Suzuka 104 Laundry

凉风 #104 洗濯 せんたく

Chapter started with Yui serving the customer happily. One of the customer told her father that she looked very happy. Her father replied today was the day that the guy came once a week. Yamato rushed in the cafe and apologized for being late. He was held back by his sempai and came straight from his training. There were many people and Yui requested Yamato to help with the cash register. The customer before made a comment to Yui saying that they paired quite well and her dad should be at ease then. Yui replied happily that Yamato already has a girlfriend.

Yamato took leave as the cafe closed for the day. Mr Amami commented that Yamato still have energy after running here and there. Yui asnwered that people who joined track events sure have great stamina. Mr Amami then suggested Yui to participate in curriculum activities and he can managed the cafe on other days. Yui went to the store room and found Yamato's bag with his track T-shirt. She held onto it and realized it was his track shirt. She decided to wash it as a token of appreciation for his hard work.

The next day, in the girl's locker room, Yui was telling her friends about Yamato again. Her friend then told her to confess to Yamato and then get together. Again, Yui said happily that Yamato already has a girlfriend. She then bid farewell as she was going to see Yamato and handed him back the T-shirt. On the way, Yui thought to herself that Yamato would be surprised to see her and she wanted to see his expression. She also thought of walking home with him and listen to his track activities.

It was late and Yui was still waiting. She ran towards Yamato as soon as the training finished. She introduced herself to Miyamoto sempai. She then handed Yamato shirt to Yamato. Yamato realized that she has washed it and thanked her. Yui then grabbed his hand and said "Let's go back together". Yamato apologized and said he has promised Asahina to fetch her. He said they could still walk together on the way.

Yui then let go of his hand and said she forgot that she need to buy something. She bid farewell and ran away. Yamato didnt have a clue what's going on (Idiot). Yui thought to herself as she ran, what has she done, what was she anticipating. She then stoppped and said, "Even I myself have said it.... Yamato....he already has a girlfriend".

My Thoughts:
Yui is in love with... who else! Let's see how Kouji pull this throught. Now.... where's Honoka???

Suzuka Volume 11 LE

The information on Suzuka Volume 11 Limited Edition was provided, courtesy of Relentlessflame at Animesuki.


These are the covers for Suzuka volume 11 and Suzuka volume 11 LimitedEdition


The Inside cover for Suzuka Volume 11 LE

The Postcards that comes with the LE
Miki and Suzuka

Relentlessflame mentioned that it was probably too late even for Amazon.jp. If you really like the postcard and cant get the LE, you can get good quality scans from Relentlessflame and print it yourself. Alternatively, you can still try Yesasia for the LE edition, though I believe they might tell you later there's no stock for it.

AMG Tsubasa and ARIA Natural

AMG Sorezore no Tsubasa それぞれの翼
Episode 2: ああっ悩める復讐の王女さまっ
Episode 2 is more on Sayoko. The episode started with Urd commented that it was cold. Belldandy decided to knit a sweater for Keiichi but kept it from Keiichi. It was Christmas season and Sayoko wasnt feeling herself. She met Keiichi on the street and realized that she needed Keiichi to fill her heart. Sayoko had bit too much of achohol and ended up on Keiichi residence. He took her in for rest. Sayoko took Belldandy sweater when she woke up (actually a dog did it but it still ended up with her). Belldandy went out and search for the sweater. Sayoko asked Keiichi out in the evening. She gave him an expensive piece of sweater but Keiichi declined. Keiichi told her his feeling with Belldandy. Sayoko got angry and threw Belldandy's sweater onto him and went away. Belldandy later met Sayoko and Sayoko told her to go back home. Upon reaching home, Belldandy saw Keiichi in her sweater and she was overjoyed. In the end they hugged.

