Brickmuppet Blog 2.0

June 29, 2015

Reply Hazy, Try Again

That is the answer to the following burning question: Is it Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?

You see, they never actually addressed the ethics of the matter. Indeed no picking up of girls takes place in the dungeon (unless one counts physically picking up injured girls to get them to safety).

I'm going to have to go back and watch the whole thing again.

To my considerable astonishment though, the answer to the more relevant question "Was the show any good?" is "Yes. Definitely!"

As expected from the ending of the last episode, the finale is one huge fight.This could have been tedious, but the episode is crammed with an extraordinary amount of world building, character development and genuine surprises.

This was a remarkably satisfying ending to a show that has been way more enjoyable than it had any right to be.

Towards the end of the episode the god Hermes, who has been sort of hanging around for the last two episodes, acting suspiciously, climbs a tree and gives a rather exuberant soliloquy which leads me to believe two things...

1: A sequel may be in the works.

2: This is not actually a harem show, or at least only secondarily so.

more...

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 02:50 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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June 27, 2015

This Time For Sure

Last week's out of the park finale was NOT the end of Fate Stay Night. Tonight's episode was.

In stark contrast to the white knuckles action of the climax, this epilogue is a mostly quiet affair which takes place a few years later in England. Flashbacks that serve to wrap up loose ends are woven into the story which involves Rin and Shirou taking a day off, contemplating what they've been through and how what they learned during their ordeal will impact their decisions for their future.

Aside from from one momentary digression it's pretty much sublime.

I'm kind of surprised that they did this. The episode was in some ways completely unnecessary, but it provided a very nice (if slightly bittersweet) denouement for what has been a superb (if occasionally quite dark) show.

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June 20, 2015

Oh...One of THOSE Episodes I See

Actually...No.

In the latest episode of IIW2T2PUGIAD there was a brief bath scene but they didn't sell any blue rays with it. The episode was mostly character exposition and shopping. Also: stupid criminals and a fight...then something else happened but I have no idea what....it looks exciting though.

This is not high art by any means but it remains an interesting show in spite of itself. The heroines are all particularly well deve ...well realized and the portrayal of the gods is, despite all the anachronisms, actually faithful in tone to the classical myths.

I've enjoyed it so far, though it remains to be seen how they wrap it up.

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Fate Stay Night Ends (Updated)

Well, Rin there pretty much sums it up.

The writing, the production values and the characterizations of this show remained above par for all of the 25 episodes, and the pacing was exemplary for 23 and a half . Even that brief pacing glitch worked in retrospect as it was conveying a somewhat surreal plot point.

Rin was awesome but underutilized in the first series, but in this one she truly shines as one of the best SFF heroines in recent years, smart, gutsy and principled. Shiro, the male lead from the previous series, lacks much of the plot armor and 'designated hero' perks he enjoyed in that show, and is a much better character for it.

Fate Stay Night added to its many good points, a particularly rare quality; a satisfying ending (which was doubly so for those who saw the first series).

UPDATE: Wait. What?

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June 13, 2015

Edith Hamilton LIED to Me!

For one thing, she gave a completely inaccurate and quite possibly actionable description of Hephaestus.

From episode 2 of Is it OK to Pick up Girls in a Dungeon?. I did not expect to be following this, but, despite some harem overtones (and undertones...and sidetones), is a surprisingly clever and eminently enjoyable yarn thus far.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 10:33 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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June 10, 2015

Wait...I Have a Question

Said inquiry is not about what may be the most annoying version of Bad Apple ever, but the video here, IS there actually a licensed Touhou series?

Or is all of that video fan made?

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 07:57 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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June 08, 2015

Oh, My...YES!

This looks awesome...

...on several levels.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 04:34 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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June 07, 2015

Apropos the Post After Next

You should probably click on this video ...

Zeppellin!

...and reflect upon how much less stylish OUR apocalypse is going to be because of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and all of those architects he influenced.

Or...just rejoice that it's finally coming out!

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 06:35 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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June 02, 2015

They're BACK!

...and still killing viewer's brain cells.

Robot Girls Z PLUS, is the sequel to last years chibi super robot robot musume fight show of almost the same name. It seems to be following in its predecessor's footsteps by providing its viewers with nine minute doses of intense, exuberantly puerile stupidity that parodies the Japanese super-robot shows of the 1970's.

I really cannot overstate just how profoundly dumb this show is.

It made me smile.

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June 01, 2015

Oh Good!

I was beginning to think they had just taken our money. That does not appear to be the case.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 04:14 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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How Times Have Changed

While channel surfing, I recently discovered that Kill-La-Kill is playing on Cartoon Network. Now it's running after midnight, but there seems to be little or no censorship of this show, at least in what I saw.

