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Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu : Purezza ep. 11

2009-12-27T04:22:00.005+08:00

My belated entry for episode 11, and as expected, Yuuto blindly follows Yayoi's order of not to stick around Haruka, and much to my dismay he even quit from being Milan's manager much to my rage [ damn, i wanna see more dynamic between him and the latter D: ]. Milan of course confronted him in demand of his reason for doing so, but only for her to be fed with disappointing answers from Yuuto. Also, this recent change in Yuuto's character had as well caught the attention of the ever nosy Mika's party, which soon led both Hazuki and Nanami-san to investigate over the current turn of event, and from which they came to unveil the plot set by Yayoi and co. Prior to the coming of February 14th, Yuuto received an envelope from Milan, in which contained a number of tickets to her Valentine's Live as well as a note telling Yuuto to attend her show. With these tickets he went on inviting Shiina and both their friends [ the former who previously addressed her concern of not being able to get the tickets before the concert date ]. Shiina was quick to notice the oddness in Yuuto, and soon asked him whether if he's going to invite Haruka along for the live, to which he didn't answer.

February 14th soon steps in, and it's the day for both Milan's Valentine Live as well as the Audition Contest in which Haruka has been set up to take part in; Yuuto otherwise had chosen to tag along with his friends to Milan's concert as he might still be honoring his wish of not to meddle in Haruka's path to happiness [ whatever- ]. Noticing Yuuto's attendance amongst the crowd, Milan suddenly took a break from her songs and went on for a series of words which provoked Yuuto's attention enough to get him back on his feet, and mustered enough courage for him to confront Haruka with his feelings. He then left the concert venue and made his run for the auditorium in which the audition contest were taking place, leaving Shiina to cover for his sudden leave to their friends.

Yuuto successively barged into the contest as the host were about to announce the result for the contest, and he later forced himself all the way to the stage while being mauled up by a team of securities under Yayoi's order, his persistence however is strong enough to overcome the obstacle and he broke his way off them with much ease. Now standing before Haruka, Yuuto soon confesses his thoughts of not wanting Haruka to debut as an idol [ stating it as a selfish wish of his ], only to be swept in for surprise as Haruka herself were entirely clueless over Yayoi's plot to initiate her idol debut. Yayoi is then forced to push on with her plan but before she could make any further move The Nogizaka Maid Team appeared just about time, along with Haruka's father [ lolwut Gendo Ikari get- ] who went on to proclaim that he has bought every single asset of the company in which Yayoi was an employee, thus putting the ultimate end to her goal. The episode then ends back at Haruka's mansion, with Haruka exchanging her Valentine present to Yuuto, who in turn gave her a surprise hug much to her megassa blushing >///>

There's the nice progress made evident in Yuuto's character for this episode; finally he's able to express his bottled-up feelings in proper fashion to Haruka [ took us long enough in keeping with that up D< ], and what's more cool is that he had done it right in front of a large crowd; score ten for no more shy-shy-ness heh- :D Nothing much remarkable [ as usual ] from this series even at this point of time, and all ends well just as how we may have expected, especially the long waited hug scene at the end of the episode of which I have been clenching my fists for it to happen all this while :D

11eyes ep. 12 [Final]

2009-12-26T22:54:00.005+08:00

In this final episode, it cleared that most of stuff happened in previous episode is only Kakeru’s vision of the future [wet dream?] and they manage to prevent that by saving Yuka eventually make Liselotte targeting Kakeru for the eye... Kakeru know he has no chance and commit suicide...

Scene change back to past about Kakeru, Yuka and Kukuri... it’s all about Yuka supporting Kakeru since they were little before and after Kukuri died... back to present, Kakeru find himself lying on the bed, he was saved by Yuka’s fragment ability... shortly they were shock with Kukuri [Abraxas] appearance in fact that she isn’t the real one and at this time she explain that she once killed Kakeru back then... Shiori give details about Kukuri action back then the she already learn the truth about Kakeru’s misfortune eye, the reason why he didn’t die because of the fake world Yuka created...

Later on, Liselotte make her move abducting Yuka and seal her to avoid the threat of her fragment ability... the [not so] fierce battle begin once again, one by one of them fall... Shiori form without her fragment really unsightly [Rozen Maiden anyone], afterward Superbia suggest to using Shiori’s fragment and seal Liselotte forever... once Liselotte has taken Avaritia down and back facing them, Kakeru spit out his determination and out any reason, Liselotte sees Velad in Kakeru, counsel her to give up her plan but it’s no use... Liselotte launch an attack once again but being reflected by Misuzu and Misao combination, at time Liselotte dodge it, all he movement has been read by Kakeru, with Avaritia help by scarifying himself, Liselotte sealed once again for eternity...

World back to normal all over again, it’s like they went to a different universe with Yukiko and Takahisa are still alive but don’t know them... Yuka and Misuzu term seem good as well, what a cheesy happy ending... on the whole impression for this episode is; it’s all about Yuka’s fanservice! jeez seriously it is necessary to striped her each time?! This series has great concept and constant development, but most of fine part has been ruined by Yuka, more or less... in other words, yandere Yuka failed!

11eyes ep. 11

2009-12-26T22:48:00.004+08:00

Liselotte has been released now and her first target is Yuka, the one who release her even though I didn’t get what is in Yuka’s mind for her action... like usual, Kakeru using his ‘déjà vu’ eye went to protect her but no avail in front of massive power and Yuka’s fragment fall to Liselotte eventually... the Black Knight leader, Avaritia wont let Liselotte to gain any fragments and launch an attack toward Kakeru and the others but Shiori reflect it and send Kakeru and Misuzu back to an actual [not really] world... With Shiori left behind, she combines forces with Avaritia and Superbia against Liselotte...

On the other side, Kakeru and Misuzu are looking around to make certain the reliability of that world and later planning to defeat Liselotte while she isn’t in her top form regarding the lost of a few fragments... in the ‘Red Night’ world, with the aid of new force, Abraxas, the Black Knight and Shiori still fighting Liselotte... while Kakeru and Misuzu still uncertain with the situation there, Misuzu suggest a method to increase their powers and he’ll obtain Kusakabe strength... as he in hesitation, Misuzu take a lead and confess her feeling to him...

As the ceremony done, dunno how but they manage to open a crack to Red Night world... shortly, Misao appear and inform them the tragic outcome of the battle and vanish eventually... suddenly Yuka come out, looks like a good things for Kakeru but she stabs him eventually and exposed that Liselotte has possessed Yuka’s body... after killing him and absorb the déjà vu eye, Misuzu become the next victim...

What a disastrous way to end this episode, with the world has been destroyed and Yuka is the only being there, holding Kakeru’s eyeball and spit out some sweet word really creeps me out...

Seitokai no Ichizon ep. 12 [Final]

2009-12-25T04:21:00.006+08:00

The final episode of Setokai is here also the continuation of Mafuyu love confession towards Ken, how it’ll be? Well it was rather a turndown, she confess it in intention just to let him know her feeling, that is... IMO, it is like a girl has give up on the guy that she like, well as long as she happy with that way it’s fine :3

Later on, Kurimu with her student-council-unrelated subject were brings up in student council daily meeting and the discrimination toward Ken like always... and the agenda this time is the future vision... Mafuyu still with her BL stuff and as a boxer?! I lost of word... to Minatsu next, really a cute vision for her, to become a bride xD ... change to Chizuru, only a dark career awaits her lol ... about Ken, like it how he brings up name of the infamous eroge production :P

Anyways, new character introduction in last episode? Moreover he is the guy who Mafuyu always imagine him with Ken eventually turns on her BL-mode to max! stuff happened and Ken ends up walking home with him and later he stated his admiration toward Ken of how he make it into student council, yet Ken denied it as it is all his work alone without being supported by the rest of student council member, meet up with Kurimu at the spring, Minatsu at summer, Chizuru at autumn and Mafuyu at winter... their first met also the origin of Ken obsession toward harem :D

Alright it end at last in fact it’s not harem ending like how I was predicted, heh... well it’s the plotless series to begin with but still has it own development and exposure especially Ken... 4 season which is represent the girls without doubt fit them very well... overall, I’m enjoyed this series greatly since harem plus comedy is welcomed in my watch list... as a closing ceremony, I’ve dig up somewhere the meaning of their name with the related season :3

Kurimu Sakurano - taken Sakura it represent spring

Minatsu Shiina - Natsu means summer

Chizuru Akaba - from Akaba it means autumn leaves

Mafuyu Shiina - Fuyu means winter

Seitokai no Ichizon ep. 11

2009-12-25T04:20:00.005+08:00

Alright this episode is Ken-less, he is absent due to sickness... the earlier scene was quite nice, we have seen Kurimu, Minatsu and Chizuru past scene with Ken before and now Mafuyu play her role in the middle of snow fall and helping him :3

Nevertheless, Kurimu with her usual routine brings up another pointless subject for the meeting though it will eventually dragged away even with or without Ken... from a part time job and so on... later the feeling of the missing Ken strike them and make an urges to visit him despite not being honest of themselves :P

On their way, they meet up with Ken’s former classmate... while badmouthing Ken, his past has been revealed about his two-timing incident and being rejected by surrounding people who knew him... well the first one who snapped is Mafuyu who suddenly strike them, her expression sticking up for Ken was dangerously cute I’d say :3

Overall this is quite fine episode, still with Seitokai typical preference joke yet entertained and mostly focus about Mafuyu... ofc the most shocking stuff is Mafuyu confession at the end of episode, truly... Ken’s estimation surely freaking accurate since he predicting Mafuyu to fall for him first lol

Umineko no Naku Koro ni - episode 26 [final]

2009-12-24T21:20:00.031+08:00

Hm..I don't know where should I begin for this final episode review, because my thought lingers more on my overall impression on the episode, and Umineko no Naku koro ni in general. To sum this episode up, after reviving Sakutaro back to Maria and draw her out of Golden Land, Ange tried to bring back Battler into the game by Blue text-twisting logic about Battler's qualification as Kinzo's grandson, although he is "not" Asumu's son as previously proven. To make matters more tragic, Ange decided to reveal her true identity to Battler, sacrificing herself along the way. This totally raised Battler's motivation to end his fight against Beato and return to the awaited Ange.

