Reluctant Designer

Log #4

2008.03.04 「Shot In Sicily #1/11: "Excuse Me, Officer."」

Long time no update?  Was busy working on Demi's request with the following prompts: Gokudera, barrettes, reading glasses, Uri. In exchange, she would write me whatever fic I wanted. So my prompts were: my favourite triumvirate (you know this), mafia-ness (since canon is lacking in that respect), witty dialogues. That was a month ago.

...Just a little over 2 days ago Demi posted her end of the bargain. It's an epic suite of three parts 23,000 words in length with everything I asked for and more - much more. Despite Demi's constant worrying and self-kicking over it, it's (IMO) really, really good. I would not, for the life of me, have expected to swoon THIS BADLY over  a fan rendition of Hibari whom I think is scarily in-character anyway.  And the smut, OMG THE SMUTTT *is slapped repeatedly into soberness*. Wrong as it seems, you know, because Chrome is the young Chrome there, I keep finding myself going back to it again and again because while a NC-17 1896 is improbable considering both parties' personalities, Demi manages to make it plausible EVEN for Realms (canon sheep by her own admission). And it helps that it's.....adfagagaahheah OMG Mukuro's in there while they're doing all that XDDDD. I died. Seriously died. I'm glad to be surrounded by amazing talents.

And so... I looked at my Gokudera, looked at the fic and bawled XDDDD - FREAKING BAWLED - because my lame doodling simply could NOT match Demi's fic in size, effort and quality. Before she began on the fic, I once asked Demi if she liked Sicily, which she responded with a "Sure, I can like Sicily (???)". So this is my compensation for the wantingness of her req. The adult Reborn and Lal you see above is one piece out of an eleven-drawing set titled Shot In Sicily, based on Michael Roberts's fashion photography book of the same name because I loved it so much.

Come back in 3 days to see the entire trainwreck *keels over and dies*. TI AMO, DEMI!!!

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2008.02.24 「Happy Birthday, Ferrum!!! *turns back on you*」

Tattoo design credit: MIND SCAPE TATTOO

I find it ironic that a) I refrained from drawing her TYL!Xanxus in favour of drawing Yamamoto after she said she recently found him very, very good-looking and b) I ACTUALLY gave her his back instead XDDD. I wanted this to be the first of a "Tattoos" series so sue me, nyah. I EVEN PURPOSELY BOUGHT AN EXPENSIVE TATTOOS LOOKBOOK FOR THIS. In any case, I'm glad Ferrum recognised him straight away, otherwise I could've justified my failure with a "I gave you my maiden attempt at the (nice) male torso so be thankful XDDD."

 

P.S. Drawing this tat was a Zen exercise <3. Recommended to everyone.

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2008.02.23 「The Hibari Household Daily Record \^o^/」

Don't worry about the title; title is subject to change XDD.

Following my musings on "What does Chrome call Hibari?" from the last entry (on top of a brief period of slump, but let's not talk about that) I put my calendar progress on pause and broke out some doodles on a whim. Turned out, bizarrely enough, I got even more encouraging responses for this mess than for my inked art that I worked diligently on o_O. I guess you put your heart more into impulsive work?

The best thing is this: THE Ferrum found my housemaker Chrome and breadwinner Hibari theme amusing enough that she's willing to collab with me on a series of short stories detailing the day-to-day activities of the "Hibari household" XDDD. I SCORED A COLLAB DEAL WITH A DOUJINKA *dances on couch*. Oh, my mood's suddenly gone up TWENTY FREAKING FLIGHTS now (the magic words certain people say...). I can imagine Kusakabe the butler/chauffeur/accountant and Mukuro sneaking up on Hibari ad infinitum now LOLOL. If we manage to put out about 10 stories we might even be able to compile it into a doujin for Summer Comi or Real Mafia 3! For that I've begun working on 600dpi - contrary to expectations, 600dpi makes for SMOOTH drawing and feels like real marker! Of course, it slows down my system a lot XDD. Just proves that you gotta set aside your prejudices and give everything a go.

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2008.02.20 「Uomini d'Onore News #01」


The image on my right is such a lie XDDD. Uso de~su. It's not part of my doujin-in-progress (I wish I were that brave) but, instead, is a fraction of what I've done so far for March. I didn't want to work on this so early, seeing how both my jobs involve the still-fanon TYL!Chrome who may come out in canon in any given week, but my hand itched to get starting on it mainly thanks to... lingerie. Yes, I've settled on something. Victoria's Secret. Guns. Gun holsters. Late night. Midnight ambush. Tousled hair. Bella mafia. Ohyesohyesohyes. My Lal is rather manly, though; she plain refused to be rendered "sexy", sigh.

Chrome's ensemble isn't plain black as shown. I needed to colour her bustier thing for this post, otherwise it would look suggestive of... some other, unrelated thing.  And I think I want to give her Reborn's CZ-75 just because it's easy to draw LOL. So I've begun drawing the girls' faces for March, have drawn a rough lineart for the bookmark and have at least shown my group layout roughs for the tote bag (I LOVE my idea but the layout everyone chooses is rather HARD). For a May 15 deadline, I think I'm quite up-to-date. Hopefully these can be done on time...

Now, speeeaking of "Hibari-san". Since Chrome never addresses anyone else in Vongola other than Tsuna ("Boss") and Mukuro ("-sama") or else "Ken and Chikusa", I guess it's safe to assume, as fandom has done, that she'd call him with the -san suffix as a show of respect since he's this.... cold and distant ace that, uh, demands respect. Considering her submissive-to-the-point-of-doormat nature, it's not far-fetched to say that even in, say, marriage, she may still call him "Hibari-san" or "Kyouya-san" at best. The polar differences in their personalities would make quite a chemistry, in my opinion. And let's not forget the Mukuro factorrrr (this'll make consummation very interesting). If only I'd get to see just a bit of 1896 interaction in the manga *STARES at sensei*.

I need to hone my TYL!Hibari drawing ;___;. He's getting rusty of late.

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2008.02.17 「WIP #2 + Uomini d'Onore!」

I am in trouble XDDD. Oh, I am. I started on this doujin thing....... a month ago maybe? More than a month? And look at the red dots next to the layers - that's how much that still needs to be done OTL. It doesn't help that I was sketching and inking on the WRONG paper type, which accounts for pages 1-5 looking oh-so-very-rough OTLOTL (pink indicates verrry ink-absorbent paper type - gray is more suitable for doujin-ing). 7 done out of a total of 14 pages after a month? I'm, uh, slow? I wonder how people like Aori-san and Moshi-san put out 40-pagers each time? Now I'm even too lazy to tone...

Realms consoled my minor-pairing insecurity by referring to 1896 as "chic" XDDD. What am I to do without this girl, I wonder? The strange things she says catapults me out of my depressions just like that. Oh, and by the by...

