tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88137043551449749152024-03-19T02:51:39.721+00:00Kongming says...KATSU DUUUUMKongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.comBlogger53125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-40646105868389007642017-02-16T20:05:00.000+00:002017-02-16T20:05:22.674+00:00Half-baked - The Anime of 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuQhHTMQJUDTLQowhJ2a4nqxCjOgfpcey2KWH42IzTw0tYY6Cli4D1J3PiTSa7YdEeGqRjJf3E9CBk3yNJkiUerV4gZses5zcYX04mRfykKBzYc7gcMOkaO4bdO18YkmXs6Z8m-IZl8QE/s1600/sekkou+boys+-+live.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuQhHTMQJUDTLQowhJ2a4nqxCjOgfpcey2KWH42IzTw0tYY6Cli4D1J3PiTSa7YdEeGqRjJf3E9CBk3yNJkiUerV4gZses5zcYX04mRfykKBzYc7gcMOkaO4bdO18YkmXs6Z8m-IZl8QE/s640/sekkou+boys+-+live.png" width="640"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
So here we are again, finally. What a year 2016 was. But I won't bore you by adding my disgruntled voice to the millions already bemoaning it as the worst year ever. Instead I'll bore you by talking about a <i>lot</i> of anime.<br>
<br>
You may or may not have seen my <a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.co.uk/2017/01/crunchyroll-anime-awards-2016-my-picks.html">post about the Anime Awards</a>, but it certainly helped jog my memory about the various winners and losers that the year provided. <a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/a-look-back-anime-of-2014.html">As</a> <a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/fading-memories-anime-of-2015.html">before</a> I'll try to give a brief, helpful synopsis of each along with my salient thoughts and slot it into one of the 5 tiers: God, great, good, OK, bad.<br>
<br>
It was probably my first full year of paid Crunchyroll membership, so we'll see if that has had any impact on my viewing habits. Heck, I even tried FunimationNOW for a bit. Crazy year. Let's dive right in...<br>
<br>
<b>*FUTURE MIKE INTERJECTION*:</b> It turns out that these things take a <i>lot</i> of time and effort to write. As such it would be March at the earliest before I'd be able to put a finished version of this post out there, and if anyone ever cared about my thoughts on last year's anime that time will have long passed. So given that myself and <a href="https://supernizzle.wordpress.com/">Ben</a> covered off the majority of these shows and more on our <a href="https://soundcloud.com/ben-brown-262393967/stuff-ben-mike-like-episode-1-2016-anime-round-up">FIRST EVER PODCAST</a> and I posted that handy Anime Awards roundup I thought I'd just release this half-baked for the fun of it. Once you get past Gate 2 all you get is my unabridged stream-of-consciousness notes for each series, so enjoy that!<br>
<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2017/02/witty-title-anime-of-2016.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-37282420726636195622017-01-07T16:00:00.000+00:002017-01-07T16:00:01.033+00:00Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2016: My picks<div style="text-align: center;">
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ngCS3EnUBcckFbw6NDoQQxQXaHXSq5dkQO_2P5e7cAu8v0aLRGErYDo1NCeYbDMr4ikXTz9qCq0MMzqswbH7moU7kGnX4fQTuR-Uua3nHM9QducFyOADGk7wZawfp4LSnOvTzxkKcTc/s1600/untitled3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ngCS3EnUBcckFbw6NDoQQxQXaHXSq5dkQO_2P5e7cAu8v0aLRGErYDo1NCeYbDMr4ikXTz9qCq0MMzqswbH7moU7kGnX4fQTuR-Uua3nHM9QducFyOADGk7wZawfp4LSnOvTzxkKcTc/s640/untitled3.png" width="640"></a></div>
</div>
<br>
Hello there! Been a while. I'm sure you'll be glad to know that I am currently in the middle of typing up my now traditional year-end summary of everything I watched in 2016, but in the meantime I thought I'd post a little appetiser.<br>
<br>
For the first time ever, Crunchyroll are hosting 'The Anime Awards': a big community vote to decide the best shows, characters and moments from this year's anime offering. There are 14 categories with at least 4 nominees, and to mark the occasion I thought I would run you through my personal picks from the selection (and perhaps some thoughts on who/what <i>really</i> should have been nominated).<br>
<br>
You can find the nominees - and watch clips! - and information about the awards here: <a href="https://www.theanimeawards.com/">https://www.theanimeawards.com/ </a><br>
