tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-106136642024-03-13T11:57:06.151-04:00SazanBlogDavidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.comBlogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-60961039417242489472011-04-19T01:11:00.000-04:002011-04-19T01:11:53.550-04:00Anime #6It's been a while, so I hope I don't miss something. I've watched some random episodes here and there, but these reviews are only for series I've watched completely.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toradora!">Toradora!</a></strong><br />
I'd seen the fansubs but wanted to watch the DVDs. The special edition box sets are fancy but overkill for most series. According to The Right Stuf, the special editions are going out of print (I suspected as much) but will be replaced by a normal DVD release, hopefully at a more normal price. Regardless, I really like this series so I wanted to get it with the extras. Watching it again, I was struck by how much the plot follows a "normal" romantic comedy arc, which I didn't notice the first time around. What sets this show apart are the characters, each unusual and with their own unique issues. One funny part of the book that comes with the DVD is in the cast interview: they ask the lead voice actor which girl he personally would like to date, and he said something like "uh, they all have their issues, do I really have to choose?" As usual, I'm all about the ending, and while this one isn't perfect, it's very good (and I think I read that the anime ended before the manga, so in that case they did a very good job). Highly recommended if you like romance and/or comedies with unique characters.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiki_(light_novel)">Shiki</a></strong><br />
I'm really tired of the whole vampire thing, which is been done repeatedly in anime just like everywhere else. However, this show managed to set itself apart. The first episode reminded me a lot of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamikaze_Girls">Shimotsuma Monogatari</a>, probably intentionally, but that was just a setup for what comes later. Despite the outlandish character designs, this show is actually a somewhat realistic take on what would happen if a group of vampires moved into a small town and started killing everyone. Since nobody really believe in vampires, the town doctor would try to figure out if there was some sort of epidemic, and everyone else would be mostly concerned about themselves and their family and friends. This show starts slow but it really evolves over time and rewards your patience if you watch the whole thing.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blade_of_the_Immortal">Blade of the Immortal</a></strong><br />
I've been a fan of the manga since college, although I haven't kept up with it recently. It was almost inevitable that it would one day be animated. However, I was disappointed with the result. Compared to the excellent art of the manga, the anime seems low-budget and rushed. Actually, "rushed" describes the whole enterprise, because the producers apparently felt the need to cram over 15 years of plot into 13 episodes. It just doesn't work. I was able to follow along because I still remember the main plot points after however many years, but I wish they had taken more time. Also, the violence from the manga is heavily censored, which is disappointing given shows like Berserk were able to make it on television. If I was unfamiliar with the manga, it would seem like a mediocre samurai fighting show. Hopefully it will be revisited someday.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vexille">Vexille</a></strong><br />
If you set out to make a clone of the first <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appleseed_(film)">Appleseed</a> movie, this is probably what you would end up with. That was apparently the goal of the producers, and since Appleseed was such a great film, it's not that bad of a goal. The plot is a mess, but that's sadly typical of anime movies (I wasn't thrilled with the second Appleseed film either). Vexille is a decent movie, but it probably could have been better.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highschool_of_the_Dead">Highschool of the Dead</a></strong><br />
I typically stay away from popular harem shows, but when you add zombies to the mix, I had to check it out. The plot can be summarized as an anime take on a Zombieland prequel, with a little of The Walking Dead thrown in. I was fairly impressed with it overall and await the inevitable sequel. The amount of fanservice was a little surprising (to the point that some TV episodes were censored for broadcast) but I guess that's typical for certain shows these days.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skip_Beat!">Skip Beat!</a></strong><br />
I'm a sucker for shoujo, and this is shoujo done well. However, maybe due to the marathon session I spent watching this show with a friend, I can't remember much about it. (I'm reading Wikipedia now to refresh my memory.) I do know that there's no "ending" which is always disappointing, and the plot is rather contrived, but otherwise it was very good. It's more of a coming of age story than a romance, and the main character is quirky which leads to a lot of comedy. If you like shoujo, check it out.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_Killing">Giant Killing</a></strong><br />
I like when anime focus on unusual topics, like cooking or sports, especially when it's something I know little about. That's what drew me to this soccer anime. The character designs are also unusual, mirroring the seinen manga rather than adopting a more standard anime look. The plot reminded me a little of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Outs">One Outs</a>, but this is a much more realistic take on a sport and what it takes to build a winning team. It's also unique in that there are a range of characters, from the players and team staff to fans both young and old. Despite the unconventional look, I thought it was really well done.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zombie-Loan">Zombie-Loan</a></strong><br />
This show reminded me a lot of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul_Eater_(manga)">Soul Eater</a> with more conventional character designs. The show was interesting and well done, and it has its own take on the supernatural. However, shows like this normally don't stand out to me, so I kind of watched it and moved on.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Girl_Who_Leapt_Through_Time">The Girl Who Leapt Through Time</a></strong><br />
This is an excellent movie, and any criticisms I have are colored by the fact that I'd already seen the director's second film, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summer_Wars">Summer Wars</a>. I was able to see some themes common to both movies, and I feel the second movie is better. The one thing that is a slight annoyance in both films is the simplistic character designs which stand out against the complex, almost photo-realistic backgrounds. You adjust to it, but it's still a little strange. However, this is one of those films that every anime fan should see.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hikaru_no_Go">Hikaru no Go</a></strong><br />
Like the soccer anime above, I watched this mainly for the unusual subject, in this case the game of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Go_(game)">Go</a>. It actually taught me how to play the game, and I've been trying it out with a Go app on my phone. At first, you wonder how they'll make an anime about people playing a board game interesting, especially when you realize they're going for realism rather than trying to jazz things up. However, this is really a coming-of-age story with the world of Go as the setting, and it has surprising depth. I can't think of any other anime where I've seen as many male characters cry, and it's a sign of the emotions that the characters are investing in the game. The anime does end before the manga, but the endings (the last couple episodes each feel like an ending) are very satisfying. There are some anime specials continuing the plot that were aired after the TV series ended, but I haven't seen those yet. I should mention I watched this on Netflix as part of their new deal with Viz. Thank you Netflix for adding subtitled anime! It's also available subbed on Hulu, if you want to sit through commercials.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haiyoru!_Nyaruani">Haiyoru! Nyaru-Ani</a></strong><br />
