Anime #24- Bleach!

This is now one of my favourite anime. I like it a whole lot more than Naruto. My friends got me into it. Well, on with the show.

Brief Intro
When someone dies, they have two paths to follow. If they were a good person, they become a spirit called a whole. But if they're full of regret- they become an evil spirit called a Hollow. Centuries-old Rukia Kuchiki is a Soul Reaper, a warrior who gets rid of Hollows and sends all good souls to the Soul Society, the place where all souls end up. One day, she enters the human world and is spotted by 15-year-old Ichigo Kurosaki, who lives with a dysfunctional family and hashad the ability to see ghosts since birth. He also has dyed his hair since birth--- a bright orange. Rukia is amazed that Ichigo was able to spot her so quickly and tells him not to bother with what she's doing. Ichigo finds out that a Hollow is loose near his house and could endanger the life of not only him, but his two younger sisters as well as his oddball dad. Try as he might, he is helpless against the power of the Hollow. Rukia decides she will lend him some of her power. When Ichigo absorbs the power, he absorbs too much, in fact, all, of Rukia's power. The sword she carries, or zanpakuto, grows very large in his hands, and the Hollow becomes no match for him. The series follows Ichigo as he learns to become a full-fledged Soul Reaper, along with his friends who are also gifted with the ability to see ghosts. And later- find out why Rukia is in big trouble.

The Soul Society
As mentioned before, the place where all souls come to rest. It has to main parts: the Rukongai and the Sereitei. The Rukongai is where souls first enter. It is made up of many smaller districts. The Sereitei, or Court of Pure Souls, is where the Soul Reapers live. There are then the elite Soul Reapers: the court guards. The Court Guard is divided into 13 companies. Court Guard Soul Reapers come in many ranks. Highest is Captain; followed by Lieutenant; and then respective seats until twenty, and then the remaining members who do not possess a seat. Here is a a breakdown of each company's Captain and Lieutenant.

1st Company
Captain: Yamamoto Genryuusai
Lieutant: Sasakibe Chojiro

2nd Company
Captain: Soi Fon
Lieutenant: Omaeda Marechiyo

3rd Company
Captain: Gin Ichimaru
Lieutenant: Izuru Kira

4th Company
Captain: Retsu Unohana
Lieutenant: Kotetsu Isane

5th Company
Captain: Sousuke Aizen
Lieutenant: Momo Hinamori

6th Company
Captain: Byakuya Kuchiki
Lieutenant: Renji Abarai

7th Company
Captain: Sanjin Komamura
Lieutenant: Iba Testuzaemon

8th Company
Captain: Shunsui Kyoraku
Lieutenant: Nanao Ise

9th Company
Captain: Kaname Tousen
Vice President: Shuhei Hisagi

10th Company
Captain: Toshirou Hitsugaya
Lieutenant: Rangiku Matsumoto

11th Company
Captain: Kenpachi Zaraki
Lieutenant: Yachiru Kusagishi

12th Company
Captain: Mayuri Kurotsuchi
Lieutenant: Nemu Kurotsuchi

13th Company
Captain: Jushiro Ukitake
Lieutenant: Kaien Shiba (Dead, unfortunately)

Characters (some spoiler content)

Ichigo Kurosaki
An oranged-haired Japanese kid with a bad attitude. Upon getting his Soul Reaper powers, he becomes a substitute Soul Reaper and needs to learn many things about his power. Like how to control it, what his zanpakuto's name is.

Rukia Kuchiki
A Soul Reaper formally from the 13th company. She becomes a good friend to Ichigo and trains him to become the a proper "substitute" soul reaper. She does not gain her powers back for some time.

Orihime Inoue
A somewhat ditzy friend of Ichigo's. She develops her own spiritual powers, unique to her only. She has a power of shields. She has three main powers:
i) A shield that repels everything on the outside- in other words, a mirror-type barrier
ii) A shield that repels everything on the inside- in other words, a healing technique
iii) A shield that repels everything on both sides- in other words, a slicing shield

Yusatora "Chad" Sado
A strong, tall, yet kind and quiet friend of Ichigo's. He used to be a bully, but became kind thanks to his grandfather. Now he uses his strength to help his friends.

Kon
A somewhat perverted stuffed lion who was originally a soul used for battle. He caused a lot of problems with Ichigo's friends but is now usually the person who fills in for Ichigo when Ichigo enters his Soul Reaper's body.
Isshin/Yuzu/Karin Kurosaki
Ichigo's family. Isshin, his father, is a very strange dad who greets Ichigo with a kick in the face every morining. Karin is Ichigo's elder of his two younger sisters. She sees ghosts but doesn't like to get involved with Hollows and such. Yuzu is the youngest in the family and feels responsible for doing housework chores and cooking since the Kurosaki mother, Masaki, died.

Uryu Ishida
Long ago, there were two groups who disliked each other- there were the Soul Reapers and the Quincys. The Quincys believed Hollows had to be killed, while Soul Reapers wanted to cleanse them. All Quincys were wiped out except for two; Uryu Ishida and his father. Uryu is at first an enemy of Ichigo's but quickly becomes an ally. His main weapon is a bow which he can summon at any time.

Kisuke Uruhara
An enigmatic man Ichigo meets when Rukia presents him with a Soul Candy, which is a candy that gives a person's body a soul that can take its place. Kisuke runs his own shop, Uruhara Shoten, which sells various types of spiritual products. He has two children with him. Jinta; an obnoxious and forceful boy and Ururu; a shy and quiet girl. There is also Tessai, a tall, strong man who seems to help Kisuke out with big problems.

Yoruichi Shihoin
A black cat who appears later in the series. Not much is known about him, other than that he's extremely fast and has talents far superior to Ichigo and his friends.

A description of the second season of Bleach may become available depending on the popularity of this summary.

Business Bites!

Hey, all people who probably don't even read this blog. I haven't been on it quite a while, so I've decided to publish another anime. #24- Bleach. I'll start to work on it right after I'm done typing this message.

