Not So Otaku

A small announcement

2012-01-12T16:27:00.003Z

Not so otaku is now on twitter! Look for @NotSoOtaku and follow me if your interested ^-^

My first romatic interest

2012-01-07T17:39:00.001Z

I have never really considered myself a romantic and I certainly never watched romantic films/TV but someone recommended the Da Capo series to me. Western ideas of romance range quite a bit;

America – Wise cracking banter then porn style sex

Britain – Bumberling endearing awkwardness then marriage

France – Sexual tension then passionate sex

I shall stop here before i offend anymore nations.

Of course these are just generalisations but I find them all very unrealistic, agreed modern times means that expose to these social expectations makes relationships like these more common but we didn’t all start out that way. The Japanese though I feel hit the nail on the head. I can remember the first time I ever asked a girl out, I was terrified. I was so nervous I could barely speak and when her friend asked me if I liked her I denied it point blank for some bizarre reason that is lost to me now. It is these earlier relationships that define who we are later in life that Da Capo focuses on.

Da Capo is not just a boy meets girl story though of course it has a love triangle (More of a square to be honest) to spice up the story. Jun'ichi is the male to which the harem revolves around, he lives alone with his sister Nemu al is quiet until Sakaru arrives and kisses Jun’ichi. From this a romantic adventure explodes. The romance in this story though is not only influenced by the people within it, there is a magical aspect as well giving Da Capo a fantasy sort of edge.

When watching this I couldn’t believe how engaging the story was, as I said before romance was not my thing I never really related to it. But after watching this I did become mildly addicted to anime romances, even if you not that interested in romance though this anime has a good story line with plenty of twists and turns. It may not be one of my favourite anime or a unique piece of genius but I would defiantly recommend it as it is worth a watch.

My all time favourite

2012-01-05T02:05:00.004Z

The first anime i ever watched was Lupin III and i have loved it ever since. I first came across it one day whilst on holiday in Italy when i was stuck in on a rainy day *sigh*. But looking back now I'm glad it happened i would have probably never gotten into anime otherwise, whether this was good for me in the long term is another debate. Even though it was in Italian, on Rai Duo i believe, i found it some how captivating. As soon as i had returned home i looked it up immediately and have been addicted ever since.

Two of my other guilty pleasures are two very English films, the James Bond and Carry On franchise. I grew up with the suave, cool nature of Mr. Bond and the cheeky, saucy antics of Sid James & co. I believe that why i fell in love with Lupin straight away, it is the amalgamation of my two childhood favourites. Lupin is portrayed as a fool predominantly, a good natured one though with a Robin Hood aspect but you soon realise this is all an act. He has a mind as brilliant as any (even though he certainly is an eccentric) and his ideas, though genius, end up usually comical or absurd but always successful.

The rest of the cast provides a nice balance you have Jigen, Lupin's right hand man, is highly skilled with all types of firearms but has a particular favourite a Smith & Wesson Model 19. He is a much more serious character than Lupin but still has plenty of wise cracks in him.

Goemon is samurai and a skilled one at that, he is most proficient with his beloved sword Zantetsu. He isn't as close to Lupin as Jigen and has been know to side against him in many of their adventures but though out the series their relationship becomes stronger.

Fujiko is the final member of the gang, she is some what of a problem for Lupin who is head over heels in love with her. She constantly plays hard to get with him, teasing him and running of with other men. But our hero Lupin always comes in at the last minute and saves this damsel in distress. No matter how much she pretends her feelings are clear.

Finally you have good old Inspector Zenigata, Lupins nemisis (Well kind of). He has an Inspector Clouseau aspect about him as well as an endearing personality. His task in life is to bring Lupin to justice but he has a lot of respect for him. In all of the Lupin animation he never wants any harm to come to Lupin. They share a love hate relationship, Lupin even refers to him as Pops.

If this anime sounds like your thing i would recommend watching the series from the start, they are fairly hard to come by as they are quite old now but it is worth it. If you don't want to waste time though i would suggest Lupin the 3rd: First Contact, it provides a good character introduction if you don't want to just jump into the series.

Well i hope you've enjoyed my first post and found it useful. If you have any question or opinions please comment i will be glad to read the all. ^_^

My First Post

2012-01-05T00:44:00.001Z

Welcome! =D

Thanks for looking at my blog. I have to admit it is the first time i have ever done anything like this so forgive any future faux pas i might make.

Basically i decided to do this as i am obsessed with anime and i wanted to share my opinions on some my favourites with all the other anime fans out there. I always spend alot of time trying to find new anime series, as i am a westerner with very little knowledge of the history of anime and manga, I tend to just watch what ever sounds interesting from the synopsis. I plan to blog about my past loves, present pleasures and future potentials.