my humble opinion on 'Cherry Project' by Takeuchi Naoko

here you can see the name of the source I got the manga from

Being honest with myself made me so happy. I was constantly repeating myself I do not need to push myself anymore, I became confident and calm, thinking I shall never again lie to myself, and allowing myself to do anything I want

I let myself listen to the music I want, read the books and manga I want, watch anime, doramas and movies that I want, but more importantly I let myself drop those I do not want to go on reading/watching/listening to. It felt so pleasant, to be free…

And still, there are things I cannot drop. And one of them is ‘Cherry project’ by Takeuchi-sensei

Admiring her style and her manner was a usual thing to do. Not only BSSM, but her one shots and short stories were always great examples of both graphics and storytelling

Plot

And then there comes ‘Cherry project’. I was completely aware I would face the usual (usual for Naoko-sensei, for shoujo in particular and for anime/manga in general) extroverted and active girl and a cold ‘unapproachable’ guy, usual everyday life and usual path to happiness, full of obstacles and tasks. What I faced was much more awful than I could predict

First, the usual girl I was waiting to see was so utterly usual that she never paid back for being slapped on her cheek. Is it ok to be hit and say nothing but ‘why did she lecture me?’ Is it ok for a guy to see one girl assaulting another and say nothing and do nothing?

Then the usual girl picks up the challenge brought for her, agreeing to become a pro single skater ONLY to beat the other one. Is it a merit when someone makes fun of you and you buy it?

Then the usual guy leaves the usual girl. And as usual, he has a deep explanation for that. She only wants to be with him, to the extent she even wants to quit sports when he is not by her side, but NO, he understands better what she needs. He is a pro not only in skating, but in helping other people as well. And the best way to help another person is to leave him/her alone and create as much obstacles for him as possible, so that he fight on his own and becomes strong, not caring for the fact ‘tis rather harsh. Is it the ideal image of a man, to treat his most important people harshly?

Then we have a light in the end of a long tunnel, the light called ‘another guy’ who represents another kind of personality. And the moment when I already start admiring him for his personality, his faith in the girl, she realizes ‘he is not the one’ – and throw a stone in me if the author did not mean that we should realize it as well. Is it wrong to be so caring and supporting?

And what the usual guy does is to add more tension and set up a huge competition instead of the one that started by the foolish behaviour of two girls. Is it ok to use innocent people for reaching one’s own goals, moreover being fully conscious of this fact?

Well, he only cared for his dream. And the girl was completely ok with it, following his instructions as a marionette. He trains her, she does what he says. He leaves her, she wants to quit, then he tells her to continue, and she continues. He places a condition to follow if she wants to pair with him, and she agrees. Suddenly he realizes the girl’s merits (in 15^th chapter out of 16… what a nice speed) and returns closer to her, and she gladly accepts. Remember that the girl knew nothing of the guy’s motives, she simply believed in him. And the guy never explained her, to say nothing of trying to say he was sorry. He simply came to her taking it for granted that she was doing all that stuff for his sake, and moreover, that she was still waiting for him to come. Erm… Is it the oriental ideal of a woman?

Then we have the last chapter when suddenly all the problems vanish. The same desire to show the guy her skills which was preventing the girl’s skating suddenly turns into an advantage. The process of inheriting father’s business no longer prevents from going on skating. The spirit of rivalry of the other girl turns into ‘I knew from the beginning I would lose’. Are we supposed to take these absolutely irrelevant miracles as they are?

Well, I should not forget to mention a one shot ‘Dream Park de Mattete’ which is a prequel to the main story. It tells us about the guy meeting another girl long before he met the girl from the main series, but the girl chose to keep dancing. Are we supposed to be touched by such a messy story?

