Caught the first two eps, by chance, via Animax; my curiosity had been piqued by Hirasawa Yui versus Nodame discussion as well as comparisons with ToraDora’s Takasu Ryuuji. Quite surprised that I enjoyed it very much despite how Chiaki Shinichi is so arrogant (anyone who uses the ‘oresama’ pronoun gets an automatic markdown in my book) and Noda Megumi is such a klutz. But the voice acting is just fabulous; Seki Tomokazu and Kawasumi Ayako really bring out the charm of their characters as well as the chemistry between them. The moment when I decided I liked what I saw (and heard) was when Shinichi dragged Nodame off to the bathroom, bent her over and forcibly gave her a rough shampooing from behind.

Shinichi’s ‘Why the hell do I have to volunteer…’ brought out the side of him that cares deeply about others. Maybe a bit too much and expressed rather tyrannically but it showed me that the man really does have a heart. Nodame’s plucked chicken cries of surprise, despair, protest, delight and so on brought out her honest, earnest and spontaneous nature. From the ED, it seems to me that Nodame Cantabile is, at its heart, a love story but wrapped up in a thick Music Is Serious Business coating. On one hand, their Odd (Not) Couple from Hell dynamic promises much comedy. On the other, their talent, skill and passion for music is something that should bring them closer together. Looking forward to seeing more.

©2012 hontou ni sou omou?. All Rights Reserved.

この世に偶然は無い、あるのは必然だけよ。

Thus spake Lupus:

Dear Seleria, Because I’m such a BADASS LIGHT NOVEL READER, I must reveal the true reason why Taiga was “out on the street just in time for Minorin to see.” It wasn’t entirely co-incidence. After being told by Taiga that Ryuuji was going to confess to her, Minorin wanted a final confirmation that Taiga didn’t like Ryuuji, so she went to Taiga’s place. Lo and behold, she sees Taiga going emo and screaming “RYUUUUUJIIIIII WRRRRRRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY”

Another reason why good comments are as good as gold, blogs are all the more richer for them.

My initial understanding of the scene was also like Seleria’s – that Minori had stumbled on Taiga’s outburst. And it made me think less of her rejection of Ryuuji. Knowing that she had been waiting, to confirm her suspicion, made her rejection seem less impulsive, more considered.

And while I’ve been royally eating my hat for initially stomping on ToraDora, this was a bad storyboarding lapse.

Totali’s reading (ambiguous)

She runs out of her house to scream Ryuji’s name, but unknown to her, Minori has seen this from not far away.

Aroduc’s reading (coincidence)

At least Minori shot him down at the end after walking in on Taiga screaming out Ryuuji’s name in the street like some kind of psychotic killer.

Omni’s reading (coincidence)

unbeknownst to her, she’s seen by Minori. Though shocked, Minori doesn’t let Taiga know that she’s there

If it wasn’t entirely clear to the three best BAD ASS RAW WATCHERS too, I’d say the fault is with the anime rather than the viewer.

My suggestions:

Further back. Show Minori’s darkened head and shoulder silhouette from behind.

Take cover, Minori! Whatever happened to cover and concealment when camping? Look, there’s a lamp post reserved for you over there.

Please don’t look so shocked. Yes, it’s still shocking to see for yourself but you had a clue. Which was why you were waiting here in the first place. Frown a bit too?

Would a whispered "やっぱり" been too heavy handed?

Cover and concealment. This pillar is reserved for Kushieda.

P.S. Agree with Seleria that Minori should confess to Taiga already.

©2012 hontou ni sou omou?. All Rights Reserved.

Hinano’s Out of Sight Out of Mind Theory, with Suguru’s Killing the Goose That Lays The Golden Eggs hypothesis, seems applicable retrospectively. But after I got hold of some Malaysian DVDs of both seasons (where the only thing genuine about them were the Customs stickers), my Genshiken fandom was born.

I suspect that I enjoyed Genshiken a lot more the second time round because I have descended even further into anime fandom since the first time I watched the series. Even though I watched a fair bit of anime and read some manga before late 2004, since then I’ve built gunpla. I’ve attended ComiKet and bought doujinshi. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed meeting and taking photos of cosplayers. I’ve drawn/thrown together a couple of koma-style comics (my personal favourite). I’ve also played an eroge. And, of course, I haz an animu blog.

I still see myself as a casual otaku (nevermind the oxymoron); I built gunpla but didn’t paint my (what else?) Zaku; I’ve attended ComiKet but I’ve not taken part in any convention from the vendor side; I’ve drawn a few comics but haven’t kept it up; I prefer reading walk-throughs of eroge (and looking at complete HCG sets!) rather than actually playing them. And no one in Genshiken haz an animu blog. LOL But I’ve certainly accumulated a bit more otaku experience points since 2004 and that has helped to level up on appreciating, understanding, feeling truly madly deeply that Genshiken Was Awesome.

I still haven’t managed to get my articulated gauntlets on the three OVAs. I’m really quite keen to see them as Ogiue is such an interesting character. That gap in my viewing and the tantalizing hints of the budding Sasa x Ogi relationship at the end of the second season saw me devour the manga within the space of a few days. LOVE POWER FTW? :3

A preliminary note on the voice acting. Evirus has noted how Satsuki Yukino was crucial to the show’s awesomeness. And that Kawasumi Ayako was an inspired choice for Ohno, conveying her girl-next-door, big breasted sweetness but also the manic edge that pops up whenever cosplay is involved. Hiyama Nobuyuki‘s Madarame was also outstanding. In recent series, I particularly enjoyed Hiyama playing the Final Boss villain of GSD, Murata Azrael, as well as the hapless Nishiyama Kankuro in Muteki Kanban Musume. But Madarame’s reedy voice is my favourite Hiyama role because of how it conveys the chara’s stubborn geekiness and self-destructive tendencies but also his odd brand of natural charisma which made him the natural choice for the second chairmanship of Genshiken as well as a touching vulnerability that was most obvious in relation to his unspoken feelings for Saki.

Is there going to be a third season or more OVAs?

©2012 hontou ni sou omou?. All Rights Reserved.