insaneneko

I have a bad tendency (that I do try to fight) to buy doujinshi of pairings I don't really believe in (or fandoms I'm not really into) because the cover is too compelling. Basically, I weigh the cost of the book and the added weight it (and all my other impulse buys) in my luggage and/or boxes mailed home. Well, this was small, and less than $2. A no brainer, because while KikuRyo is for the most part total crack (though not as cracked as TezuKiku, which eternally baffles me--I know PoT is the fandom of crack, but an ENTIRE SITE devoted to the pairing? I've come across several. O_o) the cover was just too beautiful to pass by. And it was TWO DOLLARS, damnit. I finally read the story and...it was amazingly good. I've read KikuRyo fics before, when I've ended up at sites that feature that pairing via bookmarks and links. I can actually believe the pairing while I read the fics because they were damn good. This falls into the category. The writer has style. Her Ryoma is snarky, full of attitude and petulance. Kikumaru is...the way I tend to like Kikumaru when he's paired with Ryoma. Perfect. Ah, the joys of random shopping sprees. It's worth the sore legs and arms from carrying a quarter of my body weight in books around...

It's really odd. For Fujimi Symphony's 10th anniversary, they did a special where if you bought the hard cover book that came out earlier this year plus one other book (one of the regular novels or the manga), you could send a form in from the hard cover book and a little stamp and a postal order for 500 yen to get a special anniversary book. That was in June. I finally got it today, and I was taken aback because...it looks like a doujinshi. It's the smaller size used primarily for novels, and the contents remind me very much of a doujinshi. it has a strange little story, interviews of a bunch of characters, and a short manga with handwritten dialogue...It really felt like I was reading a doujinshi of the series, except that it came from the publisher and it had a color insert in the front like how novels and manga often do. It just further blurs the line between "pro" and doujin work...though it's already very blurred with doujinshi artists and writers becoming published left and right...

Also was reading some manga. First off, Rin! I was told that they didn't have sex till the end of volume 3, but that's not right! They totally have sex pretty early in the volume, just not graphic at all. At first I kept thinking that I was just deluded or something, but after having read the volume several times I have to conclude that they are indeed having sex. Amazing that NONE of it is shown except for kissing. I suppose that maybe that's why they put in an actual sex scene in the side story at the end of the volume...to satisfy the fangirls. The first time I was flipping through it, all I could feel was confusion because if this was their first time they were waaaay too casual about it (especially Katsura). But it makes perfect sense if this was regular activity for them. I couldn't believe that this is actually the end of the series, either! Overall, I enjoyed the series. Certain elements annoyed me, but in the end I really did like even Kouichi. It's so cliched to have the guy in love with his (taken) best friend, but it ended up being an interesting development in my opinion. The foreign guy in the side story was too much, though. I liked how Katsura did manage to mature by the end of the series. It was quietly powerful when he could concentrate and shoot so well. ^__^

Also thoroughly enjoyed reading Ichigenme wa yaruki no minpou by Yoshinaga Fumi in Japanese. And being able to read the end, because I don't think the scanlations are done yet. Those two are hilarious! Love them as an "old married" couple. Their disfunctional sex life is...beyond strange. I adore Toudou's new haircut, too. XD The only thing that marred it for me was the interjection of the chapters dealing with other characters that are connected to the main characters. Why do BL manga always do that? I usually read a manga for the main characters, and it annoys me to see pages taken up by some other couple that happens to be gay (or whatever) in that world.

