Anime Presentation Concept

I was laying in bed last night trying to get some sleep, but as usual my brain started going a million miles an hour. I suddenly came up with what I think would be an interesting way to present an anime and decided I'd share it with you all.  

Said anime would be comprised of 2 seasons, each spanning 12 or 13 episodes. Both seasons would be the same story, but with one major difference.  

Season one would be completely done in a first person perspective of the main character. This would work best with the romance/comedy/drama genres. There's so many series where you know exactly what is going on with everyone, yet the main character is clueless to what is going on in everyone elses heads. As you watch, there's a lot of times where you just want to hit him because he's so dense. This is where the first person perspective could make things interesting. You would be just as clueless as the main character. You wouldn't have all the obvious hints that tell you that your childhood friend has a crush on you, or that your best friend is going through some kind of troubles at home and that's why he or she has seemed distant lately.  This season wouldn't tell the entire story, just maybe 1/4 of it.  

The second season would be the same story, but presented in the same way every other anime is. You would see everyones lives and hear their thoughts. You would then know why the various characters are acting the way they do. This season would also tell the last portion of the story that was left out in the first season.  

It's quite possible that in the end, you were just as dense or dim witted as the main character, or maybe you were very perceptive and was able to figure out exactly what was going on.  

Feel free to leave comments on why you think this would be a good or bad idea, or ways this could be improved.

Changes -_-

So... Since my last post, my life has done a complete 180.  My car was stolen, I nearly became homeless, things have just been really bad in general.  I'm in the process of trying to get my life back together, hence why I haven't started the one post a week minimum I had imposed on myself. Of course I'm going to start doing that as soon as I can, but its just not easy right now.  It's not like anyone is actually reading these anyway, but if you are then feel free to say hi in the comments section!

What is wrong with the manga industry in America?

So what exactly is wrong with the manga industry in America?  Well, a LOT honestly.
     From what I have noticed, there seems to be less and less manga being brought to the U.S. these days.  There are a lot of larger series that are aimed at the teen demographic still being licensed and published here, but not many series that only have 10 volumes or so, or that is aimed at an older, more mature audience..  Why is that?  I'm honestly not sure, as I don't have any real knowledge of the industry, but I am going to try to explore this a little anyway.
     What got me thinking about this in general?  A little over a week ago, I noticed that a website that I used regularly to read manga, called OneManga, had shut down.  After browsing their forums a bit (they left those up for everyone), I found a post explaining why they were shutting down.  A decent portion of the reason was due to the lack of readers visiting their site anymore, and due to a lack of donations to cover server costs.  But the real kicker was their constantly being hit by DMCA requests to pull various series from their site.
     That is where the problem is with the manga industry in the U.S.  For some reason, these companies are seeing the sites that host manga as "Pirates".  Though it can be argued that it technically is piracy of a sort, it is also a form or piracy that is actually HELPING the manga industry gain readers and more recognition in the U.S.  People go to manga websites and read manga that aren't currently translated into their language and available in their country for purchase.  Once a series becomes available for purchase, many of those readers then go ahead and buy it.  The manga industry doesn't seem to realize this though, and will have a series pulled from a website under the assumption that these sites are keeping publishers from making money off of various series.
     In my opinion, I think part of their problem is fear.  They are afraid a series won't do well in the U.S., so they won't publish it here.  Then they see it on a site and pull it for the reasons stated above.  What they SHOULD be doing is using these sites as a tool to gauge the amount of readership these series are getting from various countries.  They should work WITH the websites, and scanlators.  A prime example of this happened just within the past few months.  A scanlation group called Soba Scans has been working on a manga by the author Chihiro Harumi for the past year or two.  Shortly before the series had completed, they came into contact with a publishing company called Project-H (They translate and publish Hentai/Ecchi manga, but that's not the point here.), Project-H liked the work they had done with the series so much, that Soba Scans actually became the official translators for the series.  Why don't other publishers and scanlators team up like this (with permission from the authors of course) and help to bring the more obscure series to the states, or even other countries?
     If Publishers, Mangaka, and Scanlators could start working together, we could see a lot more awesome manga here.  Lets hope more companies start embracing this business model as a method of releasing their products to a broader audience.
P.S.  If you read this and want me to elaborate or clear up something, or you happen to know more about the industry and can provide some insight on this, feel free to comment!

(Rant) So apparently history really does repeat itself, on the internet anyway.

*Note:  This is kinda pointless to 99% of you out there, and may very well be boring, but I figured I'd post something relatively intelligent for a change*

     I never used to believe that history repeated itself, but over time I'm starting to, and it's all thanks to the years I've spent using the internet.

     Before I explain why (which is a short story in itself), a little background history.  I first started using the internet more or less when it became publicly available and easily accessible.  Back before there was flash, and mpeg videos, or even mp3's.  Before streaming chats, or instant messaging clients, or even website names and you had to find a site by its IP address or even during it's phone number.  So it's safe to say, I've seen a lot of different things happen on the web.

     So, as to not bore you with more examples, onto the meat of the story.  When I was in my teens, I used to spend a LOT of time on Yahoo chat.  I'm not sure if any of you are familiar with it, but it was a standard text based chat that had a twist, voice communication.  Because of this, you were no longer just a string of text.  You now have a voice, a personality.  You were now able to develop even more personal relationships with people.  It was easier to tell jokes, it was easier to express emotion, and it was easier to tell someone off.

