I've found the time to sample a few series over this last week or so.
Normally I would aim to watch 3 episodes as a sample, but I'm so far behind that I only watched 2 episodes of these to help me make some inroads. Not that I've watched a lot of stuff, just that I've been having a go.
Seitokai no Ichizon
I wasn't really sure what to make of this. It seemed... I dunno - insubstantial?
The basic idea seems to be sort of a bit like Haruhi. In Haruhi, you've got quite a clever idea whereby Haruhi is interested in aliens and time travel and anime tropes like that, and she's surrounded by characters who are those things, yet she never realises.
In Seitokai no Ichizon I think it's supposed to be playing with the idea of Harem and Moe tropes, but to be frank, it just doesn't work as well. It kept falling into its own clichés and while I think this was deliberate, it's just not as well done as Haruhi. Plus it doesn't really help itself by skimming on the edge of being a "whacky" comedy and so not being very funny.
I guess it's the sort of show I could watch if there weren't a million other (better) things and I wouldn't really remember it after it was over.
Hanasakeru Seishounen
This is essentially what I believe is called a reverse harem show, which essentially means that instead of a male protagonist surrounded by gorgeous women, there's a female protagonist surrounded by gorgeous men.
As far as that sort of thing goes, this seemed like a perfectly okay show, but to be frank, it's not really my cup of tea. I mean, although the focus is on romance, rather than boobs as it would be in a harem show, they're not generally a particularly realistic genre. Not that normal harem is, but at least there it's feeding me fantasies that I can appreciate.
Sasameki Koto
Sasameki Koto seemed quite good. It's one you need to be in the right frame of mind for, though, I think.
The story is one of unrequited love, I guess you would say. The main character is clearly in love with her best friend and her best fried is an 'out' lesbian, but the problem is her friend likes cute girls and she's not very cute. Weirdly, the main character actually fits more into the mould of those strong women you get in girls animes that all the other girls fall in love with. She's very tall and athletic and clever.
The reason it's one you need to be in the right move for is because it's very melancholic. The friend keeps falling for all sorts of other girls and the main character never tells her how she really feels - that sort of stuff. So it's sad, but well done.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
I guess this show highlights just how far behind I am with watching anime - Brotherhood started airing in April of 2009, so in a few weeks it'll be a year old and I'm only now sampling it.
I'm also pretty new to FMA full stop. I've never seen any of the previous version of the anime and although I've bought all the manga, I've only read the 1st volume, with the other 20-odd sat in a big pile awaiting my attention.
I believe Brotherhood is a re-telling of the original anime that's closer to the manga, but as I say, I've not seen that, so I can't really comment. What I would say is I really enjoyed these first few episodes I sampled and I can definitely see why it is/was so popular.
One thing I have been doing is continuing to read manga. I find it a lot easier to keep manga reading going, as I can easily stop half way through chapters, or only read for 10 minutes. And I can read it at breakfast and lunch, of course. I can't really do that with anime - episodes don't work well if you only watch a bit of them and I have to sit and watch them on telly.
Also, I tend to always feel I need to watch a full disks worth when I watch it, which is part of the problem. Doing that means it's going to be an hour and a half of my time (4 episodes on a disk, on average) and when I start thinking like that I start thinking stuff like "I don't have the time, I'll do X instead".
Anyway, one of the manga was a new series:
Sunshine (Hidamari) Sketch
I picked up Sunshine Sketch because I enjoyed the anime adaptation. It turns out the manga is one of those 4 vertical panel jobs. Really I should have guessed from the anime, which is staged like a series of short vignettes, which is a common approach when adapting these types of manga.
The manga is pretty good. It's very Japanese, though. There's one of those translators notes sections at the back and it's written in tiny font with loads of stuff crammed in. I also get the feeling they've deliberately tried to keep it to one page and there's plenty of stuff that could also be explained.
However, unlike with something like Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei, this doesn't really matter. There's the odd strip that you need the notes to understand, but overall you should be okay, especially if you have some general knowledge about Japan from other anime and manga.
