Hooooboy was this a disappointing series for me, or what?  I eagerly plowed into given the premise and my own career path (in just a couple of months I'll have my Master's of Library Science).  I expected action and thought provoking concepts.  A little comedy? Sure--many of the best serious shows have at least a little.  Some romance?  Why not, it usually doesn't detract too much.

Except for when the series turns out to be about shallow romance and slapstick-esque comedy, with the enthralling general plot playing second fiddle to shoutings of "You idiot!" and "Lt. Doujou!" by the fighting-but-clearly-soon-to-be-amorous male and female leads.

Why?  Why did the excellent episodes, such as the one where they projected a copy of Fahrenheit 451 or other library documents have to be downplayed to see yet another fluffy series about an overbearing and paternalistic senpai male becoming romantically involved with the emotionally stunted, unreliable but very strong kohai girl that he fights with constantly?  There could have been so much substance, but unfortunately they went for the cookie cutter style with a bit of cool thrown in.

Now, I will give the series credit for the art and music.  Catchy opening and closing themes are always appreciated.  The intros for most episodes could also be amusing (I particularly liked the one by Shibasaki).  I also found myself particularly enamored with the art and character designs.  I really like the thick inking that was done, and the slightly more realistic without really being realistic style used on the characters.  Given how much 90s anime I watch, it was nice to see people with normal hair colors, rather than blue or pink hair that defies gravity.

I'm not sure knowing then what I know now would really help my opinion of the series.  Actually, it might have kept me from watching it in the first place.  And at this point, I can't see a problem with that particular destiny.  Really, it's not that bad, it's just so completely average that it's almost more infuriating than a bad series.  The only thing worse than awful is mediocrity.  At least you can laugh at awful.  Mediocrity just makes you cringe and feel uncomfortable and embarrassed for whomever created it.

On the other hand, the tension between Task Force and the Ibaraki Library team is very interesting.  Using brute strength to require them to take on a weaponry approach gives me a chill, and I'm very much looking forward to see how badly it's going to hurt the Task Force when they are faced with the reality that perhaps their way isn't always the right way...Assuming that's what happens, of course.

But still, what was up with the lame, random bullying?  And of course Iku doesn't say anything, blah blah blah...This episode was just a bit to formulaic for my taste, which is a shame because it had some interesting concepts (see above) and followed an enjoyable enough episode.

Another relatively light week of anime; however, I was able to finish one of my favorite shows from the spring season, Library War.

The scores:

Zero’s Familiar S.3, episode 8 – 10/12 A

Birdy the Mighty Decode, episode 8 – 12/12 Perfect

Xam’D: Lost Memories, episode 6 – 12/12 Perfect
Xam’D: Lost Memories, episode 7 – 12/12 Perfect

Natsume Yuujinchou, episode 8 – 12+/12 Perfect

Wagaya no Oinari-sama, episode 16 – 11/12 A+
Wagaya no Oinari-sama, episode 17 – 12/12 Perfect

Library War, Episode 7 – Rating 12/12 Perfect
Library War, Episode 8 – Rating 12+/12 Perfect
Library War, Episode 9 – Rating 12+/12 Perfect
Library War, Episode 10 - Rating 12+/12 Perfect
Library War, Episode 11 – Rating 12++/12 Perfect
Library War, Episode 12 – Rating 12++/12 Perfect

Thoughts and Highlights

Almost half of the anime I watched was from Library War; which wasn't a bad thing. I remembered why I liked the series so much. We got nice resolution to many, if not all, story threads. I could have used a few more episodes but no one asks me when deciding show lengths.

[caption id="attachment_1303" align="aligncenter" width="450" caption="Yeah, that was me about a month ago on vacation"][/caption]

Birdy continues to impress. The scene above, incidently, was another example of people reading my mind. Also, after complaining about the animation drop a couple episodes ago, I noticed the animation was much better again in this episode.

Xam'd continues to be a solid anime that's obviously building to something. It's been flawlessly, or nearly so, and these two episodes continue the pattern.

There's not much else to say - there were no surprises this week. Natsume continues as being the perfect slightly melancholic slice-of-life show for late summer. Wagaya keeps being an entertaining anime and Zero's Familiar continues to be decent.

]]> http://thenullset.wordpress.com/?p=1276 Wed, 03 Sep 2008 01:11:06 +0000 thenullset http://thenullset.wordpress.com/?p=1276

Sometimes I get the feeling that people can pluck thoughts out of mind. This occurs most often when reading XKCD but this time I get the distinct feeling that the people behind Library War probed my mind to see what type of series I would like to watch. It’s like they knew I read Fahrenheit 451 in school and developed a hatred of censorship and book burning. Or since elementary school, I ‘ve enjoyed going to the library and on the day of my 18th birthday, I went to the library to get an adult card so they couldn’t hassle me anymore for trying to take out SF on a juvenile card. Or that I’d inherently find the idea of a band of “Heroes of Justice” defending books and the library as one of the most awesome sounding plots possible.