Thanks,

Nidikhihunter Mike

~ANNOUNCEMENT! NEW BLOG!~

Yes, very soon, I will be creating a new blog all about Naruto. This will feature character profiles, latest episode summaries and more! At this time I will also be releasing an article I was going to write about Naruto, but it's only partially completed, to give anyone who reads this blog a teaser.

YAY!

Anime #23 - (A huge one) NARUTO!

Introduction

Well, what can I say. It's one of my absolute favourite anime out there. Here's my intro.
Outside normal land, there are five countries, each representing a well known element (ex fire, water, lightning). And hidden in these countries are secret villages that train ninja, who carry out difficult, and often dangerous, missions. And ruling these five countries are special, highly advanced ninja called kage, or shadows. They are the leaders of the countries and govern the land. This series focuses on the village of Konohagakure, or just Konoha for short (Konoha means leaf). It follows the life of a twelve-year-old named Naruto. Now he isn't just any normal boy. He has the Kyuubi, or nine-tailed fox sealed inside him.

History of the Kyuubi
The Kyuubi was a dangerous fox that attacked the village of Konoha twelve years before the story takes place. It seemed unstoppable, until the Yondaime, or fourth Hokage, sealed the demon away inside a young boy. After which, the Yondaime died, and the story begins.

Chakra, Hand Signs and Technique Classes
The ninja energy, otherwise known as chakra, is the main way ninja can use techniques. They use hand signs to focus their chakra. Chakra can only be used so much so often, though. When a ninja uses up too much chakra, either by using a high level technique or using to many techniques, they go into what's called Chakra fatigue. They have trouble moving muscles in their body. There are four types of techniques ninja use.
Taijutsu
Bluntly translates into hand-to-hand combat. These moves mostly don't require chakra (there are a few moves which do, but that's a different story) and are undisguised.
Ninjutsu
Ninja techniques. These are the most widely used technique. They are pretty much every type of attack that requires chakra, such as kage bunshin or henge (transformation).
Genjutsu
Illusionary techniques. There aren't used as often as ninjutsu, but can serve highly effective when used. These types of techniques can modify landscapes or objects. These are often to wear down opponents before attacking and finishing them off.
Kinjutsu
The least common of the four types of techniques. These are forbidden techniques that often require something drastic, like a large amount of chakra or live sacrifices. One such person who utilises kinjutsu quite well is Orochimaru.

Ninja Ranks
Every ninja can't just become kage. They have to prove themselves to become a higher rank. Here is a rough chart to explain this.

Academy Student
V
V
Genin
V
V
Chunin
V
V
Jounin
V
V----->Sannin*
Kage

*explained later on

Uzumaki Naruto
Needs no introduction. He is, to be blunt, pretty stupid. When trained in the ninja academy, he failed his year-end ninja exams many times. But one year, he was tricked by another chunin, Mitsuki who helped his teacher, Iruka. He was tricked into stealing a forbidden scroll that Mitsuki really wanted for himself. From reading the scroll, Naruto was able to perform a jounin level technique: the kage bunshin no jutsu, or Shadow Clone technique. Upon defeating Mitsuki with his tajyuu kage bunshin (mass shadow clone), he was promoted to genin right on the spot. He later teams up with Uchiha Sasuke (whom he dislikes) and Haruno Sakura (whom he has a major crush on). Naruto, since he has to types of chakra (one from the Kyuubi)
------
The rest, you'll find out in my new blog at http://narutoindepth.blogspot.com

Anime #22- Death Note

Black notebooks should be avoided. Death Notes are black notebooks dropped by Shinigami, or death gods. Any time a Shinigami drops a death note, it stays in the human world. Any human who decides to use a Death Note will not go to heaven or hell. But what's a Death Note, you may ask? Any time you write a person's name in the book and visualize their face, they will die within 40 seconds of writing the name. If you simply write their name, they will dies of heart attacks. Details may be written about the death after writing the person's name. You may make the person do anything that is possible for them to do before they die (ie. you can make them write suicide notes, but can't make them fly off a building).Super-genius Light Yagami happened to stumble upon the notebook dropped by a rather freaky-looking Shinigami called Ryuk. Light decides to use the Death Note to kill criminals who have commited major crimes. This quickly alerts the UN, and they recruit their most intelligent detective ever, the mysterious "L", to figure out who the killer (known as Kira) really is. L is extremely intelligent and used a variety of tactics to come across one suspect: Light Yagami!

Characters

Light
A young man who excels in school. Ever since he picked up the Death Note, he has tried to create a new world order by elminating criminals. Though violent crimes did cease a lot, he still had no right to do it, according to L. Light is always aware of his surroundings, and is very careful with every step he makes, as he knows L is hot on his trail. He is also, according to Ryuk, the first human to take a Death Note so seriously.

Ryuk
A death god or "Shinigami". He informs Light of all the rules of the Death Note. Ryuk also tells Light that he is impartial and does not help Light nor L. His "hyuk hyuk hyuk" is his trademark laugh, and is addicted to apples. Too bad he can't eat them most of the time, since he's invisible to everyone except Light, other death gods, and those who have touched Light's Death Note.

L
A genius detective who has never left a case under his command unsolved. He is a very odd fellow, and is very smart, like Light. He always looks sleep deprived and is always searching for new clues that will lead him to the identity of "Kira".

Misa
A young girl who also carries a Death Note. She caused a lot of confusion as a "Second Kira" and was later found out by Light. She becomes Light's girlfriend, and Light tries to use her, since she has Shinigami Eyes**, to kill L.

Overall, the series is filled with many twists and turns. It is definetely worth watching.

** Shinigami eyes are eyes that can see a person's real name and lifespan by looking in their eyes. Humans are allowed to get this power in exchange for half their lifespan.

G Anime Awards/ 06

Since I'm not the greatest anime expert in the world, I decided to redo the whole awards post! These category winners have been nominated by anime experts on a select forum on the web. Here are the winners!

Best Hair
Dark Mousy (D.N. Angel)

Best Costume
Roger Smith (Big O)

Worst Costume
Nabeshin (Excel Saga)

Most Annoying Scream
Excel (Excel Saga)

Best Catchphrase
"Did I just die... or... was I born?" -Ayato Kamina, RahXephon.

