Hatsukoi Limited

Hatsukoi Limited

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Let me just say this up front. I can’t believe myself. How could I consider Hatsukoi Limited, a stereotypical, fanservice-laden, straightforward series with one-dimensional characters and simplistic plot as one of the best romance animes ever made? This anime panders to the male audience. The girls are of different but typical flavors of hawtness. The guys have their loser qualities just the way it should be in this genre. All of them entangled in a Web 2.0 style relationship chart, which is really the only complex thing in this show. Everything about this spelled “shallow”. “Dumbed down”. “Bland”. “Generic”. Yet with all this negativity… I love this show! I love this anime with an almost guilty, embarassing passion! So to anyone still not intimidated by all the bad things I said about this anime so far, please read on. Let’s try to discover why the hell Hatsukoi Limited is freaking awesome. Let me say that again: Hatsukoi Limited is FREAKING AWESOME!

We begin with a not-so-limited number of boys and girls in middle and high school, the oh-so-typical setting for multiple “first loves” to bloom. And bloom they did, as each episode focuses on one or two girls with their first experiences at this simple, yet confusing feeling called love. If you have any kind of fetish in your 2D girl fandom, they probably have it in this show. We have a cute girl who’s dangerously strong despite the looks. The optimal cool beauty who’s quite a newbie in the love department. The worst (best?) onii-chan complex in any anime ever. The big-bust swimming girl who actually doesn’t like being well-endowed. The cool beauty #2 tennis superstar. The all-systems-completely-normal girl that had the best episode in the anime. And finally, my personal favorite, the ultimate rendition of tsundere. These seven girls are paired with no less than nine guys – the kind yankee, the normal guy, the semi-normal guy, the ero-kappa, the siscon, the anti-siscon, the tennis guy, the swimming guy, and the alpha painter guy. Along with side characters, this provides probably a very confusing relationship chart considering it’s just a 12-episode anime. After a few episodes though, you would eventually get a hold of these characters, simply because they are… er… simple.

The attitudes of each character are so strongly-typed that they seem to give every single cliche in the harem book a run for its money. The girls, they are hot. The guys, most of them are losers in their own domains. How does Hatsukoi Limited succeed then, being the complete encyclopedia of what is right and wrong about harem anime? My answer may be as confusing as “first love” itself! The anime merely “clicked” on me. I read the manga beforehand and I really didn’t think it were anything special. But then the anime came and had this awesome presentation, all elements laid in perfect symphony with each other. The animation, the music, the story pace, all very entertaining. Everytime I watch a single episode, it feels like an event. For many weeks, it had been my Sunday show, getting and watching the raws first before watching the same episode AGAIN with the subs. I would make worthless Twitter posts about how awesome the episode is even if I can’t describe it well within the character limit. In this time when I treat most anime as an “I can always watch an episode later” afterthought, Hatsukoi Limited is the single anime which I just HAVE to watch as immediate as possible. This is indeed, love at first sight.

In Hatsukoi Limited, romance is unlimited. From a simple blush to the heartful embrace, everything is endearing. There is always something innocent and pure about a “first love”, and this series just expresses that in every example that it makes. The way each character learns about love is what made this anime go deeper than its otherwise generic exterior. The development goes beyond the one-dimensional phase of these characters, with them asking each other and even themselves about love. How would I react to a love confession? How could I confess to a childhood friend? How should I serve onii-chan today (this is a joke)? How can I get over my complex and please my love? How can I hold her hand? How can I show him my affections? Why is my love so shallow? Why am I holding on despite her loving someone else? Why me? How can I be a better person? How can I be true to my feelings?

These questions, while simple, feels real. It’s actually the way we deal with emotions in our own lives. When you add these thoughts and self-reflections into the equation, all that shallow and bland exterior goes away. Hatsukoi Limited is a show where you really shouldn’t judge it from its cover. This is not just about fanservice or about unreal situations to fuel any otaku’s wish fulfillments. It’s a show about love, in a simple and complex way, when it is your first time at it.

