My Top 3 Songs - September 2010

Several days ago, I got an idea for another article series. This one will be monthly and will feature my top 3 songs that were released that month. It can be released on a single, an album, on anything, but it has to be a song by a Japanese artist. Technically speaking, it can also be non-Japanese artists in case they reside in Japan. So for example Jero is still eligible ^^ The selection of songs has no particular order, so there is no absolute winner unless I specifically say so.

I think this is enough for the explanation. Now, let's have a look at my top 3 this month.

BUCK-TICK - Kuchizuke (くちづけ)

This is the opening theme from horror anime Shiki. It very well matches the atmosphere of the anime since the song itself is quite dark and inscrutable. I'm not an avid fan of BUCK-TICK, but every now and then they make a song that suits my musical tastes. Kuchizuke is one of them. The melody is rather captivating and the part with glockenspiel (or a similar instrument) is playful yet sinister. You can also check out the making of the PV video on Youtube.

Houkago Tea Time - Gohan wa Okazu (ごはんはおかず)

It's a dreamy collaboration of carbohydrates. Yes, this song has extremely funny lyrics, so very typical of Houkago Tea Time songs. Yui sings about how amazing rice is, how it goes with any other food, and how it is the main part of her dishes. Add Aki-chan's sweet - I don't like the word moeblob but I guess I can't argue if you use it in this case - voice and you get a joyful song that will lift your spirits whenever you feel down. I was actually wavering whether to choose Gohan wa Okazu or the other song U&I but in the end I picked this one since it's more lively. On the other hand, U&I has more heart-warming lyrics...

Kotobuki Minako - Shiny+

There's no way I could miss out this one. It's the title song of Mina-chan's debut single after all. It's so sweet. And so is Mina-chan in the PV, of course. HHHNNNNNNNGG! However blue I would feel, Shiny+ would surely set me free from the fetters of melancholy.

This is it for September. Let's look forward together to October's helping of music.

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Nendoroid Hirasawa Ui Preview

K-ON ended on a happy note with an announcement of a movie having been green-lit. Today, Mikatan has another pleasant news in store for us - preview of Nendoroid Ui plus the announcement that she will be up for preorders starting tomorrow. If you have Nendoroid Yui, you need Ui so as someone can take care of her, don't you think? ^^

Optional hand&bag part.

Extra body part - Ui's junior school uniform. And an extra face part - Smiling Face.

Extra face part - Bewildered Face. In addition, another pair of arms to go with the junior school uniform.

There are two Yuis? O_O Actually, the one on the right side is Ui. She also comes with a blue ribbon which is worn by seniors. The hair part is not bundled in I think. It's Yui's.

As I said above, Nendoroid Ui will be available for preordering as of tomorrow, that is September 30. She'll be a great addition to any K-ON Nendoroid collection, mainly to those which contain Yui, of course.

EDIT: Ui-chan is available for reservations at Hobby Search and CDJapan

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K-ON! Movie Announced

The last episode of K-ON!! has announced that a K-ON! movie has been green-lit. Yay! A lot of lives have been saved by this news I guess XD

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DFC Saturday #33

Hiiragi Tsukasa by charmal

A week has passed and another Saturday has come upon us. How have you been doing this past week? Summer is over and we're a few days into Fall. Some places on earth are relieved of the four-season weather routine, but here it's the stark reality. Rains are more frequent now, wind is stronger and colder and pierces through the skin, mornings are chilly, and foliage is changing colors. All of this can affect one's mood and as a result, lots of people feel blue now. Therefore, one needs something to defend himself against the voracious melancholy with. Now, here comes that something. Enjoy!

Cure Sunshine by eto

Komeiji Koishi and Satori by yukitokaze

Umenomori Chise by unknown artist

Kowarekake by unknown artist

Minase Iori by number23

Akai Ringo by shomon

Ricchan by tacomi

Izayoi Sakuya by sayori

Azunyan by Senomoto Hisashi

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Touhou Project gets anime by ufotable

キタ━━━(゜∀゜)━━━!!!!!

