Classic BL

For the record, I prefer using the term Boys Love (aka BL) rather than “Yaoi”. I feel that 801 (ya-oh-ii) is limiting according to Wiki-san:

‘Yaoi is an acronym created in the dōjinshi market of the late 1970s by Yasuko Sakata and Akiko Hatsu^[5] and popularised in the 1980s^[6] standing for Yama nashi, ochi nashi, imi nashi (ヤマなし、オチなし、意味なし, Yama nashi, ochi nashi, imi nashi) “No climax, no point, no meaning”.’

Most products of the BL genre have strayed from that flimsy description and many have really good stories. The inspiration for this blog post came with the news of a few Classic BL titles being animated.

Classic BL is a term of my own creation, which I use to describe BL titles that I feel have the power to survive the ravages of time. In a nutshell, it refers to BL material that will never grow old and continue to exist as favorites among both old and new fans of the genre. Some characteristics that define Classic BL is a strong original story plot, that concentrates on character and story development, and has the ability to stick in the minds of the audience. To do so, Classic BL titles are often long running series that involve complicated and highly emotive characters. And of course, these titles have to consist of fanservice elements to keep BL fans ensnared. Here are some titles that, in my limited opinion, fit in this category.

(Nendoroid) Yako Katsuragi

There’s a reason why I don’t really buy figurines. Because I know I won’t stop once I’ve started. =_= Unfortunately, my heart just couldn’t resist the lovely Nendoroids . There is something irresistible about these chibi figurines. -grins- Granted, not all of them are great, but most of them are just so damn adorable! They just make me squee!

One particular nendoroid caught my eye and it was none other than Yako Katsuragi, from Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro . I liked the anime and Yako, mostly due to her personality which is something akin to mine. -lol- I had the impression that the series wasn’t that popular, but looking up google and the likes, it seems that I had misjudged it. Anyway, I totally love the cute chibi version of Yoako!!

Getting my hands on one was the tricky part, because nendoroids are rather famous for being hard to get after the pre-order period has passed. Which sucked because I only caught on the wave recently, and Yako had been in the market for quite a while already.

So it was by sheer luck, that when I went to KKnM (local anime shop that most fans go to for merchandise), and found the figure for sale. The strange thing is that I was so concern asking Sharon, the shop owner, about getting my paws on Yako, that I totally missed the fact that the figurine was totally sitting in my line of vision. The conversation was something like:

Me: Do you have any of the older Nendoroids for sale?

Sharon: Erm… not really, they tend to get sold out once they have been released.

Me: Damn… I really want one of them.

Sharon: Well, which one did you want?

Me: The Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro one… (It was a bloody mouthful to get the whole title right.)

Sharon: Ah… -turns around and reaches for the figurine box- I only have Yako…

Me: OMG! That’s the one I want!! -goes all fangirly before grabbing the box-

-the end-

The conversation went on about how fun it is to play with Nendoroids because they have changeable features. I was surprise that the price wasn’t as high as I had expected (my friend promptly told me that it could have been cheaper if bought when released, but hell, at least I managed to get my paws on one!!)

-lol- And I think my first comment as I examined the figure from the box was, “Ah… upskirt shot”. -sweatdrop-

And of course, I took pictures as I fooled around with Yako. Unfortunately, it was taken with my digital camera under lousy lighting. I wished I had borrowed the D200 SLR from my roomie, then I can immediately take better photographs under such crappy situations. Oh well, will have to make do with these pictures in the meanwhile…

I fear that I have started on an unstoppable path of financial doom as I can’t help but anticipate the purchase of more figurines like Louise from Zero no Tsukaima. -sigh-

On another note, I have been making Christmas presents, and here’s a sample of what I have done so far:

It’s a cute kingyo handphone/camera pouch. I used Japanese Yukata fabric and the cloth used for my TTB cosplay as the inner lining. =D It looks surprising good. Hee. I went wild today when I was at the textile shop because of all the pretty Japanese patterns. Too bad my workmanship is still pretty shaky.

Winter

The coloured version of a sketch posted early. ^^

Fujoshi Kanojo – 腐女友

It’s 5am in the morning and I can’t sleep, so here I am, writing a post on the meaning of life. Specifically my life a fujoshi.

For the uninitiated, the definition of a fujoshi have been personally elaborated here. With that out of the way, let me begin.

It all started with reading Fujoshi Kanojo (我的腐女友) by Pentabu. It was highly enjoyable and got me thinking… why don’t I have a boyfriend that I can torture?

Let me illustrate the premise for my following discussion, with a little background information. (May contain spoilers. You have been warned. =D)

Fujoshi Kanojo is a blog-turn-best-seller-novel of a normal Japanese man, Pentabu, and he blogs about his fujoshi girlfriend. He started the relationship

with “Ｙ子”, who was his superior at a part-time job, without prior knowledge of her “preferences”. With the innocent belief that “love will triumph”, Pentabu slowly adjusts to the ways of a fujoshi. As for the character Ｙ子, I salute her for her prized catch. In my humble opinion, she has managed to nab an ideal boyfriend. Why?

EOY 08 – Teru Teru Bozu Cosplay

“The Sky Crawlers” by Mamoru Oshii

Before I rattle on about the movie, I have to say that I really like the new wordpress dashboard! A friendly way to approach all the available functions and not as daunting as before. =D

Anime Festival Asia 2008 (AFA 08)

After reading
this, do I really need to write a lengthy article on my AFA 08 experience? Especially since it has already been over a week since the event happened. XD Instead, I have decided to write a short review of the event as a whole, and keep the rest of this post more about the stuff I picked up and the crazy antics that occurred.