Otherwise it's pretty good. It's quite light in tone and is a slice of life type show. The main character Yuno is attending an Arts based high school and once she's there it actually becomes something of an ensemble piece, focusing on all the girls who live at the Hidamari Apartments with Yuno.
The big box I need to tick this weekend is getting my hair cut. With the weather and holiday I've not had it done in ages, so it looks bloody awful.
Friday 29 January 2010
Thursday 28 January 2010
a mosque of sultanas
Normally when it gets to the middle of the week I play anno in the evenings. I've reigned in the anno playing so that it's not all pervasive, but I still play it a lot. I've also been quite good this time at sticking with the same map, rather than starting a completely new one and therefore effectively wasting all the dozens of hours I'd invested in the old one.
Anyway, the point of this post is that I'm on the verge of hitting two of the big milestones. Last night I completed the Sultan's Mosque building on one of my islands. The sultan's mosque is a great big building that takes a heck of a lot of resources to complete. On the good side it does allow you to build a lot of houses in its influence area and not have to worry about the extra stuff that your citizens (in this case, the nomads and envoys) need.
I've also very nearly finished my first Imperial Cathedral. It's basically the equivalent of the Mosque for the Occident (west) and does a similar job, ticking all the building requirements for your western citizens (peasant, citizens, patricians and nobles). It's resource requirements are even more onerous than the mosque, which is why I completed the Mosque first.
If I play tonight (I may wait until the weekend) I should finish the Cathedral as well - I'm that close. It's then my plan to build more of both, though I'll have to build up the resources required again. The ones that are the most difficult are glass and mosaics, as they have the most complicated (and space consuming) production chains and seem to be slower too.
One thing that did surprise me when I finished the Mosque was the introduction of the Sultan as a new NPC. Normally you have the Corsairs and then a representative NPC each for the Occident and the Orient. Those Corsairs you have to befriend, but the other two are always your friend. Their respective bosses are the Sultan and the Emperor, and it seems you unlock them as direct NPCs by building the Mosque and Cathedral.
Unfortunately (or should that be fortunately?) t appears the expansion for anno is due sometime in February, which is basically in a few weeks. I'd kinda hoped I was going to finish this map before the expansion hit, giving me some time to not play Anno and catch up on other stuff. My fear now is that it'll hit and I'll be tempted away and not finish this map.
Anyway, the point of this post is that I'm on the verge of hitting two of the big milestones. Last night I completed the Sultan's Mosque building on one of my islands. The sultan's mosque is a great big building that takes a heck of a lot of resources to complete. On the good side it does allow you to build a lot of houses in its influence area and not have to worry about the extra stuff that your citizens (in this case, the nomads and envoys) need.
I've also very nearly finished my first Imperial Cathedral. It's basically the equivalent of the Mosque for the Occident (west) and does a similar job, ticking all the building requirements for your western citizens (peasant, citizens, patricians and nobles). It's resource requirements are even more onerous than the mosque, which is why I completed the Mosque first.
If I play tonight (I may wait until the weekend) I should finish the Cathedral as well - I'm that close. It's then my plan to build more of both, though I'll have to build up the resources required again. The ones that are the most difficult are glass and mosaics, as they have the most complicated (and space consuming) production chains and seem to be slower too.
One thing that did surprise me when I finished the Mosque was the introduction of the Sultan as a new NPC. Normally you have the Corsairs and then a representative NPC each for the Occident and the Orient. Those Corsairs you have to befriend, but the other two are always your friend. Their respective bosses are the Sultan and the Emperor, and it seems you unlock them as direct NPCs by building the Mosque and Cathedral.
Unfortunately (or should that be fortunately?) t appears the expansion for anno is due sometime in February, which is basically in a few weeks. I'd kinda hoped I was going to finish this map before the expansion hit, giving me some time to not play Anno and catch up on other stuff. My fear now is that it'll hit and I'll be tempted away and not finish this map.
Wednesday 27 January 2010
there will be blood
The first rental after the whole snow problems was There Will Be Blood.
I knew very little about Blood, other than it was about oil and it has received a lot of critical praise. Well, it turns out it's only sort-of about oil, but pretty much deserves he critical praise.