There's already been an OVA called Touhou Niji Sousaku Doujin Anime - Musou Kakyou, but apart from the seiyuu cast, it wasn't any good. After all, it was a fan-made, unofficial video. But this time, it's an official project by studio ufotable. They have announced they will collaborate in two projects to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Animate mascot character Anime Tenchou - the strange dude that appeared in Lucky Star - and one of them is called Anime Tenchou x Touhou Project.

Both projects will be presented at the ANIMATE Ichioshi Bishōjo Matsuri event which is taking place in Tokyo on November 20. ZUN has stated on Twitter that he is not involved in production of this OVA.

Let's see what it turns out like. At least the animation should be better than in the unofficial OVA.

Source: ANN

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Anime "MM!" BD/DVD releases to include "SS!" extras

Each of the six Blu-ray and DVD volumes of upcoming anime MM! will include a bonus short stories called SS! The first volume is to ship on December 22, including promotional footage, creditless opening and ending videos, CMs, and seiyuu - Taketatsu Ayana and Hayami Saori - commentary audio track. The final volume is to be released on May 25, 2011.

TV anime MM! broadcast starts on October 2. The story is about a boy who doesn't want his crush to know he's a masochist, thus seeks help at the Voluntary Club, where he only finds more trouble embodied in a girl who believes to be a god.

Source: ANN

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K-ON!! Character Song singles rank #1 and #2 on Oricon

K-ON did it again. K-ON singles have occupied the top two ranks in Oricon Daily Ranking upon their release. This time, K-ON!! Character Image Song Akiyama Mio(Seishun Vibration) ranked first and K-ON!! Character Image Song Hirasawa Yui(Oh my Giita!) followed second. Mio Character Song single sold 9021 on the first day; Yui Character Image Song single sold only 171 copies fewer, that is 8850. In addition, it's worth mentioning that previously released K-ON!! single Gohan wa Okazu, despite being released about 2 weeks ago, is still holding on the ninth rank. K-ON!! is performing just great! Way to go!

You can purchase the singles, Hirasawa Yui Character Image Song Single and Akiyama Mio Character Image Song Single on CDJapan. Ritsu, Mugi, and Azusa Image Song singles are coming out on November 17.

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Space Battleship Yamato Live-Action Trailer

Oh, I'm so gonna watch this! But I'll have to wait until it's out on Blu-Ray which won't be soon since the movie scheduled to premiere on December 1 in Japan. Whether it will come to cinemas in some other countries too is not known yet.

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DFC Saturday #32

Kagiyama Hina by tkisii

I hope you have a nice Saturday, everyone. If you don't, there's something that might make bring you some joy. It's time for the flat pictures. Have a look and rejoice ^^

Index by kemickoko

Erica Hartmann by Rin Mokkomoko

Einhart Stratos by Atsushima You

Remilia and Flandre Scarlet by Natsume Eri

Akai Ringo by kazuhiro

Saya by Hirose Azumi

Saya by mani

Saya by unknown artist

Remilia Scarlet by chinchickrin

OMAKE:

Making of the last picture.

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K-ON!! Alternative Ending Sequence

I hoped the creators would not end the last episode of K-ON!! regularly with the ending video, but that they would come up with a unique ending that would gradually build up a very emotional atmosphere which would climax in the very last moments of the episode. Unfortunately, this wish of mine wasn't realized. But it seems I wasn't the only one who wanted a unique ending since somebody has made an alternative ending with Fuwa Fuwa Time, flashback scenes from both first and second season, and credit rolls instead of the regular ending. I would really love if they had done it this way. It reminds you of the funny and other great scenes and it makes you realize how much you're going to miss K-ON. Watch it and tell me which one you like better. The genuine ending, or this fanmade one?

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Hikasa Youko: "I'm happy I could perform Mio"

Following with yesterday's post about Aki-chan's blogpost regarding the end of K-ON!!. I had a look at Hiyocchi's blog to find a similar post to the Aki-chan's one. Likewise, she expresses her gratefulness and happiness for being able to be a part of K-ON cast. It's such a nice, heart-warming post that I had to write about this one as well. I hope it can warm you at least a bit inside.

The post's translation:

The last episode of K-ON!! is about to air on TBS.

Ah, I'm so nervous.

It seemed to be long but it was so short.
The high school life flew by in a blink of eye.
Thanks to Yui and others
I was able to have some brilliant time. I'm happy for that.
I'm happy I could perform Mio.
Mio, I love you.
Thank you, everyone!

