Finally it comes, issue 15 is out. We're reaching the climax soon, hopefully it all works out. This week expect a sketch too, I owe you all at least that much for the two weeks of nearly nothing.

Been watching more new anime lately, just saw the second episode of Hayate the Combat Butler. The manga was hilarious, but it was one of those mangas where if they made an anime you'd expect it would be a low budget, cheap laughs kind of thing (see Kage Kara Mamoru). Not so with Hayate, as it turns out. First, there's nice animation, which once you look at who made this, is expected. It's mainly a company that does animation in-betweens from the looks of it, but the worked on Blood+, GitS: Stand Alone Complex, and Mushishi, among others, and all of which have great animation.

Second there's the comedy. It's a really funny anime, and the second episode is funnier than the first, so things are looking good. The narrator character is hilarious, the characters occasionally break the 4th wall (but do it right), and Santa is awesome(You'll see when you watch...). There's only two episodes out right now, so things could go south still, especially the animation quality, but right now things are looking great.

Another anime I've started watching is Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. This one's gonna be special, I know it, 'cause it's made by Gainax. Other than the of-course-awesome animation, it has awesome character designs and ridiculous robots, as well as crazy action. It's also funny, so it's got everything I like. It's even already starting to show signs of that deep character moments that Gainax seems to like doing, where everything goes from hilarious to serious and deep in a moment. The other crazy part is I heard this is going to be 26 episodes, which is just insane if you've seen the first two. This thing can still go anywhere, quality wise. If it keeps up then they either have mad tricks or mad budget, either way this whole thing is mad and you should watch it.

Update on Nodame Cantabile, it's gotten better since the first episode, as one would hope. In fact, out of all the shows I've been watching, it's been the most consistently good. That is to say, the level of comedy and animation quality and plot I expect from the show is consistent every time, in a positive way. I'm very happy with it, and I hope it continues through the rest of the season.

Finally there's this Korean animation, some of you might have heard of it, called "Aachi and Ssipak". I haven't actually seen all of it, but I have seen one of the main action scenes. Despite what the title is, this actually has some of the most ridiculous action animation you'll see. I won't link to the clip I saw, because I'd rather have seen the whole movie first, and so I'd rather you do the same. So, go find it somehow, and watch it.

Later, sketch, maybe some color art, DS games, Mario, and a belated talk about Brave Story.