New "BECK" teaser

Got this from nipponcinema.

"Sunao ni Narenakute (Hard to Say I Love You)"; New Spring Anime

Just saw the first episode and I am really looking forward to watching this spring jdrama. It's Eita and Ueno Juri again from "Last Friends" and both are really cute and appealing actors. In fact, just about everybody is cute and appealing in this jdrama about Twitter friends who meet in the real world. It actually does remind me of "Last Friends" which is a good thing. I am also looking forward to "Tsuki no Koibito" which includes Keiko Kitagawa which hasn't started yet.
On the anime front, the spring season looks really promising. The Funimation website is streaming "House of Five Leaves" which looks really good. It has a strange but attractive art style. I have to admit to watching "Uragiri wa Boku no Namae o Shitteiru"(aka Uraboku)on Crunchyroll. It's like "Nabari no Ou" (with that suggestion of BL) and "Vampire Knight" combined. "Kaichou was Maid Sama" looks like a great shoujo anime with the pretty and tough heroine attracting the cool, good looking potential boyfriend. If you want something mature and gritty, "RAINBOW" may be something to watch. But it's sort of soul-crushing in the way these teenagers are treated (ie sexual abuse, physical abuse) in their 1950s-youth-authority prison. Not for the squeamish. Looks like I am all over the place with the anime but this season has got an extremely wide range of selection so I am bound to drop half of everything I started. Quite a different season from the last one where almost nothing was appealing. Oh yeah, "Ookiku Furkikabutte" is back for season two and the quality looks just as good as before!

"Sherlock Holmes" Granada TV series

Upon visiting Amazon's Deal of the Day, I found the 12 disc set of the Granada television series "Sherlock Holmes" starring Jeremy Brett. It was a good deal and I always enjoyed catching this on PBS when it is sometimes aired. Right now I am watching "The Solitary Cyclist" for the umpteenth time (every time I catch the show, this episode is on) and thoroughly enjoying it. The remasters are really good and there is no awful VHS graininess as I had feared. Jeremy Brett IS Sherlock. The production values make each show a little BBC period piece. I look forward to many mini-Sherlock Holmes marathons on my days off!

"K-On!!" is back!

It's back and it's delightfully entertaining, sort of relaxing and nostalgic. All five band members are back for another year in the light music club. We can look forward to talks over tea and cakes and the occasional breaking out of improbably mature rock music playing. And of course, moe times ten.

Cast of live-action "Kimi ni Todoke" revealed

I forgot about mention of a live-action "Kimi ni Todoke" movie till I read this. I'm a fan of Haruma Miura (really cute!) and I think that casting is spot on for Kazehaya. Never heard of Mikako Tabe before, but hope there is chemistry between the two. According to the article above, this movie will be released September 2010.

"Kimi ni Todoke" ends

Another great show ends! Sawako finally realizes she "likes" Kazehaya as more than a friend. Pin provides comic relief. I want to go to a shrine like that someday. This show was beautifully drawn with excellent backgrounds. The development of Sawako's friendships with Ayane and Chizu was one of the best parts of the show. Hope to see more soon!

"Cross Game" Ends

I'm so sad "Cross Game" has ended. I really enjoyed the finale. All the characters, even the really minor ones, are included, at least a little bit. I hope someday soon another anime of this quality will come out.

"Kimi ni Todoke" 24

Alas, this is about as close as they get; the accidental hug from almost falling over. Chizu and Ayane plot to leave Kazehaya and Sawako alone on New Year's Eve which also is Sawako's birthday. They and the unknowing Ryuu follow them around a bit as the couple visit a shrine. It's a cute episode where they kind of go on a date and get to know each other better. We still don't know too much about Kazehaya up to this point. I wish more stuff would happen in these episodes. Last episode was about a Christmas party Sawako wanted to ditch her parents to go to but didn't. Not much else happened except she exchanges digits with Kazehaya. Hope next episode moves the relationship forward...but it probably won't!

"Shutter Island"

SPOILER ALERT! NO REALLY!
Okay, just saw "Shutter Island" today. Very well done noirish, suspense-mystery set in the 1950's starring Leonardo Decaprio and Mark Ruffalo. The mystery really makes sense, until the twist ending a la "The Others." Turns out the whole I-gotta-be a hero to save people from government funded brain surgery to turn them into assassins is a hallucination in order to prevent Decaprio's character from believing he had murdered his wife who had drowned their three kids. I feel really manipulated, but I guess that's part of the fun. I still don't get how much was a hallucination, and how much was real. I kinda liked the hallucination story better than the reality.

"Kimi ni Todoke" 22

Back to Sawako and Kazehaya! This episode is a nice Xmas episode where Sawako really, really wants to go to a party and can't due to family obligation. However, she is granted some freedom with a cell phone from Dad, who lets her go with some tears (and smiles from Mom.) Kazehaya almost asks her out, but it's not quite a date. They do exchange presents and phone numbers at least!