What are you currently watching/reading?
 

Like those other threads ^_^

What anime are you currently watching, or what manga are you currently reading?

Besides what I have on tape, I'm watching Naruto on Cartoon Network. I don't download anime nor do I go to Youtube. I have dial-up, and I share the computer. I also don't have much to do, and I have issues when it comes to sitting down for more than 30 minutes waiting on something to download.

In any case, Naruto dubbed isn't all that bad once you get use to everything. (Believe it should've never been used.) Of course I wish they got other people to do the voices of certain characters, but "shrugs" what can one do other than complain? What really needs a change is the dialogue altogether. Some of the things that were being stated just didn't make any sense at all, or just didn't fit with what was going on.

However, all these people that praise Naruto should have a rock thrown in their face. :mad: When I first started with this series (I started with the manga first) I was expecting something so dynamic, and yet I get another average anime.

Another issue with it is the inconsistency (sp?) in animation. Again, I kept hearing nothing but high praises about the animation, and perhaps this was my own fault because I was expecting something that looks as good as Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Yet another disappointment. The animation isn't bad, though, it is very inconsistent. One episode can look good, and the next, everything looks hideous.

One more complaint.... lol. Out of all the characters I've seen so far, including the manga.. I only like about 3-5 characters.... (Itachi, Kakashi, Neji, Orochimaru... and now Sasuke) That's really bad lol.

With all that being said though, it is still a decent series. I just don't see nor understand what made this series so great though. As far as I'm concerned, and it's only a matter of preferences, Yu Yu Hakusho is better XD... (ok, not fair) Bleach is better...

Speaking of Bleach.

I'm currently reading Bleach. The anime really isn't that much better than Naruto. (Almost the exact same issues, just not that much praising from fans... So atleast I wasn't expecting something so great this time around.)

This one has alot more likable characters. 4 characters I don't really care for. (Chad, Ishida, Rukia, Kon) Chad and Ishida were decent characters back in the Soul Society arc. Chad got too boring right . Ishida got boring after . I've never really liked Rukia and Kon from the very start.

The story at this very moment, has it's ups and downs... More downs, though, because I was really getting bored with everything. But now that , hopefully things will pick up again.

Something I'm not understanding. The fan crowd behind Hitsugaya. I have nothing against him whatsoever, but what makes him so great? This guy doesn't seem worthy of having a captain status. It even seems that Renji and Ikkaku is stronger than him. Ok, I'm done picking on him XD.

I can understand your complaint about inconsistency...it can be quite dreadful to watch an episode that is downright atrocious looking then see the next episode in its full splendor. However, this is something that can't quite be helped especially in super-long running series like Naruto. Some animation studios are branched off into different divisions: one team draws out the episodes that fall in line with the main story (of the manga or otherwise) while another team is in charge with the "filler" episodes (goofy episodes or those not part of the main story, etc.). I think this method saves on costs...prettier episodes require more time and, perhaps, more money. I believe that's how it works, which explains why some episodes are gorgeous and others are not so.

I pretty much agree with you there except for Chad...I really like him probably because he's quiet and doesn't do anything. Rukia pretty much irritated me from the start, Kon and Ishida are both okay.

Hehe, Hitsugaya is one of those typical characters you'd see in mangas...one of those characters who are really young but powerful. I think that's probably part of his appeal, he's young but knowledgeable. But I cannot agree with you that Renji and Ikkaku is stronger than him...Hitsugaya does that the mentality and inner strength that fits the status of captain...Renji and Ikkaku still need a lot of work to reach that level.

Anyways, the animes that I'm currently watching is Hellsing Ultimate and a period drama called Saiunkoku Monogatari. I thought the latter might be another Fushigi Yuugi or Juuni Kokki-esque type but it's not quite like that...it's actually a bit better. I actually saw this series called Mushishi which everyone says is very good but, sadly, I thought it was okay. I thought I might like it because it's supposed to be a supernatural/drama type but it just didn't mix well with me. The animation is lovely though.

The manga I'm reading is Bleach and Nana (JP editions).

Yeah, someone else informed me that there were 2 teams for animation, and I think there were more than 1 animation company doing this.... Hard to remember. But I assume that these same folks that does the "filler" episodes also take part in some of the main episodes as well?


