Paper Moon

Long overdue post is long overdue. It's time for another post full of pretty, pretty things!

( Behind the cut: Alice in Wonderland, Redjuice, Yotsuba, Bakemonogatari, Panty and Stocking, and Soul Eater. )

I promised that I would post this final batch of scans once Tsubasa was finally finished. Well, Tsubasa isn't quite finished yet, but these have been sitting in my "to-upload" folder for far too long already, so here y'all go.

( Great paper dolls... or GREATEST paper dolls?! )

Because advertisements are awesome.





Click for high-res!

( Behind the cut: More pretty commercialization from Japan. )

Tomorrow: It's Anno Moyoco Day!

(Thank you, aster_dw, for the title of this post.)

FIRST! Because writing this series of posts has put me in the mood, this weekend I marathoned the fifth Sakura Taisen OAV series just for the heck of it. Then I did some poking around online, and, I am happy to report, the entire series is now available fansubbed, for those of you who want it. (The last time I checked it hadn't been completely fansubbed, but now... It has been!) The translation isn't the greatest, but it works. So, since this is the ONLY Sakura Taisen anime that is still unlicensed for distribution outside of Japan, y'all can check it out for free if you know where to look (*cough*).

And you all - or at least any of you that I've managed to get at least remotely interested in Sakura Taisen - should TOTALLY WATCH THIS OAV. Because it's one of the best introductions to the franchise that there is, and because it is awesome. First of all, because it's a completely self-contained story, and requires little to no knowledge of the game canon to watch. Second, it perfectly captures the COMPLETE AND UTTER INSANITY of Sakura Taisen in a way that no other animated version has yet managed to do. I mean, it's got everything, up to and including a carp-shaped spaceship. Yes, really. Plus, at one point in the series, some dude rips his own heart out - now there's the gore that previous Sakura Taisen anime shyed away from! Oh yeah, and at one point, a character actually shouts "Raise the quantum shields!" even though this anime is supposed to be set in frickin' 1928. Finally, I think it is worth mentioning that Our Hero Shinjiro spends prety much the ENTIRE series in drag, and not only that, is perpetually three seconds away from a makeout session with the manly villain of the series. Let me just say this now: This OAV is the gayest Sakura Taisen OAV ever. Heck, in the final episode, Rica even point-blank asks Shinjiro if he's going to marry the manly manly villain. That's kind of awesome.

But, anyway. The point of this entry is the Sakura Cafe. Yes, that's right. There's a cafe in Tokyo. And aster_dw and I visited it. ( LOL, pictures! )

Anyway, we're almost at the end. Only one post left!

Continued from this post!

Kosuke Fujishima, who some of you may know as that guy who draws really incredibly awesome women, is the man responsible for the original Sakura Taisen character designs, and much of the game and anime artwork. He was succeeded by the also-awesome Hidenori Matsubara. Between the two of them, they've produced an incredible body of Sakura Taisen-related artwork. ( Here is some of the best of it. )

Okay now. Remember what those characters look like. Burn their visages into your mind's eye... Because things are about to get freaky. ( Really freaky. )