IMPORTANT NOTE: please use a VPN whenever visiting Hextube, or anywhere else on the internet, for that matter. Protect your privacy.

By popular demand, for this special Thursday edition of Anime Night, we’re watching one of the all-time classic anime films, Ghost in the Shell (1995), along with its sequel, Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004). The first film follows future-cop Motoko Kusanagi’s efforts to stop a hacker from cyber-hijacking other people’s bodies, and the second follows detective Batou investigating a series of murders committed by female androids. Both films are steeped in cyberpunk aesthetics, and the first was one of the foremost influences on The Matrix (1999). These are widely considered the definitive works of Mamoru Oshii, who is otherwise best-known for the first two Urusei Yatsura movies, as well as Angel’s Egg (1985), and Patlabor 2 (1993), all of which we have already watched. Time to finally screen his magnum opus. We’ll start 8PM EST on Hextube, right here: https://live.hexbear.net/c/movies Be there, comrades!

Letterboxd:

• Ghost in the Shell: https://letterboxd.com/film/ghost-in-the-shell/
• Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence: https://letterboxd.com/film/ghost-in-the-shell-2-innocence/

Doesthedogdie.com links:

• Ghost in the Shell: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/27703
• Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/9737

CWs for both films:

• Body horror.
• Blood and gore.
• Gun violence.
• Existential crises.
• Gaslighting.
• Alcohol.
• Amputation.
• Squashed head.
• Broken bones.
• Seizure.
• Kidnapping.
• Possession.
• Nudity.
• Audio gore.
• Copaganda.
• Self-harm.
• Body dysmorphia.
• Suicide.
• Flashing lights.
• Objectification of female characters.
• Car crash.
• Someone is hit by a car.
• Child abuse.

Links to movies:

• Ghost in the Shell: https://tankie.tube/w/mvLNzo4XoZuTcoVkn7oz4r
• Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence: https://tankie.tube/w/v2qhEwUoZriTxo8snteZLw

not only is 34 an important number in the when they cry series, this book takes place in 2017, meaning that the murders took place in 1983 WHICH IS THE YEAR HIGURASHI TAKES PLACE. also icymi 'when cicadas cry' is just a literal translation of higurashi no naku koro ni

link

I too am a sleepy princess

Yes, yes, I know Berserk borrowed pretty heavy from Catholicism with the inquisition and gnosticism with the fictional religion of midland pretty much worshiping the devil. But you can lift it and apply it to america and it's christians.

This got me thinking that Trump guy the other day boasting about tricking homeless people into getting arrested, 100% he believes in god (mammon) and prays.

They did Hayato dirty lmao

IMPORTANT NOTE: please use a VPN whenever visiting Hextube, or anywhere else on the internet, for that matter. Protect your privacy.

For this edition of Saturday Anime Night, the people demanded more Sailor Moon, and so, we’re continuing on, with episodes 109 through 114 of the 1992 series, the definitive magical-girl anime. This is the completely unabridged, unexpurgated, uncensored, Japanese version of the show, including everything that the English dub butchered, altered, and/or cut, which is quite a bit. Tonight’s episodes see the continuation of the S arc, seeing the debut of Hotaru and the introduction of Sailor Saturn's storyline. The stakes are raising.

After that is Mars Express (2023), a French space opera set in 2200 centering on a private detective and her robot sidekick, who must travel to Mars to catch a hacker, who is herself being pursued by assassins. A conspiracy is uncovered, and things escalate from there. Lots of spaceships, space colonies, androids, laser guns, and what have you. Excellent reviews for this one; it is by far the best-known and best-regarded work to date of director Jeremie Perin. Let’s check it out. In case this is giving you deja vu, we were gonna watch this last week, but the rip I had was just the first ten minutes on a loop, so we switched to Tale of the Fox (1937) instead. This time, I have the whole film.

We’ll start 8PM EST on Hextube, right here: https://live.hexbear.net/c/movies

Be there, comrades!

