[banner]When it comes to translated Japanese reading fare, I am especially wary of two categories: compilations and "alternative manga". Too many of the former are downright shams, with a pretty cover and and a couple selected works expected to buoy a… more »

Though billed as a tie-in to a dating sim, True Tears breaks such shows' trademark tendency of using hideous character designs with distorted features indicative of developmental disorders. Nominal chromosome counts aren't the only distinguishing characteristic of the cartoon, which, name aside, turns out to have absolutely nothing in common with the eponymous visual novel. Yet, even as it fails to serve as an exploration of the game (which Wikipedia describes as a generic moe property), more »

The very first trailer, which hit the internet sometime in 2005, was a profoundly bizarre viewing experience. Set to a hokey Russian-language rap over a remixed Polish tango from the 1930s, an increasingly surreal medley of classical Sovietica and eleme… more »

"As we entered the Strait of Sangar, the galley television starting getting a signal. The crew gathered around the tiny Šilelis, awed by the bright, vivid colors of the sort we had never seen on TV before. Furious samurai, frightened court ladies with… more »

Colony Drop's mission statement asks, "[i]f blogging is such a great tool for expressing opinions and ideas that can’t be found in more mainstream publications or venues, then why is anime blogging so brain dead and vapid?" This is a question intriguing… more »