Manga Match 39 Chasing the Sun

After watching Crazy Rich Asians I want a $40 million wedding like that. Damn that was gorgeous.

{Spoilers}

Chasing the Sun was a dip into a different subcategory of webtoon. I've read quite a few Korean webtoons and a few Japanese ones, but this was my first step into Chinese webtoons. It was a little different with the sound effects and how they kind of sounded in my head. Haha I guess it's because I grew up surrounded more with Chinese culture it just seemed a little more familiar right off the bat. For instance, the main character's name is Ke Le and my first instinct was to laugh because it literally means they named her Coca Cola, and it turns out that that was one of the on-going jokes in the webtoon actually.

As far as the actual webtoon goes, it was super cute. You could probably already tell from the art style, but it was definitely very cutesy. It was a kind of push-and-pull romance between Ke Le and the "two" boys she falls in love with who turn out to be the same person. Honestly it was frustrating knowing that Ye Ling was only one person and that Ke Le, one of the smartest people in school, wasn't able to figure that out. I mean I guess it was all part of the plot, but it was so obvious it was painful. There was a little added ~spice~ because Ye Ling is such an enigma, working in a bar as a high school student, smoking (don't smoke kids it's very bad for you), and his tragic past and current situation due to his father's criminal record. But of course the two of them were able to resolve Ye Ling's problems, this is a romance webtoon after all, and live happily ever after. Of course there were some hiccups here and there, but it was overall a very cutesy webtoon that I'd recommend you read for some bad boy vibes, some cute art, and a very cute couple. 

BTW, they live happily ever after

Manga Match 38 Secret Crush

There's a thought that's been going through my head for a while now...and that thought is the Snickers commercial: you're not you when you're hungry. Sometimes my brain just thinks about weird things.

{Spoilers, but it's slice of life so you already know what's going down}

I was thinking about a new way that I could spin these because honestly the whole school life romantic drama category is all I really read due to my lack of romantic relations irl (yes I do realize how sad that sounds). So what I really came up with was a short summary and a short commentary on why this manga was different from your cookie cutter "boy meets girl" story which consists of stereotypical arcs ie the summer vacation beach arc, the arc with the meddlesome guy/girl who's jealous of the power couple, the first date arc, the misunderstanding due to lack of proper communication arc, and school festival arc to name a few. It's a pretty clear-cut recipe, so I should probably stop teasing my mom for only reading trash romance novels that have a formulaic story line as well. Sorry mom :')

So this was a story revolving around a guy and a girl, both who are seen as handsome and pretty respectively in their high school and both with something secret in common: they both have a secret crush on the other. Lucky for them, their love turns out to be mutual and after some awkwardness due to wonky communication and the meddlesome side characters in love with our MCs, they come together and live happily ever after. Pretty standard stuff right here.

However, something that kind of sets this manhwa/webtoon apart from the rest is the characteristics of the MCs. While usually there's a dichotomy between the guy and the girl, usually with one being smart and the other dumb, or one being social and the other antisocial, or some other form of contrasting characteristics, in this story the two of them seem to be the same person just of a different gender. They're both good looking, they're both shy around the other, and they both are dumb. Even at the end of the manhwa they're seen going into the exam that everyone is sure that they'll fail for another time which is kind of funny. I think it's a subtle reminder of how it's not always the famed "opposites attract" that rings true every time, but sometimes it's someone very similar to you that could end up being your fated person, or something heh.

Overall I'd say it's a pretty good read. It's got some really funny moments like the poop necklace, ohoho got your attention didn't I?, and some very relatable moments, especially during the exam season arc (T^T). But I definitely wouldn't say it's a must-read. I was mainly drawn into this one because it was completed if I'm being honest. I can't keep picking up manga and waiting ages for them to finish unfortunately, I need something to occupy my time that I can binge in the meantime.

(Sorry, no screenshots heh, nothing really spoke to me as something I needed to screenshot.)

Manga Match 37 ReRe Hello

Hello all! My weeks of no breaks and no weekends is finally over! Well, perhaps I'm being overly dramatic, after all it could've been a whole lot worse, however, it was not a time I would like to repeat anytime soon. Now I'm free to do what I'd like for four days of the week when I don't have my part-time job. Relief~ I'll probably try out the famously hyped Boku no Hero Academia now that I've got some more time on my hands.