We finally have a project name and it's "Uomini d'Onore" <3 <3 <3. I freaking love it! Now I really can't wait to start working on my parts! I gotta make White Day look sexy in the Victoria's Secret kind of sexy LOL. Oh, man, the group had a NINE-HOUR MEETING yesterday, most of which was spent on incessant fangirling but 'at's unimportant. We were talking about fetishes and they went, "Can you make the girls look appealing to fanboys?" and I was like "SURE THING." Can't wait... to draw lingerie and thighs *is sick*. I can't bring myself to make Ipin - 15-year-old Ipin - even remotely sensual, though, as it is scary considering her dafgdagdagadg earless toddlerhood (I'm sorry, Suki!).

Another thing is the tote bag, which I'll actually be working with Orrie on instead of Ferrum. Everyone and their cats know my love for the TYLs and suits. Aaaaaand. I sort of whispered this silly idea I had in mind to Shiroki-kun, which resulted in both of us embarking on an epic kyaa-kyaa mode involving a bit of table-banging-er-hitting.

Everyone: WHAT.

Rune: You tell them *fans self*.

S-kun: You know... for the TYL side... we can make it an aerial shot of the guys walking.

Everyone: Yeah...?

S-kun: And they'll be returning from some mission.

Everyone: *listens*

S-kun: Taking their blazers and ties off...

Everyone: O_O

S-kun: ...bloodied.

Now, I need not tell you their response. In any case, the idea was received quite well that Orrie decided to do a corresponding non-TYL version, in which the Vongola Eight are leaving for the mission in their pristine school uniforms. I can't wait, Orrie, OMG I CAN'T WAITTTTT.

Collective fangirling is love <3.

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2008.02.14 「No More Chocolate!!」

No more chocolate for Lambo-san! Hahahahaha!! *creams Lambo-san* HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!! And Happy Belated Chinese New Year, too, while I'm at it. Ipin's presence certainly helps with the Chinese New Year thing, kuhuhu...  Why LamPin for Valentine's? My friends thought I was going to do HibaChrome but since I'm already doing that doujin it'll be overkill, no? Anyway, yes, LamPin for V-Day. When I think of chocolates I think of Lambo and his seemingly high tolerance for Valentine's choccies LOL. I was tempted to give him the usual nosebleed but let's make this proper, eh?

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2008.02.11 「Project update, hey!」

By the end of our Sunday meeting, the format specifications, themes, character allocations and  yadda yadda yadda of the calendar were already decided (it was the nicest option with our set budget). The artists - and we managed to round up eight! - get an equal share of two jobs each. Contrary to my expectation, however, the parts weren't decided at random. We actually GOT TO PICK despite missing three members at the time. In other words, those who made it to the meeting got first dibs. Should I be glad...? Because while I did get my second preference, I couldn't help feel sorry for Ferrum who's, er, in El Japon and may not have a say in the matter XD. At all.

So........ I got March. I would've picked October for the Halloween theme (K-Kokuyou! T___T) but I'm happy with White Day all the same. My hand is itching to draw girls, hee hee.... I'm sick of Hibari - stupid bird *bitten to death* Now I only need to decide on an ambient... Too bad rating is G, eh?

Anyway, my second job is one side of the tote bag that will accommodate the calendar for our limited ed thing. Man, I hope it'll be canvas since plastic bags don't last. Oh, I can see it now.... the maid taking out the garbage with my art on it LOLOL!! And guess who I get to work with who'll be illustrating the opposite side?? None other than the very excellent Ferrum!!! Ahh, I'm all excitement now! I want to work on the tote bag most, to be honest, but that must wait until March is done.... And hopefully - hopefully - TYL!Chrome will make her official entrance in the manga by April, otherwise, I'll have a nice empty space in the illustration. Dhieta wants to see TYL!Mukuro but I insisted on drawing TYL!Chrome still. Worse come to worse, I'll go ahead and make up my own version, which is exactly what I've been doing XDDD.

P.S. Haven't decided on an official project name because no one in the group has adequate command of the Italian language XDDD. And please, not Dolce Vita, please no T____T. Next meeting is Saturday, hopefully with only two missing members and printing quotations ready.

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2008.02.06 「Sanada-senpai, Arisato-kun」

Oh, Persona 3 cast, why are you so gorgeous? <3 <3 <3 Even that Yukari wench, I will admit, is not bad on the eyes no matter how much I want to smite her *kusu*. I vow to buy this game and befriend Sanada, kufufufufu.... And, no, I'm not a SanadaxArisato fan. Yet.

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2008.02.02 「Mibu Bird + Project!」

HAHAHAHAHA!!! Blame Yamikakyuu for this odd image, don't blame me. Her prompts: Hibari, jacket on shoulders, Shinsengumi, jacket on shoulders, classic-contemporary, jacket on shoulders... I get it already. I was working on it carefully UNTIL Suki dumped me *this job. And then my pen moved at 200km/h XDDDD. I hope the mountain pattern is adequately visible...

*) The job in question:

 

Suki trusts me with the somewhat nerve-wrecking task of illustrating our limited edition tote bag O_____O. If it goes to plan, one side will have the TYL version of the Vongola Octet, and the other, the current one. This idea was conceived when I pointed her out to Amano's latest colour spread (read: TYL69 TYL69 TYL69!!!!) afagafafwhfgaawgga.....

I will work hard for Suki!!! To the extreme!

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2008.01.30 「New Banner *kyakya*」 For my LJ main page ~<3. I'd had that femme!Lelouch one on for how long, and since I'm mainly talking about KHR at present I thought a new garment was due. For it I used requested art that, in actual fact, isn't even halfway done. I might... might be able to put it out by the end of this week. That's fine, right, Yami?

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2008.01.29 「Doujin WIP 02」 Gack. How did my Hibari turn out striking a Lelouch pose??? (My drawings bleed outside of the monitor at actual pixels; I only literally see the big picture when it's done T___T) Arggh. Argh.

*cough* Mind you, unlike the pros, I draft, sketch and ink at the same time (it pays to be an impatient novice, in the bad sense). Progress thus far? Page 3... out of a possible 11. What's more, I learned that I should've worked at 600dpi in order to make it printworthy *bangs head against imaginary wall*. I guess I'd have to be satisfied with my doujin debut being a webcomic. Thank you, 100 dpi.

The upside? It saves me the trouble of illustrating (read: colouring) the covers. And I've been spared the mad giggles that are part and parcel of thinking up possible book titles.

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2008.01.25 「Happy Birthday, Dhieta!」 January 25th is Dhieta's birthday! I was going to do a D18 but I didn't have enough time for TYL!Hibari (because, as I know, he and TYL!Mukuro kill my hand, which is why I never drew Mukuro again after that meme -__-). Judging from her fave character meme, I figured TYL!Dino would be enough...? And, yes, yes, my attempt at "inking" fair hair is such fail. And people wonder why I always take to dark-haired characters.