And all the weird and stupid stuff with the same nice, gentle lines of Naoko-sensei’s graphics. The same ones that I saw in other mangas of hers… How come???

conclusion

Growing up is a complicated process. Sometimes you lay your hands on rare albums of a singer whose song you were fond of, and realize the albums are not as great as the only song you heard. Sometimes you see your favourite Takarasienne collecting cards from her fans, and you see her face expression is not as friendly and delighted, as it seemed to be on stage. Sometimes you let yourself read manga of your favourite mangaka which you were not daring to read expecting it to be beyond all limits of an awesomeness, and it proves to be even worse than a one shot of an amateur. And then you realize there are disappointments in your life. Even my Mom knows this saying – shit happens

Well, I should thank Naoko-sensei for this piece. It taught me that a mangaka can also make mistakes, can be unable to think properly of a plot and sacrifice all his/her logic for an opportunity to draw a lot of cute ‘shots’ of girls skating

my humble opinion on 'Pretear' ~ both anime and manga

Should I not admit that ‘tis completely childish and plain? Oh, should I not face the truth?

Still, I do not care a single bit. Yes, it might be an unsuitable thing to watch when you are 20 years old, and ‘tis not as if I never watched such things, so I cannot even explain myself by trying to prove I was only going to ‘broaden m horizons’. I know many seiyuus as well as the director and the studio, so it would not go that easy if I said I was going to risk and try something new

Fascinating!

So simple and still so deep, so unsophisticated, and still so touching…

Yes, completely unsuitable for an adult! And I am not one, by the way ^_~

I was watching the series as if I were still a 10 years old girl. You know, the director was the same one who created BSSM and Aria. The tricks and plot developments were the same as in the 90s mahout-shoujos. The characters, the clothing, the lines and intonations, everything was for little girls who still believe in miracles, but everything was so sincere and so serious…

The music

was splendid as well. I missed so much, those cute melodies for everyday life, those funny ones for comedy episodes, those heroic ones for henshin and battles, those sad ones for tragic moments… I am in love with the OST, completely

The seiyuus

as well. Some of them were the ones I already knew very well, some were the new for me, but all of them had completely standard voices for a shoujo, but that ‘standardness’ was not boring, ‘twas what I would call ‘classics’. Yep, no surprises, but great quality instead. For example, Hayate’s seiyuu was Toriumi-san, who voiced Lantis, and Himeno’s voice sounded quite close to that of Hikaru, especially in the ending song. I believe ‘tis not a coincidence ^.^

the manga

was one of the most strange things I have ever read. Chapters 1-16 were marvellous and I enjoyed them every second I was reading, as the plot was quite different, and a lot of new developments were present, and in general the story seemed more… profound?

Then comes the 17^th chapter and brings a complete mess into the stable pace of the manga. Though we have serious matters which were not present in the anime, we simply have no time to enjoy or to feel sad about them. Neither the death of one of the knights, nor the personal feelings of the main characters, including both Himeno’s family and Takako, and Sasame as well, nothing had the effect of the sharp pain as if a knife was stabbed into your heart, which was in the anime. The romantic scenes from the anime were absent as well, and though we had some substitutes in the beginning and in the middle which were very promising, the finishing chapters of manga lacked them greatly. Suddenly we have a huge disaster, but only 2 pages to understand it. We have romance problems, but only a few lines to guess about that. We have a complicated family relationship, but only several times ‘tis mentioned. Suddenly we face death, despair, tears, rescuing and resurrection, but…  o____O only in two chapters???

Remember that manga was the original piece, and everything we have in the anime is ‘added’, and anime is the ‘improved’ version of the manga. Therefore, I should admit I was quite happy to see the messy ending being changed into a normal shoujo finale, with morals, with love winning over hate, with everyone safe and sound and happy and friendly and loving and caring, and what is the most important – every adjective I used right now is completely explainable and realistic, under the circumstances provided in the anime. The manga chapters 17-19 were unfortunately devoid of that kind of basis… which was a huge disappointment

Well, we can assume the authors were in a hurry or something prevented them from following the normal idea to the very end… at least, I hope so

