Pumpkin Craving: Halloween 2009

As I did last year, this Halloween I also craved a game-based pumpkin. The picture is a little blurry, but I'm interested if anyone can guess what the craving is suppose to be of. Not to worry, it is not suppose to be obscure, even people who do not play games may recognize what I craved....or at least that is the hope that I am entertaining. ^^;;; I'll put up an answer in a few days, till then I'm interested in what people say about it.

Maybe I was a bit too optimistic. no one responded. ^^;;;;;;
Anyways, the answer is Haunter, pokemon number 93.

~Joanna

Currently Watching: Impressions

Bleach
A series has really fallen from grace when you are more entertained watching filler arcs then reading the actual manga. Really, this filler arc about the zanpakuto is far more interesting then what is happening in fake Karakura town. I do admit, half of why I find this so boring is because most of my favourite characters are in Hueco Mundo, but the other half is that the current fights seem so half assed. I mean Shunsui's first release was enough to defeat number 1? really? I get that he is one of the most senior of the captains, but even Ukitake wasn't able to do that and both of them joined Seireitei at the same time and both were tutored by Yamamoto. It really did feel like Kubo did it to get the plot moving, so I guess he knows that the fans don't like this part at all. Anyways, the filler arc is pretty interesting. I really liked Renji's fight with Zabimaru, it was basically his fight with Byakuya all over again, except this time he won. I wish Renji would get more fights, I really miss him. I was very disappointed with Rukia's fight, or lack of. While Rukia's fight with number 9 was amazing, so I was disenchanted with the Sode no Shirayuki fight. Although I guess Rukia would not want to fight her own zanpakuto.

EDIT: Chapter 338 just got back to Hueco Mundo! Hurray! My interest level when from 4 to 7 (on a scale of 1-10). =D

Ojamajo Doremi

I started watching this series because it was a magical girl show, and I tend to like these. Doremi isn't Tutu, or even Cardcaptor Sakura, but it's still entertaining. The biggest problem with Doremi is that the characters are walking archetypes. Doremi is the good-hearted but dumb and goofy leader in pink, Hazuki is the soft spoken book worm with glasses, and Aiko is the blue tomboy that excels at sports and isn't too bright, but is high above at Doremi's level of dumbness. Most episodes are self contained and usually feature one of Doremi's classmates who has a problem and comes to the shop to buy a magic item to solve their problem. Often the person will buy Doremi's deformed item and the girls will have to follow the person to make sure that the item doesn't malfunction. It can get a bit repetitive, but Ojamajo Doremi usually changes up the formula just when it is getting stale by making the next episode about the girls's magic exam, or their family members. So far I'm yet to be bored of it, and it has a certain charm that keeps me coming back, even when the characters are so badly made and used.

Mermaid Melody: Pichi Pichi Pitch
Sometimes I really wonder why I continue to watch it. The plot moves at the pace of a snail, the filler episodes are boring and uninspired, and the main characters (except Lina) annoy me to no end. I should probably drop it, but I end up deciding to give it another chance because it's a magical girl show. I think Lina also helps me keep my sanity when watching this show, because the other characters are so unbelievably shallow and cliche and dumb that I cannot fathom anyone relating to them and their plight. Yes, angry rant is coming up! For starters there is Lucia, she's suppose to be a mermaid princess, but she NEVER takes her responsibility seriously, even after realizing that her kingdom is in real trouble. Nope, she rather day dream and chase after Kaito, who is awful. The guy has 'feelings' for both mermaid Lucia and human Lucia and doesn't know they are the same person. Sure he likes the same person, but if it so happened that they weren't the same person, he would be two-timing them. Most the time it seems like he only keeps human Lucia around because he knows he can't have mermaid Lucia, and during the earlier episodes he was really mean to human Lucia. But Lucia, being the dumb brood that she is, forgave him because he loves her in the end, even though he doesn't yet know it. This is kind of absurd because he is 'in love' with a mere image and recollection, and not a real person, any self respecting individual would have realized Kaito isn't worth the effort since he is a self absorbed shallow prick. The anime's awful perpetuation of masculinity as seen through Kaito and femininity as seen through Lucia and Hanon often brings me nausea. The only saving grace is Lina, who takes her responsibility as a mermaid princess seriously and is unwavering in her dedication to freeing her kingdom. Often episodes featuring her give me enough hope to keep slogging through the anime, but I am beginning to question how far my love for maho shoujo, and Lina's character can take me to bear the god awful atrocity that is Mermaid Melody. I guess we shall see how long I can bear to watch it. Currently I have watched 20 episodes out of 51. It's a contest then. ;)