Scene changes, and the final battle begin. Battler started to throw his blue text, first by negating Kinzo's existence and prove the existence of additional X person in the island in place of him, in which Beato barely retaliate and accept the checkmate. Battler isn't satisfied, and with that Beato regain her composure and started to fight seriously by using her red truth to deny Battler's blue. Battler fought back with even more merciless Blue Text, in which Beato barely counter and just accept the stakes piercing through her body. As the final piece of mystery (Nanjo's murder in the 3rd game) was "solved" by Battler, a large stake raised from the ground and crushed beato's chest, prolly ended the fight in Battler's victory.. Before asking Battler to kill her, Beato wish for Battler to solve one final riddle, that is to find out who she really is....
Extra scenes followed after the ED rolls, showing Bern and Lambdadelta enjoying themselves over Beato and Battler's show, and with that, Umineko no Naku Koro ni (season1 ?) concludes.

now for the episode thought. Pardon for the lenghty post, if any. Overall I am satisfied with this episode, given the limited space DEEN had to cram the rest of the story into a single episode after Ange-Kasumi scene wasted on previous episode. And non-VN viewers will probably enjoy this episode too. Going into the best part of Allies of Golden Witch, I have a lot of expectation toward this episode, but at the same time a lot of bad omen that DEEN won't be able to do it properly like many other episodes. After watching the whole episode though, I can say that this final episode does not disappoint me by much as I thought it would be. Beato and Battler's final battle was still spectacular from my point of view, although there are still a lot of lines and scenes omitted from the VN, and even more Red Texts were missing [click here for the whole red text used in the VN]. Gotta love Kinzo's transformation into monsters and Battler checkmating him. Beato's final scene and her request to Battler was also nice and touching, but the impact it had is far from the fanmade Tea Party video lingering on youtube. How I wish Discode was used in the end instead of Jimang's ED song :3

If there's anything about this episode that I'm disappoint about, they are:

The way they made Ange's death cheaply. I mean come on, making her looks like having sudden period and disappear afterward is hugely a disappointment for the VN readers.
the lack/unfit use of BGM. I'd personally prefer Dream Discharger to be used in this episode rather than Goldenslaughter.
The stake that pierce through Beato. It was supposed to represent Battler's Blue Text, and hence a blue-ish stake, but what we saw are the larger version of the Stake Sisters with nothing to imply that it was related to Battler's word.
The Extra scene following the ED. The lack of Bern's trol face disappoint me. Oh well at least they still include this part, implying that Umineko is not over and there's still more to come.
Lack of Red Text used by Beato to deny Battler. There are a lot of cases to cover from the first to fourth game, so I can understand if Deen omit that much. Good thing they didn't omit one of the best (and somehow funny argument) from Battler - the SMALL BOMBS :3

Nevertheless all 5 points above are merely rants from a VN reader's point of view. As a stand alone anime, Umineko might still be an enjoyable show to watch, but for me, it suffers too much from lack of character developments and in-depth information. Will there be a second season? Probably, episode 5 translation is coming soon and episode 6 will also be released this comiket. I just hope any studio that pick the 2nd season (hopefully not Deen, but they can still redeem themselves) would do the job better than the first season.

not.

Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays from Hyperchrome !

2009-12-24T20:55:00.013+08:00

The team as a collective would like to wish all our visitors / lurkers out there Merry Christmas / Happy Holidays and A Happy New Year, especially to those who are celebrating the festive^^ Enjoy your nice Christmas caeks and don't forget to save some for us !

Letter Bee - episode 12

2009-12-24T14:11:00.010+08:00

This episode is filled with Christmas mood as many other anime aired around this time are. The Letter Bees were instructed to deliver present to the children living in north as a Christmas (aka Holy Night) Messenger, or what we would call Santa. Lag is paired with Zazie for this mission, where their destination lies uphill of a snowy mountain. Upon arriving, they're greeted happily by a cute little girl named Sonja. This poor girl was living all alone in that snowy mountain because she was not welcomed by the villager due to the fact that her parent got killed by Gaichuu, and they believe that the girl's existence will draw gaichuu to them. As a result, she decided to isolate herself up in the mountain... Zazie who still has the thought that Bees should not indulge with recipient matter, does not know of this until he accompanied her down to the town to purchase stuff for dinner, when he noticed the villager's reaction toward the poor girl and had a little chats with her later that night while waiting for the snowstorm to subside.

Just as they were about to part way, a villager came to them, telling that a gaichuu went rampant in the village. Hence a small fight occurred with Lag and Zazie combining force proceed to take down the Gaichuu. I find Zazie's shindan chant a bit intriguing here: "Bullet i shoot is a fragment of my hatred. Resound, my malice". Seeing the villager try to blame Sonja, Zazie whom also had similar experience with her parent against Gaichuu decided to step up to defend the little girl, noting the nature of Gaichuu which actually attracted to people's heart rather than the girl being a curse. As they finally part way, Sonja gave her Lag and Zazie a little present from her hairtie..

It's refreshing to see an episode which does not focus much on Lag and Niche, and more on other supporting characters like Zazie. Although sometimes he seems leaning more toward type 1 Bees who treat his job solely as a deliverer, deep in his heart he still has the conscience toward his surrounding, and in this episode despite saying all the stuff to Lag, he is still concerned about the villager's perception toward Sonje (poor girl, living all alone in the snowy mountain), even more after knowing the actual situation.
And again, Tegami's tradition goes with more crying in this episode, although this time it was rather funny as Lag (and Sonja) were crying after reading the story book that was given earlier to Sonja as present :3

The Sacred Blacksmith - episode 11

2009-12-19T16:40:00.008+08:00

The mood is rather gloomy that day as they bid their final farewell to Elsa and her father. Due to the unexpected truth exposed to her in previous episode, Cecily involuntarily tries to avoid Lisa with her job as an excuse. It is not until Aria relieve her from her worries that Cecily finally able to clear her hesitation. Aria is a demon, Lisa is a demon, but above all they are still the person Cecily first met no matter what their origin are.

That day, there was conference held in the city (with Siegfried coming but Cecily failed to expose him), mainly to discuss about Luke's progress in making the holy sword. Seeing Luke's claim that he has yet to forge the complete holy sword, the conference were dissatisfied and started giving words of insult to him, raising the issue of Risa's sacrificial 3 years ago along the way. This obviously angers Cecily to the core and she tries to retaliate but was stopped by Luke who remains calm (but who knows what he really think inside). Cecily was eventually dismissed from the conference.

Back to Luke's home, Lisa confess to Cecily about her feeling and how she really want to be on Luke's side forever. Seeing Lisa's teary eyes, Cecily finally knew what she ought to do and rushed back to the conference. Mustering all her courage, she try to tell the conference on what she think actually happened 3 years ago - rather than Luke's inability to protect Lisa, it was Lisa who sacrificed herself to become "Lisa", and this way her wish to protect the person dear to her will remain...The episode ended with monsters/demons started to cause uproar in the city, catalysed by none other than Siegfried..

Ok, for some reason I find Luke's attitude in this episode a bit annoying. He tried hard to deny Cecily's word in the conference, and acttsundere when Cecily apologise to him afterward. Nevertheless this episode tells even more background on what happened 3 years ago and how all these day Luke was living in the shadow of his past, trying to atone his sin. Cecily's opinion on the tragedy might not totally valid, but it's probably not far from the truth. Cecily proved that once in awhile she's not an idiot and do the right thing, although she need to learn how to repress her anger. Lisa's conversation with Cecily back at Luke's home was touching ;_;

In the end of the day, I still can't figure out much what Siegfried really had in his head, with all the hatred he had for Luke and Cecily. Will the final episode focus on him rather thanValbanill?