Still, the graphics

was not as if we could complain about it. The lines and the colouring were very professional, the style looking somewhat of a CLAMPish, but different and recognizable, at the same time

unfortunately, HAL faced some obvious problems with graphics at the period, so the anime graphics was a complete opposite, just a failure. I wonder how HAL managed to find or train its artists in such a short period of time before they created Aria, because Aria was perfect…

conclusion

like a balm to the soul, tired of pop and longing for classics. I am sad about the fact I have already finished it...

p. s.
I was wondering for a long time whether Kei was voiced by a female seiyuu or not... well, some changes in the way characters look are good to make anime different from manga and thus, interesting... but this change o___O

my humble opinion on 'transparent world' by Fujiwara Hiro

after reading 'kaichou' I felt an urge to get acquainted with the style of Fujiwara-sensei

her graphics I consider great, and the most important point here is that it looks a little slipshod, almost like that of an amateur, but nevertheless 'tis a style, not the lack of it which gives such an impression

another point I appreciate greatly is that we can see progress, not regress as the chapters of 'kaichou' increase in numbers, unlike Watsuki-sensei whose style became so simplyfied and ugly that most 'Kenshin' fans complained about this fact and wished the style stayed as 'twas in the beginning

my delight with reading 'kaichou' was so great that I decided to search for more. unfortunately, there is only one oneshot available in the web (am I mistaken? are there any other?), so my pleasure did not last for long, but what a pleasure 'twas!

'transparent world' is that kind of oneshots which present a short slice of life, but express the idea greatly. though I am not fan of sad stories like this, I was able to read it to the end, and I liked it much more than a happy-ending 'tsuki no shippo' which I finished this week (BTW I did not even feel like reading the prequel of it)

the idea we have this time is simple and trite, and the manga tells us how we should appreciate the life we have and live it to the fullest, spending our time in joy of everyday activities, the explanation of this being offered as a boy who died just 5 days before his birthday and stayed in this world as a ghost because he was so determined to live until the birthday comes. I would never be touched by such a simple plot if not for the style I am speaking of so frequently. and the style was present, 'twas almost tangible there

at the same time, I feel sorry for being unable to explain what I mean by 'style' this time. no sudden turns in the storyline, no unexpected lines of the characters, no special surprises or whatever, only the fact that every frame there was full of deep feelings and made me cry a little in the end

conclusion

the only fact I can state for sure is that among all the oneshots (or not oneshots) full of fanservice and cheap tricks to please the readers this one is the 'real' one and worthy of reading

my humble opinion on erica - a disappointment again

she was the most interesting and unique among those on 'return to zero' story concept album produced by Aikawa-san (is it not? I thought it to be...)

still she turned out to be just another jpop cute girl. neither her makeup not her rockish songs on the album gave the right impression about who she is

who she is you can easily see on her website

http://auroraerica.jp/index.html

both her vocal and her energy were lost. wasted, to be honest. not a single line of the lyrics, nor a single phrase of the melody did touch me among her own songs

can anybody explain me how she can be that great in her 'kakureta chizu' and 'brand new blue sky' when she is such a trifle in her own discography? awful. awful. awful

well... perhaps 'twas the composer who wrote those songs who is great and deserves my attention for real. anybody knows the composer??? tell me!

*throws erica's name into the trash can*

my humble opinion on 'Tail of the moon' by Rinko Ueda

the reason to start reading was that I just saw some scans somewhere in the web and judgung by the shape of eyes, nose and lashes I decided the graphics to be that of the 'old school'

