Diary of Usagi Drop Lived – Kindness is Real

This is all part of growing up, I guess.

Let’s leave aside how the setup of Rin and then Kouki’s mom getting sick in the last two episodes of Usagi Drop was an excellent showcase of how good a couple Daikichi and Kouki’s mom make. True as that may be, it has nothing to do with why they helped one-another. They did so because they’re both good-natured, kind people who know how to take care of others, and who seize opportunities to help.

 

I was childish for seeing myself this way, but I haven’t thought of myself as a nice person. I’ve always had a bitter, calculating attitude about what I say to others when they’re in trouble. I’ve been withholding my sympathy or simply denying it to myself.

Diary of an Anime Finished – Gatekeepers 21 and the Boogie-pop Worldview

In spite of being short(er), this post is all over the place, so I ask that you please bear with me. This post is part of the Diary of an Anime Lived and my Finish or Fail series.

I’ll take you back to a time when Gonzo was a well-respected studio whose shows all got licensed by virtue of simply being made by them—the mythical year 2002. That’s when Gatekeepers 21 came out, although it was about a year and a half later that the show became one of the oldest fixtures of my on-hold list. I’d caught the tail end of the OVA on TechTV’s anime slot back when that existed and liked what I saw enough that I’d always intended to buy it on DVD. Of course, there were a *lot* of things back then that I’d intended to buy on DVD.

Gatekeepers is an interesting franchise, being one of those from the late 90s/early 2000s that few people seem to remember or care about even though it must’ve done pretty well at the time. In what looks like an attempt to launch a franchise all at once (going by the data I have), it was released as a Playstation RPG, a short manga, and a 26-episode anime by GONZO all at nearly the same time. A couple of years later there was a sequel OVA and novel that I can’t help but feel weren’t the result of the franchise being a success, but of people that worked on it wanting to do more with it.

Pocket-Diary of an Anime Lived – My Tastes Can’t Possibly Be This Harmful

Pocket-diary, because this post is gonna be short. Part of the Diary of an Anime Lived series.

Otaku pride, mothafucka!

Being a show about otaku, it’s no surprise that Ore no Imouto is full of relatable moments to any fan. My favorite is the argument in episode 2 between Kirino and Kuroneko over whose favorite anime is better—been there plenty of times. My arguments have usually lead to burnt bridges and unfriendliness, but I also know how people that don’t agree on things can be friends (plenty of people I talk to on Twitter are willing to debate anime in a more friendly manner.) —That’s not what this post is about, though.

The moment from Oreimo that I related to most was when Kirino’s father told her to get rid of her hobby in episode 3 and she ran away, later telling Kyousuke that she’d never change.

End of Utena: Apocalypse of Adolescence – Diary of an Anime Lived

NOTE: This post contains MAJOR SPOILERS for the Revolutionary Girl Utena movie. It is also slightly NSFW. A post in the Diary of an Anime Lived series.

End of Utena resonated with me in many ways. It’s message, it’s art, the lives of it’s characters – it did what made the series great and kept it more concentrated, poignant, and blatant, which I appreciated. It is a masterpiece, pure and simple, and I was glad that I could find a way to pay tribute to it’s art and message without sacrificing either. End of Utena will go down as one of my favorite anime, because it fills me with such a feeling that I cannot deny it’s impact. I hope that those feelings come through in this video.

I also wanted to make a special note of it’s ending. Was that the most awesome ending of an anime or what!? Hot, naked lesbians making out while laying on the back of a raging motorcycle? What more could I possibly ask for?

The Sky Crawlers – I Want Something Good to Die For, to Make it Beautiful to Live (Diary of an Anime Lived)

Let’s call this a post in the Diary of an Anime Lived series, why not. As well as The Epic Journey.

Oh man, where do I even start with The Sky Crawlers? I’ve watched this incredible movie thrice, and it is long and by far one of my favorite anime films ever made. Every time I rewatch it, my perception of every event is entirely different. No, the movie hasn’t changed, and what I know of it hasn’t changed, but it’s simply grown. Just as I only ‘liked’ the movie the first time, ‘loved’ it the second, and ‘adored’ it the third, I similarly was only coming to terms with it the first time, understanding it the second time, and analyzing it the third. I think that having seen this movie three times, I can’t even remember what it was like to have only seen it once… and maybe that’s quite representative of the nature of my relationship to the actual plot of the film.

5 Centimeters is a Very Short Distance From Iriya In My Heart – Diary of an Anime Lived Crossection – Don't F This Up (6)

Simultaneously a post in the Don’t Fuck This Up series in response to comment 11 by Owen S, as well as a post in the Diary of an Anime Lived series.

I cannot express to you how badly I did not want to write this post. I actually wrote out the majority of the post back in September, but I gave up on writing because I just couldn’t take it. This is a story that fills me with pure and utter hatred for myself, and generally for all of the fucking world. I do not regret anything that happened, because it helped to shape me into what I am today, but I still can’t help but hate myself for everything that happened. This is a post about the worst part of my life, and how Iriya no Sora UFO no Natsu and 5 Centimeters Per Second reflected it.

Diary of an Anime Lived – Toradora in the Mirror

NOTE: THIS IS NOT MY POST. This is a post by reader UltraEternalBlackout. UEB is planning to start a blog in the future, but for now is trying to watch a lot of anime and read more blogs in preparation. Please give him a warm welcome for his very personal introduction~! Contains Toradora spoilers, so be warned!

art by Toradora master Chiko http://gelbooru.com/index.php?page=post&s=list&tags=chiko_%28beroro%29

Massugu, GO! – Diary of an Anime Lived – Hitohira and Manabi Straight (w/ Others)

NOTE: This is a very heavy and personal discussion. Please comment with maturity. Part of the Diary of an Anime Lived series.

When I was done being ‘so fucked up’ like Shinji, anime helped me grow a pair of balls. It also gave me a whole new kind of worry – the future.

Shinji and I – Diary of an Anime Lived: Neon Genesis Evangelion

NOTE: This is a very heavy and personal discussion. Please comment with maturity. Part of the Diary of an Anime Lived series.

When I was fourteen years old, I was “so fucked up.” That’s probably why Neon Genesis Evangelion was the first anime to effect me on a personal level.

Diary of an Anime Lived – Participate in the New, More Personal Anime Appreciation

Art by Jun (ayafuya) - Site: http://2st.jp/kmrimg/

Scroll down for a list of the posts done in this series.

A lot of the anime and manga we watch and read reflects our own lives in some way. This relatability can often create a deeper bond between the viewer and the story, allowing for greater emotional attachment and response. Many works have a near-universal appeal that may be relatable to just about anyone, but even in these cases, we often have very specific details unique to us that may dictate our personal reactions – stories of our own lives that reflect what we see in anime. I want to hear those stories.