[jdrama] Last Friends ~ manga review by Okazu!

I think this will probably be my last post of anything in relation to Last Friends…. =( So sad! Hopefully we’ll see another one that will create as much angst and excitement amongst the audience though I must say that’s a high bar to reach!! haha

Today Erica from Okazu announced that she will be reviewing the manga of Last Friends that has been released monthly!! Not sure when but she said “shortly”! It will be interesting to get her view. I must say, I was planning to go and buy this month’s Malika but I was late and the usual two copies that they order in were sold already! It will be a whole month if I was to order in so I gave up! Sorry guys. I will try again for next month. Though I must say, it’s not very exciting – it seems to be EXACTLY how the drama went so I’m kind of losing interest.

Anyway, will let you know when Okazu’s review is up!!

Edit: Also, all thanks to Vicky who designed the wonderful pic above! 

[anime] Ichigo Mashimaro ~ episodes 5 & 6

Hmm…episodes 5 & 6 were about the same as episodes 3 & 4 on the enjoyment scale….ok, maybe just another slight notch higher! LOL

I looked it up and it looks like Okazu had a similar initial standing point as me (i.e. insisted on hating it) but then sucuumbed to the in-your-face-ridiculous-never-meant-to-make-sense-storyline! Check out her initial review on the manga and anime. It COMPLETELY cracked me up! hahaha I must admit that her term Evil Psychotic Lesbian(TM)-in training is a perfect label for Micchan! I’m also tempted to move from calling her “that crazy girl” to “that crazy biatch”!!! hahaha She’s one of those mixed bag kind of characters. As you watch, you feel like whacking her but at the same time you can’t help but laugh at her non-sensical remarks! She definitely adds some interesting dynamics to the interaction of the characters.

Proof that she gets whacked in episode 5 – TWICE! AHAHA

 

 

 

 

Some of my favourite quotes from Okazu on her anime/manga reviews on Ichigo Mashimaro:

I put on my grumpiest face and prepared to HATE this manga with all my heart. I failed. It was a horrible failure, too – half a dozen pages into it, I was giggling like a moron (more…)

But for me, the real attraction is Miu. She’s barking mad and happy to be it (more…).

I cannot tell you how *annoying* I find it, that’s it’s so damn cute. And girly cute, no less. And giggly. God, if anyone ever saw me giggling at this, I’d never be able to show my face in public again…(more…)

Honestly, check her reviews out!! hahaha I’m not the only one that was intending to hate Ichigo Mashimaro but ends up falling for it! I’m not overly crazy about it………….YET! hahaha

Interestingly, in these two episodes, we’re seeing spells of jealousy from Micchan as she sees the extra attention and affection that Nobue gives to Ana-chan. At this stage, I’m only seeing it as attention seeking rather than “yuri”. But then Okazu says its yuri so I’ll go with her! haha As a result, I’ve gone back and have marked all previous entries with shoujo-ai and yuri tags.

Micchan breaking apart Nobue and Ana...yuri?

This is another hilarious scene! I was a bit lost at first but then you’ll get it pretty quickly…damn Micchan!!

Ana-chan suddenly sinks in her seat....?? What?

Oh dear...it's Micchan! She's pulling Ana from under the table?!

I wonder who takes Ana's seat?? Check out the translator's notes...

Finally, did I mention that there were two perverts here?? Nobue! Control yourself!!!

More to come…checking out episodes 7 and 8 next…

Edit: Krigo, I must admit that this is getting better…*embarrassed* ahaaha

[anime] Strawberry Panic – Vol. 1 DVD ~ review

YAY! My copy of Strawberry Panic Vol. 1: First Kiss – arrived today! Well actually when I first saw it, I was a bit disappointed. Maybe I was expecting too much. I opened the package and inside was just one DVD case. I was kind of subconsciously imagining that it will be a DVD box set! haha Well I guess I will need to wait for my Maria-sama ga Miteru (releasing in late July)!! But I must say that when I picked it up, it felt a bit tacky…like I just bought an “on sale $5 DVD”…so far a little disappointed…

Hmm…this is my first purchase of a serial anime – not quite sure what to expect. I have to say, the fansubs out there are pretty high quality (I reckon)! I’m almost a bit concerned that I might prefer the fansub version given that’s the first version I watched…

SHOCK HORROR! I started the DVD and almost jumped off my sofa when I saw the subs!! They’re in this ugly yellow colour!! It reminds me of when I play SRT files using VLC player! Aaaah!! I hate that yellow colour! It’s so distracting too…they could have at least used a lighter shade! Also, I don’t why but the outline of the subs are also a little rough! Grrrr…..call me an absolute pain but this kind of stuff really annoys me. Well better move on…I can’t keep grumbling on about it. Honestly, from this aspect, the fansubs are definitely better.

Translation wise it looks pretty consistent so far but I’m only 10 minutes into episode 1! hahaha One other downfall with this DVD is that I personally do not consider a textless opening and ending to be SPECIAL FEATURES!! Come on! Be a little generous!! haha Ok, I better stop…. =P

Overall, I’m preferring the look of the fansubs more but then I appreciate the pleasure of watching this anime in DVD quality…oh well…I guess you need to give or take some. I hope they improve on the visual quality of the subs in the later volumes! I’m crossing my fingers that Right Stuf does a better job with Maria-sama ga Miteru!

P.s. Btw, now that I’m re-watching SP, I just remembered what a nut case Tamao-chan is!!! LOL ^_^

Edit: Oh! I found another problem! They translated “onee-sama” to sister! How annoying! Everytime I see the term “sister”, I think of Whoopi Goldberg in her Sister Act outfit!! Nooo!! Well apparently according to Okazu’s review of Volume 2, they fixed this!! yay!! Hmm…does that mean I have an excuse to buy Vol 2? I’ll wait for a while…there’s a bit of a hole in my wallet…hehehe…you can probably tell!!