My Top Favourites of the Year 2012

Today is the last day of year 2012. Yes, it is the New Year’s Eve. What have you done during this year? How many anime and or manga series, Korean or Japanese TV series have you read and/or watched during this year?
 

I have read some manga series and also have watched few anime series and also the Korean TV series in this year. Some of them are finished reading or watching by me and some of them are still ongoing series. Of course, some of the series have become my favourite of the year! J Thus, I would like to share with you now.

 

I would start with the anime series that I have watched or still watching during this year. They are “Clannad”, “Chrome Shelled Regios”, “Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan: Demon Capital (S2)”,   “Sankarae”, “Janggeum’s Dream”, “Suki-tte Ii na yo”, “Inu X Boku SS”, “K”, “Fairy Tail”, and “Gosick”.

 

Well, among all these anime series, I have chosen my top 3 favourite of my completed watching anime series of Year 2012. They are :-

 

1.      Inu X Boku SS

2.      Suki-tte Ii na yo

3.      K

 

All my top 3 favourite anime series are in different story, of course the first two are in romance and the third one is action. All of them have the special story line each. I like “Inu X Boku SS” the most is due to the story is very interesting and it is a romance comedy anime series. The lead actor is cool and the lead actress is cute. As for “Suki-tte Ii na yo”, it is a shoujo romance anime series which suit my type. “K” is an action anime series but I like its story and the drawings! :)

 

No doubt that I also like “Fairy Tail” and “Gosick”. I am still watching such anime series even the later one is completed series but I yet to finish watching it. Thus, it could not be counted as my 2012 completed watching anime series! Hehe! :P

 

Now, I would like to jump to Korean TV drama before I announce for my favourite manga series of the year. In year 2012, I have been watching quite a number of TV dramas, both completed and ongoing. However, I have not watch a Japanese TV drama for the year. Don’t ask me why, because I also do not know the answer. Ever since I started to watch Korean TV drama, I prefer it than the Japanese TV drama. J

 

Let me tell you the Korean TV drama series that I have been watching in year 2012. They are “Scent of A Woman”, “Yes, Captain!”, “Rooftop Prince”, “TEN”, “Flower Boy Ramen Shop”, “The Great Doctor”, “Lovers in Haeundae”, “Miss Ripley, “The Innocent Man”, “Hate to Lose”, The Great Seer” and “History of a Salaryman”.

 

All these TV series have different story or genre respectively. Here comes the favourite top 3 of my completed Korean TV drama of year 2012. They are :-

 

1.      Rooftop Prince

2.      Flower Boy Ramen Shop

3.      The Innocent Man

 

The reason for my top 2 is due to romance comedy. The story of “Rooftop Prince” is very interesting as the King together with his followers crossed the centuries to the modern days and meets his love one. The way is very funny. Moreover, the lead actor and actress have won awards in Korea Awards.

 

I like “Flower Boy Ramen Shop” is because there are many good looking guys in the series, especially the lead actor. He is very funny and looks quite cool! Haha! As for “The Innocent Man”, I also like the lead actor as he is so cool. I like the story of this series too as it is about the revenge and ended up that villain have no good endings. :P

 

So, now is the time for me to announce for my favourite manga series of year 2012. During this year, I have been reading many manga series, but most of them are still on-going series. E.g. “Kaicho wa Maid-Sama”, “Hiyokoi”, “Dengeki Daisy”, “Skip Beat”, “Ouke no Monshou”, “Hapi Mari” and “Vampire Knight”. However, I also managed to read some completed manga series. They are “Kyou, koi wo Hajimemase”, “Faster Than A Kiss”, “Rhapsody in Heaven”, “Ardour”, “Ai wo Chodai”, “Haou Airen” and “Papa to Mama Hajimemashita”.

