The Conviction to Change in Bunny Girl Senpai | OWLS “Metamorphosis”

Chances are that if you were linked here from another blogger pal, then you might be new. To those first-timers, “Hi, I’m Takuto, welcome to my anime cafe!” For the OWLS blog tour’s first monthly topic of 2019, “Metamorphosis,” I wanted to take a look at one of 2018’s best shows (in my opinion), the most unusual tale of a high school boy who encounters many different teenage girls, each of which are struggling with a bizarre phenomenon tied to personal turmoil: the (in)famous Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai.

A brand new year means new beginnings and opportunities. We have a tendency to embrace the new year because it’s a time when we can start fresh. For this month’s topic, we will be exploring our favorite dynamic characters who undergo changes for better or for worse. We will analyze these characters’ transformations and how these transformations benefited or minimized these characters’ potential in becoming “great people/beings.” We will also use these characters as a way for us to reflect on our own lives and who we want to become. Lastly, we would like to say “Happy New Year, everyone!”

Much like last year’s “Revival” tour, January ushers in new beginnings and a fresh start for us all. Here’s to the first in a long line of wonderful months to come, and thanks Lyn for the prompt!

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A brief, spoiler-free discussion on the 13-episode fall 2018 series “Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai,” animated by CloverWorks, directed by Souichi Masui, and based on the light novel series by Hajime Kamoshida. 

Troubles in Youth, the Adolescence Syndrome

Also called “puberty syndrome,” this sickness of sorts rumored on the internet to be caused by sensitivity and instability during adolescence plagues young hearts and entangles several girls in weird experiences beyond the explanation of physics.

Sakuta Azusagawa, a second-year high school student, meets these girls that are experiencing this “puberty syndrome” over the course of one eventful year. The one to stand out the most, of course, is famous child/teen actress Mai Sakurajima, which he encounters in a public library wearing a bunny costume. Although he knows her to be a senior at his school, for some reason, no one else can see Miss Sakurajima in her scantily clad attire.

When did she become invisible? How did she become invisible? As Sakuta earnestly spends more and more time with Mai-san and tries to unravel her mysterious circumstances, Mai’s hidden emotions slowly reveal themselves and a relationship of love begins to blossom.

Mai Sakurajima isn’t the only one changed by Sakuta, though—energetic underclassman Koga Tomoe is stuck in an endless time loop until she confronts her inner feelings; Sakuta’s science club friend Rio Futaba has to deal with a doppelganger of herself running around; hardworking idol Nodoka Toyohama undergoes a sudden body swap with Mai-san, who turns out to be her sister; even Sakuta’s own sister Kaede is still recovering from her terrible past with adolescence syndrome. All the while, a figure from Sakuta’s past—his first love, Shouko Makinohara—makes an incomprehensible reappearance into his life.

Love, Romance, & Schrödinger’s Cat

Sakurajima was a child star, adored by all and a household icon to boot. But following a couple-year hiatus caused by her transitionary high school phase and a conflict with her manager (her own mother), the teen actress fell out of the public eye. She suddenly became invisible, and the Adolescence Syndrome amplified that literal meaning.

Despite his convincingly bored and constantly horny exterior, Sakuta is a genuinely good guy. He’s honest, straightforward (a bit too much sometimes), persistent, caring, and is able to read into people surprisingly well. These qualities make him a perfect agent for change, which he acts upon to improve the lives of those he deems worthy of his friendship.

When going about “fixing” Sakurajima’s invisibility problem, Sakuta appeals to his super smart science club friend Futaba for advice. If anyone can believe him and break down the Adolescence Syndrome’s causes and cures, it’s Futaba. She postulates that the students’ collective forgetting of Mai-san was caused by the school’s atmosphere, and she makes the analogy of Schrödinger’s cat to explain how Mai’s existence cannot be confirmed by those who refuse to acknowledge her. Finally, Futaba proposes that if the atmosphere were to be shaken enough to awaken everyone’s memories, Mai-san’s life would return to normal.

With the school as the box and Mai-san as the cat, the Schrödinger’s cat tie-in helps to create a powerful metaphor for the change process. Unless we open the box and confront its contents, we’ll never know if the cat is dead or alive, thus it is half of both. Similarly, until we open up to others with our problems and allow each other to see why we are hurt, confused, or scared, we’ll never be able to understand one another, and thus our problems will prevail.

In this case, Sakuta persistently sought after people who knew Mai-san’s personal life, including her mother (and sister as well later on), to unravel the reason for Mai’s actions and the consequences pressed by the Adolescence Syndrome. So, what did he find? Sakuta urged Mai-san to return to her acting career. After all, she loves show business. But what made things different this time is that she wouldn’t let her mother micromanage her life. Instead, she’d plant her feet and make the choices she wanted to make.