Letterboxd:

• Sailor Moon: Sorry, not on Letterboxd. Here’s the MAL page: https://myanimelist.net/anime/530/Bishoujo_Senshi_Sailor_Moon
• Mars Express: https://letterboxd.com/film/mars-express/

Doesthedogdie.com links:

• Sailor Moon: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103369/parentalguide?ref_=tt_stry_pg
• Mars Express: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/527797

CWs for Sailor Moon:

• Nudity.
• Objectification of female characters.
• Bath scenes.
• Age-gap romance.
• Panty shots.
• Cutting of flesh.
• Blood and gore.
• Animal abuse.
• Children in peril.
• Smoking.
• Alcohol abuse.
• Sexual harassment of schoolgirls.
• Kissing.
• Deaths of parents.

CWs for Mars Express:

• Death of cat.
• Drug addiction.
• Alcohol abuse.
• Amputation.
• Vomiting.
• Audio gore.
• Car crash.
• Gun violence.

Links to movies:

• Sailor Moon episode 109: https://tankie.tube/w/avZx4QSpiehDunKeSnf3UV
• Sailor Moon episode 110: https://tankie.tube/w/tVogGtVNFEeSeJbAtBWPwZ
• Sailor Moon episode 111: https://tankie.tube/w/rnJukpgiSjK8kLk4dqeWqx
• Sailor Moon episode 112: https://tankie.tube/w/sMDaNSUasZNfiQEzMzimYb
• Sailor Moon episode 113: https://tankie.tube/w/5pJisDaYjFnnxsGNS3JkJ8
• Sailor Moon episode 114: https://tankie.tube/w/eYbJbCt2setfpDK7st9GBV
• Mars Express: https://tankie.tube/w/cwY86f2V26sHxRxaie96Ug

Seriously what the fuck.

I'm so torn, on the one hand thank you mangaka for this beautiful twink.

On the other hand, ?!?!? DUNGEON MESHI IS A LESBIAN MANGA CLEARLY

To get it off my chest first... Holy Hell, was it beautiful, every single episode. And I almost never think that about much. This anime, it's an incredible shame that it is so obscure. From what I saw on Tumblr, this is indeed a Cult Classic. Having seen it in it's entirety, I can completely see why it is so beloved by the few that have been able to view it. It's a real shame that, unlike other works directed by the late Osamu Dezaki, such as Lupin III, The Rose of Versailles, even the CLANNAD movie.... this particular shoujo anime never got a release in the United States.

Compared to other adaptations of "The Snow Queen" by Hans Christian Anderson, I would say this is the best adaptation I have seen. It doesn't minimize details like the original fairy tale, it actually expands what sounds like The Hero's Journey in the original fairy tale, into actually being a long journey. Expands the journey into 36, 22-minute episodes. And instead of trying to come up with too much original ideas, the anime makes almost each and every episode an adaptation of another Hans Christian Anderson story. Not just well known classics like 'The Little Mermaid' and 'The Little Match Girl', but also obscure ones like 'The Pea Blossoms' and 'Good For Nothing'.

It can become almost a Scavenger hunt game; To try and find out what HCA Story each episode is based on, or inspired by. As someone who has been getting into HCA Stories not just as a Special Interest, but a full on permanent interest.

Anyways, as for how the characters are written, I really loved that, the anime took advantage of it's extra time, and gave time to not only show more characters, but also to expand the characterization of Kai, Gerda and even The Snow Queen herself. Every other character, even the ones that appear for only a single episode, all felt, well, like real people. I also really loved that, the Anime doesn't jump into the main plot, it builds up for 3 episodes, giving time to show a rather heartwarming and healthy bond between Kai and Gerda, and showing a platonic love between a boy and a girl. This extra time made me feel more for Gerda when she decides on her own, to go through a perilous journey, with half of it on her own, to find and rescue Kai. Thus, just like the book, it does a rare Gender Reversal of the Damsel in Distress Scenario. Very forward for a fairy tale written in 1845.

