Posts by Celeste

U mad, bro? Fujoshis, Swimming Anime and Kyoto Animation

by Celeste · April 26, 2013 · 16 · 14

When I think about Free!, known and loved by all of tumblr and the internet as Swimming Anime, I find myself in a bit of a dreamlike haze.

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All good dreamers pass this way

by Celeste · April 11, 2013 · 6 · 2

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All these years, I wanted K-On! to prove me right. I wanted it to be a shitty anime about cute girls doing cute things. I wanted to hold myself above it and I wanted you all to point and look and say “Look at those folks over at Bateszi Anime Blog, they have such good fucking taste, they’d never blog about K-On! because it’s moe-moe shit!”

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Because her soul is enslaved to a goddess; Oniisama E

by Celeste · February 8, 2013 · 4 · 6

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By all means, Oniisama E, translating as ”Dear Brother”, is unassuming in premise. However, pegging Oniisama E as anything other than a landmark production would be short-sighted. Ikeda Rioyko’a original manga was penned in the 1970s, and yet the series moves through triggering subjects like terminal illness, suicide, incest, homosexuality, and drug use without batting an eyelid.

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Say I love you or they won’t want you; sexual capital in Sukitte Ii Na Yo

by Celeste · November 4, 2012 · 5 · 0

 

I read quite a bit of shoujo manga. As such, I was quite pleased to see that Sukitte Ii Na Yo  received an anime adaption this fall.  It’s an interesting one, because, while stubbornly about teenagers’ romantic involvements, it really isn’t. If you’re watching Sukitte Ii Na Yo, or if you’ve written it off as ‘just another shoujo show’, you’re missing the point. Sukitte Ii Na Yo is an examination of sexual capital, disguised as a shoujo series.

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Life imitates art: the TED Prize

by Celeste · August 22, 2012 · 1 · 0

In a somewhat odd series of events, the TED prize (associated with the eponymous talk-producing website, naturally) – normally $100,000 USD has increased to a total sum of $1,000,000. Moreover, the process by which the prize is awarded has changed slightly. To quote the organization’s blog post:

“But, while historically the prize has been awarded to individuals who then made a wish, this year articulating the big wish is done up front, with the idea getting heavy weight in the selection process.”

Remind you of anything? It’s is eerily close to the premise of Eden of the East.

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Wanderlust girls: The manga of Tsuruta Kenji

by Celeste · August 5, 2012 · 5 · 0

Have you ever travelled, my friends? Have you ever packed your bags, left home, returning months later? Or not at all? With a nervousness that travels from the soles of your feet to the soles of your feet to the whites of your eyes, borded a plane, feeling as if every atom in your body was quivering? I have. Tsuruta Kenji’s protagonists – wandering girls – have as well.

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But I’ll be Peter Pan forever: To Aru Majutsu no Index and I

by Celeste · January 29, 2012 · 12 · 0

It’s a common story. A Saturday night, no plans. What do I do? Seek out a new anime to watch, of course.

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