Alright, we’ve had a plethora of cute anime demon girls showing up recently and they aren’t exactly a new trend so today I’d like to count down the 5 demon girls I think are the cutest (keep in mind this is cute not sexy – that would be a very different list). However there are so many to choose from so I’ve pretty much narrowed it down to character design for my choices and as always I’d love to know who your favourite cute demon girls are.
Generally I do avoid putting new anime on top 5 lists, particularly as I have no idea how the characters will change or develop as the series goes. However, given I’m basing this list on character design I think most people would be hard pressed to tell me that Latina is not a cute demon girl. She’s actually just this side of a adorable and I think if I’d had a few more episodes she’d be much higher on the list.
Seriously, can I take her home too? – I don’t even like kids and I think she’s adorable.
While I’ve never been the biggest fan of Hell Girl, I can really take it or leave it, Ai Enma has always been a character I’ve liked the look of. She is seriously cute in a reserved and serious kind of way and honestly she just makes me want to hug her. Probably not such a great idea, but she’s still pretty adorable.
I may be stretching the definition of ‘girl’ on this one but there’s something inherently cute and girly about this demon lord. The way she playfully breaks down the hero’s preconceptions and recruits him to her side and even the way she negotiates with the merchants is just cute and delightful to watch. Besides, the horns on the head-band are what really gave her the place on the list. A demon concerned with keeping up appearances who knows how to accessorise totally deserved a spot on the cute anime demon girl list.
Another cool and quiet kind of cute, but adorable nonetheless. Here the cuteness comes in the gap between her calm and sometimes quite cold exterior and her inner freak outs as she starts having feelings for others but doesn’t know how to deal with them. I love the episode where she’s trying to figure out how to invite Miketsumaki to tea and is writing out each scenario before scrunching it up in frustration. Totally adorable.
Right, so when it comes to cute designs, they pulled out all the stops with Nezuko. Whether it is her big, expressive eyes, her two toned hair, the adorable way she just kind of goes to sleep or kicks her legs into the air while lying on the mat, she’s just all kinds of cute. Of course, she’s also all kinds of dangerous if you happen to be on the side that she considers to be an enemy so probably wise to remember that kittens are cute but they have some sharp claws.
Here we are at the end of my top 5 cute demon girl list. Now it is your turn to share.
One of my first top 5 lists was a list of my favourite romantic anime. While romance isn’t my favourite genre, it has always held a warm spot in my heart as romance done well can really move me emotionally and linger with me well after it is finished. So what are some of the common features of sweet and romantic anime? And what do you like in your romance?
Romance in anime – what do we usually see?
01. For the most part they are focused on the female in the relationship. While some shows (particularly a few in recent years) have portrayed romance from a male’s point of view (or at least a male character’s point of view) the majority of romance focused anime follow the girl.
This isn’t really surprising given the target audience for most romance anime are girls and as a general rule the romantic genre appeals more to a female audience. And while there are a lot of self-insert girls out there with limited personality besides a love of cooking and cleaning, because romance is such a prolific genre what we find are an array of female leads. From the super shy and fairly stereotypical right through to the oblivious and aggressive.
But that’s what makes romance so great is that if one doesn’t work for you there are plenty of other characters and romances to follow.
2018 turned out to be a bumper year for including a range of relationships and we saw monsters in love with humans, same sex couples, age gap couples and more or less any kind of relationship you’d like to see unfold. It was fantastic to see the diverse range on offer and hopefully we’ll see this trend continue to give us great couples of all shapes and sizes so that everyone can find something to love.
02. This one isn’t in every anime but it is a common feature. The love interest starts out being kind of a jerk and the girl doesn’t like him very much. Then something happens and suddenly she sees him in a new light.
This is actually pretty standard in all romances really (and a staple of romantic comedies) and it probably exists because otherwise you have to introduce external tension and conflict early on before the characters have really been established. By creating tension between the two you can focus more or less entirely on the characters without boring the audience to death with their adoring stares.
Of course, if we look at BL we’ll see a whole lot of incredibly horrible characters that end up being the love interest and while some work hard to try and redeem the character, it is still a trope I’d like to see vanish. At the same time, BL has come a long way and there’s a lot more variety these days.
03. The epiphany moment. Despite being in a romance, the characters tend to be unusually dense about their emotions and the state of their relationship. Either one or both of the characters needs to realise they are actually in love or that the other one actually likes them or something. Usually this is accompanied by sparkles, tears, or sometimes a punch because why not.
However it is the reveal moment for the character that the audience have been waiting for forever because the character is usually the last to realise it. But hey, at least most of us don’t believe we have arrhythmia because our heart starts beating fast at the sight of the guy (Inu X Boku SS).