I was very very excited when I came across the second volume of G-senjou no neko by Miyagi Tooko (it's being scanlated by Mochi-Mochi, I think). I've owned the first volume forever and ever, and every year I checked to see if the next volume had come out. Every year I was disappointed, and kind of stopped. So of course I manage to see it by accident while randomly browsing! :P Wow, the art kind of changed...But I really like this volume. It moved the story forward! It made me feel really sorry for the main character! (His dad must DIE! GAH!) It made the motivations of that sempai who was putting the moves on him much more understandable! I suppose it was worth the wait for this second volume. But now I'm being greedy and wanting the next volume already. ;_;

And last but not least....xxxHOLIC 7 is out! I totally want my hands on it already! ;_;

I kind of wish I lived in Japan because it'd be so simple (and cheaper) to get my hands on things, but when I really think about it I'd probably be in terrible debt because the temptation would be too great to buy buy buy and keep buying. Especially doujinshi. When you can blow hundreds of dollars in several hours at one event, going to more than one or two a year is very bad for the wallet. But then...I just spent a scary amount of money mail ordering a (fabulous) PoT doujinshi. First she wanted to send it via EMS, which adds more shipping cost. Then she wanted a money order, which adds the money order fee. Then she wanted the money order sent via registered mail, which added that fee. On top of the cost of the books themselves (not cheap!)? I can't believe I'm spending so much money....*sighs* I can't win. Pathetic fangirl slave to her obsessions...

Hm, xxxHOLIC wasn't the last thing in my post. Oh well. Screw revising it.

As I was watching House last night, I was also typing up an excerpt from a TezuRyo doujinshi by トオイホシカラキタショウネン that just...blew me away. It had Tezuka in Kyushu thinking about Ryoma's words to him before the match with Atobe, and I really liked how the author had Tezuka interpret it. Ryoma's "Don't lose after beating me" was interpreted as "Are you going to lose to yourself after beating me?", which was an interpretation I never thought about but found totally cool in this case. I also just love the flow of the words.

( excerpt in Japanese, didn't want to bother with a translation )

Going with the TezuRyo theme, read an amusing Valentine fic at saka-na called 0214戦線. Both Tezuka and Ryoma are a bit OOC, but it's so damn funny! Stuff like:

「部長！」
「はい？」
「来なさい、帰ります！」
「は？いや、まだ一時間目も始まっていないが…」
「いいよ、そんなの！帰るんです！」
「無茶云うな」
そう断ると、リョーマは、バンと机に、手をついた
「ニンジョーザタになりたいんですか？」
「…良くそんな言葉知ってるな」

(Note: The above exchange has been edited to fit my needs for length)

I scanned a short yet amusing manga in honor of our favorite tired businessman team captain's birthday. TezuRyo, of course. Note: The scan quality is pretty crappy but I didn't want to break the spine. ^_^;

( ハピバ　部長！ )

Gads, two of my doujinshi smell extremely strongly of tobacco. ;_; I wish there was some way to get rid of the smell without damaging the books, but I fear not. In any case, I was reading the two, both AUs of different series. I just adore this writer, even though she totally goes into fantasy la-la land. The characters in her stories, while fully developed, have little to do with the canon characters other than name, appearance, and some personality/speech quirks.

One, called Tokyo Diva, has a character I shall call Taro going to a concert for the mega-idol Ren. He had been invited by Jiro, who had been given two tickets for the concert by Ren. Ren ends up not showing up for the concert (supposedly due to a sudden illness) and even cancels a bunch of concerts after that. Taro goes to his Tokyo apartment, which Jiro is surprised Taro still kept because he lives overseas entirely now.

Back in his apartment, Taro reminisces about the happy times he had with…none other than Ren. They had been going out over two years ago, until one day Ren dumped Taro. In any case, the missing Ren suddenly shows up at Taro’s apartment with bruises and blood splattered on his clothing. Taro cares for his wounds and lets him stay at the apartment. Of course Taro is overwhelmed by the proximity of the one he had loved so much who had hurt him so badly.

In any case, after a night of dancing around each other and making small talk, they end up in each other’s arms. It is at this point that you discover that they are in fact half-brothers. Ren is the child of Taro’s father and a mistress. I had to laugh reading the sex scene where Ren is calling Taro “Oniisan” when he had been calling him by name the rest of the time.