Umineko no Naku Koro ni - episode 25

2009-12-17T18:58:00.025+08:00

Episode 25 of Umineko no Naku Koro ni was spent entirely on 1998 setting where Ange finally went to the inhabited Rokkenjima. More secrets of the islands were unfolded as the existence of the second harbor that leads to Beatrice's secret garden Kuwadorian was revealed, and how nobody of Ushiromiya blood except Kinzo knew about its existence. As they arrived, Ange decided to go deep into Rokkenjima alone, reminiscing together with Mammon and Sakutaro much about herself and magic. Things doesn't go in her way as she was interrupted by someone she well know...that is her aunt Kasumi who manage to track her down to the island. Driven by her hatred toward her sister Ushiromiya Kyrie due to the burden she had to shoulder as Kyrie abandon her position as the next head and married into Ushiromiya, she unleash her anger toward the lone Ange. It is in that instance that Ange realize how similar Kasumi situation with the people she knows - Eva and Rosa in particular, who channels their hatred and anger in a negative way, while another person with similar situation, Maria decided to do it differently and convert all her grieves caused by Rosa into happiness.

back to Rokkenjima 1998, Ange was continuously punched and kicked by Kasumi's henchman, who at that time was inflamed by inflamed by Eva-beatrice. Growing tired of her, Kasumi finally decided to dispose off Ange, but Ange never see that as a threat. Confidence in her magic, Ange summoned the Seven Sisters of Purgatory just as she was about to get shot, killing everyone including Kasumi and Eva-Beatrice who transformed herself into Eva...

comment: Apart from Ange getting badly assaulted and then materializing her magic to save herself from being killled, the episode is rather dull because I am more interested with what's happening in 1986 Rokkenjima, and this episode doesn't tell much about the tragedy, save for the after-effect of the tragedy which resulted in Ange's misfortune. Anyway, rather than to say that Ange manage to overcome the toxin to materialize her magic, I prefer to think that it is because they are in Rokkenjima that Ange manage to "show" us her magic and kill everyone. Think about it.

Nevertheless in term of how it was adapted from the visual novel, this is probably one of the better Umineko episode so far, as a great deal of information were included, but then what could you expect from spending one WHOLE episode for this mere Kasumi-Ange part (arguably hold less importance compared to what has been missing throughout the series), while leaving massive holes in many other Umineko episodes, and possibly hurt next episode as well. Now that only one episode left, I can't help but sensing severe disappointment in the upcoming final episode, because the Tea Party and the Extras for Allies of Golden Witch are not short.

PS: scene of the episode \o/

"have a nice dream. See you in hell"

Needless ep. 24 [Final]

2009-12-15T01:00:00.001+08:00

In previous episode, Arclight has been revived and now back with his evil intention, exposing his triumph card, the massive collective of the Needless cells and combine with it in order to become god... however, Blade aren’t let it be and acting fast, but he has no match with Arclight and get trashed easily... once the merges done, a new gold shinning Arclight were formed self proclaiming new god and discarding his loyal subordinates... hereby, Cruz standing before Arclight and defying his basis... once Cruz almost get killed while Blade can’t do a thing, Momiji, Solva and Seto stand a front, yet still they can’t even land a scratch on Arclight...

Nevertheless, the blasphemous for becoming a god strikes Arclight thus resulting the side effect, err biological response? IDK whatever... well shortly, after Cruz regains his consciousness finds that Arclight somehow neither turned nor created a big dome with his on top of it plus a countless tentacles hunting it prays... in order to overcome this, Blade and co. need Cruz sole abilities not other than his intelligent and even his sister, Aruka once abandon him is now believe in him...

Though Cruz comes with some fancy idea combining their fragment abilities by sending Blade and Eve to Arclight... despite in fugly form, Arclight still can struggles but Eve wing shield that once save Gido and Blade before is absolute, and Blade’s headbutt were causing the reverse effect neutralize Arclight back and defeating him entirely... later, the after story scene shows that they all follow their own path with Cruz join the machinery guild and teams up with Blade and Eve once again...

Finally, Needless reached the end of the line though mostly I do enjoy the series but it still quite cheesy to end it... not even one of a good guy died, dunno it’s good or otherwise while TTGL can leave a big impact, but not this one after the fillershit Madhouse served us, well I can tell those who are not following manga might satisfy with it... it’s [not really] a long ride for losing a few of screw in brain coz that what make Needless is :3

To Aru Kagaku no Railgun ep. 11

2009-12-14T21:07:00.023+08:00

Still at the Level Upper arc, and we're nearly at the climax of it. Uiharu has now been taken hostage by Kiyama following her [ Uiharu ] discovery of Kiyama's role in the Level Upper case, which soon prompted the latter's escape in her car, taking Uiharu along for a ride. While Kiyama drives for a yet to be disclosed location, she hands Uiharu a device that would uninstall the Level Upper program, thus releasing its victims off her influence once her primary objective is cleared. She later continues to elaborate on her intention of creating and deploying the Level Upper program to Uiharu, mentioning the numerous rejection over her requests to use the the city's Tree Diagram for a certain research she is working on at present. Uiharu of course chose not to believe in Kiyama's words, but weren't reluctant on receiving the uninstall program handed to her though.

Kiyama were soon forced to cut her escape drive short as the Anti Skill had set a roadblock at a later point, thus prompting Kiyama to step off her car and made an impressive display of her multiple abilities gained from being the administrator of the Level Upper program [ which were made possible due to the collective processing power of the networked brains ] much to the shock of Kiriko who were watching on the event in real time through a monitor back in her office, and later to the horror of Mikoto who arrived at the ground zero only to witness a total defeat of Anti Skill at the hands of Kiyama. Mikoto then confronts Kiyama on the high pass, and a lengthy battle ensues between the two with the upperhand goes mostly with the Multi Skill Kiyama.

The battle later prolongs to the lower part of the pass, where Kiyama unleashes multiple Graviton attacks against Mikoto, one of which succeeded in delivering a [ presumably ] final blow to Mikoto. To the ultimate surprise of Kiyama however is that Mikoto managed to pull off a makeshift shielding before the blast consumes her, and uses the chance in which Kiyama had lowered her guard down to approach the latter and execute a close body shock enough to incapacitate Kiyama. Also, Mikoto unknowingly established a network between her and Kiyama [ via the ambient electricity which surrounds her ], thus enabling her to tap directly into the latter's memories-

We were shown a past of Kiyama prior to current event where she were once assigned as a proxy teacher for a group of orphans known as Child Error, of which were revealed to be the subjects for an experiment focused on the study of the AIM field. Although she kept on expressing contempts against the children, Kiyama soon bonds up with the children as time grows by, and thus when the experiment gone awry she were ultimately driven into guilt, which had also influenced her determination to take and utilize whatever it needs in order to save the kids. Moments later, Kiyama regained her consciousness but as she prepares herself to strike another blow upon Mikoto, Kiyama's rage caused the Level Upper network she is currently maintaining to go out of control, knocking her back into unconsciousness and later manifesting into a fetus-like entity outside of her frame, much to the horror of Mikoto who witnessed it first hand.

Finally we get to see the Biribiri in full action, and much to my delight Mikoto came to unlock another set of skill based on her primary ability to manipulate electricity, thus marking another level of growth / evolution in Mikoto as a highly regarded Level 5 ability user. And after weeks of being bombarded with Kuroko's yuri advances against Mikoto now we get to see some real plot going in; well it took quite a while to built into one for this series, as expected from JC Staff but in the case of Railgun, it was never too late unlike Shakugan no Shana II nor To Aru Majutsu no Index, yet still that doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy the slice of life portion of Railgun as it gave me the opportunity to see Mikoto in a much more lighter perspective :3

Darker Than Black : Ryuusei no Gemini ep. 10

2009-12-14T02:56:00.023+08:00

Picking up from where episode 09 has left, Suou is left in a shock over her mother's statement that the real Suou has already died a few years back, and although she tries to calm her mother down by mentioning the happy memory they had while the family were out in a public aquarium her attempt would later spawn another shocking revelation for herself, and this time it is hinted that her memories could possibly be fabricated by an unknown party for unknown purposes. Suou then left her mother's car and made a blind run with July following behind; Mao however didn't get to make his way out and thus were left in the car as Suou's mother drove away from them.

Following Hei's abduction of Yoko, Misaki is now desperate on seeking clues that would lead her to the capture of Hei, but she soon discover that all this while she had been closely monitored by Section 3 thanks to their utilization of a roomful of dolls. Shifting back to where Suou and July were now, an observation specter appeared before July's line of sight, and mysteriously he [ July ] issued an order of which is later quoted by Madame's twin dolls, resulting on apparent shutdown on Section 3's [ dolls ] monitoring system.

Mao, now within the apartment of Suou's mother were suddenly reminded of a past he once remembered upon having recognized the woman before him; 8 years in the past, Mao served as a spy for the Syndicate [ thanks to his contract which grant him the ability to swap bodies with any animals within his field of sight ] and were tasked on spying over Mikhael Pavlichenko in Moscow without noticing that he were actually set on a trap by a faction of the Syndicate itself. Mao then took over a cat and made his way into the university, where en route to the professor's research room he noticed the same lady he had met a while before in Japan of whom is the mother of the Pavlichenko twins. Not long after, an explosion ensues outside and Mao's human body were lost in the direct explosion which had also claimed the life of Suou much to the horror of her mother while her brother Shion remained calm as if nothing happened.

Cutting back to the present, Hei is seen in a torture room squeezing out the location of Yin from Yoko of who is currently under his captive. Yoko soon broke into a traumatic state in which she muttered her fear of the impending doom that would result from Yin and Suou's contact, and were assumed to have been prophesied by the lady who had the memories of the apocalyptic future [ this could either be Hoshimi-sama or the late Amber :3 ]. Upon receiving the answer he wanted, Hei then left the room but is stopped for a short chatter with the enigmatic Madame.