Just like Futaba the science whiz found, unless the name Mai Sakurajima was put back into the student body’s mind in a way that broke the static atmosphere, nothing would change. Determined not to give up on Mai even though he, too, had almost forgotten her forever, Sakuta came up with a daring last-minute plan to make everyone remember. And while confessing the love of your life to every single person at school by shouting from the baseball field was a bit over-the-top, you can definitely call Sakuta’s efforts in making Mai Sakurajima visible once again commendable. Quite praiseworthy indeed!

Change to Last a Lifetime

On the subject of metamorphosis itself, one characteristic that makes Sakuta Azusagawa stand out as a “hero” type protagonist is his conviction to not only solving each problem plaguing our cast, but his focus on making lifelong changes rather than little remedies to temporary issues. Like, he could have just told Sakurajima to get back into acting or “broke the atmosphere” from the start. Instead, he devoted immense time and energy to reconstructing Mai-san’s mindset geared towards a fresh, new perspective on self-confidence. Considering how that involves rebuilding a mother-daughter relationship, I’d say it’s no small effort whatsoever.

The same could be said about the other girls, though. For Koga Tomoe, he didn’t merely get her to confront her feelings—he willingly went along with her repeated time looping until she felt comfortable being honest about the nature of a one-sided romance. Sakuta helped Koga get her friends back, her reputation back, and all because she was a true friend to him. Even with Futaba, the problem wasn’t just with eliminating the doppel—it was about filling the hole in her heart with friendship, youthful memories, and some good, honest fun.

If there’s one big takeaway from Bunny Girl Senpai, it’s that deep down, we’re all just trying to keep the past out of the future, even if that means giving up on some of the things we love. It’s a romantic notion, don’t get me wrong, but that’s not how we should be living our lives—and Sakuta Azusagawa knows it.

Try as we might, we’ll never be able to completely let the past go. Whether its remnants haunt us in the present, like Mai’s longing to act again and Kaede’s desire to see the outside world, or our feelings keep us from moving forward, as with Koga and Futaba, there will always be something we hate about ourselves, something to regret.

What we can do, however, is do our best to live without said regrets—to think, act, and dream as if we are absolutely owning our lives. And if we don’t like how things are going, we CHANGE what we can such that we create the world we want to live in. The conviction to change is something that ultimately comes from within, and having close friends, even just a couple, can make this exciting way of living all the more within our grasp—we just have to be willing to reach out, change the atmosphere, and when we’re ready, open the box. 

“No matter who you were before, how you look right now is who you are.”— Sakuta Azusagawa

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Afterword

Whew! This one was a bit of a cram watch, but I’m glad I finished it for a post like this one. Despite seeming like a surface-level rom-com with pervy jokes and toilet humor, Bunny Girl Senpai is surprisingly full of complex metaphysical concepts. Through its amazing and mature lead characters, Sakuta and Mai, it’s able to weave in these interesting principles with thought-provoking conversations and an air of scientific wonder. If you’re wanting a harem-ish anime that offers more emotional and intellectual challenge (or Bakemonogatari without the abstract directing style), give Bunny Girl Senpai a shot. You might enjoy the chemistry (and petty banter) between the leads more than you initially think! Plus, the voice acting is great, the animation is pretty, and OP and ED themes are absolute BOPS.

As for the cafe, Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai is certified “Caffe Mocha,” a show from 2018 that’s simply too awesome to miss out on! Seeing as how I focused this post solely a few story/character points, I’d be delighted to hear your thoughts on the rest of the series down in the comments.

This concludes my January 13th entry in the OWLS “Metamorphosis” blog tour. I tried going for a shorter, more condensed and focused form of writing for this OWLS post, so if you have any feedback on that I’d greatly appreciate it. Jack (The Aniwriter) went right before me and wrote about change and the liberation it can offer in Wandering Son, a series I really ought to watch! Now, look out for Megan (Nerd Rambles) with a post about everyone’s favorite tabletop pastime Dungeons & Dragons on Sunday, January 13th! Thank you so much for reading, and until next time, this has been

– Takuto, your host

My Top Five Favorite OWLS Posts That I Wrote in 2018

Hello! Happy New Year!

I realize 2019 has already begun, but there are still a few 2018 round-up posts I plan to write, one of those being this one right here. My top five OWLS posts of 2017 listing was fairly well-received by you all, so I decided to bring it back! As I mentioned last year, it’s hard to pick favorites. But, in the spirit of the New Year and bidding the old farewell, I’ve managed to select five OWLS posts that accurately represent the sum of who I am, why I write, and what I want you, the reader, to learn!

As previously mentioned, all of my OWLS posts are my babies—in fact, they’re probably some of the best posts I’ve ever written, if not THE best of what I’ve got so far, and I thoroughly LOVED writing ALL of them—so enjoy my reminiscing, and feel free to scope them out if you missed them, or are feeling the urge to relive each month’s thought-provoking topic.

On the header/taskbar thingy of my site, you’ll see that OWLS has its own tab (and rightly so), so you can find the rest of 2018’s posts there! Alrighty then, let’s take one last look at some of the posts I wrote in 2018!