Episode 3:ああっ聖夜に捧げるこの想いっ！
Episode 3 covers the story on Keiichi trying to repay Belldandy with a Christmas present. He asked around and decided to buy a ring. The ring was quite costly so he had to work for the money. Urd helped Keiichi in finding jobs to source the money. He hid the matter from Belldandy. Belldandy was worried as he came home late every night and was exhausted. However, Belldandy believed in Keiichi. On Christmas eve night, Keiichi had enough money and ran to buy the ring. However, it was taken by Sayoko. Keiichi pleaded with her and she demanded Keiichi wearing a Reindeer outfit and reclaiming a ballon stucked on a tree branch. Belldandy was told to wait at the station and she saw Keiichi falling down. She used her magic to save him and Keiichi told him about his work and the ring. Urd then passed the ring to Keiichi, telling him that Sayoko has given up the ring. Keiichi put the ring on Belldandy's hand and the overjoyed Belldandy hugged and kissed him.

ARIA The Natural
Episode 2: その 宝物をさがして…
Episode 2 is about Akari, Aika and Alice searching for treasure. They were on the gondola and Aika noticed a small hole on a building's wall. They found a note and started searching for the mysterious treasure. The puzzles led them to a high place where they can view the beautiful scenery of Aqua. They also realized that they were not the first group to find out the place. They later agreed to replace all the puzzles in their origins.

Episode 3:その 流星群の夜に…
Episode 3 is about the shooting stars in Aqua. The weather forecast gave a cold night but also a starry night. Akari, Aika and Alice were having a conversation on gravity and shooting stars. The episode introduced a new male character, Al. He's short but older than Aika. He explained the shooting stars to them. He invited them to a lunch and had mushroom nabe. Aika later invited Al to watch the shooting stars with them at night. Apparently, Aika likes Al. At night, Alice didnt turn up as she was sleeping. Al, Akari and Aika went around and search for a better view to watch the starry night. They came upon a ladder and climbed up to the roof of a house. They enjoyed the wondrous view of the starry night. At one point, Aika realized that she was alone with Al (Akari went to other place for different view). The sky was raining with shooting stars later that night.

Suzuka 103 Future

凉风 #103 将来 しょうらい

The chapter started with Yui and Yamato cleaning the cafe. Yui commented that the detergent from US gave great result in the cleaning. Yui noticed that Yamato wasnt himself and asked him. She asked if it was because he had to work on weekend and didnt have time to go out with Suzuka. He denied and said that Suzuka was busy with her English lesson as well.

Then, Suzuka and Miki came and visit the cafe. Miki introduced herself to Yui. Yamato asked about Suzuka's English class but she replied that they have a break that day and Miki would like to look at Yamato's working place. Miki whispered "Is.. that.. so...".

Suzuka compliment the cafe's atmosphere and said that it was a pleasant place. Yui said that it would be noisy in the evening and added that Yamato was a great help. Suzuka asked in doubt. Yamato then said that his signature Japanese style okonomiyaki was a favourite. Yui then asked Yamato to make one for them.

Then the first customers arrive. It's Suzuka and Miki. They say what a nice atmosphere the place has. Yui says how much help Yamato is. Suzuka asks if he doesn't just get in the way. Yamato objects and goes into the kitchen to make them his signature okonomiyaki omelet. Miki went with Yamato into the kitchen.

Yui and Suzuka had a talk. Yui said that Yamato was very happy that Suzuka came. She then complimented Suzuka in her pursuit to study in US. Yui said she wouldnt do it if it was her. Suzuka later asked Yui about her goal in her life. Yui asnwered that she would go for a culinary certificate and inherit the cafe one day. Mr Amami heard that and said that it would be good for Yui to be exposed to the outside world. Yui rejected and said she wanted to stay.

Yui then asked Suzuka why she wanted to train abroad. Suzuka replied that the standard were different and she would be able to experience a lot more there. Yui then added, " Wouldnt it be better to go after graduation?" She then guessed that there should be other reason.

Later, Yamato presented his okonomiyaki to Suzuka and Miki. Suzuka was impressed and both complimented Yamato. Suzuka also made a sarcastic remark, if he can be as serious in his training. After somewhile, Suzuka and Miki took leave. Suzuka saw Yamato's reaction and said that they would meet back home. She added that she would visit him ocassionaly and hope to taste more of his secret dishes.