Final Series Score: 11/12 A+
Rewatchablity: high
Pros: High production values, characters were lovable and fun to watch even if they weren’t orginial, the anti-censorship message was nicely woven into the show without the show feeling like it was preaching, chibi-characters are always comedic gold
Cons: The idea of allowing two competeing government-sanctioned forces to have battles in urban environments is absurd and might make enjoyment of the series impossible for some, 12 episodes is just too short for this series

Brand loyalty prevented me from finishing this series earlier so don’t equate the lateness of this series review as a comment on the quality of the show.

This show takes place in an alternative Japan that had a law passed in 1989 to censor books that were potentially harmful to the people. Shortly after that, another law was passed that allowed the library to defend itself from the agents of censorship. In the following decades the conflict between the two escalated to full-on urban warfare. The armed wing of the libraries are known as the Library Force and it’s the group that our main character, Iku Kasahara, wants to join.

She isn’t a person that one would look at and think that she loved books enough to join the Library Force – she was an athlete in high school and did very poorly in her studies. Her life was forever changed, as the saying goes, when she happened to get caught in a raid by the censorship thugs while in a bookstore. She was saved from trouble and able to buy the book she wanted because a “Prince” of the Library Force had showed up and declared the books of the bookstore where now under the jurisdiction of the library (a somewhat rash and expensive course of action). From that day Kasahara wanted to do nothing else but join the Library Force. She accomplishes her goal, even becoming the first female in the elite squad of the Library Force, and starts going on missions to defend books from the censorship thugs.

The biggest obstacle in liking this series, I believe, is it’s implausible setup but since I’m very good at justifying things to myself I thought up 3 reasons why I won’t let the setup bother me and also why it’s not that implausible.

The first is that how many anime shows are plausible in the first place? Sure, I can think of shows like SF shows like Planetes that are seem plausible and shows like Bamboo Blade or Azumanga Daioh that are entirely realistic, but they are definitely in the minority. For every one plausible there’s at least two that aren’t so I shouldn’t unfairly single one series out as being implausible.

The second is that laws have a habit of expanding far past what was originally intended and without regard to actual circumstances. For instance, look at airport security since 9/11. The main problem was how to make sure terrorists don’t use airplanes as bombs again. My solution was to build cockpit doors that couldn’t be broken into and keep the door closed at all times, no matter what. Problem solved. So why is there all this invasive searching, fingerprinting of incoming foreign citizens, and treating people like sub-humans? It seems like almost everyone just accepts this now without a second thought. So is it that implausible to think two laws passed by the Japanese government would slowly mutate society into the situation of the show and no one really questions it?

The third is the fighting on the show can be seen as just poetic license by the creator to make physical the verbal and intellectual fighting that both sides of the censorship debate carry out. I’m reminded of the scene in Field of Dreams where there’s an impassioned debate at a school board meeting about removing a book from the school library. All it needed was some guns and it would have fit within this show.

Past that, it’s really hard for me to knock the show for anything substantial. However, I will mention here that I remember reading a review that mentioned that the anime stripped a bunch of stuff out from the source material. Since I’m not familiar with the source material – this did not impede my liking of the anime and only makes me want to read the light novels this was based on.

One of this show’s strongpoints is it’s characters. Not to say that they’re unique - they fit into well-known character types, but there is a warmth to them that overcomes this. So even though the main character, Kasahara, is a “hot-headed idiot” type character, you can’t help but root for her as she tries to make her way as a member of the Library Force. And her relationship with her sempai, Dojo, is nearly identical as that of Tenabe’s in Planetes but it doesn’t matter and your really happy when they finally get together.

Another strength of this show related to the characters was the people where depicted realistically. We see people protesting the libraries for trying to stop the censoring of books, as if this censoring will make society better. Also, we see the pettiness people can display when at one of the branch libraries the administrative group continually bullied the library force group. And we even watch as one of the side characters that was introduced as being a perfect recruit for the Library Force isn’t perfect after all because he has a weakness in his inability to connect with little children.

Other things to like about this show include a good performance by Kasahara’s seiyuu – Marina Inoue – who did Yoko’s voice in Gurren Lagann and Kana in Minami-ke. (Speaking of which, I’m really excited to hear that Minami-ke is getting a third season – it’s one of the best comedy shows ever.) The animation was very good and the use of chibi-characters is always a plus. Also, both the opening and closing were above average.

My favorite part of the show was in episode 9 when the new members had to take an exam that included a practical task. For this year, they had to interest a group of small kids and then read to them from a book. Kasahara, normally horrible with tests, creates this hands-on activity that uses leaves and nuts from various trees around the library to interest the kids and she ends up getting the highest score on that part of the test. What I think I loved the most about this scene was that it showed how cool the library could be. And a close second was watching someone who normally has trouble with tests excel at it.