 

Tada……..my favourite top 3 of the completed manga series of Year 2012 are as below:-

 

1.      Kyou, koi wo Hajimemase

2.      Faster Than A Kiss

3.      Haou Airen

 

Yes, all my top 3 favourite manga series are the shoujo romance series as I am a BIG fan of shoujo manga series. All of these 3 manga series have a beautiful romance story especially “Kyou, koi wo Hajimemase” and “Haou Airen”. Each of them has a special romance story line. Both the lead actor of these 2 manga series is HOT! Moreover, Kyouta of “Kyou, koi wo Hajimemase” has been selected by me as the King of Manga/Anime series in 2 years ago. Thus, he is still my favourite in all these years! J

 

So, all the above have wrapped up my favourites of Year 2012. Some of the anime and Korean TV series are yet to share with you. I promise that I would blog about them in next year! Maybe you could share with me of your favourites of year 2012 as I do not mind it! J

 

Lastly, I would like to wish you all to have a happy, bless, prosperous and joyous new year. HAPPY 2013!!! Cheers!!! J

 

HO HO HO! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS &

A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Distant Star's Makoto Shinkai Makes Kotonoha no Niwa Anime Film

Children Who Chase Lost Voices creator's "tale of 'lonely sadness'" in 1st half of 2013

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The official website for Makoto Shinkai — the auteur director behind Voices of a Distant Star, 5 Centimeters Per Second, and Children Who Chase Lost Voices — announced on Christmas Eve that he is creating a new anime film called Kotonoha no Niwa. Shinkai plans to open the film in Japanese theaters in the first half of next year, and he began planning this past spring. The tagline on the website reads, "A tale of 'lonely sadness,' older than even 'love.'"

Shinkai wrote on his website that this is the first time he is making a "love" story — in the traditional Japanese meaning of the word. He added that there were words long before there were characters to write them in this world. The Japanese language during the era when it had no written form is known as "Yamato kotoba." The language during this time had its own pronunciations, before the importation of kanji characters from China.

At the time, "love" was written as "lonely sadness" (koi). Moreover, according to Shinkai, the modern concept of "love" (ai) was imported from the West. While his new Kotonoha no Niwa film is set in the modern era, it will be about koi in the original "lonely sadness" meaning — of longing for someone in solitude, as opposed to the modern meaning.

Kyo Koi wa Hajimemasu!

Hi there! Today is 21.12.12, some people said it is the Doomsday, and it is the Chinese Dong Zhi Festival too. Anyway, I want to share a beautiful shoujo manga series with you as I just finished reading yesterday in the Chinese scan version.

The title of the manga series is “Kyo Koi wa Hajimemasu” or it is also known as “Today, I’ll Start Our Love”. It is a shojo manga series created by Kanan Minami. This manga series consists of 15 volumes or 97 chapters and it is a completed series. However, the English scan inversion is yet to complete as I have finished reading from the Chinese version scandalations yesterday.

The story of “Kyo Koi wa Hajimemasu” is about the romance of a “plain girl” and a “hot guy”.  Despite Tsubaki Hibino's ( the plain girl) talent in styling other people's hair, she isn't comfortable with doing the same for herself. On her first day of high school, she is immediately looked down upon her delinquent-like classmates for her old-fashioned taste. When she is teased by the top student, Kyouta Tsubaki, ( the hot guy) who shares the same name as her, she defiantly cuts his hair. Interested in her actions, Kyouta decides to make her his target. Kyouta told her that he wanted to have all her first times.

Kyouta, who is not only a promiscuous playboy but also has control of the class, makes Tsubaki need him during class activities, although Tsubaki attempts to resist his advances. Gradually, the two begin to fall in love with each other until Tsubaki discovers that Kyouta cannot commit himself into a relationship due to his mother and a nurse he trusted. However, after understanding Tsubaki's trust in him, Kyouta begins to heal emotionally as he opens his heart up to Tsubaki. But with both of them having their first experiences in love, troubles start to weigh and test their relationship.

The romance between Hibino and Kyouta is happened in their 3 years at the high school. During those time, they had experienced some problems and became apart or having some hard times but they still able to solve them. But in the end they got back together and able to enter their dream university and professional school respectively after their high school graduation and they continue their love.