04. There’s almost always a rival. Again, this is one of those necessary staples in order to inject some sort of tension or conflict into a story that is basically two people staring into each other’s eyes ad nausea and rivals can add quite a bit of personality to the story.
Probably my favourite rival ever is Kurumi from Kimi ni Todoke. That’s mostly because she pretty much demonstrates every characteristic a rival might have rather than just being one type. It’s kind of interesting to watch her character transition.
While I don’t like her manipulative efforts early on (and we aren’t supposed to) you have to admit, Kurumi is a hard worker and ultimately she wasn’t really a nasty person so much as someone who was very driven by her goals. What makes her truly exceptional is that when she finally does confess and get turned down, she accepts this with reasonable grace and uses it as a chance to grow a bit as a person. A little bit. She still stirs the pot occasionally but mostly she moves on.
05. In anime romance tends to only get to the confession and dating stage, again there are exceptions. The vast majority finish the final episode on the confession, the first date, or a kiss and that is as much as we are getting of that story. Then again, given how red most of the characters get just trying to say the name of the person they are in love with I guess we can’t expect much more from them and it really isn’t needed given its the emotion of the relationship that has been conveyed.
There’s probably a cultural reason for this trend and it isn’t as if the romance is any worse for the lack of physical displays of affection, however it is interesting watching teenage characters get flustered over eye contact or brushing their finger tips.
Well, that does it from me today. What are your favourite parts of romantic anime or what is your favourite romantic anime?
Back again with another character; this time Ririchiyo Shirakiin from Inu X Boku SS. At some point I’m going to have to come back and look at some of the supporting cast from the story and certainly Miketsukami will need his own post but for today, I’m just looking at Ririchiyo as she is presented in the anime.
Remember if you have a character you wold like to see a post on, simply fill in the quick survey here and provided I know enough about the character I’ll take a crack at writing about them. Thanks to everyone who has suggested a character and I’m sorry to those who I can’t respond to as I just don’t know enough about the suggested characters.
All About Ririchiyo
We meet Ririchiyo as she is moving into Ayakashi Kan, determined to live on her own until she learned how to live with others… a contradiction in and of itself but one she was unable to see until it was explicitly pointed out to her. Ririchiyo has quite the sharp tongue and seems to intentionally drive others away however she later feels quite remorseful because of her actions. I was interested in her character after watching Inu x Boku SS and did a bit of looking around and apparently she falls into the tsunshun character type rather than tsundere largely because of her depression felt after the fact.
What makes Ririchiyo particularly interesting is that we meet her after she’s already made the decision that she needs to change. The story is one about her working toward achieving the change she’s already recognised is needed in her life. As such we see the character half-way along their journey and travel with her for a time before the anime ends and while she makes some interesting growth throughout her journey is far from over when the final episode comes to a close. Still, I am glad for the time we have with this character because while certain elements of her personality feel a little over done, she’s pretty entertaining to watch melt down internally as she second guesses something she’s just done.
I guess I should probably mention she’s also a descendent of a clan that is possessed by a yokai and can turn into her yokai form, a very pretty demon girl. She doesn’t use it all that often throughout the anime though but it is another reason for her personality as it is part of the reason for her isolated childhood.
Is Ririchyo a ‘poor little rich girl’?
Where Ririchiyo is a bit problematic is that in the flashbacks of her childhood, very little of it seems all that horrible. Admittedly, she is most definitely isolated and her parents do an outstanding job of making her feel cut off and emotionally detached, yet in comparison with so many other anime characters and tragic back-stories, Ririchiyo’s seems very ordinary. Particularly compared with other characters within this anime. Her warped and twisted personality may very well have nothing to do with social isolation and everything to do with her innate person and she uses her childhood as an excuse for all the barbs and prickles.
Certainly she suffers some bullying at school and comes to the realisation that even teachers treat her in certain ways because of her family connections. These things aren’t ‘nothing’ and would have an impact on her development. As would her parents rarely seeing her and blaming her for her younger sister feeling inferior. Yet the fact remains that Ririchiyo had people around her looking out for her and was well cared for even if she was not as emotionally supported as she might have been.
It might have been nice to see Ririchiyo come to the realisation that her childhood, while not brilliant or overly enviable, wasn’t the driving factor behind all of her choices or her personality.
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Ririchiyo’s emotional battle to connect with others
Regardless of the cause of her personality, Ririchiyo has made the clear decision that it is time to overcome it. She moved to be on her own in order to learn how to deal with others. This is a battle for her as it forces her to move outside of her comfort zone and to self-correct well established patterns of behaviour.
However, she isn’t always successful and we regularly see her cringing at herself or angry that she responded in a particular way. We also see her rehearsing interactions before they occur as she tries to get to an outcome that she desires. Her hard work is commendable even if it seems like for every step forward there’s a step back and she seems to teeter back and forth on the spot.
