Summer 2013 Anime

We’re not even a month into the Spring 2013 session yet, and thoughts have already turned towards the anime to begin airing in July 2013. As noted in my previous post, the highlight of the summer is Tamayura ~Futatose~, a continuation of the ~Hitotose~, which aired back in Fall 2011. I haven’t even settled into a consistent pattern of watching anime for the Spring 2012 session, having spent the entirety of April (until now) on a thesis project. Thus, my current goal is to decisively determine what series are worth my while this term, and begin catching up, as I’ve fallen behind on all the series.

• It should be common knowledge now, but clicking on the image yields the full resolution file. As previously, I will update the chart as newer versions are released.

It is business as usual, then, as I pick and choose the anime that presently hold my interest; as before, I’ll return and add/remove things from the list of shows that I may or may not watch.

Tamayura ~More Aggressive~

The second season of Tamayura: Hitotose, this sequel will be aired starting July 2013.

• I came across the OVAs for Tamayura back in Summer 2011 and picked up the anime shortly after. As a whole, the series is laid-back and relaxing. Granted, no MCAT will darken summer 2013, but having an anime of this sort to watch will be most enjoyable.

The world a month after Otafest, eleven months after the K-On! Movie was released

Today, I went to the lab under grey skies after a morning shower drenched me while I was en route from the gym to the lab. I finalised the simulation space required for testing, and would eventually make my way to Namskar with the remainder of the development team for lunch. They grey skies persisted for much of the afternoon, even as I made my way back to the lab to prepare a laptop for running our software. By the late afternoon, while the software continues to require additional setup, the skies cleared briefly, and I immediately recalled that today, June 18, has generally been a day that holds personal significance: a month ago, I attended my first-ever anime convention out of curiosity. I was able to get some cool stuff out of it, except a physical copy of the K-On! Movie, and to my surprise, it seems that there was indeed a copy at Otafest. I would end the day by playing Battlefield: Bad Company 2.

• In keeping with tradition, I have included a CLANNAD image in this post. It’s been a year since I watched CLANNAD, and I eventually picked up Kanon, which I would watch during the opening semester of my fourth undergraduate year while drafting a research proposal and write simple iOS applications.

• I hesitate to use CLANNAD images now because there’s no real way for me to remember which images I’ve used and which images I haven’t used, potentially resulting in duplicate images. On a completely unrelated note, I fell in love with Lia’s “Summer Shadow“, one of the most beautiful summer songs I’ve had the grace to hear. This song is for those long summer days under an infinite blue sky, with verdant fields stretching as far as the eye can see.

• I might go back and review the K-On! Movie a second time come July: this year, I have the advantage of already owning a copy and as such, can watch it at will, whereas last year, I was waiting for my copy to arrive.

• I am now subtly dropping foreshadowing that I will totally write about how K-On! is like über-pro, and how people who don’t like K-On! are like, using the three-dozer build. I should probably explain what the three-dozer build is, too, at some point in the future, just to keep readers up-to-date with the unusual descriptions and comparisons that I keep drawing.

It has been exactly two years since my road test, a month since Otafest and a month shy of a year since the K-On! Movie was released. I will probably watch the K-On! Movie again come July, having not done so properly since last year, although this time, there is no MCAT or physics final hanging over my head. Thus, only my research is of immediate attention, and perhaps to a lesser extent (but nonetheless important) is what I will be doing for the next year. However, for the present, on the personal side of things, I will get on watching Makoto Shinkai’s Garden of Words and will likely have a review for that up soon. I’m still crazy far behind on my anime, but anime is hardly a priority in this age, instead, acting as a means of entertainment when I am not developing computer models or reading about physiology for said models.

Ore no imouto ga konna ni kawaii wake ga nai: good end reflection

I’m now fully caught up with the first season’s “good end” in Oreimo, which means it’s time to consider what I’ve seen so far and give the series an informal reflection. I picked up the series back in Summer 2011 out of curiosity and only watched one episode before other commitments led me to forget much about the anime, and it was only recently where I was able to find time and watch the entire thing. The unique point about Oreimo that led me to marathon the series was more about the story that was progressing: simply put, I wanted to see what happened next. The unusual setup in this series gives it a definitive edge over other anime of this style; much of the comedy comes from Kyousuke’s determination to help Kirino, even if he does not particularly understand what the latter is asking of him, or if he finds himself in boiling water as a consequence of trying to cover Kirino’s tracks. As such, where an episode ends, I was itching to see the consequences stemming from Kyousuke’s actions, and that in itself is indicative of a series worth watching (i.e. has pulling power).

• Kirino has a completionist mentality when it comes to visual novels and is seen here giving Kyousuke a stern talking to about his casual approach towards them. At the time of writing, I have completed merely one arc in the Go! Go! Nippon! visual novel and may or may not go back for the other route later.

• Ruri is a 15-years-old otaku who often wears gothic lolita clothing based on a character from her favorite anime, even during hot weather, and will sometimes add cat ears and a tail. Due to both of their tsundere-type personalities, she constantly clashes with Kirino when it comes to anything. However, both girls genuinely care for each and value the time she spent together. Kuroneko is very prideful like Kirino but is willing to swallow her pride to achieve a goal. Kuroneko enjoys teen-centered fantasy anime. She often mentions “dark magic”, claiming that she has it, usually to Kirino or to Kyosuke.

• Saori Makishima is the leader of the “Anime Girls Unite!” group on the Internet, whom Kirino meets in a meet-up. She wears very thick glasses (shown as swirls) and speaks with an exaggerated tone. Saori is drastically different from how she communicates through the Internet and through phone or speaking with her in person, to which she seemingly switches to a refined and sophisticated persona.

• Fans of Oreimo will pick out even the most minute of details to talk about: in this case, I know that in season two, Saori is seen without her glasses. This caused quite a stir in the anime community for reasons well beyond my comprehension. At the time of writing, I’m trying to finish the “TRUE END” route of the anime and will probably arrive on season two within a week.

• Ayase Aragaki (right) is Kirino’s classmate who works as a model alongside her and is also her best friend. Ayase is normally a friendly, nice, and refined lady, but becomes agitated and somewhat violent at the thought that she is being lied to, which she hates above all else.

• Why do I like Oreimo? Simply because I am a gamer and it is always amusing to see the Japanese approach towards video games. It is of my own mind that I find Japanese games to possess complex, immersive storylines surrounding their characters, but are occasionally lacking in technological innovation, whereas Western games tend to focus on getting the best technological innovations out there and sometimes, do so at the expense of story.

• I’ve now attended exactly one anime convention: here, Ruri totally pwns a fighting game to net Kirino a copy of a game that the latter desired. Earlier, Kirino offered to hold onto Ruri’s clothing after the latter began overheating from the minimal airflow. It may not look it, but Ruri and Kirino do care for one another.

• Dakimakura are full body pillows with casings depicting anime characters.

• Minami represents normality; lacking any of the eccentricities in the other girls, she is highly capable with household chores and cooks exceptionally well. Due to the time they spend together, the people around them assume they are dating; even Manami’s family members say that they should get married already, as if they already think of him as part of the family. In any sort of reality, she is the perfect match for Kyouske, and at the risk of incurring the flames of revenge from other fans, this is my preferred pairing. My superior micro tells me that this does not happen, but I am permitted my own opinions.