<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2017/01/crunchyroll-anime-awards-2016-my-picks.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-79864695858038435172016-01-10T15:49:00.000+00:002017-01-12T16:54:38.791+00:00Fading memories: The Anime of 2015<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFSgKlRBvZZsFzWUM7Qbr5qUlsbaAxATsTImsTTByoZERqIPHvFFAwqWz8Ta6N0q5aV2jryx-Hz9wJ9bNutiCSbELxIQ-bzQdXltNj8oAlQUcB-Ot0-B5obvRIcCLjbgoylcSxF5aVZfg/s1600/tumblr_nrqm3kDomC1sft2nqo3_500.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFSgKlRBvZZsFzWUM7Qbr5qUlsbaAxATsTImsTTByoZERqIPHvFFAwqWz8Ta6N0q5aV2jryx-Hz9wJ9bNutiCSbELxIQ-bzQdXltNj8oAlQUcB-Ot0-B5obvRIcCLjbgoylcSxF5aVZfg/s400/tumblr_nrqm3kDomC1sft2nqo3_500.png" width="400"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hello, and welcome to 2016! I can see you're already incredibly excited to have one extra day added to your calendar in which to watch anime, bu- what's that you say? You somehow missed all of the anime of 2015 because you were in a coma/had a degree to do/got a life/someone called you "weeb trash" and made you cry/were living in a country with ludicrous internet restrictions/took a good long look at yourself/[insert some other terrible excuse here]? Well then, boy do I have the blog post for you!</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That's right, it's time for me to honour that hallowed tradition (that I've done once before) of giving you a snapshot of all the anime I watched that aired last year. It was a hell of a year for me - what with graduating, getting a job and going to Japan for the first time - but was it a hell of a year for anime? Initially when I was thinking back I couldn't muster up more than a couple of winners, but nor could I really distinguish between what aired in 2015 and what aired in 2014. Upon further inspection, whilst compiling the list of shows I had to include in this post, it turns out that it was actually a pretty decent year! Some very special shows and perhaps fewer awful ones (that I watched, anyway). You may remember the tier system from <a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/a-look-back-anime-of-2014.html">last year's post</a> - I'll be expanding this to a God/great/good/OK/bad tier system, because three tiers really doesn't leave a lot of wiggle room. Hopefully this might give you some indication of what is worth watching and what really, really isn't.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So without further ado, fasten yourselves in - you're in for a wild ride.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span></div>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2016/01/fading-memories-anime-of-2015.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-7989836625228134762015-03-01T11:14:00.000+00:002015-03-01T11:14:01.454+00:00A look back: The Anime of 2014<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl70rGE-YcOqQvJDMo_WcLhuUSMgvY19zUI8RuFyWNN0nmZAFr_kcJyEoEXhOQ7CychNIXeB0GHh9NgzwquxpJ943di919MLlC6Zmv6jDN51nHcZprnoA532L7aFGiCGq6b-E3qFI8mW4/s1600/untitled.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl70rGE-YcOqQvJDMo_WcLhuUSMgvY19zUI8RuFyWNN0nmZAFr_kcJyEoEXhOQ7CychNIXeB0GHh9NgzwquxpJ943di919MLlC6Zmv6jDN51nHcZprnoA532L7aFGiCGq6b-E3qFI8mW4/s1600/untitled.png" height="222" width="400"></a></div>
<br></div>
King of punctuality that I am, I find myself typing this piece up at the very end of February. But hey, at least it's more timely than my summary of Autumn 2013 first episodes! *pause for laughter*<br>
<br>
Inspired by my good friend <a href="https://supernizzle.wordpress.com/2015/01/09/anime-2014-round-up/">Ben's post</a>, I thought I would once again dust-off my writing hat and add some new content to this frankly depressing blog. A review of a whole year will be a first for me on here, with the closest precedent being my top 10 shows from 2011, but I'm always up for a challenge. As such, following Ben's example, I will provide my humble opinion on each of the series last year that I watched through to bitter completion. I'll also try to copy his ranking system in an attempt to force myself to make a solid judgement for once. I won't be commenting on shows that continued from the Autumn and are now about to reach their climax. Perhaps you might be encouraged to seek out or actively avoid some of the series mentioned here on the strength of my rhetoric, but I hope you might at least find it semi-entertaining to read.<br>
<br>
So as I sit here listening to an endless loop of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wh8FgsEtNQ">Flyers by BRADIO</a>, allow me to regale you with some words about Japanese cartoons and stuff. There are a lot of them so be prepared.<br>
<br>
