12 Days of Anime (2012) – Day 10 – Sakura-Con, My First Anime Convention

In April of 2012, I attended my first anime convention, Sakura-Con, the premier anime convention in the Pacific Northwest.  Although I’ve had numerous opportunities to attend the convention since its inception in 1998 and even made legitimate plans to go while in high school, this year was the first that I actually went to.  For three days, I witnessed and participated in a paradise created by and intended for anime fans such as myself and my experience has provided a permanent impression on how I watch, understand and appreciate anime.

Robotics;Notes – 7

Have you noticed it yet?  There’s something unusual about Gunvarrel and its extensive, beloved anime.  Not only that, but there are robots everywhere in Japan, whether they’re the traditional and conventional hobby robots or the titanic, imposing and still incomplete GunPro-1.  And now Junna, too, is influenced by this escalating robotic endemic, going from a sweet, young girl who naturally feared robots to one watching and enjoying a mecha anime.  Yes, the craze and obsession over robots and the immense and immeasurable popularity of a mecha anime is quite peculiar and leads me to believe…

Summer 2012 – Week 11 Anime Review

This The previous week: the wonderful minimalistic approach to romance in Hyouka, calling into question the usefulness of the secret treasures in Sengoku Collection, wondering about the difference between split and continuously running anime with Rinne no Lagrange, and easily my favorite scene in Sword Art Online.

Moyashimon Returns – 11 (Finale)

What made the original season of Moyashimon a celebrated and beloved anime were its awkward and lively characters and the zany comedy that accompanied the lives of freshmen at a wacky agricultural university outside of Tokyo.  The second season, Moyashimon Returns, was doomed to mediocrity from straying from this effective recipe, instead opting to delve heavily into drama and introduce new characters who never assimilated to the golden standard of this anime.  However, this occurrence of a sequel failing in comparison to the original is not something exclusive to Moyashimon.  In fact, I’d be inclined to say that’s the norm for sequels in anime, a disheartening trend based on a number of critical factors.

Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita – 4

This is the introductory paragraph for a blog post about Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita.  The purpose of this section is to establish a subject for the majority of the post while providing the reader with general background information on the topic.  The next sentence usually helps by beginning to specify a particular theme for the post or to provide an opinion from the writer based on their reaction to this episode.  After that, the paragraph concludes with… actually, screw that, not doing a meta post because this episode of Jinrui was meta.  Also, someone who posts on time probably already did it, so no point in… right, stop being meta.  Okay, instead, let’s discuss something neglected: the assorted perspectives in Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita.

Casting Japanese Seiyuu with Michihiko Suwa – A Sakuracon Panel Recap

Perhaps the most appealing feature of Sakuracon (besides meeting and hanging out with dozens of awesome people) was the impressive list of special guests from all levels of the anime industry.  Among the distinguished crowd visiting the 2012 Sakurcon was Michihiko Suwa, a producer for numerous notable anime including Detective Conan, Inuyasha, City Hunter, Black Jack, and most recently, Rinne no Lagrange.  Of his three panels at Sakuracon, this post will provide a summarization a panel led by him that covered an aspect of the anime industry that holds particular importance to me: voice acting.  Using Rinne no Lagrange as his primary example, Michihiko Suwa provided a rare and valuable insight into one of the most essential pieces of anime production.