Naruto

I used to wonder what's so great about this long series which captivates so many people. When I happened to watch a few episodes with my friend, I was instantly drawn into the entire premise. Short talk, Naruto is about Naruto Uzumaki, an aspiring ninja in the Konoha Village (Leaf Village) who dreams of proving himself and become the next Hokage (leader of the village). Initially, he was shunned by the villagers because of the Nine Tailed Fox Demon sealed in his stomach. However, his determination to succeed despite all odds burns brightly and he manages to be a Genin (ninja level entry stage). What comes next are his adventures along with his ninja mates and senseis. 

What I found engaging is the humor and moral values one can obtain indirectly or directly through the various characters in the series. There are quite a number of characters but they are slowly introduced and they do undergo some character development along with our protagonist. Some of my friends complained about the filters but I don't mind!

Team Kakashi - Kakashi Hatake with from left: Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno and Naruto Uzumaki

Team Kurenai - Kurenai Yuuhi with from left: Shino Aburame, Hinata Hyuuga and Kiba Inuzuka

Team Asuma - Asuma Sarutobi with from left: Choji Akimichi, Shikamaru Nara and Ino Yamanaka

Team Guy - Might Guy with from left: Rock Lee, Tenten and Neji Hyuuga

Sand Ninja - Kankuro Gaara and Temari

Shomuni - Power Office Girls

Shomuni is a 1998 J drama introduced to me by Kelvin Khor and I know why he loves it! It's a comedy which imparts good values to its viewers through unconventional means! In short, it is a drama about the office ladies in General Affairs Section 2, deemed the 'graveyard for office ladies'. Female workers rendered useless are transferred to this section where they are expected to quit within 3 days because of the boring and meaningless tasks assigned. To be honest, I find the work they do important because it ensures that every other office worker can focus on their job well without worrying about menial stuff. What do these ladies at GA 2 do? Overlooked duties such as fixing and changing the light bulb, refilling toilet paper, delivering company's mail to each dept, etc. Of course, what would a drama be without the antagonists? Enter the HR team, composed of two men who are always devising new schemes to get rid of the GA 2 ladies in an effort to reduce the company's budget. However, their ingenious plans tend to go awry and it is comical to watch these office ladies battle their way out, sometimes, unsuspecting the true intentions of these HR men when their true goal was to achieve something else. There is also the Secretariat, a team of 4 secretary ladies who looked down upon these GA 2 ladies for doing menial jobs. Their interactions and squabbles made the entire drama premise engaging and hilarious to watch!

Chinatsu Tsuboi

Chinatsu - Head of the GA 2 ladies, she is a tall and confident lady who does not tolerate people with an ugly character. Hiding her true self behind stories about herself which she herself spreads, she takes charge in most situations and speaks up when needed. Her motto of "A woman's worth is determined by the number of men she conquered" may not go well with most women but she has a high level of integrity. She usually delivers her 'good values' sermon and this is where viewers get a dose of character building.

Tsukahara Sawako

Tsukahara - The fifth member of the GA 2 ladies and the most innocent. Due to her naivety and simple-mindedness, she is usually clueless and blur but at times, she knows what to do. She appears to be a very pure character but she sometimes made remarks which makes both the office ladies and us wonder, really? As Tokunaga once said it, she is ambitious! She had some character development as she was a small worm in the beginning but she learns to be assertive over time.

Rie Himuka

Rie - She is the fortune teller of the group, highly skilled in reading fortunes. She can be seen going through her tarot cards or otherwise staring into space. Her expression is usually deadpan when she 'sees' the future. Although her forecasts are usually accurate, it is usually the interpretations that makes the story interesting. We get to know a little bit about her during an episode where Chinatsu asks her to take care of her own destiny as well instead of others.



Yoshina - Playgirl of the group and sometimes dubbed, the Devil, she is excellent in seducing men with her charming/flirtatious glances and smiles. She has been tremendously helpful in situations where they needed the men to co-operate. Although she has many lovers ( most of them are top executives of the company), she doesn't settle on a serious relationship though the humanity side of her is reflected briefly in an episode.