<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2015/03/a-look-back-anime-of-2014.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-70647120072780300912013-07-10T21:44:00.000+01:002013-07-10T21:44:49.688+01:00Summer 2013: First episodes - part 3<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOl5U9F7Biv71yfQosDBmpLDXQnZpP1-AohIMlILqv0kRhX8dPkmZwfImGUzMeCStx_3FnwmQLR_vNC-jyEcaJBwFNpPHK7sdjbP85rcZvVVQiHSLYGTgFPOaPiJVsWHYttL1IBMydz0E/s1600/twgok2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOl5U9F7Biv71yfQosDBmpLDXQnZpP1-AohIMlILqv0kRhX8dPkmZwfImGUzMeCStx_3FnwmQLR_vNC-jyEcaJBwFNpPHK7sdjbP85rcZvVVQiHSLYGTgFPOaPiJVsWHYttL1IBMydz0E/s640/twgok2.png" width="640"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The final instalment of first episodes from the new season. Will there be any more keepers?</span></div>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2013/07/summer-2013-first-episodes-part-3.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-50450123162717959512013-07-08T17:58:00.000+01:002013-07-08T17:58:39.447+01:00Summer 2013: First episodes - part 2<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikuqsn-_hawXK277DKFguYb4FY2frjmZ40FBCKQc8idKNMcEd7y3GeNnMj34xjQkVpRY8PxbTsY2LJP4YiIIvt7ZfYv1kTnV2qzOFeAH439e0mxRsXM054vNbj6aB2E-N_gpAUcJ1hdeE/s1600/geneiwo2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikuqsn-_hawXK277DKFguYb4FY2frjmZ40FBCKQc8idKNMcEd7y3GeNnMj34xjQkVpRY8PxbTsY2LJP4YiIIvt7ZfYv1kTnV2qzOFeAH439e0mxRsXM054vNbj6aB2E-N_gpAUcJ1hdeE/s640/geneiwo2.png" width="640"></a></div>
<br></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Another set of first episodes have been weighed and measured! Hopefully you will find some of the below summaries and/or opinions helpful.</span></div>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2013/07/summer-2013-first-episodes-part-2.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-77616088856566158422013-07-03T22:10:00.000+01:002013-07-03T22:10:08.784+01:00Summer 2013: First episodes - part 1<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUkwEJIJLcbkYCkD9FX1DGGDDcYj6hfqq6yKVUTyYpHkXTPPI1c8q15ujaWgkbXr86Uxd3QQyAqG9GJFoy-gpKxamYj2TiG8RwSBMxI3J_KDFfk3FEnryxO1d7Uz4zWtCRw5pa7YZyR2o/s1600/free2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUkwEJIJLcbkYCkD9FX1DGGDDcYj6hfqq6yKVUTyYpHkXTPPI1c8q15ujaWgkbXr86Uxd3QQyAqG9GJFoy-gpKxamYj2TiG8RwSBMxI3J_KDFfk3FEnryxO1d7Uz4zWtCRw5pa7YZyR2o/s640/free2.png" width="640"></a></div>
<br></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Another season, another load of anime to watch. I haven't researched this season in advance at all thoroughly so I'm expecting a very mixed bag. I do have high hopes for a couple of the series I happen to know are coming however, so if only those ones are good and the rest are dross then at least I can get on with catching-up on my backlog...</span></div>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2013/07/summer-2013-first-episodes-part-1.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-64512958774712755432013-06-30T16:19:00.000+01:002013-06-30T16:21:22.640+01:00Spring 2013: Round-up<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEM9K6fMmViPHmpmCiUQ2aonyWDqI2FPw8Jt2hz-PspcQaA7WD_jSg_4XJ_LNaookRaULal4qeuouRbQcuTgGDM2Ij9GLUR8zRqiyZVv4fA_786osA21VfDAEjbQkLrPVJp9Te8y-krq0/s1280/diogo4d-hattori-shingeki-no-kyojin-03.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEM9K6fMmViPHmpmCiUQ2aonyWDqI2FPw8Jt2hz-PspcQaA7WD_jSg_4XJ_LNaookRaULal4qeuouRbQcuTgGDM2Ij9GLUR8zRqiyZVv4fA_786osA21VfDAEjbQkLrPVJp9Te8y-krq0/s640/diogo4d-hattori-shingeki-no-kyojin-03.png" width="640"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Well now, this has been an interesting season and no mistake. For me personally in that I've ended up dropping things I thought I would love and watching things I thought I would hate, and in general because it's impossible to ignore the internet's reaction to Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan (pictured above). Thus with absolutely no more ado, let's jump in.</span><br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2013/06/spring-2013-round-up.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-81013225886953362662013-04-11T17:18:00.000+01:002013-04-11T17:18:58.427+01:00Spring 2013: First episodes - part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSXe8scX0rrl0Ai2gTUzadgT3aot4rZsUDIjFJysgavUfHA8Lpkgg-QGojoLHJZ81mm28AcA02tTfgHjsLSLbuSYGxSLhXBzSdWk87kiGiJemXZhELVudF938fPKbO9d2ibcwFP4WjpXc/s1600/hataraku_maou_sama_01_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSXe8scX0rrl0Ai2gTUzadgT3aot4rZsUDIjFJysgavUfHA8Lpkgg-QGojoLHJZ81mm28AcA02tTfgHjsLSLbuSYGxSLhXBzSdWk87kiGiJemXZhELVudF938fPKbO9d2ibcwFP4WjpXc/s400/hataraku_maou_sama_01_2.jpg" width="400"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Let us continue with the round-up of first episodes from the new season! There's more quality in this part I'm pretty sure...