Lucky Star

I must say episode seven was far more entertaining then the previous episodes. Konata's lady imitation was genuinely funny because it is such an overused anime cliche. However, the rest of the episode was rather dull, like the six episodes before it. Lucky Star is bordering on being dropped like Mermaid Melody, but for now, I'm still willing to watch another episode (maybe not in the near future because like Mermaid Melody, I can only subject myself to something I do not particularly like, but something I feel may get better only so often.) Any ways, like Mermaid Melody I will have a little contest to see how far I can watch, Lucky Star has an advantage as it is much shorter, but then again it's even more dull then Mermaid Melody. I don't know about other people, but I do not find four demure (possible excepts are Konata and Kagami) girls discussing food, clothes, cell phones, and other trivial matters to be entertaining. But we shall see how much I can endure.

Endure Anime Test:
Mermaid Melody: Pichi Pichi Pitch - 24[NOW DROPPED]
Lucky Star - 7/24

Impression: Basara 26

This is the second last volume of Basara. I can't believe I am so close to finishing this beautiful manga. Basara is also the longest manga of mine and of which I own every volume.

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Summary

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Since the main story has already concluded, the 26th volume of Basara contains three stories that are related to the main one which ended last volume. The three stories are titled: Nakama, Dakara, and Katana. There is also a Tam-Tam Extra Story that is very much like the one included in volume 24 titled "Basara Academy".

Nakama, meaning "friend/ comrade" is fittingly titled as it deals with Nachi and Hijiri, two best friends, after the finale. What is nice about this episode is that it not only gives us a look at the two after the finale, but also before. Basically Nachi falls in love and this gets Hijiri thinking about their childhood. After the two reminisce, Hijiri decides that even through they are friends, they won't be able to share all their adventures, and sets out on his own adventure to discover his betrothed. She turns out to be a beautiful young lady with an uncanny resemblance to a mermaid from Hijiri's past and is also a little mischievous. heehee.

Dakara, "because" is a very short (literally a few pages) story about a young Asagi. Basically the present Asagi is explaining to Muratake where his hatred towards Shuri began. It turns out Shuri pushed Asagi, which made Asagi drop his treasured peach that Ginko gave him because he was sick. Shuri didn't do it on purpose, but he didn't really care that Asagi's peach got ruined in the process; he sort of shrugged it off. Ginko saw the peach on the ground and told Asagi that if he doesn't like peaches she won't give them to him anymore. This devastated Asagi because Ginko was all he had and she rarely showed him affection. (The hatred was further developed in other flashbacks in the main story of Basara, where Shuri is often complement by Ginko and Hiigari for his strength and skill, strength that Asagi lacked because of his physical frailness. This hatred was thus later fueled by this new inferiority complex, and Asagi often tries to best Shuri with Sarasa, with kingship, and with Ginko's support.) So this story didn't add anything new to Asagi's character, but rather pinpointed the beginning of his rocky relationship with Shuri and gave us a look at a more vulnerable and tender Asagi.

The final story, Katana, is actually a prequel to Basara, and deals with the four warriors that tried to unite Japan prior to Sarasa and her group, but failed. What is interesting about Katana is discovering each sword wielder's great grandparents, and the basic relationships between them. Little curiosities like why Raizo has blond hair, why Genbu's sword is wooden, and why there was a mechanism made that would cause the whole castle at Kyoto to fall apart are explained here as well.

The Tam-Tam Extra I mentioned before is basically a very loose take on the beginning of Basara in the world of show business. And when I say loose, I mean loose. There are a few similarities that will make you laugh, but everything else is totally different. For example, Hayato and Tatara are friends and not Sarasa and Hayato, and Tatara doesn't die, he is just sick. It's very funny, and Tamura-san knows what parts to reproduce to humorous effect.