Gerda is determined, yet she isn't perfect. She needs help from people she meets, since while yes, she has the spirit, and energy, which is channeled into hard work, she isn't shown to be able to solve everything on her own, and she can be reckless a few times. She is only eleven years old. However, those flaws made her more appealing as a character, because I actually wanted to see how she could solve each dilemma

Kai, by contrast, as shown before his personality gets corrupted, is more laid back, more devoted to solitary activities, such as mathematics or school studies or using a loupe to gaze more closely into snowflakes, compared to manual labor such as gleaning spare pieces of wheat. However, that didn't make him come off as lazy, it instead made him feel like he prefers to work smarter, but he isn't malicious about it either, as shown by how he is willing to correct his insufficient effort. Although, one of my few criticisms is that, we don't get to see much more of Kai's personality before he get's corrupted by a mirror shard. In other words, he feels like a twelve year old boy, with his shortcomings

Overall, the main duo from the Fairy Tale, felt true to what few insights the fairy tale gave us of their personalities, while also feeling much more fleshed out as characters. From what I heard, these two wouldn't have been out of place in a Studio Ghibli work. And you can actually feel for Gerda as she goes on her journey, motivated by Platonic love. I also loved that they both loved roses, with Kai having White Roses, and Gerda having Red Roses.

The pacing is amazing, as there are several moments where there is no dialogue, only the characters wordlessly performing an action, therefore giving the viewer a chance to take in what is happening, without it being spelled out for you. There were many moments where I felt an anticipatory impatience, where I wanted to know what would happen, but yet, I knew I would regret trying to skip anything. Even the extra episodes based on existing HCA stories, they don't feel like filler, but instead, opportunities to show Gerda interacting with other people (I.E. She isn't defined solely by her quest of finding her best friend), and the moments that demonstrates the theme of the kindness of strangers, and Gerda being there to occasionally redeem a person that say, wanted to steal from others, where she inspires him to change his ways, or even an opportunity to help someone in need.

The Artwork is great too. What really stands out, is that the artwork was instead, inspired by European Animation from the 1990s and 1980s, rather than an Anime style artwork. The characters are realistically proportioned, and The artwork is always easy on the eyes. Not to mention it frequently uses still frames that were drawn by chalk, a signature "Creator's Thumbprint" of Osamu Dezaki.

Having watched it, it made me wonder, why isn't this anime, which was released in 2005, more well known. I often wish that this was less obscure, and had gotten an official release in the United States. This Anime series also helped me rebuild my creative spark, so I highly recommend this.

I am unfortunately employed now, so my free time has been devoured by the job, commute and preparation. However, I have still managed to keep up with a few shows and manga - at a slow pace. So how about you?

For me:

Manga:

Oresama Teacher (2007-2020, 176 Chapters) - The only manga I'm reading at the moment is a work by Tsubaki Izumi of Gekkan-Shoujo Nozaki-kun. It is a story of a former delinquent Mafuyu Kurosaki becoming a transfer student and trying to turn her life around. Like a wild mixture of Angel Densetsu and Nozaki-kun, it is indeed a hilarious manga with surprisingly in-depth characters, but instead of the 4-koma format of the latter, it has shoujo manga length chapters. *(so far) A+

Anime:

Dragon Ball (1986-1989, 153 Episodes) - Dragon Ball is a VERY competent Shounen, and one that steadily gets better and drops the immaturity and much of the horniness of the early part of the show. However, around the 100th episode things start changing. The show becomes... interesting. Definitely recommend sticking around to see the show grow. A

Sayonara Zetsubou-Sensei, Season 1 (2007, 12 Episodes) - This show apparently was a darling of weebs a decade ago, and it is not hard to see why. Edgyness, egregious fanservice, a cynical attitude towards society so typical of the 90s and apparently the 2000s too. The show provides critique that can sometimes hit at the core of the problem (including anticapitalist critique), and at the same time mock people who seek to do something about it. It's hit and miss, but undeniably interesting. The unique artstyle, the music, the Maeda cameos are bonuses. A