What is the affect of Ririchiyo’s choices?
Ririchiyo continues to have quite the impact on the characters around her though the one we see most clearly is her impact on Miketsukami who meets her and tells her that she is the one who saved him. Ririchiyo has no memory of doing anything to save him and dismisses him, repeatedly, but ultimately gives him permission to be her secret service agent while she’s living in the apartment. This choice has a major impact on both characters as these two incredibly socially awkward people, who are trying to connect with the other in their own way and are actually kind (at least to one another), bump heads and try to work their way through basic interactions. Whether it is texting, inviting the other to drink some tea, or even a school drop off, these two have to figure everything out step by step.
There may not ever come a time when Ririchiyo isn’t a little too sharp tongued from time to time or feel anxious or socially awkward however her choice to change is what set the story in motion and it is what makes her an admirable character. She’s recognised a short coming and one that will impact upon her life if not addressed and she’s trying, in small ways, to learn how to live with others.
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While Ririchiyo might be exaggerated I related with her
As someone who is also incredibly socially awkward I kind of connected with Ririchiyo when watching this anime. I couldn’t relate to her childhood or the cause of her sharp tongue, but the feeling of needing to rehearse a conversation, of having to work up to going to talk to someone and then either getting tongue tied or tripping over my words, and of just waiting so long to formulate the response that the conversation had already moved on and so it was no longer even relevant was something I could very much recognise in my day to day life.
I also recognised the desire to get better at social interactions. Amazingly enough, it is very hard to live in the world when you can’t speak to others because your tongue just glued itself to the roof of your mouth and you broke out in a cold sweat just because someone spoke to you. That said, even in my 30’s, I still have to give myself a mental pep-talk before speaking to someone I’ve never had a conversation with before.
While there are elements of Ririchiyo’s character that definitely carry a cringe factor and times when her behaviour seems really quite illogical, I found a real connection with her and it made me reflect on my own life and how far I’ve come through a desire to change. It does mean my experience with this character was a very personal one and I get other people see her a little differently.
Having watched anime for a lot of years now its become fairly clear I love yokai in anime. Whenever a new story begins and I find out its featuring yokai of more or less any sort I eagerly jump right in. While at times this leaves me feeling a little frustrated or disappointed when an anime fails to pan out (Elegant Yokai Apartment Life) for the most part I end up finding another cast of characters to love and adore and to fill my desktop background with for a time. So what is it that appeals to me about yokai anime?
And no, it isn’t just the very attractive looking fox boys oozing sex appeal that these sorts of stories pull out again and again. Whether it is Kamisama Kiss, Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi, Inu x Boku or any of the other pointy eared males who’ve made me screen cap like crazy, they aren’t the entire appeal of these shows. After all, Natsume Yuujinchou remains my favourite yokai themed anime and there isn’t a single hot fox boy to drool over in sight. Though, there is the single cutest little fox character but that’s a whole different appeal.
Little Fox
After thinking about this for awhile I’ve come to the conclusion that yokai stories remind me very much of my childhood and fairy tales. Where sometimes characters travel to other worlds where fantastic things happen (such as the Underworld in the Morose Mononokean) or strange things are occur in the mundane world but only some people can see them (Natsume Yuujinchou). These stories can be sweet or a little bit scary but ultimately they bring about a sense of childlike wonder and recapturing that feeling is amazing. It is no surprise that so many of these anime leave me with a warm and fuzzy feeling.
Okay, I didn’t just make that joke.
It also helps that each one of these stories takes their own approach to exploring yokai characters and worlds. Where some are more human and concerned with more ordinary matters such as attending school (Inu X Boku) others, despite being set in the human world are more action focused and have fantastical powers and battles (Nurarihyon). Some are coming of age stories about finding yourself (Natsume Yuujinchou) or are just about the daily lives of supernatural creatures trying to amuse themselves (The Eccentric Family). They all have their own feel and tone which means despite saying I like yokai anime, each one is very distinct.
However, one commonality that I’ve noticed from time to time (and it isn’t across all yokai stories) is that the yokai are typically depicted as more beautiful or colourful and striking than humans in the stories they are a part of. There features are regularly striking and a little bit disconcerting. At a glance you can tell that the character is something different or other.
While some stories delve into the darker side of yokai and the character designs reflect that, even then the characters are quite clearly distinguished from the human characters through the use of colour and movement.
Guess which one the yokai is?
It is that aspect of The Morose Mononkean that I have come to really love. While the human world is fairly ordinary outside of the occasional yokai Hanae and Abeno encounter, the Underworld is a rich and vibrant setting teeming with life and colour. While many of the yokai they encounter are not human-like in appearance, each one manages to be expressive. Given one of my favourite parts of the anime is the appearance of Fuzzy, a character who does not speak at all, they have managed to convey so much of what Fuzzy is feeling or thinking through his appearance and actions and honestly I just love him.