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RUNNER UP:

Tour #19 July – The Royal Tutor: A Heartfelt Lesson on Judgement | OWLS “Mentor”

Like several of the titles I featured for each month, my watch of The Royal Tutor came at just the right time. I recall desparately searching my watch catalog just nights before the post was due, and then Heine Wittgenstein waltzed into my life and all was well. Not a single episode goes by where Heine fails to offer a valuable lesson on what it means to be human, and its that strict attention to theme that gives this OWLS post an easy runner-up position on the list. Heck, Heine practically wrote the post for me!

Life Lessons Learned:

• Before quitting something you want to do, you should always explore alternative solutions.
• This world is very big. Do not deprive yourself of people who will understand and care for you.
• We should all believe in second chances.

NUMBER FIVE:

Tour #24 December – Finding a Place to Belong: Tokyo Godfathers & the Gift of Kindness | OWLS “Miracles”

Here’s another one of those last-minute struggle watches that I managed to cram in right before the deadline, and boy am I glad I finally watched this anime cult Christmas classic. In the post, I dabbled a bit on how “God’s miracles” are what guide these three crazy homeless friends through an eventful Christmas Eve in Tokyo. The unfathomable number of plot conveniences can be explained by the presence of this guiding light, and this wild series of events—which can only be described as miraculous—are what make it the perfect fit for not only the monthly theme, but the holiday season.

Life Lessons Learned:

• Life has a funny way of dealing with some situations—embrace chaos with faith.
• A simple conviction to kindness will surround you with good company and food aplenty.
• We will always have the opportunity to be kind to others.

NUMBER FOUR:

Tour #13 January – All That Glitters IS Gold in “Land of the Lustrous” | OWLS “Revival”

Similar to our first tour of 2019, “Metamorphosis,” January and the New Year revolve around change. It involves a spirit of revival, an air of renewal, and the determination to change oneself for the better. Similarly, I found Phos’ journey to find purpose and self-worth to be an excellent fit for 2018’s first monthly topic. (I also happened to be watching it at the time, but I digress.) Just as how humans are fragile beings at heart, the Gems of Land of the Lustrous can shatter into hundreds of tiny pieces—some Gems more than others, namely Phos. Although the post is a tad bit on the longer side to accommodate every aspect that I wanted to hit on, I still look back on it fondly as how 2018 started—a shimmering, hopeful time to try new things. 

Life Lessons Learned:

• Change is scary. It can be painful, it can be sudden, and it can be dangerous. Change involves suffering, but that grief is a necessity for growth.
• Self-worth isn’t determined by the people around you, but rather what YOU make of yourself.
• So long as we can hope to become better individuals—actively seeking to help others in return—change and improvement just might someday find us, too.

NUMBER THREE:

Tour #20 August – From the New World: Through Horror, Calamity, & the Truth | OWLS “Journey”

This show, oh man, how far we go back together. I find it quite rare for a series to impact my views on critical concepts like justice and dignity so easily. And then comes along Shinsekai Yori to flip everything that I knew on its head. Absolutely loaded from head to toe with painful themes of reality and the duality of man, From the New World represents so much more than sci-fi series about good and evil. Rather, it’s a journey through horror, calamity, and the truth, and how the truth can sometimes be the cruelest thing of all. Given how complex it is, I was quite satisfied with how I was able to sum up each of the story’s arcs and how they impact Saki Watanabe, the lead character. (Also, I really, really like the header image I designed for this one.) It’s riveting, it’s meaningful, it’s powerful, and of all the shows I’ve EVER scene, few deserve the title of masterpiece quite like From the New World does.

Life Lessons Learned:

• To feign ignorance is the greatest crime of all. Corruption breeds from within when we close off our minds and our hearts to new peoples and ideas.
• People are twisted, easily corrupted, and worst of all, easily scared. But while we are weak when we are desperate, we are strong when it counts.
• “We have to change our way of thinking if we really want to change the future.”

NUMBER TWO:

Tour #16 April – Yūki Hayashi: Music to Motivate the Soul | OWLS “Melody”

I try to dedicate a solid paragraph in each of my anime reviews to the series’ soundtrack composer. What can I say, I’m a music man, and Yuuki Hayashi just so happens to be my favorite anime soundtrack composer! He’s done the background music for so many of my favorite shows, and it was about time that I dedicated an entire post—a very special OWLS post at that—to Hayashi’s genius. At long, long last, I got to practically fanboy about all my favorite anime soundtracks, but there’s another reason I picked a composer rather than a single song or series to focus on. You see, Hayashi’s music isn’t just epic—it’s also inspirational, a set of notes and sounds designed to motivate the very soul. And although this one low-key has my favorite header graphic, it’s missing one final relatability factor to push it into number one.

Life Lessons Learned:

• Music encapsulates and can provide inspiration to lift us off our feet, motivation to push us forward, heartache to make us grow, the strength to go beyond, and the ambition to fulfill our dreams.
• Know that the view from the summit is one that exists ONLY for you—so chase after it relentlessly.
• Try new things, make mistakes, meet new people, but never, never give up on your reasons for wanting to improve. Because maybe, in the process of overcoming your own impossible odds, you’ll inspire someone else to be a better human.