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2008.01.21 「Gift + Doujin debutante-to-be」 Sukiyakiya kindly made me an ADORABLE Chrome holding a piece of strawberry shortcake at the end of her trident!!! <3 <3 <3 Though I'm not sure if she's okay with me reposting her art, and the original post is friends-locked T.T (too bad, Suki; don't be shy! It's GOOD). She says she's fixing up a few wrong things in the art now...

Anyway... thanks to Ferrum's prodding eons and eons ago (read: last year's December) I finally mustered up enough courage/incentive to draw my first proper man- uh, doujin. The transcript for the first story idea was approximated to be 40 pages long *headdeskheaddeskheaddesk!!!*. Ferrum commented that it was too ambitious for a first project so I settled on the second - much shorter and less substantial - story, probably 11 pages long. And contrary to the first story's gen-ness, this one's going to be a bit pairingy (laugh if you will, but I'm veryveryvery shy where MY OWN pairing-centric stuff is concerned x_X).

So, a couple of WIPs:

Yep, yep - I'm keeping my word that I'd make something out of the screentone experimentation below ("Clouds"). Though fellow KHR fans around me are desperately after TYL!Mukuro and TYL!Hibari's survival stats, TYL!Dino's whereabouts, TYL!Tsuna's death scene and Reborn's "true self hur hur", I'm more fascinated by the possibilities that could occur between the TYLs who are now in the past and those who didn't go to the future.

That said, this "theory" of mine will be burnt whenever canon decides to reveal the truth XDDD. This doujin will probably never see the light of day; meaning, I'll only share it with my KHR filter. Unless a Corel Painter drawing comes out decent in print, then maybe...

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2008.01.19 「*speechless again*」 Birthday gifts update!!! T______T The very excellent Ferrum-san guerrilla-attacked me (like Kurot did) with a TYL18xTYL96!!!! TYL!Chrome! afafgafagfgasfadgfa!!! First birthday online is wonderful! I'm happy! HAPPY!!!

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2008.01.18 「Awawawaawa..... *speechless*」　Unbelievable as it may seem, it seems I just received early birthday presents in the forms of a drabble and art from RukawaGF and Kurot respectively O_O.

Both 1896.

*pinches own cheeks* How did this happen.......?

Mentioning that one's birthday coincides with the release of Target 177 does have its merits XDDD. But it's NOT that I was asking for gifts from my very talented friends list, I only wanted to point to my distress that no TYL!Chrome is happening STILL on my birthday in canon. But who cares; I have these wonderful gifts <3 <3 <3. I LOVE YOU GUYS ADFAFSAFAFDFAFAFAG. THANK YOU!!! T_________T This gives me the necessary push to bring that doujin to the finish line!

死ぬ気で描け！！！ Go, go, go, go!!!

Log #3

2008.01.17 「Young DS (with cat)」 I forgot to post this to my blog XDDD. First real-time req and first collab with a colourist!!! Seeing how I cannot colour to save my life, the result of this unplanned collab sent me over the moon~ Sukiyakiya requested a young Dino and Squalo (in a pairingy situation or no) while we sat at Matcha Moon Cafe and, happy with the result, offered to lend her colouring skills. Hence...

And one other thing that made me giddy throughout my driving lesson today - I received my first non-Friendster comment!!! On the 5927 piece and the Log posts in general! This makes me believe I DO have frequenters XDDD. I would never know, thanks to commenting disability for non-FS members, but although you're a silent bunch I really really really appreciate your viewerships *bows deeply*.

                                                                           

2008.01.15 「To RukawaGF: "5927 Mourning"」 I am currently back in Sydney for several weeks and with limited internet access as we speak. Strangely, I'm somehow 150% more productive and chatty in this broadband-less state o_o. For one, I actually finished a req! A req!! The last one must've been exactly 3 months ago. Oh, my wanting willpower...

Anyway, below is RukawaGF's very late Christmas request/gift with "idol worship" 5927 for the prompt. I didn't really want to show TYL27's face for obvious reasons, and, my goodness, I don't know if I ever laughed nervously so much while drawing the tear... (I'm sorry, G! Sorrysorrysorry)

2008.01.08 「Clouds」 A first attempt at screentone brushes! I can't believe technology nowadays *loves*. Photoshop screentone brushes make toning muuuuuch easier. Er, and the choice in tone had nothing to do with Hibari's guardianship. Maybe I'll draw a short webdoujin based on this image. I do feel like it right now. And the best thing is I don't have to ink! *throws flowers*

2008.01.05 「I wanted to draw in my own style, but...」 ...apparently my original hand has been ruined by KHR. Rah. This sure isn't mine. Anyway, first posted sketch of 2008! *throws confetti*

 

2007.12.30 「KoB Suzaku」 I'm so in lurve with OYL (One Year Later) Suzaku's look <3. Tried to draw him unreferenced because I wanted to see how much my Code Geass hand has changed after the bulk of KHR art of the past month. I would've done better on a tablet than pencil but going back to manual every once in a while is nice. 

I've been anticipating a change of knight uniform since you-know-who bit it, and I can say I'm very satisfied with the new design! Loving the cloak, for one! And the lapels! As Realms has said, he does look 19th century-ish. I can't wait to see this ore!knight Suzaku in Season 2.

2007.12.24 「Buon Natale - Mi Vuoi Sposare?」 ...in which TYL!Tsuna proposes to TYL!Kyoko. Of course, that's before he enters the coffin XD.

"Kyoko - Merry Christmas. Will you marry me?"

FEMMES Bianchi: necklace - Cartier, earrings - Fiamma | Kyoko: necklace - Van Cleef & Arpels, bracelet - Botega Veneta | Haru: necklace - Glajz Privée
HOMMES Yamamoto: Raoul | Gokudera: Dolce & Gabbana | Hibari: Ralph Lauren

MERRY CHRISTMAS et HAPPY NEW YEAR 2008!!! <3 <3 <3

2007.12.18 「On Numbering System + TYL!Tsuna draft」 The amount of people coming here looking to decode the pairing numbers is staggering. Refer to this LJ post for your answers. Don't worry, it took me a while to get the hang of it, too. I used to take 10 minutes trying to type up Mukuro/Chrome/Hibari in number form (oh, nothing, RukawaGF was just asking what kind of ficlet I'd like written).

On the fanart side of things, I'm currently working on this... sketchy piece which I'll hopefully finish before Christmas. I'll even try to "ink" it -_-. Now, I've seen many a fan interpretation of TYL!Tsuna's looks, but I try not to look to those for reference. For one, I don't like my TYL!Tsuna cute and sweet. He's a MAN, damnit XDDD. Though this is still a draft so I'm still sort of playing around with his features. I really liked Giotto's striped suit... What shall I make Tsuna wear?