What if the Cthulhu mythos were turned into an anime? Well, apparently you end up with this. It's really impossible to describe, but basically gods from the mythos appear as anime babes (the main girl is Nyarlathotep, or in this case Nyarl-ko) and it turns into kind of a twisted harem anime. It just needs to be experienced. All the episodes are short, so it's easy to watch in one sitting.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimi_ni_Todoke">Kimi ni Todoke</a></strong><br />
More shoujo! I really enjoyed this series. The plot sounds somewhat like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wallflower_(manga)">Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge</a> but it's actually much more reminiscent of Toradora. The storyline itself is a fairly standard high school shoujo romance (heavy on the romance -- there's some comedy but it's not the focus), but I noticed that it was treated very realistically. There are very few of the <i>deus ex machina</i> coincidences or awkward situations that typically pop up in shows like this, and instead the characters are allowed to act naturally and grow at their own pace. I also appreciated that the plot is kind to the characters, rarely putting them in painful situations just to extend the storyline. In that regard, the show is as much about friendship as it is romance. The second season was a little disappointing in that it tends to lapse into some of the genre stereotypes and lead to some impatience about when the plot will finally be resolved. However, the show wraps things up nicely and overall was very well done.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=10763">Miracle Train</a></strong><br />
The weird thing about this anime was that it was even made. It's basically an advertisement for the Tokyo Oedo subway line, where each of the bishounen characters is supposed to represent a train station. The early episodes are kind of what you would expect (if you expected this anime to be made) with the characters showing a female passenger around a particular location along the train line while helping her solve a problem. However, there is a little bit of a deeper plot, and the later episodes manage to play with the established convention a bit to keep things interesting, like when a male passenger boards the train by accident. If someone out there is both a train otaku and loves bishounen anime, this is probably their favorite show. For the rest of us, it's an interesting diversion.<br />
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If you think the previous list was long, you should see the list of things I've got queued up to watch. I actually got sidetracked for a while watching other shows, like the first four seasons of Dexter and all of Veronica Mars. My Netflix subscription is both a blessing and a curse. Lately I've been back in the anime groove, though.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-43169502874069698662011-04-18T23:26:00.000-04:002011-04-18T23:26:09.342-04:00Site migration updateThe site migration went pretty smoothly, after a few initial hiccups. There are still some things that don't work, but I'm getting around to learning PHP5 so I'll go through the site at some point and fix things. There's a lot that needs to be cleaned up anyway.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-67503859726546914522011-02-28T22:18:00.000-05:002011-02-28T22:18:22.762-05:00Alert! Web site migration in progressAfter having the same hosting plan with <a href="http://www.superb.net/">Superb Internet</a> for about a decade, I finally decided to switch to a different hosting plan (still with Superb). Go figure, over the last 10 years hosting plans have added functionality while lowering costs.<br />
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Anyway, both the sazan.net and 3x3eyes.com domains are in the middle of migrating to the IP address of the new hosting account. I'm also in the middle of uploading my web pages to that account. Even after everything is uploaded, I'm sure many of the scripts, etc., will be broken until I can get around to fixing them. In other words, if something isn't working, don't panic.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-73744394717508781232011-01-04T23:24:00.000-05:002011-01-04T23:24:04.328-05:00Anime #5Last year I started posting brief <a href="/2010/02/big-anime-post.html">anime reviews</a> to my blog. Since the year has ended, it's time for a final post to cover the remaining anime titles. I think I'll continue to do this though, since it gives me something to blog about, and I like to be able to go back and read my own reviews even if nobody else cares.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartender_(manga)">Bartender</a></strong><br />
For a while, I've wanted to go back and watch this show for a second time. I love when someone makes a one-off anime series with a unique subject. This is definitely an anime for grown-ups, and the Japanese take on Western-style "bars" and the bartender-as-psychologist is interesting. I almost wish there was some greater plot or story arc, but it works well as a short episodic series. My only complaint is that a lot of the customers reappear as narrators and it's hard to keep track of who everyone is. I see that a live-action drama based on this series is coming in February, so I might have to check that out.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Working!!">Working!!</a></strong><br />
Continuing the trend of shows with exclamation points in the title, this was a neat show. I feel it's more than just a slice-of-life show, in that it has unique and interesting characters rather than just standard archetypes. It was also unique in that it features school kids but almost never shows them at school. It didn't blow me away, but I really enjoyed it. It's too bad it's rather short, but maybe there will be a sequel.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moyasimon:_Tales_of_Agriculture">Moyashimon</a></strong> (live-action)<br />
This show was an unusual choice for a live-action remake, but it's an unusual title to begin with. I'm generally not a big fan of the exaggerated style of Japanese live-action based on anime/manga (which is why Bartender may be a better live-action title), but the CGI was well-done and the actors were all pretty solid. The plot was somewhat different than the anime, which makes me think both were picking and choosing from the manga to find a storyline that would fit in the limited number of episodes available.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K-On!">K-On!!</a></strong><br />
After watching the first season, I felt I had to watch the second. The all-girl slice-of-life formula is getting rather old, but this show held my attention. In a twist from the usual pattern, the second series is twice as long as the first, and I believe it covers less time as far as plot, so there is plenty of opportunity to flesh out certain characters and linger on particular moments. The leisurely pace really suits this show, and I thought overall it was really well done. One thing that always impresses me is quality; a well-produced show stands up a lot better than a show with interesting ideas but that seems rushed or slapped together.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Butler">Black Butler</a></strong><br />
I stumbled across this show on Hulu and decided to check it out. I used to be a huge fan of occult anime, and shows like this and Xxxholic are leading me back in that direction. This is another quality title, and the plot is also handled really well. What a concept, a show with a nice story arc and an actual ending! I don't know that I'll rewatch it but it was definitely entertaining, and in some parts extremely funny.<br />
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<strong>Black Butler II</strong><br />