AND FINALLY, NUMBER ONE:

Tour #18 June – Princess Jellyfish: Confidence, Community, & the Beauty Below the Surface | OWLS “Pride”

Here’s your number one for 2018! Did it surprise you? Princess Jellyfish burst onto the scene of my life and totally changed my views on confidence, community, and the inner beauty we each possess below the surface. It features a dynamic, hilarious, and heartwarming cast of otaku NEETS who are all just struggling to get by in society, as well as the one queen who will unite them all in their effort to freely express themselves. Princess Jellyfish is the epitome of pride, a story that is attest to how vast our personalities truly are, and although I was a bit long-winded with other technical aspects of the series, this post really is just one big expression of love. Princess Jellyfish is a series about loving what you want to love, and bonding with those who share that same incredible sentiment. At its very end, the story of Princess Jellyfish embodies something so pure, hopeful, and passionate that it becomes impossible to not enjoy—and it’s for all these wonderful reasons and more that I select June’s “Pride” post as my favorite OWLS post of 2018.

Life Lessons Learned:

• Sometimes you need to see yourself in a different way in order to appreciate who you’ve been this whole time.
• Beauty is not something you simply put on: it’s an emotion you feel when you’re at your best. 
• Above all else, so long as you take pride in yourself and the things you love, all people—including us adults—still have plenty of room for growth and change.

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A HUGE Round of Applause to the OWLS Crew!

WHEW! After binge-reading ALL of the 2018 OWLS posts from January 1st to December 31st, I can officially say that each and every one of us deserve a pat on the back. Seriously though, all of lovely individuals in OWLS are not only fantastic people, but awesome writers as well, and while I didn’t share every single post over on Twitter (for fear of clogging up everyone’s feed), each one of them most certainly deserves the read.

This post compiles my favorite OWLS posts that I personally wrote. As bloggers, I’m sure we can all identify our stronger posts compared to the rest of our catalog. So, if you are an OWLS member, I’d love to read what you found to be your own favorites! Think of it as celebrating your accomplishments for being a member of such a cool group. 🙂

Speaking of accomplishments . . . to my knowledge, I am one of the few who has posted for every single tour. That’s 24 posts since our debut in 2017! While I plan to write more posts aside from OWLS ones (as that is what became of me this year, whoops), I am happy with myself for not giving up and sticking with the group through each thought-provoking monthly topic. It’s just a small sidenote, but I’m proud for having come this far, and I look forward to hopefully adding 12 more posts come December 2019!

Anyway, that’s it for me. What did you think of the line-up? Did you have a particular favorite month to read/write for, either of my posts or everyone else’s? Or are you, like I was less than a month ago, still in the process of catching up? Haha! Either way, thank you so much for supporting me throughout my 2018 OWLS journey, and until next time, this has been

– Takuto, your host

All That Glitters IS Gold in “Land of the Lustrous” | OWLS “Revival”

Chances are that if you were linked here from another blogger pal, you might be new to this place. To those first-timers, “Hi, I’m Takuto, and welcome to my anime cafe!” As part of the OWLS blog tour’s first monthly topic for 2018, “Revival,” I decided to incorporate what would have been my standard review of Land of the Lustrous into a short, shimmering reflection on the main character’s journey of self-discovery, and how even though our emotional selves may fracture, we can still be pieced back together—and return stronger than ever before.

A new year implies “new beginnings.” Yet, rather than discussing the “new,” we will be discussing the “revival.” “Revival” has multiple definitions, but the meaning we will be focusing on is the improvement, development, or refinement of something. Our posts will be about characters that undergo a positive or negative transformation and what we can learn from them.

Thanks Lyn for the prompt—what fitting way to kick of the New Year!

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A brief spoiler-free discussion on the 12-episode fall 2017 anime “Houseki no Kuni” or “Land of the Lustrous,” produced by studio Orange, directed by Takahiko Kyogoku, and based on Haruko Ichikawa’s manga of the same name.

NOTE: The characters in this anime are genderless, and I will do my best to watch my pronoun usage.

Enter the Radiant Land of the Lustrous

Not all clothes are cut from the same cloth. In Land of the Lustrous‘s case, not all gemstones are cut from the same rock. Or are they? In a distant fantasy future, a new immortal and genderless life form called Gems (the “Lustrous”) roam what inhabitable remains of Earth are left. We’re not really told what happened, other than that the mainland in which the story takes place is under attack by the Lunarians (or “Moon Dwellers”), mystical cloud-like Buddha-looking beings who regularly abduct the Gems to turn them into jewelry—to turn a proud race into frivolous decor.

Phosphophyllite, or simply Phos, is the youngest of the Gems, and though their 300 years on Earth has given them much time to play and mess around, having a hardness of only 3.5 makes them more fragile than glass on the battlefield. Set in a tribe-like school of sorts where one’s hardness determines whether they are deemed fighters or medics, Phos is neither suited for battle nor the books. As such, Phos is treated trivially, and is often met with belittlement or noisome glares by their peers.