Back to the tragic event of the Pavlichenkos' past, Suou's mother came to her greatest surprise when she discovered the now dead Suou laying on one of her husband's research machines, with him were about to perform a ME related procedure against Suou's lifeless body. A short argument were sparked between the two with Mao jumping on Mikhael's face later on in a fit of rage over losing his human body in the blast before, blaming the professor as the cause behind the event. Suou's mother then took her daughter's body off the machine and left the room with Shion staying behind with his father, waving the two off from the window above.

Now returning to the present time, Suou runs off her mother's apartment following her mother's statement that she was actually a product of her twin brother Shion's ability as a contractor which turns out to be the power to recreate a perfect clone / replica of anything he desired. Misaki then left to pursue both Suou and July, but later came to her relief as they didn't actually escape her for good. Suou then made her feelings clear to Misaki that the shock wasn't as devastated as she have thought it would be, but lamented on her tragic fate as being the result of her being born as either a Contractor or just a perfect copy of the original Suou. Their conversation, however were cut short as Hei suddenly glides in from above and made his move against Misaki, incapacitating her but not without sparing her life upon Suou's insistence.

In the mean time, Mina and her team finally came to locate the room in which Yoko were being held by Hei, only to find a grotesquely executed corpse of her former teammate left on the floor indicating that someone may have entered the room and killed Yoko after Hei had left for Yin; this nevertheless etched a deep sense of revenge in Mina as she firmly believe that it is Hei who had murdered her friend [ and possibly lover, hint : yuri ], and vow to claim his life once she get to find him sooner or later.

An emotional scene later unfolds between Suou and Hei, where for the first [ or was it second ? ] time in Ryuusei no Gemini Hei came to comfort Suou who were now drown in tears, telling that whether she is a copy or not Suou will always be the Suou he had known ever since their meeting. A few moments later as the two children were asleep, Hei had another talk with Mao and explained that he had finally came to see himself in Suou, thus elaborating the reason of him warming up to Suou as of recent. The episode soon closes with the appearance of a deep red moon in the night sky, and a mysterious figure appearing from a glowing cocoon within the center of Hell's Gate.

Episode 10 has came to [ slightly ] answer a few question I had in regard of the Contractors which I prefer to keep to myself at the moment to evade possible embarassment in case it turns out the other way than expected :P But anyway, I now have firm clues behind the mystery of the Contractors much thanks to the hint laid by the Pavlichenkos' past and the nature of Suou herself. Another interesting point to note is that the writers finally came to let us in on the back story of Mao which I have been long waiting for ever since the first season, never thought that he was such a ladies' man back when he still had his body then. The tenth episode is as cryptic as the the ninth had been with the mystery further thickens before everything came to end with the promised near-apocalyptic twist that would possibly surpass the one set for the previous season.

Letter Bee - episode 11

2009-12-13T18:48:00.013+08:00

As expected, this episode focus on Lag's first job as an official Letter Bee. On their way to his customer's place, Lag met a Bee called Sullivan, who knows well about his shindan ability to project memories contained within objects and does not agree with a Bee having that kind of ability. After bidding farewell, Lag proceed to the customer's home (named Mr. Alcott), only to find out that he is trying to lie in the letter he is about to send to his mother due to the current miserable life he leads. Lag obviously does not agree with that and hesitates whether sending the latter full of bragging lies is the right thing for him to do, but he still continues as that was his job.

The story continues as Lag went to the receiver's destination, which lies across the mountain gap. They met with the recipient (Mr. Alcott's mother), but just when Lag was about to give the letter to the woman, they were interrupted by a Gaichuu, almost almost destroying the bridge. Lag has no choice but to defeat the Gaichuu and almost losing the letter in the process but for Niche's help. As the shindan fragment shot by Lag disperse, it touches the letter, projecting the "heart" contained within it, revealing all the truth about Mr. Alcott.. nevertheless his mother was still happy to see that her son was trying so hard for her to the point that he would rather lie to her..

Letter Bee never failed to impress me, this is another episode that I value very much. Started well with the humours of Sylvette and her "special" soup prepared for Lag, and scenes showing Niche wearing a rather frilly, tight underwear given by Sylvette simply because she promised not making that gross soup for 3 days. Thank goodness Lag, you're saved for 3 days, at least. And ended with the same style after Niche decided to take off the underwear (and put it on steak lol) because it was too uncomfortable and would rather wore a loose short similar to what Lag worn.

Niche - "They get caught in my butt and are tight around my crotch"

This episode demonstrate clearly the 2 types of Bee existed in the story; one that perceive their job as a mere postman and see letter as something merely meant to be delivered (eg Sullivan), while there are those like Lag and the old Gauche who perceive letter as the heart of people who write them and hence they must deliver it with great care. Sullivan however does has a point about Lag's shindan ability and his job as a Bee, because a simple shindan fragment dropped by lag can reveal the truth contained within the letter, as shown in this episode, although whether this is a good thing or not can be argued depending on one's stand as a Bee.

btw, yes there is crying scenes no matter what :3

Kimi ni Todoke ep. 10

2009-12-12T05:13:00.011+08:00

The tenth episode of Kimi ni Todoke continues with ~~Sadako~~ Sawako and the girls from her class training for the upcoming sports event, with Sawako's incoming ball / strike [?] were soon interrupted by Kurumi who dropped by [ the training ground ] just to throw in a friendly 'hi' to Sawako. This very gesture would continue forth on a number of scenes in which Kurumi would butt into Sawako's conversation / activities between her friends and further spam a number of 'Kuronuma-san' much to Chizuru's irritation.

In the mean time, the awkwardness between both Sawako and Kazehaya begin to grow further following Ayano's little [ first name calling ] prank set on Kazehaya [ refer to the previous two episodes ]; they both now find themselves extremely nervous in conversing casually as they were prior, not to mention Sawako's growing misunderstanding[s] over Kazehaya x Kurumi's relationship of which she thought might have already ascended to more than just casual friends, seeing how close and natural the interaction between the two is to her eyes. Several instances of insecurities can as well be seen from Sawako as she tries to cope with the new found [ love, most likely ] feelings she had in her.

Having been infatuated with her current desire to become just as perfect of a girl as Kurumi, Sawako unknowingly opened a can of worms in most of the conversation she have had with Kurumi, thus relaying to the audience of who Kurumi actually was behind her sweet, girly facade. Also, It is in the second half of this episode that Sawako finally came to dispel the standing awkwardness between herself and Kazehaya that is felt as of recent, much thanks to the magic of her prized smile :3

The blossoming closeness between Sawako and Kurumi have been troubling Chizu all this while, of whom had mildly grown jealous over the latter since Sawako seems to have been practically stolen from her by the girl she is less to mingle the most. Chizu's mild discontent against Kurumi also built into the intrigue of Ayano, and as soon as she [ Ayano ] came into the full story led in by Chizu, managed to tap into full knowledge over Kurumi's true personality and her likely plot against Sawako and Kazehaya, which is later brought into light as Kurumi confesses her feelings for Kazehaya to the otherwise shocked Sawako.

Episode 10 simply is a gem when it comes to character development, it may not stood as the best of the series [ compared to some tear-inducing episodes prior ] but the noticeable growth felt from Sawako and her attempt at closing in the awkwardness gap between her and Kazehaya simply won over me. And just as expected, Kurumi practically uses Sawako as a stepping stone for her to appeal against Kazehaya, yet a futile attempt I would say as Kazehaya is so fixed [ beyond salvation ] on Sawako, and nothing, I repeat nothing she [ Kurumi ] do could ever get his attention deeply focused on her :3

As per this episode, a [ not so ] new question were raised deep within Sawako's mind concerning Kazehaya, and apparently Sawako is still yet to learn that her heart has been slowly nurturing deeper and more complicated feelings for Kazehaya; well that certainly is to be expected considering on how dense herself is as she had been practically living outside the social circle for quite a while now. Also, Kurumi had now set her ultimate move against Sawako, and the audience finally get to see the true side of Kurumi albeit it is done in slightly comical fashion; this quickly reminds me of the psychotic beauty Miyamiya from Bamboo Blade as both of them weren't much of a different archetype however, plus they both excels in concealing the darkest side of their personalities through a beautifully crafted facade.

Interestingly, that's [ more than ] plenty of shoujo-bubbles / sparkies there; and I might got overdosed by it [ perhaps ] sooner or later :3

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu : Purezza ep. 10

2009-12-12T03:53:00.017+08:00

So, finally it's THAT time for a romantic comedy series now eh ?

Picking up from where episode 09 had left, Haruka fell prey to the finely orchestrated scheme set by the two talent scout [ originally of Miran's ] who approached her in the previous two episodes, under the pretense that she had been selected 'by accident' for an upcoming audition held on the coming Valentine's day. Both Haruka and Yuuto were seemingly inexperienced with the matter at hand that they just went with a 'well, if that's how its gonna be then we guess it's okay' kind of answer; little did Yuuto knows however is that Haruka has been robbed from him right in front of his nose, and this is soon made apparent [ albeit he still didn't come to notice it yet ] when he was requested by the talent scout lady to leave while he were silently watching Haruka practicing her vocals.

As he were further denied from being anywhere near Haruka, Yuuto now finds himself as the new manager for the foul-mouthed idol Miran Himemiya of whom he had met earlier in the recent matsuri. His new feat as Miran's newest manager [ she already had a manager at the time ] came in a sudden when he accidentally knock her down while exiting the rehearsal room in which Haruka were training her vocals. As a mean of punishment, as well as to make up for her incompetent manager, Miran soon puts a leash on him as her new manager much to his contempt, although he [ not surprising indeed ] didn't bother to refuse her decision at all.