I use to like Chad. I normally like characters that are relatively quiet, but my main gripe with him, and pretty much every other anime is starting to get on my nerves with it as well. 2 friends, one grows stronger than the other, and then the weaker one starts to feel left out... And you know what goes on from there. That whole concept is pretty much boring and is almost a complete turn off for me now.


Oh, no, I'm not saying that Renji and Ikkaku are stronger than Hitsugaya. I'm just saying that it seems like they are stronger. Because, for a captain, he seems to be just a punching bag to majority everyone he faces, and that don't seem to be captain worthy, but that's just my opinion though. Maybe my standards are set too high. :) But then again, can you blame me? Afterall, Byakuya and Kenpachi are my favorite captains :D

I actually just started watching it... downloaded subs mind you. I'd get too impatient waiting for a new episode every week on tv, especially with a long one like this. I also only have a nice thing called an antenna that gets me a glorious 4 local channels.
I get where you're coming from saying that this really isn't what its hyped up to be. From what I've seen so far, its like DragonBall but with ninjas. Although, some of the animation for the some of the fight scenes are pretty good.

I'm also currently watching Bleach. I like it far more so far than Naruto, but there is (feels like it anyway) a huge slowdown in every aspect of it right now. Hopefully it'll pick up again, but I'll continue to watch it anyway.

Another one I just picked up was Karas. More specifically, Karas: the Revelations, vol.2 of a two part series. I think it was originally a 6 part OVA, but for the release in North America they made it a two part movie.

They did a stunning job of mixing CG animation and regular animation. Thats what really grabbed me. The story is also very intriguing, but at times hard to follow. Kinda reminded me of when I was watching Soul Taker, where I kinda knew what was going on but was still thinking "what the heck's going on?" Karas just leaves you wanting more.

I'd love to read Yotsuba&!

As for watching and reading now: I am into The Rose of Versailles, both anime and manga. It's an older series. I'm reading the manga and watching the anime at the same time. It's awesome!

Now I've just been watching what I have on tape. With that said, Inuyasha is in my VCR at the moment. Much like Naruto, it's overhyped, and people should be shanked in the throat for it. :) I normally just watch it to kill some time, or go to sleep on. It's not a bad show. Although I only watch it for Sesshomaru. Shippo needs to die. I have issues with just about every character in this series except Sesshomaru, Kikyo, Sango and Miroku. XD..

I've started reading Yu Yu Hakusho, and I don't have any opinion about it right now. I'm only on chapter 3 I think.

I think I've already said somewhere else that this was one of the series that tormented more my childhood days :laugh: No really, it's a great series, with lots of amazing plot twists, romance, macabre details and fantastic characters. Maybe it's not very reliable regarding historical aspects, but who cares? I think everybody who remembers Versailles no Bara from my generation at least once wanted to be like Oscar or dress like Marie Antoinette. It's still a cult series and there should be more anime and manga like this.

i havent really been keeping up with the new animes that are coming out, so ive been watching the usual, Shippuuden and Bleach then ill go back to One Piece once they animate Thriller Bark.

Hm, I honestly don't know. Because I think if one team is assigned to a certain amount or type of episodes to do, they have to complete those episodes according to the schedule they're set up with. Again, I have no idea.

I misunderstood your post, I'm sorry. But how do you mean a punching bag? Oh and Kenpachi is my favorite too. ;)

Oh how is this series BTW? I was interested in watching the anime (couldn't find the manga) but I still haven't seen it. Is it an everyday life/genre sort of series or a drama?

I agree, this series is really just a classic. It's sort of special for me because it was the first real mangas series that I bought (it was the Chinese edition but still). I also drew and copied many images of Oscar or Rosalie because I thought the illustrations were so lovely (it's actually what encouraged me to buy it). It's a shame I haven't seen the anime yet though...I will in the future!

Perhaps I shouldn't have used the term punching bag. Let me see if I can reword this. Toshiro is suppose to be this kid prodigy, yet we've seen nothing prodigetic :D (is that even a word) from this guy. When it comes to fighting it just seems he is very weak. Everytime he's in a fight, he's on the losing end of everything. I guess I was expecting alot from him.