I highly commend the animators at J.C. Staff for this. This is essentially the spiritual predecessor to any excellent romantic comedy anime that they have made, particularly [Kimikiss ~pure rouge~->kimikiss]. The feel of that series is here, the same “kilig moments” (sweet romantic moments), camera panning cinematography styles, and to how exceptional the music blends with the current scene. They have modified an otherwise normal manga into a highly coherent piece, mixing up multiple storylines to make it less confusing, and even changing some events slightly. I feel rather bad about the original manga actually, because with that complex relationship chart, the series is clearly gunning for a long serialization. But the series was unfortunately cut short due to some reason, and so the ending feels kinda rushed. The anime ended more or less the same way, but the modifications made it completely tolerable. In fact, they made it superior to the original source itself. It’s rare that an anime can go beyond its source material, but somehow with Kimikiss (with its typical bishoujo game roots) and now Hatsukoi Limited, they pulled it off. J.C. Staff is having hit after hit in this genre for quite a while, I should enjoy more of their works.

What else can I say? I really hope I had convinced you to watch this show if you haven’t already. I would admit, part of my excitement about this anime is my own version of overhype, but what’s wrong about that? One of the girls in the series just nailed that point. If you’re in love, you are in love. That’s it. No ifs, no buts. And as one of the songs in the anime goes, it’s just something you feel, and the feeling won’t stop. You want the whole world to know about it, before it fades away hidden within the many other anime people are more likely to watch than this. To me, Hatsukoi Limited is an instant classic. Highly recommended. I hope you feel the same way.

Eroge Recession 2

[Eroge Recession?->]
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If the first article may have been a result of my personal burnout having lost interest in these kinds of games, I think this time the industry is in a real paradigm shift. Well, this news may have been mostly overlooked by everyone since… well, who among us really do play rape-related eroge anyway? This is a niche genre inside a niche genre inside a niche genre of gaming. I wouldn’t have even known of Rapelay at all if it were not for some over-conservative people who want this game banned, and in effect drove a massive campaign against this niche of a niche of a niche genre of games. I find this rather ironic, because as a result of this sequence of events that eventually led to the [banning or restricting of games in Japan with rape themes->http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-06-02/j-industry-group-agrees-on-rape-game-ban-on-tuesday], the gaming industry itself JUST GOT RAPED.

As I said, most people won’t care about this, and to the two people who are still reading my article, kudos to you because I am about to say why this is very important. As the legendary saying goes… THIS IS WHY WE CAN’T HAVE NICE THINGS. The vast majority of people, namely the people who don’t understand, refuse to understand, or are co-erced by other people not to dare understand, ruin it for the rest of us. Well, it can’t be helped. We are in this niche genre. Anime is still niche. Heck, even with how big E3 is or how gaming is braving the economic recession tide… gaming is still niche. These two aspects of entertainment that are close to my heart are the current punching bags of our world. It gets blamed for everything wrong in the world, from violence, to immorality, to radical thinking… etc. And we are unable to save it because democracy is the most powerful thing in the world today. Whatever the majority of people want, they get, most of the time.

See, it has some advantages too. When the majority is on our side, the over-conservatives usually stay quiet. This is why violence and sex in games like Grand Theft Auto 4 were allowed. But in something as small as bishoujo gaming, only few would cry for justice. Little do we realize that each step in the wrong direction has some drastic implications for the future. It only started with games with rape, but what would stop them from banning something else? According to this [blog post->http://zepy.momotato.com/2009/06/03/the-fax-from-the-eocs-was-sent-out/], the regulations are clearly set in paper now. Some of those regulations are not related to rape right? Who knows when the next big issue comes in that those rules would be further tightened? Who knows when someday sexual inclinations in games would be further reduced until it shouldn’t exist at all?

It’s not that I need ero in my games. As I said, it’s not my genre. But just like the other issue of [banning everything hentai->philippines-bans-hentai] in my own country, I hate the reality that other people are dictating what I should and shouldn’t experience in life. It hurts to have no freedom in choosing my hobbies. While these bans don’t affect me, the point is they don’t affect me… yet, with the fear that it will definitely affect me someday.