I would have really liked to give this show a perfect score but in the end I couldn’t say it’s perfect when it’s premise was so far from being perfect. However, the show was a very fun anime that I enjoyed watching and hope it’s anti-censorship message gets people to think a bit.

]]> http://xopfansub.wordpress.com/?p=95 Sun, 24 Aug 2008 07:22:28 +0000 xop1admin http://xopfansub.wordpress.com/?p=95 Shibasaki-san haurà de fer-se càrrec d'un assumpte de feina. I Tezuka-kun se retrobarà amb el seu passat.

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Resolució: 1280×720

Situació 07 - Consulta de Referència en Amor

I took a break due to getting a second job as well as taking a fairly time-intensive summer class.  But now I'm determined to finish up/catch up with spring series that I've already started.  And perhaps someday I'll get around to blogging about the few things I did watch during my hiatus (the Kimagure Orange Road animation franchise is begging for an overall review that I may or may not get to.)

But anyway, back to Library War.  Given that the last time I'd seen an episode of this was probably a good two months ago, it took me a minute to realize what was going on.  And in the end, I'm still not entirely certain if I remembered all the crucial bits--or maybe they were just a little jerky with the way they handled this particular plot.  Good chance it's either.

Kasahara did a nice job handling the interrogation, but her propensity for waterworks is starting to feel a little overdone.  Then again, I need to realize that she's under a lot of stress, but I'm having a hard time sympathizing with her.  She's felt like such a 2-D character (like my pun there?) that it's hard to really care about her angst. This makes me sad, because I want to like this series more than I do, but it just didn't quite live up to what I was hoping for in my mind.  Perhaps if it hadn't started when I was taking a seminar on intellectual freedom...and if I hadn't taken a break from the series right as it was finally starting to heat up... many things have come together to keep me from getting the full enjoyment out of this series.  I do still remember the hilarious episode when Kasahara's parents came to visit though.  That was great.  And Shibasaki is still an awesome character, although Tezuka (the little brother, not the evil big brother) is pretty far up there.  Perhaps they will be getting together?  This episode seemed to imply it a bit--interesting, as there hadn't been any chemistry between them before the moment at the end of the episode as far as I can recall.

Anyway, I'm still hoping to reimmerse myself in the series and get as much out of it as I can.  It's not going to be as good as I hoped, but there are plenty of positives to it, including the artstyle (I love the thick lines) and a few particularly notable character.

Base Ball Bear - Changes

Track Listing :

1. Changes
2. Summer Anthem
3. Fiction Once More
4. ドラマチックとエレサマ (LIVE) from COUNTDOWN JAPAN 07_08 at GALAXY STAGE

Download

Takahashi Hitomi - Atashi no Machi, Ashita no Machi

Track Listing :

1. Atashi no Machi, Ashita no Machi
2. Mother's Car
3. Miss Lady

Download

Toshokan Sensou : The Library Wars

Die Kurzfassung:
Wegen der Flut an Informationen in unserer Gesellschaft wurde in einem fiktiven Japan der (sehr nahen) Zukunft beschlossen die Menge an Informationen zu reduzieren und zu kontrollieren. Zensur und Einschränkung der Pressefreiheit sowie massenweise Konfizierungen von unerwünschten Büchern. Das System gerät ausser Kontrolle und die Bibliotheken schützen ihre geheiligten Bücher mit Waffengewalt vor der Vernichtung.

Der Anime befasst sich dabei mit dem Leben einer neuen Rekrutin der Bibliothekare und ihrem Training an der Waffe und am Buche.

Die Optik:
Die Charaktere und Hintergründe sind relativ scharf gezeichnet, was durch den Einsatz von teilweise ungewöhnlich dicken Outlines verstärkt wird. Die Animationen sind durchgehend flüssig und wirken auch in den Aktionszenen sehr flüssig. Studio I.G. zeigt gewohnt viel Einsatz von C.G - was allerdings nur bei den Fahrzeugen auffällig ist.

Die Akustik:
Der Soundtrack ist relativ unauffällig und sticht nicht besonders hervor - Die Soundeffekte sind passend und wirken realistisch - die Untermalung von Soundwords ist im Kontrast dazu recht farbig und gibt den entsprechenden Szenen den passenden Witz.

Die Handlung:
Das Setting wirkt ein wenig überzogen, aber die Charaktere sind plausibel und wirken gut in die Welt integriert. Die Story entwickelt sich über die ersten fünf Folgen hinweg in einzelnen Storybögen die gut miteinander verbunden wurden und ein brauchbares Gesamtbild abgeben. Nach überraschenden Wendungen sucht man zwar vergebens, aber bleiben die einzelnen Handlungsbögen entweder wegen der Aktion oder der Charakterentwicklung interessant.

