Tasunke's Random Ramblings

So I went and saw the Nanoha movie, Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha (魔法少女リリカルなのは) The MOVIE 1st, today with some friends. The theater was packed, and we had standing room only tickets, basically. This is my first time watching a movie in a Japanese theater… and also the first time watching one in any theater while standing the entire time. ^^; Though being as tall as I am and standing in the back, I had no trouble at all seeing the entire screen, so it was a blessing in that regard, at least. ;)

For those unfamiliar with the movie, it’s a retelling of the events of the first season of the anime of the same name. Basically, they took a 13-episode anime series, and condensed it down into a movie. They seemed to do a good job at it too. They manage to hit the major plot points and even give us glimpses into parts of the backstory that had only been hinted at in the original anime, though at least one such revelation actually didn’t happen until the 3rd season, originally, if I remember correctly.

The movie was just as touching and moving to me as the original series was, so it definitely scores points there. Also, there was a scene that surprised and amused me, where Nanoha and her friends are playing Wii Sports Tennis. ;) I really didn’t expect to see them inserting that into Nanoha. Of course, it’s not directly Wii Sports, but you can tell that’s what it’s supposed to be. n.n;
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So, up on Toei Animation’s website, they have an introductory synopsis of Heartcatch Pretty Cure. I was notified of this in IRC, and proceeded to translate it on the spot in IRC. I then put it up on the Wikipedia article and decided to publish it here as well. Translation is after the jump for those who don’t wish to have (what’s likely to be) parts of the first episode of the series spoiled for them.
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Someone pointed this blog post out to me on IRC. Apparently, Nana Mizuki was featured in a Daily Yomiuri section called “Pop Style.” There was a blog post about it, and I’ve done my best to translate the relevant segments of it, which are after the jump.
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So, in commemoration of Pac-Man’s 30th birthday, Circle K in Japan is going to be selling Pac-Man buns.

No, that’s not a hamburger patty, from what I understand, it’s supposed to be some kind of cookie. Going to be looking for these when they go on sale on the 13th of January for the price of 120 yen each. Here we see the mouth area cut out of the bun to expose the innards of it. Looks delish!

Source: 30周年を記念した中華まん「パックまん」発売 (ITmedia) via Twitter via Kotaku. (Pics from there, too.)

So, I saw the first episode of the new series Durarara!! tonight. I knew absolutely nothing about it beforehand, but I was pleased with what I saw. For those that don’t know, Durarara!! is based on a light novel series by the same author who wrote the Baccano! series.

Keeping in mind that I’ve only seen the first few episodes of Baccano, the opening sequence for Durarara does seem as frenetic as Baccano’s, with each character of the main cast having their own little introduction with them being isolated in the frame while their name is splashed up on the screen in handwritten kanji I can’t read. ;) The art style in Durarara is also quite interesting, in that only the characters you are meant to focus on. In other words, the main characters, are rendered in color. Everyone else is black and white.

(SPOILER ALERT: Review continues after the jump. Though there’s not much to spoil considering this is the first episode.)
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The new Pretty Cure series, Heartcatch Pretty Cure, is coming up soon, and the seiyuu have been announced for the lead roles of Cure Blossom and Cure Marine. They are Nana Mizuki, and Fumie Mizusawa, respectively. Each of the two seiyuu have created a personal message for the fans. The actual messages and their translations follow after the jump.
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