A small rift soon grows between Haruka and Yuuto's relationship at this point, with Yuuto fearing that he might be dragging the now busy Haruka down for his own self [ as he were told to believe ]. And surely it didn't take long for him to discover the true motives of the two talent scout who were actually bent on turning Haruka into their company's new idol, but not without a truly expensive price in which he is now forced to completely distance himself from Haruka.

A very much predictable episode it is, there wasn't much of anything left for us to hope for from this series at this point of time; the story / plot especially does not deviate much from the stock recipe seen in countless other drama / romantic comedies out there and this might as well wears some of us out; personally I could have better guessed how the second half of the episode would turn out even without having to watch it first hand, yet I am obliged to continue forth just because of Miran :3

As per the 10th episode I personally think that I've finally grown tired of Mika's recurring antics; it'll be a decently nice anecdote if it were to be implemented once in a while but if she were to step in and guide Yuuto for the entirety of the series then it would be pretty much tiresome as Mika's recurring intrusions virtually allows very little progress for Yuuto to naturally develop his relationship with Haruka. This episode also reunites Yuuto with Miran of whom practically reminds me of the infamous Haruhi Suzumiya of the Kyoani fame; the same foul-mouthed, bossy attitude and her lack of respect over people and her surroundings certainly mirrors those of the former's.

Nyan Koi! ep. 11

2009-12-11T23:00:00.004+08:00

As expected, Kanako’s episode... early in the morning, Junpei grumbling over his cat tongue and like usual being teased by his mother and sister about his ‘woman’... head to the priest scene, it has been revealed in previous episode, the priest already found out... no, actually he accidentally broke the broken Jizo's head and this makes Junpei’s guilty feeling overshadowing him... stuff happen like usual for Junpei’s co., make a party mean for the end of their school terms, enjoying themselves etc while Junpei is bothered about priest and taking act finding a part-time job in case to help him financially...

While doing his delivery, he encountered Kanade also in her part-time job... suspecting his sudden take a part-time job drags Kanade to Kaede to find out is there any meeting between them at the upcoming Christmas but discover nothing... next day, Junpei ends up delivery a winning movie ticket to Kanade and eventually being forced to go with her... Kanade take a lead dragging Junpei around as it like a date but at the same time feeling guilty toward Kaede and anxiously thinking that he has nothing to do with her more than a friend... anyways not until Junpei take out his cat doll made by Kanade long ago, remembering the past and recovering back her will...

Later on, while on his work, Junpei get involve himself into another cat troubles and Kaede coincidently stumble on him and heard his mumbling about the curse, yet she doesn’t take it seriously... afterward, the worst possible outcome happened on Junpei, a nekomimi popup on his head :3

This is quite decent episode... nevertheless, Kotone and Akari reaction never fails to amuse me and Kanade dressed as santa, not sure if want :3 with one episode left, I’m a bit worried about how they will ends it... this fear is always happen when it come about harem genre...

11eyes ep. 10

2009-12-11T22:00:00.003+08:00

As continuation from previous episode, Yukiko were forced to kill Takahisa because of his lost control and gone mad, resulting from this, Yukiko over laments about it due to her feeling towards him... at the same time Kakeru and Misuzu has been told the truth behind all these chaos by Shiori that the Black Knight is the good guy and that makes they’re the opposite... for all trouble they need to deal, Yuka still her strange attitude only care about Kakeru while have some feud over Misuzu due to her close relationship with him... a razor in Misuzu’s tea is a direct warning by Yuka eventually makes Misuzu realized she have cross to far in fact Kakeru didn't realize the real situation...

As scene changes, Yuka approaches Kakeru with her daring clothing bewildering him but Shiori insist to keep it like that plus she seem like doesn’t really care about the change of Yuka... Shiori proceed telling about the past, Velad and Lisette bonds also their reign of turmoil back then... when Velad was murdered later, Lisette desperate over it and carry out to call forth the Hell Fall for a long period and eventually get sealed up by the force whose opposing her, that’s the Black Knight is under the organization Shiori work with... Kakeru also learned that Velad are residing inside his body through his Eye of Aeon, the main reason why Black Knight targeting him...

Higurashi anyone? :3

Later on, Kakeru meets up with Kukuri, apologies to her about accusing her before and then ends up with Misuzu afterward... at this period, Misuzu told Kakeru concerning her dilemma when facing Misao before... Kakeru urges to cheering Misuzu triggered the obvious flag ultimately... shortly, once they gathered together, Yuka insecure feeling drags Kakeru apart from others and tempts him... subsequently, this is the vital point about the fragment resides within them revealed and more shockingly is Kukuri existence, it appears that she is the result of Yuka’s fragment creating her for Kakeru... things getting tense as ‘red night’ occurs, Yukiko went to the Black Knight facing them alone, her reckless move cost her life with her fragment been hauled out from her body tragically... the timing quite bad when Yuka suddenly appeared, securing the fragment and grant it to Lisette by mean of releasing her...

Lot of stuff has been cleared in this episode, one after another fall (I dont care Yukiko much but Kukuri u_u) and that make this is the best episode so far IMO especially regarding Misuzu and Kakeru moment... frankly I don’t like Yuka and ofc I’m hoping for Misuzu’s ending though it’s quite impossible for obvious reason... with Lisette has been released and 2 more episode left, Dogakobo surely done a great job executing this series nicely especially when it come about eroge adaptation, you wont find any of it above the average level these days...

The Sacred Blacksmith - episode 10

2009-12-11T00:31:00.009+08:00

The old man's attempt to kill Lisa (whom he refer to as Valbanill) in previous episode failed when the blast from his lightning demon sword took a slightest curve just before it reach Lisa, sparing her life. The next morning, the ever-present Cecily and Elsa pays Luke a visit, only to find out about the attack last night. This episode reveals more backgrounds the story, about the need to forge a holy sword to seal Valbanill, and how Luke was given the task to forge one. Also mentioned are the connection between spiritual bodies/Prayer's Pact and Valbanill's curse (apparently fabricated by the first generation Housmans), and how demon sword arise from the hatred toward Valbanill, and that someday they are destined to kill their maker. That is, Valbanil. Aria also had a chance to meet Elsa and talk about their own existence as humanoid demon sword.

The story gets more interesting as the man in black cloak (Siegfried) finally showed himself in front of Luke together with the old fart and Elsa, and battle ensues. Seeing Siegfriend (who wield a nasty darkness elemental demon sword with the power to rot anything it comes into) had his hand on Luke, this gave the old man a chance to target Lisa, but the attempt was blocked by Lisa and sword Aria. The old man clearly not in his best condition to keep fighting, and almost succumb to Cecily's superior demon sword blast if not because of Elsa's block using her own body. Both met their tragic end after Elsa stab the old man with her dagger, as what they have agreed upon, while Elsa herself was badly injured and broke soon after.. Later a surprising truth about Lisa was revealed by Siegfried, about how she contain Valbanill's blood and that Luke actually killed Lisa Orkwood to create the current Lisa and escape from Valbanill a few years ago, leaving the episode with a few questions to be answered...

Siegfried finally got himself involved for real in Seiken no Blacksmith, after what he has done previously in the shadow. The battle between him and Luke is rather short, but still nicely done. His motive is still not quite clear to me at this point, but he also seems wanting to seal Valbanill for good, and hence the reason he targeted Lisa. Although this doesn't explain about the chaos he made so far in the series (unless he aims to sharpen Luke's skill as a blacksmith capable of forging a holy sword). After watching this episode, I'm still not sure whether Luke is trying to hide the truth from Cecily earlier in the morning by saying that the old man is targeting him rather than Lisa, or because he really think that the old man is someone from the Empire, and he was targeted as he is a blacksmith capable of forging a holy sword.

The main highlight of the episode (other than the sad ending of Elsa and the old man) is probably Siegfried's word in the end about Lisa and Luke's deed in the past. But then so far Lisa's background is largely unknown (elven ear+magic capability, and she appeared after Lisa Orkwood was killed), so this come with little surprise to me except the killing part to create Lisa. On a random thought, if Luke think he lacks hatred toward Valbanill, it might be because of his deep care toward Lisa as she carries Valbanill's blood.

btw I really think that they should change the ED on the final 6 episodes of the series . The current ED doesn't quite fit the mood.

Umineko no Naku Koro ni - episode 24

2009-12-10T16:55:00.034+08:00

Umineko no Naku Koro ni episode 24 started with scenes at underground prison in Kuwadorian, where Krauss and the rest were able to get out of the place thanks to Kanon's magic sword. Noticing this, the Siesta sisters reported the jailbreak to Virgilia, who then ordered the them to kill the escapee. Meanwhile, Jessica still fiercely fighting in her room, trying to break Ronove's magic shield. On the other test, George brushed aside Virgilia's goat butlers summoned by Gaap easily. As Jessica and George prepared to unleash their final strike, Gaap uses her nasty trick to teleport both Jessica and George so that their final attack hit each other, ended up ripping Jessica's head and piercing George's abdomen. With that, the 2nd twilight is finished. Gaap returned Jessica to Ronove back in her room, temporarily in living form for 3 minutes so that she can deliver her final message to Battler. Back to Krauss and the rest, since the beginning there's no escape from the Siesta's golden string. They were killed one by one[1][2][3][4], although Kyrie somehow manage to escape inside the mansion, give a call to Battler to give her final advice before she too get caught...