Phos’s feelings of being an outcast diminish when Kongou (Adamantine), the master of Gems, assigns Phos the unique task of creating a natural history encyclopedia, an archive of the nature of their world. Though everyone—including Phos—knows that the pointless job is just to keep them out of trouble, no one could’ve imagined the incredible journey Phos was about to take, and the impact their transformation would have on their entire civilization.

From the synopsis alone, Land of the Lustrous (what a cool title, BTW) already sounds plenty weird. The anime is categorized under the genres of action, fantasy, and seinen, but it proves itself even more interesting by also harboring an underlying mystery element. Who are the Lunarians, and why do they really want the Gems? What is Master Kongou’s relation with the moon people? What truly happened to humanity? Constantly, I found myself hitting the next episode button in eager anticipation of learning the secrets to this fascinating world. And the sudden loss of Amazon’s Anime Strike program (you will NOT be missed) allowed me to stream seamlessly without fear of paying double the price. I generally like to take my time watching a series; rarely do I gulp an entire series down in a single weekend, but I finished all 12 episodes in just two days. Yes, it was that entertaining. Not all my questions got answered, but it definitely ends ready for more, and it did encourage me to want to start reading the manga.

While its premise, setting, and characters are all quite creative, humanity’s nature is unchanging. Much like any child would, Phos experiences loneliness and a sense of uselessness, but through their peers, Phos also comes to understand important values like perseverance, respect, kinship, and the payoff of hard work. They also face the realities of their once thought-to-be fairy-tale world, revealing that life does have its cruelties. The anime’s messages are endearing, even if we’ve already seen them a hundred times, and that’s probably thanks to Land of the Lustrous‘s fantastic set of characters: the 28 Gems that make up this sparkling society.

Shine Bright Like a Diamond

Variety is the greatest spice of life, and Land of the Lustrous‘s gleaming cast of Gems is definitely the series’s leading feature. Ordered appropriately according to the Mohs scale of mineral hardness, the jewel people are all given characteristics that match the features of their own gemstone. Cinnabar is a soft toxic mercury ore (the same bold red used as a pigment); correspondingly, Cinnabar’s character only has a hardness of 2, and their ability to produce a lethal poison prevents them from interacting with the other Gems. And just as how diamonds are used for precious moments, and are regarded as the world’s prettiest jewel, “Dia” is literally a sparkling, pure, kind-hearted individual with hardness 10, and is almost always seen “engaged” (see what I did there) with a certain Gem.

The attention to detail here goes far beneath the surface, feeling much richer than some cheap gimmick. Here, an imaginative use of characterization births some of the most unique and heartwarming characters I’ve ever seen, and though each gem’s screen time is limited to showcase one another’s distinctive traits, you still get a wholesome feel for who most of these polished beauties are. I imagine that this show would be any mineralogist or gemologist’s wet dream!

Shout out to all the fans and artists over on Twitter for convincing me to watch this show, and for making me love the characters beyond what the series presents! So much pretty artwork, and I can’t get enough of it! Oh yeah, and Antarcticite is best . . . Girl? . . . Boy? . . . Androgynous gem person!

This IS the Best CG Anime EVER

I was incredibly surprised with how 2017’s Kado: The Right Answer was able to shake up the CGI reputation in anime. It crafted a setting in which CG-animated elements not only worked, but actually enhanced the out-of-this-world story being told, as well as the wondrous anisotropic devices presented. Complaints were still to be made, however, most regarding that the normal people were also animated in CG when they totally didn’t need to be. In typical CG fashion, it made the character actions look a tad awkward.

But from characters to concept, Land of the Lustrous both fits as a CG anime AND looks absolutely stunning doing so. First, the CG mapping allows the character designs to appear consistently gorgeous. The beautifully colored jewel people’s hair radiates with a twinkling, glistening shine—something that could only be achieved using this 3D technique—and their fights against the Lunarians prove to be engaging, expectation-shattering spectacles! Not to mention, the 2D painted backgrounds are works of art all on their own! This 2D-3D blend was clearly well-thought out and executed marvelously, for all that glitters IS gold on the animation front.

Before I leave the production side of things, I do want to mention that Yoshiaki Fujisawa’s soundtrack provides such an atmospheric, entrancing allure that I can only express in these words: it is a soundtrack suited perfectly for this anime.

Bonds Stronger Than Any Glue: Phos’s Transformation

As stated previously, Land of the Lustrous is a coming-of-age tale where a clumsy, useless, and worthless individual tries to find not only a reason to live, but a place to belong. It’s a story about being useful to those you value, even if those people don’t value your own effort to establish teamwork.