</span></div>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2013/04/spring-2013-first-episodes-part-2.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-57774628453104677592013-04-10T16:53:00.000+01:002013-04-10T16:53:05.581+01:00Spring 2013: First episodes - part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd0gH9pS6CdXDUhxuh7Wlx4-A0pt9LmZoTC6bdjU3Ome_m_QnYxgzjiMD34-Ufa8eQ6rWix4RjOMsUJdPpw7lyMUcgMr3WoIYvqdqPL3qtW1WOQFSDR8e2Ve5Xi3xa4L7ZmAsOljiJUTs/s1600/Aku-no-Hana-1-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd0gH9pS6CdXDUhxuh7Wlx4-A0pt9LmZoTC6bdjU3Ome_m_QnYxgzjiMD34-Ufa8eQ6rWix4RjOMsUJdPpw7lyMUcgMr3WoIYvqdqPL3qtW1WOQFSDR8e2Ve5Xi3xa4L7ZmAsOljiJUTs/s400/Aku-no-Hana-1-1.jpg" width="400"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I have returned to deliver the good (and not so good) news about the anime that are starting this season! Little bit of fact spliced with a hefty load of opinion, hopefully giving some kind of indication as to what's worth watching this time 'round. As per usual I don't have prior experience with any of the series described, such as their respective manga or games. So without further ado, let us delve!</span></div>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2013/04/spring-2013-first-episodes-part-1.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-25846906593794911572012-12-30T01:18:00.000+00:002012-12-30T01:28:20.746+00:00The Anime of Autumn 2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc1aVMOiAXhUJMhhKZ-mEEq936zJOTz5GQPvwSQyeHs6VhePf4_6x1b-FTt0GWGuqULMcRF2TKXymZI2Ffj1iRp5mWl__TYRFENhENaNhcsoonce1t91KIsDzz1rMWo1EKt55dBQESQ5BD/s1600/bakuman-s3-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc1aVMOiAXhUJMhhKZ-mEEq936zJOTz5GQPvwSQyeHs6VhePf4_6x1b-FTt0GWGuqULMcRF2TKXymZI2Ffj1iRp5mWl__TYRFENhENaNhcsoonce1t91KIsDzz1rMWo1EKt55dBQESQ5BD/s400/bakuman-s3-11.jpg" width="400"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So in the wake of finally churning out another post in the form of the Kuroko no Basuke praise I put up yesterday it seemed only fair that I also do one of those little summary/reviewy things that I do for the Autumn 2012 season. I think this might be the first time that I've done this after a hefty portion of the shows have already finished airing... It's been a pretty decent season overall. Quite a few shows worth giving a watch if you've got the time. Sorry fans of the Summer season - you missed out this year.</span></div>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-anime-of-autumn-2012.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-63699655418186327002012-12-29T00:34:00.000+00:002012-12-30T01:25:36.934+00:00Kuroko no Basuke: A 10 on paper, a 100 in my heart<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://wanabrar.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Kuroko-no-Basuke.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://wanabrar.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Kuroko-no-Basuke.jpg" width="400"></a></div>
<br>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So a while back I did something fairly monumental. I upgraded my score for Kuroko no Basuke on MyAnimeList from a 9 to a 10. Why, you ask? Well that's what I'm about to tell you. Warning: hyperbole may be employed.</span><br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2012/12/kuroko-no-basuke-10-on-paper-100-in-my.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-31941912060622149442012-06-29T12:59:00.000+01:002012-06-30T07:56:26.092+01:00The Anime of Spring 2012 - Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://web.hi10anime.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Shirokuma-Cafe-01-Large-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://web.hi10anime.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Shirokuma-Cafe-01-Large-02.jpg" width="400"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In straight continuation from yesterday's post, and with absolutely no further ado, I continue with my summary of the Spring season 2012!</span></div>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2012/06/anime-of-spring-2012-part-2.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-10748054039134849662012-06-28T17:17:00.000+01:002012-06-28T17:17:55.816+01:00The Anime of Spring 2012 - Part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://metanorn.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Kuroko-no-Basuke-0029.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://metanorn.