Virgilia: "Gapgapgapgapgapgapgapgapgap!!!!!"

Finally it's Maria and Battler's turn to take the test. Beato decide to test Battler personally. Battler was given the same question as Jessica and George (sacrifice one to obtain the two: 1. yourself 2. person you love 3. the rest), except that there's no name filled on the 2nd question because there is no particular girl that Battler love. Seeing that the test can't be completed this way due to the void in the 2nd question, Beato changed her mind and ask Battler to remember and atone for a sin that he committed 6 years ago. Unfortunate for Battler that he can neither remember and confess it, let alone atone for the sin. Knowing that Battler cannot remember, Beato seems frustrated and disappointed, losing her interest for the game and decided to withdraw, leaving battler bewildered on the awkward situation. In the mansion, Beato channeled her bad mood to everyone, including Kinzo and Gaap before dismissing Virgilia and Ronove. Back to Purgatorio, Battler, Bern, Lambdadelta and Ange were still wondering about Beato's sudden decision to abandon the game and try to bring her back intot he game board, but instead Beato hit back by arguing about Battler's qualification as Beato's opponent. Meaning, she let him use the Red Text of Truth to prove that he is indeed the legit "Ushiromiya Battler". However, Battler cannot prove that as he was unable to say it with the red text, proving one thing that this Battler is not "Ushiromiya Battler" who was supposed to fight Beato. In the end, Beato believes that only Maria and herself can truly understand magic...

comments: Finally the witches revival ceremony has been completed, everyone on the Island were killed, and Battler was left alone on Rokkenjima. The deaths shown were brutal as ever to the point that Jessica's death need some mosaic. On a slightly humor note, it is fun to see Virgilia getting pissed off at gaap for using her "furniture" without her own consent. These two can never get along :3 Beato's decision to abandon the game surely took Battler by surprise, plus Battler himself has no idea on what kind of sin has he committed 6 years ago. Especially the fact that Battler was unable to say it with the Red Text that "he" is Asumu's son. After all the Red Text is meant for total truth. Which means we can only guess that meta Battler has become a different entity than the Battler born from Asumu..

Interesting stuff to mention here is that all the killings so far in the 4th arc happened BEFORE the 12th midnight bell even rang (unlike previous 3, where the first twilight were carried out after midnight past the first day), meaning that piece Battler have 2 whole days to survive on the island. Gaap was cunning as usual with her tactic to gain victory over George without even need to break a sweat. Poor Jessica and George. This is also the first time, where I found the description for the 2nd twilight doesn't quite fit with the victim, because George and Jessica are merely cousin to be compared with previous second twilight (Eve+Hideyoshi, Jessica+Kanon and Maria+Rosa). Although at this point it is kinda pointless to view each of the murder's case from logical point of view (thanks to the massive influx of magic), it is interesting to point out something unusual about Kuwamasa and Gohda's death in the garage, because their feet were touching the floor when Battler found them (remember in Umineko we can only accept what was seen by piece Battler as the truth, everything else can be fabricated by magic).

you cannot lie with the red truth

As a whole from visual novel point of view, Umineko no Naku Koro ni episode 24 is yet another disappointment. I can no longer complain about the fast pace of the plot as it has almost always been the same since the first episode, but for this episode, my disappointment has raised to another level because DEEN simply cut 2 great parts of the visual novel, that is Krauss's fight with the goal butlers and Shannon+Kanon's fight with the Siesta sister. Sure, they made George and Jessica's fight wonderfully, but to completely shorten the episode by simplifying the escapee's death is too much for me, because those fighting parts are among my favorite highlights in Allies of Golden Witch (other being the Tea Party itself). With 2 episodes left, I am expecting another speedy plot to cover the rest of the visual novel, including Kasumi-Ange part later. I just hope, really hope that the Tea Party will be contain more in depth explanation about the murder cases.

Nevertheless, the image given in this episode on how Beato and Battler met for his test at the entrance of the mansion fits perfectly with what I had imagine in the VN. I would love to see Battler saying "I love you Beato, so I'll put your name on the 2nd choice" though :3

Sora no Otoshimono ep. 10

2009-12-08T23:00:00.002+08:00

A school festival, seem pretty random episode but isn’t really... with Nymph is back already whilst Ikaros feeling toward Tomoki grew more and urges to hold hand with him... this time Tomoki and co. ends up to competes with their rival school in this school event, theme music... ironically as a beginner, nothing much can be expected from them except for Nymph wonderfully playing keyboard and get praised by Tomoki and the obvious flag rise eventually... being motivated by this, Ikaros come up with her only weapon to fit on this band...

Before the competition start, well Tomoki with his pervert thought like usual are ‘visiting’ swimsuit meido café but wind up with Ikaros, Sohara and Nymph, not bad I’d say with those getup... aside, Tomoki with his kind treatment towards Nymph recall back her past and how did her master treat her back then, even I pissed with it... in time drops her tears resulting she is slowly to become human-like after Ikaros... tsundere is one of it ofc :3

As the competition started, Tomoki shocked the whole spectator plus a few of his band member with his stunning song titled ‘My Tingling Nipples!’ (I knew it this kind of sfuff will come from him rofl) and yeah, he deserved Sohara’s Chop!... however, Ikaros astonishing the spectator again with her song called ‘Fallen Down’ and won the event later on, a great one by Hayami Saori... still, a school festival not complete without bonfire and this time Tomoki triggered 3 flag in a time but Ikaros has been given the priorities :D

Nevertheless, AIC A.S.T.A. decided to alternates manga plot and re-arranges it to fits in anime rightly even I failed to notice it, well not until Nymph’s miserable past has been revealed... and yeah it works :3

Mahoromatic ~Tadaima◇Okaeri~ ep. 01

2009-12-08T06:34:00.064+08:00

Tadaima◇Okaeri took place between the second and third episode of Motto Utsukushii Mono when the [ super dojikko ] Minawa-chan were just beginning to live in Suguru's house as his personal maid alongside Mahoro. The first episode opens with both Mahoro and Minawa trying to get Suguru to rise from his sleep, only for Mahoro soon to discover Suguru's hidden pron-stash behind the window blinds thanks to Minawa's stock klutziness. Interestingly, instead of saying her trademark catchprase [ 'perverted things are forbidden' ] she had it scribbled [ by tomato ketchup ] on Suguru's omurice for a change. A short family conversation later, Suguru's friends dropped by for a visit; he and his friends soon brought upon the idea of opening a service / maid cafe for the upcoming town festival to Mahoro's attention, and were collectively insistent on getting her to teach the Triomatic the way of the maid.

At first Mahoro seemed a bit reluctant but soon she gladly accept their request and begins to groom the Triomatic in proper maidhood - from making their own maid costumes to preparing cookies and other sweet treats. Of course, the shotacon Shikijio-sensei is always around sneaking and waiting for her perverted opportunity against Suguru which in turn triggered the usual sense of hostility from Mahoro; the first half of the episode basically plays [ albeit briefly ] into this classic Mahoro x Shikijio gag while throwing in a handful of Minawa's dojikko moments [ I didn't remember seeing this plentiful of doji-get from her in any of the series / specials before :3 ] for some moe anecdotes.

Now following the party's trip to the bathhouse; as Mahoro finishes her bath, she is then approached by the Triomatic who handed her a specifically made custom maid outfit as their thank you gift for her help. She gets herself to wear this and went to meet with Suguru who were waiting outside the bathhouse. Suguru complimented her in honest and invited her for a visit to the festival, but the intimate moments between the two were soon cut short by a sudden intrusion from Shikijio-sensei. It is later revealed that the Triomatic has also made a matching costume for Minawa which drove Shikijio-sensei to mild jealousy for all the attention Minawa been getting from the boys.

On their way back from the bathhouse, the party decided to drop by their school to retrieve some tableware for their cafe use, but then left with Suguru, Mahoro and Minawa staying behind to attend for some other work in town, dragging along Shikijio-sensei so to avoid her from doing anything dirty to Suguru. Meanwhile, Minawa were so taken by the lovely sunset view outside the window, and a realizing Mahoro came to her side and shared a thoughtful compliment over the beautiful sight shortly before leaving to catch up with the Triomatic and Shikijio-sensei.

As both Suguru and Minawa were about to leave, Suguru realized that there are things missing from his bag, and Minawa offered her help to go back and look for what is missing. She went back to the class alone and the pursuing Feldlance [ who had been keeping tabs on the Suguru household since episode 01 of Motto Utsukushii Mono ] saw this as his chance to capture Minawa back for the Management, thus he sent in a few droids according to his plan.

Minawa is then ambushed by these droids but she managed to make her escape through them; however, she noticed that the ribbon which was given to her by the Triomatic were dropped behind, and just as she were caught in this thought of her the droids successfully surrounded her while maintaining an electric field barrier to prevent her from escaping their catch. Away in town, Mahoro is quick to sense the coming danger and rushes her way back to the school. A battle soon ensues between Mahoro and the droids as she fights her way to the roof while carrying an unconscious Minawa in her arms. Upon reaching her destination, two aerial bots were waiting for her and the episode soon cuts into a cliffhanger end.