Fazit:
Interessantes Storymaterial in hochpolierter Optik das inhaltlich noch besser werden kann. Ausser den optischen Werten bleibt die Serie bisher nur Durchschnitt, aber ich hoffe das die Defizite in der Handlung / Spannung noch in späteren Episoden behoben wird.

Daher:
6/10 Loripoints für brauchbare Unterhaltung.

Dags så för några väl valda ord om vårsäsongens peppar och besvikelser, innan vi lämnar dem bakom oss för att vandra vidare och möta höstens nyheter.

OBS! Spoilervarning DESU

S.A. ~SPECIAL A~ pågående

Oh man, kan någon bara slakta Hikari? ONEGAI?! Du trodde kanske att det var omöjligt att komma undan med en så irriterande kvinnlig huvudkaraktär i en serie där den kvinnliga huvudkaraktären avgör hela seriens värde. Du trodde tydligen fel. Lägg då till i ekvationen att hennes primära kärleksintresse är gubbful och tråkig och du har receptet på FAIL.

VAMPIRE KNIGHT

Shoujoserier får allt för ofta en orättvist snål budget. Mangan är överlägsen och omåttligt populär. Halva underhållningen består av att följa fansens livliga debatt om Kaname vs. Zero. Men att animeversionen inte var mycket att hurra för rent visuellt tror jag dock alla är beredda att skriva under på. Så varför såg jag den ändå? Ptja, anledningen stavas vampyrbishies. Och dramatik. Spänning. Bra karaktärer. Vi får heller inte glömma att vi har en andra säsong att se fram emot i oktober. Än är inte sista ordet sagt!

xxxHOLiC KEI

Det är klart att det var bra, xxxHolic är alltid bra. Problemet är bara att de aldrig riktigt lyckades komma förbi "veckans mysterie"-rutinen. Jag struntar faktiskt i att de så plikttroget följde mangan (eller hur var det nu egentligen...), för faktum är att det blir tråkigt utan cliffhangers som sträcker sig över ett flertal avsnitt. Men utöver det, instaWIN. Speciellt drömelefanten.

NABARI NO OU pågående

Du vet att du hypar någonting när du har 30mb fanart av en serie på din dator innan du ens hunnit börja läsa mangan. JC Staff har lyckats med konststycket att göra en serie om "ninjor i nutid" utan att få oss att slänga handflatan i ansiktet. Esteten inom mig föll dessutom pladask för de lummiga akvarellbakgrunderna. Synd bara att varannan scen ser så kackig ut. Oh well, man kan inte få allt här i världen.

SOUL EATER pågående

Den stora mainstreamhiten för denna säsong. Det är påkostat, roligt och actionfyllt. Och jag förvånas fortfarande över hur snygg animen är med tanke på att mangaförlagan är så ful. Jag som tyckte att blandningen av Gorillaz och D.Gray-man lät som en rätt kass idé glädjer mig nu åt att de planerat minst 50 avsnitt, då allt tyder på att det kommer hålla hela vägen! Lever upp till hypen.

KURENAI

Vid första anblicken såg det ut som ännu en serie i kölvattnet av Japans nationella lolikomplex. Men det omdömet kunde inte vara mer off. För skrapar du lite på ytan finner du en riktig guldklimp med mångfascetterade karaktärer och organiskt vacker animation. En oförutsägbar story om människor, lojalitet och vänskap. Gripande, originellt och fruktansvärt bra.

CODE GEASS R2 pågående

Blandningen av vansinnig politisk strategi och förbannat trams kan inte bli mer underhållande än såhär. Den svinhöga budgeten ger oss välanimerade fighter, och en förväntansfull japansk fanbase + fabulös karaktärsdesign av CLAMP ger oss möjlighet att fortsätta spekulera in i det sista. Handlingen har nu tjocknat till den grad att den stagnerat, och alla har dött och återuppstått flera gånger om i ett stort moln av förvirring. Istället för att ifrågasätta logiken väljer jag att lydigt luta mig tillbaka och åka med fanservicetåget in i ploth4xland. Hatkärlek var ordet.

TOSHOKAN SENSOU

Oh, det var bra. Riktigt bra. Vuxet och väldigt Production I.G.-ish. Med andra ord ett långt bästföredatum och hjärtvärmande karaktärer. En serie som folk kommer kunna se om fem år utan att baxna av fula frisyrer eller lat animation. Sällan har jag fått så stark lust att shippa karaktärer till höger och vänster. Och jag sympatiserade till tusen med Iku. YOU GO GRRL!