This manga series also has 3 side stories and 2 episodes of OVA. It then has turned to life action film too. But I am yet to watch the film as it was release on 8 December 2012 in Japan. The film star Emi Takei as Tsubaki Hibino and Tori Matsuzaka as Kyouta Tsubaki. I wish such manga series will adapt into anime series.

Personally I really like the manga “Kyo Koi wa Hajimemasu” as the story is cute and I like the lead guy of the series, Kyouta. He is really a cool guy as good looking and very good to his girlfriend. He always thinks or considers for his girlfriend before he did something. Gosh, I wish to have a boyfriend like him! Haha! :P

Anyway, if you would like read this romance manga series, please click into “Kyo Koi wa Hajimemasu”!

Enjoy reading!!!

Who is Innocent?! – The Innocent Man

I have just finished watching a Korean TV drama currently and I would like to recommend it to you all. The title is called “The Innocent Man”. Starring Song Joong-ki, Moon Chae-won and Park Si-yeon, it is a dark melodrama involving betrayal, revenge and romance.

The story of “The Innocent Man” is the drama is a melodrama which depicts the story of a man called Kang Ma Ru who has been hurt by a woman he loves called Han Jae Hee and how he continues his own life by using several women. He sacrificed his well being for his girlfriend only to be dumped by her for another man. Then, he sets off to take revenge on her with the help of his best friend. He approaches Seo Eun Gi, the daughter of the chaebol group executive who lost her memory in order to execute his revenge.

 

 

Title         : The Innocent Man

Genre      : Melodrama, Romance, Crime

Episodes : 20

Story     :

Smart and promising medical student Kang Ma-ru (Song Joong-ki) has been in love all his life with his slightly older next-door neighbour Han Jae-hee (Park Si-yeon), a television reporter. He is an adoring boyfriend and she always considered Ma-ru her home. But when her situation takes a turn for the worse and Jae-hee becomes desperate to escape poverty, she meets a man who changes everything—a rich CEO who introduces her to a life of comfort. So she turns her back on Ma-ru, choosing money over love.

The brutal betrayal leaves Ma-ru fractured—not just angry, but a completely changed man. A few years later, Ma-ru is now 30 years old and works as a bartender and gigolo, no longer a "nice guy." He then meets Seo Eun-gi (Moon Chae-won), a young chaebol heiress who's being groomed to take over her father's conglomerate. Eun-gi is a cold and calculating, business-savvy, and raised by her father to never show emotion to anyone. But Ma-ru intrigues her, and she becomes curious until she can’t stop thinking about him.

Ma-ru decides to take advantage of her as a pawn in his plans for revenge, and Eun-gi falls in love with him, not knowing that he’s using her to get back at his ex Jae-hee, who happens to be Eun-gi's young, gold-digging stepmother. Just when Ma-ru is beginning to genuinely care for Eun-gi, she finds out the truth and they break up. But a car accident causes Eun-gi to lose her memory, and she enters Ma-ru's life again.

Cast

Song Joong-ki as Kang Ma-ru

 

Moon Chae-won as Seo Eun-gi

 

Park Si-yeon as Han Jae-hee

 

 

Lee Kwang-soo as Park Jae-gil

Lee Yoo-bi as Kang Choco

Lee Sang-yeob as Park Joon-ha

Kim Tae-hoon as Ahn Min-young

Yang Ik-june - Han Jae-sik

Kim Yeong-cheol as Seo Jung-gyu

Jin Kyung as Hyun Jung-hwa

I like 2 actors in “The Innocent Man”. The first on is of course the lead actor Song Joong-ki and the other one is Lee Sang-yeob. Song Joong-ki is very cool in this series and he becomes one of my favourite Korean actors now! J The lead actress, Moon Chae-won is very pretty. I think she is good in acting as she can play an innocent lady and then a businesswoman. Song Joong-ki is also good in his acting as he can play good and bad guy from time to time.