Azusa Tokunaga

Tokunaga - The eldest of the ladies, she has been an employee of the Mapan Corporation for as long as they can remember. She may be older than everyone but she certainly still has her feisty ways! She will compete fiercely if one takes over her role and she is usually the one reading out announcements. I really enjoy her announcements as they are seriously funny. She is so passionate and steady!! Her goal is to look for a rich husband and she has been going through matchmaking agencies.

Maruhashi Ume

Ume - The sixth member of the group, she is a highly arrogant girl who wants to be the first woman director of the company. As ambitious as she is, she still has her moral integrity intact and she is continuously working hard to increase her skills and show that she has what it takes, including taking up Arabic?!

Secretariat

the Secretariat - Yoshiharu and gang forms the elite secretary group, who thinks highly of themselves. Yoshiharu is constantly belittling the GA 2 ladies and is always engage in a verbal confrontation with Chinatsu whenever they happen to meet in the hallway. 

Ikami - Section Chief who is passive and idles his time away taking care of his cat. He does not really seem to do much but his absence is sorely felt by the girls.






Ukyo - Bright, talented, and having returned from LA, he is a hit among the girls, especially among Yoshiharu and Tsukahara. Honest and righteous, he is a good kid who may be too workaholic sometimes....

Chinatsu and Yoshiharu in a verbal assault session 

HR : Nonomura and Chief Terasaki

All in all, a good watch for someone who prefers to have a good laugh while revisiting some good old humanity values!

Whisper of the Heart :)

I was thinking of sleeping early and cooling down after a filled dinner with some light work. It did not happen. On a whim, I decided to watch a Hayao Miyazaki movie and got Huey Sywu to watch it too. We decided on Whisper of the Heart and voila, I became quickly immersed in Shizuku Tsukishima's lovely world of books and fairy tales. It was a 1995 movie and the animation was not as advanced as the ones we currently have BUT, it was beautiful. It looked like a painting. Anyway, to the story!!!

It started with Shizuku, an avid reader/bookworm who enjoys borrowing books from the school library. One day, she discovers that three of the books she borrowed (back then, and maybe now they still do - these cards where the names of the previous borrowers with the date of the borrowed book is used for record purposes) were once borrowed by a guy named Seiji Amasawa. Curious and dreamy, she began to wonder who he is and what kind of personality he has. She then discovers a book which has not been borrowed by him and was excited, hoping that he would then notice her name when he next borrows it. In a twist of events, she accidentally left the book and return to search for it, only to see someone reading it...

An encounter with a cat on the train leads her to an antique shop where she meets this elegant cat stature which captivates her and she strikes a conversation with the shop owner who showed her the newly repaired grandfather's clock which showcases a fairy tale as well. She then discovers she is late and hurries off, leaving her lunch bag behind....

I only mentioned the bare few scenes which sets her off on her own journey of personal discovery and thoughts about her future. This is a delightfully endearing story which touches on the confusions and struggles middle school kids face as they grow up. It's a MUST WATCHED! :)

Awesome Anime

I had watched three very interesting anime which  I feel deserved special mention in separate posts but unfortunately, I chose logic over emotions and put them off while I worked on other stuff. So hence, the passion of the moment is lost but I still remember their awesomeness. This will just be a brief overview as I will write a better post for each when I have the time.

1. Full Metal Alchemist (completed)

A less darker version of Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood (planning to watch), it gave me food for thought. It's about two brothers who tried to revive their dead mother by using alchemy but as the law dictates: A transaction is when you give something in exchange for what you wanted. Thus, the elder brother, Edward lost a leg while Alphonse lost his body. Horrified, Edward tries to save his brother by alchemy and as a result, lost an arm. His brother's soul was safely secured in a robot shell. Thus, they then embarked on an adventure to get back the lost body parts: the arm, leg and body. Along the way, they encountered many strange events and slowly uncovered the secret behind this whole alchemy fiasco. I strongly encourage you to watch it as it makes/keeps you thinking on a lot of things.