Wait, did I say Black Butler had an ending? Well there's a sequel! I didn't know what to expect with this show, and wasn't sure if the "magic" of the original would be lost with a sequel. I'll say this to any doubters: watch the first episode. It's without a doubt one of the most amazing anime episodes I've seen. The series as a whole didn't quite measure up to the first, but wisely it was shorter so they could jump right into the meat of the plot and kept things moving along at a good pace to the end.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pumpkin_Scissors">Pumpkin Scissors</a></strong><br />
This is a Funimation title but it's not on Hulu, so I think I first watched it as a fansub. Anyway, I liked it enough to buy the DVDs, and I recently watched them. I hadn't seen the show in a while but remembered it was somewhat similar to Fullmetal Alchemist. It definitely is, but it creates a unique world with well-rounded characters, and you never feel like you're watching some sort of knock-off. As usual, my pet peeve is that the anime ends before the plot does, since the manga was (and is?) still ongoing. However, there's enough story to provide some resolution at the end, and it's just a well-conceived show. If we're lucky, they'll make more anime.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuragehime">Princess Jellyfish</a></strong><br />
I fell in love with this show as soon as I started watching it. That the opening theme is the new single from my favorite band Chatmonchy helped, as did the ending theme by nerdy rockers Sambomaster. Of course, I knew there would be a downside. Even before I watched the eleventh and final episode tonight, I knew the show would only cover a fraction of the ongoing manga. Still, as an introduction to the characters and their world, it's wonderful.<br />
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That concludes all the anime I finished watching in 2010. I'd have to go back and count to see the number of titles (I hesitate to try to calculate the number of episodes). There are several other shows that I started and am still watching, including Naruto Shippuden, The Tatami Galaxy, and Shiki (all on Hulu). I also made it most of the way through the Fushigi Yugi DVDs, but I got bogged down in the OVAs and never went back to it. For a show I hadn't seen since college, going back and watching it again gave me a different opinion. I'll try to finish it off soon.<br />
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I have a big pile of DVDs that I picked up during end-of-the-year sales from Amazon and The Right Stuf, mostly Funimation titles I'd already seen on Hulu or elsewhere. At the top of the list to rewatch are Toradora and Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo. I've also flagged a few shows in Hulu that I want to investigate. Their anime library has really been growing. And of course, I'll continue to follow the Noitamina shows and keep an eye out for other shows airing in "real time" on Hulu. I'm still waiting for a fansub of the final Nodame live-action movie, too.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-15692979166514180692010-11-19T12:23:00.001-05:002010-11-19T12:26:12.995-05:00Computer reorganization in progressThis is become slightly more massive and time-consuming than I expected, but I'm close to finishing overhauling my computers. My <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/computer.shtml">Computers</a> page has not been updated yet, but here's a quick summary, starting with the old stuff:<br />
<ul><li><strong>Amba</strong>: gone (we recycled some old hardware at work, so I took in my old stuff to go with it)</li>
<li><strong>Parvati</strong>: gone</li>
<li><strong>old Pentium II motherboards, processors, etc.</strong>: gone</li>
<li><strong>all my old floppy discs</strong>: gone (trashed after archiving a few useful files) -- btw, the <a href="http://www.abandonia.com/">Abandonia</a> site is awesome, and saved me from having to image a bunch of old floppies (which were typically corrupt on disc 3 of the set anyway)</li>
<li><strong>four 9800GX2 cards</strong>: boxed and ready for eBay</li>
<li><strong>Shakti</strong>: still hanging around, along with a box of old SCSI equipment and cables, so I'll go through it when I have time</li>
<li><strong>Durga</strong>: phased out and stripped -- still need to decide what to do with the mobo/CPU/RAM and old video card</li>
<li><strong>Aparna</strong>: no change yet, but it should be replaced with Kali in the next week or so -- I have plans for all the hardware</li>
</ul>Newer hardware:<br />
<ul><li><strong>Kali</strong>: getting the case exactly like I want it has taken a long time, but the only thing remaining now is the arrival of some extra-long thumbscrews and getting everything installed -- got the mobo tray in the case last night -- OC tweaking is also almost done</li>
<li><strong>Gauri</strong>: the big recent project -- the boot drive on Durga was giving me issues again so I went ahead and installed WHS on Gauri, copied all the data over to three 1.5TB drives, configured all the backups, set up the remaining software I had on Durga, and hooked up the external 8-drive cage -- I've moved the 5-drive bay, which just barely fits, and I'm waiting on an 8-port SATA card to arrive next week to hook up the rest of the internal drives -- the other change will be to replace the GTX 295 and 1250W PSU (overkill) with the vid card and PSU from Aparna</li>
<li><strong>Bhavani</strong>: I haven't been happy with the overclocking of the 980X in this system, so I swapped the mobo with an ASUS Rampage III GENE -- the install was pretty smooth, but I still need to OC and then upgrade Vista to Win7</li>
<li><strong>Chandi</strong>: this now has the DFI mATX mobo from Bhavani to replace the DFI that died, the PSU from Durga, the stock Intel 980X heatsink, and my parents' old Gigabyte video card which needs to be tested for RAM problems, plus a new Sony DVD drive -- everything's working but I still need to overclock -- this machine will probably inherit the vid card and PSU from Gauri, and be used as a test bed for some other equipment -- I may reinstall WHS Vail</li>
<li><strong>Girija</strong>: not mentioned on the Computers page, but I reused this name for my second SR-2 system -- yes I bought another one, and ironically finished it before the first one -- its web page will be coming soon</li>
</ul>Bhairavi, Lalitha, Shyama, and Uma have not been changed recently, other than to point them at the new WHS. I still need to update the Media Center shares on Lalitha. I also have one more machine that's going to be sold as soon as I verify everything's working. Right now it has BSOD issues that I'm pretty sure are due to the motherboard, so it will get Aparna's mobo (and probably DVD drive too).<br />
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Whew, that's a lot of stuff. The other news is that I'm finally phasing out my 19" CRT and replacing it with a <a href="http://accessories.dell.com/sna/products/Displays/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=bsd&cs=04&sku=224-9949">Dell U3011</a> 30" LCD. I don't know what I'll do with all the screen real-estate, or extra space on my desk. It went on sale at the right time, because I'm going to have to reorganize my desk to replace Aparna with Kali anyway.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-67843883640456482992010-10-11T12:53:00.000-04:002010-10-11T12:53:38.153-04:00Anime #4 AddendumI did forget something.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponyo">Ponyo</a></strong><br />
This film kind of made me feel sorry for Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. People go to see Miyazaki films with certain expectations. I felt <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howl%27s_Moving_Castle_(film)">Howl's Moving Castle</a> was a little too derivative of previous Miyazaki films. On the other hand, if he tried to create something too different the audience might reject it. <em>Ponyo</em> seems to try to walk that fine line, combining a Western fairy tale plot based on "The Little Mermaid" with the Eastern/Miyazaki spin on nature, magic, children and the elderly, and so forth. For whatever reason, the story didn't grab me. I think the conscious decision to use hand-drawn animation over CGI may not have helped either, as the art style just looks "different."<br />
