So what have I been doing … or not doing? Such is when real life takes priority that anime blogging falls to a secondary position. Does that mean that anime blogging isn’t real life? Well.. it’s more of a hobby anyway, not a contracted responsibility. However I still feel bad that I have possible readers I’m not really supporting right now.

I said previously that I won’t write something just for the sake of putting it out and trying to meet some quota; everyone including myself deserves a better post than that. But the episodes sit unwatched on my laptop (although I still download them diligently) and I do wonder where my passion has went, or why it doesn’t drive me crazy that I haven’t yet seen the next episode of Zero no Tsukaima or Shugo Chara! or Zettai Karen Children? I enjoy these series, too.

Well I’m not particularly out of the anime scene yet. Accompanying my return to graduate school is a new year of our university’s anime club, so along with the academic and assistantship responsibilities I do have a routine of attending meetings every week. And last night I was exposed to Soul Eater and Kamen no Maid Guy, the former of which everyone’s been telling me to watch but I’ve been infinitely lazy to try. And after the three-episode prologue, I do like it.

Soul Eater has a style of animation I find refreshing, as I haven’t seen anything like it in a while. And I don’t know if it’s a particular technique, but the frame rate seems to have gone up from default as the action scenes appear smooth. Maybe it’s some slow-motion I’m not noticing. The characterization is even better, with such varying personalities and interactions among the seven main protagonists. Death the Kid is my favorite, if only that he reminds me of myself a bit in his OCD tendencies, although I have room in my heart for Maka and Tsubaki. Soul and Black Star are for the shounen fans, and I don’t care for them and their odd facial expressions. Maka resembles Triela from Gunslinger Girl, which makes her all the better. And I hope Tsubaki gets better appreciation (as Mifune had said) later on in the series. I’ll likely continue watching it via the club, and that’s fine enough for me.

Maid Guy is a riot; we loved it right away. I think the person who showed it also forgot it is was capable of a bit of nudity, so we got some surprised expressions there (but nobody was offended I’m sure; we’re in college after all). The series was comedy from the start, and we can tolerate plot holes or other inconsistencies if all we’re meant to do is laugh. Kogarashi just looks ridiculous, and that’s plenty fine. Fubuki has a nail bat, and Naeka could probably stand to be a little less tsuntsun, but after one episode I think I can watch a lot more. But a few have said no.

It still means a lot to me that BH won Rookie of the Year at the ABA, but I feel so ashamed right now. Or am I holding my expectations too high? Right now I just want to sound off sometimes, without fear of sounding inconsistent or having to look up the animation studio or make references or find historical anecdotes … or take screencaps. I mean, those are a whole lot of fun, and they do make a more thrilling blog post. But it’s a ton of work — and oh dear, I just used the word work. :(

~Crisu