Like people, Gems can be brittle beings with fragile hearts. Phos both mentally and physically “breaks” several times throughout the course of the series. In the search to finally be useful to others, Phos seeks change. Phos just . . . wants to be special. Well, change of any kind comes at a price—to gain something new, something must be lost—and unfortunately, that price is the precious time of others. Or, at its worst, the life of a friend. With an almost foolish bravery and air of bad luck, Phos pursues many partners in an effort to improve—to refine those blemishes of their personality, and to forever eliminate the imperfections that cause them mockery and shame.

But change is scary. It can be painful, it can be sudden, and it can be dangerous.

Every try, every fail—no matter what, Phos desperately continues to pursue a reason for being. And through each failure, Phos learns a priceless lesson about what it means to feel valued and helpful. Smash your frail legs? Find stronger ones to replace them. Fracture your tiny arms? Hunt for a material that can better weather the crushing pain of defeat. Lose a beloved friend:

Make them proud by living for them. Do what they couldn’t by becoming someone you would both be proud of. Being immortal means each rupture can and DOES lead to a chance to return stronger and shinier than before—to feel reborn anew, to feel revived. And Phos doesn’t let that precious opportunity go to waste.

Putting the Pieces Back Together

Change involves suffering, but that grief is a necessity for growth. Phos will shatter again, and again, and again, picking up the sad, broken pieces of their shiny shell. Yet with the help of some friends, these shards can be pieced back together to continue fighting on. The bonds that Phos forms, unlike their lustrous figure, are unbreakable. It’s a powerful positive transformation, absolutely, but it comes at very critical costs.

Phos can do it, though. Slowly but surely, Phos comes to realize that self-worth isn’t determined by the people around you, but rather what YOU make of yourself. With great determination, Phos knows the road to truly reviving their spirit is paved with hardship and loss. The world is cruel, after all. But so long as we can hope to become better individuals—actively seeking to help others in return—change and improvement just might someday find us, too. And it’s that seemingly small sentiment that makes Land of the Lustrous shine brighter than all the diamonds in the night sky.

You’ll grow stronger. You’ll be fine . . . Somebody will figure out a way. You won’t get any worse. You must change. You must find courage. You’ll make it. But you don’t have time. – Voice from the ice floes, the reflections of our innermost thoughts

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As emotional as I make it sound, Land of the Lustrous is just such a cool, unique show unlike ANYTHING I’ve ever seen. It’s a neat twist on science matched with a budding mystery that I cannot wait to uncover in the manga! I’m awarding Land of the Lustrous with the “Cake” title, as it’s certainly an elegant show, but its lack of a “true ending” leaves many titillating questions unanswered. You ought to let me know what you thought of this anime or this post down in the comments, as this “hidden gem” (haha ok I’ll go home) was a big hit for some and a sleeper for many others!

Oh, and if you enjoyed this series, consider checking out Yuki Yuna is a Hero for scarily similar-looking antagonists (and overall concept of fighting), A Lull in the Sea for its similar take on village life and growing up, or lastly From the New World because, well, just trust me on this one. In the meantime, I’ll be praying for a classy LTD ED release of this show by Sentai Filmworks, hopefully complete with Yoichi Nishikawa’s end card art cause HOLY BAUBLES, them beauties!

This concludes my January 10th entry in the OWLS “Revival” blog tour. Moonid (Random Garage) went right before me and wrote a bit of a character analysis over Nightingale from the Chinese fantasy web novel Release that Witch. Now, look out for Zoe (Let’s Talk Anime) with ReLIFE, a title that I really need to watch, and Arata’s second chance at youth on Friday, January 12th! Thank you so much for reading, and until next time, this has been

– Takuto, your host

End of January Update 2/11/17

NOOOO I’ve already failed the 4-post-per-month plan!!! (but how, it was so easy??)

So it’s already a week into February and I’m not gonna lie, not a whole lot of anime got watched within the first month of 2017. It’s gotten so bad that I haven’t even participated in any of the simulcasts airing this season, which is a shame since some of them actually intrigued me a good deal. Because so little was watched in January, I’m going to flip back to December and recap the anime shows and films that I watched then until now. Sound good? Let’s take a trip back in the past!

“Recently” Finished:

The Garden of Words – We’re starting off with the MOST BEAUTIFUL anime film I have ever seen!! I kid you not, the story isn’t necessarily brilliant and the run time is only 45 minutes, but it’s 45 minutes of pure atmosphere: luscious greenery and endless rainfall. Speaking of plot, I really like the punchline this Shinkai film–“A story of solitude and heartache that comes before love.” If you’ve somehow missed out on Garden, do check it out if slick animation is your thing. (I mean, who doesn’t like that?) Seriously, it’s short and heartwarming; a must for fans of the rain!

Pale Cocoon – This and the other short film below were extra features included with the Time of EVE: The Movie bluray, so of course I had to watch more of Yasuhiro Yoshiura’s work! This one is the length of a normal episode and centers on a young man in the future who works as an archive recoverer (so a historian). The huge theme on this one is that those who dwell too much in the past can be consumed in the present and risk losing wonderful things. Kinda confusing but really thought-provoking. I remember watching this a long time ago but not understanding it at all, so it’s nice to see how I’ve grown as an intelligent viewer.