Let me try to bring a positive note to this though. I admit I don’t know everything about the bishoujo gaming industry, but I imagine each game company’s state of shock looking at those reactions from them. Shock… because this time they have to do a little better. They have to be more creative in either avoiding the restrictions or circumventing them. In short, they should see this as an opportunity to change their ways. Make their own paradigm shift. Innovate. Well, they have rested on their laurels for so long after all. Look at [all those bishoujo games->so-many-galge], they have not changed all these years. We are still in 800×600 resolutions. Character designs still resemble each other. Storytelling and characters are just rehashes of each other. Sequels galore. Fandisks abound. Where are those innovations in the game engines? Why are the highest-selling games still the sequels? Why can’t the Da Capo multiverse ever ever die (I heard there’s a [new DCII->http://calamitousintents.wordpress.com/2009/06/04/d-c-ii-to-you/] sidestory coming out)?

Sure, you can pull me back for a while with your sequels for a moment, but if the technology and creativity of this genre doesn’t change, I’m totally out of this market. You want examples of what I think should improve in this bishoujo gaming industry?

– Umm let’s go HD please? Even just widescreen options would be welcome. It shouldn’t be that hard to upconvert a CG either right? But the bigger problem is the simplistic game engines they use. I liked the one [age->] uses in their games, they move and manipulate 2D as if it were pseudo-3D. Lately the games I see have over-simplistic engines, and only rely on the power of their art. What use are pictures if they’re not presented effectively?
– Virtual girlfriend simulation. Games like [this->http://kotaku.com/5243198/]. This time wooing a fictional character shouldn’t just be a simple matter of predetermined decision points. How about incorporating text-based commands first before moving to voice? With some kind of AI engine running a girl’s intricate characterisitics and emotions? Hey, you’ll even help wussies this way by training them for real-life social situations.
– Marketing should be better. This one is hard. They have to open their doors and appeal to newer audiences. They can’t expand their reach unless they do so. Surely, if there are creative games already out there, they must try harder to advertise, because clearly I ain’t hearing them from here.

This is a hard road ahead for everyone of us. I, as a consumer, must do my part as well. For one, we let this restriction in freedom of expression through undetected and undefended. I hope the few still reading this push the awareness further. This is not just about rape games, not about bishoujo games, not about games either. This is about being oppressed by the powers that be. This is about them dictating what is right and what is wrong for us. And someday, this may be about losing our human rights. I don’t like to live in a world like that. But this is not a battle for us to fight for now. I hope that when that time comes, the time when we are directly affected in some way, we should be better prepared for the next wave of battles. Let’s make this a game worth playing.

Melancholies and Demons

[The Melancholy Code->]

angelanddemon
Welcome to the sequel.

haruhinati
Our church is at war. We are under attack from an old enemy… the trolls at KyoAni. They have struck us from within and threatening us all with destruction from their new god Haruhi. For years, Haruhiists have been trying to understand so many aspects of our Haruhiism, including the creation of the second season. And yet they have not found the answer.

haruhination
But I tell you folks, the path is alive! In just a few hours the truth shall be revealed. The wheels have been in motion for a long time. Our victory has been inevitable. Never before has it been as obvious as it is at this moment! But this victory has cost every one of us. And it has cost us deeply. Our comrades have been brain asploded for weeks leading up to this day. And so I step back from this battle with great humility.

This series was big to me. I was actually in Japan back in summer of 2006. The anime just ended its television run, but the virus had just begun to spread. In my actual first visit to the otaku land of Akihabara, I thought it was Haruhi land. You know it’s big when massive posters, DVD promotion materials, cosplay, and tons of merchandise related to the series are being shown at literally every corner. Of course, being a newbie, I only would be able to skim the surface, meaning the streets and major shops. Who knows what goodness lurks inside those hidden otaku and doujin shops that I didn’t dare venture into back then. And being total failure for not taking any pictures, this text would be the only account that I would leave you. I enjoyed it, the immersion. Even if I don’t have money to purchase anything, I would just idle around and window shop.