Worst Attempt at a Good Plot
D.I.C.E.

Worst Drawn Character
Lupin the III (Lupin the III)

Best Hero
Rain (Immortal Rain)

Best Villain
Naraku (Inuyasha)

Sub? Dub? Tub?

The tub thing was a joke. This is an article about Subbing and Dubbing. Why? Because I have no anime to write about at the moment.

Sub

Pros
A sub is made in Japanese and English subtitles are included. Many people like this idea (including me) because it gives people the chance to see many anime that will probably never hit North America. It is purely uncut and isn't censored for swearing and such (it doesn't really matter if they do swear. Unless you speak fluent Japanese, you won't even understand which word they just said). It is my preferred way of watching one of my current favourite anime, Naruto.

Cons
Although watching dubs is fun, there are a few drawbacks. For one, subs are usually downloaded and watched. This can consume a lot of your computer's memory, unless you can find a website that lets you watch without downloading. Another thing, the Japanese voice actors may not bring out emotion in a character.

Dub

Pros
Dubs are anime translated into English and voices are also done by English voice actors. This is the way I've seen most of my anime. It give some personality to the characters, as Japanese have limitations. And the jokes used in anime are better received by the viewer, because they don't have to actually read the subtitle to see the joke.

Cons
There are a few cons. Mainly, dubs can go horribly wrong. For instance, One Piece, an anime I like, was completely killed when done in the English language. All the blood and weapons were taken out, and so much more. Sometimes the English voice actors do a mediocre job doing voices and often make anime fans stop watching the dub. All that said, not every dub is bad.

Anime #21- X

X has held a few records for me. It is the first anime that has ever almost made me cry, and it is the first anime I've seen that is completely unpredictable. Well, I have seen others. But anyways, let's begin.

Intro
Kamui Shiro is not like any person you will ever meet. For, the weight of the entire world rests on his shoulders. Long ago, a day of destiny for the Earth was decided. There are two sides that make up a war, each consisting of seven people. Firstly, there are the Dragons of Heaven, the Seven Seals. They are the seven people who are gifted with special power, used to protect the Earth and all who inhabit it, even though humans themselves have polluted it. Then, there are the Dragons of Earth, the Seven Angels. They are seven people who also have special power, but are sent to eradicate humanity. They want to wipe out civilization so that the Earth will destroy itself, but eventually be reborn. Now what does this all have to with Kamui? He is the one who will choose which side he wants to be on. He can be a Dragon of Earth, or a Dragon of Heaven, and as soon as he chooses, his twin star, another Kamui, will automatically be on the opposite side.

Characters (There are lots, possible spoilers)

Kamui Shiro
The character the show revolves around. His mother died in a horrible fire when he was younger, which Kamui later found out was because she was his Shadow Sacrifice. This meant that she was the one who would take all the pain and suffering Kamui would have taken. At first, he appears cold-hearted, rarely letting anyone befriend him. But after a certain event, he changes for the better. He chooses to become a Dragon of Heaven, making his best friend, Fumaa, automatically a Dragon of Earth.

Fumaa Monou
Kamui's best friend, but also Kamui's greatest enemy. He is the leader of the Dragons of Earth. Before he changed, he was very kind-hearted, and would never hurt anyone. But when he transformed, he became cruel and ruthless. However, he always finds a way to grant people's wishes. He figures out a person's greatest wish and grants it. It is unknown how he always knows.

Kotari Monou
She is someone Kamui deeply cares for. She appears frail and weak, but is actually a dreamseer. Her father ran and owned a shrine before he died. She goes into shock at the sight of a lot of blood, ever since her mother died in a tragic operating accident. She chooses to die and become a true dreamseer.

Kakyo Kuduki
A Dragon of Earth, but not at all evil. He is very weak, and is supported by a complicated set of machines. He is a dreamseer, but doesn't think the Dragons of Earth should win the fight, even though destiny has already decided they will triumph. He appears in other people's dreams and is very poetic when he talks.

Hinoto
A princess who is deaf, mute and paralyzed, but appears just like any other person, the only difference being she does not move from her spot. She is the third dreamseer is this anime, but doesn't like to accept what her dreams tell her at times, so she tries to change the future, usually to no avail.

Kanoe
Hinoto's sister. She has a deep hatred for her sister, and likes to see her sister in pain. She is not as talented as her sister in the world of dreamseeing, but can still go into people's dreams. She is sided with the Dragons of Earth.

Sorata Arisugawa
A very happy kid from the Osaka shrine, he is one of the Dragons of Heaven. When he was young, he was told by an old stargazer that he was to meet Kamui, protect him, but also die for the one he loves. He later meets a girl named Arashi, whom he always refers to as "missy", and decides she will be the one he will die for. He is a Lightning Master, and has amazing control over his power.

Arashi Kishu
A young woman from the Ise shrine, she is one of the Dragons of Heaven. She has much skill with a sword and used to be with Princess Hinoto until she was called into action and joined the rest of her kind. She is taken aback when Sorata tells her that he'll die protecting her, but realizes she has feelings for him as time goes on.

Seiichiro Aoki
A Wind Master, one of the Dragons of Heaven. He divorced his wife so that he could make sure they don't get in trouble when the final battle arrives. He works in a publishing firm and is very busy a lot of the time, but seems to be developing a relationship with another Dragon named Karen. His nephew, Daisuke Syiki, guards Princess Hinoto with his life.

Subaru Sumeragi
He is the head of the Sumeragi clan, a Dragon of Heaven. He is very quiet and very mysterious, but uses his power when deemed necessary. His sister Hokuto was killed by a member of the Dragons of Earth, Seishiro. He vows to avenge his sister, by making full use of the Sumeragi clan techniques. He even has the power to dive into peoples' subconsious!

Karen Kasumi
A Fire Master, she is a Dragon of Heaven. She has no family left after her mother died when she was young. She always carries a cross shaped necklace, and she always prays to god. She is very good friends with Seiichiro, and is always with him, one way or another.