I was completely wrong but 'twas already too late to drop so I decided to read the manga to the end

it has just some more than 100 chapters so the task seemes to be an easy one for me. however, I was wrong again

the manga is full of fanservice and cliches, but the author was so aware of it that the manner of storytelling already was enough to understand that the author herself was not very serious about it

well, of course we were doomed to see an inevitable 'happily ever after' in the end, and I am not going to discuss why shoujo manga ends like this

however, I should mention some other points

the plot and characters

the first one third was very good, full of jokes and funny situations, but the closer to the half, the more I was getting tired. the plot was gaining something that was meant to be 'seriousness' if this word can even be applied to such a piece and the story was more and more complicating. I was also realizing more and more distinctively that I am no longer sympathyzing with the main characters, as their relationship, and more importantly, the probable further developments did not promise anything very unique or intersting, at least

instead, I found my pleasure in following the stories of supporting characters. well, to be honest, they were not 'supporting' every time, but they were not the mainm, or even 'minor' ones

the first one whom I liked was Yuuri. she is not the type of girls I like but among all the characters she seemes at least to be just a little interesting, especially when she started to fall for Goemon and I started to feel sorry for her, because in shoujo all the males are obligatory to love the main female only, no matter how clumsy or irresponsible she might be

the second one was Yukimaru. oh yes, I was surprised myself, that I liked such a feminine guy, but well, I liked Nuriko, whose case was a way worse. for the reason I already mentioned, I could not enjoy him to the end, when he reappeared in the third part of the manga, but at least he saved me from complete boredom by appearing with his cute face and different funny expressions on it

and Mamezou, of course, was a great delight of mine, as he was just the necessary kawaii element to make me smile when nothing else interested me

of course we should face a huge drama somewhere close to the end, and of course we should see the main characters growing a little older and getting serious. this time, the change happens within a year and all of a sudden. well, I know there were historical, political, psycological reasons why Iga was destroyed, but bear in mind that the reason 'author needs this' always stands above them

the happy end was just as it is supposed to be. as for me, this is the happy end I hate to see. everybody getting so calm and passionless, so utterly boring that I almost regret that the time of heroic deeds has passed. 'tis not that I am against peaceful times, I am only happy when I see wars ending and death withdrawing, but I am against the peaceful times to be portrayed in such a way that it has no charm, no meaning and no bright colours

the graphics

also changed a lot towards the end. the most strange thing is that the girls started looking if not ugly, then somewhat deprived of their beauty, which was so peculiar in the beginning. vice versa, the men were more and more handsome, their eyes, lashes, brows, lips, when their faces were drawn in a big frame, were beautiful

still, that does not mean I like the graphics a lot. while there are some pictures I liked, I would not put the style among my favourites. sometimes 'twas just too... refined? well, I am in no position to complain about refined style, as there are lots of other mangakas who draw much more refined picures, including my goddess Naoko-sensei. however, Ueda's style was sometimes making the effect opposite to what it was meant to, as it looked like 'too perfect' without even traces of human hand that had drawn the lines. I prefer seeing some labour put into works, eh?

recommendations

perfect for young girls, and suitable for those who appreciate sense of humour - but only the first half of it

lyrics translation! - 'hikari' by Saeko Chiba

光　(hikari) by 千葉さえ子 (Chiba Saeko)

one of my favourite songs among what I have ever heard. tender and sad, and the lyrics is so touching, and Saeko-chan's voice is also one of the most recognizable and outstanding... her vibration and her intonations are really one of the best