I hope that lots of feelings of thankfulness reach all of you who watch it.

Hikasa is on alert with two boxes of tissues at hand.
(T_T)My eyes are sweating already.

Everyone, definitely, definitely watch it please.

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"Thank you for all the love" K-ON!!

Toyosaki Aki wrote a post titled Daisuki wo Arigatou (Thank you for all the love) on her blog before the last episode of K-ON!! aired. The words she used, "Daisuki wo arigatou", are exactly the same words as the ones used in the lyrics of K-ON!!'s second opening. Aki-chan wrote a love-filled post in which she expressed her gratitude for being able to voice Yui-chan and for the people who watch and enjoy it.

The post's translation:

The last episode of K-ON!! is airing tonight on TBS.

There are a lot of things on my mind now, but anyways, I'll be very glad if you watch it.

Yui-chan sings "Thank you for all the love" to everyone in the opening.

I'd like to say "I love you" and "Thank you" to Yui-chan.

I put my heart into my voice and let it out during the recording of the last episode too.

Definitely, definitely watch it please!

Please, be so kind to watch over my beloved Yui-chan and others.

Thank you very much.

I'll watch it on the air and do my best not to cry!

All righty! (*｀ω´*)

It's so nice to see that she loves the characters and truly treasures her job. If this world was full of Aki-chans, not only would it be exceedingly cute a world, I'm sure it would also be a world where everyone would love each other and everything could be resolved in a peaceful way. Right, so much for this saccharine talk about love&peace. I'm sorry I just couldn't help it. I guess the last episode of K-ON!! is at fault. I really enjoyed it and was moved to tears. Although there will be 2 more episodes, this was the true end of K-ON!! and that's just so sad. K-ON is a great anime whose greatness is built upon the awesome characters whom the people who watch it just grow attached to. Therefore, you don't want to say goodbye to them because you know you will miss them. In K-ON's case, the creators, in order to make the anime popular, used this way to unprecedented extent I think. What I'm really happy about and what is really crucial is that they managed to conclude it in a grand way, at least from my viewpoint. I have one advice for everyone. As long as K-ON doesn't fade away from your hearts, it will never end. So keep K-ON deep in your hearts and let your love bloom for ever and ever.

btw. I wonder if the suicide rate will grow now ^^;

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Toyosaki Aki Appreciation Post

Lately, I've watched quite a few videos on NND with Aki-chan talking and voicing characters. I have to say that they were just lovely. Well, mainly Aki-chan's voice is what was lovely about it, to be precise. Now, it's pointless to waste your precious time by my blabbering so please use the time I've just saved you on watching the videos ^^ Enjoy~

Aki-chan voicing various characters.

The next one is a love confession.

Untan meets Touhou.

Next one: "Meow... Meow... Will you play with me-ow, my master?"

"I'd like to warm up a bit. Will you hug me?"

In the next video, she supposedly talks in Awa-ben (that Houe Houe part) which is a dialect spoken in Tokushima where Aki-chan was born.

Not only the 21-year-old Aki in the following video, but also the 16 or 17-year-old Aki-chan. They say she sounds different now and I think so too. Aki-chan is quite embarrassed when she sees and hears her old self.

Patissiere decorating with Minako-chan.

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DFC Saturday #31

Ookami Ryouko by jet

Recently I have learned that there are people who are extremely obsessed with flat objects and reject everything that is sphere-shaped like a lemon, orange, grapefruit, and pumpkin. Their ideas originate from ancient teachings, much older than Aristotle and other Greek masters. They formed an official organization in 1956 with base in Lancaster in California and spread their appreciation of flatness. However, they were faced with great obstacles as the masses recognize the round concept and spherical object as the common standard. Still, some way or another they endured all the resistance and are active even today, spreading their affection towards the flat outlook. Their name is Flat Earth Society.

Rebecca Miyamoto by utomo

Hakurei Reimu by kayako

Ikamusume by unknown artist

Nakano Azusa by goto p

picture by suenaga

Kogami Akira by izumioo

Railgun, Teleporter, and Index by Shinohara Kenji

picture by kiwa

Inami Mahiru and Takanashi Kotori by Harasawa Runa

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