Lupin III: Part II (1977-1981, 155 Episodes) - Hit and miss episode quality, but always entertaining. Sometimes really weird (but apparently 80s Lupin/Part III is most like that), but those tend to be the most fun episodes. Definitely a fantastic show to relax after a stressful day, and there's a lot of episodes. A-

Lost Universe (1998, 26 Episodes) - Fun characters, but the sci-fi spin-off to Slayers is nowhere near as fun as that series. It's decent though. B-

Konosuba Season 3 (Ongoing seasonal, 11 Episodes) - It's more of Konosuba. Juvenile and horny humor, surprisingly decent character writing in spite of the weeb-brained overall writing and a better isekai than the much of the genre it satirises? Yeah, it's all still here. And not much more, but if you like the rest... B

Too early to tell - Fullmetal Alchemist 2003 (Very good so far. I like the atmosphere more than FMAB's and find myself enjoying it more than when I tried to watch that) - Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu (very much anti-weeb brained + unique setting and premise = good, but can't tell more until I've seen the rest)

Tired of libs? Want to debunk common arguments as early as in the first chapter? Read Das Kapital by Karl Marx. Not as hard as its reputation suggests.

IMPORTANT NOTE: please use a VPN whenever visiting Hextube, or anywhere else on the internet, for that matter. Protect your privacy.

By popular demand, for this special Thursday edition of Anime Night, we’re watching the whole Wallace & Gromit saga, a series of four claymation short films about a strange British man obsessed with cheese, who invents unwieldy machines and tries to clean up messes they cause with the help of his trusty dog. Then, we’ll watch the feature film of the series, Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005), which puts them in the role of exterminators who must face off against a shape-shifting rabbit monster. All five of these films are highly-acclaimed, so let’s give ‘em a whirl.

We’ll start 8PM EST on Hextube, right here: https://live.hexbear.net/c/movies

Be there, comrades!

Letterboxd:

• A Grand Day Out: https://letterboxd.com/film/a-grand-day-out/
• The Wrong Trousers: https://letterboxd.com/film/the-wrong-trousers/
• A Close Shave: https://letterboxd.com/film/a-close-shave-1995/
• A Matter of Loaf and Death: https://letterboxd.com/film/a-matter-of-loaf-and-death/
• Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit: https://letterboxd.com/film/wallace-gromit-the-curse-of-the-were-rabbit/

Doesthedogdie.com links:

• Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/11682

CWs for all Wallace & Gromit stuff:

• PTSD.
• Domestic violence.
• Slapstick violence.
• Animal abuse.
• Cheese addiction.
• Deaths of animals.
• Sad animal.
• Cruelty to rabbits.
• Someone is physically restrained.
• Body horror.
• Unconsciousness.
• Torture.
• Destruction of child’s toy.
• Mind control.
• Electrotherapy.
• Misophonia.
• Body dysmorphia.
• Claustrophobia.
• Eating disorder.
• Humor at expense of autism-coded character (Wallace).
• Flashing lights.
• Fat jokes.
• Ableism,
• Sexual innuendos.
• Nudity.
• Car crash.
• Screeching tires.
• Plane crash.
• Someone is hit by a car.
• Gun violence.

Links to movies:

• A Grand Day Out: https://tankie.tube/w/sy87dRhjqMxrhZJZQzjp4G
• The Wrong Trousers: https://tankie.tube/w/6KC8CBgEa5ZkMTjK3nAb8R
• A Close Shave: https://tankie.tube/w/7FBmfZbuVLz6D9JeGvfpHb
• A Matter of Loaf and Death: https://tankie.tube/w/eDGZnjQFCwLvgMSstg3mzC
• Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit: https://tankie.tube/w/1Wx4v7A8uh2EyQo8pG3aRL

LORE! DELICIOUS LORE!

What did you think of this week's chapter?

One Piece will be on break next week.

I knew Gundam was big in Italy in the 80s, didn't know it had such a groovy OP there