2007.12.12 「On This New Fandom In General」

I don't know what to do about the KHR fandom. On one hand, it has everything I missed from the (western) Code Geass fandom - good and productive fanartists, high participation rate of the more creative variety (goodbye, icons!), a willingness to veer outside the boundaries of canon, fanwanking opportunities, multiple pairing prospects (other than Lelouchxsomeone - we know it too well). On the other hand, it sorely misses what I treasure most from the Geass fandom - analyctical plot/character discussions, well thought-out and excellently written fics, a steady flow of chicken feed portioned background canon via drama CDs/picture dramas/interviews, a loving attention on MY pairing XDDD...

Maybe it boils down to this: fen reflects the nature of the text. I've had a fascinating string of talks with a friend - passionate Code Geass fan and recent KHR fangirl. She finds that Mukuro is the only character she's able to pick apart and, naturally, Favourite #1, being someone with an elaborated backstory and is a sort of "grey loose card that plays the surprise element in black and white scenarios." Hibari comes second as far as favourites go; a very enigmatic, hot-cold personality with enough potentials to be a solid player (I personally believe he's a physical manifestation of mother nature's wrath... or something XD) if only the narrative would shift its focus on his story somewhere along the way.

Right now? Any chances for a significant character progression (any character) have been lost in the large scheme of things, possibly thanks to a lack of clear focus in the storyline. I can only hope for the story to find its feet in the future arcs and fix this shortcoming. I like to believe that each arc serves as a stepping stone; one step at a time towards THE real deal - Vongola. With this in mind, I'm willing to hold out for that... that moment of enlightenment. On Tsuna's part, I mean.

Last words. My own pet-peeve is Amano tossing around the word "mafia" like a beach ball and treating the supposed mafiosi like One Piece treats its pirates x_x. To me, it runs counter to the dark, crisp feel of the recent installments. And when they say somebody will die, SOMEBODY HAD BETTER DIE ALREADY.

Over and out.

                                                                           

2007.12.09 「TYL 1896」 I worked too darn long on this piece, my judgement must be impaired by now. My dream TYL!Chrome is one without the pineapple topknot because Mukuro can't dictate the way she presents herself for life. And I dearly hope she's grown a bit of spine over ten years since even Hibari visibly matured during that time - for one, he's now able to hold lengthy and civil conversations that do not involve beating up someone. Anyway, I wasn't sure what I'd like this to look, but was both embarrassed and flattered when Ferrum commented that it looked sexy XDDD. Oh, and speaking of sexy, now I really want to tackle TYL!Reborn.

2007.12.08 「Valentine's Day 189669」 Yep, yep, the pairing number system confused me, too, but this is how you survive in KHR fandom. I've always thought that a 1896 smut wherein 69 is possessing 96 would be the HOTTEST ever (in my head). You've got het, yaoi and a non-doormat Chrome in one package; I would never be in want.

And, yes, Hibari is so going out of his way to fight Mukuro again.

2007.12.07 「Time-Killing Exercise」 My first attempt at a funky angle. The Kokuyou boys must be dead bored waiting for their screentime. Oh, and Mukuro buys the best-fitting trousers; his Kokuyou outfit must be my favourite (with the TYL one a close second).

Ah. And here's my art meme submission (template by Miyukiko). I don't think I'll be posting it to the comm, seeing how Ferrum and Kurot posted on the same day. That, and the comm must be sick of the memes by now LOL.

To tip one's ship downside-up

This is going to be an odd post if you're familiar with Code Geass. Odd... or off-putting, whichever's your description. I just wanted to say that I'm no longer adverse to LuluSuza aka. Suzaku being a weepy uke in general due to the possibility of a seme Lulu. I thank the wonderful Kashi for bringing me her very sexy hyperventilation-inducing seme!Lulu and RukawaGF for directing me to her works.

That said...

I think the LFFL concept is now transferrable.

Suzako: "Don't worry about going to Harajuku! I'll beat up any bully that comes at you just like old times." (And that is true; sad, isn't it, Lelouch.)

Lulu gets away so much more with the "no stamina" handicap as female, but damsels in distress are generic, where's the fun in that? Anyway, the idea for a long-haired LFFL stemmed from the Picture Drama. Gah, Lulu really is Marianne's son... offspring.

The thing is, I can't share Lelouch with the girls but since it's Suza-,er,-ko and she's not really one it's fine. Does this... make sense? Plus, I couldn't NOT get inspired after the brilliant Picture Drama #7 x_x.

Take your pick XD. Or put it down slooooowly and don't shoot the messenger of her own beliefs if it's not your taste.

- B

Concerning Ships #2 [semi-rant]

Here are two things to sum up my current fen mentality.

Talk to me about:

• SuzaLulu/LuluSuza
• LloydMilly
• SuzaKallen (I know, I know)
• CorneliaGuilford
• SchneiLulu

Absolutely never mention:

• LuluShirley (Undesirable #1 - will behead self with a plastic knife if a second kiss ever comes up)
• LuluEuphie
• LuluEuphieSuza (woman-between-friends is NO. To quote RukawaGF: "I am torn between loving my half-brother and his best friend." This is a personal pref, canon evidence notwithstanding)
• Lamperougecest

As you see, there's a (very) clear pattern in my list of Undesirables. I simply can't share Lelouch with the girls. Yes, yes, sad given the "harem master" concept Sunrise has been building around him since episode 1, which never sat well with me. Yes, it's an amusement. Yes, it's equal opportunity. Yes, it's redundant. That's for another semi-rant.

One thing before anyone starts thinking along the lines of "What a silly, canon-bending fangirl." Unlike most sensible and intellectual shippers/semi-shippers, canon isn't how I choose my ships. Actually, what- choose? XD If I'm to be precise, I never choose my ships; if my head had the luxury it would've picked the obvious LuluCC or SuzaEuphie just so I could present myself before fangirls, fanboys, meta lovers and casual viewers alike without worrying my silly head over the occassional snide remark.

Unfortunately, the crass and tyrannical Gut Instinct passes my shipping bills. Thanks to GI here, I often end up disappointed with shows' outcomes due to my ships. To run off my shortlisted non-CG GI-influenced ships:

• Subaru/Kamui (Dysfunctionality of the highest order)
• Tsuchiura/Tsukimori (it's reverse harem, by Jupiter!)
• Eriol/Tomoyo (a good match in AU)
• Mori/Haruhi
• Hitsugaya/Rangiku
• Koizumi/Mikuru
• Naru/Masako

Thankfully, I DO have a list of ships that agree with, or gets a nod from, canon but they are few and far between. And aren't worth adding into this semi-rant for relevance.

Now to address one vocal group of naysayers. Woe. Where do I begin with them? For the sake of being concise, I've provided one blogger's humble plea:

"I’d like for those who harbor some thoughts on a LelouchxSuzaku relationship to shut up about their yaoi fantasies".

