I… don’t have anything to say about the show, really – JC Staffs adaptation of the original manga is entirely competent, although the art is a little janky on occasion.
Maybe? You’d be forgiven for being unable to notice what I’m referring to here, so let me point it out.
I’m not entirely sure what possessed me to pull out the Ghibli short films DVD – thanks to Youtube, it’s not like the only way to see On You Mark these days is as on this DVD or as part of a cinema screening of Whisper of the Heart (I’ve seen it both way – go me!). It’s not like there’s anything one the DVD which is worth seeing more than the once – I talked about it back when it came out, but to recap it’s mostly short commercials and some experimental music video thingies. It’s a curiosity, but not something I’ve actually pulled out and re-watched since I got it.
Infact, as I watched on in terror as the Disgaea anime promotional DVD, accidentally dislodged from my overcrowded shelves, plummeted horrifyingly onto a shelf of Gundam Seed *cough*Destiny*cough* and Negima figures, the sudden impulse to watch it seemed like a positively dreadful idea. Thankfully, whilst this caused a domino effect, sending the figures hurtling toward the ground, no lasting damage was done. Phew.
It left it until right before it’s conclusion for it to reveal two in quick succession, but I guess I shouldn’t be too shocked that Gainaxs mockumentary ultimately provided the orange-related goods.
Otaku no Video is kind of a weird production – it tells the story of how a normal guy gets corrupted by his otaku friends and forms his own company in the hopes that he can spite the girl who dumped him when his fanboyish tendencies got too much for her, running from 1982 until, errr, 2035, punctuated with important world (or at least, otaku) events over the intervening years.
What makes it kind of weird is that the animated story is interspersed with live action “interviews” with assorted otaku on various fanboy-related issues. They’re basically a counter point to the main story – they portray otaku as being sad, loney and ashamed individuals as opposed to the Genshiken-esque band of friends they are seen as in the main story. Honestly, though, it was a cute gimmick at first, but by the end of the production it was a little on the grating side, and I found myself tuning them out rather than paying attention.
Still, the animated story is pretty charming, and the DVD does actually have the option to just watch those sequences. I doubt it’s quite the potted history of Gainax that some have claimed (although if the founding fathers of Gainax take to space in search of the planet Otaku in a Gunbuster/Yamato/Macross hybrid in the year 2035, I’m quite happy to take that back), but there’s enough of a hint of truth about the events that it can be taken somewhat seriously despite how wacky it gets at times. I’m sure some of the stories about things like the staff getting harassed whilst queuing to see Nausicaa on opening night are probably true (at least for those who didn’t work on the movie), though. There were plentiful enough nerdy references to keep me amused as well, though those who are less well versed in pre-90s anime probably won’t get much out of that.
No, I’m not talking about the first episode of the new season of Hayate, though as it turns out it’s being released through Crunchyroll very shortly after broadcast for those paying subscribers (and a week later for cheapskates like myself, which suits me just fine). I’m actually going to talk about the rather unusual extra shipping with the Limited Edition of the recent Hayate no Gotoku!! Episode 0 OAV – the Hayate 3D disk.
The Hayate 3D disk is about seven minutes of footage mostly pulled from the accompanying OAV, and is 3D as in one of those features where you are supposed to wear those doofy red/blue lensed glasses in an effort to imbue whatever image you are seeing with a 3D effect – except this is anime, so it’s still 2D. Mostly.
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I’d rather forgot how variable the quality of Ouran becomes once you get into the series – it’s like you get a half-dozen episodes into it and the show starts to get a little too hung up on being clever, and half the time it comes across more as overdone and grating than it does amusing.
That said, the nineteenth episode in which the mikan box was spotted – the second episode featuring the girls from Lobelia Girls Academy – was actually one of the more entertaining episodes of the series. It’s also one of those episodes which forgoes any real attempt at being intelligent in exchange for perfectly timed comedic nonsense. Go figure.