• The short discussion below was inspired by this image.

I was compelled to watch the entire series out of curiosity for the second season, and I was not disappointed by any stretch. It is quite curious to see the two schools of thought amongst the fanbase personified in Oreimo, whether it be those in the character-driven (represented by Kirino) or story-driven (represented by Ruri) groups. By allowing the underlying arguments and beliefs of both groups to be played out as a one-on-one discussion, I derived utmost amusement in seeing Kirino and Ruriargue over and about their favourite anime series, providing justifications for why they enjoy it so much. Naturally, Kyousuke is forced to observe at the sidelines and finds it absurd that anyone could take anime so seriously, gently acting as a parody of the entire culture surrounding anime in general. Of course, given that I live on the other side of the world, anime fans are decidedly the minority and some are even more vocal about their preferences. In light of this, I am merely an anime fan and will watch whatever I feel like watching as a hobby.

• I used to watch anime on a 19-inch Dell monitor, and occasionally watched shows on an iPod Touch. Shortly after university started, I began watching anime on a 42-inch screen and as such, increasingly sought to obtain HD copies of anime that I enjoy.

• I probably won’t understand the shock of clicking the wrong path in a visual novel, but I do understand full well what it feels like to get shot in the head by a stray sniper round. I’ve just begun playing the multiplayer component of Bad Company 2 and are still getting used to the mechanics. As a result, I have a KD-ratio of 0.5 (i.e. I typically make one kill per every two deaths), whereas in Halo, I used to maintain a KD ratio of around 3.4. However, I’ve gotten more comfortable with iron sights now and play as a medic primarily so I can revive fallen teammates.

• Despite her general appearance in public, Saori is actually an aristocrat from a wealthy family, and speaks with a highly formal voice outside of meeting with her friends. In season one, we do not get to see her without her glasses.

• Ruri has two younger sisters, Hinata and Tamaki, whom she dearly cares for, though her sisters and mother both seem to worry about Ruri when she in her otaku mode. At school, Kuroneko wears normal clothes and at home, takes care of her younger sisters.

• This scene was most likely the inspiration for Chinatsu’s resemblance to Mirakurun in Yuru Yuri. Kanako is Kirino and Ayase’s fellow friend, classmate and model; she was decieved into cosplaying and performing as Kirino’s favorite anime character, Meruru, for a contest and wins. Despite winning the contest, she is disgusted of what she had gone through, but likes the idea of being praised and the fact that participation in such an event helps her career.

• Oreimo makes it clear that people may find it difficult to express gratitude towards those who help them, but this is not to say that they are not grateful. In Kirino’s case, as we see the anime progress, it becomes clear that her gratitude towards Kyousuke is very much real, much as how Kyousuke expresses genuine concern for Kirino and has even gone to extreme lengths to take the fall for anything that happens to Kirino. Just to mess around with the search engines, I’m going to draw the comparison between Oreimo and The Dark Knight, where Batman shoulders responsibility for Harvey Dent’s revenge-induced crimes.

• In the past, Kyosuke had good grades and was the fastest runner in his elementary school. However, when he realized his inability to bring Akemi back to school after injuring her, and being unable to console a crying Kirino who was sad as coincidentally, their grandmother died, Kyosuke was convinced by Manami that he shouldn’t try so hard at everything. This drastically changed his personality into someone who only desired to be normal,  leading to a decline in his academic and atheletic performance. As such, Kirino dislikes her for having brought about this change.

• Ruri later refers to Kyosuke as “Nii-san” due to her wishing to have an older brother and suggesting to annoy Kirino, while hinting some affection towards him. She eventually dates Kyousuke, but breakup shortly after.

• These last two screenshots are from the good ending. Dost thou here with thine ears what I hear with mine? There is a true ending, and I need to watch that before beginning season two.

• Do I recommend this series? Yes. My reasons are elaborated upon throughout this post, and in fact, this brings to mind a discussion somewhere where one uninformed fan claimed that he would accept negative reviews of an anime over a positive reviews any day of the week because they accentuated the detracting elements to a show, thereby forcing the reviewer to really consider their own opinions and standards. This individual is wrong, of course, because the whole reason in watching a show is because there are unique elements that appeal to a viewer. Thus, a positive review expresses all of the best aspects of a show, and should those align with the reader’s own interests, then said reader might pick up the show.

There is a colourful cast of characters in Oreimo; all of these individuals play a different role in Kyousuke’s life, but as females, it does lend itself to the traditional anime cliche, raising the question of whether or not any romance will be involved. At the end of season one, the answer remains a solid no, and that the series is about a guy (voiced by Yuichi Nakamura, of Tomoya Okazaki and Graham Aker fame) trying to form a proper brother-sister relationship after nearly a lifetime of distance and coldness. The fact that Kirino (Azunyan) has a near-unhealthy love of eroge adds spice to the dynamics, and viewers are left with a story that is equal parts drama and comedy. Of course, there are a few vulgar jokes throughout the series, and some of the terminology surrounding Otaku culture may not be accessible for everyone, but at the day’s end, this is a series I would strongly recommend. Presently, I am wondering why I did not watch this series earlier, and will look to wrap up the “true end” on very short order: given this is the segue into the second season, it is imperative that I finish this as soon as possible to catch up with the second season, which is airing at the time of writing.

Valkyria Chronicles: At the halfway point

At the midway point’s close, Squad 7 and Squad 1 are assigned to take down the Esen, a mobile fortress that has been bombarding Forsen. Previously, under Welkin’s command, Squad 7 has produced victory after victory, taking advantage of both Welkin’s capacity as a leader and the Edelweiss’ exceptional performance. Beginning with a successful capture at Randgriz, Welkin next is sent to assault the Kloden base. As thing wear on, it becomes clear that Alicia is developing feelings for Welkin, and Faldio is experiencing the same for Alicia.

• I had begun watching Valkyria Chronicles after finishing The Pianist, and as such, felt an immediate sense of similarity between this war and the Second World War. The Bruhl town watch put up a valiant resistance against the Imperial Army, but suffer heavy casualties and do not make appearances beyond the second episode.

• The Edelweiss was designed and constructed by Isara’s late father, Theimer, this tank’s 360-degree rotating turret, fully automated loading system and other innovations completely revolutionized tank technology. Built to be operated by two, Welkin mans the guns and issues commands to Isara who is in control of both the wheel and wireless radio.

• Susie, Isara, Welkin and Alicia vow to return and liberate Bruhl after playing a pivotal role in securing the citizen’s evacuation.

• Alicia expresses total disgust after learning that she will be in the same squad as Welkin.

• Welkin’s seemingly carefree and absent-minded tendencies belie his unusual methodologies and capacity to adapt his degree towards military applications. Initially, Squad 7 does not believe Welkin to be capable, and Welkin wagers his position as commander on a risky operation.

• Welkin quickly earns his squad’s respect following a successful gamble to retake Vasel bridge. After correctly predicting fog in their weather, he uses the Edelweiss to plow through the river and surprise the enemy elements on the opposite shore. While occupied with the Edelweiss, the remainder of Squad 7  quickly retake the bridge.

