Hourou Musuko

Hourou Musuko

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Because I’m male, I am able to tolerate transsexuality of the female kind, but definitely not of my own gender. I don’t think I can stomach male femininity (read: traps) if it were the main theme of an anime, moreso in any other kind of entertainment medium. As a result, I was initially wary of Hourou Musuko because of my misguided thoughts of it being an anime with “gayness”. I was indeed hugely misguided. Beneath that veil of crossdressing weirdness, it actually has a heartwarming coming of age story about kids merely trying to grow up and explore their sexuality. And it is absolutely wonderful.
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Dear Kagami 0.5: Hourou Otoko


Roses are red, violets are blue, onna no kotte, nande dekiteru?

As I was browsing through my old archives I found a couple of interesting unpublished self-retrospect blog posts about the… “love” I once had. I was in love with this tsundere meganekko girl (that’s how I mention her in animu terms), but got rejected, and that led to my [Dear Kagami->] blog post about my rejection. I realized that I used to really write well whether with happy or sad feelings. The first article was about trying to realize if I was really in love, then the second one was a few weeks after my confession, when it all fell apart. ;_;

All of this was four years ago. It seemed to feel like a long time, but it was just that few years ago. I’ve never been in contact with tsundere meganekko since. I’m pretty sure she has a good life right now. She was the closest I ever had to have someone to love, and so I regard that experience as a very valuable lesson. Somehow, that lesson got lost in me time and time again because I never felt as mature now than that four years ago. I hope with this I would take a slap at myself in the face and move forward to better things in life. This is not an April Fool’s post mind you, but somehow I am really taking a troll on “myself” with this hahaha. Oh how nostalgic. I need more of my [sentimental vocaloid music->vocaloid-for-valentines-2].

Here are the two articles in the order of before-after.
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Naritai Jibun 2: The Deconstruction

[Naritai Jibun->]


Sorry, this is not so much about Madoka Magica, let’s just say that I can relate with the anime depicting a deconstruction of what it takes to be a magical girl in the magical girl genre of anime. In the first article I compared myself to Amu-chan (Shugo Chara), a magical girl with multiple personality issues, as a reflection of my life at that point when I had to decide which path to take in life. And so here I am today, trying to reflect on my decisions from that point in the past, and what the reality looks like at present..
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Vocaloid for Valentines: Second Time Around

[Vocaloid for Valentines->]

They say love is sweeter the second time around, and what better way to express it than through a second batch of love songs? Here I am again with a handful of nice sentimental music from Vocaloid! So if you are in the mood for a little easy listening while you fall in (or out of, or away from) love this Valentines season, please do have a gander at some more of the best Vocaloid love songs. This time it’s not only Hatsune Miku who’s singing about love, Gumi and Luka are in on it as well! As usual, if you don’t like their roboty voice to ruin your listening pleasure, don’t worry, because I also linked “utattemita” versions sung by some of the best amateur singers around Nico Nico Douga. Hopefully this will make you feel inspired and in love, or maybe depressed too, as some of these songs revolve on unrequited feelings… like mine (sob). Haha, anyway here we go again.
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Macross Frontier

Macross Frontier

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I don’t normally watch mecha anime, it’s definitely not my genre. I apologize ahead for having no screens of mechas in action, because I don’t see the point. I do understand the fandom of fictional robot technology and how in the real world people are into plastic models and other mecha collection stuff, but somehow I can’t seem to be that audience. Music, on the other hand, in whatever shape or form it may be expressed, is important and appealing to me. Music drives my soul to various emotions. Everytime an anime appears to have great songs and background music, I would point that out front and center even though I am hard-pressed to describe it in words sometimes in my blog. Rest assured though, whenever I coin the music as having a ‘sense of wonder’ or being ‘amazing’, it is an integral part of my enjoyment of an anime. And what an example I have right now here: Macross Frontier. My least favored genre in anime, but with some of the best music I have ever heard in an anime.