Yuzuriha Nekoi
A young 14-year-old, another Dragon of Heaven. She is extremely friendly and always refers to people as "Miss" or "Mister" and then the peron's name, rather than just their name (ex. Mister Sorata instead of just Sorata). She has a dog named Inuki, which can only been seen by Dragons or by people with special mental ability, like Kanoe or Daisuke. The weirdest thing about the dog is that it can also turn into a sword!

Seishiro Sukurazukamorai
Try saying his last name ten times fast! He has the power to control cherry blossoms, as his last name implies. He is one of the Dragons of Earth. He lost sight in his right eye long ago and is responsible for killing Hokuto Sumeragi. Before Hokuto died, he was cursed by her, so that if Subaru were to be injured, he would too.

Yuto Kigai
A Water Master, a Dragon of Earth. He often has a happy, serene look on his face, and is very close with Kanoe. But when he gets into a battle, he is serious. He has a strange ability to make water doubles of himself when he gets into trouble.

Nataku (Kazuki)
Another Dragon of Earth. He was created by scientists and named after a Chinese god who had no emotion or feelings. The name suits him perfectly. He will do anything Fumaa commands him to do, and feels no emotion if he kills people with his spells.

Satsuki Yatouji
A girl whom is very smart and often found inside a large computer suit, otherwise called Beast. She is very technical and analytical, and wondered why it's wrong to kill humans. Yuto responded to this by answering: "It is wrong to kill humans because other humans will grieve." Yuto, she finds out later on, means well, but will cause her harm.

Kusanagi Shiyu
A very kind man, an Earth Master apparently, and a Dragon of Earth to boot. Yuzuriha meets him in a street one day and knows she has found someone special, someone who can see her dog Inuki. She later realizes she has feelings for him, even though they are on opposite sides of the battle.

Anime #20- Whistle!

To make up for a major drought of anime articles, I'm going to write on one of my personal favourite manga-turned-anime, Whistle! ! Created by Daisuke Higuchi.

Intro
Taking place around 1998, before France won the World Cup, the story focuses on a teenager named Sho Kazamatsuri, an aspiring soccer player who would like nothing better than to go to the world cup and play on the Japan soccer yeam. However, his road to the world cup is paved with obstacles. He originally went to an academy called Musashinamori, which is well-known for their powerful soccer team. But when Sho tried out, he only made the third team, a team of substitutes that barely even touched the ball. And so, Sho left the school and moved in with his brother Ko. There, Sho transferred to a middle school known as Josui, where he was mistakenly introduced as a star player. When the other members of the team discovered Sho wasn't all he was cracked up to be, he started to train alone, until the captain of the team, Tatsuya Mizuno, brought him back. Many strange and interesting soccer players join the team, such as a player who had quit and re-joined, a genius boy known as 'The Crusher' and a girl! The show is full of humour and very interesting soccer strategies.

Sho Kazamatsuri
The main character of the series. He is unlike any other soccer player he meets. For, when he loses, he doesn't get angry and be a sore loser. No, he only sees soccer players who are better than him as a means of getting stronger and more training. He is very kind, and will always stick up for his friends when they are in trouble. He is also short, and dreams of being 180 cm when he grows up.

Tatsuya Mizuno
The captain of the Josui Junior High soccer team. He was originally a regular, but challenged the captain (Honma), for the position of captain, and Honma lost. Tatsuya became the new captain, leading to a mass drop-out of players. However, Sho, determined to get a team together, managed to get a new team together. Tatsuya is calm, cool and collected, and is often found getting angry at Shige for calling him "Tatsu-bon."

Shigeki Sato
Also known as Shige, Shigeki Sato originally quit the team. But one day, when he saw Sho, he decided he would je-join the team. He is very light-hearted and is always cracking jokes. However, on the field, he is a very determined and skilled player. He was originally a goalkeeper for the team, but was put to forward alongside Sho due to a new member joining their team, 'The Crusher'.

Daichi Fuwa
A genius boy known as 'The Crusher', because he is known to crush people's dreams. Sho first met him along a riverside, where he thought Daichi was trying to commit suicide. Sho talked to Daichi about his dreams of going to the World Cup, and, oddly enough, Daichi had never heard of it before. Sho explained the rules to Daichi, and challenged Daichi to a little game, where Sho would take shots on him. Sho was astonished when Daichi blocked every shot Sho took. Daichi joined the team to find out why "this boy smiles so much."

Yuki Kojima
A girl who is currently on the Josui soccer team, though she isn't allowed to play. She originally disguised herself as a boy who would stop players who insulted the game of soccer. She was revealed as herself a littlw while later. She joined the Josui high soccer team and amazed the boys when she beat almost everyone there. Tatsuya talked with her a little later, and explained to her that she couldn't play in the tournaments, because the other teams would make excuses when they lost like "But there was a girl on the team!"

Oyassan
The owner of a noodle shop. Sho first ran into him when he was training. Oyassan appeared rough around the edges when Sho first met him, but is actually very kind-hearted, and will always help Sho and his friends out. He even made a sign for the team when they played in a tournament. Vor! A mighty kick!

Picture from:http://www.animenfo.com/animetitle,912,euigky,whistle_.html

Manga and artists...

I'm going to be taking a small break from anime writing just to comment on some manga I've been reading lately. They've all been awesome, some a little better than others.

Whistle! By Daisuke Higuchi
This is a manga about Sho Kazamatsuri, a boy who loves soccer more than anything else. He used to play in an elite soccer school called Musashinomori, but transferred to Josui Junior High because he wasn't good enough to be a soccer starter. The manga joins him and a bunch of people he meets as he trains to become the best soccer player there ever was.

The Big O- By an artist I can't remember right now
The main character is Roger Smith. He's a hero, but not a butt-whooping hero, more of a negotiator. He negotiates between villains and the city he lives in that clings onto their memories. But when times get tough, he says "Big O, show time!" and a giant robot, or MegaDeus, comes to his aid.

