, and just plain determination. If I collapse with weakness, I can read in prone position. Worst case scenario, I have loads of Pocky, ramen and ramune soda. Unhealthy, yes, definitely. Yet I thrive. And so do the many other people I know who suffer from otakudom.

As I said, I'm currently watching Bleach. The show is action-oriented, with very compelling characters. Time is taken to explain what's going on in each episode, so it's pretty easy to understand.

Okay, pet peeve two:  in Bleach, I realize that Ichigo is in perpetual god-mode, with cheats scrolling invisibly along the bottom of the screen. I'm not the only one who knows this; by this point in the show, everyone else should, too. Obviously, the show would suck if he got his butt kicked by every weak Hollow that came along. So he's going to win. I'm cool with that. And the fight has to be interesting, so that I keep watching. Cool with that, too. But interesting CAN NOT stretch for longer than two episodes. If you watch an episode a day, that leaves you with a twenty-four hour cliffhanger. I'm a loyal watcher; what the heck did I do to deserve that? It's like being told you can open your presents, but you can't play with them until your next birthday, or the one after that. Look, I know he's going to win, okay? So can he please do it in a timely manner, so that I can actually do other stuff besides wonder what's next?

Three, please, and I stress this, PLEASE stop inserting random bridge arcs. The side stories are great, really, they are, but they can wait until AFTER  the big boss fight, romantic reunion, rescue attempt or whatever. I'm so sick of tuning in to my favorite show, waiting to see the end of the epic fight between Hero and Villain, only to have to wait through two to three weeks of filler episodes just to get to it. By then, rest assured, I have forgotten, and now need to go back and refresh. It's even worse when the filler arc has NOTHING TO DO WITH WHAT WAS JUST GOING ON! Here's the breakdown: cut, slash, Hero's down, Villain's sword at his throat...to be continued. Okay, la la la, tomorrow comes, opening theme, episode number shown, I'm at the edge of my seat, Hero is eating ice cream with random person from fifty episodes ago. The hell? Then to watch wonderful adventures of Hero's trip to the corner store...mission accomplished six years later...Hero's sword comes up to block Villain's killing blow. He didn't miss a beat. but I did.

Admittedly, the enjoyment I get from watching outweighs the frustration, but it leaves me at a crossroads: am I a big enough fan to go back and do this again, or will I quit after they air the last episode? Will I ever own this series? Do I even want to?

I am otaku. Of course I do.

There's not too much to know about me.

I love anime. It follows that i also love to draw and to write. Like a lot of people I know, my skill leans mostly towards one of those talents. I love music and sounds and studying names and how they fit their owners. I love studying languages, but English is my first love.

I'm a Taurus born in the year of the Rat, so I'm stubborn and rather imaginative when it comes to methods of getting my way. I don't bite hard, but it hurts for a long time (I flare with anger, but it dies quickly--then I keep a grudge forever.) I don't like that about myself, but it's how I'm made, I guess. Unlike a lot of people, I'm truly genuinely happy with the way I look--and I'm willing to go to a lot of lengths to stay this way. I diet and exercise fiercely just to stay the way I am now.

I've been published a few times, nothing really groundbreaking, just enough to tell me that I have some talent and that I need to practice more. I think I will start posting a few things in various places, and I will post here when I do. If anyone is reading these (I know my friends are/will) I will post where and when, and accept requests and advice if offered.

That's all for tonight--sleep well, and may the dreams you sleeping see, restful, calm and peaceful be.

Well, this is my first posting on LJ, although not my first visit. I suppose I want to type something witty or funny, something relevant. Or not. Maybe I just want it to be memorable. Okay, here goes...

Picture me smiling, waving happily to you from across a grassy field. I'm wearing functional jeans, grass-stained sneakers, and a button-up, casual white shirt. Even under the gentle spring sun, my skin looks perpetually suntanned, a gift from my ancestors, and my hair, cut to my chin, blows like a short mahogany curtain in the breeze. My eyes crinkle in the corners, as deep a brown as my hair.

I am happy to see you. I hope that you are pleased to see me, also.

We are strangers, but here, where the grass goes on forever and the breeze smells of other worlds, we find much to discuss. I am a writer, a notebook clasped in hand and a pen perched on my ear. I am interested in what you do, for fun, for work, to pass the time.

Come sit with me, enjoy the day, and we will learn each other.