Let us take a preview of “The Innocent Man” below.

Frankly speaking, I was enjoying watching “The Innocent Man” as the story is interesting and quite exciting. It seems that every character have the “innocent” side. Moreover, this series was having good ratings while airing on the Korean TV channel.

If you are interested to catch this exciting series, please click into “The Innocent Man” to join the “innocent” world.

Enjoy watching! :)

Who Am I?! -- K

Konnichiwa minasan! It is December of the year now. Christmas is approaching soon. So, how is your Christmas preparation?

I am watching an anime series on TV currently. It is shown on the Astro Animax (channel 715) on every Friday morning @ 12:30am. The title of the anime series is called “K”. So, today I would like to share this Japanese action and fantasy anime series with you. It is adapted from the same name of the shounen manga series.

The title of the anime series is called “K”. This series has 13 episodes. “K” is a 2012 anime series animated by the studio GoHands and directed by Shingo Suzuki, who also serves as character designer for the series.

Title        : K

Genre     : Action, comedy, drama, fantasy, science fiction, Shounen

Author    : GoRa

Episodes : 13

Status     : On-going

Story       :

Set in a world where history has taken a slightly different course from the one we're familiar with, K follows the story of a young boy whose life is caught in a psychic war between seven kings. Ashinaka High School is known for its unique setting: the entire campus is built on an island. Yashiro Isana, aka Shiro, is having lunch with a cat on one of the school rooftops. After his lunch break, Shiro goes on an errand for his classmate Kukuri to prepare for their upcoming school festival, only to be chased by some intimidating-looking men.

Characters Description:

Yashiro Isana (伊佐那 社, Isana Yashiro)

Nicknamed Shiro (シロ) by his classmates; he is the leading character of the series. Accused for shooting one of the members of the Red Clan, HOMRA, he is being targeted by its members for revenge. Even though he was proven innocent by the picture that his friend, Kukuri had of him around the time of the murder, Shiro finds a bloodied shirt in his closet after his "innocence" was proven. He is shocked by this but does not tell Neko or Kuroh about his findings. His enrollment at Ashinaka High School is a mystery as according to the school's records, Shiro is not a student there. It is revealed that he is the next in line to become the Colorless King. Shiro holds great care for both Neko and Kuroh, valuing them as friends.

 

Neko (ネコ, Neko)

Shiro's pet cat and a Strain. She has the ability to transform into human form, naked, and performs illusions to protect Shiro. She is deeply attached to Shiro and will go to great lengths in order to keep him safe. She refers to him as "Neko's Shiro." It is later revealed that she also has the ability to manipulate people's memories. She is quite playful and mischievous giving her pursuers hard time chasing them especially when she's in her human form. She is also a lover of rice crackers and would do almost anything to have some. She is a supposed transfer student after she turned up in Shiro's class all of sudden. Neko is responsible for erasing Shiro's memories.

 

Kuroh Yatogami (夜刀神 狗朗, Yatogami Kurō)

Known as the Black Hound (黒狗, Kuroinu) or Kuro (クロ), he is a highly skilled swordsman on a mission to hunt down Yashiro on behalf of his late King and master, Ichigen Miwa. Even though he has a cold exterior, he is a good man who allowed Shiro to prove his innocence before killing him, cooked meals for him and helped around in the festival as an apparent transfer student. Kuroh knew the fact that Shiro was the next Colorless King.

 

Mikoto Suoh (周防 尊, Suō Mikoto)

The Red King (赤の王, Aka no Ō) and leader of Homra. He was briefly in the custody of Scepter 4. According to Kuro, he has 'ties thicker than blood' with the members of his clan. He is much more insecure about his power than he may seem. He has known Totsuka since his high school days and Izumo for even longer.