Aquatic Language – Yup, this is 8 minutes of WTF anime. It’s a cartoonish short set in a cafe. Like Time of Eve, there are many interactions taking place between people, and half the fun is finding out how all of the conversations tie in together and reflect the main character, a boy with a broken heart. I’d give this one a skip if it weren’t 8 minutes and included with the others.

Sailor Moon Crystal Season I -Following my Viz rewatch of Sailor Moon and its sequel R, I finally decided to boot up “The Moonlight Legend Reborn,” Sailor Moon Crystal, and I ABSOLUTELY LOVED all of it!!! Despite the popular opinion, I found Crystal to be a wonderful remake with a more straightforward and concise story. It retells Naoko Takeuchi’s tragedy as it was meant to be told, adding an entirely new layer of dramatic depth to the characters and their origins. In particular, Queen Beryl, the series’ antagonist, becomes a completely different woman clothed with misfortune. I even found myself enjoying the CG transformations, for each of them were beautiful in their own way! If you’re looking for the TRUE tale of the grim Dark Kingdom Arc, Crystal‘s first season has you covered!

Terror in Resonance – I’ve actually been holding onto this one for several months now having bought the LTD ED in a sale. At the time, I figured that this would be a grand winter show, so putting it on hold would be the wisest thing to do–boy, was I right! Though it gained immense popularity while it aired in 2014, if you haven’t heard about Zankyou no Terror, it’s about two boys who become terrorists to prove a point to their country regarding truth and justice–relevant themes to our current times, no? If I had to pick one from this list to recommend, Terror in Resonance is definitely the bomb.

Paprika – This little oddball took part in my Winter Movie Theater thing that I do with my siblings. The catch this time–I did not prewatch Paprika. Normally, I watch several shows/films and pick the ones worthy of their time (and my buying). Since I “knew” that Paprika was a classic and that I’d probably enjoy it, I went ahead and blindly picked it up for a super cheap price. Upon first watch . . . WHAT THE FRACK . . . but looking back while repeatedly listening to the OST, I found myself recalling all of its bold and subtle cues alike and appreciating the wackiness of its dreamlike presentation. It’ll be one of those shows that people won’t understand completely the first time through, so it’s a good thing I love rewatching anime!

Fafner: Dead Aggressor & Heaven and Earth The Movie – Fafner (SAVE edition) was another blind pickup from when Hastings went out of business (RIP). Why buy? It was dirt cheap, on bluray, and had a pretty cover. I don’t want to go into too much detail because YES, a review is on the way!! But if you’re wanting my direct opinion: The movie was everything I wanted out of the series and then some–the best Fafner has to offer. I’ve still yet to watch the new series that aired recently, but I plan to one of these days.

Children Who Chase Lost Voices – Woah, another blind pickup from the Sentai Filmworks sale that I figured I’d enjoy . . . and I did, to an extent, though. Don’t get me wrong, it’s gorgeous Shinkai animation, but the story feels so hollow and the fantasy world presented doesn’t feel very alive. The first half was amazing, the end was pretty decent, but everything in the middle was kind of a snooze fest. I much preferred The Garden of Words, but by all means, check it out if you have the extra time

Ghost in the Shell (1995) – The prequel to my next V-day marathon weekend begins with Mamoru Oshii’s 1995 sci-fi classic that shocked the world, Ghost in the Shell. For #TakutoMovieNight over on Twitter, I described it as “a wonderfully weird trip through the heart of anime science fiction.” Although that caption better suits Paprika, classics are classics. After viewing a 30-min analysis, I actually had to watch this film over again just to fully understand its depth–and even then, there’s still a lot GitS offers. Don’t just watch it, own it for a mere $8! I’m looking forward to exploring the entirety of the franchise this next weekend!

Blast of Tempest – Everyone saw this coming from my latest “Cafe Talk” regarding whether or not you research concepts as you’re watching a show. Check that out if you haven’t (yes, I’m a tad bit behind on the comments, but I’m working on it!). Inspired by both Shakespeare’s Hamlet and The Tempest, this one’s all about mages, mysterious deaths, and magical trees–anime for ya. While I wasn’t “mind blown” by what the anime had in store, it had enough standout moments to pull a win for me. More to come on that in a review!