The Prince of Tennis- By Takashi Konomi
As the name suggests, it's a managa about a boy who excels at tennis, and is nicknamed the Prince of Tennis. He's a genius player who inherited his tennis skills from his father. From what I've read so far, he dominates almost everyone he faces, and will always be able to learn something new. His name is Ryoma Echizen.

.hack//sign- Catastrophe-- Episode #25

The episode begins where the last one left off: the being got angry. Tsukasa could easily sense she was angry, and told everyone else that. Subaru says that she thinks she is the target, and the others agree. The rest of the party is about to go to a chapel, but B.T. tells them to go on ahead, because she used a lot of magic and needs to replenish her supplies. As she turns around, Sora has her trapped between his Twinblades. The next time the episode shows B.T., she is killed.
Subaru and the party go into the cathedral, and Bear and Crim decide to stay outside. As they start to talk, Bear goes on to talk with Crim about Aura and the game. Bear says that everyone playing the game besides his party are playing the game as if it's normal, as if everything is ok. Crim says that it's up to them to show the World that there is something very wrong.
Sora is back to the being's place, and asks the being where the others are. But the being wants Sora to keep quiet, because Sora often tells people things.
Tsukasa, back with Subaru, says he doesn't understand what Helba said. She said the answer was inside of him. He goes on and wonders about what happens after they get the Key of the Twilight and he is able to log out. He says that whenever there is a beginning, there is always an inevitable end.
Sora appears at the chapel, thanks to the being, and Bear goes inside to make sure nothing happens to Subaru and the rest. Crim and Sora decide to settle their score.
Bear says he wants to talk with Tsukasa. He tells Tsukasa that when he is able to log out, he'd like to be Tsukasa's foster parent. There is a boarding school Tsukasa could go to, and Bear would be the sponsor. Bear says Tsukasa can think about it as long as he wants until he logs out.
Just then, another blue Guardian appears!
Maha is back at the haven. He sees a twig, thinking back to Tsukasa, and picks it up.
Crim, fighting with Sora, says that strength isn't the only thing that matters. The highest any player can go is level 99, but it also depends on other things. Sora is bored and wonders where Crim is going with it.
The Guardian starts to attack the player, and Mimiru covers Tsukasa and Subaru so they can run away.
Crim tells Sora he is a kid. Sora doesn't respond, and Crim knows he's right. Crim says that the player who fights with the most passion will always win.
A tendril goes near Subaru, and Silver Knight jumps in front of the tendril. Silver Knight is almost killed, but B.T. saves him. Tsukasa decides he wants to help, and starts healing the party members who need it. The party uses as many special things as they can, and decided that the best way to kill the Guardian now is to use physcial attacks. After 5 or so hits, the Guardian is defeated!
Crim sends Sora flying. Sora and Crim have settled their score, and Sora is the loser.
Three more Guardians appear, and Tsukasa decides he'll fight them. But before he can, Maha appears. He has a twig in his hand. He does some magic to the twig, and it grows into a plant. He then puts himself in front of the Guardians and lets them kill him. Tsukasa is very shocked and surprised.
Suddenly, a weird glowing light surrounds Subaru and Tsukasa, and Mimiru runs after them. The three of them start falling through a portal.

.hack//sign- Net Slum-- Episode #24

The gate that the members of Bear's party take leads them to a very weird place. It's a bunch of broken images, but weirdest of all, they are all Tsukasa! Bear says that they are data remnants of him.
Subaru has been waiting for a while now, and Tsukasa still hasn't shown up. She sees the Helba gate start to vibrate, meaning it will close soon. As she is about to go through the portal (she has waited long enough) Tsukasa appears. Subaru is very glad he managed to come.
Crim is trying to figure out what these images are and if they talk, but they don't. Mimiru wonders what they're doing in the Slum, and Silver Knight decides to slash one of them. Bear says Silver Knight shouldn't do that, because Tsukasa barely made it to the place, and if he sees everyone slashing the images, it will upset him and he will probably run off and disappear again.
Now that everyone is at the Slum, Helba appears and officially welcomes them to the Net Slum, a place constructed of bugs and data remnants. She says that the omni-present entity (or the Being) was trying to make copies of Tsukasa, but was having trouble, so she brought Tsukasa to the World for that purpose.
Tsukasa has been sitting elsewhere in the Slum, evidently still depressed. Subaru was told to go to him. She agreed and started to talk with him. She says she will stay by his side, because she wants to protect someone now. Tsukasa says that he thought he was a guy in the real world, but it turns out that he's actually getting fake memories, and that he's probably a girl in real life.
Helba starts to talk about Aura, talking about the Being again, and its objective. Mimiru thinks she knows it and says that it's to give birth to the warped Aura. Helba tells her she's wrong. She says that when Tsukasa is happy, Aura grows the way she is supposed to. But when he is depressed and negative, she warps. So what it means is, the being wants Tsukasa to log out, because when he does, the warped Aura will be born and the key of the Twilight will reveal itself in its true form.
Sora revisits the place where the being is holding Aura, and says it's boring. The being wants to know where Tsukasa and the others are, because she can't see them!
The being wants Sora to go find them, and says she'll make him stronger as she trys to give him a bluish-green Guardian. Sora refuses, saying he's already strong enough. The being calls him a fool, and the Guardian tries to kill Sora. Sora teleports away, knowing he's in trouble.
Back at the Slum, Mimiru goes and sits with Silver Knight. Mimiru calls him and old man, and Silver Knight says he isn't that old. He's 23 and works part-time in a video rental store. Mimiru says she used to do that too, she loved to watch as many movies as she wanted. Silver Knight said he wished he worked in a pizza store, so he could eat as much pizza as he wanted. Mimiru laughed, surprised he made a joke. Silver Knight is glad he could have another silly conversation.
Helba clears out all the Tsukasa copies and says that's all she can do. Bear says it's better that Helba doesn't fight, it would be better for her to monitor them. As Helba leaves, Bear says that if the being were to attack them, Subaru would be their first target. If Subaru were hurt, Tsukasa would never be able to recover again.
Speaking too soon, Maha appears and summons the bluish-green Guardian. It starts whipping out its tendrils. Mimiru, Bear and Crim start to attack the creature and tell Tsukasa and Subaru to run.
But it seems that the Guardian won't let them leave, and one of its tendrils almost kill Subaru! Luckily, B.T. uses her defence magic to save them. Tsukasa and Subaru run, but the being starts to follow them.
It seems they're trapped, but then Tsukasa's Guardian comes and destroys itself along with the other.
The other players cheer and think Tsukasa should be awarded. When they ask Tsukasa what he wants to do, Tsukasa says he wants to log out.
Back at the being's place, Maha is hovering around Aura, and the being is yelling, clearly infuriated.