• The amount of fanservice in Valkyria Chronicles is quite minimal and is only present in a few scenes.

• A tsundere girl with twin-tails holding a small porcavian winged pig is reminiscent of how things rolled in CLANNAD.  Named Hans, he becomes an honorary member of Squad 7. Hans possesses impressive agility and jumping ability. He also appears to be intelligent enough to understand human words and emotions.

• The Edelweiss is overpowered in the anime, effortlessly shrugging off all of the tank rounds fired at it and provides Squad 7 with a significant advantage on the battlefield.

Between Squad 7′s phenomenal performance and the gradual shift in attitudes towards Welkin’s capacity as a leader, Valkyria Chronicle‘s first half ends up being an enjoyable watch that showcases Welkin’s capacity as a leader and his growing relationship with Alicia. In between the combat, the series presents its story in a somewhat comedic manner, especially with regard to the episode surrounding Irene Ellet, a reporter, although it also makes an (albeit half-hearted) effort to explore how the current world came to be. The backstory behind the Valkyrur’s invasion and the Darcsen Calamity sound immensely interesting, although both elements are only explored to a minimal extent. I’ve dug around for other materials, but these points remain poorly explained, leaving major gaps in the history here and there. In other universes, the backstory usually is filled by novels and other tie-in materials: for instance, the Forerunners from Halo have an extensive amount of background, sufficient for consumers to explore how the Halo universe came about. The same cannot be said for the Valkyrur and the Darcsens; as viewers, we are simply forced to bear with it. Fortunately, the Valkyria Chronicles anime itself remains sufficiently self-contained, and while the lack of a proper presentation of the history might slow the anime down, there still remains the war between the Empire and Gallia, which is decidedly more polished in presentation by comparison.

• The Darcsens are Europa’s oldest indigenous race, said to have lived across the continent since ancient times. Darcsens are subject to ethnic discrimination which stems from an historical fact that their ancestors repeatedly initiated war and scorched all of Europa.

• Alicia’s fear of Welkin’s ‘true’ nature being exposed leads her to take extraordinary measures in disrupting Irene’s attempts to interview Welkin.

• Valkyria Chronicles was released at around the same time as when Gundam 00 Season Two was wrapping up. Fans came in expecting a retelling of the story in anime form after it was announced, and since I do not have a PS3 or the game to base my experiences on, I’ve opted to approach the anime from purely open-minded perspective (I usually approach adaptations with a bit of bias if I previously know what’s going on, such as for the Harry Potter movies).

• Selvaria Bles and Maximilian at one of the Valkyrur Ruins in the Barious Desert. For whatever reason, this post doesn’t feature them as frequently as Squad 7, so I’ll introduce them here (or rather, with the age of this anime, re-introduce). Maximillian is an an Imperial prince, second in line of succession to the Imperial throne, and absolute commander of the Empire’s occupation forces in Gallia. His strategies revolve around using massive force to crush the Gallian opposition, including super weapons such as huge land battleships and Selvaria’s Valkyrian abilities.

• The incident involving the Imperial soldier in episode ten is a reminder that all soldiers in classical warfare are human, operating under orders and oftentimes, hesitant to execute their superior’s wishes. After being trapped by a blizzard, an Imperial soldier arrives and threatens them with a grenade, but eventually reveals that he joined the Imperial military with the hopes of having a better life. Despite this, he grew disillusioned and deserted, being shot in the process.

• Ten episodes in, and it becomes clear that squad 7 is more or less a completely unified, competent group that has participated in enough successful operations to shame General Damon, one of the brass in the Gallian Army who attained his position via nepotism and as such, is completely incompetent. As such, as the war progresses, Squad 7 is increasingly treated like Bad Company and is deployed on suicide missions. Like Squad 7, they come out of each mission successful, much to Damon’s consternation.

• By episode twelve in Gundam 00 Season Two, the Ptolemios crew has successfully tested the 00 Raiser and evades the Federation and A-Law’s efforts to capture them. In Valkyria Chronicles, the Gallian Princess is kidnapped during a ceremony honouring Welkin and Faldio’s successes, and Squad 7, with Faldio’s assistance, is sent to retrieve them.

• Irene catches wind of princess’ kidnapping as a reminder that there are deeper and fouler forces at work behind all of the nobility and higher-ups. Where I live, the news is always discussing some sort of political scandal or another surrounding the federal government: I view this as merely a product of how transparent our system is, permitting even for the most (seemingly) minute of things to be disseminated to the public. A public sufficiently dissatisfied would probably vote in a new government here, but in monarchies and authoritarian states, this is not possible, and indeed, their governments tend to suppress a lot of information.

• By now, any competent general would have realised that Squad 7 has the unique skill of getting a mission done properly without unnecessary casualties. They are deployed to take on the Essen, a massive mobile artillery unit commanded by General Gregor. Berthold Gregor is a 51-year-old Drei Stern general. The oldest general, Berthold is level-headed yet merciless, feared even amongst the Imperials for his brutality and lack of compassion even for his own troops. He is voiced by Chikao Outsuka, who had also played Aeolia Schenberg in Gundam 00.

• Ramal is one of Faldio’s subordinates and appears to have a crush on Isara. The whole methodology surrounding the Imperial forces and their habit of wielding superweapons means that should these superweapons ever be compromised or destroyed, the wielders would sustain a significant loss of staff and resources. This is partially why I prefer for armed forces not to field superweapons, instead, depending on smaller innovations to common weapons and superior training in general to secure victory.

While Valkyria Chronicles is considered by more well-known anime critics to be lacking in a coherent story and believable characters, the anime itself is an adaptation of a game, and as such, presents the story from perhaps what might be considered one possible means of playing through the game. My opinions might change once I reach the end of the anime, but presently, I find a series that continues to keep things interesting through a combination of combat and character dynamics. In other words, I don’t see the lack of coherent story (yet, at this point). While the characters’ archetypes are nothing new (especially for those who’ve seen a lot of anime in general), from a personal standpoint, I maintain that it is not so much what a character is individually, but rather, how they interact with the other characters and their environment (not one or the other, but both). In Valkyria Chronicles, the environment is the unique point, providing analogues of 1930s hardware and weapons powered by ragnite (in place of oil). I find great interest in shows set in alternate worlds (Break Blade and Sora no Woto come to mind), so it should come as little surprise that Valkyria Chronicles has proven to be an enjoyable experience thus far, for its depiction of conflict in a world that is similar to, and yet different than our own.

Crysis- Recovery

But, something…something doesn’t want us here. Something out there is killing people. ―Hostage

Nomad is tasked with rescuing one of the hostages held by the KPA in a village. After breaking through a KPA checkpoint and obtaining information on the hostages’ whereabouts, Nomad enters the town and rendezvous with Psycho, who escorts the hostages to safety. The first hostage the team rescues turns out to be a CIA agent who was sent to monitor Dr. Rosenthal’s work. In the jungle, Nomad finds another hostage named Badowski dead with ice shards in his back, as the KPA battle an alien machine nearby. After Nomad regroups with Prophet, Prophet is suddenly snatched by another flying machine, which flies away with him in its grasp.

