Christmas Wishlist:Top 10 anime/video game characters I want to have as figures

There are so many of them that I want to have, but I don't have the cash,or the space in my room to buy them all. Here's my top 10 characters in my wishlist, and I wish Santa Claus will give me at least one of them. Even though you're not real, I'm still wishing that you'll give me one, and place it beside me while I'm sleeping. I've been a good boy the entire year!

10. Okazaki family (CLANNAD)

Okay, I admit it. Clannad made me cry a river, especially Clannad: After Story. Even now, I feel like I want to shed a few tears because I'm starting to remember the scenes that are full of epic FEELS while typing this section. The Okazaki family is one of the best families in anime history for me, so I want a figure of them as a whole family.

9. Chiyo Sakura (GEKKAN SHOUJO NOZAKI-KUN)

She's one of year 2014's most popular character. Her struggles of trying to confess her feelings to the guy she loves keep getting better and better, and she's getting cuter in every chapter.

8. Satomi Rentarou and Enju (BLACK BULLET)

Actually, I only want Enju (lol!), but they are inseparable partners, and one can't accomplish the mission without the other. I also want to add Tina Sprout as a bonus.

7. Holo (SPICE AND WOLF)

Who doesn't like the ever beautiful, wise, and cunning wolf lady who can help you in making your business prosper? Holo is one of those who you can't mess with because she can outsmart you from  your trickery miles away.

6. Leon S. Kennedy (RESIDENT EVIL)

Leon became a bad ass character since Resident Evil 4, and Resident Evil: Degeneration. He's the coolest character in the entire series. I'm a big fan of the game, and a Leon figure is a must have!

5. Ezio Auditore La Firenze (ASSASSIN'S CREED)

The last AC game  that I played was up until AC:Brotherhood. I'm also a big fan of AC since the beginning when Altair was the one scaling up walls, and assassinating Templars. I choose Ezio over him though, because he's more heavily armed. Double hidden blades are better!

4. Nozomi Toujo (LOVE LIVE! SCHOOL IDOL PROJECT)

The things I like about Nozomi-chan are her well-endowed body...and her way of harassing her fellow μ's members.

3. Kongou (KANTAI COLLECTION)

I never played Kantai Collection before, but her fan-made art , and animations made me like her very much!

2. Kuubo Wo-kyuu (KANTAI COLLECTION)

That alien-like thingy on her head intrigues me very much. I like white/silver-haired anime characters. Wo is one of those "evil never looked this good" types, that I really really love, just like the rest of the Abyssal fleet.

1. Kotori Minami (LOVE LIVE! SCHOOL IDOL PROJECT)

Kotori-chan is my favorite girl of the μ's members. If I start buying a set of figures of the idol group, she's my top priority. I'll be really happy if ever I'll get at least one Kotori figure! I hope I'll have one very soon!

Disclaimer: I don't own all of the photos used in this post. Credits to those who really own it!

Ao Haru Ride anime adaptation review

Ao Haru Ride is a shoujo manga series created by Io Sakisaka. Its anime adaptation, which is produced by Production I.G. and directed by Ai Yoshimura, was aired from July 8,2014 to September 23, 2014 with a total of 12 episodes (and hopefully more seasons in the future). The title literally means Blue (Ao) Spring (Haru) Ride, but I discovered secondhand information claiming that the title actually means Youth Ride, according to the author.

Apparently, shoujo manga and anime are targeted for girls who are around their teenage years or older because these things are usually about cheesy high school romance. I'm a dude...I shouldn't be enjoying anime or manga like these. I'm supposed to enjoy things like gigantic robots with laser swords,warriors saying some epic lines while fighting for at least 4 episodes, or girls exposing their tits accidentally in front of the main character. Well, I actually enjoy these shoujo anime shows. They are like my purifiers after watching so many shows that depict lewdness and violence.

Now, let's talk about the two main characters of the story.

YOSHIOKA FUTABA - Way back in junior high, she was one of the popular girls of the school. The boys really admired her beauty, but most of the girls were jealous and despised her, thought that her cutesy looks and personality made the guys pay attention only to her. She disliked all guys because she sees them as rowdy and noisy individuals, except for Kou Takanashi who was also in the same school as her. Tired from the kind of attention she had, she decided to change her personality as unfeminine as possible on her high school life.