Outside the cafe, Miki said it was already 4pm and asked Suzuka whether she can make it on time. Suzuka said she would run to it. Miki commented with a sigh, " What a troubling couple"

Back in the cafe, Yui said she would work as hard as Suzuka. Yamato said Suzuka was too hardworking. Yui then said that there could be other reason for Suzuka to take the study abroad offer. Yamato said, " What else except to improver herself?" Yui replied that she just have a feeling there could be other reason.

Yui then changed the subject and said she had a new recipe. She asked yamato to try it. Yamato asked what it was. She replied that it was mixed nori juice (I gonna faint). It didnt taste nice according to Yamato.

My thoughts:
This chapter has a good balance on Yui and Suzuka. In case you didnt notice, Suzuka "sacrificed" her time to visit Yamato before going to her English class. She lied to Yamato that there was no class that day. We start to see the importance of Yamato in her heart. It is obvious that there's another reason why Suzuka took Adirex offer. At the moment it's too vague to be guessed.

And Yui..... she must be the nori girl we all scared of. Seaweed soup, seaweed ice-cream and seawed juice.. what's next. Seaweed cake????

P/S: Thanks to Nite for pointing this out. It's 将来 (shourai) not 未来 (mirai)

MG Freedom and MG Wing Zero Custom Endless Waltz

Gundam Freedom and Wing Zero Custom are my first two Gundam which I acquired from Hongkong. They are among my favourites, along with Akatsuki, among the rest of the Gundam.

I love the look of Freedom, simple, cool and powerful. Gundam wing zero custom is a must for me due to its elegant features and feathered wing.


ZGMF-X10A Freedom Gundam



ZGMF-X10A Freedom Gundam, piloted by Kira Yamato, in Gundam Seed.



I placed a metallic cardboard at the bottom of the stand and the blue reflection actually looks pretty good.






Freedom with its twin cannons mounted in its wings.


High Mobility Aerial Tactics mode with beam rifle, twin cannons and rail cannons




Freedom with its beam sabers.

XXXG-00W0 Wing Gundam Zero Custom Endless Waltz


One of the most elegant Gundam, XXXG-00W0 Gundam Wing Zero Custom EW. Wing Gundam Zero Custom is piloted by Herro Yuy, in Gundam Wing Endless Waltz OVA.


Gundam Wing Zero Custom with its poweful buster rifles.













The two buster rifles can be combined into a twin buster rifle.

Round up Mai Otome, GPO and LAP

Quick round up of three anime that has concluded in the last season. LAP, GPO and Mai Otome. I wont cover what the storyline of these anime, rather I'll give some opinions on the series. If you are looking for the summary, please visit Random Curiousity for Mai Otome and Hashihime for Lemon Angel Project.

Mai Otome

This was one of the best anime series for me during the last two seasons. There were lots of humour, action, emotion, "romance" and friendship theme. It basically covers all the theme for an anime expect for magic and mecha. I wouldnt count the slaves as mecha, do you??

The character designs are excellent. Althought they used the same cast from Mai Hime, they have placed emphasis on other characters such as Nina and Arika (they were insignificant in Mai Hime). I like the otome robe design. However, the character coverage was not enough, a lot of characters suddenly appeared in the last two episodes. They should have cover these characters more in depth in earlier episodes. I wish there were more coverage for Mai, Haruka, Sarah, Maya, Rosalie and Ein. The romance in the anime was bit "sickening"; nina+sergay+arika, natsuki+shizuru+tomo and chie+aoi. Nevertheless, the ending is suitable and interesting. The anime can be considered as a success.

The background music and the soundtracks are excellent. However, I wish they would change the ED theme. The anime has two OP theme but just one ED theme throughout the series.

I gave a perfect 10 for this anime considering the anticipation and the joy from wathicng this series. High recommended to all anime fans.

Lemon Angel Project

I actually quite enjoy LAP and rate it as 6 out of 10 for recommendation. There are more humours towards the last few episode. The anime is about the formation of the lost Lemon Angel Singing Group. The background setting and the colours are good. The character designs are presentable and the drawing looks consistent throughout the series.

