True Remembrance

Visual novels are hard to recommend to people who have little experience or interest in the medium. Of the ones I've read, however, True Remembrance is one that I have no qualms recommending to anyone who likes a good story.

Summer 2012 Anime

If you've been keeping up with anime as it comes fresh off of Japanese airwaves like I have, you'll know that summer isn't usually the season with the best shows. That's especially true when comparing this coming summer season with the previous season, a spring season loaded with quality at the top and plenty of depth. Still, there are definitely some shows worth checking out.

Today, I'm Thankful For Right Stuf

Right Stuf is where I get most of my DVDs and manga. They have the best prices on average of any large online retailer, they have great customer service, and they always have a sale of some sort going on. Today, I received some Aria bookmarks as a free gift. I was very pleased and excited when I found them alongside the manga I had ordered.

Today, I'm Thankful For Fansubbers

Especially all you guys who worked on Ano Hana. You guys are awesome!

Today, I'm Thankful For Adblock Plus

I like Crunchyroll.com. They have all sorts of good subtitled anime licensed for web streaming for those in the United States. I personally recommend Time of Eve, Durarara!!, and the new Spring 2011 anime, Hanasaku Iroha. Unfortunately for those unwilling to pay each month for premium membership, they have commercials playing in the beginning, middle (several times), and end of each episode. So greatly did the inconveniently placed commercials inhibit my enjoyment of Natsume Yuchijo this weekend that I resolved to find a way to block them. Thank goodness for Firefox extensions.

New Label and Bunny Drop

Today I've renamed the "Anime" label to "For MAL" because I've also started reading some manga titles, and because I like puns. MAL stands for "manga and anime lovers," I think. Well, even if it doesn't mean that elsewhere, that's what it stands for on my blog. So for those of you looking for my posts on anime, look for the new "For MAL" label.

I'd also like to share one fine gem of a manga title that I discovered, called Bunny Drop, so hit the jump.

Madoka Magica Final Episodes Announced

Finally! After the terrible earthquake that struck Japan, Shaft announced that Madoka Magica would be delayed until further notice. Oh, the cries of fans around the world. The earthquake itself was terrible enough. Sure, Madoka wasn't the happiest of shows, but the whole "self-restraint" attitude that Japan had, especially towards animated medium, had gotten out of hand since that announcement. It just seemed rather unnecessary.

Well, all that is in the past, now that Shaft's finally announced that the last two episodes will be airing back to back on April 21 at 26:40 (technically 02:40 on April 22). Isn't that awesome?! I'm pretty sure that Shaft's taken this time off to make them gorgeous on the technical front. Now I just hope that the story wraps itself up in an epic way.

To celebrate, hit the jump for...

Spring 2011 Anime

Here's the Spring 2011 titles I'm checking out.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica Wallpaper

Today I saw this art of Puella Magi Madoka Magica by an artist called Kariya, and I knew I had to add it to my computer background collection. I took it, resized it to 2240x1400 (weird numbers because I cropped the height and extended the length e.g. no stretching of existing pixels), and added the show's logo in the corner. I also adjusted the contrast a small bit from the original so that it pops out of the screen a bit. Enjoy.

Kimi ni Todoke 2nd Season Episode 9

a.k.a. YYYYYYYEEEEEEESSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!

Anime Closest to My Heart

As sort of a follow up to my license wish list, here's a list of the top ten anime that I hold nearest and dearest to me. This is the stuff I'd love to show my closest friends whenever I have the opportunity. As well as being personal favorites of mine, all of these shows are great in their own right, and I highly recommend them to anyone who's interested.

Anime License Wishlist

For those of you who haven't figured it out, I like anime. But anime is made in Japan, and it comes in Japanese. I like to own things that I like, but I can't get my hands on DVDs with (at least) English subtitles or a (good) English dub unless a company in the US thinks they can make money with a US release. I've tracked down most of my favorites that have been released on DVD. But there are still a few titles that are just lingering, and I'm waiting anxiously for news of their release. Here's the top ten anime that I would love to see news of a US release.

The sense of Wonder

Click here for the video.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica Episode 1

After skimming through some episode summaries on this season's anime shows, I gained an interest in animation studio Shaft's latest, Puella Magi Madoka Magica.

Don't let the colorful promotional art fool you. Although it is indeed an "magical girl" show (like Sailor Moon or one of my favorites, Cardcaptor Sakura), Shaft and production staff promise a magical girl show with a dark twist, full of despair and strange visuals. If you hate magical girl shows like Sailor Moon or Cardcaptor Sakura, this isn't going to do anything (especially early on) that is going to make you change your mind. However, if you're at all interested, get ready for one hell of a ride. I'm going to talk freely about the show, so be warned about any spoilers.

New Name and French Fries

I've changed the name of my blog to "The Beautiful World." It is the subtitle of Kino's Journey, this wonderful anime that I own, and in a way it reflects my worldview. In Kino's Journey, the main character says, "The world is not beautiful, therefore it is." It does not mean that the world is devoid of beauty, nor that it's full of it. It means the ugliness of the world highlights the good things that we experience in life, though they may be few and far apart. Things like compassion, love, and hope still exist despite all of the brutality, loneliness, nonsense, oppression, and tragedy* that we may face.  It is that fact that makes this world beautiful. And with that in mind, I hope you continue to enjoy what I irregularly share from my life.

Once you're done reading all that, hit the jump for a look at my latest culinary creation.

Kimi ni Todoke Wallpaper

Just recently I discovered this glorious Kimi ni Todoke digital wallpaper. I'd like to share it with you now. Click on it for the 1440x900 version.

Rock's Line

Yeah! You got fucked!
I'm pretty sure it was this scene, where a WWII-era torpedo boat takes out a gunship, that made me buy Black Lagoon.