2. Naruto (ongoing)

I started watching this after watching some scenes from an episode my friend was watching. It's a really exciting show which is very good for kids, I believe and almost everyone who learns from it. It is about Naruto, a boy who struggles to be the best Ninja in the village and earned the villagers' approval of him. He and the rest of the cast each have their own unique story and you may just be very inspired after watching! My fav is ep 22.  A fun watch for families too!

3. Code Geass Season 1&2 (completed)

A story similar in terms of darkness to Full Metal. It is about Lelouch, whose mother, Empress Marianne was killed and he and his sister Nunnaly was sent to Japan, known then as Area 11 by Britannia. He has always harbored hatred towards his father, Emperor Charles for not avenging his deceased mother. During one of the fights between the Britannian soldiers and terrorists from Area 11, he was almost killed but survived as he agrees to receive a geass from a mysterious lady known as CC. He then has the power to make people do as he says by having direct contact with the other person's eyes. With this new power, he decides to go against Brittania by forming his own team, the Black Knights and appearing as Zero with a mask.

This story has a different way of tugging at your heart strings. It is a story where no one character is pure evil or bad. Each has their own story, beliefs and from their stand point, it's hard to determine who or what's right. 

Ouran High School Host Club Manga - My FAV!

I've been reading Ouran High School Host Club the Manga and it is the best manga I've read so far. It's a one of a kind shojo manga which focuses a lot on character development and comedy. I particularly enjoyed chapter 50 onwards and I liked chapter 69, the huge relieved chapter after all the seriousness. I can't really choose any favorite character, as all of them is adorable though I always had more preference for Hikaru (from the anime). This manga made me alternate between wanting to cry and wanting to laugh crazily.

Character Analysis

1. Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin
Both have always like the same things and do what they like, disregarding other people's opinions. It's either our world or not from our world. Because of Haruhi, both learned to expand their world and treat each other as someone they can rely on, while developing their own unique traits and characteristics. It was sad when Kaoru made Hikaru witnessed the scene at the amusement park to force Hikaru to sever their ties and see through his own feelings. Kaoru decided that it was time that Hikaru learn to find his own happiness. It was also uplifting when Hikaru, being the older brother, turned the situation around and came to a conclusion of how they can both be individuals yet remain close to one another. It was funny though when Kaoru ran to Honey and Hikaru ran to Mori. It just shows that Honey is not just about cakes and bunnies, he can be a reliable senior when is needed.

Hikaru
The older of the twin, he is labeled as the twin with '10% more evil and loud and noisy' by Haruhi. He is probably the second idiot in the group, after Tamaki. I liked the fact that he is really straightforward and has a strong sense of values. I like the part where he clarifies and clears the situation with Kaoru - that's what a big brother should be! He's also direct - he confesses to Haruhi and after getting rejected, continues his best not to give up. Knowing Tamaki is his rival, he still persists in helping Tamaki discover his real feelings so as to compete with Tamaki fair and square. Although his temper is pretty short, that was what keeps the story so funny. He will be one yelling and screaming 'I will kill you' at Tamaki. Well, it can't be help, Tamaki is such an idiot after all. Hahahahaha but his devious plans and teasing antics are hilarious to watch!

Kaoru
The younger of the twin, he is the 'more calm and reasonable' one by Haruhi. When paired with Hikaru, they became the devious twins. That aside, Kaoru recognizes his feelings faster than Hikaru and tries his best to make Hikaru be aware of his own feelings and find his own happiness, eventhough it would mean breaking their twin bonds. He is generous enough to let Hikaru go on a date with Haruhi, let Hikaru share the same room with Haruhi and letting Hikaru and Haruhi be on the same team. He also assists Kyoya in his investigations.


2. Kyoya Ootori

He tried his very best, to the extent of exhausting himself while trying to locate Tamaki's mother in France. His determination to locate her earns the respect of both his subordinates and readers. The scene where he presented his souvenirs to the host club members, and finally, the welfare of Tamaki's mother by sharing with the members of his findings...it was so good that I teared up. Tamaki crouching in the corner, listening, and smiling knowing his mom is okay was really heart-warming. Not only that, Kyoya also did a lot of investigation behind the scenes for Tamaki, researching on Tamaki's father, grandmother, lawyer and doing his best to uncover Tamaki's dad's plan. That is very commendable. It just shows how much Tamaki meant to him and what he as the best friend can do to help. I like the part where Kyoya reveals that he doesn't care about what others think of him. He will only allow those who really want to know him to know the true him. Aww...you can't help but vouch for him despite his cunning behaviors. It was after all, what keeps the club running and functioning, what with the extravagant cost of Honey senpai's cakes and the Host Club's costumes and settings set up. 

