So we still didn’t get a “hot spring” episode, unless you count the scenes they already showed in the preview last time. To make matters worse, that’s probably all we’re getting too.
I feel a bit trolled here. Where’s my hot spring episode?
Seriously now, was there really any contest here?
In my ongoing attempt to finish up the shows I’ve been watching and get into the new summer ones, I finally got around to watching the last episode of Ristorante Paradiso. And with that, I have to say that it was a lot better than I was expecting. Omni blogged the first couple of episodes a while back and as I sort of expected, the series didn’t appeal to a lot of people. As strange as it may sound, that alone made me more inclined to check it out for myself because, well, I like to be a trendsetter. Well not really (because that requires effort and I’m lazy), but the premise of the show sounded so different from your usual anime “rinse and repeat” formula with teenage characters, super powers, mechs, and all sorts of crazy stuff.
Instead (of your usual crap), we have a story about a young woman who heads to Rome to find her estranged mother and meets a bunch of intriguing OLDER men working at a restaurant there. That’s right, OLDER men! (…and women too I might add!) I know that might not sound all that interesting, but the series manages to cover a lot of story and showcase a lot of character intricacies in its short eleven episode run. The ending was pretty sweet too, in the sappy kind of way. While I enjoyed the series throughout, the ending itself made everything much better by giving off a good sense of closure.
Anyway, Ristorante Paradiso is still probably targeted towards the older crowd (which I guess I’m a part of now), so if you fit that bill and are looking for something different, you may want to check it out. To those who have seen it already, let me know what you think!
(Streaming episodes with official English subtitles can be found on CrunchyRoll here.)
H-I-N-A Hinagiku! Hai Hai! *da da dun daa dun da daa*
First off, Happy Belated Birthday Nana-chan! Despite being fairly knowledgeable about seiyuus and their past roles, I’m not quite obsessive enough to bother remembering their birthdays. Incidentally, I stumbled upon the fact that Nana’s birthday is on January 21st and she just turned 29. Her age makes me wonder if she’s going to tie the knot with anyone soon or if she even has anyone in mind, since she’s nearing the big three O soon. Takahiro Sakurai (Suzaku in CODE GEASS) perhaps? Unlike their North American counterparts though, most Japanese people seem to be so career-oriented that being single at 30 years old doesn’t automatically trigger some sort of mid-life crisis. Interestingly enough, it was Inoue Marina‘s birthday the day before (January 20th, turned 24), Makino Yui‘s the day before that (January 19th, turned 23), and Paku Romi‘s birthday today (January 22, turned 37). I’m not sure what’s up with all the January birthdays, but since they’re all noteworthy seiyuus in my book, best wishes to all of them.
More after the jump…
Admittedly, I’ve always preferred female vocals over male ones, but it’s even better when it comes from an all-female rock band. Unconsciously, I tend to associate the ability to play an instrument with musical talent. Anyway, all-female rock bands aren’t something I recall seeing a lot of, with ZONE being one of the more popular ones off the top of my head. I don’t tend to follow “mainstream” Japanese music much nowadays with the constant influx of music from anime OP/ED singles though (some of which may be mainstream), so I’m far from being the most knowledgeable person in this area.
In any case, I’m really starting to like Stereopony‘s music, which has already been featured in Bleach as the 17th ending theme prior to Gundam 00. For those following Bleach, “Hitohira no Hanabira” 「ヒトヒラのハナビラ」 was their first single and did fairly well on the Oricon Weekly Charts, peaking at 25th.
More after the jump…
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「絶対能力 （レベル６）」 (Zettai Nouryoku (Reberu 6))
“Absolute Ability (Level 6)”
Episode at a Glance:
While explaining Schrödinger’s Theory and how it relates to esper abilities, Komoe manages to confuse Index to no end.
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「自立 independence」 (Jiritsu)
Episode at a Glance:
After learning that Shogun created him and the Ir2 equation, and that Rimi’s been captured after trying to take care of him, Takumi realizes that he loves Rimi.
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「突然の出来事」 (Totsuzen no Dekigoto)
“Sudden Occurrence”
Episode at a Glance:
After getting praised by Yuusuke for his work as of late, Tomoya is surprised to learn that his boss would like to recommend him for a department head position in one of his colleague’s company since they’re looking for a young individual.