Japanese

涙隠した瞳であなたはどこへゆく

遠ざかる夢の答え探す旅人

抱きしめて届かなくてだけどその胸に

ぬくもりを少しだけ分けてあげたい

ここに私はいるからずっと

振り返らない旅路をあなたが行くのなら

私はいつもあなたを追いかける風

どこまでも

冬枯れた町の中にあなたの微笑みが

いつも確かな光を届けてくれる

強すぎて分け合えない寂しさにいつか

慰めの一滴が届くようにと

ここに私はいるからずっと

振り返らない二人はさまよいの果てに

光と風の世界を作りはじいめる

手をとって

translation

where do you go hiding tears in your eyes

a traveller searching for a dream that runs faraway

though embracing, cannot reach you, but with your heart

I want to share just a little warmth

as I shall be here always

if you go for a journey without looking back

I shall always be the wind that chases you

wherever

in a wintry desolated town your smile

always brings definite light

to the loneliness that is too strong to be shared

someday will a single tear of consolation reach

as I shall be here always

in the end of their wandering the two who don't look back

will start to create a world of light and wind

holding hands

romaji

namida kakushita hitomi de anata wa doko e yuku

toozakaru yume no kotae sagasu tabibito

dakishimete todokanakute dakedo sono mune ni

nukumori o sukoshi dake wakete agetai

koko ni watashi wa iru kara zutto

furikaeranai tabiji o anata wa yuku no nara

watashi wa itsu mo anata o oikakeru kaze

doko made mo

fuyugareta machi no naka ni anata no hohoemi ga

itsu mo tashika na hikari o todokete kureru

tsuyosugite wakeaenai samishisa ni itsu ka

nagusame no hitoshizuku ga todoku you ni to

koko ni watashi wa iru kara zutto

furikaeranai futari wa samayoi no hate ni

hikari to kaze no sekai o tsukurihajimeru

te o totte

congrats! - to Ryuu-sama, Reika-sama ...and Asumi-sama??? O____O

I am an unfortunate person. in the times when the most dramatic changes occur I have no time to check the Zuka-related websites at once and I miss some important news
this time there are s lot of things I should feel happy about

first, my dream has come true and Masao finally reached the Top

second, I was completely right when I predicted that Reika-chan would become Top Musumeyaku. I only regret I did not wright down my thoughts as I was always thinking there was still plenty of time to do that. now the fact that I predicted it sounds as if I am lying just to show off. well, at least I know I am not

and third, Mirio did not leave Moon

and I am not happy. I am not happy at all.....

yes, I was waiting for this to happen, and I was praying constantly for this to happen... until one perfectly clear day when out of the blue there appeared a thought in my head...

those who become Tops, have only a few years left to play in Takarazuka. it means, even if your beloved sienna becomes a Top, you cannot be that happy, because all that is left for you to struggle hard to get to see as much of her performances as you can

and I cannot be happy when I realize there are just a few perfomances left for Ryuu-sama, and what is even more important, for Asumi-sama as well! in other words, I would probably have to face them both leaving if not together, then during a short period of time

oh, this conclusion seems to have no basis. excuse me...

WTH with the 'demi-top'??? >_____<

well, 'tis not that I am very surprised. Asumi-sama was so close to nibante Ryuu-sama that they cannot be separated even when they move one step forward. therefore, though Asumi-sama will for sure look like nibante in the parade, she would switch with Ryuu-sama and play the lead

as for Reika-chan, I am perfectly calm about her becoming the Top. 'tis a little bit strange that she spent 2 years as an otokoyaku and only 1 year after she swithced has passed, but she received 3 leads, and that would be enough. I should admit, she is one of the youngest Top Musumeyaku so far, is she not?

so, three lovely actresses as Tops...

and everything is so promising, everything is so great!

and I am not happy

my humble opinion on Yoko Ueno

having listened to her collaboration with Masumi Itou on Haibane OST I decided they are both wonderful, having great voices and perfect style

the next song by Yoko was the Soukou no Strain OP theme - 'message'. the song was so beautiful that I listened to it without stopping and started to sing it by myself

inspired with those ones, I was determined to download Yoko's discography

after I finally laid my hands on several albums, there was no limit to my joy

bad points

this joy did not last for long, though

why? I am a huge fan of new age, ethereal sound and unique compositions!

this was too much even for me. the music proved to be just TOO ethereal and almost faceless. 'twas especially difficult to listen to it in the evening when I am usually active and busy. the songs made me either sleepy or simply I felt dizzy 

well, those songs would be completely suitable for Haibane's atmosphere, or something like that. however, they are not very listenable (I am a great inventor of words) when taken separately from some kind of video

the good points

there should be some, eh?

well, there are some songs with ethnic feeling about them, involving absolutely gorgeous instruments, both acustic (lots of violin, guitar, drums, piano) and synthesiser

and the voice of Yoko-sama is always beyond all expectations

conclusion!