ZETTAI KARESHI

Night smälter ihop och "dör". Riiko drar till Paris med Soushi. TRUE END..? Hade det inte istället varit så mycket mer typiskt Japan om Riiko hade valt att leva lyckligt med roboten i alla sina dagar? Många hatade live-actionversionen för att den vanhelgade mangan, men den imponerade inte heller som fristående såpa. Produktionskvaliteten var oklandervärd, men hela spektaklet kändes ändå medelmåttligt. Hade det inte varit för ögongodiset hade jag nog aldrig sett den.

REAL DRIVE pågående

SERIOUS BUSINESS. Jag fattar typ ingenting. Tappra, rundlagda damer och långsökt sci-fi-handling utan riktlinjer. Jag kan inte förneka att det är djupt och välgjort, jag kan bara konstatera att jag inte är road.

MACROSS FRONTIER pågående

Inga trumvirvlar eller bombastiska fanfarer i världen kan beskriva min kärlek för detta underverk till mechaserie. Så bra. Så vackert. Så macross och ändå inte. Som den konservativa oldfag jag är var jag skeptisk inför ännu en "modernisering" av macrossformulan, men jag har inget att gnälla över. Fantastiskt animerade fighter. Ljuvlig musik. Spektakulärt.

Dom jag aldrig bloggade om:

KAIBA

Om den Pretentiösa Elitisten själv får välja!

Det är artsy fartsy och fullt med flummig symbolik. Jag älskade den. Försökte förstå den. Försökte skriva långa artiklar och blogginlägg om den, med SAOL vid min sida. Till slut kom jag fram till att den avnjöts bättre utan att ständigt behöva förklaras.

HIMITSU ~TOP SECRET~ pågående

Vänta nu, är året 1996? Nehe? Men vad i fridens namn är då dealen med karaktärsdesignen? En i övrigt dräglig serie, till och med riktigt medryckande på sina ställen. Jag gillar androgynitet och överraskningar, och tyckte därför att det var spännande när huvudpersonen visade sig vara en man. Men det var första avsnittet. Sedan dess har den inte letat sig ur den tjocka dimman av ZZZzzzzzzzzz.

NIJUU MENSOU NO MUSUME pågående

Gick från joker till sömnpiller till AWESOME!! på ungefär fem avsnitt. Lugnt säsongens mest underskattade serie. Frågan är bara om den kommer hålla hela vägen? Verkar ha tappat takten igen över de senaste veckorna. I vilket fall som helst ett historiskt intressant porträtt av Japan under showa-perioden, med fascinerande karaktärer. Aya Hirano är dessutom gudinnan bland alla unga röstskådespelerskor and you know it.

BUS GAMER

Jag är inget stort fan av Minekuras stil men jag hade faktiskt högre förväntningar än såhär. Låg budget kan vara en förklaring. Lathet en annan. Bleh.

JUNJOU ROMANTICA

Åh, mitt mest svårförklarade val den här säsongen. Jag ser ner på överviktiga yaoifangirls, och har aldrig helt begripit den erotiska poängen med BL. Jag ogillar till och med teckningsstilen i mangan. Men ack, det här var tamejfan det sötaste jag sett evah! Synd bara att de flesta vände i dörren när de hörde att bögfaktorn var hög. En lättsmält och fluffig kärlekshistoria för alla, förutsatt att du inte är en stackars homofob. (Mer buttsecks åt dig! <3)

Dom jag ignorerade:

Itzura na Kiss, Chi's Sweet Home, Allison to Lillia, To Love-Ru, Tower of Bleh ~the Aegis of URK~, Kanokon, Amatsuki, Blassreiter, Zettai Karen Children, Monochrome Factor, Kamen no Maid Guy, Crystal Blaze, Wagaya no Oinari-sama, D.C. II, Candy Boy, Neo Angelique Abyss, Golgo 13 lol

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Vídeo: x264
Àudio: AAC
Resolució: 1280×720

Situació 06 - La Brigada de Llibres s'absté de disparar

Toshokan Sensou (traducibile più o meno come guerra delle biblioteche) è stata una piacevole rivelazione nella passata stagione di anime. Prendendo spunto da fatti realmente accaduti nella storia giapponese, questo anime di 12 puntate (basato su una serie di libri omonima) racconta delle avventure di una soldatessa, Iku Kasahara, arroulata nella Library Defense Force, un corpo militare impegnato nel difendere la libertà di pensiero e di scrittura. Infatti, dal 1989 nel mondo di Toshokan Sensou è in vigore una legge che permette la censura di qualsiasi tipo di media ritenuto potenzialmente dannoso per la società. La Media Betterment Committee è quindi libera di mandare le proprie forze armate a fermare qualunque associazione che tenti di condurre attività di libera espressione.