Three years later though, it isn’t as big to me anymore. What’s the problem? Do I need a rewatch of the original series? I read forums and such, they are still hyped about this thing. And their anticipation seems to be building at a climax since the reveal of the 8th episode to be the FINAL(or is it?) nail in the coffin about the so-called “second coming”. In my case though, I just follow the clues never really digging deeper into it. I don’t mind seeing more of the SOS-dan gang, but I don’t mind “not” seeing them either. Oh, maybe I’m a bit saturated of them because of the many [animemes->animeme] that feature them. I consider Haruhi to be a major prime mover of the [modern doujin->modern-doujin] era, and as a rabid consumer of all things parody and MAD I literally see some sort of Haruhi everytime I watch those videos. In Hollywood terms, maybe this series became my Star Wars or Back to the Future. I don’t remember much details about those movies, but I frequently refer to them because they were some of my favorites. And I would tend to laugh everytime some or article or post would refer to quotes from those movies (ex. 1.21 JIGAWATTS!).

Maybe that’s the point. Haruhi, to me, became a meme. A franchise that would forever be embedded in my entertainment consciousness whether I like it or not. This is in essence a good thing, because whenever something gets elevated to meme status, it means that it’s now a legend to me. Call it “silent hype”. I won’t shout loudly about my Haruhi fandom, but something inside of me is greatly wanting the second season to happen. Well, it “will” happen eventually. We just don’t know if it’s this Thursday late-night, after the 14-episode rerun of the anime, or some other date far far away. This massive trolling by Kadokawa and Kyoto Animation, while seen by some fans as demonic and cruel, is actually a unique way of advertising. The oncoming sh*tstorm will certainly be interesting. I will update this post for the results, but I’m sure you’ll be faster than me, because I’m sleeping tonight. I don’t care when it comes, but when it “does” come, I will watch it. Enjoy the hype, people.

Update: Didn’t sleep. So I found this:
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TV5 Animega – Episode 1: The Emerging Tiger

http://www.tv5.com.ph/showsmain_anime.html

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In the [last episode of my Animax-Asia series->Animax-Asia… Dubbed in English – Episode 11: Something New], we see Animax-Asia make TV history. This time, one of our own Philippine TV channels is about to make its own TV history too. It’s an exciting time to be an anime fan!

Well, admittedly I don’t follow Filipino dubs of anime anymore, so it’s not as exciting to me. However, I certainly appreciate its existence, because I used to watch them regularly. Today, there are a lot of people who are still not into DVDs and fansubs, heck I think some don’t even have cable TV. That is why when progress is made at the local TV front, I had to be there up close. I used to be fairly active in a number of Philippine-based anime forums some years ago. Ah those were the days. We’d nitpick every cut being made in the anime, be it for censorship reasons or just to insert more ads into the timeslot. We’d bash and praise bad and good voice acting, compare the Filipino dubs to the original, and try to see how the translations fared during the conversion.

While I have graduated from watching dubs on local TV and on cable, I still follow a bit of the local scene to see how anime is being treated. As I had said in the Animax-Asia article, choice is good. What’s quite amusing is how fast they catch up to me today. Animes that are being licensed and acquired by our local TV companies are getting newer and newer. There used to be a couple of years gap between an anime’s airing in Japan and its airing in the Philippines. That gap is slowly shrinking. I am seeing acquirations left and right of anime which are fairly recent. Now, much like Animax-Asia, there is a new tiger in town… TV5.

Since the new management change, the channel has revived its anime primetime block. This will be the first time in 5 or so years that anime can be seen on evening, because the other major channels have trashed this idea in favor of more lucrative markets like gameshows, the usual teleseryes and more meh reality series. TV5 goes a step further, with its anime selection seemingly and surprisingly relevant to the very discerning anime fan. Maybe their staff are anime fans too, probably knowing about the fansub and internet world and also what’s critically acclaimed and popular in anime. In any case, they know their stuff. They do decent dubs, they never cut anything badly, and they show full openings and endings. Also, they are pushing the bar in turnaround time. Currently they are airing Code Geass R2. How about that? Within half a year, the anime is here. I don’t know anything about the television business, but they must have a decent amount of budget dedicated to anime licensing, localization and promotion. I heard that TV5 has partnerships abroad, and so maybe there’s the source of their finances. What’s amazing here is that they see the potential of anime in primetime. They know that someone is bound to stick to their channel during the anime slot while the other big two channels are showing crappy soap operas. For better entertainment, watch anime instead.

