Finished reading Mushishi

Finished reading Mushishi (1999) on 9/10/2014.

Story and art by Urushibara Yuki.

50 chapters.

Ginko is a wandering doctor. And the ailments he treats are that of a supernatural nature caused by tiny, shy, spirit-like beings known as mushi, which despite their size can be the cause of large-scale, devastating phenomena.

7.5/10 – This manga has a very interesting concept and is presented in a magically nostalgic and melodramatic way that connects with me in a weird, scary, yet gentle manner. However, even though I'm happy with getting into Ginko's past and how he became a mushishi I still think the story had a lot more potential for a deeper complexity that it never really reached aside from some exposition. Most of the stories were self-contained and at one point they got really repetitive to the point where I almost gave up. The final story was also a sort of self-contained two parter that almost made me think that Ginko was going to become something more. But he didn't, and I wasn't aware that that was the end of the manga until the last page where the author says 'farewell'. Still, this is one of the best manga I've read so far and the idea is very original. I just really wish the story would've gotten more interesting.

Finished watching Space Pirate Captain Harlock

Finished watching Space Pirate Captain Harlock (1978, Toei Animation, 42 epi.) on 07/11/2014.

A race of plant-based alien beings known as the Mazone threaten a futuristic Earth claiming the planet once belonged to them before humans took over. But, without official consent from Earth, in their path stands Space Pirate Captain Harlock with his space battleship, the Arcadia, manned by his lively crew of space mateys as he departs on a journey to the source of the Mazone.

7/10 - For its time I'm sure the show was pretty epic, but I did fall asleep on a handful of episodes. Regardless, I did enjoy it in its entirety. I was left with some technical questions however about the plot, like why does Mime keep saying that she gave her life to Harlock. for example. I must've fallen asleep when it came up, maybe. Also, there were some scenes that were supposed to be serious but I couldn't help laughing because of the way they were directed, sometimes they were just downright awkward. There's also some sort of weird consistency with the storytelling too, like the Tokargan males having odd-shaped heads one episode and then looking like normal humans on another. I really think this must've been an awesome show to watch in late 1970's Japan. Again, It's not what I'm used to but I certainly enjoyed it. One very important thing to mention is that this is a show based on the manga by the same title which was created by Leiji Matsumoto who, by the way, supervised the creation of those Daft Punk anime videos. Yeah! Remember those? Interstella 5555 was the sh*t! In fact, you'll see a lot of character design similarities throughout most of his work. He has a stock of characters he likes to keep using. Most noticeable examples would be Doctor Zero or even Tochiro from this show.