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My Thoughts

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There is still nothing about Shuri and Sarasa, I guess Tamura-san wants to save the best for last. Yet even with the absence of Sarasa and Shuri, Basara 26 is still great. The prequel, although short and underdeveloped when compared to Sarasa's story was still nice and it explained a few curiosities that I always wondered about. Asagi's little story didn't add much to the mix, but only further explained his dislike for Shuri, and why Ginko's approval became so important to him. It also showed us that Asagi and Muratake are basically traveling through the lands now, although this was already showed at the end of Ginko's story in volume 25. Basically, Asagi's story doesn't give us any new information, but reinforces what was already said. This sounds a bit pointless, but since it takes up only a few pages, it was more of a quick look into his past and what he's up to once more.

Nachi and Hijiri's story on the other hand introduced a lot we did not know about the two of them. For example, we were never told before this story that the two of them didn't get along until a certain incident. We also learn that the two of them are basically settling into their roles of head priest and village leader. Nachi having fallen for a widow is thinking of settling down and Hijiri realizes he has to get on with his own life as well.

Tamura-san's extra was very funny and her thoughts on each of the side stories up till now (including the two from volume 25) were humorous. Her little panel about Ginko's story is exactly what popped into my head when I read that part of the story (must get my mind out of the gutter!) Her thoughts also show how she feels about certain elements in the story and certain characters. The most interesting aspect that she shared was that Nachi and Hujiri's story was modeled on her own experiences with a friend. I personally have never befriended someone who I openly hated and who openly hated me back, so I found it interesting that people have these types of experiences. (I have however befriended people I wasn't especially fond of, but who I did not harbor hostility towards, because I basically never talked to or got to know them.)

Overall, Basara 26 answers a few minor mysteries from the main story and gives closure to two characters, Nachi and Hijiri, yet there is a large cast and we are still left wondering about them. I wonder if Tamura-san can give each character enough closure in the last volume.

~Joanna

Gaming Update: Summer Gaming Coming to a Close

So summer vacation is now finished, but I still haven't made much of a dent on my backlog. If anything the monster grew. ^^;;; Anyways, here is what I'm currently playing:

1.Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney (NDS)
I was playing this before, but I put it down for months because I got distracted and I basically forgot what I was doing, so I decided to restart from the very beginning, case one. I have finally made it back to case three, which is where I was when I put the game down. Hopefully, I can finish this game now without any interruptions. Well at least I'm pretty determined to do so >:)

No new impressions, since I've barely started case three, and I've already played the other two before. But I just want to say that it's pretty amazing how much I still recall and how much I've forgotten. Also, what is up with Ace Attorney/ Gyakuten Saiben always having those innocent frail girls turn out to be conniving little b*tchs? hmmm? Well at least case three doesn't seem to have any fake innocent girls, not that I hate these types of villains, because I don't; I think the type is used well in the ace attorney games. It's just that after a few of them, I want a different type of villain to mix things up a bit. =)


2.Knights in the Nightmare (NDS)
I was really excited about playing this game when I heard Atlus was going to publish it in North America, but I was sad to learn that it would be released when I would be out of the country. Thankfully I managed to procure a copy even after it had been released for over a month; the only down side is that I didn't get the beautiful pre-order bonus art book. *sniff* =(

I'm really enjoying this game and it has exceeded my standards. I'm about half way through (I think), but I'm making really slow progress. ^^;;; I'm pretty busy even without school so I play it here and there, and I am currently on Scene 32. Plus, because the battles are so intense, I tend to grip the stylus too hard and it digs into my hand, so I can't play this one for long periods of time. ^^;;; (Yeah I'm pathetic)

Still I'm really happy with this game and I am enjoying it a lot. The combat is so unique, I don't think anyone has ever mixed a shooter with a SRPG, and even though it sounds impossible, it really works well. Sometimes the bullets (especially during boss battles) can be overwhelming, but the resume (or was it replay) button makes things a little easier. The story is pretty good as well, but a little disjointed because it's told in fragments. Art and music are very very beautiful. I think the only aspect of the game that is not done as well is the characters. This is mainly because only the story related characters actually get flushed out, even with the pause talks, the regular characters still don't feel as important or developed as Maria, Capehorn, or Yelma (the latter two are villains). Not that I mind because as long as gameplay is solid, I'm happy; story, art, music, and characters are nice bonuses (which I appreciate a lot as well). I can tell that Knights has had a lot of effort put into the game, since not only is the gameplay solid, but so is the art, story, music, and the characters. Everything is well done, and this game is another gem from Atlus. It's also my first Sting game, so I'll be looking out for more games from this developer from now on.

