“Hoshi ga matataku konna yoru ni” English Translation

Well, supercell’s 3rd CD single, Utakata Hanabi (Literally Water Bubble Fireworks, though kumoriha translates it as Ephemeral Fireworks in his translation. I prefer Bubble-Like Fireworks, personally), was released last week on August 25. The title track, predictably enough, leaked about a month back, so that was nothing new, but also in the release was a second track, titled 星が瞬くこんな夜に (Hoshi ga matataku konna yoru ni), or This Star Sparkling Night in English. Below is a YouTube video of the song in full.

Since I haven’t been able to find an English translation for its lyrics, I thought that I would take a crack at it.

Giant Killing 22 – Reverse Momentum

Alright, so the game still isn’t over yet.  ETU didn’t keep a tight ship for the first half, but neither did they suffer a tremendous shutout as happened to Osaka’s previous opponent.  Now they have a little time to get in each other’s faces and mentally work out their problems before advancing to the second half.  They can definitely play the game with the setup they have now, they just need to fix the mistakes in their playing styles.  Some players manage to make good progress in this episode, but one still sticks out like a sore thumb.

Yes, Natsuki, we're all looking at you.

The Legend of the Legendary Heroes 9 – Too Close for Comfort

This episode made it abundantly clear that Ryner and Ferris don’t know what they are doing. You would have thought that after two years of researching the legendary relics Ryner would know how to use them or, at the very least, he would have one in his possession by now. Though much from this episode still needs to be resolved, I would imagine that knowing the pink haired siblings pose a threat to the completion of their mission, Ryner and Ferris may start taking things a bit more seriously.

The pink haired siblings being cute before becoming evil.

Ookami-san and Seven Companions 9 – Snow White, the Triplets, the Quadruplets, and the Little Red Riding Hood

I like the return to the episodic structure, where each episode has a clear and pretty much atomic story based on some fairy tale. This week’s episode was a very obvious Snow White parody, and though the story was too overdramatic, the twist of how Ringo entered the story and the good visuals and aurals more than made up for it.

FLCL 3 – Marquis de Carabas, 10 Years Later

10 years ago yesterday, on August 23, 2000, the 3rd episode of Gainax’s OVA series FLCL was released to DVD. It probably wasn’t until a year later that I first got to watch it. I wrote a corresponding post on the 10th year anniversary of the 2nd episode, wherein I explained how I came across this series. I downloaded Marquis de Carabas only after having downloaded the first 2 episodes together and having watched them multiple times. Episode 3 was downloaded by itself, and it would be another few days before I got to see the last 3 episodes of this series. In retrospect, after watching the rest of the series, I can appreciate this episode for what it did. It set up Eri Ninamori as a proper foil for Naota, to show us a different way that someone going through the same things could act. Eri was a kid at an adolescent phase, just like Naota. Though her troubles undoubtedly manifest themselves in a much more mundane manner. However, at the first watch, Marquis de Carabas was a huge disappointment to me, especially after the incredible first 2 episodes this series had had.

Amagami SS Sex Hair, aka Kaoru Arc – Failure to Launch

I approached the second heroine’s arc of Amagami SS with both apprehension and excitement. If you’ve read my post on the first arc, it should be obvious why. The identity of the new heroine was actually not really on my mind, but she proved to be the one interesting bit in a story that felt almost sterile at times. Indeed, this arc was bad, but not spectacularly so like Haruka’s. And it was actually kind of good at times, which made it all the more painful to see it fall.

Giant Killing 21 – It’s Not Over Yet!

Last week, some guy named Hauer on the Osaka side of the game scored a point.  Honestly, Osaka scoring is something we should expect.  They’ve spent the last few episodes emphasizing the strength of their offensive play.  If they didn’t manage to score, and in short order, I know we’d all criticize this arc for its ridiculous game play.  Thus, Hauer scoring a goal is nothing out of the ordinary.  Instead, what I find odd is how everyone suddenly starts condemning ETU and claiming the game has already ended.

Hey, could you turn down the smug a little? Thanks.

The Legend of the Legendary Heroes 8 – Polar Opposites

This episode offered a lot in the way of political intrigue that in the grand scheme of things really doesn’t seem that important. Suffice it to say, Miran Froaude staged a rebellion in Estabul to and trick Sion into sending forces into other territories and eliminate the anti-king factions. In the end, Sion saw through Miran’s plan but did little in the way of stopping it. Despite my overly simplistic recap, I really did enjoy this episode for a couple of reasons.

I wish I had a nickname as cool as Crimson Fingered Claugh

Ookami-san and Seven Companions 8 – Finally found what I was looking for, sort of

Now this was the type of episode I was expecting from this show when it started. The Otogi bank helping out another poor soul with humorous consequences, bookended by a hilariously twisted version of the Three Little Pigs. That gag and the rest of the episode was chock full of self referential humor. The only disappointment was the narrator who, again, did little more than speak the obvious over everyone else’s lines.

Giant Killing 20 – Sunken Rice Paddy

I could foolishly attempt to analyze the play of this game, but as I’m not well versed in football, it’d ultimately be futile.  I instead direct you over to Emperor J’s coverage of the episode for a more thorough look at the tactics.  Instead, I’m going to focus on a single character aspect of the episode.  I imagine you’re wondering what on earth a sunken rice paddy has to do with a sports anime.  It turns out it’s time for another etymology lesson, this time revolving around Kubota.

Yeah, that's right. This vapid dude.