However, the contrast is clear when looking at scenes in the human world compared to the Underworld in The Morose Mononkean. In the human world the colours, outside of the yokai and the two main characters, are all fairly muted. The sky is blue and the grass is green, but they are pastel and pale versions of the colours. Seeing the characters under the sky in the Underworld and looking at the buildings, the colour palette is far bolder and more striking creating a rich contrast between our reality and the world the yokai inhabit.
Natsume Yuujinchou takes a similar approach in that Natsume’s mundane human life and friends are fairly colourless. The school uniform is perhaps one of the least striking anime uniforms ever and the buildings are all very simple and for the most part unadorned. It is only really when Natsume is out in nature or with the yokai that scenes spring into a far wider array of colours, sounds and movement.
From a darker perspective, Nurarihyon did a similar thing with Rikuo’s character design. In his human form he was quite ordinary and dull in his design but as a yokai he was a fairly impressive sight to behold. Even Rikuo’s school with his human friends was very grey in tone whereas his house, full of yokai, always seemed to have a sense of energy and was surrounded by colourful characters and the garden.
Again, guess which one the yokai form is?
While I don’t really know why yokai in so many stories are depicted in this brighter and larger than life style, but I imagine it is similar to why fairies in western stories are usually in some kind bright and sparkling colour flittering about scattering glitter and the likes. If you are going to imagine a world beyond what we can see, surely you’d want it to all feel more alive. Or maybe I’m still just that little kid playing in the garden and checking under the leaves for fairy houses.
You have to admit though, hot fox boys are kind of hot.
Watching yokai anime awakens that child in me and opens my imagination up. For a short while the practical realist in me gets laid aside and I get swept up in stories about ‘what if’. While a story doesn’t necessarily need a supernatural creature in it to have that affect, there’s definitely something nostalgic and wonderful about returning to these kinds of stories. Hopefully there will continue to be more of these to enjoy, hopefully they will each bring their own flavour to the table, and hopefully they will continue to rekindle the child in me.
Do you like yokai anime? Which ones have you seen and enjoyed?
Bloom Into You is full of characters who tell themselves lies – but are these lies we tell ourselves?
Watching Bloom Into You, despite finding Yuu’s struggle to reconcile her rational mind and her feelings fascinating and beautifully nuanced in the way it is presented, really makes me frustrated. I’m watching a character who is clearly genuinely in love with another, who has opportunity after opportunity to act on her emotions with few genuine obstacles, and yet time and time again, she creates a barrier between herself and the object of her affection.
It almost makes me wonder how they’ll play it at the end. If the end up together, Nanami probably deserved better than being strung along by Yuu for so long before Yuu finally accepted what was true from nearly the beginning. If they don’t end up together, than Nanami will be Yuu’s one-who-got-away and she’ll have nobody to blame but herself and her own self-deception and indecision. Either way, while it might seem sweet and it certainly keeps the story moving, the reality is that if this romance were not a fictional construct, this would be a really bad place for the characters to be in.
While it might seem fine to see it as only a work of fiction and to dismiss these characters as exaggerated for affect, these characters, like many others in anime, really do seem to echo their creators and when it comes to love, you have to admit, people do some pretty silly things.
So Yuu represents the first big lie that people tell themselves. It isn’t love. Yuu is hardly the first anime character to convince herself that what she is feeling isn’t love. She joins a long list of anime characters who insist that they just like the other person, or worse, that they are just playing around. For Yuu, she’s convinced herself that she admires Nanami for all of her outstanding qualities, but that is normal. It isn’t love.
We see a more extreme case of this in Ririchiyo Shirakin who not only doesn’t really she is feeling love (or at least strong like) but manages to self diagnose herself with potential arrhythmia. Now, I’ll admit that most people are at least aware enough of their own emotions to understand that they aren’t genuinely feeling ill when they get that tightness in their chest or their heart goes doki-doki, but Ririchiyo is a fairly special case in terms of being unaware of how to deal with emotions.
And when we ask why do characters do this and make statements about how dumb it is and why can’t they just be honest… You start to think why don’t people in real life. Why aren’t people honest about how they feel?
Which actually brings us to the second great lie that people tell themselves. I’m fine the way things are. This one is illustrated through Sayaka in Bloom Into You. As Nanami’s friend she wants more but for various reasons has decided that she’s fine with things the way they are. She isn’t honest at all about what she wants from Nanami but still feels jealous when she sees how close Nanami is getting to Yuu.
So why wasn’t Sayaka just honest about how she felt?