I would prefer her singing more emotional songs with more feelings conveyed... as for now, she seems to be wasting her talent, her voice, and her poetry abilities - oh yes, she writes some lyrics herself
p. s.
there appeared to exist a song called 'Asia no Hana' by Zabadack - a band where Ueno is a member. and thtt particular song was mixed by Susumu-sama later. oh, am I not great when I recognized some corellation between the styles of their works while listening to Ueno's 'Tokyo Humming'?

my humble opinion on Maaya's works

let me be honest, I never loved her very much. listening closely to her works did not change my opinion very much, even though I anticipated it could

first, I was surprised greatly when I heard 'empty the pocket' from Escaflowne on her very first album. though I was aware the song is Kanno-sama's work, I did not know Maaya had already become Kanno-sama's pet then. therefore, I never knew 'twas Maaya's voice I was listening to some 5 years ago

however, apart from famous Escaflowne songs, my favourite being 'kaze ga fuku hi' and 'yakusoku wa iranai', the others did not present anything unique or interesting

the only ones I can highlight are those from 'easy listening' album and 'getsuyou no asa'. well, RaXephon osts are also good, not superb, but good at least

considering her voice... the only thing that makes me interested is - how does Maaya manage to sound so differently? sometimes she sings softly and her voice is so touching, but sometimes she sings like billions of other young girls in Japan... and I am left with the expression like o____O

the other fact I should state is that sometimes even Kanno-sama's works did not make Maaya an outstanding singer. I could not imagine Kanno-Maaya collaboration can be that boring...

well, the only thing I have to add does not concern Maaya... Steve Conte, simply great. no disappointments, no regret about hearing his voice... *______*

BTW, simultaneously with Steve singing in the chorus of 'The Garden of Everything' we can hear Maaya humming 'Fly away on the wings of the wind' from 'Prince Igor' opera

my humble opinion on 'Bartender' (Bartenders, to be precise) - and some thoughts on manga in the whole

having finished the anime, I decided to watch the dorama, which promised to be quite different and thus, interesting. moreover, my lovely Shihori-san as Miwa was surely to add more humour and cuteness to the series

the plot and actors

I was not mistaken when thinking this way, but what puzzled me was the personality of Sasakura himself. not only he was more open and careless, he was simply another type. I cannot say he became less mature or unpleasant, but he no longer gave the impression of that caring person whom one can rely on. other characters were quite different as well, and I was constantly wondering which is the imagination of the creators, and which is the same as in the original

well, as for Sasakura's rival, perhaps 'twas good to substitute the original one for a younger boy, played by Kaneko Nobuaki, moreover. that made the character look funny like a real 'villain' with very, VERY simply portrayed resemblance of a tension on his face throughout the whole series. what was much better is his face when he was almost crying out of sadness or of joy (and there were two moment like that, !beware of spoliers! when he lost his girlfriend and when we got the position of the hotel's bartender finally)

Shihori was Shihori, same as usual (well, my 'usual' is the way she behaved in a movie and another dorama, that is all I have watched with her...). what a pity, that Shihori also created another Miwa, different from her anime and manga image. Shihori was great, but that was not the Miwa that should have been there

Takenaka Naoto-san left no particular impression, which was disappointing. but Tsugawa Masahiko was very credible in his grandpa image

nothing particular about the music

I do not remember even a single melody from the background (were there any?), and the ending by Arashi... is an ending by Arashi.'tis a dorama, never ask for anything outstanding in such a case...

as for manga itself
it has no music and no acting, so 'tis a little bit easier to write a 'review', but this time manga has other things to compensate

as for the graphics

I can understand finally that men-mangakas are great. though I am usually fascinated with the light style of shoujo-manga writing women-mangakas style (is it too difficult to understand what I am trying to say?) I should admit there are special charming points about the men style as well