La storia si svolge nel 2019, con le due fazioni ancora in lotta, e segue la vita di Iku Kasahara, arrouolatasi dopo essere stata ispirata da un membro della LDF ha salvato un libro che lei voleva comprare. La storia segue quindi le gesta della ragazza e dei suoi compagni, tra le difficoltà del lavoro e la durezza della vita militare.

Il tema trattato nell'anime è molto attuale e interessante, anche se a volte viene lasciato un po' in disparte per trattare delle vicende personali e delle relazioni tra i protagonisti. Ad ogni modo, Toshokan Sensou è un anime che sa interessare e intrattenere lo spettatore, alternando a scene di combattimento e di azione momenti più leggeri e divertenti. Da sottolineare lo stile dei disegni e la qualità grafica decisamente sopra la media, che rende ancora più piacevole la visione.

I have got to have a badge like that. It's just so...badass.

I have finished (finally!) the gun-totin' librarian war opus heartfelt romantic wartime drama epic criticism of censorship I DON'T KNOW that is Toshokan Sensou. The conclusion was suitably packed with all the things I had enjoyed about the series (see struck-out comments above), and while I don't think Toshokan Sensou will stand as a "classic" of censorship critiques a la Transfer K505 (you were one degree Kelvin off, Production I.G.! One degree!),. I do think it is far more enjoyable and honestly entertaining than my time spent reading Ray Bradbury's seminal work on the subject and getting clubbed on the head with CENSORSHIP IS BAD morality (I had the same problem reading All Quiet on the Western Front; that book had all the subtlety of a sledgehammer to the face, which is exactly what it was going for, but by page 50 I was like "I get it, okay, you can stop now"), but I think that it's more enjoyable because I have inverse taste. I'm supposed to be looking down on anime, pandering, escapist, filthy trash that it is, from the "lofty heights" of literature, foreign film, or, barring that, good ol' homemade American comic books, but somehow, I don't think it works that way. Which is pretty much exactly what Toshokan Sensou (or at least Iku's brilliant speech in the middle of episode 12) was all about.

The most interesting part I found in the final sequence--at least from the standpoint of entering highly philosophical and possibly bullshitting mode--was the admission from the mysterious man from the Media Committee that the Media Com. doesn't have an ideal like the Library Task Force does. The Media Com. fights, instead, for its own sense of pride, and because everyone there is there simply because of personal connections, and, at the end of the day, simply to earn a living wage and survive. The Library Force, on the other hand, has a sort of idealism about it--they're not fighting because it's the only way they can eke out an existence, they're fighting because they believe they are right. I already addressed the problems with their ideals, which are best answered by Voltaire in his legendary quote "I may not agree with what you say, but I will fight to the death your right to say it!" (Candide, by the way, is awesome), but their ideals are extremely good ideals to have. What this means for the battle between censorship and freedom of expression, however, is that one side (the pro-expression, Library Force side) has a vision and a cause to fight for; more often than not, people arguing for censorship, or banning books, or burning books, seem to be doing it simply to protect their honor, or the honor of someone or something else.

It's not always the case, and never across the board for people who call for censorship of material. But when things like, say, a few children's librarians throwing a hissy fit over the use of the word "scrotum" on page 1 of The Higher Power of Lucky, it's more like they're offended that such a dirty and naughty word such as "scrotum" showed up in their Newbery-Award winning book, tainting what should have been a good book with its anatomical cooties (I read the book; I would have taken them more seriously if they had thrown a fit about Lucky dropping her pants and relieving herself in the middle of the Arizona desert, which was probably too far into the book for them to notice or even read, having thrown the book at the wall already). Of course, in that case, the "honor" they're defending is more like another ideal, in this case what they think children's literature should be--and the Library Force's response to this would most likely be "do you really have the right to say what it should be?

And that, in a nutshell, is what Toshokan Sensou was all about--no one has the right to say what is "good" and "bad" literature, or art, or music, or TV, or anime (I'm pretty sure that line, and the subsequent montage of otaku-ish anime series in an otherwise un-otaku series, were thrown in there as otaku-bait, but it was glorious nonetheless to hear a librarian admit anime had value as expression), because there is no objective way to determine what is "good" or "bad". I, for instance, wholly support the presence of a cute and possibly otaku-bait girl in a given anime series (so long as the series doesn't rely overly much on the cute girl to carry the ratings, and is something I would like to see anyway); there are many out there (who shall remain nameless, but you know who you are) who would argue quite the opposite: that cute and possibly otaku-bait girls are ruining anime as we know it. Neither side is right or wrong, but both sides (and all the ones in between) have the right to have entertainment that appeals to them, and I fervently hope they find it. I can't deny them non-cute-girl-containing anime, any more than they can deny me cute-girl-containing anime.