.hack//sign- The Eve- Episode #23

The episode starts with some of the characters from the show saying a phrase, like Crim saying "I'd like to offer a strategic base!" or Mimiru saying "Who are you?" It's a bit confusing to start off with, but it quickly flows into the episode.
The actual dialogue begins with Mimiru walking across a stone bridge. But before she can start to cross, Sora teleports onto the bridge. Clearly annoyed, Mimiru gets angry. Sora, being his usual childish self, says "Aww, are you mad at me?" Mimiru doesn't think of it as funny, and tells him she doesn't have time. She eventually gets so annoyed of Sora that she draws her blade.
For the first time in a whole episode, B.T. is talking with Bear. B.T. thinks that she should help them, but asks why Bear is so obsessed with Tsukasa. Bear says that Tsukasa was just a turning point, but it's a quest that he wants to see to the end. Bear goes on to say that when you meet someone, you should find meaning. B.T. says when she first met Tsukasa, she only wanted to use him.
Subaru is sitting on the floor of the chapel-ish place she goes to, with a sad look on her face. As Crim meets up with her, he realizes what's wrong. It seems Tsukasa still isn't showing any signs of returning. As Crim talks, Subaru keeps cutting him off. She says she wants to become involved with Tsukasa again. When Crim asks why, she says she's been protected by him, Silver Knight, and many other people. For once, she wants to help protect someone else. She sends another weird glowing ember and it lands on Tsukasa's shoulder, back in his haven.
The bed where Aura used to float collapses.
As the fight starts between Mimiru and Sora, Mimiru is quickly disarmed and is held at the mercy of Sora's Twinblades. As Sora is about to kill Mimiru, Bear and B.T. appear behind Sora and tell Sora to back away. Sora expresses his mock joy that Bear and B.T. have made up, but finally makes a smart move and teleports.
Tsukasa meets up with Crim, but sounds very scared and shaken up, saying things like "Don't hurt me!" and "I'm sorry!" Crim tries to calm him down, and asks who did this to him. He doesn't reply. Crim tries to convince him by telling him he should be like Subaru. She wouldn't be afraid. Between breaths, Tsukasa says he doesn't have Subaru's strength. In hopes of getting Tsukasa to join them, Crim tells Tsukasa about Subaru in the real world, how she was really clueless when she first showed up. But Subaru grew from that, and has become the confident young lady she is now. This hopefully convinces Tsukasa some way.
Sora returns to the place where Aura is being held, and comments about the Key of the Twilight. Most importantly, how does it work? He wonders.
Silver Knight meets with B.T., Bear, Subaru, Mimiru and Crim, saying he's thought about it. Crim asks Silver Knight what he wants to protect, and he replies "Lady Subaru." Crim welcomes him to the party, and Subaru tells Silver Knight to leave "Lady" out of her name from now on.
A Helba gate opens, and the group wonders if they should go. Crim says "If you desire to know the truth, you also need the courage to accept it." it was a quote from a novel everyone in the party seems to have read, except for Mimiru. They discuss the scene, and agree to meet on the other side. Bear, B.T., Silver Knight and Mimiru go first. Crim goes next, but waits for Subaru to come. She says she wants to wait for Tsukasa, so Crim just goes into the gate.
Tsukasa is sitting in the chapel, still saddened, saying "No... no!"

Anime# 18- Marmalade Boy

Introduction[Contains Spoilers!]

First off, I'll tell you the reason this anime is called "Marmalade Boy". One of the main charcters, Yuu, is referred to as a Marmalade Boy by another main character, Miki. The reason Miki calls Yuu "Marmalade Boy" is because she believes that people don't see him for his bitterness, they only see him for his sweetness (bishounen), just like marmalade xD!

Ok. On we go with the summary. Miki's ordinary life is turned upside-down when her parents suddenly announce that they're getting divorced in order to swap partners with a couple they met in Hawaii :\. They seek her approval of the change, telling her that they have arranged a dinner to meet the other couple, as well as their son, who is about Miki's age.

At dinner, the adults share their plans of living all together in one big house. Miki reluctantly gives them permission. The other couple's son, Yuu, turns out to be fun and attractive, and Miki finds herself falling for him. Of course, it doesn't help matters when Yuu kisses Miki while she is pretending to be asleep in the nurse's room at school. Little by little, Miki accepts her new family arrangement.

At school, a long time classmate, and former crush of Miki's, Ginta, becomes jealous of Miki's new 'friend' and decides to try and gain her affections. He kisses Miki unexpectedly, for which he gets slapped. When Ginta later admits to Miki that he has loved her for years, and that his earlier rejection of her was a misunderstanding, Miki struggles between which of the two she wants to be with. Ginta tries to force Miki to choose between himself and Yuu. After a bit of indecision, Miki chooses Yuu. Yuu shares that he was the child of his mother, and some man other than his father. Miki sympathizes with him, and the two become boyfriend and girlfriend.

As the series progresses, Miki becomes very attached to Yuu...So much, that she is jealous whenever she sees another girl with him. It makes matters worse when his old girlfriend, Arimi, will do anything to get Yuu back. However, Miki has no reason to be jealous because Yuu is totally devoted to her.