{Spoilers, but it's shoujo so you already know what's gonna happen probably}

Even though I say I had no time on my hands, when things got slow in class I would be reading manga heh. And that's why I present to you my total opposite: the protagonist of this manga, Ririko. She's a girl that takes no breaks and is full of endless energy. Her life has been a hard one ever since her mom died and her dad quit his stable job in order to pursue his dream(?) of being a handyman, but Ririko has taken all of the household responsibilities onto herself as well as being a full-time student and helping out at her dad's business. And it only seems like her life becomes more hectic with the introduction of Minato, a rich golden boy who hasn't had to work a day in his life. However, Minato turns out to be quite different from your stereotypical rich boy, he's got quite a considerate side to him.

The dynamic between the two of them where they are both considerate and caring of one other, always looking out for one another, and trying to match their paces, is probably why their love story was quite convincing and had a good rhythm to it. It wasn't over the top, it wasn't too flashy and in your face to the point of the whole thing being unbelievable, and it wasn't too dramatic where it felt like some kind of orchestrated kdrama that's overly done (you know what I'm talking about, the whole rich boy-poor girl with the disapproving rich as heck parents).

Overall, I think as a love story it was pretty cute. They were there for one another in a completely healthy and mostly wholesome relationship. It gave Ririko some happiness and some way to be a normal girl with her extenuating circumstances and her relationship with Minato was honestly precious.

I have to say though that I had actually picked up the manga a while back, maybe a year or two ago, and I had ended up dropping it due to the overwhelming amount of manga that I was following that I had to cut down on. I unfortunately dropped this manga because at the time the plot seemed so normal and so predictable that I felt like I didn't need to see the conclusion to be satisfied. However, I circled back around for it once it was completed, mostly because I'm a completionist, but I'm glad I got to see this, not thrilling conclusion, but a very cute and I suppose idealistic ending to their lovely romance.

If you're into lots of shoujo manga and you haven't read this one already, I'd check it out. I think the whole archetype of the hardworking girl who you just want the best for, aka the makings of a best girl, is one to be admired and every time I see that kind of character it also reminds me to do my best. LOL maybe that's just me though. I don't think you'd want to miss this sweet romance~

I just thought it was kind of funny how her expectation of them practicing was like playing the triangle or something, but instead they look super cool playing those classy af instruments. 

I just thought this was super cute. Moko-Usa patting her head and it's actually Minato. Hehe imagine Minato in a Moko-Usa suit.

All of the sheep on her shoulders is so cute haha. And then he slept with her. And then after the movie when she feels guilty for falling asleep so she pretends to know what was going on, but actually Minato actually knew she fell asleep. Ah I just love the way he adores her and they're each other's first love it's so pure hngh T^T

Anime ATM 85 Hinamatsuri

7.23.18

Lately I've been trying to be more mindful. It's mostly motivated by my feeling that everything is fleeting. Maybe it's because of all of the kdramas I've been watching with my dad where there's an unexpected car crash and the main character is left devastated after losing a loved one. So I've been more mindful of mortality and of my emotions so that I'm not left with too many regrets. Because as it stands, I've got so many things in my life to be grateful for that it'd be a waste to just lament over the few things I lack.

LOL that had absolutely nothing to do with the anime I'm about to talk about to be honest, but that was just a thought.

{Spoilers, but jokes on you it's actually slice of life so there's no real plot bwahaha}

It's really funny because I hadn't even heard of this anime before, so when V recommended it to me (while he was on vacation in Europe this fool was also watching anime smh) I had to look it up. To be honest I wasn't super interested in watching a comedy sci-fi so I was kind of reluctant to actually watch this. But I'm definitely glad I did watch it because it was definitely an original work. I don't think I've ever seen anything quite like it. The comparisons that come to mind are Umaru-chan in that the main character is a total parasite, MC's best friend is a golden girl, and the MC's caretaker is super kind to put up with all the MC's shenanigans + Konosuba is that it's a parody of a normally plot-intensive genre with generally no plot = Hinamatsuri. 