...

The overall visual execution, namely its art direction and character design remains the same as per the original TV series, but notable improvement can definitely be seen especially with the incorporation of 3DCGI, sleek camerawork and the impressive background rendering as can be seen here. The entire cast returns to reprise their respective roles following years after the airing of Mahoromatic : Summer Special, but the ultimate highlight for me goes to Ayako Kawasumi; Mahoro-san by far is her most outstanding performance as a seiyuu, and it is for this character that I begin to closely following most the series in which she did voice-over for. Also, God knows how much I missed the antics of Chizuko; the psycho-gourmet who often went bombastic whenever she came to taste Mahoro's world class cooking; once you heard of her screaming you'll know for certain that the food was awesome great :3

K-ON ! B-Side Theatre Uaron ep. 04 / 05

2009-12-07T21:01:00.018+08:00

episode 04, Little Yui-chan; Ui-chan reminisces some of her and Yui's childhood memories together, and you can hear the kind of kiddy-theme from the untan episode, replacing the usual eyecatch music :3

[ Part 01 - Christmas ] Ui-chan remembers how Yui once referred to Christmas as Christma-chuu, and gave her cheek a sisterly kiss on Christmas Eve. [ Part 02 - Tights ] wearing socks were once proven to be quite troublesome for Yui, but now she can even wear her tights properly, and that surprises her little sister Ui. [ Part 03 - Lost Child ] this part here shows how Yui have degraded from being a dependable big sister to the big klutz she is now.

episode 05, Uninhabited Island Series; Narrated by Azusa [ +her first appearance in the special ], the girls were stranded on an uninhibited island [ remember the 'washed away' joke in the beach episodes ? ], and the episode here chronicles what could've happen if they were to stuck on the island for quite a period of time.

[ Part 1 - Wild ] Mugi surprises the girls [ especially Azusa ] with her ability to coupe with life in the wild, not to mention Mugi's giggles were surprisingly creepy in this one :3 [ Part 2 - Yui's Sound ] Yui catches a fish with her guitar, and isn't that awesome ? BTW, where on Earth did she get Gitah ? *inb4 hammerspace* [ Part 3 - Summer Night's ] Azu-nyan is feeling lonely, and she later mistook Ritsu's dumb quiz for a serial murder.

Needless ep. 23

2009-12-07T19:30:00.005+08:00

actually i was kinda depressed from the previous episode since Madhouse Studios really goes mad screwed up the story by the fillers... it continue with this episode and revealed the true purpose of Saten traitorous towards Arclight, by speaks, become a god is just a cover though the real intention is aiming for Eve and she, somewhat been created to stand beside the human-creation-god, obvious, her name alone can tell the whole ploy after Adam... but the matter is she has been created by using Kasumi DNA who has died and to some extent Saten or Kannazuki yearning her so much even the clone will do... heh...

the whole chaos continues to save Eve back with more fierce clash, Adam's underling altogether combine forces like usual and even the Pretty Girl Squad join the battle later... yet, Arclight role doesnt end like that, with grateful, Riru sacrifice herself to revived him... and there it goes, Arclight strike back, claimed back his fragment without reverse effect which is would reset all of his abilities like b4... and Saten died, how tragic ending... heh...

now Arclight are back as a main boss once again, the next last episode would be another or more ferocious battle and i wonder how it can be related with Cruz name on it... pretty much, his function in this episode is ZERO! last words for Saten, seriously dude, roller bandage on your eyes fit you most :3

Darker Than Black : Ryuusei no Gemini ep. 09

2009-12-06T19:28:00.008+08:00

The pair I would like to see less [ Gai and Kiko ] finally came to appear in this episode; thank god, however is that they both didn't came to drag the episode into something that would obviously taste of a filler, especially when there aren't much episodes left by now.

Suou, now straying off from Hei, wanders about the city of Tokyo together with July and Mao and soon collapses in a train they were riding due to a fever, where she is then found and nursed back to health by Kiko at her home. Upon listening to Suou's story and her desire to meet with her long lost mother, Kiko then brought her to Gai in hoping that he would help in reuniting Suou with her mother; as usual, he would refuse from doing stuff for free but after being offered with some cash kept by Suou from her first mission payment Gai swiftly agrees in handing Suou his service.

Meanwhile, Misaki has come into discovery of a recording left by the late Amber, instructing her to find a certain disc within the MIAC inventory that would reveal a prophecy which mentioned of the fated encounter between Izanami [ Yin ] and Izanagi [ Suou ? ], leading to the eventual opening of the Hell's Gate. Also hinted in the disc was that Hei might also rise as the messiah of destruction at the same point of time [ interpretation may vary among fans :D ]

Cutting back to Suou; while the party led by Gai were searching around the area overlooking the Hell's Gate for possible clue on Suou's mother whereabout, the enigmatic informant Madame Orielle appeared before Suou at the rooftop, providing information in regard of her mother's arrival to Japan; the party soon rushed to mentioned airport where Suou finally gets to be in her mother's embrace after years of separation. A different event however took place in the same airport where Hei went on kidnapping Section 3's Yoko Sawasaki [ possibly due to him wanting the lady to lead him to where Yin is kept ] and easily defeated the katana wielding Mina Hazuki who had her senses soften from her previous meeting with her grandfather. Hei soon escapes with Yoko as a hostage, and the episode closes with a new mystery raised on Suou.

Darker and grimmer as it goes, episode 09 by all due respect is the most cryptic episode of Ryuusei no Gemini, especially with the latest prophecy foretold by the late Amber. And judging from the plot so far we are most likely to be enlightened on the long-sought answers to the ultimate mystery which made up the enigmatic Hell's Gate. Another question were raised by the end of the episode, and we were shoved with a revelation that Suou herself might not be what she [ and we ] actually believe she is. The mystery thickens well, and hopefully everything will be answered in the most desired fashion by the time the series ends.

Just for the note, there is a line from the train scene of which might serve as a homage to Rena from Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni.

Letter Bee ep.10

2009-12-06T16:15:00.007+08:00

Things seems to cool down a little after the emotional episode last week which brought Gauche's back to Sylvette's house, concealing Gauche's memories retained in his Nocturne gun. This episode start off in great humor, Sylvette chasing Niche around trying to make her brush her teeth, only then to be scolded by Lag, again for not putting her underwear; then followed by Sylvette's horrendous cooking. Explains why Gauche has weird sense of taste back then when he traveled with Lag, eh?

Niche will only wear underwear that Lag gave her. And you can't beat Sylvette's cooking.

It's Lag's first day as Letter Bee. Visited by Aria early in the morning, they went to the Hill of Prayer where more background of Gauche is revealed and how he unluckily lost part of his heart (i.e. memories of his mother) due to the side effect of Yuusari's artificial sun adjustment on the day of Flicker, 12 years ago (the day both Sylvette and Lag were born), and fill the void by pouring all his love for his newborn sister, Sylvette. Meanwhile, Connor come to deliver the message that Zazie is currently fighting hordes of Gaichuu and requite immediate assistance. Lag says his farewell to Aria, thanking her for worrying about him and off to help Zazie. Finally we got to see some action in Letter Bee, it's been awhile since the fight which took place during Lag's examination. Equipped with Gauche's Nocturne, a combined force of Lag and Zazie manage to fend off all the Gaichuu bugs. And the episode conclude with Connor serving Sylvette's "mysterious" soup to all three of them. Though luck sipping the soup, buddy.

Another great Letter Bee episode with great pacing, going from the humorous comedy early in the episode to the slightly emotional part dealing with Gauche's flashback, and ended with another scene for laugh. Stunning visual animation as usual. Zazie mentioned something quite interesting, about how a person could lost his memory if he shot a large amount of shindan from their heart's fragment. This, together with what's happening on the day of Flicker 12 years ago could play a key for Lag to find Gauche later. But for the next few episode, I'll be content with Lag doing his job as Letter Bee. The story seems having a long way to go anyway. Nevertheless, Letter Bee won't be complete without tears :3

Nyan Koi! ep. 10

2009-12-06T15:00:00.016+08:00

another episode of Nyan Koi! highlighting about the twintails twins, Akari especially... it start with a sudden clash between the twins with an unknown spirit cat with fancy getup and ofc by default any watcher can tell mahou shoujo component are mixing in... later Kanade's assignment problem lead them to the twins and to connect this odd, Jun somehow noticed (harem instinct i suppose) an unusual attitude of Akari eventually learn about the twins past, their dilemma for making friends... it's understandable for Akari but quite funny for Kotone :P

well with Jizo's head got knocked off has been found out by head priest now, i wonder how they will end this, the manga hasnt end yet ofc and please dont tell me another evil spirit cat that need to deal with... well what can i sure is, next one is back to Kanade's episode and anyone can tell last episode is reserved to whom

despite the twins is my favorite among Nyan Koi!'s girls, injecting those mahou shoujo part is totally weak idea for this kind of series, it's good if they remains an ordinary funny life with supernatural stuff resolves around... overall, this episode doesnt touching much about the main story and i'd say it was another random episode or filler to be exact for any typical harem series...

1.Nagi girly side is adorable xD 2.any outfit look sweet on them

3.someone deserve to die! 4. Kotone jealousy is win!