Because, like most sensible people, she was afraid of losing what she had. It wasn’t so much that she was fine with things, but more the loss of what she had was more than she was willing to gamble. If she’d thought she’d had a sure chance, she might have made a move, but there’s no certainty in love. And with Sayaka’s background, can you blame her? Dumped by her former senpai who then made her feel twisted and wrong about her sexual preferences, Sayaka isn’t exactly wanting to dive head first into another relationship. She’s got plenty of reason to doubt and more than enough reason to try to hold onto what she has.
But, Sayaka isn’t alone in this. In fact, she shares this trait not only with many anime characters and people, but she also shares this trait with another Sayaka. Sayaka Miki from Madoka Magica who uses her one wish to save the one she loves and allow him to play his violin again but in all the time he was hospitalised, despite visiting him, talking with him, being with him, Sayaka never once confesses how she feels. And then her friend announces that she’s going to confess and Sayaka is left in an absolute state of turmoil which more or less leads to her downfall.
So could Sayaka Miki have confessed? Was she fine the way things were? It is kind of too late to know but these characters represent the very real fear people feel about being open and honest with their feelings and the very real potential downside of holding off too long.
Finally, Nanami gives us the third type of lie people tell themselves in the face of love. Even if you don’t love me back, I’m fine just loving you. One sided, unrequited love makes for excellent story fodder but the reality of it is pretty crushing over time. No matter how generous a person is, pouring love and affection toward another and receiving nothing back is exhausting and for most not something that can be sustained (most, not all). Nanami tells Yuu it is fine if she doesn’t fall in love. Later she tells Yuu not to fall in love with her. Yet despite that, Nanami keeps pushing the relationship forward wanting more and more from Yuu.
No matter what Nanami says her actions speak louder than her words. Her request of Yuu at the sports carnival, that Yuu initiate a kiss, speaks volumes. Nanami wants Yuu to reciprocate. She doesn’t want to be holding up a one sided affection. While she rationalises and says that she’s fine just being in love, ultimately what she wants is more than that.
Looking at another anime character, Linda from Golden Time tries very hard to wish Banri the best. She loved him but because of his accident he forgot her and she left to let him move on with his life. Reunited, she tells herself that she honestly wants Banri to have the life he chooses but deep inside it is killing her to see the boy she loved not know who she is and with Koko. Admittedly, the amnesia aspect of that makes it somewhat less relatable to the average viewer, but it is still an interesting love story.
Bloom Into You is a beautiful anime. The direction, the music, the characters are all beautifully put together. But where it gets a lift beyond just being another pretty anime about high school love is in its exploration of people in love and the lies they tell themselves. This is what makes this story and the characters compelling and brings us back week after week. That and it is just really pretty.
Well, if you made it to the end of this ramble, I’d love to know your thoughts on love in Bloom Into You or in anime in general.
I’m no stranger to rewatching shows. Even when I was a little kid, I would play VHS’s literally to death. I’d watch my favourite shows and movies time after time, getting to the end of the video and instantly hitting rewind and beginning all over again. Once DVD’s became a thing there were many titles banned from being played in the house usually when I could identify the film from the five seconds of sound. I will admit I’ve watched some films to death to the point where even I won’t watch them anymore and I’ve done the same with more than a handful of books where I start reading them and realise I can literally recall the entire story in vivid detail to the point where I’m not even paying attention to the words anymore.
This is in stark contrast to some other people I know. A certain relative of mine used to be a great source of novels, mostly because he would read science fiction but he only ever read a book once. Then he would give the book away and knowing I loved to read I received quite a number of these books to add to my own collection. When I asked him if he would want the book back he asked me, “Whatever for?” He genuinely could not understand the point of reading something a second time, let alone a third, tenth or fiftieth time. Whereas for me, the point of trying something new is to see whether it belongs in the permanent collection or not and my greatest lament is that I don’t have enough time to bask in the books, movies and anime that comprise my ongoing collection and explore new media, and actually live a life that involves real human interactions and work.
That said, if you were to ask me what I get from a rewatch or reread my answer would vary depending on what I had recently returned to. It seems to come down to a few basic things.
01. The Rewatch To Understand
In the case of something like the original Steins;Gate, Darker than Black, or Evangelion, the rewatch is usually needed to try to get the plot clear in my mind. While I didn’t not get it the first time (way too many negatives there), it is more that a lot of the enjoyment isn’t there the first time because you are spending so much time reasoning and puzzling rather than actually absorbing. It also means you miss substantial amounts of character work, visuals, music, etc because the plot is all encompassing. Repeated rewatches, taking a break and coming back to it, watching in chunks or binge watching, all bring something new out of the experience. Even after the plot is clear, there’s so many other questions and aspects that you can turn your attention to that it never feels like the anime has gotten old.