Meanwhile, Miki's best friend, Meiko, is dealing with her own problems. She is seeing one of the teachers, who is affectionately referred to by the students as "Na-chan". She loves him very much, but dating a teacher is taboo. They get caught, and when they do, Na-chan resigns his position and leaves for Hiroshima. Meiko is depressed, but is encouraged by one of the seniors at school who wants her to write a story, and she does. Turns out she ends up as an acclaimed author. After much hardship, her and Na-chan end up together again ^^.

Miki later gets a part time job in order to help fund a trip with Yuu. As she does this, one of her co-workers, Kei-kun, falls for her, and tries to win her affections. At the same time, a cute model, Suzu, is trying to steal Yuu away from Miki. Yuu and Miki fight briefly, however, the two overcome all obstacles to stay together. As a result, their love for one another grows stronger.

Unexpectedly, Miki discovers that a transfer student from America, Michael, will be living with them for a while. He is attractive, and all the girls chase after him, however, he seems attached to Miki. Yuu suddenly decides to go to America to study architecture as an exchange student. Miki misses him terribly, and on top of that, she is pursued by both Kei-kin, and Michael. Due to a misunderstanding, Miki is led to believe that Yuu is cheating on her. She flies to New York, and the situation only gets worse. She decides that she is too lonely, and has turned into an awful person while having to wait for Yuu, so she breaks up with him.

Back in Japan, Kei-kun and Michael force Miki to choose between them, and she reluctantly starts dating Kei-kun. He treats her well, and she is happy, but she still can't forget Yuu, and feels lonely somehow. Yuu comes back to Japan for summer vacation, and Miki is even more troubled. She cries when Kei-kun is about to kiss her, then tells him she is sorry. She runs off, and makes up with Yuu.

Back together again, their happiness is cut short when Yuu finds evidence that leads him to belive Miki is actually his sister. He breaks up with her, and goes back to New York. Sad, and unable to forget Yuu, Miki goes to New York to confront Yuu, and he tells her that she is his sister, and they can't be together. Upset, Miki runs off and gets lost in Manhattan. She is bullied by a gang, but Yuu shows up and saves her just in time. The two decide that their love is too strong, and that even if they are siblings, they want to be together.

At the airport, the rest of the family shows up because they were worried about Miki. Miki and Yuu confront their parents for not telling them they were siblings in the first place. The adults burst out laughing as they tell the couple that they have mistaken the situation, and that they are not siblings after all. Yuu is really his father's son, not another man's. The two are relieved and happy. Meiko marries Na-chan. They all live happily ever after...

Characters[Contains Spoilers!]

Miki is one of the main characters in Marmalade Boy. She is cheerful, silly, and very energetic. She is also an incredibly loyal friend, and loved by all who meet her (unless they are after Yuu^^). She in turn, also loves everyone, causing problems in her romances. She was the only one who was opposed to the marriage swap in the beginning, but that all changed when she found out who she'd be living with ;). Miki's best friend is Meiko, they share a diary to tell eachother things, when they would not be able to talk otherwise. Another one of Miki's friend is Suou Ginta, and when Miki was in Junior High, she had feeling for Ginta that were more serious than friendship. But, later Miki realizes that Yuu is the only one for her.

When Yuu and Miki first met, he was pretty rude to her, but soon they fell in love. Before the whole remarriage fiasco, Yuu lived with his mother and father. He went to Sakaki Academy along with Arimi and Tsutomu. This is where he met Arimi, and agreed to her plan to go out for three months, and then break up if he /still/ didn't have feelings for her, which he didn't. Unfortunately, she had feelings for him. When he transfered to Touryou Highschool, he didn't join any clubs. Instead, he spent all of his time in the school library, or at his part-time job at Junk Jungle. We later find out the reason Yuu spent so much time in the library. He had discovered that the man he had thought was his father, was not. The man who he thought might be his father, was an architect who had several books published. This man was Satoshi's father. Satoshi saw Yuu reading the book, and started hitting on him (or so we think). This of course, freaked Yuu out. Yuu was also the first one to find out about Meiko's and Namura's (Na-chan) relationship. He saw them in the library together, yet he didn't tell a soul.

Meiko is a kind, serious girl who has been Miki's best friend since Junior High. Although Miki tells Meiko everything, Meiko doesn't confide in Miki completely. Meiko's family is very rich, but her parents have a very bad relationship, and are always fighting. Meiko's unhappy home life is only one of the secrets she keeps from Miki. Meiko is very beautiful, but never goes out with boys her age. Meiko wonders if that's because she has seen her own parents' unhappy life, but she denies that that's the case.

Ginta is very serious at times, and is very hot tempered, but that's what makes him such a good character. He's passionate about everything, including Miki - his love interest since junior high. When Ginta got a letter from Miki saying she loved him, he was really happy, because he really did love her, too. Unfortunately, Miki had put the letter inside a magazine, and that magazine actually belonged to a friend of his. Earlier on, all of the boys in school had made a deal, that since they all liked Miki, none of them would be the first to go out with her. Ginta sadly was not aggresive enough to go against that. Miki didn't know this until Ginta told her only after she had already fallen for Yuu(>.<). When he met Arimi, she came up with a plan. She said she would make Miki jealous and want Ginta more, by going out with each other. Surprisingly, her plan worked, and Miki started to get jealous, seeing as she still had feelings for Ginta. Unfortunately for him, Miki liked Yuu more. When Ginta finally accepted that he couldn't have Miki, he fell in love with Arimi. Tsutomu and Ginta are cousins, and don't get along too well. Tsutomu loves Arimi, yet Ginta gets her :\.

Arimi is a cute, and outgoing girl, who has her own fanclub. She loves to flirt, but isn't picky about a guy's looks, which is why she's so popular. The only boy whom she just can not stand, is Tsutomu (>.<). Arimi fell in love with Yuu when they went to the same Junior High. She later told Miki that she would not give up on him. She is a schemer, and even persuaded Yuu to go out with her once. Obsessed, much?

Miwa Satoshi is the student president of his school. He's in love with Meiko, and will do anything and everything to have her. In the beginning, Yuu believes to be his brother, and thinks that Miwa's father was his father as well. Immediately, a strong and deep friendship is born between the two of these guys. Fortunately, this friendship remains when they both find out that there is no blood connection between the two of them.