I say it's only sort of about oil, because my feeling about it was the film was more of a character study. The character in question - Daniel Plainview - just happens to be an oil man.
Or he becomes an oil man - initially he's a silver prospector who happens to strike oil. He's also working alone and manages to break his leg by falling down his mineshaft. Daniel then drags himself to some sort of claims office, where he gets exploitation rights. Well, I think this is what happens - the details are actually important in a way, because what we're experiencing is more to do with Daniel's character than his finding silver or oil.
And this is where the film plays its first clever trick. His dragging himself miles to the claims office with a badly broken leg shows us his determination, but it also makes us feel like he's a decent guy. You can't help but feel happy for him that his hard work and horrible accident was worth it as he finds riches.
Shortly afterwards, Daniel also adopts the son of one of his men who was killed in accident down his oil well. The son's mother died during childbirth, so he's an orphan and Daniel adopts him - he can't be a bad person, right?
But here's the thing - the rest of the film charts either his steady decline in character, or steadily reveals his true nature to us. Which it is is never definitively expressed, but then that's the point - is he a bastard all along, or does he become a bastard?
Certainly the people he encounters are mostly just as unpleasant. A preacher, Eli, plays a particularly important role. Eli is just as unpleasant in Daniel, with one of the only real difference between them being that Eli hides behind the facade of being a preacher - a man of the lord - where Daniel is a plain capitalist.
The central performance by Daniel Day Lewis is captivating - it's quite a remarkable portrayal. The score is also remarkable - it's just not what I was expecting at all. The score is orchestral, but it's really dark and sinister. If you've ever seen 2001 then the music that's used during the bit where they discover the monolith on the moon is how the whole film is scored. But it really works - informing you of the underlying nastiness.
However, there were a few things I didn't like. The main one was that we never get enough detail on the other characters. As a simple example, where Daniel sends H.W. away there's no detail at all - we certainly never see where H.W. ends up.
The other thing was I didn't really like the ending. I could see how it worked and how it paralleled other parts of the film, but I dunno, it had that un-nerving quality of just sort of stopping.
I know that sort of thing is more 'realistic', but that doesn't make it satisfying.
I knew very little about Blood, other than it was about oil and it has received a lot of critical praise. Well, it turns out it's only sort-of about oil, but pretty much deserves he critical praise.
I say it's only sort of about oil, because my feeling about it was the film was more of a character study. The character in question - Daniel Plainview - just happens to be an oil man.
Or he becomes an oil man - initially he's a silver prospector who happens to strike oil. He's also working alone and manages to break his leg by falling down his mineshaft. Daniel then drags himself to some sort of claims office, where he gets exploitation rights. Well, I think this is what happens - the details are actually important in a way, because what we're experiencing is more to do with Daniel's character than his finding silver or oil.
And this is where the film plays its first clever trick. His dragging himself miles to the claims office with a badly broken leg shows us his determination, but it also makes us feel like he's a decent guy. You can't help but feel happy for him that his hard work and horrible accident was worth it as he finds riches.
Shortly afterwards, Daniel also adopts the son of one of his men who was killed in accident down his oil well. The son's mother died during childbirth, so he's an orphan and Daniel adopts him - he can't be a bad person, right?
But here's the thing - the rest of the film charts either his steady decline in character, or steadily reveals his true nature to us. Which it is is never definitively expressed, but then that's the point - is he a bastard all along, or does he become a bastard?
Certainly the people he encounters are mostly just as unpleasant. A preacher, Eli, plays a particularly important role. Eli is just as unpleasant in Daniel, with one of the only real difference between them being that Eli hides behind the facade of being a preacher - a man of the lord - where Daniel is a plain capitalist.
The central performance by Daniel Day Lewis is captivating - it's quite a remarkable portrayal. The score is also remarkable - it's just not what I was expecting at all. The score is orchestral, but it's really dark and sinister. If you've ever seen 2001 then the music that's used during the bit where they discover the monolith on the moon is how the whole film is scored. But it really works - informing you of the underlying nastiness.