02. The Rewatch To Relax
There’s a great feeling that comes from crashing into the couch cushions and hitting play on a DVD that I’ve seen a thousand times before. One that I know won’t tax my brain, isn’t going to ask more of me than I can give, and at the time has the exact tone I am looking for. You can’t get this from a series you’ve never seen as you never know what to fully expect and part of your brain stays on alert. Whereas, I know exactly what I’m in for when I press play on Snow White with the Red Hair, Ouran High School Host Club, or even Inu x Boku SS which are all some of my favourite binge and sleep anime that I put on when I just want to crash out.
03. The Rewatch To Share
Of course when you come across a great title you want to share. you want someone else to watch it with and to laugh and cry and discuss each moment with it. One of the best things that happened the first time I watched Yuri on Ice was that just after it finished airing I visited a friend and told her she needed to see it. Two days later we’d finished a binge watch of the series and the two of us were happily humming History Maker in her kitchen together. There’s something about watching a show with someone else that really elevates the enjoyment of it, plus you have someone to talk about it with once it is done so this is perhaps the most satisfying of all rewatches.
And then we have the new one.
04. The Rewatch to Analyse
I’ve never really done this before, but recently I started yet another Yuri on Ice rewatch with the express purpose of reviewing each episode in far more detail than I had before. It’s a new style of watching I’ve never tried and I’m loving it. Admittedly, a lot of the enjoyment is coming from the subject matter, but it is making me want to give other much loved shows a similar treatment. What I have noticed is that it is taking a very long time to get through a single episode and it isn’t a single watch of the episode I am doing. The other thing that makes this different from any other rewatch is I am only watching a single episode at a time. This viewing is not being binged. I’ll get back to my Yuri On Ice rewatch later this year once things settle a bit for me.
While I do get that some people are happy enough to watch something once and move on, I am as well for shows that are enjoyable enough but don’t grab me. However, the whole point for me is finding those shows and stories that I will never get tired of and want to watch and read again and again.
How many times have you been really into a narrative only to find it rudely interrupted by a poorly timed or unhelpful flashback?
I’ll admit, flashbacks can be really well used but frequently anime use them as a short cut to character development and unfortunately they usually dump them in at the worst possible moment. Here are 3 reasons why flashbacks aren’t always the best narrative device.
This post is sponsored by Crow’s World of Anime.
The first episode of Sabikui Bisco caught me by surprise and honestly I really didn’t have any idea what kind of an anime I was actually about to watch. However, giant crab and magic mushrooms aside, this one has pretty much ticked all the check boxes for a standard adventure narrative. It has just done it in a very cool way.
Be sure to read the full post.
Is relatability a necessity for enjoyment?
I’m kind of on the fence because while I am drawn to characters I can relate to I frequently enjoy stories where I don’t necessarily relate to any of the characters.
What about you?
Cute and quirky anime characters are definitely an appeal and for some people it will be enough to make them watch an anime? But is being cute all they need to be and does kawaii appeal to everyone?
Ya Boy Jack over on the Aniwriter nominated me for this quite awhile ago and I’ve been meaning to respond but just never quite got there. In case you wanted to see my original harem, check out the post here.
Like last time I’m slightly modifying the tag. Instead of different types, I’ve decided this time to go with an all yokai harem just because.
The Rules:
1. Link back to the original post on Anime Q and A so they can check out everyone’s picks!
2. Use the ‘Build A Harem’ logo somewhere in the post.
3. Make sure to mention the person who nominated you too!
4. Pick 5 Anime Characters (any show & any gender) that would be in your ideal harem if you were the main character of a harem anime, explain a little bit as to why they are your picks (if you want).
5. Make sure each character you pick falls into some of the following harem character types: Childhood friend, tom boy/girl, genki girl/boy, loli/shota, trap, tsundere, yandere, kuudere, dandere, etc. (If there’s a character you’ve picked that doesn’t specifically fall into one of these types or falls into multiple types that’s fine too!)
You have to admit, for a tengu, he has style. Also arrogance and a tendency to look down on others. As well as a slightly explosive temper when pushed too far. Still, Nidaime was a large part of the reason I really loved season 2 of The Eccentric Family as his was a character I just had so much fum watching. Now, as to him being in my harem I’m pretty sure I know what he would say to such a suggestion.
02. Byakuya (Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi)
I know Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi isn’t finished and it is also decidedly average as an anime, but I really like Byakuya as a character. The one who keeps the accounts in order he comes across as harsh, but it is hard not to love a guy who feeds the adorable fox spirits. Not to mention, he’s far more level headed and focused than a lot of the cast so he brings an element of sense to things even if his words are harsh. Wish he was on screen more often. I’m thinking Byakuya can keep the rest of the harem in check for me.