• After stumbling upon a KPA station, Nomad will be ordered to gather intel concerning where the hostages are being held. After the intel is gathered, Psycho will move into the town, and Prophet will remain behind, moving to a new location after the hostages are secured.

• Most of the technology exhibitions show off the Crytek Engine by placing the player within the depths of a jungle and illustrating what lighting and texture details are like. I find more enjoyment in having out at the water’s edge. Of course, I can’t actually feel the tropical humidity, but I can nearly imagine it, what with how nice things look here.

• The precision rifle, designated DSG-1, is the main long-range rifle used by KPA forces. Despite the fact that ammunition is relatively rare, the precision rifle is capable of stopping standard KPA soldiers with a single shot, and the weapon does not suffer from damage drop-off to the same extent as the other weapons. The first precision rifle found in the game comes with the assault scope, making the rifle less effective than it would otherwise be. I prefer to grab the rifle for the scope, and then switch back to the shotgun.

• Prophet suggests blowing up the gas station to create a distraction, but with cloak mode, this isn’t strictly necessary. I attached a silencer to my SCAR, and snuck in to the school where the hostage was held. Careful use of cover meant I did not have to fire a single shot. Of note is the blockade here: there are bounding mines that can kill the players instantly. These mines can be shot, upon which they will jump into the air and explode, but immediately raising the alarm.

• The hostage turns out to be a CIA agent sent to investigate Rosenthal’s research. Regardless of how quick or slowly the player approaches the town, Psycho will always appear behind the player after Nomad makes to open the door.

• After the hostage is secure, KPA tanks (T-108) will roll into the village. There are missile launchers in the school house: three shots will disable a tank. The player does not have access to C4 charges here, and we note that small arms fire is useless against armour. My favourite approach is to clock, get to a position behind the tank gun and fire. The T-108 has a large fuel tank mounted on its rear that can be ignited with small arms fire, although this only inflicts minor damage to the tank and will eventually burn itself out.

• At my old website, I suggested that players keep to an assault rifle/shotgun loadout to engage the KPA patrols while making their way to the caves to meet up with Prophet. The assault rifle, paired with its assault scope, and a shotgun mounting a reflex sight, will be more than sufficient to engage all of the forces here, although yes, there is the possibility of cloaking and hiding in the creek to evade patrols.

• KPA soldiers may be found in groups, making it viable to use fragmentation grenades to force them out of positions and even clear out groups of clustered soldiers. On closer inspection, one may note that I always have my assault rifle in semi-automatic mode: this is because automatic fire will burn through ammunition very quickly, and a single, well-placed headshot from an assault rifle at medium ranges is sufficient to do the job.

• After reaching the end of the creek and perhaps admiring the scenery (clicking on the images will yield their 1080p resolution), it’s time to go and wrap up this mission. Again, players opting to use cloak and sneak by the KPA forces will complete this part of the mission more quickly; there are KPA patrols everywhere in this area, and engaging all of them will deplete ammunition very quickly. Players who’ve made it thus far without switching to the FY-71 rifle, keeping the SCAR, have done so by picking their fights carefully and not wasting ammunition on every patrol or camp they come across.

• The mission ends after Prophet is abducted by an unknown entity, of the same type that killed Aztec earlier on. The player is not given the opportunity to go spelunking at this point: the third mission begins on a trail outside of a farm.

It’s been a little more than three years since I’ve played this mission; on my first playthrough, I opted for the Stallone Rambo approach and lit up everything in sight, raising the alarm and taking far too much time waiting for my armour to regenerate even as KPA soldiers lobbed grenades at my last known position. Thus, this mission proved to be a longer one on that attempt. However, in my last play-through, I made use of the cloak and foliage, concealing myself in the bush and using cloak in the open to move around. It comes as hardly any surprise that I was able to make my way to the KPA-held village far more quickly and move on to the mission’s next phase. If anything, Recovery emphasises the fact that Crysis is very much a “do it how you like it” game, permitting for both approaches to be taken. This choice extends to the weapons a player may wield: all of the weapons will get the job done, but the choice of weapon and customising the weapons themselves really allow the player to fine-tune exactly how they want to approach a mission. On YouTube, for instance, some players will make extensive use of cloak and silencers, while others prefer sniping their enemies from a distance, and yet others will jump right in with a shotgun equipped with a reflex sight. The choice is entirely dependent on the player, allowing a player to complete a mission using their style of choice, and weapons of choice. Recovery sees many firsts for the player, including the acquisition of the assault scope, precision rifle, missile launcher and engagement with armour. In many ways, this mission might’ve been more suited for a demo mission in terms of gameplay, but compared to the first mission, it is set entirely during the day, and as such, things like the sunrise cannot be showcased.

Crysis- Contact

So JSOC’s got us chasin’ Archeologists now? Now this will be a cake walk. ―Aztec

In 2020 when North Korean forces led by General Ri-Chan Kyong take control of the Lingshan Islands. A team of American civilian archaeologists, led by Dr. Rosenthal, send out a distress call indicating that they have discovered something that could change the world. Thus Raptor Team is dispatched to the islands, with the core mission of evacuating them and securing any valuable information that they have. The team consists of Nomad, Psycho, Aztec, Jester and team leader Prophet (all under code names); they are outfitted with Nanosuits, which help protect them from gunfire and explosions, as well as giving them superhuman strength and abilities. As they perform a high-altitude jump onto one of the islands, an unknown flying entity disrupts the jump by smashing into Nomad, and the team is separated. The crash deactivates Nomad’s Nanosuit and destroys his parachute, but he is saved because he lands on water and his suit absorbs the impact of the landing. After he makes his way to shore, Prophet is able to reset Nomad’s suit remotely, restoring its normal function. As Raptor Team regroups after the jump, Aztec is killed by an unknown entity. When the team finds him, they discover that whatever killed him also killed and dismembered a nearby squad of KPA. The remaining members of Raptor Team proceed with the mission. Along the way they discover the hostages’ boat frozen on a hill near the coast of the island. They also get their first look at the aliens who have been attacking their team, when a flying alien machine sneaks up on them and snatches Jester, killing him shortly thereafter.

• When I first played Crysis, it was when I was supposed to be studying linear algebra and completing an assignment. Instead, I spent the afternoon shooting at palm trees and watching them collapse to the ground, before realising I had a tutorial I needed to attend. When I played the game next, it was in March 2010.

• The default key-binding in Crysis maps “f” as the primary action key, meaning that every time I made to melee someone, I ended up grabbing them. This allows for some rather cruel laughs, as one can toss KPA soldiers around like ragdolls, but it does serve a more practical purpose: grabbing a KPA soldier and throwing him into a crowd will knock them down, buying one some breathing room to clock, recharge or reload.

• Armour mode is the most commonly fielded mode in the game, behaving similarly to the Mjolnir Armour from Halo. However, it takes fewer hits, making it more important to make use of cover. As such, it is actually less time consuming to use clock than to go in guns blazing: the latter means firing, alerting everyone and instigating a prolonged firefight. Now, there’s nothing wrong with a good firefight.