Final thoughts on Toshokan Sensou: even though it wasn't exactly what I was expecting going in, it still pretty much lived up to the only expectation I really held for it: "pure awesome". Toshokan Sensou was all those crossed out genres/topics/themes/whatever that I crossed out at the beginning of the post--it handled all of them equally well, and while none really took center stage and stole the limelight, I'd much rather a series that had a bit of something for everyone to enjoy than a one-sided series that was just miltiary drama or just romantic drama or just deep thoughts on censorship. The end result for all three is weakened by the lack of focus, but I have respect for Arikawa Hiro (and the adaption staff at Production I.G.) now, since she balanced all three and didn't let one drop in favor of the other. The end result is something that can attract a wide audience, and hopefully ones who came for one element will get enjoyment out of another.

That, and I now want my own Kanto Library Task Force uniform to wear to work. It'll make me look like a security guard, yes, but it would be the best thing ever. Maybe I could add epaulettes...

Sinopsis.

En este episodio, Kasahara y Komaki van a otra prefectura para buscar un libro que tiene un anticuario, un libro del siglo XX del que casi no hay copias porque fue uno de los primeros objetivos del Comité en sus labores de censura, y que el anticuario quiere donar a la Biblioteca para que más gente pueda leerlo. Pero el camino a recorrer el largo y está lleno de imprevistos.

Imagenes del capitulo

Ligas de descarga

Toshokan Sensou 06 [8nF] AVI:
Toshokan Sensou 06 [8nF] MP4:

Todos los links en el tema de Anime en DD y no olviden dejar sus comentarios sobre el capitulo, aparte de dejar los clientes compartiendo una vez haya finalizado la descarga si eligen bajar desde el bittorrent U.U

Sinopsis

El entrenamiento, el ingreso en las Fuerzas Especiales, su primera misión, y secuestrada por una organización. La vida de Kasahara Iku en la Biblioteca de Kantou ha sido de todo menos parada. Pero todo lo que ha sufrido con anterioridad no se puede comparar con la situación a la que se tiene que enfrentar, su mayor crisis desde que fue reclutada en la Biblioteca... ¡La visita de sus padres! Tiembla, Kasahara.

Imagenes del capitulo

Links de descarga

Toshokan Sensou 05 [8nF] AVI: // //
Toshokan Sensou 05 [8nF] MP4: // //

Todos los links en el tema de Anime en DD y no olviden dejar sus comentarios sobre el capitulo, aparte de dejar los clientes compartiendo una vez haya finalizado la descarga si eligen bajar desde el bittorrent U.U

Sinopsis

El Comandante Inamine y la soldado Kasahara han sido secuestrados por un grupo paramilitar, formado por simpatizantes del Comité de Mejora de los Medios de Comunicación, que se aprovecharon de la circunstacia de que toda la atención de las Fuerzas de la Biblioteca estaba puesta en el rescate de los documentos del Museo en Odawara. ¿Por qué quieren secuestrar al Comandante? ¿Qué prentenden con ello? Disfruten el capitulo

Imágenes del capitulo

Links de descarga

Toshokan Sensou 04 [8nF] AVI: // //
Toshokan Sensou 04 [8nF] MP4: // //

Todos los links en el tema de Anime en DD y no olviden dejar sus comentarios sobre el capitulo, aparte de dejar los clientes compartiendo una vez haya finalizado la descarga si eligen bajar desde el bittorrent U.U

Sinopsis

Parece que nuestros protagonistas se han hecho un hueco en las Fuerzas Especiales de la Biblioteca. Tras el primer susto por el asalto de las tropas del Comité, en este capítulo llevarán a cabo su primera operación, la "Batalla de Odawara". Además de su primera operación, Kasahara debe afrontar la repentina declaración de Tezuka... No se pierdan el episodio y a disfrutar.

Imagenes del capitulo.

Links de descarga.

Toshokan Sensou 03 [8nF] AVI: // //
Toshokan Sensou 03 [8nF] MP4: // //

Venga a disfrutar.

Todos los links en el tema de Anime en DD y no olviden dejar sus comentarios sobre el capitulo, aparte de dejar los clientes compartiendo una vez haya finalizado la descarga si eligen bajar desde el bittorrent U.U

Yes, I know I haven't been watching Toshokan Sensou as I should have been (I blame slowness on the part of subbers, and then a general unwillingness to trust Ocha! after watching an early episode subbed by them; thankfully, they seem to have improved to acceptable levels, so I should finish this up soon; Iku-plosions will be scattered but intense, light drizzles of Klan Klan relieving pressure in between bouts)

I just watched 7 and 8 (the arc dealing with Tezuka's rather sinster brother, if you needed a quick refresher), but what jumped out at me wasn't necessarily the actual storyline (which had me suitably worried for Iku under interrogation and really mad at aforementioned sinister brother so I was quite entertained on that front) but, rather, the whole underpinnings that kind of ran underneath the arc, fundamental to Toshokan Sensou's general theme: censorship, and the fight against it.