Where to even start? Well the run-down is at the beginning of the show it shows this kung-fu master pink-haired girl and then she never shows up again until the end. But let's ignore that for now. The chronological sequence would start when Hina appears through a portal into the apartment of this yakuza member named Nitta. Through Hina blackmailing Nitta, they end up living together with Hina becoming Nitta's daughter of sorts. This show follows along with their daily lives as Hina encounters her rival-turned-best-girl Anzu, goes to school and makes interesting acquaintances like Mami and Mishima, and has an overall very normal home life with Nitta spiced up with her psychic powers. And that about sums it up.

Since it's a really short 12 episode season, each episode was its own mini-arc in a way. One that was pretty touching was when Anzu couldn't go back to her world because Nitta put her transportation ball thingy in the laundry and became homeless for a second time. This time she was taken in by a fellow homeless man named Yassan who taught her how hard it was to earn money and live an honest life as a homeless person. It was really touching because she had to go through this grueling work every single day, and even though she had to go through this hardship she was still super upbeat and did her best. And that's why she's best girl. AND THEN when she was taken in by those Chinese restaurant owners. She was crying because she was separated by all of the homeless men who took care of her, but then the restaurant owners told her that they would always live on in her heart. Like my heart just asdfghjkl; same. 

Even though that was a touching episode, and I may have teared up when Anzu had to part with Yassan and all of them, I think the best episode was when my personal favorite character Mishima moved out to live on her own. I mean, she's this middle school girl who works in a bar at night and makes stellar drinks and she's this independent member of society, so much so that no one questions it when she begins working at all of these places while STILL going to middle school. And she's living by herself because her mom didn't believe that she was actually working at a bar. It's actually insane. Her work ethic is honestly inspiring. And then all those crazy connections she made, I'm still shook. She was able to go from a bartender and ended up in this government job where she was faced with those stereotypical office life scenarios like the spiteful fellow employees and long hours. It was kind of sad how I could see myself in Mishima during those times, and a foreshadowing of times to come as well. This episode gives some nice commentary on how the grueling workload takes its toll, and how even the most mature and responsible people can't do it all alone. 

And then my favorite humorous episode was when Hina wanted to have a celebration for Nitta for his promotion. So she went around and asked everyone what was the best way to throw a celebratory party and then with the little money she had, she tried to create the most awesome party. But then it ended up looking like a funeral for Nitta. I died laughing.

Okay, now you might be thinking to yourself "Self, she mentioned a pink haired girl earlier, what happened to her?" Well I was thinking the same thing when I was watching the show too. Like what happened to her? Well she was actually supposed to bring two transportation balls with her, one for her and one for Hina to bring her back to whatever planet, but they were lost at sea so...instead we got this really crazy episode of Mao surviving on that island for who knows how long. But she wasn't alone, she had coconut Hina and Anzu.

Something that's kind of buried underneath all of these jokes and ridiculous situations though, is that Hina came from a place that probably forced her to be an assassin or something. All she did was follow orders from the adults who were the polar opposite of Nitta. She wasn't treated with a shred of kindness, and was collared in order to control her powers. Just thinking about that makes me wonder what kind of world that Hina, Anzu, and Mao were from. But just like in Konosuba which was a parody of a normally serious genre, we'll probably never get answers.

Overall, it was a very entertaining watch. Hinamatsuri surely doesn't disappoint with its humor and super weird situations. There's honestly nothing more to be desired in a show like this which is a comedy in a sci-fi setting. It's definitely not meant to be a serious watch, but more of a comedic and slice of life relief. Oh, one kind of easter egg thing was in the OP and the ED. Sometimes they're edited to reflect what had happened in previous episodes. Like in the OP, before Utako rejected Nitta because she couldn't get in the way of such a strong bond between Hina and Nitta, she would be pictured standing next to Nitta as Hina ran towards them with an ikura-don. But then after she rejects him, she's no longer in the OP and it's just Hina holding her ikura-don running towards Nitta alone. And then in the ED after Hina's supposed to go back to her home planet, she's not in the ending scene at the bar with everyone, which is kind of eerie because she was at the center of the group of people and without her there it just looks empty. 

Here are some screenshots of Hina and Mishima just being themselves. Honestly, this show without these kinds of facial expressions just wouldn't be the same.

Me once I quit my manual labor job :(

Okay, this one made me laugh a lot too. Everyone clapping except for Hina who literally has no idea what's going on. What a mood

And I'm gonna cap it off with this screenshot of best girl :')