• The first sunrise in Crysis is now iconic, and it is here that the capacity of my current-generation video card really comes into play: one can see the volumetric lighting effects here. Later on, I’ve supplied a link back to my old website and the collection of screenshots I have from the XPS 420 days.

• Granted, this is a beautiful morning on a tropical beach, and I’ve pretty much cleared everything here with the SCAR; the SCAR is the American assault rifle all players start with and, compared to the FY-71, has superior accuracy and damage-per-round. Moreover, it has a superior magazine capacity, but ammunition for this rifle is relatively rare. Nonetheless, I like to stick with this weapon for as long as possible.

• Clock is perhaps the most-praised Nanosuit function, being recommended by all expert players as the means of getting through concentrations of enemy soldiers. The rate at which the clock drains is proportional to how quickly the player is moving, depleting slowly when the player is standing still or prone, and depleting quickly when the player runs. Getting hit will cause the suit energy to drain to zero, rendering the player vulnerable to enemy fire, even in armour mode. As such, the most common trick is to manually switch back into armour mode before firing.

• The HUD in Crysis is more intricate than in Bad Company 2, but the layouts are similar enough, with the minimap on the lower left, and the status indicators on the lower right. The minimap is unique in that it includes a threat indicator that glows green when the enemy forces are unaware of Nomad’s presence, and grows to red to indicate that Nomad’s been spotted and may be taking fire. Were it not for the fact that the KPA were swarming the Lingshan islands, this screenshot would suggest a remote South Pacific island, perfect for getaways.

• The cruiser on the horizon will bombard the player with missiles should they attempt to leave the combat area. It’s more of a habit now, more than anything, but after gathering intel on the KPA from a terminal, I always stop by up here to enjoy the view before continuing with the mission.

• Players of the demo will have access to most of the first mission and the XM2014 Shotgun, a close-quarters weapon used by the KPA and US Forces. Where needed, the weapon can fire a narrow pellet spread for increased effectiveness at longer ranges.

• A frozen boat in the middle of the island foreshadows the nature of the mysterious enemy on the island. A quick player may be able to catch a glimpse or two of these mysterious entities, but for now, the first mission draws to a close.

Crysis was released in 2007, but when I bought the Dell XPS 420, Crysis was not on my radar, and as such, I did not bother building it with a better video card. However, in my first year as an undergraduate, one of my friends bought an Alienware m17x laptop. At the time, this laptop completely blew the XPS out of the water, and was equipped with the NVIDIA GTX 260M SLI, giving it unparalleled performance. Of course, my friend wished to test the system’s performance, and decided to play Crysis on it. It was during a lunch hour that we hung out in a study hall engineering students and watched as he played through the first mission, showing off the game’s graphics on full settings. Subsequently, I obtained a copy of the trial and eventually, the full game. The Dell XPS 420 managed to run the game on medium settings at 1280 by 1024 reasonably well, at least, until the last mission was reached and the particle effects overloaded the HD 2600 XT I was running at the time. After beating the game and getting a review out for my old website, I removed the game to save disk space, playing the trial on occasion for amusement, but my curiosity in Crysis was partially re-ignited by Girls und Panzer and the presence of a brand-new system. Thus, I decided to play through Crysis again at higher settings for the experience, and an experience it was. The first mission felt completely different in that it was more alive than anything I had experienced previously. The differences aren’t really apparent until after reaching the KPA jammer and watching the sun rise. After this, the game is one long visual journey, with a distinct emphasis on the “do it how you like it” approach. In gathering most of my screenshots, I went with a stealthier approach, avoiding checkpoints and enemy patrols where I could, all the while admiring just how gorgeous this six-year-old game looks even when compared to games in this age.

Yuyushiki and Zeller’s Congruence: A midseason discussion

“Quick! In the Head Museum! It’s free on Tuesdays!” -Bender, Space Pilot 3000

December 31, 2999 is in fact a Tuesday, and the use of Zeller’s Congruence can be used to verify this claim. Zeller’s Congruence is also seen in Yuyushiki: we’re now past the halfway point in the anime, so it makes sense to consider what I feel about this show after six episodes. Thus far, we’ve seen Yui, Yukari and Yuzoko partake in traditional summer events, recall their childhoods, talk about whales and potatoes, enjoy nabe with Yoriko Matsumoto, their teacher and even watch as Yui goes on a sleep-deprived rampage after she spends an entire night reading a book.

• Yuyushki is considered to have countless similarities to Lucky Star, and admittedly, the unusual character designs, paired with the premise of information processing, led me to pick up the show, despite it not being in my list of things to watch initially. Of course, I now have more shows to watch than there are seconds on the clock, but the relatively few anime that interest me from the summer offerings might permit me to catch up.

• [Bane's Voice] Wait…I have something to tell you: stop hitting yourself!

• Someone’s probably going to have my head for posting this image, but Yuzuko’s daydream was too amusing to pass up.

• I watched the first episode way back in in May, a little more than a month ago and noted that their computer screens are probably of the 21 or 23 inch 1080p type. Had I watched this anime back in April, I might’ve been a little envious: ever since January, I found myself wishing that I had a widescreen monitor, which would have helped me write papers more efficiently (on Windows 7 and 8, the snap feature allows windows to be viewed side-by-side), but I only picked up new hardware, well, you guessed it, after finishing my thesis.

• Chiho Aikawa is a classmate of the girls and the class president. She is a quiet girl who admires Yui a lot and wants to become friends with her, but is usually intimidated by Yuzuko and Yukari’s antics.

• Nope, not going to deal with these n00bs today, telegraphs Yui, who is seen here hiding behind a workbook of some sort.

• Fanservice is pretty limited in this anime, but there is a fair portion of episode two dedicated to talking about…well, I’m not going to go there.

• Insofar, Yuyushiki has been less about data processing and more about the outrageous antics the girls partake in in their day-to-day lives. Slice-of-life anime are enjoyable (for me) because they remind me of my high school days, and also because believe it or not, university has been a similarly unique experience.

• Yuyushiki carries over the unique characterisation style from Lucky Star and the girls-love overtones from Yuru Yuri. There are also more comical, random elements that find themselves at home in Nichijou.

• Yui’s sleep-deprived state is immensely amusing to watch. I’ve spent a handful of days in a partially awake state, usually as a result of not sleeping well and developing a headache. To reduce its impacts, I carry Advil in my office to prevent myself from being too heavily affected from coding.