To Aru Kagaku no Railgun ep. 10

2009-12-06T07:03:00.002+08:00

[ I think I just fried my brain somewhere in this episode; technical stuff overload ahoy- ]

The Level Upper arc continues from where it had left in episode 09; Saten is in possession of the enigmatic Level Upper audio file and decided to give herself, as well as some of her level 0 friends a try of it. The party were soon taken in joy over their newfound abilities, most of which seems to be gravity manipulation while Saten exhibits an ability that is rather wind-based. Their fun was cut short however as one of the girls fell subconscious to the ground, and Saten were soon struck by guilt for dragging her friends into the trouble.

In the mean time, Kuroko and Uihara were pondering hard over the mystery which surrounds the audio file they had just secured, with Uiharu suggesting on conducting a deeper analysis with help from the stripping brain expert before Kuroko soon went on a brawl with a number of discovered Level Upper users, resulting in her pwning every single one of them but not without leaving her severally wounded from the fights. A visiting Mikoto soon resulted in the discovery of synesthesia being the primary concept that lies behind Level Upper, and later came a shocking revelation for Uiharu following Saten's confession that she's already in possession [ and use ] of Level Upper, as well as her comatose state which closes soon as they both ends their phone calls.

This has to be the best TAKnR episode to date, and a very emotional one at it; how can I not say its emotional when it involves a touching heart to heart conversation between Uiharu and my beloved Saten [ as if it were their final exchange of words ] before the latter went into her comatose state due to the use of the enigmatic Level Upper ? I admit I nearly had my tears running down my cheek over that very moment v.v. Also, my random guesses all this while were finally proven right as the culprit behind the Level Upper were finally revealed and she's actually stripping just around the corner :D, waiting for the right moment to bite; well too bad for her however is that the geeky Uiharu came to see through her evil doing and foiled her plan but that doesn't mean she is going to easily give everything up.

About Us : The Hyperchrome Sentai Team

2009-12-06T02:28:00.025+08:00

RAYNEHOLDE

main blog : +ophanium
favorite genres : slice of life / romantic comedy / fantasy / sci-fi / mahou shoujo
favorite series : Ga-Rei -Zero- / Haibane Renmei / Aria / Mahoromatic / Lucky Star
favorite seiyuu : Ayako Kawasumi / Yui Horie / Kana Hanazawa / Aki Toyosaki / Mamiko Noto

- a great fan of yuri, and is very much proud of it :D
- had experience devolving into a hikkikomori. and yes, it was a miserable life then-
- is a founder and lead-arranger for two dojin music projects, as well as drummer for a metal band
- is very fond of tea; the english / black tea variety in particular [ credit to shinku of rozen maiden ]
- is very fond of the windows game 'minesweeper', and were actually good at it
- is extremely passionate in japanese cosplay. not much a fan of other countries'
- loves patchouli ♥
- given the author's tight / hectic IRL schedule, new entries will only be submitted on saturdays and sundays

SERAPH

main blog : Raison D'etre
favorite genres : slice of life / comedy / fantasy / action&adventure
favorite series : Spice&Wolf / Utawarerumono / Rozen Maiden / Ga-Rei -Zero- / Bokusatsu Tenshi Dokuro-chan
favorite seiyuu : Ami Koshimizu / Jun Fukuyama / Mamiko Noto / Yui Horie / Yukari Tamura / Marina Inoue

- have been a casual anime watcher for quite some time, but started getting heavily involved since early 2007
- prefer series with less generic moe theme and more contents, but it doesn't hurt for me to watch one. But thoroughly enjoy series with good humour/comedy.
- love music with female-voiced gothic/symphonic rock/metal.
- is an addicted dota player, can never let a day pass without playing a game or watching a replay.
- also an avid gamer, particularly the old PS2 and now xbox360. Planning to get a PS3 next.
- finished my degree on 2009, but possibly continuing with Honours on 2010 (that WILL make me extremely busy, no doubt)

SHINWA

main blog : Gaia 3.1
favorite genres : comedy / harem / romance / action
favorite series : Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann / Mai-HiME / Seto no Hanayome / Grenadier / Utawarerumono
favorite seiyuu : Aya Hirano / Rina Satou / Haruka Tomatsu / Minori Chihara / Aki Toyosaki / Jun Fukuyama

- not so interesting person who love all 2d moe girls
- addicted to anime and manga since 2005 despite rarely lurking internet back then
- not really into shounen manga to anime adaptation because of ghay fillers, that's why anime alter-plot will never surpassed original manga plot
- favorite genres obviously harem, it’s just fun cursing the male lead to reflect how lucky bastard he is
- just a casual gamer but recently very fond with dota
- once become a hardcore eroge player but now has reduced to casual
- no favorite music genres and just being universal

ALICE

main blog : None
favorite genres : Action / Comedy / Harem / Moe / Slice-of-life / Fantasy
favorite series : Air / Bakemonogatari / Darker Than Black / Innocent Venus / Uhh..a lot more..
favorite seiyuu : Kugimiya Rie / Nakahara Mai / Chihara Minori / Mamiko Noto / Mizuki Nana

- A huge fan of Touhou even though not playing all of it's game.
- Part-time Hikikomori.
- Once the author of MysticSquare and currently too busy to attend it. =P
- Not very fond of anime that it's main character is too stupid.
- Average gamer. Mostly playing vertical shooting game like touhou.
- Is a 2d lolicon. (All your loli's are belong to me).
- Doesn't have particular favorite music genre, but I mostly listened to trance or techno thanks to certain doujin group.

rayneholde's top five 2009 series

2009-12-06T00:44:00.001+08:00

Okay, so before I start with my first episodic post I'd love to share 5 of my most favorite series for the year 2009. Some of you out there might question my taste in anime [ most definitely in regard to the fifth title in the list ] but worry not, I'd care less over that very concern of yours heh; well long story short, here goes the list :D

01. KUROKAMI
for the time being the first spot has to be Kurokami, and I personally find the series to be so delightfully yummy that it gave me an almost exact sensation I had when I went picking and marathoned Ga-Rei -Zero- earlier this year. The fight / action sequence were so well choreographed it had me wanting for more while plotwise, Kurokami tasted like some kind of a spiritual gattai between Shakugan no Shana and Fate/Stay Night; the series had the same supernatural feel as of SnS and the exact master-servant concept as F/SN, two delicious cake [ albeit the latter wasn't much of a filling treat ] for a price of one, eh ?

02. KIMI NI TODOKE
depending on how it will end, Kimi ni Todoke is in hold of a greater chance over securing the ultimate favorite seat from Kurokami, and believe me, Production I.G. truly delivers this time, and I am very well glad of it. Another good example of how a show that were actually being overlooked as the season begins came to be the best. The female center of the story - ~~Sadako~~ Sawako is deep down adorable, and there is no way for you to feel otherwise than love for her.

03. DARKER THAN BLACK : RYUUSEI NO GEMINI
having been a fan of the first series [ Kuro no Keiyakusha ] I have definitely been looking forward for more adventures of Hei and Yin upon the revelation concerning on the coming of the second series, especially since the first season were left with an open ending and so much of the crucial questions were yet to be answered. To my surprise, Hei started out as a thrice-more bitter character who gradually soften up to the new female lead, the lovely Russian-Japanese loli Suou [ my new love of the series aside from Yin and the late Amber ]. All in all, Ryuusei no Gemini took off on a good and promising start, with a handful of delicious character development ensuing very much later.

04. TO ARU KAGAKU NO RAILGUN
truthfully speaking, I wasn't quite in favor of the parent series [ To Aru Majutsu no Index ], which I came to view as a mixed bag of good and messy plot stuffed in the same package. That, however doesn't stop me from digging into this one as Mikoto herself is more than enough reason for me to check this one out, and to my happiness I also get to discover moar love in the form of Saten [ who at first glimpse reminded me of the awesome Isayama Yomi-neesama :D ]. Oh, and +1 on the yuri-get; something that would definitely turn my radar on :D

05. KANAMEMO
at first my thoughts were equally divided between choosing either Kanamemo or Nyan Koi !, yet in the end I decided to pick on the former as there has already been 3 autumn series occupying the list, and this should at least give enough justice to my list. I know a select mass of anime audience out there find Kanamemo to be rather distasteful [ for reasons I am not quite sure of, afraid of being labeled as lolicon or just having hard time to chew on them moe works ? ], still the series had proven to be of a great worth to be listed into my personal viewing experience; what made Kanamemo appeal much to my interest is the heartwarming mood it carries and its lighthearted look at the lives of those who were struggling to support themselves through their own hands.

Hajimari !

2009-12-05T22:57:00.000+08:00

Welcome to hyperchrome, though it is still in its beta version. Anyway, here is a collaborative blog in which a few dedicated anime watchers from GForum were gathered as a team to provide our personal thoughts and view on stuff we had come to, or would watch; you might as well expect some episodic overview / review for the currently running series although we would like to note beforehand that we might not be as up to date as some other episodic aniblog out there.

That being said, [ I wasn't quite good with opening speech anyway ] here's to a [ hopefully ] wonderful beginning for hyperchrome !

note : As for this season, I'd be covering Darker Than Black : Ryuusei no Gemini on behalf of the team, and if nobody does To Aru Kagaku no Railgun then I'll had it under my coverage as well. There aren't much episodes left anyway :3