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Amagami SS

Amagami SS

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In the business of dating sims and bishoujo games, one of the hard parts in converting them into anime is how to fit an entire harem of girls and their stories into a series. The games have multiple paths and endings which can be reset in every playthrough. Anime series don’t have this option, episodes must be produced and played in linear fashion. The usual approach for game-anime conversions had been mostly focusing on the most favorite characters’ arcs, while having enough screentime for the other girls in one-shot episodes. Other approaches would include changing the stories to not include much romance for the others while having the main girl get her man in the end. And so I wonder, why is it so rare that we’re having a parallel-universe format in these types of anime? Well, some may argue that the parallel-universe format is hard to pull off in a series. I would try to explain why as this review goes, but in any case, we have a quite a guinea pig in Amagami SS as the first major separate-arc romance anime.
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Revision Episode 2: between a rock, a hard place, and a bump in the road with an emerging landslide

This is required of me. I feel like my mind is gonna explode with all the confusion, I need to throw it all up somewhere. Not exactly though. As always I tend to keep a sense of vagueness when I tell about personal problems. But if anything, you could clearly see that, through me not updating this blog, time just gets the toll out of me yet again. This time though, it has never been such an opportune, worse time than this… ever.

I feel like I’m stuck between a rock, a hard place, and a bump in the road with an emerging landslide. I don’t know if the culmination of factors lead me to this, or if it’s just my fault that I had gone into this mess that I’m in. The sure thing is that I am in a mess that would forever change my life, and there is no such option as turning back.

Maybe part of the reason why I can’t seem to solve my problems is that I think the world may be ending soon. I’m crazy enough to draw parallels in that natural disasters are the hand of God, and the terrorists are the devil. I’m crazy enough to think that God is now directly talking to us. I am but a sinner, and the problems I face seem to be a direct sign that God is trying to communicate to me. He is actually trying to talk me into it, to somehow try to find inspiration for me to go on, try my best to solve all my problems.

Moreover, lately I recall a lot of dreams of mine leading to that effect. Maybe it’s just my irregular sleeping habit, but hey, there is really something mystical in my midst, and I can never ever deny it anymore. I think with all the world’s problems coming as if in rapid succession, don’t you think it’s about time to bend a bit of our conservative reality, and seek divine mercy because it seems to be out there already? Think about it.

But that’s not the main issue, they are just personal signs of mine that I interpret as God’s message to me. I pray everyday, I pride myself in having the slightest bit of faith even with my atheistic doubts. But I know, when it comes to my problems, praying is not enough. Praying without working is like begging. As if you want yourself to be spoon-fed. This is how I really feel. It’s not as if I’m not doing anything about my problems though, it’s just that I really feel… hopeless. When time is against me, it’s really that hopeless.

And yet, with all the hopelessness, I still am the same poor actor. I can’t cry. I can’t be sad. I am emotionless. I worry but it doesn’t even show on my face. I don’t know if that is a good thing or bad thing, but that’s the way it is. It seems like that preemptive reaction to hopelessness, that I tend to befriend the will of the wind, the dictate of the waves, and just flow around helplessly.

I really have changed. Somehow I got rid of some bad habits of mine, as well as lower down on some worthless things that used to infect my mind and body as fast as the flu. Yet the signs point out to me that it is not enough to solve my current trials. Moreso time would tell me that it is too late for me to do so because the damage has been done already. Indeed, the damage was fierce like a quake. Somehow I still stood up amidst the rubble, but when I looked at the utter destruction around me, I stop and wondered why I was still left alive.

Rest assured though that even if I typed in paragraphs upon paragraphs of problems and hopelessness above, I am still very much alive and kicking. As I said, I am emotionless, and other that worrying, it really can’t affect me one bit. It’s a gray-area loophole in these events, and I’m thankful enough that God gave me… or should I say… didn’t give me the sense of ‘feeling’. This is a different spin on the saying “Ignorance is bliss.” I don’t ignore my problems. I just can’t be sad about it. Sometimes though, I envy people who do. Because of this feeling of rejection, they somehow find the light at the end of the tunnel. Me? I’m just this living doll who accepts life’s data and merely keeps things “noted”, however good or bad it is. In effect, feedback and control is painfully slow, and oftentimes, too late.

In light of this, I discovered one thing about myself. I am a perfectionist. I want all things right, even if all signs point to no. Well, I hope it helps me on staying positive about all kinds of matters. After all, whenever I see myself stuck between a rock, a hard place, and a bump in the road with an emerging landslide, I always seem to escape unscathed. It’s weird, and sad, but true.