I thought that you'd have been reading the manga... Ok, I'll shut up about Bleach manga now. :)

I've been watching Trinity Blood lately. I really like this series. I know about the bogus ending, and it really don't phase me too much. Esther and Ion are the only negatives I have about it. Esther is quite the stupid one. She practically asks for trouble while Ion is very annoying. His VA doesn't make it any better lol. Those two characters don't need to yell or cry. It kills my ears. I really like that animation in this as well. This is the type of consistency that I look for in my animes.

Now if only the people that did this would do a samurai anime, I'd be real happy lol.

Anime
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All this is from Adult Swim, or some other channel.

Blood+ - At first I didn't really care about this series because it was really slow. And Saya, Kai, and Riku were some annoying characters. They made it hard to get into the series.
It's gotten more interesting, and Saya and Kai is more tolerable. Kai's still getting on my nerves with this "I will protect you" crap. It's really annoying when you here it over and over. (Call it a peeve XD)

Death Note - Man, with no action whatsoever, this series is really good. But my main concern, and I think I've said it in the Death Note thread itself, is that I find it kind of hard to see this continuing the way it is without getting old. Finding creative ways to kill people without getting caught, Light and L cleverly outsmart each other, and repeat. Sorry for not being so optimistic about this series, but like I said, it's kind of hard to see this going anywhere. I will stick with this series though because I like how Light and L try to outsmart each other. The animation is gorgeous. And Light's and L's theme music is pretty good. I'm going to stay away from the manga even though I read the 1st 5 chapters. (I think) I don't want to lose that surprise factor.

Samurai 7 - This is something I've been needing for a long time because of the disappointment that I've been getting from the Bleach anime. I like fast paced action, and delivers that action that I so desire lol. (Bleach can learn something from this lol.) My only problem with this is Kikuchiyo and Rikichi. Kikuchiyo is annoying and stupid (A mechanical version of Kuwabara.) And Rikichi takes too long to grow a backbone. Or rather, he knows how to kill a good moment with his constant complaining.

Manga
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Black Lagoon - Man.. Man... MAN!!! I think I might kick Bleach and Naruto to the side and stick with mangas like this. And I've only read 3 chapters. So far, I've seen some gunfights, but I think I'd rather see those gunfights in motion. It just seems a little phony compared to sword fighting. But that's just a minor thing though. This is my first time reading a manga that involves guns.

Oo... Triple post, beat that XD.

Ninja Scroll - Saw it on the Sci-Fi channel day before yesterday. I've forgotten how good this movie was. Even while it's edited, it was still good. Majority of the cussing has been taken out, and of course the nudity and sex/rape was taken out as well, but the gore remained in tact. Not that I really have anything against sex or anything, but I do feel that it was better without it. But that's just me though. (Simple-minded and just looking for action as usual XD) The animation is really good even if it is old. A lot of the characters need some work on the face though. The dub is also pretty good, but my main issue with it is Jubei's voice. He just sound.. "bleh". One moment he sounds boring and the next he sounds phony.

Last Exile - I found this by coming across the AZN channel. While I can't say much about the story, because I'm pretty lost. What draws me into this one is the animation, which is hawt btw. Perhaps on par with or even better than Ghost in the Shell: SAC. (That says a lot because I consider GitS to have the best animation.) Alot of times I consider Gonzo to have inconsistent animation, because of how some of their characters look really good in one episode, and then the next one or two episodes they look hideous. But I've only seen about three or four episodes, and it seems pretty consistent so far. Just to nitpick a little bit. For this to be a futuristic anime, you'd think their aircrafts would look more futuristic. Them jet planes or whatever they're suppose to be looks more old school-ish than futuristic.

Read or Die OVA - Another one that I managed to catch on the sci-fi channel. This one was interesting, but at the same time a little bit on the annoying side. The paper agent woman, the way she used paper as a weapon, and other stuff was very intriguing, and the character herself ranged from interesting to annoying. (She's pretty much my only problem with this one.) After taking care of whatever, and asking for the book back had me chuckle a couple of times, but then it got annoying. She's not a bad character, just one of those naive ditz that can get on my nerves very quickly. (Much like Misa in Death Note) The animation was also great, too. Does the series look as good as it's OVA counterpart, because I may check it out one day?