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I haven't watched the Blu-ray a second time yet, but maybe it will improve on repeat viewings. I wasn't a huge fan of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Mononoke">Mononoke Hime</a> the first time either and that's another Miyazaki film that pushes some boundaries for him (although admittedly I first saw it in the theater in Japan with no subtitles, so that was probably part of the problem). I actually prefer the dub on that film too, because it's complex enough that reading while watching doesn't work as well.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-73128507240014849632010-09-13T23:38:00.000-04:002010-09-13T23:38:38.062-04:00Anime #4Catching up... hope I didn't forget anything:<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jyu_Oh_Sei">Jyu Oh Sei</a></strong><br />
I feel compelled to watch anything that airs on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noitamina">Noitamina</a>, and I had bypassed this title until now. It was good sci-fi, but wasn't anything groundbreaking. Still, it's a quality show.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ouran_High_School_Host_Club">Ouran High School Host Club</a></strong><br />
I think I first watched this a few years ago, and I wanted to go back and watch it again. Actually, I didn't like it that much the first time around, probably because I didn't know where it was going. It's not traditional shoujo, but it's also not full of weirdness like <em>Shoujo Kakumei Utena</em>. This time I didn't have to worry about trying to figure it out so I was able to just enjoy it. It's a really fun and funny series, and it plays with some anime stereotypes and conventions while still remaining a typical romantic comedy. Recommended.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Five_Leaves">House of Five Leaves</a></strong><br />
Another Noitamina series, this from the previous season. I had read some negative comments, probably because there is very little action for a "samurai" anime. Shows that take forever to initiate the plot annoy me too, but this show is different. It's basically a character study, so the mood is more important than any action scenes. I thought it was really well done. That said, it's probably not something I would watch repeatedly.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fullmetal_Alchemist">Fullmetal Alchemist</a></strong><br />
I was a big fan of the first Fullmetal anime, despite some logical inconsistencies because they ran out of manga and had to start making up the plot as they went. I even liked the dub, so much so that when I bought the movie on DVD I watched the dub rather than sub. That said, I can see why they decided to remake the anime (called <em>Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood</em> in the US) to follow the manga storyline. This was a fantastic show that has everything you expect from a big-budget shounen anime: cool characters, a compelling plot (saving the world, of course), exciting action scenes, and funny moments. I watched this on Hulu but I'll probably pick up the DVDs eventually and watch it again.<br />
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<strong><a href="">Kiki's Delivery Service</a></strong><br />
This was the first Miyazaki film I ever saw (many year ago), and until <em>Spirited Away</em> it was also my favorite. It's still a close second. I hadn't watched it in a while so I pulled out the DVD. It's such a great movie, and the ending gets me every time. I don't think I'll ever get tired of it.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moyasimon:_Tales_of_Agriculture">Moyashimon</a></strong><br />
Yet another Noitamina series, which is currently being remade as a live-action series also on Noitamina. I decided to rewatch the anime, and I felt like I did when I watched it the first time. It's a well-done show, and I love shows about unusual topics, but it's just too short. The manga is still running, so maybe they'll revisit the anime at some point.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xxxholic">xxxHolic (season 1)</a></strong><br />
CLAMP shows can be hit-or-miss, but this one is a hit. It's been a while since I saw an occult anime that I really enjoyed, but this one is very solid. Even the things that could be annoying, like the high-strung main character, are handled in an endearing way. I really need to track down some more of the anime. For that matter, I need to check out the <em>Tsubasa Chronicle</em> anime too.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=11794">Boku Otaryman</a></strong><br />
This show is kinda like my life, except that if I really believed that, I would be too depressed to get out of bed.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summer_Wars">Summer Wars</a></strong><br />
This was a fantastic movie. Some people are saying the director Hosoda is the next Miyazaki. I don't know if I'd go that far, but I'll definitely keep an eye on him. It's so nice to see a movie with an original story, and although the plot may not have been the most realistic, it was great entertainment.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hataraki_man">Hatarakiman</a></strong><br />
Another show I pulled out and decided to watch again. After I first watched the anime a couple years ago, I saw there was also a live-action drama, and it become one of my favorite Japanese dramas (not that I've seen that many). Because the story is based in reality it's a natural fit for a drama. However, watching the anime again made me appreciate its merits as well. The pro and con to the anime is that it's short. Both the anime and drama have 11 episodes, but the drama episodes are twice as long. The anime can't cover nearly as much of the plot or provide as much depth the the characters, but I find the drama tends to bog down at certain spots while the anime plot always stays snappy. The anime also manages to have a nice story arc for the series even with the limited time available. None of the drama episodes have the type of inventive storytelling of the last two anime episodes. Plus the anime's opening and ending songs are great, and the use of Sambomaster for incidental music is also entertaining.<br />
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I've also watched some Japanese live-action movies this year, like <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1135938/">Lock and Roll Forever</a> (laughably bad, but I'm a fan of OreSkaBand), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamikaze_girls">Kamikaze Girls</a> (at least my fifth viewing; I love it), the first Nodame movie, and I think a couple of others. However, the highlight has probably been <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1413529/">Golden Slumber</a>, which was introduced to me by a friend recently. It has kind of a Hitchcock "wrong man" vibe. Initially I wasn't sure where it was going, but it turned out to be a very nicely done movie. If you don't mind subtitles, definitely check it out.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-56990602473937132162010-08-29T16:08:00.001-04:002010-08-29T16:10:06.634-04:00Quick computer updateI made some small changes to the computer pages for <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/bhavani.shtml">Bhavani</a> (new CPU) and <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/durga.shtml">Durga</a> (added hard drive). Durga's new hard drive is a 1.5TB Seagate that was free as part of a combo deal with the Sparkle power supply I got for <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/chandi.shtml">Chandi</a> a couple weeks ago. I had forgotten about it and found it still in the shipping box.<br />
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As I've gotten back into <a href="http://folding.stanford.edu/">Folding@home</a>, I decided to set up a web site to monitor my clients remotely. This is very easy given the combination of Windows Home Server, which has a built-in web server, and <a href="http://code.google.com/p/hfm-net/">HFM.net</a>, a Folding@home monitoring tool which can generate web pages. I set HFM.net to copy the web pages to a shared folder on WHS, and then configured a virtual directory in IIS that pointed to the shared folder. <a href="https://sazan.homeserver.com/folding/">Voila!</a> Now I can even monitor my clients from my phone. It seems like it's pretty easy to customize the XSLTs that generate the web site, too, so I might play with that.<br />