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Now they are pushing further. Remember Toradora? It just ended in Japan this spring. Guess what… they’re airing it NOW. But wait, there’s more! Remember Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood? THEY’RE GONNA AIR IT TOO! WEEKLY! Alright, this is not the “same week in Japan” treatment in Animax-Asia, but they are merely 7 episodes behind. This is TV history by any respects, the very first near-simulcast broadcast of any anime in the Philippines. The fastest acquired anime, and it’s no sloppy anime either. This is freaking Fullmetal Alchemist. I’d give up Naruto and Bleach for this thing (then again, I’ve already given them up long ago)! Suddenly the tables have not only turned, but tumbled over. I now regard TV5 as the new local TV anime authority.

They aren’t even in this business for a year yet! They just showed anime after anime since August of 2008 as if they were insane. One of their very first lineups was Shakugan No Shana, and I was fashionably late in discovering about it. I didn’t care much about the anime, except that I exclaimed that this is good news. Some months later, I saw more anime being acquired, and I started to take notice. The rest is history. Everytime I see something new in TV5, I always get surprised. From classics like Ranma 1/2, mild hits like Special A, DNAngel, and Ragnarok to REALLY good stuff like Azumanga Daioh, Code Geass, and Cowboy Bebop, this is really a powerhouse lineup that trumps even the 24-hour anime cable channel selections.

I really hope they’re generating profit with this, because I’d hate to see a major stumble in their awesome run. At this point, I don’t care if they start showing reruns of their old anime licenses. The selection is vibrant anyway. In any case, I’ll be following the progress of this channel’s anime block from now on. I do admit, I don’t watch dubbed anime regularly anymore, and so I am not their audience. With this post I’m merely spreading the word. If you live in a cave like me sometimes, and you still like your anime served in Filipino dub, please tune in to TV5 every primetime evenings to see what you’re missing.

Update:
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I FACEPALM IN A POSITIVE WAY.

Another big arsenal. Regardless of whether you like Haruhi or not, you know it’s big.

Hitohira

Hitohira
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Once in a while these things pop up, a slice-of-life anime gem that most of us may have skipped in favor of other more hyped series running in the same season. Hitohira had absolutely nothing going for it. High-school setting about a drama club, zzzzz. Didn’t hook me up that much from the get-go. But what I was about to experience is something special. It may not have the greatest story in the world, but it is a story well told, by very lovable and relatable characters.
Continue reading Hitohira

Naritai Jibun

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Sorry, this is not so much about Shugo Chara, as I have been backlogging that series since the first few episodes of Doki disappointed me. Well okay, let’s just say I can relate with Amu-chan in some things, especially the fact that she has some sort of multiple personality issues. When I left the story in the first season, she was conflicted with that fact that she has multiple “would-be selves” represented by 4 or 5 of the Shugo Charas. In due time, I’m about the enter the same phase.
Continue reading Naritai Jibun

bluemist anime blog pirated edition 7 release candidate

[bluemist anime blog pirated edition->]
Read my old article first. Interestingly, I have more things to add today, since the situations have changed a bit dramatically in under that couple of years.

Back in late 2007, the concept of licensed internet video streaming of TV shows and movies was at its infancy, but now it is going mature. The solution to the internet piracy problem is here. Well, almost. A sizable amount of shows, even anime, are being legally streamed in a very wide variety of sites. Moreover for the anime side, the concept of being left out with the latest stuff in Japan is coming to an end, as more new anime are being simulcast to the world through internet and even cable television. Sometimes it’s even faster than fansubs, and you wonder why fansubs are needed anymore. It’s really a good time to enjoy anime and other entertainment while staying legit.

However…

We are still at a transitional phase in this war against yarrr. There are still certain aspects of piracy that still leaves it in a gray area, at least in my point of view. You see, I’m not from the United States, and so most 90% of all that legal, streaming or downloadable internet content is unaccessable to me. Why? Regional restrictions. You know what I think about it? It’s a load of crap. Take for instance Crunchyroll. Good service yes. But even if I subscribe to their standard anime membership, my anime selection is still limited according to my region. Let me say it again in another way. Despite me having to pay the same darn amount as anyone in the United States, I still can’t watch the same anime as them. In fact, I can only watch… 10% of what they can. WHY?