October 12, 2005

Revision Episode 1: Time and Love

I like precious things, you can say that I love these precious things. But when you steal my precious things, I be angry. Don’t make me angry, you won’t like me when I’m angry.
This post is for the win, for the fail and for teh awesome that I call my precious things.

One day isang araw, I saw nakakita, one bird isang ibon, flying lumilipad, I shoot binaril ko, I pick pinulot ko, I cook niluto ko, I eat kinain ko. This is me in a nutshell. My mundane everydays. I am a consumer, actually because I’m pro, I’m a prosumer too. I game so I’m a l33tsumer as well. Sometimes though, time is unfair, and love is blind, Let me tell you how I feel about each one.

Time is my worst enemy, my lv99 boss. It’s stealing my cuuutteeness everyday. And it doesn’t reveal its intentions. It just goes tick-tock, and someone would trigger my alarm. Suppose I wanna do my precious thing, time would fly as if the big bang happened in a split second. My preciousss just game overs already. Yet when it comes to hataraking, it’s hidosugiru. It slows down to a crawl. I try petiks mode, but it’s still slow. What can I do? I can’t just quit you and be broke…back. I need monies to fill my precious things. I’m in this massive loophole. I’m in a nice boat, but it’s boring and stressful on this boat. I wish these tickets would turn to diamonds. This is why I want to play the lottery. The world better prepare for when I’m a billionaire. But even I know can’t be that lucky. I’m just me. This is a bad apple. Even in the midst of flowing time, I feel languid, spinning round and round.
I can’t even see the heart that’s leaving me, don’t you know?

This is heaavvy. I can’t just go 88mph and go back to the past. I could only wish I could turn back time, or at least give me time to think things through. Change doesn’t happen overnight, no matter how much I hope or believe in it. Does time expect too much? Maybe society does, but it’s overrated. More on that later next week at 11, now back to me. I’m growing old, yet I still want to be young. Warui? Anything wrong with that? Naritai youni nareba ii jan! I wanna stay this way. Remember me this way. I’ll never let this go, this is also a part of me. I like these precious things, you can say that I love them. If time tries to tell me to grow up, I won’t listen. It won’t be me. I shouldn’t succumb. I’m forever young.

Love is blind. I’m trying to find my way. Cause I can’t see myself falling in love with someone. Even if it means the whole damn world to you people, I can’t forget you wait and see. I can be strong even without it. Don’t force me to love someone or something I can’t love. Can’t buy me love. You can’t hurry love either. Love takes time to heal when you’re hurting so much. I fell in love before, yes, but it hurts. I can’t escape the pain inside, because love takes time, and both of them are my enemies. As if the world conspires against me now.

To all the girls I loved before, I’m sorry. I’m not creating a harem, I can’t be a womanizer. Sometimes I wish I did, at the very least, I would have had experienced love. Right now, my experiences of love are either a bag of hurt, or fake. Darn all you fake 2D. Your love is not a plus. I can just da capo these loves without any consequences, because there is such a thing as save points and flags. This is not real life, this is a fantasy. These eternities I longed for are nothing but rumbling hearts that don’t beat. And because of this, whenever I go back to reality, I know I need to be in love. I know I’ve wasted too much time. I ask perfection on a quite imperfect world. And fool enough to think that’s what I’ll find. A heart that cared, but went unshared. Until it died within his silence. Is it my fault to be introverted? To be silent? Is it a sickness that should be cured? I am me. I’m just me. I’m tired of feeling sad, sometimes I just don’t want to ‘feel’ anymore. Hello darkness my old friend, I’ve come to talk with you again. So ronery. Forever alone. Heart of stone.

And so I runaway, 10000 light years away from here. Crying out “love!”. Hoping that someone may hear. But I can’t cry hard enough. And so I sing. Though a song has no shape, it’s better than nothing at all. Can’t make love out of nothing at all. But just like 2D, love songs are figments of expression. I’m just loving love itself. But it’s okay. If the world tries to force me to find a way back into love, I won’t listen. I shouldn’t succumb. I’m forever young. Let’s take it slow. Yukkuri de iisa.

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