At the near-exact halfway point of the anime, Zeller’s Congruence is discussed as a means of determining the day of week. Upon hitting their equivalent of Wikipedia, Yuzuko and the others find the mathematical expressions for both the Gregorian and Julian calendars, although they are unable to understand how the equation itself operates. Carrying out the calculation itself turns out to be a relatively simple matter, requiring a basic understanding The expression itself consists of simple operations, as well as a handful of floor operators and the modulo operator: the former simply means “round to the lowest integer” (e.g. the floor of 1.9 and 1.3 is 1), and the modulo operator finds the remainder in a division operation (e.g. 15 mod 7 is 1). Thus, let’s give the Zeller’s Congruence a spin for December 31, 2999. I will ignore the software implementation for this example, and assume that we are using the Gregorian Calendar. For h as the day of week (0 = Saturday, 1 = Sunday, 2 = Monday, etc.), q as the day of month, m as the month, K as the year of the century and J as the century. Then:

Thus, using Zeller’s Congruence, we have demonstrated that December 31, 2999, will indeed be a Tuesday. Similarly, the equation yield h = 4 when asked for the day of week for January 1, 2020 (by the same methodologies above, although we use m = 13, k = 19 and J = 20 owing to special parameters used in the algorithm). This corresponds to a Wednesday, as expected. Unlike Yuzuko, I have some background in mathematics, so wielding this equation is not particularly problematic. After watching Yuyushiki and pursuing Wikipedia, some Tropers have come across the same page, which tells them that Zeller’s Congruence is for determining the day of week of any date on a Gregorian or Julian Calendar, although much of TVTropes’ user base will run into the same problem Yuzuko did, lacking the mathematical background required to wield the equation.

• On a typical day, I only have hot food during dinner, making it especially delicious. For the sake of inconvenience and efficiency, I prefer eating things that are quick in the mornings and during lunch; this is not to say they don’t taste good.

• I was originally wondering how I would go and add figure captions for all twenty of the screenshots, but I realised that I could probably talk about random stuff that (somewhat) pertains to the images the caption is supposed to accompany.

• Apparently, human interest in cute things is an evolutionary characteristic: our attraction to cute things, such as infants and children, arose from selection choosing for individuals who were more interested in taking care of small children and infants. Because parents who took more care of their offspring were more likely to pass on there genes, this behaviour would eventually have a higher proportion in a population and as such, modern society values cuteness.

• I remember this one time, I was watching a game of Street Fighter II and began laughing so hard, I was crying. The damage mechanics, coupled with unique sounds in Street Fighter II make a handful of unique jokes. I also recall laughing myself silly over some of the stuff that happens in Pure Pwnage (most notably, FPS_Doug’s antics and Jeremy’s tendency to pelvic thrust his CRT screen upon a victory). Laughing to the point of tears is supposed to be healthy in moderation.

• Admit it, the English version on Wikipedia of the Zeller’s Congruence is significantly easier to read. I’ve provided an example of how it works above: the equation is probably beyond the scope of materials that most high schools cover, but university students should feel right at home with the floor and ceiling operators.

• Yui resorts to her fists to keep Yuzuko in check after the latter tries to blackmail Yoriko into letting them have hotpot on campus in their clubroom.

• This is the first time I’ve seen crab meat in nabe: nabe differs from Chinese hotpot in that all of the ingredients are mixed together and cooked all at once, while the versions I’m used to involve cooking the meat first, followed by seafood and vegetables, and the noodles last, resulting in the flavour from everything put in previously to imbue with all of their flavours.

• Voiced by Minami Tsuda, Yui behaves in a very similar manner to Yui Funami from Yuru Yuri. Yuzuko, on the other hand, is voiced by Rumi Oubuko, who also played Chinatsu Yoshikawa from Yuru Yuri. Unlike Chinatsu, Yuzuko’s innocent nature does not belie a more evil side.

• In anime, the cameras are almost always “conveniently” placed for the viewer’s amusement, except maybe mine, especially since I choose my titles very carefully to avoid this stuff, and thus, are usually found watching anime in the presence of others, who don’t particularly mind my hobby. However, when this stuff shows up, people start asking questions.

• I’d never thought I’d actually be able to generate figure captions for this many images, but here you go.

Insofar, Yuyushiki has turned out to be a remarkably simple anime that is more minimalist than even Lucky Star in the way of story, focusing almost entirely on the girls’ daily lives. What sets Yuyushiki apart from other anime of this class would be its unique integration of data processing into the mix, making it fun to see what the girls will look up and summarise next. From a practical perspective, the girls are really getting nothing of value done (their club activities are essentially equivalent to looking up various topics on Wikipedia), but this aspect is forgiven owing to how well it interfaces with the girls’ unique personalities, making the anime a light-hearted alternative to the more focused series that this season has to offer. I note that I am following Suisei no Gargantia, Yahari ore no Seishun Love Come wa Machigatteiru and Ore no Imouto ga konna ni Kawaii Wake ga nai (second season) at the present and will discuss those in greater detail, hopefully before June ends.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2- Snowblind

“So, they trigger it in the right spot, down goes the US power grid. Then as our fine country slips into total fucking anarchy, the Russians decide to come knocking. The end!” ― Agent Aguire

The level picks up where Crack the Sky left off and starts with Bravo-Two out on the frozen lake headed towards the downed satellite. Once they get there, Sweetwater explains that they won’t be able to get the black box from it until it cools off. Just then, an explosion is heard to the right. More Russians show up and try to destroy the satellite with M2 Carl Gustav rocket launchers. After this section is clear, more approach from the other side, and soon a Mi-24 approaches with another rocketeer on board. Once they are all killed and the chopper is downed, a blizzard starts to set in while Redford and Haggard leave to try and find transport. As Sweetwater and Preston try and get the black box off of the satellite, Sweetwater decides to look for Sarge and heads off, leaving Preston with the satellite. He then discovers the black box tucked under the satellite, and heads off looking for the squad in the blizzard.

Flynn ends up contacting Preston, saying that he dropped flares along the path to light Preston’s way. Redford then comes in saying he and Sweetwater are looking for Haggard and Flynn while telling Marlowe he will need to find some warmth because of the cold as he moves down the mountain.. Preston heads down the path, keeping warm by going into the houses or creating fires with explosive barrels while killing Russians searching for him along the way. As he gets further down, the blizzard finally starts to let up as Flynn comes in with the squad and Aguire in his Black Hawk. The chopper helps clear out the town with Sweetwater and Haggard manning the miniguns, destroying most of the buildings as Preston pushes through. Once he reaches the last house, he climbs to the roof and boards the chopper. They then head off to a safe spot and Aguire tells them about the Russian superweapon. He says they are building a Scalar Weapon and the project leader is Arkady Kirilenko, the Russian that Preston was not able to shoot in Cold War. Aguire sends them off looking for Kirilenko in Chile where a US Armored Division will be supporting them.

• The first objective is to defend the satellite: enemy RPGs will appear and fire upon it, and the satellite will be destroyed if it takes too many hits. The player may use any combination of weapons here to prevent the RPG operators from firing.

• The heat of re-entry lights the scenery on fire and puts a crater in this abandoned town. There are a great many of emptied villages in Bad Company 2, leading me to wonder who used to live there and how long it has been since these settlements were vacated. Obviously, it’s a setting in a game, but curiosity nonetheless can bring about these questions in the calm before more enemy forces appear.

• There are plenty of M2 RPGs on the rooftops: as soon as the Hind shows up,  grab one and torch it. The projectiles arc a little, but at this range, aiming for the helicopter itself (without compensating for the arc) will be sufficient. As per usual, keep moving about to avoid getting hit while reloading.

• This is the interesting part of the mission: with a blizzard now upon Marlowe, the player will have to make their way down the mountain, and the cold will cause the visor to freeze up.