My impression on her is that though she has somewhat a nape fetish on Kou (lol!), she's a real beauty! She's the most beautiful heroine I've ever seen so far from all the shoujo anime that I watched. I like girls with long hair. Her beauty is so simple, and I definitely like it. Her comical expressions throughout the episodes are so funny, and adorable!

KOU TANAKA (Kou Mabuchi) - Yoshioka described (Junior High) Kou as different from all the other boys. He was short, and had a bit of feminine look and voice, but a kind and cheerful person. He suddenly transferred to a different junior high school due to reasons, and returned to his hometown as a student of the same high school as Yoshioka. He's taller, voice is deeper, and a stone-faced person. His personality changed from cheerful to cold towards others. He's not popular with the girls.

My impression: He's not like your typical shoujo male main character who has their own overly ridiculous Mr. Perfect-like features. Kou's not the type who comes dashing like a knight in shining armor or Prince Charming in the first few episodes. He's like an average, realistic guy just like us, and that's what I like about this dude. I thought that Usui Takumi from Kaichou wa Maid-sama was the best dude I had ever seen, but if I have to choose between Usui and Kou, I pick the new guy because he was a realistic male character.

What do I think about the anime adaptation of Ao Haru Ride?

Since this is a shoujo anime, I assumed that I'd be seeing ultra cheesy scenes that make girls scream their hearts out, but I was wrong. There were really sweet moments that made me smile, but the story really did not focus on who will confess their love first towards the other, and other things like rivalry just like in any shoujo anime. It focused more on how Yoshioka will break Kou's cold personality and be open towards her and their group of friends. The supporting characters were great and well- balanced. There were no dumb-looking girls who only like make-up, guys who suddenly challenge the male MC for a duel, or any character that looked out of this world. The art style is really nice. I like what each character look. I also like the opening and ending songs of the show.

Are they really going to kiss? You have to find that out if you haven't watched it.

To summarize things up, I want to say that this is the BEST SHOUJO ANIME THAT I EVER WATCHED, so far. I'm looking forward to read the manga. I hope that there will be a new season of it!

How anime healed my broken heart

  Tomoya Okazaki - Clannad

It was weeks after my graduation when she told me that she was still not ready for a serious relationship with me (although we were already more than a year together, and that was her stupid excuse.) , and ended up with a new boyfriend in just a month (WTF!) . I was already at loss, depressed, and felt like I was already dead. I burned every memento that reminded me of her, deleted every data that's related to her, bought alcohol and drink alone in my room, and sometimes go with my friends in the city and have some fun together with a bottle or two just to make myself happy. It wasn't enough.

I got bored eventually...bored of being sad and pathetic on that situation. I wanted to become happy again. It came to me that there was something I want to watch. A story about a poor guy who became a butler, and serves a young and rich lady in a giant mansion. It was hilarious!

                                       Hayate No Gotoku, also known as Hayate The Combat Butler



This was when my addiction to anime started to kick in. After watching it, I started watching more ,and more. I've become happier in every show that I watch. I started collecting anime merchandise as well. I am no longer the guy who was crying for a girl who left me just like that.

This is just 1/3 of the list of what I had watched, and it keeps longer and longer until now.

My addiction to anime developed into something better. Some of the shows that I have watched reflects Japanese culture. From their way of saying 'Ohayo' , up to their cultural festivals, I have fallen in love once again, not with another girl... but with Japan. I realized that I want to set my life goal there. I want to become an English teacher there for at least a year, or just a simple tourist for a few days someday.

Nagisa: Do you like this school? I like this school very, very much. But everything keeps changing. All the fun and happy things are changing. But even so, are you still able to like this place?

Tomoya: Isn't it fine as long as you find it? Isn't it fine as long as you find the next fun and happy moments again?

Furukawa Nagisa and Okazaki Tomoya (Clannad)

Okay, this post is not exactly about how anime can help you deal with heartbreaks. If there's a lesson you could learn from this blog post, it's that there is no shortcut for moving on, not even death can help you on that. You don't want to be a wailing ghost that's still suffering from a heartbreak, right? You just need to let all that sadness out. Let time heal you while you cry, and indulge yourself to many distractions until you get over it. Soon, the next happy moment will come into your life.