I might be wrong as my experience is not that great, but the style of women-mangakas is usually quite different from that of men. I am not trying to say men cannot draw some sophisticated details, but frills, small objects, lightness, etc. is not their speciality. instead, they prefer a clear style, looking very real no matter what they draw, be it a thing that exists only in a fantastic world they create or a usual element of clothing. while women are apt to decorate everything they draw, men pay more attention to create a fully comprehensible composition and follow a certain concept, which means again drawing objects that look real. well, it turns out that women draw the real world as if it were a fairy tale, and men drawing a fantasy as if it were a real world. I am starting to doubt if there is any sense in what I have said, but I hope my honourable guests will understand me

this time we have a perfect men style in 'Bartender' and I loved all the heavy lines of the characters' faces, clothes and elements of furniture which were just as if I was myself within the picture. I should say the graphics in 'Bartender' makes the impression of a highly professional one

however, the plot was a huge disappointment. the image of the dorama Sasakura proved to be closer to that of the manga one, and though I am not against some jokes about Sasakura's lack of money or appetite or characters saying mean things to each other sometimes, there was a subconscious feeling within me which spoiled the whole atmosphere. the same Sasakura with the same striving to comfort people's souls turned into an arrogant and captious person who was never letting the chance slip away to show off and say something presumably cool

at least 'tis what he seemed to end up doing in the last chapters of manga (the translated ones, I mean)

I am especially surprised that the reaction of the other characters was just the way it should be - they got angry and shouted on him, the same as we do in the real life. this means, the authors were fully aware that such behaviour is not really appreciated by the other people, and would not be appreciated by the readers as well. still, they went on calling him 'a glass of God' and presenting him as a kind of ideal... in mu humble opinion, if a person is really determined to find a key to every soul, 'tis not only his task to find the hidden thoughts of a person, but also to find a way how to help him without being that noisy poser who literally pissed me off several times - especially when Miwa, his fellow bartender Kyoko and some other people were involved

another thing that surprised me is the episode when 'tis revealed that Sasakura is thinking himself to be responsible for a customer's death. 'tis cool that Sasakura turns out to be that sensitive and still able to hide his feelings behind a smile, but the words of his sempai never left my head. he did say to Miwa that she could bring Sasakura to that bar so that someday he would begin to trust her. and in the end he did not. well, I was not hoping he would give vent to his emotions just like that, but I was hoping he would at least appreciate Miwa's concern for him. to be precise, I was hoping for him to change just a little to become more human and understanding... but he did not. he stayed an almost perfect bartender able to teach others how to live - and nothing more

in the end I was reading a manga with the same story every time - a person with a problem, Sasakura telling him a story of a cocktail and explaining the recipe at the same time, then the face of a surprised and/or happy customer and some words in the end of the chapter to summarize the idea. and everything evolves around Sasakura who turned into a humanless form with determination fading away and words like 'I want to find 100 recipes to heal 100 people's sadness' were no longer credible for me

I only hope that there would be some change further in the plot so that I could enjoy a story which is touching as strongly as its graphics is

the second day of the performance is important as well...

it turned out to be! this is what I think, at least, after reading that those who are the happy ones able to go to Takarazuka Grand Theatre performance today also get an mini-interview and stage greeting from Kiriya-sama after the performance, and a chance to receive an autograph during the break
well... there should be lucky people on the Earth, eh?

a marathon named 'Edward VIII / Misty Station' has started

today is the opening day. just for you to understand

two thousand and five hundred people have watched the performance

two thousand and five hundred people were able to see what I yearn to see, to feel what I yearn to feel, to be there where I want to be more than anything else

what can I say...

congratulations with the beginning of an end...

there should be a line drawn between pride and arrogance... am I wrong?

'tis very funny to see such high-flown talk about 'font manners' and, more importantly, the prohibition for foreigners to use the font - oh yes, they are uncivilized barbarians, when the prohibition itself is stated like this

happy birthday! - to Aoki-san

somehow I almost missed her birthday (wow, how unexpected for me... >___<) but 'tis still 31st in Japan so I am not late according to the Japanese time... ^^`