For a yokai who usually seems pretty laid back and aloof, Kubinashi has a pretty dark past and is prone to rage and losing himself. That said, when he flips the switch he becomes pretty unstoppable. However even his normal self remains relatively detached. Though he is part of the Nura clan and one of several yokai who regular guard Rikuo, Kubinashi only really has ties with a handful of the clan members and barely tolerates the others. As such, I see Kubinashi being the guy in the harem who just drops by every now and then when I was alone and otherwise wouldn’t be seen. The few times he interacts with the other members of the harem would usually be tense, and I’m betting no one else likes him at all.
Every harem needs a stalker like character in it. Miketsukami is the mostly harmless kind (mostly) who will simply collect a million pictures of you as well as save and preserve any text or note you send his way. Also, his child form is totally adorable. That said, his over protective nature would probably drive me crazy fairly soon, but he makes a great cup of tea and given he’s incredibly socially awkward I think we’d get along. Then again, I can also see him getting into some conflict with anyone else who was a part of the harem.
Okay, I might have a thing for foxes (or at least good looking guys with ears), but Tomoe was someone I kind of developed a crush on from the minute I met him. Hot tempered, he hates humans, and he’s stubborn, but he does his work with care and pride and he’s really powerful. That and, those he does consider worth his time he’s incredibly considerate of. Besides, I always felt bad for Tomoe being abandoned at the shrine for so long by himself, so it kind of makes sense he doesn’t exactly welcome Nanami with open arms. I do think throwing Tomoe into my harem though is going to be a fairly explosive addition and I’m just waiting to see what happens when Tomoe and Miketsukami go toe to toe with who can be more stubborn about anything.
Nominations:
I am pretty sure everyone has done this tag already but here we go:
Anime uniforms always looks so super cute and always leave me wondering why were none of my school uniforms ever that adorable.
I’m thinking most of you have never had the misfortune of going to a school in Queensland and wearing what are arguably some of the worst school uniforms in existence. Mostly because most schools go for cheap and affordable with easy substitutions and rather than actually looking in any way respectable, most uniforms end up looking like everyone just decided to throw the same black or maroon shorts on and a polo shirt and off they went (yes there are some schools, particularly private ones, that do in fact have decent uniforms, but they are not the majority).
Which probably explains why I became fascinated by anime uniforms because they always look totally adorable and like something I would have loved to wear day in day out (maybe if I’d actually been asked to I’d feel differently). Not to mention, if the anime standard skirt length is in any way reflective of reality we’d have an issue.
So the end of this long preamble is that here is my list of top 5 anime uniforms that I would personally have wanted to wear. With that said, I’d love to know which uniforms have caught your eye in anime.
Seriously, look at how cute those uniforms are. Firstly there’s the colour scheme with the fairly dark and plain colour with white accents and gold buttons and emblem. It is fantastic. Not too flashy, but quite flattering to most people. I also love the blue cross pattern on the collar giving it just that little bit extra and the red ties/bows just finish off the look. I know you can’t see it in the image, but Asuna pairs hers with white stockings and black shoes and to be honest looks fabulous. I would have loved this kind of uniform at school.
Once again I like the reasonably plain grey colour with the green trims and gold buttons. It has the look of a uniform without being too plain and the colour is reasonably suitable for most people. The red tie again makes a nice contrast and I like that Uraraka gets to wear a tie as well and not a bow or ribbon as many female uniforms do. My Hero Academia looks pretty classy with this uniform, but we tend to spend more time watching the kids in their sports uniforms rather than this one.
Okay, if I’m practical and brutally honest, I probably wouldn’t wear this uniform given the short skirt length for the girls, but still, look at how adorable that is. The yellow and green contrast really nicely, the belt gives it some great shaping, and all and all it just looks really adorable. The male uniform is definitely the nicer of the two, though that’s probably just my preference for both the colour and the fact that they are wearing long pants.
Super, super, super cute. While I didn’t love Vampire Knight as a show (certainly enjoyed it and enjoy making fun of it), the uniforms at Cross Academy are to die for (or at least the day class is). The super cute black blazer with white accents, the red bow, the knee socks, everything about this uniform is adorable and there are so many little details to it. A friend of mine cosplayed as Yuki at one point and ordered a costume and the sheer amount of detail on that uniform is just crazy. Absolutely love it and would love it to be a real uniform.
While I know for an absolute fact I could never wear this uniform, both because of the short skirt and because I just lack the shape to really pull it off, I totally fell in love with this look when watching the anime. I really relate to Ririchiyo’s character and this uniform is kind of superb. It’s like if there was a fantasy version of me going to a fantasy school, this would be the uniform I’d want that version of me to get to wear. The colour scheme, those shoes, the style, it is absolutely divine and I love it.