It makes no sense for me in so many levels, but there can be a lot of technical terms in worldwide copyright licensing mumbojumbo blah blah that can explain to me why I can’t have the same anime fix as other people around the world. Well you know what? That doesn’t matter to an entertainment consumer like me. Other people will either say “well you can’t do anything about it, third-class citizen of the world” or “well there’s always the torrents”. Either of those still seems unfair. Think about it.

It’s not like it’s only the United States’ fault or anything. While their worldwide trade policies are too stagnant to compare to the advances in technology nowadays, their kind of setup is still the economic standard of the world. And we are at fault too. I read an article recently about book tariffs. Our country put a high customs import tax on a certain popular novel series which I would only name as ’emo vampires’. Imagine that, putting a high price on a mere book for personal or government profit. Crab mentality which almost hampers the flow of information. Same way with licensing. If some show is from Japan, we need to import it to make it legally available here, but we have to pay the price.

I proudly announce that I finally bought the To Heart DVD set. Awesome yeah. To Heart is one of my favorite anime series ever. But with buying that DVD set comes along realizing the painful reality of the current trade policies of the world. That DVD set cost me 40$, which is the same price an anime fan from the US can get it. But me, being in a third-world country, with my third-world income, cost me an “additional” 40$ to ship the thing… AND a horrible 40$ more for the customs tax. RAAAAAAGE!

What can I do? This is the only way to go legit. Sure, I can finding relatives in US and Canada who’ll get it for me cheaper, but that’s an added hassle. All-in-all, with globalization slowly becoming real, these old crappy policies must change. Too bad that they won’t because everyone’s too busy with the recession and all to worry about a problem that only affects a few people like me. But that in itself is a problem. You know why we’re having a recession? Because old habits die hard. We are either too weak or too lazy to change things. That’s another whole issue that I already explained in that older article, so let’s stick back to the new idea. While having more entertainment legally available to the internet is good and all, we are still being dragged down by the old policies of the old industries. Especially the ones outside those holy lands. Simply put, if one wonders why I stick to gray-area piracy for some particular entertainment I want to listen to or watch, I’d say because it’s not available in my region. Sure, label me a pirate, but I have tried everything in my power to go legit. I have failed in some parts, but thankfully I did succeed in others. That 10% available anime. That To Heart DVD set. I told you my money will eventually go to your pockets.

Four-Year Anniversary!

[1…->year-1] [2…->year-2] [3…->year-3] Now I feel really old…

This blog just barely reached its 4th year of existence!

Thank you for the 1.9 million hits so far. Yup, it kinda never reached the usual 500k hits per year trend that I was having, but considering my even lower-key status this past year it is as expected. Thank you for the comments, no matter how few. It just means that there’s someone who really reads and cares to react to my stuff. No matter how big the anime blogging world has become, I’m thankful enough that people still enter this little place. I hope that my little voice still spreads the fandom love all these years.

Moving forward, I realize that I need to do a lot of things. One is the blog layout is kinda old, and I need to improve the navigation. Apologies also to the people still not included in my Blogroll, hopefully I can update that too. I also need a little updating of articles here and there. The old posts still get hit after all. Lastly… BLOG MOAR! I really hope this upcoming 5th year will be a fruitful one. I look forward to enjoying more with you, my fellow bloggers and readers. Thank you again!

Touhou Project

touhou
If there is one franchise that you can call sort-of open-source, it would be Touhou. Originally a series of doujin bullet-hell 2D shooters, it is now a megamultimedia metafranchise (if those words even exist or are applicable) that is impossible to contain in my limited scope of knowledge in writing this article. It’s like searching for an elusive treasure chest, that if you like the initial contents, you can decide to go “inside the chest” and realize that it is potentially bottomless. For those who don’t care about doujin works, this may really not apply to them, but who doesn’t nowadays? In an world where anything can be a meme and something can be a rehash of something else, fan-created fandom is rising to levels that even mainstream entertainment seekers understand.
Continue reading Touhou Project

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