Izumo Kusanagi (草薙 出雲, Kusanagi Izumo)

Homra's second in command and Mikoto's right-hand man. The brain of Homra. He speaks in the Kyoto dialect, and is also fluent in English. He is the owner of the Bar Homra, and is extremely protective of it. Has known Mikoto for a long time, and is one of the few who addresses him by his first name. He has a platonic relationship with Awashima Seri of Scepter 4, as they tend to understand each other, being in the closest position to their kings.

Misaki Yata (八田 美咲, Yata Misaki)

He wields a skateboard and bat. His epitaph is Yatagarasu. He is impatient and passionate, but is shy around girls. Has been called a virgin by Fushimi, who he is on bad terms with. Calls Fushimi by the nickname 'Saru'. Hates to be called by his first name.

 

Anna Kushina (櫛名 アンナ, Kushina Anna)

The youngest and only female member of Homra. A Strain. Wearing Goth Lolita clothes, Anna has the ability to see into the hearts of others with her red crystal marbles. She lost her parents in an accident, and met Mikoto through her Aunt who was Mikoto's teacher at the time. She is the mascot character of Homra, and is quite emotionally attached to Mikoto. She loved Tatara's singing, and was his No.1 fan. Has a type of color blindness where she can only recognize the color red.

Reishi Munakata (宗像 礼司, Munakata Reishi)

The Blue King (青の王, Ao no Ō) and Head of the Special Task Force Unit Scepter 4; the Fourth King. Has a calm demeanor. Wears glasses. Likes jigsaw puzzles. Easily overwhelmed Kuroh without drawing his saber, but the full extent of his power is yet unknown. Is currently monitoring Mikoto, who he has in custody. Was called the 'Glasses Boss' by Neko.

 

Seri Awashima (淡島 世理, Awashima Seri)

Reisi's second in command and the only female member in Scepter 4. Has the relationship of bartender and customer with Kusanagi Izumo of Homra. He also gave her the nickname 'Tundra Woman'. Likes anko to such a degree that Kusanagi, Munakata and Fushimi were all visibly sickened. Was called 'Boob Woman' by Neko.

Saruhiko Fushimi (伏見 猿比古, Fushimi Saruhiko)

The No.3 of Scepter 4. Unmotivated and lazy, with a bad attitude, despite being extremely capable. Has a habit of clicking his tongue. A former Red clansman who betrayed Homra and joined Scepter 4. Has an odd obsession with Yata, who despises him and calls him a traitor. Has powers of both Red and Blue, and wields both a saber and knives. Was called 'Glasses Jerk' by Neko.

 

Kukuri Yukizome (雪染 菊理, Yukizome Kukuri)

She is Yashiro's friend and a member of student council committee. Kukuri later loses memory of ever meeting Shiro, Kuroh, and Neko. Despite this, it seems that Kukuri did recall being friends with "someone," but could not remember Shiro's identity.

 

Adolf K. Weismann (アドルフ・K・ヴァイスマン, Adorufu Kā Vaisuman)

The Silver King (白銀の王, Hakugin no Ō) and the First King. He is the one behind Shiro's accident and the suspected murderer of Tatara Totsuka.

 

Daikaku Kokujōji (國常路 大覚, Kokujōji Daikaku)

The Golden King (黄金の王, Ōgon no Ō) and the Second King.

Ichigen Miwa (三輪 一言, Miwa Ichigen)

The deceased former Colorless King (無色の王, Mushiki no Ō) and the Seventh King

The above are only some of the characters in the anime series. There are more characters are available. Among all the characters, I like few of them. E.g. Neko, Anna and Kukuri are very lovely. Kuroh and Reishi are very cool guys. Lastly, Seri Awashima is a very cool lady and could fight very well.

I like the story of “K” as it is interesting and exciting. It makes me keeps on want to know the next following happenings of the story. Moreover, the art of this anime series is very well done too.

Ok, let us take some sneak peek of “K”.

 

Well, if you want to catch and read the exciting and fantasy anime/manga series. You may click on the respective links below.

"K" Anime Series

"K" Manga Series

Enjoy reading/watching “K”! J