The best part was the end, where you find out that Ren was in fact wanted in connection with the murder of his patron, Saburo. Ren readily admits to killing Saburo. Saburo had been his patron, backing him in his meteoric rise to stardom, and also his lover. Saburo was very possessive, and one day a week before the concert, he calls Ren over only to keep him there until Ren promised to only be his. Apparently he did things to Ren to coerce him (of unknown but unpleasant and/or painful nature), but none of it worked. Finally, Ren killed Saburo in order to be free. But now he can no longer sing and be desired by the masses as he is wanted for murder. He doesn’t seem to care much. In any case, the next morning when Taro wakes up, Ren is gone…

I was kind of hoping for a lover’s suicide ending. Ah well. I wonder if there’s a sequel to this story. It amused me immensely in its melodrama and total disconnect from canon. Any guess as to what series this is? The characters? Well, this is PoT, with Ren being Ryoma, Taro Tezuka, Jiro Kikumaru, and Saburo Fuji. It really felt like I was reading original fiction with familiar names for the characters. It’s a good thing she’s a good writer that can write vivid and gripping (if dripping with melodrama) stories. XD

( and last but not least, pretty pretty asukira-ness ^_^ )

Wow, I scanned in a lot of stuff tonight. No way I can organize and post them all right now, but I suppose I will throughout the month. I'll just start with the pure and simple eye-candy series. D.Grayman, a "new" Shonen Jump series that I've recently started reading. It's pretty good, but I never thought I'd be buying doujinshi for it. I'm not sure why I was drawn to so many D.Grayman doujinshi, but I was. I think I might just be irresistibly drawn to Allen (the main character) and the scar over his eye and his silver hair. XD I avoided the pairing ones as much as possible (seems like Kanda/Allen and the reverse are the most popular? I suppose visually they are lovely together, but...) and went for the all-chara or gag ones. Only one pairing one did I buy, but it was purely for the cover. :P

( pretty pics! )

Gah. I am utterly depressed after reading ayatsujik's post on Mirage volume 33 and remembering how I felt heading towards the end of the series. I was actually not spoiled for the ending so I didn't know, but I knew. You know, how things won't turn out to be conventional happily ever after, and that it's going to burn going down because life, and especially their life, sucks that way. I'm not saying that they didn't have their share of happiness, but...I flail at the unfairness of it all. And so I must combat it with the only thing that can help a bit. Silly fanfic!!! So what if the translation is beyond rough! ;_;

( The Adult Way )

I found this amusing little fic upon checking out the site of a circle whose doujinshi I had bought. The doujinshi I speak of was an AU where (to make a long explanation short) Naoe is basically a demon (a big spider demon who kills people for food and fun) and Takaya is a very poor victimized boy who has terrible things happen to him. They encounter each other and Naoe decides to make Takaya his. Which means that Naoe does terrible things to Takaya (for a while...actually, for a long while...^_^;). In any case, the premise is an excuse for smut and more smut, but the story moves along quite well and being the NaoTaka fangirl I am I cackled at the angst, tragedy and smut that rained down (along with the blood) throughout the story. The end was probably how many fangirls wished the novel series concluded. ;_;

On a more positive note, I've been trying to cheer myself up by reading doujinshi. But one of the bad things about owning a lot and not having them organized is that you can't find the one you want and end up with piles of other doujinshi. So now I'm reading various random PoT doujinshi ( *picks one up, looks at it, and thinks...I own this? I bought this? WHEN?*). Came across one with so many fandom cliches it's mindboggling, with an ending only a Japanese (fangirl) could love. But I did like this exchange:

「先輩。。。」
「何だ？」
「俺がフェードアウトした後、一人でがんばったりしなかった？」
まさかと思いながら、疑がい拭い取ってもらいたくて、問う。
「。。。。。。。。。。。」
沈黙は時として雄弁に真実を語る。
[text cut to save my tired arms the typing]
「サイテー」
「すまん」
「けだもの」
「すまない」
「。。。反省してる？」
「十分に」
「じゃあ、今度からは俺を起こしてよね。勿体ないでしょ？」
「も。。。！」

I think the conversation's pretty clear, and damn funny. ^___^