Bit rich of anyone to make such a demand when the following is in their introduction:

"The very first thing about Code Geass that made me want to watch it was its subtle nudity."

Would you like it if a fangirl, ie. I, told you to quit fantasising the girls in various states of undress? Any idea just how many "Geass girls hentai" hunters have found their way to my blog, daily? Drop the whining. Code Geass is general audience; it isn't obligated to please only you. That said, I'm glad there's a congregation for our respective kindreds, and by that of course I'm speaking of LJ and AnimeSuki. Out of sight, out of mind.

And for your information, sometimes I wish it would drop all BL innuendos and fanservice altogether. Do away with the made-for-success rationale. Then maybe it'll be on its way to become the masterpiece it seemed poised to become by the end of episode 1. Of course, we all know what happened along the way.

What canon references? Shipping is fenning. When fenning, I adopt selective referencing. It's like love. It just is =D. In this sentiment, LuluShirley shippers, I believe we are somewhat matched.

- B

Uhh, fellow fen?

Stop imposing ep 24-25 spoilers on those who're resolved to wait for gg's subs. You've been good so far with your LJ cuts but ICONS have the ability to do more than damage than you can imagine. Thanks to a certain posted icon, I now have a rather good idea on how Season One went out *grumblegrumble*. Though I will say this: ep 24-25 sure deliver some VERY good-looking screencaps.

On to nicer things. I've been looking at J-fanartists' blogs digging for treasure and found a common theme fangirled over to varying degrees. A bound and gagged Lulu. And something about a story featured in Newtype Romance (the one with sunflowery Lulu, I believe?). Since E-T brought up the subject of Newtype and its new story segment (fanfiction?) on her LJ I had to ask about bound and gagged, and sure enough it's there amongst the stories. But J-blogs have misled my expectations somewhat. Here's my question and her answers.

Anyway, the featured story isn't "fangirly" material what with Ashford's own purist faction and plans to kill a certain Eleven-loving blood traitor (hint: bound and gagged) and put the blame on the new Eleven transfer. In a nutshell:

"Suzaku *did* come to save him though, which bloggers totally lost blood over."

That explains the whole squeeing up a storm. So what is this, official fanfiction? O_o

And the Knight is out!!!

And trust my local Kinokuniya to ship it in a month later than the rest of the world. But considering the manga spin-offs haven't made it to our shelves and perhaps never will... *sigh*. Here we go again, Mandarake. So, as a Knight owner has informed the comm, it goes for 600 yen a pop, has similar dimensions to the average tankoubon and "contains doujinshi stories by a bunch of big name/professional circles. They're slashy and definitely have yaoi hints but there is no actual smut." Anyone up for it?

- B

Gadzooks...

FEMME!LULU IS CANON!! O_O

Okay, no, not really. Partially. Let me explain our (Honey and I) agreed terms on "What defines canon LFFL". And in case you're asking what on earth is LFFL, it's a code name I coined for femme!Lulu. It's shorter and less straightforward because I know many, many people who'll cringe at the mention of it. My own pathetic version of You-Know-Who if you will.

LFFL is thereby canon under the following conditions:

1. When a long-lost twin, next of kin, genderswapped doppleganger or... makes her entrance for some mental, most likely crucial, plot progression in Season Two (how was hangover, Sunrise?).

2. When it is a woeful side-effect to a prolonged use of the Geass. Starting with a permanent red glow in the relevant eye XD.

3. When it is by any of the involved artists' hand (which includes mere doodles on oekaki boards) or endorsed by official sources. Going by the latter means BL in Code Geass can be considered canon due to the Knight Fan Anthology book (this third point is a single tendon by which this category hang for dear life).

LFFL is NOT canon when:

1. Lelouch is coerced into crossdressing by a certain merrymaking Student Council President (check, and whoa).

2. Lelouch appears like LFFL against the artist's original intent (check, refer to Newtype Romance. Hint: sunflowers).

3. It's fanart no matter how it could pass as canon (check, in regards to a lot of places).

All points considered, I don't think it's time for Skype yet, Honey, regrettably =P. Here's one thing though. I didn't choose this bet simply because I knew it would never, ever be. I was testing my chances as I've had Chance catch me unawares time and time again in life. And look what happened recently (whoa). I'm duly impressed... but, Chance? You need to do better next time.

- B

So who else is gleefully awaiting Picture Drama #7? XDDD

Perfect with tea!

*cough* ...superchibi Suzaku is. I'm talking about that new set of mini figures comprising only C.C. eating pizza and Lulu bearing a teacup and a teapot so far. They're rather cute and I don't mind much that they cost 2,100 yen apiece. So the Lulu + Suzaku figure inspired a sketch that I posted on the SuzaLulu comm, uncoloured version:

This garnered cute comments from the audience, tee-hee. No idea where the strawberry shortcake came from; I only thought I should add something to sweeten up the picture. Actually, Honey was the one saying "Lulu wants to eat him!" so I suppose the credit for art direction goes to her o_o.

A couple of things...

I'm reviving Reluctant Designer despite LiveJournal. I've been paying USD 5 a month just to keep my old posts online and decided I'll no longer have that! I've always wanted to do what Japanese fans do in their blogs: random scrawlings and doodlings and passing thoughts posted at random times. Now, I would've done that on LJ had it not been for its f-list feature, which means people on my friends list see my updates along with others on their lists, which means I'd be crapping on their f-lists if I were to blog the J-fen way x_x.

So expect barrels of randomness and wtf-ness from this point on. Like the J-fans (apparently, as I see it) I don't expect to score comments this way (you get many on LJ). Take it as a self-satisfaction means, if you like. The only thing is, this blog's readership, those registered with Friendster and are RL associates, are 99% fandom-blind. The idea of them ploughing through my posts trying to make sense of what I write amuses me, heh heh.

- B

I'm still alive, but...

...I'm currently addicted to my LiveJournal account! All fandom talk/rant/squeeing have been moved there since Friendster is no place for a fangirl like moi (lack of interest on my readership's part, for one). If you've stumbled upon this blog for fandom-related shenanigans, please be directed LJ-ward. I still update Reluctant Designer's fanart section, which is basically a mirror of the one on LJ.

For first-time visitors, here's a run-down of what you can find here:

• Blow-by-blow summaries of Code Geass episodes 1-3, complete with useless side comments by yours truly and hidden captions under the many, many screencaps ^^.
• Blow-by-blow summaries of La Corda d'Oro episodes 1-2, again, with useless side comments and hidden captions.
• Enthusiastic attempts (aided by half-baked Japanese) to summarise two TsuTsu (TsuchiuraxTsukimori) doujins by the very excellent V-KIDS!
• My last days at Billy Blue School of Graphic Arts from which I graduated (no honors, hahaha).
• A rant on (the lack of) shipping possibilities in Ghost Hunt.
• A lengthy essay by Honeysempai and I on the possible fun that could be brought forth by a female protagonist in Code Geass (we gained two vocal converts!).
• Screencaps of ALL claymated dishes that appear in Honey and Clover's OP sequence.
• Random manga and anime reviews. I think I also did a blow-by-blow summary for Red Garden's first episode...