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Kuroko-no-Basuke-0029.jpg" width="400"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So at the end of the last post I made on here I signed off with "<span style="background-color: white;">Ah well, at least we have loads to look forward to next season! *looks at next season's line-up* </span><span style="background-color: white;">Well that's a shame. See you in Summer folks!" Oh how wrong I was to do that! Whilst I was right about the fact that I wouldn't be posting back on here until Summer (it is TECHNICALLY Summer after all), the reason is actually because I was too busy watching all the anime that Spring had to offer! So I bring you this season summary just as the first episodes of next season are starting to roll in.</span></span><br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2012/06/anime-of-spring-2012-part-1.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-30772064176117704472012-02-28T22:32:00.000+00:002012-02-28T22:32:54.366+00:00What's on right now?: The anime of Winter 2011/2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://onewdesign.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/2012-winter-anime-first-impressions-part-one-highschool-dxd-1-good-job.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="363" src="http://onewdesign.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/2012-winter-anime-first-impressions-part-one-highschool-dxd-1-good-job.jpg" width="640"></a></div><br>
Check it out y'all, there's a post on here again. I believe this blog is now an outlet for when I feel like doing some writing, so allow me to regale myself with a tale of the anime currently airing on TVs in Japan!<br>
<br>
Sorry to disappoint, but it's mainly a load of dross...<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2012/02/whats-on-right-now-anime-of-winter.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-39107097267176139112012-01-08T11:22:00.002+00:002012-01-15T23:00:33.264+00:00A look back: The Best Anime of 2011<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://media.animevice.com/uploads/0/4/211639-aria_super.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="287" src="http://media.animevice.com/uploads/0/4/211639-aria_super.png" width="400"></a></div><br>
The above is a decpiction of a scene from Hidan no Aria, one of the standout anime of last year.<br>
Loljk, it was god-awful. Needed a picture at the post header though.<br>
<br>
This past year's been a bit weird for me. Even ignoring random personal/life stuff, I mean just in terms of timekeeping and memory. The whole of 2011 seemed to pass by incredibly quickly in my mind, and I was reflecting recently that it had actually been a pretty poor year for an animeholic such as myself - presumably because of the abismal showing in this season just past. So I was surprised to learn, when I came to start making this post, that series which in my mind's eye were done with long before the start of 2011 actually fell into the confines of this list, i.e. they were from last year after all. More fool me. This was very welcome news though, as it widened the field sufficiently so that shows like Hidan no Aria warrant no further mention. Let's get on with it then, eh? What follows is a top 10 in no particular order:<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2012/01/look-back-best-anime-of-2011.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-49164050545083960732011-11-12T14:25:00.000+00:002011-11-12T14:25:10.910+00:00Summary post thing: Pretty much everything I'm watching/reading right now!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOgYoIAcaOuk7X42pp9EuhEVHxjJNhyphenhyphenJCRI1NLw23yuB_M73ifdOM0yAv0lW7C5j_oJXGPWd4ZxoA6Z7XDUQ7upY8hHgtVFy0Qd99kITGeoGpKQafDOOqLLKi6v-4AFQDkvfPlTMD5jzU/s1600/e250.009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOgYoIAcaOuk7X42pp9EuhEVHxjJNhyphenhyphenJCRI1NLw23yuB_M73ifdOM0yAv0lW7C5j_oJXGPWd4ZxoA6Z7XDUQ7upY8hHgtVFy0Qd99kITGeoGpKQafDOOqLLKi6v-4AFQDkvfPlTMD5jzU/s400/e250.009.jpg" width="400"></a></div><br>
So how about that university lark eh? I can tell you one thing for free, and that's that it's very very hard to find enough free time to <i>watch</i> any anime, let alone post about it on this here blog! Thankfully though (I suppose) there's just been a whole load of dross this season, and so it hasn't been too hard to stay on top of it with an episode here and there. Without further ado, then, here's what I've been watching, reading and stuff:<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2011/11/summary-post-thing-pretty-much.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-66974096527694677552011-10-28T16:27:00.000+01:002011-10-28T16:27:06.441+01:00Stumbled-upon: Makoto Shinkai films<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://rinerei.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/minitokyo-makoto-shinkai-scans_371291.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://rinerei.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/minitokyo-makoto-shinkai-scans_371291.jpg" width="400"></a></div><br>
