I was fourteen years old, Shinji Ikari´s age, when A Bridge to Terabithia made its movie debut. Like his fated stay in Misato’s house, only in time have I come to realize the influence it has had on me. Leslie Burke, the imaginative and courageous adventurer played by AnnaSophia Robb, did not only unveil a… Read More Shoujo and the Bride of Christ (I): Kimi ni Todoke and Ao Haru Ride
Ao Haru Ride, Vol. 13 After thirteen volumes, Ao Haru Ride has come to an end, but instead of celebratory feelings, I couldn’t shake an irksome question: Why is it that this story just never really works? The unlikeable lead characters are one reason, with Kou and Futaba hurtling forward, especially in this volume, without… Read More Otaku Reader’s Corner: Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear, TPN Side Story, and the Final Ao Haru Ride
It’s a tricky thing to engage in a new romantic relationships when you’re still entangled in a past one, or at least in one that you desired would happen. Yoshioka discovers this when she accompanies Mabuchi (in her eyes, “strictly as a friend”) on a visit to his old neighborhood. But as she sees him… Read More Review: Ao Haru Ride Vol. 11
As we celebrate our tenth anniversary on Beneath the Tangles, we want to take some time each month to look into the past, not only to commemorate our ten years, but also to see where we were and how far we’ve come as a site and collectively as anime fans. For most months this year,… Read More 10 Year Retrospective, Month #5: Throwback to May 2014
Every year, I revisit the lyrics for “My Favorite Things” from The Sound of Music and revise them to fit the anime I’ve watched and manga I’ve read over the previous years. I do this just because I like it. Maybe you’ll like it, too, and do what I do – sing the words below… Read More My Favorite (Anime) Things, 2014
Is there a specific characteristic that sets great anime protagonists and heroes apart? While there are perhaps plenty of common traits they share, one that really just out is their ability to be themselves even when being yourself isn’t cool. Naruto Uzumaki provides us a good example of this funny trait. The Naruto manga is… Read More Naruto and Futaba Just Don’t Care (and Neither Should We)
Episode 12 ends Blue Spring Ride without much of anything resolved. Summer has come. Kou doesn’t have to take summer classes. The group of friends continue to bond. Yuri and Futaba agree to increase their efforts for Kou’s affections. The only major thing that’s happening is this: Kou has started to open himself up to… Read More Blue Spring Ride Episode 12: Opening Up
It always seems as if season finales sneak up on us, and summer 2014 was no different, with shows ending their runs this week. That also means that a packed new season of anime is about to begin! Last night, Japes and Kaze conducted our first live stream, reviewing a number of this season’s shows… Read More Video: Summer 2014 Anime Review & Fall 2014 Anime Preview
Episode eleven of Blue Spring Ride (Ao Haru Ride) begins with a very heavy hand, as in the opening few minutes we finally see why Kou has become the way he has. Not only do we now see the pain he went through with his mother’s illness (from lung cancer, it turns out) and death,… Read More Blue Spring Ride, Episode 11: What We Do With Our Time
My mom moved around from church to church quite often as I was growing up. I of course, hated that, because as soon as I would establish myself among a group of friends, it seemed, I would be uprooted. Once, when I was in fourth grade, my church friends and I were working hard for… Read More Blue Spring Ride, Episode 11: Guilt and Despair