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Here's a quick list of my current plans for my various computers:<br />
<ol><li>Sell the 9800GX2 graphics cards in Gauri, replace them with the GTX 295s in Chandi, and RMA Chandi's motherboard.</li>
<li>When Kali's case arrives, move my desktop software from Aparna to Kali (with a fresh install of Windows 7 Pro). Phase out and sell parts from Aparna.</li>
<li>When the next version of Windows Home Server is released, rebuild my server using parts from Gauri. Sell Durga's CPU/mobo/RAM. Probably trash Durga's case and get a new case. Maybe move Gauri's dual PSUs to Kali.</li>
<li>As soon as possible, get rid of all other old PCs and parts, including Shakti and Amba.</li>
<li>Maybe next year, upgrade Lalitha with new Sandy Bridge hardware.</li>
</ol>I don't plan to start on any of this for about two weeks.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-44501619403365326342010-08-24T22:41:00.000-04:002010-08-24T22:41:25.761-04:00More computer stuffI made some updates to my <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/computer.shtml">Computers</a> page to include some of the changes described in the previous post. I just realized I forgot to mention the 15" TV/secondary monitor, though. The big change is my new computer <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/kali.shtml">Kali</a> which will be replacing <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/aparna.shtml">Aparna</a> as my primary desktop soon.<br />
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The Great Windows 7 Migration is almost done, and soon I should only have one Vista box and one XP box left. I wish Windows Home Server "Vail" would hurry up and release, because I'm getting anxious to move that machine to new hardware and I don't want to have to reinstall WHS twice. All in good time, though.<br />
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I need to make another anime post, but I've been watching a lot of other stuff too so I'm not too far behind.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-83494928227298572792010-07-20T20:43:00.000-04:002010-07-20T20:43:15.403-04:00Computer stuffHere are a few updates on the computer front. I swapped <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/girija.shtml">Girija</a> for my parents' old Celeron computer, so that they could have a decent desktop PC. I kept the graphics cards and blue LED fans.<br />
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I moved my personal email to Google, which makes life much easier with multiple PCs. It also will make it easier to change web hosting plans. I like my provider, but I think I can move to something cheaper.<br />
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I mentioned somewhere that I bought a little 15" LCD TV to use as a spare monitor, mostly for new system builds. Well, I hooked it up to <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/aparna.shtml">Aparna</a> as a secondary monitor and it's been pretty cool. I had tried dual monitors before and realized mixing CRT and LCD didn't work, but this is different. Because the second monitor is small and off to the side, I'm not constantly dragging windows from one to the other where I notice how different things look. Mostly I've been running Media Center on the second screen playing J-pop video playlists, and it's been working really well.<br />
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I've fired up the GPUs again for <a href="http://folding.stanford.edu/">Folding@home</a>, this time for team <a href="http://folding.extremeoverclocking.com/user_summary.php?s=&u=521602">[H]ard|OCP</a>. I'm trying to decide what to do with <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/gauri.shtml">Gauri</a>, though. It's still a powerhouse, but technology moves on and many people are switching to more power-efficient systems.<br />
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I think the Great Windows 7 Migration is about to begin. I've had Win7 installed on a few new machines and I upgraded the laptop a while ago, but I'm looking at the Vista HTPC and XP desktop and thinking it's time. The question now is what, if any, hardware changes should accompany the OS upgrade. For example, I like everything about my desktop except the motherboard, and I do have a better one available, but tearing everything apart just for that hardly seems worth it. The HTPC could definitely use some bigger drives and an HD tuner card.<br />
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Actually, I'm taking a second look at all my PCs and re-evaluating their roles. I think it's time to ditch not just the ancient Pentium boxes but also some relatively more recent hardware. It doesn't make sense having Core i7s sitting around underutilized while my critical Windows Home Server box runs on a single-core Athlon64, for example. One of the many benefits of having many PCs is that I can tear down a machine, or even strip two to build a third, while still keeping daily operations (email, backups, TV recording) running smoothly. However, I don't have the space to house all of my current PCs and parts, nor the time to manage those boxen that are up and running. Some consolidation is in order, and I think there are big changes ahead. Now I just have to figure out what to do with all the old stuff I don't need.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-13834624713968251942010-05-22T18:15:00.001-04:002010-05-22T18:20:50.405-04:00A/V GearWhat do you know, I actually updated a web page that I said I would update. My <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/gear.shtml">A/V Gear</a> page was very out-of-date, so I finally updated the specs and took some new pictures. I think the giant plasma TV is part of the reason I don't sit in front of my desktop computer(s) as much, instead using my laptop from the couch.<br />
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I've also tweaked some other pages, and I think my homepage is pretty much up to date at this moment (except for the DVD list). Now I really need to work on some of the other sites. I think the <a href="http://www.sazan.net/navkatze/">Nav Katze</a> page is next. I created it when I was living in Japan, so the lack of images is due to the lack of a scanner. (The main image was actually taken with my old Kodak digital camera from the CD liner. It's kind of distorted because the liner was at an angle to avoid reflection from the flash.) I'll get my scanner fired up and also clean up some of the info on that site.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-65879283391670590112010-05-06T00:56:00.000-04:002010-05-06T00:56:37.288-04:00ComputersI have a lot of computers. In fact, I was so busy building new computers in 2009 that it's taken me until now to update the <a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/computer.shtml">Computers</a> page on my web site. I refreshed most of the old pages as well as adding new pages, and there are lots of new pictures as well.<br />