So I was browsing through the recently added anime on Crunchyroll the other day, in one of my futile attempts to try and keep up with the current season, and I noticed that the three Makoto Shinkai works 'Voices of a Distant Star', 'The Place Promised in Our Early Days' and '5 Centimetres Per Second' were all up to watch for free for a limited time. As you may have gathered by now if you've read my blog before, I'm slightly <a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2011/08/speeddistancetime-5-centimetres-per.html">obsessed with the latter film</a> and so naturally sacrificed any social activity for the evening to give the other two a watch. First, summaries of them both (whilst trying not to give too much away).<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2011/10/stumbled-upon-makoto-shinkai-films.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-83560069264334149162011-10-15T15:16:00.000+01:002011-10-15T15:16:51.377+01:00Autumn 2011: Some more first episodes!I was much better organised when reviewing the first episodes from the summer season. I watched things as they came out, published everything at the same time, had notepad documents containing my thoughts etc. This time round not so much. This post contains the rest of the first episodes that I've seen since the last set, though for some of them it's been quite a while since I watched them and as such I may not remember them all too well. Anyway, let's get this over with!<br>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.animekon.com/uploads/2011/07/Boku-wa-Tomodachi-ga-Sukunai.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://www.animekon.com/uploads/2011/07/Boku-wa-Tomodachi-ga-Sukunai.jpg" width="400"></a></div><br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2011/10/autumn-2011-some-more-first-episodes.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-51709347962861177872011-10-09T00:57:00.000+01:002011-10-09T00:57:56.062+01:00First episode - Phi Brain: Kami no Puzzle<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://darklegends60mb.org/anime/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Phi-Brain-Kami-no-Puzzle-01_720p.mkv_snapshot_22.27_2011.10.03_16.17.45.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://darklegends60mb.org/anime/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Phi-Brain-Kami-no-Puzzle-01_720p.mkv_snapshot_22.27_2011.10.03_16.17.45.jpg" width="400"></a></div><br>
Imagine you find yourself in a parallel universe. Everything seems exactly the same to how you know it back home, except puzzles are suddenly the coolest thing the world - there are worshiped puzzle-solving celebrities, puzzle clubs at school, the whole shebang. That's pretty much the setting for this show, strange though it may sound.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2011/10/first-episode-phi-brain-kami-no-puzzle.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-70174236064882453362011-10-07T21:20:00.001+01:002011-10-15T14:36:51.892+01:00It's that time again already!: Some Autumn 2011 First Episodes (+ Steamboy and stuff)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.coolhunting.com/culture/assets/images/steamboy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="http://www.coolhunting.com/culture/assets/images/steamboy.jpg" width="400"></a></div><br>
It seems hard to believe that a new season is upon us already. Perhaps it's because I did so little with my life over the Summer period, but hey, here we are. Once again I haven't really delved into the previews, though a couple of titles sprung out at me. Same drill as last time I suppose, though these days I'm internet-impaired so I don't know what kind of rate I'm going to get through things alas. So, to get the ball rolling.....<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2011/10/its-that-time-again-already-some-autumn.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-2049188846116485172011-09-19T17:21:00.000+01:002011-09-19T17:21:00.512+01:00Why does it have to end?!: Usagi Drop<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://rinerei.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/commie-usagi-drop-01-654eb35f-mkv_snapshot_14-35_2011-07-08_23-11-39.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://rinerei.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/commie-usagi-drop-01-654eb35f-mkv_snapshot_14-35_2011-07-08_23-11-39.jpg" width="400"></a></div><br>