I just want to point out once more that he art is amazing. I currently have an image of maria as my wallpaper and I've saved a few more images to use in the future. The artist is really talented and I really regret missing out on the bonus art book. The music is also very pretty and each piece fits the mood; there is also a lot of variety, for which I am also thankful. The music on the title menu is very pretty and I could listen to it for hours on end. =3

SPOILER ALERT: The following deals with characters and the story and my thoughts on it so far!!!!

-I like the relationship between Maria and Melissa, I hope we get to see these two interact more (but I doubt we will because the last battle with Melissa made it seem that she was destroyed for good).
-I cannot believe Wilmgard has a lover, it really doesn't fit his character. =/ And it also felt out of place in a story about loss.
-I don't understand why all the characters refer to Nordich as the selfish prince. In the flashback, the prince was worried about his father and kingdom. It seemed like he didn't know what Capehorn was up to, although I will admit he did seem awfully fixated on his own kingship and authority. Still even so I don't think he is selfish, but I guess the other characters wouldn't know this since Capehorn was acting as the mouth piece of the prince.
-The underworld has made its move, yet Asgard, the realm of gods has not, I wonder why. Maybe it has something to do with Melissa?ok that's all for the spoilers and knights in the nightmare. It seems like this is going to be yet another long post. ^^;;

3. Children of Mana (NDS)
I picked it up again after a year, thankfully because there is practically no story, I was able to jump right back in. As a mana game, it disappoints, but it's good for some random pick up and play. I usually play it when I feel like picking something up for a bit; it's mindless hack 'n' slash, so it's good for killing a few minutes. I think I'm pretty close to the end, but with this kind of game, one can never really know.

Also I cannot help but feel that the art direction and music was wasted on this game. The art is so lovely and the music is nice, but the gameplay is generic. This art and music would have benefited from being used in a typical mana game (like sword or secret of mana). In such a generic and mindless hack 'n' slash game, the art and music, although nice, cannot save the game's shortcomings and they would have benefited a better game more. Regardless, I'm still mildly enjoying Children of Mana because it's easy to pick up and play and a good mindless time waster. This one will be coming with me to school a lot, so I'll probably finish it before 2010 rolls around. =)


4. Shinning Force (GEN)
I'm on the last chapter, but I've been playing it sparsely (as usual for me). I still have a bit of level grinding to do. But I finally managed to promote Adam and I got him at level 10 unpromoted two battles ago, which is insane this late in the game. Thankfully Tao learned boast not too long ago so I was able to use boast and get him to level 20 that way. I had to use boast because his attack stat was pathetic since he was unpromoted and without boast he was doing 1 point of damage. This is why I do not understand the logic behind giving the player such a low leveled unit this late in the game, unless it's to piss off, I mean challenge us completionists. I'm currently attempting to get all my characters to level 10 promoted because I want to max them all out and complete this game in one go. Getting them to level 10 now will make it more manageable to max them later (level 20 is the max). All my units are around levels 6-8 right now, so I still have a bit of grinding to do.


6. Super Mario Advance (GBA)
I'm suck on 5-3 T__________________________T
Near the end of the level you have to steal a flying carpet from an enemy and ride it to the other side, but the carpet disappears after some time and I keep dying because the carpet disappears before I make it to the other side. The one time I did make it to the boss, I died before I could finish him because I have one life left. sob sob. This game is somewhat on hold because I'm a little too frustrated to play it. Speaking of frustration....


7.Professor Layton and the Curious Village (NDS)
I am stuck on puzzle 135, the last of the professor's challenges. It's so frustrating because I finally discovered how to solve 134 (which was also giving me grief). That stupid red block, I can't get it out. sob sob. I keep repeating the same moves over and over again. I know I'm missing something, but I can't seem to figure it out. T___________T
This one is currently on hold because it gave me too much grief. :/

Back-to-School Tomorrow

It's back to school time, which means less time to actually game and read manga. It also means this blog will become less active. sorry. ^^;;; Since September isn't as busy, maybe I'll find some time to post here. I'm still attempting to finish three more posts: Basara 26th's impression, my gaming update, and the review on rocket slime. I've made some progress on the review, but I'm still far from done, the other two I haven't started, but since a little gaming update shouldn't take too long, I guess I'll tackle that next =D Look for that later today. (I hope...)

~Joanna