That's it for now. The next thing I'll be checking out is Hellsing Ultimate. (Starts airing on Starz Edge on the 12th.)

First 2 episodes. I was really disappointed that they didn't finish airing them too because I really like it, but they replaced it with Black Lagoon, so my disappointment soon became a relief :).

Speaking of Black Lagoon, it's a good replacement for Cowboy Bebop. I've been looking for something similar for quite some time. No annoying characters, and it's full of adrenaline.

Still watching Death Note. I can't stand the new opening and ending theme songs... (not a fan of that screaming stuff.) In any case, this show is hawt, and I'm still trying not to cheat and read the manga to see how Light get the Death Note back. (The temptation is thick :D)

And then there's Bleach. I'm trying my hardest to continue with the anime, but I've been so disappointed with the fighting. With so many overpowered characters you would think that the fighting would be at a faster pace and full of intensity, (Rurouni Kenshin comes to mind), atleast that's the impression I get from the manga. The best fight I've seen so far happens to be Ichigo and Urahara, and that was during Ichigo's flashback fighting against Renji. Byakuya and Renji was decent, but only because of Byakuya's bankai. Big bulk bankai's don't cut it for it. And then we get to the voice work. While I'm no fan of subs, (reading while watching isn't something I can do.) I would've preferred Viz's Ocean group to handle the voice work. (Death Note's voice work is pretty good, as well as Black Lagoon's) I only like Byakuya's voice, but they know Sesshoumaru = Byakuya. :D

I can go on and on about my disappointment in the Bleach anime, but I don't want to turn people away from it from my high expectations.

Karas the Prophecy - In the words of Janice (From Friends) OH MY GOD!!!! Now this is the type of action that I want. Fights that you can barely, yet still be intense at the same time. I don't know anything about the story though.. That's probably the only weak point for now. I need to see the other one.

I saw the third episode of Hellsing Ultimate a couple of days ago on Starz Edge, but I don't know how they're doing this. I think it's going to get it's full course run in late November, but I'm not sure. Black Lagoon comes on this coming Tuesday.

In any case, I've been watching a few things. (Some only 1st episodes.)

1st episodes.

Devil May Cry. While it looks good artisticly/animation-wise, I was fairly disappointed in the action department. I guess it was because it was not that much fighting. The gunplay was fine, but when it came to swordplay, I expected a little more.

D Grayman. Again, while the animation/artwork looks great, I was still disappointed in the action. Is this Konami's answer to Square's Fullmetal Alchemist?

More than 1 episode.

Scrapped Princess. One of those surprise titles. I can't say that I'm completely sold over it, but I am fairly interested in what I've seen. The artwork/animation, again great, and what little action there is (teasers, if you will.) can be good. I've only seen the first 5 episodes btw. I've yet to see a character that I hated, but my favorite out of everyone I've seen so far, Shannon and Chris are the favorites. Raquel (sp?) not being far behind. The characters are what keeps me coming back, but the story so far, I found to be similar to Tales of Symphonia for some reason, although I haven't played much of it.

Even though it's not anime, I've been watching Avatar the Last Airbending. (This show is better than a lot of anime that I've seen.) Can't believe I wasn't aware of this earlier.

And then I've been trying to find other things to watch, but nothing has been catching my eye. I've been thinkin about going back and watchin some of the older series. Ronin Warriors, Yu Yu Hakusho, Trigun and whatnot.

Manga wise, I've been catching up on the typical Naruto and Bleach shenanigans, and I've decided to give One Piece an actual chance now. Turns out it's not as bad as I used to make it out to be. I don't like the quirky artwork, and I've chuckled here and there, but I've been fairly impressed. I've only reached chapter 15 I think. Luffy vs Buggy or something like that. Out of the characters I've seen, Zoro/Zolo is the favorite. Luffy's not as annoying as other main characters (Naruto) but he still has his annoying moments. Even then, I prefer Bleach over it. Overall, One Piece's not bad, but I don't see what's so special about it.

I read Basilisk before I left to go to Arizona, and I considered it to be the best manga. Still is until I come across something else.