Manga Monday - Princess Tutu

While not strictly Manga, I'm including it because it's one of the most lovely anime I've ever seen. It's a big favorite here. This is not the full song, just the opening to the series. The full song is 4 minutes long and is just as lovely as the short bit used here.

Text: (Romaji)

yondeiru koe
saa me wo samashite
nakigao nugutte
mabushii hikari kigi no tsuyu umareru

dare mo shiranai himitsu no mizube de
odore inochi no pa do du
kyou mo yume miteru
sore wa yasashiku
hageshii nagare ne

doko made tsuzuku rabirinsu
watashi wa yukou nigirishimeru yume

yonde iru koe
watashi ga hitsuyou?
kanashii no mayou no tobidatsu
tori yureteru hana
sasayaku

sayonara namida anata wa suteki yo
odore inochi no pa do du
ashita o yume mite

watashi ga yuku wa sono te ni watasou
egao hitotsu de hora ne konna ni atatakai

dare mo shiranai himitsu no mizube yo
odore inochi no pa do du
asu o yume miteru

sore wa yasashiku
hageshii nagare ne shiwase sagasu
rabiribsu watashi wa yuku no yo

Text: (English)

A voice is calling to me
Now I open up my eyes
Wipe the tears from my face
A brilliant light and the dew on the trees is born

At the secret place by the waterside that no one knows of
Dance the pas de deux of life
and im dreaming again today.

So I find myself gently
drifting in a tempestuous current.
Just how far will this labyrinth take me...
I'll go along, and hold on tightly to this dream...

The full series is available in Netflix dubbed in English.

#PeaceLove&Otaku

Manga Monday - Keroro Gunsou

To follow up with Friday's video of Afro Sargeant (Afuro Gunsou) from Sgt. Frog (Keroro Gunsou) I'm sharing with you my oldest child's renderings of the Keronians. May I present to you:

Keroro Gunsou - Sgt. Frog

Corporal Geroro

Sgt. Major Kululu

Lance Corporal Dororo

Private 2nd Class Tamama

If you want to draw your own Keronians, check out this video:

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Funky Friday

I don't speak Japanese. But this has such a catchy hook that I just can't not share it with you. The clip is one of the endings to Keroro Gunsou (Sgt. Frog) a fun anime about alien frogs (Keronians) coming to take over the Earth (Pekopon). My kids think this is the best show since the history of television. The first couple of seasons are available on Netflix, but the entire run of the show is available at AnimeCrazy.net.

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Manga & Anime, OH MY!

The Japanese kind (graphic novels/comics), not the Indonesian kind (mangga = mango).

Anime and manga, oh my. See, this is what happens when you marry an Asian. They bring their insidious culture with them. First it was the Japanese RPGs for PlayStation (Final Fantasy, anyone?). Then it was "I want this [mecha/robot] action figure that I used to have as a kid". NOW it's Macross. And not the pansy-ass Robotech series that was butchered/hacked together from 3 DIFFERENT anime series. Noooooo. The ORIGINAL Macross. And then Macross 7.

For someone who was a real Hello Kitty fan "back in the day", this stuff is ADDICTIVE. Help me, but I'm hooked. And not just on anime. Now it's manga. I realized that all the funny cartoons I used to draw as a teenager were actually manga-ish. I can't draw myself out of a paper bag when it comes to "real" art. But give me some manga-themed something and somehow it's intuitive. Like THIS drawing done today while I sat in a parking lot:

I left it full size so you can really see the detail. This is my FIRST attempt at a manga figure in a decade. I'm not formally trained. Bonus points to the first person to comment correctly on the inspiration for this character.

I'm working on a manga (and hopefully an anime) series starring the Chen Sisters. We'll see what comes of it.