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Now that that's finally done, I really need to update my ancient home theater page.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-34077675311363147342010-04-27T22:10:00.003-04:002010-04-27T23:32:43.636-04:00Anime #3More anime (and other Japanese stuff) watched in 2010:<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neighborhood_Story">Gokingo Monogatari</a></strong><br />I first saw a couple episodes of the anime back in college, and I'm so happy a fansub group finally completed the series. By itself, it demonstrates Ai Yazawa's unique style and slightly different take on the classic shoujo coming-of-age story. Plus, it's interesting to see the evolution from this story to Paradise Kiss and Nana. Overall, I really enjoyed it.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradise_Kiss">Paradise Kiss</a></strong><br />After finishing Gokinjo, I had to rewatch the DVDs of Paradise Kiss. The references to Gokinjo made much more sense, although it's really not a direct sequel. The ending feels a little rushed but otherwise this is a fantastic show. However, even though I love Madhouse's animation style, I wish they had kept a little more of the unique Ai Yazawa look. I think the Nana anime is a much better compromise between the extremely stylized look of Gokinjo and the more realistic animation of ParaKiss.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nana_(2005_film)">Nana (live-action movie)</a></strong><br />Well, I wasn't going to rewatch all the Nana anime, so this was the next best thing. I hadn't seen the movie before, and although they obviously had to do a lot of trimming, they did a nice job of covering the major plot elements (even some that don't get resolved in the movie). I thought it was well-cast, too. I'll watch the sequel eventually, but I admit the part of the story covered by this movie is my favorite (before it gets so dramatic and even more angst-filled).<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macross:_Do_You_Remember_Love%3F">Macross - Do you Remeber Love?</a></strong><br />I felt it was appropriate to watch this before going to L.A. to see Chatmonchy, because it shows how music is truly the universal language. It's a testament to the high production values that this movie still holds up after 26 years. I'm planning to watch the TV series eventually.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aishiteruze_Baby">Aishiteruze Baby</a></strong><br />Another series that I decided to rewatch. This is one of my favorite shoujo series, and it's in the classic mold of Marmalade Boy, etc. I particularly like the contrast between Kippei's "adult" high-school relationships (not many anime series show characters making out) and Yuzuyu's kindergarten friends. My one complaint is the same one I have for a lot of shows, and it's that the anime ends before the manga, so some plotlines remain unresolved. I understand why it happens, but I wish it didn't happen so often.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nodame_Cantabile">Nodame Cantabile: Finale</a></strong><br />Nodame is my favorite anime of the last decade, but I don't have a lot to say about this particular series yet. I still want to see the special episodes and the live action movies, and I'll probably rewatch the anime a few times before I form a definite opinion. I recently bought all the translated manga and am slowly working my way through that.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K-On!">K-On!</a></strong><br />I watched this because it has a musical theme, like recent favorites Nodame and Nana. However, it's really a slice-of-life show reminiscent of Lucky Star. I enjoyed it but it didn't really make a strong impression (other than maybe I should learn to play bass). I'll probably start watching the second series, though.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/InuYasha">Inuyasha: The Final Act</a></strong><br />Given my complaint about anime shows that end before the manga, I'm very happy that they decided to animate the conclusion of Inuyasha, even if they did have to really rush things to fit the remaining storyline into 26 episodes. It was a satisfying and even slightly surprising conclusion.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slayers">Slayers Evolution-R</a></strong><br />I don't know why, but it seems like a lot of shows start out humorous and then get serious near the end. Slayers Revolution and Evolution-R followed this pattern, but there were still plenty of the gags and epic destruction you expect from Slayers in this series. I thought this show was a great example of the right way to bring back a classic title and offer something new while staying true to the original. Hollywood should pay attention.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamato_Nadeshiko_Shichi_Henge">Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge</a></strong><br />Don't ask me why I started watching this, much less why I actually finished it. The quality was mediocre and the plot somewhat unoriginal. I'm actually surprised to see how long the manga has been running, but honestly I tend to not like most shoujo manga despite being a huge fan of most shoujo anime. Maybe this is an example where staying true to the manga is a bad thing. (The counterexample is Koko wa Greenwood, which shaped the somewhat-random manga stories into a nicely cohesive anime plotline, even while directing viewers to "read the manga" in reference to plot elements they skipped.)<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul_Eater_(manga)">Soul Eater</a></strong><br />This was a fun show, and it's always nice to see anime with a unique look. The story's structure was actually somewhat similar to Naruto, but it had plenty of unique elements. The story seemed to evolve so that by the end it was a long way from where it began, but still maintained some common themes.<br /><br />I haven't started any new marathon anime-watching sessions, so I'm just keeping up with the weekly shows on Hulu. I was happy to see that both <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tatami_Galaxy">The Tatami Galaxy</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Five_Leaves">House of Five Leaves</a> are appearing on Hulu shortly after they air in Japan. That's a great trend.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-15474073114220903172010-04-26T22:20:00.002-04:002010-04-26T22:24:24.171-04:00TestingThis is a test of the blog after migration. It's now hosted on Blogger servers rather than my web server. It looks like Google didn't actually fix my migration issue, they just closed my ticket. Oh well, I think everything is good. I have a big list of anime that I've watched, so I'll post that soon.<br /><br />Oh, now that I've migrated, I think I have more options for templates, etc., so the look of the blog may change soon. I think a lot of the pictures are broken too, so I'll have to go back and fix those URLs.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-76419800089352771982010-03-15T21:21:00.001-04:002010-03-15T21:26:34.179-04:00This blog has moved<br /> This blog is now located at http://sazanblog.blogspot.com/.<br /> You will be automatically redirected in 30 seconds, or you may click <a href='http://sazanblog.blogspot.com/'>here</a>.<br /><br /> For feed subscribers, please update your feed subscriptions to<br /> http://sazanblog.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default.<br /> Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-75906571152769131552010-03-08T23:37:00.002-05:002010-03-09T00:21:25.401-05:00Anime #2Since the last post, I've watched some more anime.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nabari_no_Ou">Nabari no Ou</a></strong><br />This show is about ninjas, but it reminded me more of Nana than Naruto (other than one stolen plot point; a plot point is also lifted from Fullmetal Alchemist). This is based on an allegedly <em>shonen</em> manga, but the creator is a woman. I guess that explains why all the ninjas are so emo and depressed. Actually it was a pretty good show, but parts were pretty boring. The interpersonal relationships that gradually develop throughout the show were handled very well, but half the time the plot seemed to consist of "some character has disappeared so let's spend an episode looking for him" (then repeat with a different character, or the same one).<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slayers">Slayers Revolution</a></strong><br />I think I had seen this on Hulu before in dub form, but a big reason to watch Slayers is for Megu-chan's voice acting, so I'm glad it's now available with subtitles. I don't think I've watched Slayers since college, so I was impressed that this new show maintained the best elements of the old anime, basically continuing as if there hadn't been an 11-year break since the last series. It's very funny, and you have to pay attention because so many of the jokes and gags go by so quickly. I'm looking forward to the Evolution-R follow-up.