• While ammunition is common, players may opt to conserve it and use their knife to cut through doors into the homes to warm up. There are enemy soldiers in here, and as such, care must be taken to avoid getting hit, or worse, getting knifed.

• Explosive barrels, a cliche in almost all shooters, can be detonated to create fires that can ward off the ice accumulating on the screen.

• There is a house with a mounted grenade launcher somewhere around here, although it won’t be of too much use to the player. Those who are bored might use it to see the Frostbite 2 engine at work: firing a large number of grenades at any building will cause its collapse.

• The blizzard clears out once the player has made a fair bit of distance. Once it clears out, Flynn will inform Marlowe that they’re clear for extraction, but with the blizzard gone, this is a good opportunity to head back up the mountain, find the MCOM stations and arm them without fear of being frozen to death.

• I realised that this site does show up on anime news aggregators, meaning that these Bad Company 2 posts also appear with my regular anime posts. To ensure that those using the aggregator services find relevant anime news, I will try to make the gaming posts in conjunction with an anime-related post to keep things real.

• Heading up this ladder will conclude the mission, with the next mission involving tanks. I’m going to cap it here and begin the photo posts for Crysis, again, getting to the tank mission, before resuming Bad Company 2. At the time of writing, I’m done both games, but I’ll alternate the posts to ensure that there is sufficient variety.

Being able to knife through doors is fun, and is a preferred way of entering the various houses scattered around this map. After defending the satellite, a blizzard kicks in, separating Marlowe from the rest of Bad Company. Thus, to survive the mountain blizzard and not freeze to death, there are a handful of villages and explosive barrels along the way; standing near a fire will clear the screen of accumulated ice. Of course, one has to be careful about the soldiers inside the houses: carelessness will result in getting knifed. Snowblind is in fact reminiscent of Crysis‘ Paradise Lost, except that in the latter, the player is covering for a squad mate with a damaged Nanosuit, while here, the player must find heat sources for themselves. Contrasting the other missions in Bad Company 2, Snowblind is one of the most quiet of the missions, emphasising escape over the comedic elements found in other levels, giving this level a quiet, eerie ambiance as one finds themselves surrounded by a snowstorm.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2- Crack the Sky

“That is the greatest thing I have ever seen in my entire life.” ― Haggard, after the satellite crashes into an abandoned town.

The squad starts off in Flynn’s Black Hawk with Preston and Haggard manning the miniguns. Preston and Haggard clear out the landing zone while they take out multiple RPG troopers that try and bring the chopper down. Once the chopper lands, everyone gets out. A Russian tries to attack Sweetwater in which he hits the soldier back with his M60 and knocks him off the side. The squad proceeds towards the satellite station while being attacked by more Russian soldiers. A KORD in a machine gun nest pins the squad down and Sweetwater says they need to flank it and hit it from the side with an explosive to take it out. A sniper is also perched on top of some stairs towards the side, wielding a Type 88 Sniper. A Hind then flies in to drop off more troops as more come out from the station. After they are taken out, the squad breaches the satellite station, while being careful not to destroy the equipment needed to bring the satellite down.

Once the area is clear, Sweetwater hacks into the satellite and puts it on a crash course for an area about a kilometer away. Redford tries to raise Flynn, but he says the area is windy for him to come in for a safe pickup. The squad then proceeds to look for a vehicle to get to the crash site. Before heading out, they spot a CAV in the nearby town and move out. After pushing through the town, they obtain the vehicle and rush off towards the crash site. However, the Russians found out that they brought the satellite in and are racing to the crash site as well. They take out the multiple Vodniks and Quad Bikes on the way there and makes it just in time to see the satellite hit the nearby abandoned town across the frozen lake. The mission ends with them approaching the satellite in the town.

• The first phase of the mission is to clear out the landing site using the minigun. With infinite ammunition and no overheating, one should prioritise clearing out all of the soldiers equipped with RPGs; they can quickly blow away the helicopter. Again, witness the power of the destruction engine here, as the roofs and walls of buildings crumble before the constant stream of bullets. As Haggard says, “They’d better run!”

• After landing, players are greeted with blue skies, blowing snow and a hill to climb, with radio dishes in the distance. This unique setting means that I spent a few moments looking around before proceeding up the hill. Despite the sense of urgency to access the satellite controls, there’s actually no time limit, making exploration a possibility. There are a few machine gun positions up the hill, making it a good idea to dispatch them as soon as possible.

• There is a collectible M95 sniper rifle at the sniper perch to the left, after Sweetwater asks “Geez, where are we, Hoth?” A sniper at the top of a patrol post will be using a Type 88, marking one of the few points where the Type 88 and M95 occur in the game without being acquired from a supply crate.

• Once inside the command post, Redford reminds everyone to fire carefully, as destroying the satellite controls will cost them the satellite. Here, at close-quarters, a shotgun is most useful, although there’s nothing wrong with using the XM8. Where using the knife, a quick hand is recommended, since being knifed by an enemy is an instant-death.

• I prefer the Type 88 over the M95 for its superior firing rate and magazine size: because it drops enemies in a single shot, it is preferred over the M95 for most parts of the campaign.

• There are a total of three collectible weapons in Crack the Sky, with this SCAR-LS being one of them. Equipped with a scope and silencer, this weapon fires with a minimal amount of sound and is one of the weapons that may be used to take out the sentry at the beginning of Upriver. I might go back and play through the game a second time with a suppressed SMG to see whether or not these weapons can help with stealth.

• This time, the mounted gun will prove quite useful, as additional enemies will appear  in the streets below. If memory serves, these guns can overheat, so it is prudent to fire them in short bursts. The gun shield provides additional cover at the cost of visibility, so a bit of vigilance in spotting RPGs is necessary.

• The CAV buggy is equipped with a machine gun and grenade launcher: Haggard will automatically fire the machine gun, and the player will need to both drive and fire the mortar/grenade launcher.

• In addition to whiteout conditions on the road, enemy vehicles will appear and fire upon the player: carelessness has caused me to plummet over a cliff at least a handful of times.

• I’m almost at the crash site here, and after hitting the cutscene, the satellite’s descent is reminiscent of a meteor making an impact.

Crack the Sky is the last of the missions I would play at a friend’s place: it was the end of summer three years ago and another friend was hosting a LAN party that day, which had Halo 3 at its core. I decided to drop by my friend’s place first: it was a cloudy, misty morning, and water droplets collected on my bike’s frame as I made my way to his place. Because I was early, he asked if I wished to continue in Bad Company 2. A solid experience previously led to my affirmative response, and I began at Crack the Sky, with mini gun in hand as I cleared out the LZ. The mission’s setting, in the mountains with radio dishes as the backdrop, was a hugely memorable one, and perhaps one of the most interesting of the maps I’ve encountered, being a mountainous, wintery version of the Halo 3 map Standoff. Upon reaching the top of the cliff face, a sniper with a T88 rifle will be present, and beside him, there is the infamous M95 rifle. After sniping everything that moved, I swapped off to a shotgun and accessed the satellite controls. The last phase of this mission involves a wild ride to the village where the satellite is expected to impact, and the sheer amount of snow blowing around on the screen makes it an authentic, if difficult experience (I drove off the cliff face a few times). If it were not apparent by now, one of the biggest strengths in Bad Company 2 is its setting in South America, a welcome change from the countless shooters that are set in the Middle East or Europe.