However, I was not pleased with the soundtracks considering this is a music genre anime. There no action nor romance in this anime. However, a great deal of friendship value has been depicted in this anime.


Gun Parade Orchestra

Gun Parade Orchestra is seperate into 3 section story, the white, green and blue chapter. There are 24 chapters in total, and 2 OVA so far. There should be one more OVA for the blue chapter.

The white chapter was ok to watch, the green chapter got less interesting and the worst was the blue chapter. There are some humour and action but the settings and the colours were not appealing. The characters were not distinct nor special. I dont think the soundtracks were nice apart from the OP theme. However, there were a number of OST released by Lantis. My recommendation is 5 out of 10 for this anime, at least I enjoy the white chapter.

Suzuka 102 Relief

凉风 #102 安心 あんしん

The title page for this chapter depicts Suzuka with sands flowing down from her hands. The chapter started with Miyamoto sempia introducing himself to the track team as the team leader. Yamato is now in the second year of the track team.
kinugasate sempai came back to check on the team and especially Yamato.

Suzuka was training the other selected athletes at the Adirex training centre. Her peers gave her some suggestion in her event-long jump after watching her jump. Yamato was peeping at her. He saw many potential athletes and also Arima at the venue. As he decided to leave before anyone noticed him, Suzuka glanced over and saw her.

They were both quiet on the way home. Yamato was thinking to himself, worrying that Suzuka was angry that he went to the training venue. Suzuka suddenly suggested that they made a trip to the park before going home. They sat on a bench and and kept quiet. Yamato felt like Suzuka was throwing a tantrum like last time. Suddenly Suzuka leaned her head on Yamato shoulder and said "So tired". She said that there were many suggestions given to her and she was trying very hard. But she added that she felt relief when she saw Yamato face back then. Yamato asked her if it would be better for her to go home and have a rest. Suzuka agreed but decided to stay for a little while. She said the sakuras were beautiful.

My thoughts:
I like the ending to this chapter. Suzuka finally able to express her feeling towards Yamato in more natural way.

The A's Anime

Some comments on Ah! My Goddess Sorezore no Tsubasa and Aria The Natural.

Thanks to Jojohot for the AMG picture

These are the two most anticipating anime for me. AMG season 1 was excellent in my opinion and Aria The Animation also fair high in my impression. AMG centers on the romance between Keiichi and Belldandy, their life on earth with Belldandys' sisters Urd and Skuld. Aria the Animation depicts the story of a trainee Undine, Akari Mizunashi, with her two other trainee friends Alice Carroll and Aika S. Granzchesta, and their 3 peers, Akira E. Ferrari, Alicia Florence and Atena. I had a post on ARIA The Animation before.

AMG Sorezore no Tsubasa それぞれの翼
Episode 1: ああっ願いよ　もう一度っ
Impression:
As good as the first season. Though the opening theme 幸せのいろ was an eye opener, I didnt like it the first time I heard it. The bagpipe was bit annoying. I like bagpipe but it was not really suitable for the OP (a flute or violin would sound better, but I must admit the OP with bagpipe has a fresh feeling). The ending theme ED 僕らのキセキ was good and the ED MV shows pages of Fujishima Kousuke AMG manga.
Story Plot:
The season continue from the incident in AMG season 1. The contract between Belldandy and Keiichi was void because of the damage in Ygdrassil system. There is a way to restore the contract with voice recognition. Urd returned to However, the system couldnt recognize Keiichi conversation of the contract, no matter how Keiichi tried. Keiichi and Belldandy the tried to spend time together with a date. In the evening, Keiichi expressed his feeling and said the exact phrase of the conversation in the contract. The contract was restored and Belldandy was able to stay with Keiichi.