Tsutomu is a guy with a very jealous nature (surprise?). He claims to be in love with Arimi ever since he was a young boy. Unfortunately for him, Arimi despises him. He has a very competitive relationship going on with his cousin, Ginta. The fact that Ginta is dating Arimi doesn't help the situation =P. Since Yuu also dated Arimi once, Tsutomu has a grudge against him, too. He has the habit to challenge people, choosing absurd punishments for the loser. He challenged Yuu and Ginta at a time, and claimed that the loser would have to shave all his hair off. Ironic to say that Tsutomu finds himself getting a haircut ...

Not much info on him, but Namura, or Na-chan, is a teacher at Touryou High School. He has a love connection with Meiko, and loves her dearly. Nevertheless, their connection will be, and was obstructed as a result of the age difference between them, and Meiko's parents' reactions. Meiko loves him too much, and escapes the house, simply to live with him, and marry him later on in the series.

Kei-kun is - yet another - guy who falls for Miki. He met her in an ice cream shop, where the both of them worked. Even though he doesn't seem to be much of a problem, he causes quite a lot of ambiguous problems. Yuu sees them, while they embrace eachother, and Suzu believes that Miki is cheating on Yuu. Kei-kun is a capable pianist, but decided to leave his talents. Thanks to the help of Miki, he later goes back to the school, and starts playing again.

Suzu is a very well-known model, and is soon finding herself falling hard for Yuu (*gasp*?). She tries many attempts to get him to notice her, but in the end, it's no use. Her attempts of flirting while he helped her in math, just didn't work. She loves attractive things, and immortalizes it all with a photographic memory. She seeked, and still seeks to seperate Miki and Yuu at any cost.

Anju is the childhood friend of Yuu's. She is a very soft spoken person, and has been in love with him since the 6th grade. A little later in the series, she ends up meeting Miki, and respects her relationship with Yuu. She doesn't want to come between them, and only wants to see Yuu when Miki isn't busy with him. In fact, she tells Miki that she's in love with Yuu, and wants to be second to Miki. Miki is confused by all this, but she really likes Anju, so she gives in to her. Anju has a serious heart condition, and leaves for America to have a life threatening surgery. The surgery is a success, and later on in the series, she bumps into Yuu and Bill. Anju starts to develop a crush on Bill, and they seem like a great couple ^^!

Michael is an American who becomes a transfer student to Touryou High School. He learned to speak fluent Japanese by watching ninja and samurai movies as he grew up. As the series progresses, Michael falls big time for Miki. He is completely oblivious to Miki and Yuu's relationship, until he catches them kissing. All this time, he thought they had the typical step-sibling thing going on (there is no such thing as step-siblings in Japan). Michael becomes really pushy when he gets a call from Brian, his brother, saying that Yuu got a new girlfriend as soon as he went to America. This isn't true, but Brian really believes that it is. Michael is so mad at Yuu for betraying Miki, that he barges into her room and kisses her very soundly on the lips. He apologizes, and tells her why he did it. He also asks her to see him as a man, and not a brother.

Jinny is a girl at Yuu's school in America. It appears she falls in love with him almost instantly. Michael's brother, Brian is in love with Jinny, and is jealous of Yuu immediately. Jinny has told him time and time again that she doesn't want to date him, and that she barely considers him a friend (xO). Jinny is almost like Arimi, in the sense that she's going after Yuu, and won't stop until she gets him. Jinny is a lot more aggressive and forward, more than Arimi ever was. At one point in the series, she breaks Miki's heart, and Yuu isn't there to pick up the pieces. When Bill finds out about this, he gets so mad that he slaps her xO! Eventually, Jinny encourages Yuu to go back to Japan and get Miki back. When Miki comes to Japan for the second time, Jinny is a real friend to her. Jinny ends up dating a very unlikely guy.

Brian Grant is Michael's older brother. He lives in New York, and goes to the same school as Yuu did in New York. Brian has a quick temper, especially when Jinny is concerned. He is in love with Jinny, but the fact that she keeps pushing him away makes him angry. Brian sees Jinny kiss Yuu, and immediately thinks that Yuu is her new boyfriend. He tells Michael, and that causes problems in Japan. When Brian realizes that Yuu is going to remain faithful to Miki, his soft side emerges. He gets along with Yuu and they become pretty good friends. Brian continues to go after Jinny for most of the rest of the season until his eyes are opened to a young lady that he falls in love with.

Bill is Yuu's roomate in New York. If you're wondering, yes, he's a boy. When they first met, Jinny hints that Bill likes guys, and not girls (not true!). This makes Yuu uncomfortable, but he seems genuinely like Bill, so he doesn't let that come between them. Bill is very quiet and sensitive, and him and Yuu become really good friends. Bill is there for Yuu when he goes through problems with Miki, and is even upset that Yuu doesn't confide in him anymore. Bill actually has a secret love for Jinny, and only let her think that he was gay so that he could be close to her. At one point in the series, it looks like he might try a relationship with Anju. They get along great and have similar personalities. They become very good friends.

Anime Awards /05

The following anime were the main ones used for nominations:
Inuyasha
Gundam Seed
Sailor Moon
.hack//sign
DNAngel
Marmalade Boy

The following others were anime that got one or two nominations:
Yu-Gi-Oh (Yu-Gi-Oh G/X Also)
Witch Hunter Robin
One Piece
D.I.C.E.
Pokemon
Transformers (Energon)
Dragon Ball Z
Zatch Bell

Here are the winners!

Best Hair
Inuyasha (Inuyasha

Best Costume
Sora (.hack//sign)

Worst Costume
Sailor Moon (Sailor Moon)

Most Annoying Scream
Kagome (Inuyasha)

Best Catch Phrase
Sora (.hack//sign)

Worst Attempt at a Good Plot
D.I.C.E.

Worst Drawn Character
Usopp (One Piece)

Best Hero
Bear (.hack//sign)

Best Villain
The Being (.hack//sign)

Thank you very much and good night!