     Due to the stronger bonds that people gradually developed, they started to form cliques.  These cliques eventually started to become more organized and became crews or gangs.  They had names (such as Alliance of Domination) and many of them had ranks for their members (generally based on a military system).  As time passed, the crews grew in size, as did the numbers of crews themselves.  After a while, the crews started getting into cyber fights with each other, many of them lasting for weeks.  Often, people would defect from one crew and go to another, or even pretend to do so as to more or less spy on the group.  After about a year of this, the crews gradually fell apart, people learned to not put so much trust into someone on the internet, and it pretty much became a regular everyday chat again where most of the people are just acquaintances, and not trying to be best friends or anything.

     Well, strangely enough it's happening again 15 years later.  Except now it is on the mobile chat apps.  It seems to be the most prevalent on one I use called CB Radio chat (No, it is not an actual CB).  So far it has been going through the same thing, but it seems to be at a more rapid pace.  And strangely enough, it's a lot more personal.  Many people on there call each other, text each other, send messages on apps like Kakao, and when one of them leaves a crew for another, or gets kicked out of one, to no surprise they get harassed by phone.  But outside of that last part, it seems to be a carbon copy of the old Yahoo days, and that's one of the many reasons why I'm fairly convinced that history does in fact repeat itself.

Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad Mega Review

Synopsis: Yukio, known by his friends as "Koyuki", is a regular 14-year-old Japanese boy who enters junior high school with two childhood acquaintances. One is a pervert, and ironically the other is a highly sought after female student. Koyuki's boring life is changed when he saves an odd-looking dog, named Beck, from some kids. Beck's owner turns out to be an emerging rock musician, Ryūsuke Minami, who soon influences Koyuki to start playing the guitar, and even gives one to him. The story focuses on the trials and tribulations of their rock band named BECK, and Koyuki's relationships with the members of the band, in particular Ryûsuke Minami and his sister, Maho Minami.

Differences between Japanese karaoke and American karaoke.

So, I'm sitting here at a local bar doing some karaoke and it got me thinking about the differences between karaoke in Japan and karaoke in America.

Before I get started, I'm not saying that it is better in either country, I'm just noting what's different.

In the U.S., karaoke is held at places like bars and clubs, with a very small few places having a more private setup.  Generally you go by yourself or with a handful of friends and you sing in front of a bunch of random people.  There is a KJ who brings up the songs for you when you request them, and you wait until its your turn to sing.  It's usually free to get in, lasts all night and all you pay for is food and drinks.  It's also a good way to meet people and make some new friends.

In Japan, you usually go to a karaoke box ( is that the right terminology?), and pay by the hour to rent the room plus food and drinks.  It's a fair bit more private as it is just you and/or friends , but it is a great way to build and deepen friendships.  The system is automated and you choose your songs with a handheld style terminal.  It often even has some effects that you can add like applause and such, and can even score you on your singing ability.

Both ways are great for relieving stress or just having fun, and both are clearly different and I would highly recommend trying both forms if you ever get the chance.

Review: Shikabana Hime (Corpse Princess)

"After being brutally murdered along with her family, Makina Hoshimura turns into a Shikabane Hime, a living corpse contracted to the Kougon Sect, in order to exert revenge on the mysterious undead organization responsible for her death. She is assisted in this task by Keisei Tagami, her contracted Monk and former friend. This series follows the story of Keisei's younger brother Ouri, a boy with an unusual attraction to death, who slowly discovers his brother's secret and gets dragged into the world of the Shikabanes."

The other day, a buddy of mine and I decided to watch this series.  It was a terrific anime overall, and was even worth watching dubbed.  The action scenes were great, the comedy was well timed, and the overall animation and story line were done very well.  This is an anime I would definitely recommend to anyone who was looking for some action.

Though the show itself is great, I do have one little complaint... WHERE'S THE EFFING ENDING!?!?!?  Without going too much into what happens and giving anything away, the show basically leaves you hanging in the middle of what could have turned out to be one of the most epic battles in the series.  So if you have a problem with a couple loose ends (From what I can tell, this show only had one loose end), then you may want to take that into consideration before you watch.

Japanese people eat really tiny lunches!

So the other day I was doing some Googling and checking out bento boxes to possibly use to take my lunch with me to work. The reason didn't really have anything to do with being into anime and whatnot, as it was more the fact that it would save me time and money in the long run, as I wouldn't have to give every little thing in my lunch its own ziploc bag, or tupper ware container (not what I use specifically, but it's easier than remembering the actual branding), which means less time washing dishes and less waste since bentos have several sections to them.

After much searching, I came to the conclusion that the Japanese eat really small lunches. I noticed that even the larger and/or two tiered bentos were only large enough to hold a sandwich and a few small sides. I'm not asking for one that can hold a 3 course meal, but it would be nice of it could hold 2 sandwiches, maybe a banana for breakfasts on the go, and a couple decent sized snacks to munch on during my shorter breaks. Is that so wrong?

Or, maybe I'm just your average American who eats too much. -_-