ARIA The Natural
Episode 1: その カーニバルの出逢いは…
Impression:
The anime starts with an excellent episode. Both the OP and ED are relaxing to listen to. The OP is Euforia ユーフォリア and the is 夏待ち. As usual the background music suit the anime very well. The background setting is breathtaking and also appealing.
Story Plot:
Ai spend a day with Akira and Alicia at the ARIA company. ARIA shachou packed up and went out on New Year eve every year. All the cats left and gathered to meet the King of Cat. The whole Undine gang met and enjoyed the festival together. They also met Cassanova on their first day at the festival. After the festival, Alice, Aika, Akari and Ai-chan had tea and saw one of the small thingy with Cassanova. They decided to chase after it. Akari and Ai got separated from the group but they met Cassanova. They were invited to sing and dance along. When they reach a alley, they were refrain from following. Aria Shachou revealed itself as the small thingy. Akari and Ai-chan also saw Cassanova with his/it mask removed- cat sith. Matthew has episode 1 summary on his blog.

Suzuka 101 Culinary Skills

凉风 #101 腕前 うでまえ

It was spring holiday and Yamato has to work for the entire day. Mr. Amami said that Yamato has started get accustomed in the job and has helped them a lot. After the customers left, Yui suggested that she would prepared something to eat. Mr. Amami said that he should prepare the food. However, Yui insisted since there weren't any more customers.

Mr Amami then said (with a panic face) that he would close the cafe and he has to go and buy something. He whispered to himself, apologizing to Yamato and said that he has rather high blood pressure recently. Yui asked Yamato to wait and went to prepare something delicious.

Yamato was eager to see what Yui could prepare. Yui came out with a dish comprising fish head, meat, garlic, radish and other unknown susbtances. Yamato was stunned. Yui said she has prepared the Milan style vegetable soup. Yamato then asked why there's fish head and nori in the vegetable soup.

Apparently, Yui did like her own cooking (!!!). Mr Amami came back later and saw Yamato squating down and closing his mouth. He offered his some medicine for his stomach. Yui popped up and asked what they were doing. She then said that she would also prepare the dinner since there werent much customers that day.Yamato quickly shouted that he would prepare the dinner. The motion was quickly seconded by Mr. Amami.

Yui was impressed by Yamato's culinary skills. He was preparing the Japanese style okonomiyaki. He said that it was own-style, learnt from his mother. Yamato made a remark regarding his mother and Yui ended up telling him that her mother has passed away.Yui's mother has passed away after giving birth to her and also she was weak all the time. Yamato apologized but Yui asked why did he apologize to her. Yamato then asked if there was any nori flavouring. Yui said there were others. Yamato decided to purchase the flavouring and asked Yui to wait. He realized that both Asahina and Yui were of no difference in culinary skills.

Yamato also said that okonomiyaki did not require any seaweed, as we can see that Yui was holding a packet of seaweed sheets behind her.

Yamato managed to prepare a decent-looking okonomiyaki. Both Yui and Mr. Amani were impressed and complimented the dish. Yui has also prepared a desert, ice-cream. Yamato looked at the suspicious chocolate-look-alike thing on the ice-cream and asked Yui about them. Yui said it was nori. She then fed a spoonful to Yamato. It was salty. Yamato thought to himself, she was worse than Suzuka.

My thoughts:
The whole chapter is about Yui and Yamato. Hopefully next week we get to see scene outside the cafe. It's been ages since we last see Honoka. If I'm not wrong, the last scene was in volume 9. After that Kouji focused on Suzuka, then Yui, Satome, Suzuka's study and now Yui. By the way, the covers for volume 11 is out. There's one for special edition. Visit Kouji Seo website for more information.

March Order and Ichigo 100% TV OST

Received my March order from Yesasia this morning. It's about time, I expect the parcel to arrive by Monday and it's Wednesday today. There's 2 CDs and 7 chinese version manga. I was very impressed with Ichigo 100% TV OST, the cover was very nice, silver colour. I took some pictures and scans of the OST but the silver/platinum colour turn dark during the scanning process. Even the CD themselves are beautiful, there's tones in the colours. I bought the Special Edition which comprise the Valentine Digest DVD as well. As for the mangas, there are Suzuka 7, 8 & 9, Cross Game 1 & 2 and Ichigo 100% 18 & 19.

Ichigo 100% TV OST pictures

Next purchase in mind.... FFVII AC DVD (US) and AMG TV2 OP
Think my sister will get me KH II (US) for my birthday next week.