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lupin_III_vs_Detective_Conan">Lupin III vs Detective Conan</a></strong><br />Every year there's a Lupin III TV special in Japan; this was the 2009 offering. I have a bunch of the specials either on DVD or in fansub form, but this is the only one I've watched so far. I'm a bigger fan of Lupin than of Conan (I much preferred <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kindaichi_Case_Files">Kindaichi</a> when I was in Japan), but I thought the special was handled well. The actual mystery wasn't that interesting, but the interaction between the famous thief and famous detective made it unique. I liked how the characters designs were completely different, and yet didn't seem that out of place together. I'd like to see more cross-over specials like this.<br /><br />I also rewatched season 2 of Nodame Cantabile and the first 8 episodes of season 3. Nodame is easily in my all-time list of favorite anime. Actually, I was working on a top-10 list, and here's what I came up with (in alphabetical order):<br /><ul><li>3x3 Eyes</li><br /><li>Armor Hunter Mellowlink</li><br /><li>Berserk</li><br /><li>Gunsmith Cats</li><br /><li>Here Is Greenwood</li><br /><li>Kiki's Delivery Service</li><br /><li>Nodame Cantabile</li><br /><li>Outlaw Star</li><br /><li>Spirited Away</li><br /><li>Video Girl Ai</li></ul><br />Looking at it now, I'm not sure I agree with everything. The first problem is I can't list every Ghibli movie without taking up the whole list, so I limited myself to two. If they ever finish Nana, it might bump either Mellowlink or Outlaw Star. There's also a ton of stuff not in there, like Cowboy Bebop, Kimagure Orange Road, and Marmalade Boy, just to name a few. As for manga, although the list is similar to the anime list (3x3 Eyes, Berserk, and Gunsmith Cats are top 5, and I haven't read the Nodame manga yet) I can <em>easily</em> say <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_Girl_Ai">Video Girl Ai</a> is the best manga I've ever read.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-74376132781198419972010-02-28T21:55:00.002-05:002010-02-28T22:43:28.035-05:00The Big Anime PostI watch so much anime, I decided last year to start posting anime reviews to my blog. Well, I never got around to it, but with the new year starting, I kept track of what I was watching. Here are the shows I've watched so far in 2010 and some brief thoughts.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antique_Bakery">Antique Bakery</a></strong><br />I watched this for the second time when Rich visited for New Year's. It's a neat show, with a good balance of serious funny moments. I think it's notable for probably the most realistic depiction of homosexuality I've seen in a mainstream anime. It also compelled us to check out the local Korean bakeries, because the desserts shown in the show look really good.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C5%ABch%C5%AB_Buranko">Trapeze</a></strong><br />This show is so weird that I almost stopped watching in the middle of the first episode. I'm not a big fan of the modern style of mixing live-action photos, etc., with animation. I'm glad I stuck with it, though, because it turned out to be pretty interesting. Like Antique Bakery, this was a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noitamina">noitaminA</a> show, and all of those shows are worth watching.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toradora!">Toradora!</a></strong><br />This was a really cool show. I like romantic comedies where the romance is taken seriously. By that, I mean it's nice to see a relationship develop, rather than the typical scenario where a guy chases after a girl (or vice versa) but nothing happens until he finally confesses his feelings in the last episode. However, they don't forget the comedy either, and this show is really entertaining. I can't remember how I discovered this show.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Tennis">The Prince of Tennis</a></strong><br />This was a lot of anime to watch (yeah, the whole TV show and the rest, except for the movie). I like tennis, so even though this was a fairly typical sports anime, it kept my interest. I thought it was nice that there were lots of unique and fairly well-rounded characters, since a show that focused only on the main character wouldn't have been as good.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You%27re_Under_Arrest">You're Under Arrest: Full Throttle</a></strong><br />YUA is a long-time favorite and I've seen all the previous anime. I thought Full Throttle was a nice series that brought it back to its roots, without the silliness (mostly) that infected some of the previous series. It's still a slice-of-life show so nothing really happens, but it's nice to spend time with these characters.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michiko_to_Hatchin">Michiko to Hatchin</a></strong><br />This was a pretty good show, similar to Samurai Champloo (by the same studio, manglobe) and reminiscent of Cowboy Bebop. The characters were deep and fully realized, but there wasn't too much plot. The setting in South America was pretty unique. I discovered this because the opening theme is by Soil & "Pimp" Sessions, who I've been listening to lately.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himitsu_%E2%80%93_Top_Secret">Himitsu – Top Secret</a></strong><br />This seemed like it was going to be a relatively straightforward police drama with sci-fi elements, but there was something strange about it. Then I saw it was based on a <em>josei</em> manga, and it all made sense. Some really twisted stuff happens in this anime, even more so because of the inherent realism of the show. It's the best kind of sci-fi in that it posits some new technology and then uses that to tell a good story, rather than focusing on the technology itself. I watch this because the animation was by Madhouse, one of my favorite studios.<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valkyria_Chronicles">Valkyria Chronicles</a></strong><br />This anime is based on a PS3 game of the same name. The game looked good but I avoid RPGs because they take so much time to play. (By contrast, I watched the 26-episode anime series in two days.) The anime apparently follows the same plot as the game. I thought it was pretty good, but the anime focuses on a few characters and the rest of the characters from the game remain in the background. The characters they do focus on are handled well, though. Also, the plot is interesting enough to serve as the backdrop for the game's battles, but by itself it's pretty average.<br /><br />So that's this year so far. I'm also watching the following ongoing shows on Hulu: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fullmetal_Alchemist">Fullmetal Alchemist</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naruto">Naruto Shippuden</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inuyasha">Inuyasha: The Final Act</a>. Plus, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nodame_Cantabile">Nodame Cantabile: Finale</a> just started in Japan so I've watched a few episodes of that. Hulu is a fantastic source for anime, and lately they've been adding a lot more subbed shows. I noticed tonight that they've added some new stuff, so I'm about to watch the first episode of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nabari_no_Ou">Nabari no Ou</a>.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-88083205435534005282009-09-03T00:07:00.001-04:002009-09-03T00:08:23.860-04:00Door dog updateNever mind, it was a mouse. :-) Now I need to trap it.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-13942262485839118002009-09-01T20:59:00.002-04:002009-09-01T21:57:17.620-04:00Door dogsLast night I saw a black flash run down my hallway. I haven't found any rodents, so I think it was a door dog. Normally they only show up around 3AM when I'm really tired, and are only visible out of the corner of my eye, but I almost saw this one clearly and it was only around 9PM. I'm surprised I couldn't find much about door dogs on Google, but Google Books does have an <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=DtEq8h1F3yEC&lpg=PA477&ots=wsq-bKPnGR&dq=%22door%20dog%22%20burroughs&pg=PA476#v=onepage&q=&f=false">excerpt from <em>The Western Lands</em></a> by William S. Burroughs, who was the first person to give a name to the creatures.