- B

Yesterday was Tuesday

Diagnosed with yaoifangirlitis

Seven years and counting, and showing no signs of recovery. Ingredients for the prescribed cure consist of a coconut-inhabiting badger's wisdom teeth, feathers of a newborn dodo bird, and the hair of a blonde 54 years old Papuan chief - a task taken up by a good-willed local, however, she is said to have been claimed by the mountain god. The doctors have given up.

"You've been told on your first visit - there's no return path to normalcy. You braved this dough-gin-she activity thanks to your own recklessness and simple curiosity. Actually, we should've stopped trying at "dodo bird" and spared one life. Scram, you fangirl." And then they filed the case inside a metal cabinet, slammed it shut and swallowed the key, keyring and all.

In this predicament? *hugs* Welcome to asylum, blood-sister! ...er, or brother. Feeling too giddy for work at the moment. Luckily, there's no work but my co-workers and higher-ups do happen to be hovering near my station this very minute. And I'm looking at NSFW of the rare Suzalulu breed in a window the size of a meagre pop-up ad. Giddy? So much so, I can't even sit straight or not grin. So shoo, people, give me my squee time > <. ...Guh.

Now, what was I going to say?

Oh, please don't hate my subheading-happy modus operandi. On top of that, they like themselves in bold. Keep in mind also that I can't friends-lock entries like on LJ because that's not how Friendster works, so anything borderline hazzardous or hazzardous that I say needs wrapping up under layers and layers of jargon, off-sounding euphemisms, un-Wikied references and convoluted roundabout expressions that may not make sense to anyone but me.

I don't know if you know, but I offer a complementary Cheese-Cheese-kun dance for everyone who stays on my blog for more than one minute - my own coreography! I don't know the combination of keywords you entered to gain this URL, so if you stumbled upon here in expectation of something else, I totally know how you feel.

Speaking of Cheese-kun...

Code GEASS at present

We're hitting the 22nd episode! We're on our way towards an ending, right? Eh, non. If you're an informed Code Geass fan (as most online fans are) you'd have heard about Sunrise's confirmation of a second season. And possibly, an OVA plus movie. All this on top of the already-serialised manga counterpart and its two spin-offs featuring Suzaku and Nunnally in each one's main role. Quite the in-demand celebrity now, isn't it, when the pre-Geass days saw mixed feelings for this (admittedly odd) SunrisexCLAMP combo.

Over on the main comm, there's been... a lot of spoiler announcements lately pertaining to 1) Episode 22 and 2) The Second Season. Now, it's my policy to steer clear of spoilers AT ALL COSTS. I enjoy being subjected to sharp turns, trips, rapid gear shifts, creeping slowly up a crest towards an inevitable plunge, and hanging upside-down indefinitely off a loop's underside. I'm not simply hopping on the bandwagon by saying, yes, I don't think I've ever felt this degree of excitement over any show before Code Geass so, yes, I agree with its "best anime of the year" appellation as far as entertainment goes. It's not a literary masterpiece nor is it free of shortcomings, eg. whoring to the fanboying masses, yo. I love it simply because I never cease to be thrilled by this ride.

And you gotta admit, there's no other lead like the one this show has. Fittingly, the role won his seiyuu the Best Male Lead appellation at Japan's first-ever seiyuu awards.

BUT.

Having said what I have said, I'm still *hurting* to click on those *mocking* LJ cuts and read the spoiler(s) that made the fans soooo agitated. Agitated. A vocal member of Suzalulu comm is so agitated, she gathered a consolation group. Should I, a fellow member, share her agitation?

My guesses as to the spoiler(s)

• Continued use of the Geass will rob Lulu of one of his strengths or more. Yes, good looks count. Gender switch also counts as it puts FukuJun out of action.
• A future event sinks one or more ships for good.
• One or more main characters will exit the scene. Most likely in death.
• One or more red herrings will be revealed.
• Someone comes back to life and ruins Lulu's scheme.
• Extreme fanservicing a la NinaxTable will take place.
• Bottom line: something bad happens to Lulu.

Obviously, I don't pick apart Code Geass the way I do Ghost Hunt...

27/03 Edit: Never mind now... thanks to a couple of un-spoiler tagged posts I think I have an idea as to who bites it in ep 22 *grumblegrumble*.

- B

Concerning current ships and STRAY CAT ♥

Note: This was an old post dated December 2006. Why/how it jumped to the top of the chronological order is a little beyond me.

Hmm. How to describe the recent (fansubbed) episodes of La Corda d'Oro? Is it Hino/Tsukimori or is it Hino/Tsuchiura? I'd say episode 3 leans more towards the former despite the Hino/Tsuchiura second half, because whatever gets Tsunderen to display emotion outside of "ore ni wa kankenai" deserves special attention ^^. Meanwhile, episode 4 is pure Hino/Tsuchiura. It also sees the harem mistress's first spat with a love interest!

On the subject of pairings, no matter how hetero La Corda d'Oro may pass itself as, what with, you know, the *uber* reverse harem-ness (cackle) I always manage to zero in on BL potentials. And I'm not talking about Yunoki/Hihara, which proves to be quite popular amongst fans who'll have both het and otherwise. I've mentioned before how I personally can't see darling Len with the harem mistress (yes, despite the so-called "intense" manga developments) or any girl for that matter. The reason? Simply...

Because he's my type of uke and my ukes don't top *anyone*. Thoughtful reasoning, if I do say so myself ^^.

Which is why I was very happy ("happy" being an understatement XD) to find STRAY CAT. The artist does excellent fanart of TsuchiuraxTsukimori (whom I lovingly call TsuTsu♥) and... Well, I just gave away my secret OTP there, haha. While I hope for a Hino/Tsucchi ending in canon, I'm a fervent TsuTsu shipper in fanon ^____^. I really appreciate the fact that, while STRAY CAT is the only TsuTsu fansite I managed to dig up on the Japanese net, it's coincidentally such a good-looking find and you don't come across fanartists who can adapt their style so well that they capture the look and essence of every series they potray.

Speaking of which, besides TsuTsu, STRAY CAT also does xxxHOLiC's Donuts and Cluster Edge's AgatexBeryl, although I'm not a fan of the last one. Every CLAMP fan knows the deal: if the style's not CLAMPesque down to the last stroke, it's no good. I find that many fanartists who attempt CLAMP are hard pressed to achieve near-perfect imitation, because their style is so distinctive that it should damn be registered for copyright. It's basically the reason I don't dig around for CLAMP fansites. Who'd have known, after years of careful dodging, that I'd find THIS?