However, there were a few things I didn't like. The main one was that we never get enough detail on the other characters. As a simple example, where Daniel sends H.W. away there's no detail at all - we certainly never see where H.W. ends up.
The other thing was I didn't really like the ending. I could see how it worked and how it paralleled other parts of the film, but I dunno, it had that un-nerving quality of just sort of stopping.
I know that sort of thing is more 'realistic', but that doesn't make it satisfying.
Tuesday 26 January 2010
almost normal
Last night was about the closest to a normal night I've had in ages. By normal I mean it followed the expected routine.
Obviously, over Christmas I was on holiday, so that was very not normal. Then after Christmas was when it snowed. I was initially trapped in, so that wasn't normal, and then I was struggling into work, again far from normal, because it took ages and I had to get up really early and stuff.
And just recently I've been struggling with the whole bent wheel and driving on the space-saver. During that time I was again getting up early, to try to avoid the traffic (it didn't really work) and setting off later for the same reason (that worked better). But again - up very early and getting back late, which sucks up my time.
So yesterday was normal - I got up at my usual time, did the usual stuff, work was nothing unusual and then back home at the usual sort of time. I had my dinner and there was some spare time to watch a bit of telly, rather than me having to go straight to bed.
It was kinda nice, in a boring sort of way.
The telly I watched was the most recent couple of episodes of Being Human. I like Being Human - it shares a lot of similarities with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but at the same time it's very different.
The thing I like most is the blend of drama and comedy. I have to admit that for the first few episodes of this new series I think it wasn't quite right. It felt too heavy, emotionally. No, that's not right - Being Human often has heavy stuff in it, but it's the way they blend that with funny stuff that makes the show work, and it's the funny stuff that's been a bit lacking.
Well, the latest episodes, which was shown on Sunday had a much better balance. There was still a lot of heavy emotional stuff, but the funny was also ramped up - I genuinely laughed out loud a couple of times.
Obviously, over Christmas I was on holiday, so that was very not normal. Then after Christmas was when it snowed. I was initially trapped in, so that wasn't normal, and then I was struggling into work, again far from normal, because it took ages and I had to get up really early and stuff.
And just recently I've been struggling with the whole bent wheel and driving on the space-saver. During that time I was again getting up early, to try to avoid the traffic (it didn't really work) and setting off later for the same reason (that worked better). But again - up very early and getting back late, which sucks up my time.
So yesterday was normal - I got up at my usual time, did the usual stuff, work was nothing unusual and then back home at the usual sort of time. I had my dinner and there was some spare time to watch a bit of telly, rather than me having to go straight to bed.
It was kinda nice, in a boring sort of way.
The telly I watched was the most recent couple of episodes of Being Human. I like Being Human - it shares a lot of similarities with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but at the same time it's very different.
The thing I like most is the blend of drama and comedy. I have to admit that for the first few episodes of this new series I think it wasn't quite right. It felt too heavy, emotionally. No, that's not right - Being Human often has heavy stuff in it, but it's the way they blend that with funny stuff that makes the show work, and it's the funny stuff that's been a bit lacking.
Well, the latest episodes, which was shown on Sunday had a much better balance. There was still a lot of heavy emotional stuff, but the funny was also ramped up - I genuinely laughed out loud a couple of times.
Monday 25 January 2010
a hole in the pocket
So this weekend cost me about £320.
I ended up ordering the tyre from Nissan and it cam in on Saturday morning. Not that the guy called me. I'm not really sure why I keep using the Aldershot Westway Nissan dealership, as the customer service is shit.
I've always maintained that in terms of the back room - the mechanics, for example - they do a really good job, but the problem is the front end. Whenever I call them up and they say "do you want to leave a message and he'll call you back" I've learnt not to bother, because they never, ever do call me back. It's far better to simply call back.
I mean, the guy said he'd phone me when I ordered it on Friday, but he didn't. I had to call in and check. Of course, being Saturday, he was pretty busy, so I had to keep calling - on one of the occasions I did leave a message, but he didn't call back.
Anyway, the wheel had come in, so I limped to the dealership. It cost about £185 (ouch!).