I liked it that he picked the management expert route. He is certainly the best and should take over his father's business. It was also nice when Honey checked if maybe Kyoya would be the most unaware of his own feelings when he thought it would be Kaoru. To which Kyoya replied nicely, he is aware but there were something more precious than that. =)

The most surprising thing was: He lingers on my mind after finishing the manga. Could he be my favorite character after all? Undecided still.

3. Tamaki Suou - Notable Quotes

The biggest superstar idiot of the entire club but also, the most endearing. His sad background did not turn him into an angst-ridden child, instead, he followed his mother's advice and spread happiness(and some annoyance) wherever he goes. ALL his scenes are funny - no matter who he is with, he will definitely charm people's hearts out. Well, maybe except for Haruhi's dad but hey, even his grandmother was soften by him. Perhaps, his biggest achievement was setting up the host club. He found himself really great members - true friends. Even Kyoya who had initially just befriended him for his status became his most loyal and valuable ally. Still, all that i'm your daddy' thoughts...it is bearable considering his clinging to the idea of 'family'. He certainly wouldn't understand unless his members helped him out. It was touching when he understood the meaning of the Curry Orienteering project by the Host Club who are determined to take on his idiotic role just so he can straighten his feelings out. It was also hilarious when he thought about marriage and all. The way he crouches at a corner and mopes, or when he turns back once in a while with puppy eyes, or when he 'dies'...I laughed myself out. Absolutely adorable!!! =DDDD

4. Haninozuka Mitsukuni@Honey senpai

The shortest, cutest, and second oldest member of the club who possessed amazing skills in martial arts, he loves sugar and all sweet things, especially cakes. It's also super kawaii with his Usa-chan bunny and his just awaken-from-sleep mode when he rubs his eyes. His hilarious scenes are when he had that cavity and suffered from sugar/sweet/snacks/cake withdrawal symptoms, basically anything to do with his cake obsession. Oh, the scene where his brother Yasuchika was telling the members how afraid he was if Honey is really an alien from bunny land or something. The bunny could be his means of communicating with the other aliens. Laugh die me. It was awesome that the author portrayed Honey's seriousness, to show that Honey really isn't just a cake-loving boy. Despite the cutesome appearance, Honey notices the juniors' feelings about Haruhi and was a great consultant when Kaoru came to him for advice. He also settled his university admission issue quietly and provided a great graduation event for the rest with Mori. One thing I like, he chooses Science and Technology! He wants to produce his own Honey Toy Factory OMG!!!! XDD

5. Haruhi Fujioka

Her development was quite the unexpected. From a dun-care, ignore, apathetic view, she changed into an active loyal member. Her cool-headedness and independence is quite admirable. But what's more likeable was how she managed to see through people. She can differentiate Hikaru and Kaoru early on and she can also understand and empathize with Tamaki's situation. Though sometimes, her stubborn-ness and lack of emotions attitude is quite annoying.



6. Morinozuka Takashi
The tallest and oldest, also the quietest member. He's good in kendo and his family has been serving the Mitsukuni family for long. He is more like a half friend half butler to Honey, to me. He is like the silent pillar of the club hahaha. His story is probably the least developed though we know he cares a lot for Honey's welfare and is supportive of the club activities. He even asked Honey out on a duel to enforce discipline on Honey's uni life - that was hilarious. His sutra turned out to be 'reduce 90% of sweet intakes, no more bringing Usa chan to university..." I like the fact that he decides to chose a different faculty from Honey so as to be able to help him out in the future. Jurisprudence hmmm. Also probably the most productive, as when he is able to actually do real work like fixing the fence during their summer outing. I wonder what does Mori thinks sometimes? He is really the silent hero type - man of a few words.