The Answer

Already a good few hours into the visual novel Umineko no Naku Koro ni, I must say it's really amazing. Aside from my particular interest in murder mysteries, it really succeeded in creeping me out (and I'm still on the first chapter!) with it's brilliant music, the strong sense of atmosphere, and it's really well done narration (and I'd really like to give credit to the people who worked on its translation; that must have taken a while). I'm still kind of creeped out right now, but I will read a bit more before I go to bed. I gotta note that the character designs are a bit...amateur, which might throw a few people off, but I've quickly gotten used to it and it looks natural already. I really recommend it to any anime/manga/visual novel fan. It's definitely a must!



On another note, I've been closely following the re-airing of the Haruhi Suzumiya series (being one of the quite many Haruhi fans who died and went to heaven when the first new episode in 3 years aired; I was one of the fans that even watched the episode as it aired raw in Japanland) and I really can't wait until next week. IIRC, if speculations are correct, and they most probably are, the Endless Eight chapter from the light novels is supposed to be animated for next week's episode, followed by the Sighs arc, which will then lead to some more old episodes mixed in, and then later to be followed by the Disappearance arc. I can't wait for that last arc, man. It was one of the most interesting arcs to read (and the most confusing; time-travel gets you jumbled up really fast) and one of the most important for the series. My only fear is the fear of the new episodes sucking, but eh, they'll probably pull it off at least acceptably. Oh, Haruhi-sama, make us fans rejoice for the second coming of yourself, lol.



I also eagerly await a new OP, seeing as they also threw in a new ED for the new episode (which is the 8th aired episode). But I'm fine if there's no OP in the end.



Also watching K-ON! as it airs. The hottest KyoAni anime so far, aside from Haruhi. Can't help but feel it's a big ton of moe with no substance (maybe because it is a big ton of moe with no substance), but at least it's fun to watch. Maybe I'm expecting too much of the music theme it has going on, being a huge music fan and playing an instrument myself. The many times the show reminds of actual experiences I've had just make me want to watch it more. I can relate so much to it. Bleh, tears of shame.



Been playing a lot of Counter-Strike: Source and Team Fortress 2 lately too...though I'm playing a bit less than usual lately. Possibly growing lack of interest. Also finishing Fallout 3 and Dead Space (more focusing on Dead Space...I should have finished that game months ago, but I just can't make myself play it for enough time to get far in the story in one sitting).



Also considering what I should get for my birthday (July 29th, not like most people that don't know me care anyways). I'm pondering getting a new guitar and switch it with different pickups, but we'll see. I really wish I had the money to buy different instruments (violin, piano, drums, bass), because I really want to learn how to play all of them. I've really grown a passion for new instruments aside from the classical and electric guitar. I also need a new monitor, because this 15" really isn't helping me when I multi-task or do graphics and whatnot. Ah well, such is life when you live with a middle-low class family, but I'm happy and that's what counts.

Well, that's all for now. Hopefully I'll keep this more up-to-date so I don't end up barfing a lot of different things in one blog post. But, eh. Remember to TAKE IT EASY and all that jazz!