Very early on in 7, Iku gets upset at Sunagawa for writing scathing reviews of a book--not just any book, mind, but her favorite book, which means that she's a bit zealous about it and will brook no insult. She, of course, berates him in person for this, telling him how he shouldn't post such negative reviews of books, because what if a fan of the book saw the review and got upset? "They didn't have to read it," claims Sunagawa, "and it's the kind of thing the public wants, anyway. Besides, even library staff have the right to express their opinions however they wish."

"Holy crap," I thought at that moment, "that's a horribly complicated issue you just brought up!" And it is--the right to free speech, commonly interpreted, states that you have the right to say whatever the hell you feel like saying, and that it is up to the people receiving the speech to accept, discard, or ignore it at their leisure. Of course, Iku brings up my very own caveat to that very principle--what if you trash something (be it a book, a movie, a song, an ethnicity, a sociopolitical entity) and then someone who happens to like (or be) that thing reads or hears it? Does your right to say whatever the hell you feel like saying still stand when you start getting antsy and offending other people?

Well, no; you do have the right to say whatever you feel like saying, but common sense and good manners dictates that you at least consider what you're saying and whether or not you're offending people by saying it. I'm pretty sure that no matter how carefully you phrase something, it's virtually impossible to be completely inoffensive to all 6 billion people on the planet. When dealing with this issue, I've always found it useful to remember the axiom that "your right to swing your fist at me ends at my face." Of course, if your intent is to hit my face (or offend me), then go right ahead, neither I nor no one else can stop you; but be prepared for the consequences, whatever they may be.

Iku takes no sass from anyone, which is an admirable and respectable (if sometimes problematic) goal in life.

And, then, of course, the opposite situation is dealt with later in the episode. Shibasaki is given the chance to cover-up a huge scandal in the library wherein someone is illegally burning books, and she has no idea how to react to it, and hypothetically confesses to Iku about it. Iku, of course, the ALA poster child that she is (I want to see one of those READ posters with her on it so bad, but it will never happen), tells her that the crime shouldn't be covered up, because it'd just make things even worse when the truth surfaced. It seems somewhat hypocritical at first glance ("Don't diss my favorite book! Stop being a jerk!" --> "Oh you can't censor information at all! Truth is truth!") but with just a little bit of thought in the manner, it's still consistent with the general philosophy Iku embraces wholeheartedly--information is free, but there are ethics to be followed, and morality to be considered. In the first case, Iku simply wants Sunagawa to show more restraint, morality, and ethics in his opinions; it may be what the public wants to read, but is it really proper to say it in such a fashion? In the second, the issue is dealing with the coverup of a crime of unknown heinousness, and her answer is simple, direct, and (with consideration to pauses for dramatic effect) instantaneous: it's a crime, and even if it's going to be damaging to people (or even, as Iku finds out somewhat indirectly, to yourself), you can't censor it. That is pure ethics right there--even if you want to keep it a secret, even if it's someone you cared about, it is information, and it has a right to be disseminated to the public at large, for their consideration.

This whole topic is a huge, horrible nightmare of a mess, and even though I agree with the ethics posted above, even I can't follow them 100% of the time--if emotions are raging and flying or my brain isn't paying attention to what it's saying (or if I make a conscious, knowing decision to violate the ethics to make a stand), I do slip up; we all do. But I do find it a good guideline to keep in mind when dealing with people in general, and especially in public forums.

And, anyway, if I really wanted to, I could place a pillow over my mouth and scream that the pope is a homosexual hermaphrodite, and no one would ever know but me. That's also a valid way to deal with stress and things you dislike, since we all have things we hide under the surface in order to maintain harmony with fellow humans that we wouldn't dare tell anyone else. But maybe that's what LiveJournal is for these days!

Sinopsis tomada de la noticia de MC Anime hecho por ljpaez (Capitan de la Octava division Mc Anime).

En este segundo capítulo, "Library Task Force", Kasahara y Tezuka acaban de ingresar en el cuerpo de élite de la Biblioteca. Nuevas situaciones les esperan. ¿Qué tipo de misiones harán con su nuevo grupo? ¿Qué tal se adaptarán?¿Encontrarán su lugar en las Fuerzas Especiales? Esto y mucho más en este nuevo capítulo de Toshokan Sensou subtitulado por la Octava no Fansub. Disfruten el episodio.

Imagenes del episodio.

Toshokan Sensou 02 [8nF] AVI: // //
Toshokan Sensou 02 [8nF] MP4: // //

Todos los links en el tema de Anime en DD y no olviden dejar sus comentarios sobre el capitulo (directamente en la noticia de MCAnime), aparte de dejar los clientes compartiendo una vez haya finalizado la descarga si eligen bajar desde el bittorrent U.U

Venga disfrutar del episodio.