I then limped all the way over to Alton Qwik Fit where the tyre I ordered was. That was a fairly painless process, because I'd ordered the tyre and I had lucked out with the timing and got straight in and served. Painless apart front he price that is - £135 (double ouch!).
Not heard a peep from this guy who was supposed to fix my bent wheel. It's like he's dropped off the face of the earth :/.
Saturday was about the first time I've driven around with it being light out. I thought I'd have a drive around with the new tyre and see where all the potholes were, plus I needed some petrol. The A31 is like a dirt track in places. There's one place coming off of the roundabout after Farnham where the hole is like a crevasse, it's so big and deep. The one I hit was like that, but they've patched that one up.
Anyway, when I got back on Saturday, I thought I'd give the old girl a bit of a treat after having to limp around with a lame leg all week and gave her a good clean. Unfortunately, the light faded before I'd finished, so I had to finish off on Sunday morning.
Weirdly, normally when I clean the car I get a lot of pain in my hamstring down the back of my legs from bending over so much. However, Sunday morning I was fine, but this morning I'm in agony. That suggests the little bit of bending down I did when finishing off on the Sunday had more impact than everything on Saturday, which is a bit weird.
I also couldn't be arsed to go the whole hog and polish the car. There was also another reason for that - I seem to have a lot of... well, they're not really scratches, as such - the paint isn't gone, but the finish seems to have come off. I dunno, it's a little difficult to explain, especially as I haven't a clue what has caused it.
I do have this stuff that claims to restore the finish, but I've never tried it, and I couldn't be bothered to start experimenting on the Sunday.
Anyway, it looks pretty good, so I'm fairly happy.
I ended up ordering the tyre from Nissan and it cam in on Saturday morning. Not that the guy called me. I'm not really sure why I keep using the Aldershot Westway Nissan dealership, as the customer service is shit.
I've always maintained that in terms of the back room - the mechanics, for example - they do a really good job, but the problem is the front end. Whenever I call them up and they say "do you want to leave a message and he'll call you back" I've learnt not to bother, because they never, ever do call me back. It's far better to simply call back.
I mean, the guy said he'd phone me when I ordered it on Friday, but he didn't. I had to call in and check. Of course, being Saturday, he was pretty busy, so I had to keep calling - on one of the occasions I did leave a message, but he didn't call back.
Anyway, the wheel had come in, so I limped to the dealership. It cost about £185 (ouch!).
I then limped all the way over to Alton Qwik Fit where the tyre I ordered was. That was a fairly painless process, because I'd ordered the tyre and I had lucked out with the timing and got straight in and served. Painless apart front he price that is - £135 (double ouch!).
Not heard a peep from this guy who was supposed to fix my bent wheel. It's like he's dropped off the face of the earth :/.
Saturday was about the first time I've driven around with it being light out. I thought I'd have a drive around with the new tyre and see where all the potholes were, plus I needed some petrol. The A31 is like a dirt track in places. There's one place coming off of the roundabout after Farnham where the hole is like a crevasse, it's so big and deep. The one I hit was like that, but they've patched that one up.
Anyway, when I got back on Saturday, I thought I'd give the old girl a bit of a treat after having to limp around with a lame leg all week and gave her a good clean. Unfortunately, the light faded before I'd finished, so I had to finish off on Sunday morning.
Weirdly, normally when I clean the car I get a lot of pain in my hamstring down the back of my legs from bending over so much. However, Sunday morning I was fine, but this morning I'm in agony. That suggests the little bit of bending down I did when finishing off on the Sunday had more impact than everything on Saturday, which is a bit weird.
I also couldn't be arsed to go the whole hog and polish the car. There was also another reason for that - I seem to have a lot of... well, they're not really scratches, as such - the paint isn't gone, but the finish seems to have come off. I dunno, it's a little difficult to explain, especially as I haven't a clue what has caused it.
I do have this stuff that claims to restore the finish, but I've never tried it, and I couldn't be bothered to start experimenting on the Sunday.
Anyway, it looks pretty good, so I'm fairly happy.
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