As I've ranted on about it multiple times, you may well know that Usagi Drop has probably been my favourite anime of this season due to its utterly pleasant demeanour, interesting themes and the simply watchable aura it emits. In case you're out of the loop, the series follows Daikichi - a thirty year old working man - who takes it upon himself to look after his own grandfather's illegitimate child, Rin. Putting the frankly weird origins of Rin aside, the show is primarily about Daikichi trying to do what he can to play happy families in order to do what's best for Rin, but is then also about how his own character progresses and what he discovers about himself and others as a result of entering the world of "parenthood".<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2011/09/why-does-it-have-to-end-usagi-drop.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-52658363686275597472011-09-12T22:48:00.000+01:002011-09-12T22:48:22.827+01:00A little of everything is better than a whole heap o' nothin'So in the absence of me making regular posts as of late (reasons to be explained) this post should outline pretty much everything that is happening in my life right now. It will be disappointingly short to accomplish such a task.<br>
<br>
Read on after this picture of Chewbacca dog:<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_43ZQLCSofL2DCy5omQjoLdJ0lM_s5x4BG8fI5Hf7HMAUrwZpDXMqoNLGpOO74HDBhAVfE0m-JcK7xHXftJ3FImzrP6ph9Ov02vC9IZd_66TpU38d5Ccb3KFBjil-r27zOWF_xDhakPY/s1600/246988_220566577974520_149131558451356_738642_7456857_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_43ZQLCSofL2DCy5omQjoLdJ0lM_s5x4BG8fI5Hf7HMAUrwZpDXMqoNLGpOO74HDBhAVfE0m-JcK7xHXftJ3FImzrP6ph9Ov02vC9IZd_66TpU38d5Ccb3KFBjil-r27zOWF_xDhakPY/s320/246988_220566577974520_149131558451356_738642_7456857_n.jpg" width="237"></a></div><br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2011/09/little-of-everything-is-better-than.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-85529697549886989842011-09-02T13:36:00.006+01:002011-09-02T22:07:47.066+01:00Deus ExI apologise for not posting lately, I spent the last weekend at the wedding of my mother and stepdad and then at Leeds Festival (which I plan to post something relevant to in the near future) and once I got back I went down to my dad's house for a few days. I got back on wednesday but there's been one problem - I've had no real internet. We've been switching internet and phone provider, and that means the phone line needs to be changed. This is taking longer than expected so I'm being forced to use a dongle, but speed and overly tight fair usage policies prevent me from my usual pastimes of playing video games on the internet and watching people play video games while talking at the same time. <br>
<br>
Granted, there are plenty of single-player games I could play, but as I just got an oversized new monitor and don't want to try and make my current graphics card try to cope with the increased resolutions I decided to stick to something that wouldn't put a strain on it, which turned out to be Deus Ex. <br>
<br>
I'm sure you've heard about Deus Ex: Human Revolution, which has just been released, but this is the game that came before (there was another game in between but it wasn't overly impressive). And it's damn awesome. Awesome enough to be voted 'Best PC game ever'. Twice. Years after its release in 2000. A game like that's gotta' be worth playing.<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2011/09/deus-ex.html#more">Read more »</a>Mashirafenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06870504160576321857noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8813704355144974915.post-43272599602786819242011-08-28T18:03:00.000+01:002011-08-28T18:03:01.141+01:00Avoiding Episodic Summaries: What I'm Watching<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.glassreflection.net/wp-content/gallery/summer-2011-week-two/mawaru-penguindrum-ep02-006.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://www.glassreflection.net/wp-content/gallery/summer-2011-week-two/mawaru-penguindrum-ep02-006.png" width="400"></a></div><br>
So here's one of what I assume shall be many little summaries of where I am in a season and what else is going down. Find out what I'm watching and what I make of it below...<br>
<a href="http://kongmingsays.blogspot.com/2011/08/avoiding-episodic-summaries-what-im.html#more">Read more »</a>Kongminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18059031732422457159noreply@blogger.com0