Spirited Away (rewatch) – A [non-anime-affiliated] friend of mine was recently given this Miyazaki masterpiece and fell completely in love with it. (Will they pursue other anime films?! Stay tuned.) With all this talk about Your Name and its surpassing the GOAT, I thought I’d waltz back to my childhood days and revisit the film. All I previously remembered from Spirited Away was a disgusting bath scene, a witch with a big head, and a scary floating mask man that ate people. Childhood scarred. But I still recall myself being enthralled by the atmosphere of the bath house. Years later, I didn’t actually realize just HOW GOOD this film really was–I mean, it’s incredible, almost breathtaking in its execution and representation of the OG hardworking individual and their work habits. Oh yeah, there’s romance, too, but it was Chihiro’s development into a stronger, more resilient person that drew me in all over again. Maybe I’ll write about how I was swept off my feet once again by Ghibli . . . or maybe I’ll go find another one to watch instead! >.<

Currently Watching:

Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash – Heh heh, here’s the show I’m currently watching. A bit of a throwback to last year, Grimgar follows teenagers who wake up in a fantasy realm of magic and swords. They can’t remember their prior lives, but they do know one thing: they must survive by any means necessary. I like how the focus isn’t necessarily on kill or be killed (though that is quite prominent), but on other aspects of life. In these medieval days, they still need to acquire money to eat and sleep comfortably. I’m two episodes in and the slice-of-life mixed with the challenges hardships bring is what’s winning me. I just hope it doesn’t turn into some dumb adventure of good and evil later on. Did I mention what got me to start this series in the first place? Why, it was the stunning watercolor backgrounds and artwork!! It’s been such a long time since I’ve seen landscapes as subtly enchanting as these~!

And that about does it! Again, apologies for my lack of content after setting up such a seemingly simple resolution. I feel terrible for skipping over so many of your guys’ posts, but I WILL do my best to be more active. I also want to begin some simulcasts soon so the updates seem more relevant each month. Thank you for sticking around so long, and hey, we’re almost at 200 followers–now that’ll be a celebration!! My winter days are coming to an end. Emotions are rolling out like crazy weird as I transition into a different stage of my life [to be discussed in a future cafe talk soon]. Even though it’s still February, we just had a couple days of 60-70 degrees F weather AKA global warming is NOT a myth. Frick the non-believers. See you soon in the next post~!

– Takuto, your host

End of January Update 1/31/16

Evening all, not really sure why I am doing an update as I LITERALLY watched and read NOTHING, but for consistency’s sake I thought it’d be better to get this out there . . . for anyone who cares. Let’s get to it!

Recently finished:

Diddly squat. I’ve been sick, busy, sick, and more sick.

Did I mention sick?

Currently watching:

Cowboy Bebop – Yep. Still watching this one. Remember how I decided to watch it with my family? Well, that probably wasn’t the best decision I’ve made, as none of us have matching schedules, and even if we do, I feel bad for kicking someone else off of the TV! Agh, at least it’s a grand show thus far. We’re exactly halfway through, so I expect the lighthearted bounty hunter trips to switch to some deep stuff pretty soon.

Boku dake ga Inai Machi (Erased) – If you’re not watching this this anime this season, you’re lying to yourself. Erased is about a boy (well, man in a boy body?) who is given the chance to (or kinda forced to) go back in time to save his mom and presumably a girl who died in his elementary school. I am two episodes in (gonna watch the third tonight >.<) and all I can say is WOW. Fast-paced, intense and consistent storytelling, and lovely animation provided by A1-Pictures (praise them “momma lips”). Yuki Kajiura’s music has yet to really stand out, but it supports what I’ve seen so far fairly well.

Dimension W – Yep, this is that other simulcast every anime fan and their grandma is following this season. Why am I? Well, aside it being science fiction, I am interested in its creation: FUNimation’s partnership in putting the production together. Admittedly, they only share a small part in the story department, but the production diaries they post on YouTube are very insightful. I’m not quite sure what the anime is about by episode two, nor where it’s headed, but I am nevertheless intrigued by what’s going on. The anime follows Kyouma, I think that is his name, and his job as a “Collector,” which involves retrieving energy-producing devices called “coils.”

Currently reading:

Sword Art Online Volume 4: Fairy Dance Part 2 – Still cracking through this one, over 1/4 done. Again, I put all reading and watching aside for a while, and I suppose this took the biggest blow. I’ll be picking back up on it soon, and plan to finish within the next week or two!

Last time I hinted as to my cosplay for spring convention(s), and while some of you will be disheartened to hear it is not Horn Skuld (Otaku Judge and Rocco B), it is still a beloved character from Seraph of the End. Everyone’s favorite blonde-headed vampire teen, Mikaela Hyakuya! I finally got the boots a few days ago, so everything’s pretty much set. All I need to do is trim the wig (or style it better), possibly find better pants, and decide whether or not to add light makeup just for eye effects and such. Not sure yet, though.

If you’ve already read my “I’ve been sick” post, then that’s all you need to know about me regarding the past two weeks. I do have the next 2 weeks of posts lined up, and all I have to do is write them (easier said than done, I realize, but oh well). We did add a new cafe-goer just yesterday, so a warm welcome to you and to all those returning ^.^ Thank you for your overwhelming support on my last update, by the way. It’s a lot easier to stand straight knowing an entire community of awesome friends is supporting your back, ya know? We gotta stick together during these rough times, haha! It’s cold yet oddly sunny where I’m at, but snow is on the horizon. Stay warm, everyone, and drink lots of hot chocolate and coffee – That’s what I’ll be doing! Alrighty, till next time everyone!

– Takuto, your host