Those fangirls who said they'd happily die after seeing "CLAMP Remix" can do so now. Granted, it's not the real deal, but I guarantee it'll more than do ^_~. Sadly, I don't see anyone tackling a near-perfect X... yet. I have two doujins by a circle that specialises in CCS that you can call near-perfect, but their tendency is TouyaxSakura. Sadly, incest I don't ship.

The same rule doesn't seem to apply to Code Geass's SuzaLulu who, despite having been conceived by CLAMP design-wise, the fans see a lot more in Kimura Takahiro's style. And his style for Code Geass is pseudo-CLAMPesque, allowing for further "improvisations" in fanart. Yeah. I've amassed a good number of SuzaLulu fan-illustrations; most of which are fluff and one of which implies a kiss ---> needless to say, that one sketch is my number one fave ^^. At least, STRAY CAT tease me to submission with a frigging *outline* of TsuTsu engaging in lemon.

Now, when's the next Comiket again?

-B

世界はこんなにも違ってみえた

...is the title of Tamasaka Miki's out-of-print third TsuchiuraxTsukimori (aka. TsuTsu) doujin installment!!! SQUEEEEEE!!!! I probably beat my "fastest abuse of shopping service agent" record by 3.5 seconds after seeing this gem up on Yahoo!JP Auctions two weeks ago. After weeks and weeks and weeks of EveryonexHino. It started at 400 yen and ended at 2,200 yen. That's 100 yen more than the second installment but who cares?? EMS is worth it, I tell you, especially when your unpopular OTPs are involved.

Sorry, no pictures! There's the fanartists' protection issue to be considered.

As I've predicted, the "does he, does he not" situation of the previous book (Tsutaeru Kimochi ga Aru Kara) was much more intense than the "first date" stage of this one (Sekai wa Konna ni mo Chigatte Mieta). I miss the deliciousness of Tsutaeru but Sekai more than makes up for it with a bunch of comedy shorts, potential lime (!!) and Tamasaka's hilarious recount of her La Corda dating sim experience (that I, magically enough, was able to understand the gist of). I was pleasantly surprised to see that, while Tsutaeru is composed of a single story, Sekai treats the readers (aka. fangirls) with a well-narrated main story, eight single-page gags, and a smart potential lime that I told you about ^^.

I'm also endlessly amused by Tamasaka's treatment of Hino Kahoko, the supposed star of the series - in Sekai she gets a half-face (the bottom half, from the side!) single-panel appearance while Tsutaeru treats her slightly better with two appearances (in the corners, one in semi-SD mode and the other, the top of her head LOL). Now, I have nothing against the girl--honest! but it is a refreshing change.

Story 1: Invest in a damn cellphone... Two cellphones

The narration is in Tamasaka's usual dual POV style, which I'm quite fond of. As said before, this installment covers the "first date" stage. You know the end of book #2 where Tsucchi tells Len to meet him at the rooftop - er, whatever that place is where Hino likes to practice in peace and quite - after the recital? And Len says he'll wait for him up there because apparently he has something to tell him, too? I wonder if that's where they sort things out. Without showing the readers! What's more, in book #3 they're suddenly an item. Give me my toe-wriggling confession scene! (I don't care if it's told in retrospect!)

Anyway, yes, so the date goes... Actually, they don't get to meet at all, not even by the end of the story. I guess whichever of the two suggested the meeting place wasn't being terribly informative as to the exact spot (and by "whichever of the two", of course I meant Tsuchiura - although the canon Tsuchiura is normally the more mature of the two and, hence, should this kind of scenario ever occur in the anime, the "whichever of the two" would be directed at Len) because they end up standing on opposite sides of the shruberies and each wondering why on earth the other is late.

The moral of this story: Listen to Lili for once and go buy yourself a cellphone. Oh, and if you're the seme in the relationship, you should buy one for your uke, too (as is the rule). It'll do both of you a world of good.

Omake: "Renren-chaaaan," beckoned Hihara.

One of these days I'll see the game for myself, even if the language barrier is a major hindrance. Tamasaka shows in one talk corner how fun it can be. She named her character "Tsukimori Len" (yes, yes, she knew it was female) with a grand plan in mind: "Tsukimori Len" was going to nab "Tsuchiura Ryoutarou". So off she happily went, always looking for "Tsuchiura" but somehow always bumping into "Tsukimori" (Tamasaka: "What? TsukimorixTsukimori??") and so, such odd exchanges ensued:

Len: "If it's allright, I'd like you to call me Len... What's your name? Len? That's a beautiful name, I really like it *smile*." (Tamasaka: "You're saying that about your own name?? XD")

Just for fun, Tsuchiura's version:

Tsucchi: "Your first name is Len, right? Renren... Does that sound bad?" LOL!

Along the way, she had a dilemma. She found she didn't have the heart to turn Len down so in the end she went with him! She's a Renren fan, hahahaha! Her conclusion? Neo Romance + BL = oishii. I couldn't agree more.

The moral of this story: Everyone in the main cast should be playable instead of just Hino. On top of that, everyone should have equal romance opportunity, which means that gender won't become an issue. The asking price will be of H-bomb proportions, I'm sure, but the fangirls will gladly pay Neo Romance that much for this enhanced version of the game ^____^. I know I will.

Story 2: Why music students shouldn't bonk to, you know, music

Because your droopy-eyed junior, namely Shimizu-kun, is precocious and will discern that your repertoire these days feel similar to that of one of the other seniors, namely Tsuchiura-senpai. Len shrugs it off and goes "Orly?". The next scene sees the senpais someplace in the Tsukimori mansion, namely Len's room, and enter foreplay. I have nothing more to say about this besides "rather tame".

I don't know if the music's been there in the background the entire time, but before very mild lime can escalate to mild lime, Len gets ticked by a certain number and storms out babbling about having an important business to do and he'll be back ASAP, thus leaving behind a very confuzzled Tsucchi. I hope his parents are out of the country doing some concert, because he's walking out in just his uniform shirt LOL. Once back, Tsucchi demands that Len make up for the lost minutes (or hours, heh) however he ends up stepping off the bed with the exact same rationale ^^.

The moral of this story: If you're a violinist and your boyfriend's a pianist and you hate RnB and you want to do it to classical music no matter what, opt for orchestrals. Otherwise, ah, make sure it's a compilation album.

The moral of this story #2: Try as she might, Tamasaka simply can't bring herself to portray lime. She's too chaste! *_* I guess that's the thinking of someone having just seen Kazuka Minami the night before.

-B

Ghost Hunt and the usual shoujo triangle

These past months, I've been an active poster in Animesuki's GH manga forum. I had never loyally subscribed to any discussion thread in my life. Is the GH manga that interesting to talk about? Are the plot, the cast, the jargon that immersing? Why, yes and yes. Which is why some of us [read: "I"] make it a morning ritual to check the forum for unread posts first thing when we arrive in front of our computers at work, and post, and refresh the page every ten minutes.

