leene_chan | It's Snowing! :D

Looks like we're having our first real snowfall of the season. I haven't taken a good look outside recently, because it's cold and the windows are cold, but I bet it's all white out there! I love the snow even if shoveling is a pain. It's great because no matter how crappy our yard looks compared to our neighbors' after it snows they all look the same. ^o^

I finished reading Barbara Ikai this week. It's only four volumes and it took me this long? My next up is Po no Ichizoku. Of the manga I've bought recently I still have Marginal, Gin no Sankaku, Toma no Shinzou, Paradise Kiss Vol. 1 and Shin Petshop of Horrors Vol. 1 to read. I had trouble deciding what to read next so I picked a name out of a hat. ^^;....

I thought the explanations behind Barbara island and Ezra's tribe were a little hard to swallow (no pun intended, considering the cannabilism) and came as a rush, but all in all I thought it was a very good series. Even though it's a sci-fi manga at the center of the strangeness is the sad, touching story of a man trying to reconnect with his estranged son. Out of what I've read of Moto Hagio's work, so far this is my favorite. Although I do have a soft spot for Iguana no Musume, which I've unfortunately only read as scans.

I'm afraid that people might overlook Barbara Ikai in favor of Moto Hagio's other works because it's not shounen ai but...hey, if you're intent on slashing characters, I'm sure you can at least do ParisxKiriya. Too obvious? Or how about Daikoku-senseixTokio? (It'd be like X+Y all over again!) I guess you could get away with pairing Tokio with Momota Tarou, but they're both uke. =_= What about SenrixTokio? (DO THAT!) Just don't do the sicko thing and pair Tokio with Kiriya or Taka. No, I draw the line at incest, even if Kiriya=Taka, son of Ezra/Johann/Akemi? and Taka=the real Kiriya...bwah....

I would've loved it if Akemi died in the end, possibly by leaping off a cliff to her death to follow her beloved Johann. I hated that bitch. I couldn't tell if she was still a bitch in the end after reality changed. I wouldn't want her to be redeemed, though, I just wanted her to burn! First the mother in Iguana no Musume and now this. I wonder if Moto Hagio has some mother issues she's trying to work through?

I felt sorry for a lot of characters by the end of the manga, mostly Tokio, Kiriya and Nanami. Poor Nanami. She just couldn't let Ezra go. Plus, she really wanted to do Tokio (who was constantly put down and rejected by his bitchy ex-wife Akemi) but she's probably like 30 years older than him. She would still be a better match for him! Treasure that one night stand for as long as you live, Nanami!

I have to wonder, is "Chana" a real Japanese name? It's weird....Also, was there a connection between Chana (Aoba's mother) and Hinako (that chick in the refrigerator everyone ate)? They had similar faces.

I wish someone would translate this manga into English. Not for my sake, because I need the Japanese version to study, but for the people who would otherwise miss out. I wonder if I'm the only gaijin on the planet who's read this manga. What a pity!