Okay, now that I’ve admitted I have no actual taste, what anime uniforms out there have you fallen in love with?
It’s been awhile since I’ve done a colour list and I actually struggled a bit with 5 males I liked with pink hair. The female list which will come out next week was definitely easier to come up with. That said, there are some interesting characters on the list below and as always I’d love to know who your picks would be for male anime characters with pink hair. I kind of went for characters that are important to their story and really rock the pink hair colour.
Okay, right from the start I am cheating here because Hikaru does not normally have pink hair. Yet, for one episode of Ouran High School Host Club, after a fight between the twins seemingly triggered by an innocuous comment by Haruhi, the twins dye their hair blue and pink. I have to admit, I kind of liked the look and kind of wished they’d kept it going for the rest of the season.
There’s something super-cute and simultaneously super-creepy about Zange. He see’s far too much and isn’t above manipulating others for his own entertainment. That said, he certainly marches to the beat of his own drummer and provides some of the best scenes in Inu x Boku SS so despite his more questionable tendencies he became one of my favourite characters.
Number 3: Hisoka (Hunter x Hunter)
I still haven’t decided if I like Hisoka as a character or not. He’s incredibly creepy but he adds a lot to the story and he has some great moments. Plus, you have to admit he’s got a style all of his own and I really couldn’t imagine him with any other hair colour other than pink. He’s certainly earned himself a spot on this list even if I feel like running the other direction.
Alice Color only shows up in the final arc of Sunday Without God (though is in the OP from the beginning) and while he’s a fairly stoic character he is also very cool. Driven and determined to free his town from its endless loop, even when he believes that he’s going to die to do it, his story is one of the best in Sunday Without God.
Number 1: Natsu (Fairy Tail)
Okay, if it was a question of my favourite character in Fairy Tail, Natsu wouldn’t get much of a look in. Despite some pretty cool dragon themed powers and a fiery personality, I don’t really enjoy Natsu’s antics in much of the early parts of the story (definitely prefer Gray). That said, when looking at distinct pink haired anime guys, Natsu immediately jumped to mind. While I think a lot of the other characters are more interesting, Natsu is definitely a bundle of energy, his interactions with Lucy are adorable, and when he gets going in a fight you know its going to be big. Plus, he has a talking flying cat for a friend so you really can’t beat that.
That’s my list this week, be sure to check back next week when I list my top 5 anime females with pink hair.
Continuing on from last week where I looked at my top 5 favourite female yokai, this week we have my top 5 male yokai. I must admit, my first draft had a lot fox yokai on the list and even the revised version hasn’t really fixed that issue. Apparently I like foxes. Anyway, as always, I’d love to know who you would include on your list so please leave a comment below.
Please Note: There may be some spoilers below.
Honourable mention this week goes to Kappa from Nurarihyon.
Okay, I nearly chose Fuzzy from this list but ultimately had to go with Yahiko. Seriously, this fox is so cute and his desire to play hide and seek is adorable (okay, potentially deadly but still pretty cute). Admittedly, the fact that Yahiko was introduced as a potential big bad and then quickly degenerated into the little brother type character that just wants all the attention is probably the reason Yahiko isn’t further up the list.
Yeah, I know technically they want to say Kuro is a demon but I’m still including him as a yokai. There really isn’t much to explain with this choice. Kuro is my favourite character from Blue Exorcist. Fiercely loyal and yet definitely a cat, Kuro manages to steal pretty much every scene he is in.
Our fast talking, trouble seeking tanuki, Yasaburo had to be on the list. He’s just such a great character even before you consider the fact that he is a shape changing tanuki. As the third of four brothers he is pretty content to drift through life looking for things to make his days ‘interesting’. Despite that, he’s pretty loyal to his family when it matters and most of the time he cleans up the mess he makes (mostly). I absolutely adore spending time with Yasaburo.
Now, how could I overlook Tomoe, the fox who serves as a land god’s familiar. He is rude, occasionally foul mouthed, and extremely short tempered, but also incredibly loyal and ultimately a fairly lonely character seeking acceptance. Not to mention incredibly powerful and needs to be given how often his human-turned-god master Nanami gets herself into trouble.
So what beats a fox familiar, well a 9 Tailed Fox secret service member who uses a sword apparently. Told you there were a lot of foxes on this list. Seriously, the guy is adorable both in his normal suit and when he transforms into a yokai. If it wasn’t for his creepy stalkerish tendencies (I guess he calls that loyalty) he’s be nearly perfect. About the only thing he lacks is the ability to actually have a normal human interaction and eventually he might learn to get around that.
There is my list of my favourite male yokai characters. I’d love to know who you would have included.
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