<br /><br />Speaking of Burroughs, I think <em>The Western Lands</em> was the first book of his that I read. I actually read most of his books in reverse order, following <em>The Western Lands</em> with <em>The Place of Dead Roads</em> and <em>Cities of the Red Night</em>, next reading some other stuff including <em>The Wild Boys</em>, then the "cut-up" books, and ending with <em>Naked Lunch</em> and <em>Junky</em>. That actually wasn't a bad way to do it. It's been a while, so maybe I should read them again in chronological order and fill in the gaps.<br /><br />I even have the Giorno Poetry Systems <em>The Best Of William Burroughs</em> CD box set that I haven't listened to in a while. In fact I'm not really sure where it is -- ah, it's filed away with the LPs. My favorite is still <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dead-City-Radio-William-Burroughs/dp/B000001FYF">Dead City Radio</a>, though. I notice that most of the Burroughs CDs on Amazon date from the early '90s, which corresponds with when I was buying them and also when I was in college. I think the whole thing was probably started by Material's <em>Hallucination Engine</em> album, which featured Burroughs, since I was a big fan of Bill Laswell at the time. I remember anxiously awaiting the release of <em>Seven Souls</em> and the remix album <em>The Road to the Western Lands</em>, which focused solely on Burroughs's work. I'm not sure if I waited until then to read his book, since <em>Seven Souls</em> was actually originally recorded in 1989 and only re-released in 1997, but that explains why I started with <em>The Western Lands</em>.<br /><br />Anyway, just like my reverse reading of Burroughs, this post is kind of a reverse chronology of my interest in him, which started in college, continued while I was living in Japan, and popped up again last night when I saw the door dog, which since then has remained invisible. Maybe if I pop in a CD, it'll make another appearance. Then again, maybe I should be glad it's gone, because as WSB said, "Door dogs are not guarders but <em>crossers</em> of thresholds. They bring Death with them."Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-13662687953064542522009-08-09T18:42:00.002-04:002009-08-09T18:58:29.630-04:00Computer updatesI still haven't updated my computer web pages, but as of today I've finished updating my computers and taking pictures, so I'll try to wrap up the pages soon. A couple weeks ago, I realized my Home Server needed more than 1GB of RAM, so I decided to double it to 2GB. While I was buying RAM, I decided to double the RAM in my HTPC as well.<br /><br />The Home Server upgrade was really smooth, but when I finally popped the extra 2GB in the HTPC today, it wouldn't boot. I checked online and found that there was a problem with older versions of the BIOS and 4GB. I checked my BIOS and discovered I was still on 1.0! After some struggles, I got BIOS 1.7 installed and now everything works fine. The HTPC is still 32-bit, so I can only use 3GB for now, but maybe I'll switch to 64-bit when I upgrade to Windows 7. I need to test the codecs under 64-bit first.<br /><br />I learned a good tip. Nero has built-in tools for creating a bootable CD-ROM. I couldn't get my bootable USB flash drive to work, but the CD-RW with the BIOS files on it worked great. That's how I'm going to do all future BIOS updates.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-16233601884141329672009-07-05T13:49:00.004-04:002009-07-05T13:59:25.814-04:00DeerbloggingI took this on July 4. I could have done some groundhog blogging too, but the critter got away before I could grab my camera.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sazaneyes/3690274063/" title="Deer in the backyard by SazanEyes, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2634/3690274063_c1383bb67c.jpg" width="500" height="325" alt="Deer in the backyard" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sazaneyes/3690274063/">Deer in the backyard</a></span>Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-4273746038488020142009-05-27T00:09:00.002-04:002009-05-27T00:37:14.535-04:00SKULLCANDYIs there a better name for a female-fronted Japanese ska band than <a href="http://www.myspace.com/skullcandyjp">SKULLCANDY</a>? (I guess <a href="http://www.myspace.com/oreskabandus">Ore Ska Band</a> is a close second.) That's all I really wanted to say in this post, but the MySpace pages for these bands are fantastic. First of all, unlike YouTube, you don't have to worry about the videos being pulled by overzealous copyright holders. Check out SKULLCANDY's guitarist in their videos, and also be sure to listen to my favorite song, "Go! But reality!!"<br /><br />Next, the friend links are great for finding new bands you might like. I'd never heard of <a href="http://www.myspace.com/tsubomijp">蕾-TSUBOMI-</a> before, but when they list friends like <a href="http://www.myspace.com/egowrappin">Ego-Wrappin’</a>, <a href="http://www.myspace.com/bonniepink">Bonnie Pink</a>, <a href="http://www.myspace.com/shakalabbitsjp">Shakalabbits</a>, and <a href="http://www.myspace.com/gogo7188">GO!GO!7188</a> (all huge personal favorites), not to mention SKULLCANDY and their compatriots <a href="http://www.myspace.com/witcheryskank">Witchery SKANK</a>, I knew I had to check them out. I also love that EGO-WRAPPIN' are friends with <a href="http://www.myspace.com/pattismith">Patti Smith</a>.<br /><br />Finally, you get up-to-date news, like SKULLCANDY has released a full album called <i>MERRY MERRY!!</i> (not to be confused with the excellent EGO-WRAPPIN' album <i>merry merry</i>). Also, not only will ORESKABAND hopefully be at the Vans Warped Tour again this year, but you can also buy their <a href="http://new.merchnow.com/catalogs/oreskaband">album and gear</a> in the US! I'm sure there's more cool stuff waiting to be discovered.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-53371316150710596312009-05-06T20:41:00.004-04:002010-04-26T22:26:29.286-04:00BlackBerry blogging<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/blog/uploaded_images/Capture15_28_52.jpg"><img src="http://www.sazan.net/dpark/blog/uploaded_images/Capture15_28_52.jpg" border="0" alt="wallpaper" /></a></p>This is my first attempt to blog from my new phone. Here's my Storm's custom wallpaper.<br /><br /><strong>Update:</strong> OK, so posting images don't seem to be working from my BlackBerry, so I had to fix this post from my desktop. The screenshot was taken using <a href="http://www.thetechmogul.com/">Capture It!</a>Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-27903569286601663112009-05-03T13:59:00.002-04:002009-05-03T14:10:28.116-04:00I found a prime!By participating in the <a href="http://stats.ironbits.net/statsnew/nplbstats.php">No Prime Left Behind</a> project, I <a href="http://primes.utm.edu/bios/page.php?id=1787">discovered</a> that the number <a href="http://primes.utm.edu/primes/page.php?id=88012">493 x 2<sup>669151</sup>-1</a> is a prime number. If you perform that calculation, you'll get a number with 201438 digits, which makes it the 891st largest prime number discovered as of today.<br /><br />The NPLB project is using well-sieved files, which means that most of the non-prime numbers have already been eliminated. That means there's a good chance I'll find some more primes in the future, although maybe not as big.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613664.post-77604416750236675932009-04-27T22:46:00.006-04:002010-04-26T22:31:58.400-04:00DC Update(That's Distributed Computing, not District of Columbia. I try to avoid the latter.)<br /><br />I'm continuing to <a href="http://folding.extremeoverclocking.com/user_summary.php?s=&u=432241">fold @ home</a>, now as part of the FreeRepublic team. I just hit #6 on the team, and I'm currently producing about 50K PPD or 1.5 million points per month with only three PCs. I'm also still helping the [H]ard DC Commandos, and I just set up my stats on Free-DC, so here's an overview:<br /><br /><img src="http://stats.free-dc.org/tag.php?name=SazanEyes" alt="DC stats" width="470" height="532" /><br /><br />If the image looks weird it's because I'm still playing around with the colors. The commandos are up to #12 on <a href="http://www.dc-vault.com/showteam.php?team=98">DC Vault</a>, so hopefully we can reach the top 10 soon.Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15239303520945445893noreply@blogger.com0