Girls und Panzer Movie: More news and details

A few days ago, I read a magazine story that gave several small details about what the Anzio OVA and the movie itself will entail. In particular, the magazine story gives the length of the movie to be relatively short, clocking in at 80 minutes. As a sequel, the movie is to be set after Ooarai’s victory over Black Forest, featuring new characters and tanks. Of interest is the point that claims that a team superior to Black Forest exists, so there are implications that the movie will probably be set at the international level of competition. Furthermore, the movie will emphasise friendship and passion as a thematic element, as did the TV series. The news article also notes that the movie will lack any unexpected plot twists, deaths and betrayal amongst the characters, suggesting that the movie will feel like an extended TV episode, centred around Panzerfahren. With these statements in hand, it is clear that the Girls und Panzer movie will probably be structured similar to the TV series, not unlike the Strike Witches Movie or K-On! Movie; these films stuck close to the mythologies employed by their respective series, giving them a friendly, familiar feel (an example of a movie that deviates from the source is the Ah! My Goddess Movie, which by far surpasses the OVAs that were released before it). I will reserve my judgement for after the movie releases, which is expected to be in March 2014, a seemingly unfathomable distance from the present.

• The movie they speak of will release at some point in 2014, meaning that I probably won’t see the movie until 2015. I’ve got the patience, but depending on what’s happening in 2015, I’m not sure if I’m going to have time. This time around, there seems to be a team that’s even more powerful than Black Forest Peak out there in the world…this is a reminder that there is always a bigger fish, and that Ooarai will need to earn any victory they strive for in the movie, as well.

• For the present, I absolutely cannot wait to see the OVA depicting Ooarai and their campaign against Anzio. I imagine that Anchovy will retain her personality from the manga, and her experiences with Miho will similarly lead to her accepting that Panzerfahren may extend beyond victors and vanquished.

The article also states that the Anzio match will be completely different than the version we saw in the manga. I have noted previously that the manga itself is not canon, and as such, here are my predictions on the OVA. I anticipate a rush attack from Anzio, forcing Ooarai to regroup. The volleyball team and first years will hopefully be given an opportunity to shine here, taking down several of the units engaging Ooarai’s flag tank, and in a final stand, Miho’s company lays waste to Anchovy’s remaining tanks, resulting in the scene we saw at the end of episode seven. Presently, no release date on the OVA has been noted, but I will post that here once the information itself is made known. For the present, one more OVA will be released, and as per usual, I’m hoping for a 10-15 minute deal showing off some of the celebrations.

Snow War!

Yukari and Erwin (Riko Matsumoto) go on a reconnaissance mission to determine Pravda’s deployment. After riding out a snowstorm, Yukari and Erwin take on disguises as Pravda students and speak with the operator of the KV-2, successfully obtaining vital information about how Pravda has organised their armour.

• Yukari explains some of the shoes she possesses after Erwin notes that her feet are freezing from the conditions. It would appear that cayenne pepper helps prevent sweat from accumulating, helping keep the heat in and the cold out. Both girls discuss their preferences in shoes (decidedly more practical than even mine), and explain that the Soviet Army held the advantage following Operation Barbarossa over the German Army because of the former’s preparedness.

• Yukari and Erwin are singing Yuki no Shingun, a military march, as they traverse the terrain. After finding some of Pravda’s units, they decide to move to a different position, but a snowstorm kicks in.

• Yukari carries a Gerber 30-000075 E-Tool Folding Spade with Serrated Blade with her wherever she goes, allowing her to quickly dig out a shelter when the snowstorm occurs. This shovel retails for around $74.99 in most places (and $45.00 on Amazon), has a coated boron carbon steel spade and locks open for stability. That’s right: shop smart…shop S-Mart…YA GOT THAT?!?!

• Erwin and Yukari do impressions of the student council while sharing onigiri and cocoa to raise their spirits. Shortly after, the snow lightens, and Yukari (deliberately) falls down a snow-covered hill for the experience.

• Saori and Hana reassure Miho that their recon teams are in good hands, especially since Yukari appears to be prepared for all ends.

• Grabbing uniforms and masquerading as the enemy is a technique that is tried in many contexts: usually, the uniforms themselves denote association, and as such, the party being infiltrated is less likely to ask questions. Yukari and Erwin are able to make contact with one of the KV-2‘s operators, Nina: these tanks had thick armour that could repel fire from Panzer IV tanks: Yukari determines that these tanks were in fact hampered by their low rate of fire and will make use of this once Miho orders Ooarai to sortie.

• After warming up to Nina with a cup of hot cocoa, Yukari is able to acquire some vital information about their deployment patterns. Despite Erwin nearly blowing their cover, Yukari is able to think fast on her feet and recover. We note that while Yukari has acquired some skill as a spy, in real situations, the enemy might anticipate that something is off far more quickly, whereas there, they were able to buy Nina’s trust with hot cocoa.

• She’s officially dubbed KV-2-tan by the fans now, but her name is Nina. The KV-2′s commander is Alena, according to the source materials.

• Mission complete! Elsewhere, someone called me out for posting a link with the alleged intent of self-promotion, but I do note that I am the first party online to get the screenshots out.

• This OVA makes it quite clear that Erwin and Yukari make a great team. After this, episode nine resumes, and its outcome should be quite clear to all of us. In the TV series, Mako and Sodoko are shown on their mission in some detail, being able to gather intel quite quickly but also raising the alarm when Sodoko throws a snowball at Mako and hits a tree instead.

Snow War returns to the 15-minute length enjoyed by the second and third OVAs, satisfying one of my original criteria for the OVA. Focussing on a recon mission Yukari and Erwin conduct, the OVA allows both characters to interact with each other in the absence of the other characters: it is here that both girls’ love of history come into play, and it becomes apparent that the two would have been fast friends, regardless of whether or not they had participated in Panzerfahren or had met under other circumstances. This OVA has two distinct acts: the first concerns Yukari and Erwin’s discussion of military implements, while the second act depicts their infiltrating Pravda and obtaining information on Pravda’s armour positions. I daresay that the girls demonstrate exemplary infiltration skills: this time, they ask the right questions to grab the intel they require, without raising any suspicion whatsoever. Despite being schoolgirls, they seem to do a better job than the world’s most famous spy, 007, who has an unfortunate habit of having his cover blown and resorting to combat to cover a hasty escape. Of course, the circumstances and methods are different, but at the end of the day, they succeed in their task. Comparisons to real-world recon and infiltration should not really be drawn for any serious discussions (I myself are doing so for amusement). My assessment now is that this OVA is one that is amusing to watch, presenting a chance to see the anime’s resident history buffs converse together and ultimately, successfully follows in the footsteps of its predecessors, more than compensates for the previous OVA’s short length. There is only one OVA remaining, to depict the girls’ celebrations, and after that, it is a wait of unknown duration to the fight between Anzio and Ooarai. I will be discussing those in future posts (as well as adding figure captions once the time permits!).