At first thought it may initially seem nonsensical, but Mercury retrograding is very relevant to this post. While it is true that astrology is not a science; however, it is also true that astrology was utilized for thousands of years to explain human behavior and natural occurrences. When Mercury retrogrades, the planet slows down until it appears to stop, and then it moves backward. The shadow period, or the period where Mercury seems to retrograde (during Christmas in Capricorn), communication is severely affected: the retrograde dictates people to be reflective and self-analytical.
For the start of the year, I didn't watch much Anime. However, in the last week or so, I decided to pick up as many series as possible: I wanted to catch up, and so I decided to follow a significant amount of series. The caveat was that I went ahead of myself and now I'm hooked on Chinese subs. I still have much faith in #gg, #yesy and #Ayako, but as they stand I remain unsatisfied: there is a good chance of their undoing in the later episodes concerning Maria+Holic, SoKS and Minami-ke Okaeri. As it turns out, at least for me, SoKS gripped with its outlandish phallic jokes. Not only did it surprise me with a totally out-of-left-field first episode (unless fanboyism wasn’t): it was also good until the very end.
For me, the experience of watching SoKS was akin to watching from a safe place a hapless tsunami about to strike a helpless island. I’m certain that other people would call the series a wreck; the overtness with golden balls, was, however, unavoidable in this scene and seemed totally natural. It wasn’t due to bad writing or bad conception: it was simply a gargantuan space opera from its very inception. The tsunami, when looked upon at a safe distance, is a beautiful juggernaut. One knows that the island will be struck and will forever change because of it, but one can’t help appreciating its beauty and its occurrence, especially from a perspective of a viewer. Even as early as the first episode the slapstick humor, massive amounts of buttocks' screentimes, awesome choreographed mecha fights with pink laser beams and purple clouds of explosions were pre-existent; to some extent, I have already a distinct guess in my mind as to what I will expect, and yet I cannot peel my eyes away. It doesn't hurt to have Fukuyama Jun either.
In the same vein as House M.D, I watch because I want to know the little details, the simple, often overlooked facts that paint the theatrical picture of said theoretical tsunami: even if I know or seem to know what will happen, I want to know the reasons why, and its ultimate repercussions. I also want to know what happens after, and how it will affect the cast. This may be the reason why people were glued to their television screens even after the tsunami disaster happened; this is the reason why I have kept on watching Sunrise productions. Just as the climax is the zenith of quality the buildup is as important, and it is most evident with this quasi masterful series. It also helps a lot that the seiyuu are top classes of their acts. Finally, it is good because it does not result to blase fanservice (it does, but only jokingly) or superfluities (at least from what I saw): it just paints a futuristic picture that is inexorable, inescapable, wonderful and fun.
More importantly in this post, however, I want to highlight my immersion in Chinese subs. I thought I hated this phase, but it simply jumped upon me, and here I am; I must say I'm especially disdainful of PRCs. If one asks me why I still read their subs, I myself don’t know why, just that I currently am. I have been disappointed with the speed of English subs of late, hence the crossover. In most cases, it simply didn’t function the way that I wanted it to. (Since I’m a fickle man, however, I may switch to German subs in the future.) While I’m fickle and quite easily swayed (especially during these stressful times) I decided to do as aforesaid. Though I tried searching for more capable English subs I found naught; while the latter subs impressed me with their speed, fluency in semantics and typesetting, so for the time being I’m keeping those groups on top of my priority list; if they continues to perform excellently, I’ll find no reason not to do that.
I'm falling asleep on my desk penning this post.