Never have I been so scrutinising and speculating about a manga series before GH. I am literally going over the dialogues word-by-word, picking out oral quirks, looking up page numbers for fellow posters' references, squinting my eyes to discern 3-mm shapes in backgrounds, reading facial expressions and body languages... I think at one point I was even keeping track of John's wardrobe changes.

From among an interesting and diverse cast, there emerged one character that I never expected to tug at my sleeve like a neglected child cutely imploring for juuust a little attention. Hara Masako. Didn't see her coming, nope, not by a mile.

Where'd that come from?

Exactly. When, ever since her introduction in volume 1, she has come across as higly confident, cocky and wily as a vixen. It must've been in volume 7 where we had our first look at a vulnerable and insecure Masako. That is, vulnerable as she's going to die and insecure as she seemingly can't compare with Mai in the race for the prince's (somewhat unwilling) heart. Contrary to my expectations, Mai takes it well and even finds Masako's display of schoolgirl jealousy, um, cute (in her own word).

And then, a sort of budding girlfriendship between supposed rivals takes off from there.

And, because I'm a sucker for that kind of thing...

Before I knew it, I was favouring the underdog. Maybe because the other contender is already getting the nods from the author and the majority of readers. Maybe I prefer the quiet supporting character over the lively and loveable female lead. I don't know. Hell, I don't even go for het under normal circumstances, but GH offers no potential for BL which is fine because BL potentials I wouldn't like to see in GH.

Even so, my ship's sinking before it sets sail

Partly Masako's shortcomings but, of course, it's the author's intent. Her demure personality doesn't make Naru tick like Mai's simplicity does, and there's the you-know-who factor which automatically sets up a bond between Naru and Mai from the get-go. On top of it, he treats her with utmost formality if not indifference; another wall for any chance of relationship. I take that Masako is mature and intelligent in her professional dealings, but she turns out very immature in romance... such as abusing her privileges (whatever those may be) to score dates with her crush! I wondered if her like for him was of a trivial sort after all.

Not really.

Then comes volume 7 and her kidnapping and her visit by you-know-who. Then she starts warming up to Mai. Then towards the end of volume 9, she offers to leave Naru's bedside to go with her. Interesting, because if it were the old Masako, she would've definitely stayed. At the end the same volume, the pair are laughing together about their silly crush. To quote Oprah, I just love it when girls get along ^^. This gradual change is what I love about this quiet supporting character.

This entry's getting long (and I'm hungry)

I don't know why some fans of the mainstream coupling are feeling concerned whenever Naru favours Masako once in what feels like a green moon with carrots growing out of the top, when it's clear that her role's only that of an antagonistic rival. Right? In shoujo, the male lead more often than not goes with the female lead. Any other option is an exception.

I knowww it's past February 14th

The below fluffy, heart-stamped little tribute has been long overdue. I've been wanting to draw the girls for a while. Pure friendship between the two. No love interest in sight - sort of, sort of.

P.S. I was thinking of giving GH its own category on the blog, except there will be little to post about since I don't feel like blogging the TV animation and all the published manga volumes are over and done with. The novel, I can't read and, even if I became literate in Japanese overnight I can't gain access to it being out-of-print for a while now. On top of that, Ono Fuyumi is taking a break from writing it. I can only hope that the two ladies, Ono and Inada, won't pull a Juuni Kokki on GH.

Did you know that Japan's crown prince and princess are called Naruhito and Masako, and that this reference to the real world is irrelevant to GH besides the fact that fans of rare ships like myself get a kick out of every mention of the names? ^___^

-B

What? Kirinpro isn't going to Fuyu Comi??

My EMS parcel dropped in for tea this afternoon, which is cause for a celebration, really. Shipping to where I am at the moment is normally tricky business but it arrived safely at my hands! Ahhh, I can't stop looking at it - so prettiful v v v.

The costs were a bit steep for a 40pp (no novel!) doujinshi, but it's all worth it. In hindsight, I got lucky on Yahoo!JP Auctions. I happened to search for a TsuTsu doujin the exact night I stumbled upon STRAY CAT and, what do you know, one satisfactory feedback came up. By the same fanartist that provides me my only TsuTsu oasis. Must've been lucky, because nothing else save for everyonexHino came up on the search for the next two weeks. Or maybe these past two weeks were just sparse...

Upon looking into her (pen name: Tamasaka Miki - circle: V-KIDS) list of Comiket releases, I found five installments of La Corda d'Oro doujins under her belt. And one of xxxHOLiC, but that's another fangirldom. I also found that my darling newlygained is number two out of five. The first three have been marked as "Out of Print". And Kirinpro aren't attending this year's Winter Comi, which means more work for me, Out of Print or otherwise (le sigh).

On the doujin itself...

My dear Len is drawn like an uke amongst uke(plural). I can't decide whether that's a bad thing since I'm pretty much accustomed to Tamasaka's version of the Tsunderen who's actually... rather amiable and... too nice, omitting all his adorable bitchiness from the anime. Tsuchiura, though, I have nothing to complain about as he's his usual gentlemanly self XD. Actually, who am I kidding? I shouldn't even complain about deredere!Len because the art - that's right - the art is too pretty to make a Corda fan overlook any shortcomings. Tamasaka may not be the best when it comes to colouring but that should never hinder a starving TsuTsu fan from discovering the gorgeous inside art. Her drawing of the characters look like a cross between their anime and manga counterparts; I find myself favouring this Tsucchi over his more juvenile-looking manga version and his seemingly older, KKM!Conrad-lookeylikey anime version. Sadly, the same can't be said for Tamasaka's Len, whom I'm having a hard time seeing as THE Tsunderen thanks to his sorely lacking, er, tsundere-ness. Speaking of which, I *heart* anime!Len for it is pretteh.
Oh, and I totally fangirl that singlespread of Tsuchiura (and Len) jazzed up for the concours. Rawr.

As all the text was written by hand, and hence no furigana, I had to rely on a lot of guesswork so what I've gathered below may only be 30% true. The time setting is the build-up towards Final Selection. We also get both parties' POV. Both think they're supposed to hate each other but of course they don't really as both seem to dread being separated after the concours's finale. Tsucchi decides on Liszt's piano rendition of Paganini's La Campanella as a tribute to a certain violinist. Len immediately zeroes in on Hino as Tsucchi's supposed crush. Enter a somewhat teary Len (the doujinka even apologises for this! LOL). The ending? Well, unfortunately, it continues on to the next installment.

I understand that, being volume 2/5, TsuTsu's relationship is still at a tender stage (some would say delicious what with its "does he does he not" mindset and largely unresolved tension ^^) so it didn't surprise me that it covers none beyond a kiss. Those two pages and Len's "This can't be how he expresses hatred, so he must not hate me that much after all, right?" asks to be doted on and squished 24/7.

My current mood remains an elated ^___________^

-B