Those unfamiliar with the show may wonder why this is surprising. For those people, I have linked to this comprehensive and NSFW overview of what Kill-LaKill does not sound like.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 03:27 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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And Now For Something Completely Different

The last post was less than uplifting.

As a palette cleanser, here is the exact opposite of woe; Hestia with a bag of Moon Pies.

Hestia by EZ-6

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 03:16 PM | Comments (25) | Add Comment
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1 How does that...ribbon...work?

Posted by: Ben at Tue Jun 2 23:08:34 2015 (S4UJw)

2 Magic.

Posted by: Pixy Misa at Tue Jun 2 23:13:44 2015 (PiXy!)

3 Hestia is a goddess. Normal rules don't apply to her.

Posted by: Steven Den Beste at Wed Jun 3 09:08:34 2015 (+rSRq)

How does that...ribbon...work?

Despite what some commentors have suggested the ribbon appears to be completely explainable using basic engineering without any allowances being necessary for quantum mechanics special relativity or Fortean phenomenae.

The ribbon is tied around the arms between the elbow and shoulder and spaced so that it passes directly beneath the wearer's bosom. This does not provide any meaningful orthopedic support as tension varies widely with arm position and has considerable potential to chafe over time. Rather its purpose is accentuating and display that part of the anatomy in a way that is similar to a push-up bra but can be turned on and off at the whim of the wearer (See Figure A) . Figure A

http://brickmuppet.mee.nu/images/HestiaCosplayWithProperEquipment.jpg

Furthermore, this arrangement makes it visually quite obvious that the displayed anatomical region has a certain minimal volume. Unlike with the aforementioned push-up bra this cannot be faked as the ribbon simply will not serve its accentuation purposes if the cup size is below a certain level , dependent only to a limited degree on the amount of tension kept on the ribbon (see figure B) Figure B

http://brickmuppet.mee.nu/images/2HestiaCosplayAforEffort.jpg

"Next time I'm going as Queen Emereldas."
That physical limitation makes this attire choice of particular use to young ladies who have been blessed in a certain way and wish to make this abundantly clear to certain individuals and at times of their choosing.

As to the precise method by which the ribbon is tied, see Figure C Figure C

http://brickmuppet.mee.nu/images/HestiaRibbonDiagram1.jpg

As you can see the ribbon is....not actually tied, it just sort of is looped and there is no way to regulate it's position on the upper arm....

OK Figure C is probably inaccurate, because...physics, so we'll go to the original source material... Figure D (Pun Inevitable, But Not Intended)

http://brickmuppet.mee.nu/images/Hestia.jpg

OK as one can see from Figure D, Figure C does seem to be an accurate representation of the way in which the ribbon is tied. This indicates that the ribbon material is one that has a very high elasticity and may need to be similar to bungee cord. This arrangement also requires some awareness and discipline on the part of the wearer to keep tension on the ribbon .

Additionally, the wearer, for obvious reasons cannot raise her arms over her head as in Figure E Figure E

http://brickmuppet.mee.nu/images/ThisCANNOTHappen.jpeg

That can't... If it's not tied...

...

...
OK. Ignore everything prior.
The ribbon is a cosmetic application of a technology that is sufficiently advanced to achieve the observed effects.
I hope this was helpful and answers your inquiry.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Wed Jun 3 11:12:51 2015 (ohzj1)

5 Sacred honor requires that I mention that Figures A & B above were by Ueyama Micherou.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Wed Jun 3 11:20:59 2015 (ohzj1)

6 It must be glued to her arms. It can't be glued to her arms.

Posted by: Ben at Wed Jun 3 12:16:49 2015 (DRaH+)

7 Ergo, it's impossible, and therefore must be supernatural. Or super-dimensional.

Posted by: Ben at Wed Jun 3 12:19:40 2015 (S4UJw)

8 That's a worthy artist link, thanks.

Posted by: Pete Zaitcev at Wed Jun 3 16:38:31 2015 (RqRa5)

9 Figure C's "how to cosplay Hestia even if you haven't got the rack" offers a plausible way of emulating her Divine Gravity, but I suspect frequent re-taping will be necessary. Describing the less-gifted as "oppai ga samishii" seems a bit harsh, though.

-j

Posted by: J Greely at Thu Jun 4 00:37:03 2015 (ZlYZd)

I think it's been Don who has posted pictures of cosplayers from conventions he's gone to. (I don't think he's done so for a long time, though.)

My main impression from looking at those pictures usually is that the women doing it (I don't look at the guys) usually are totally miscast, particularly in the figure department. Usually they just don't have what it takes in terms of natural equipment to pretend to be the characters they aspire to. It's sad.

A lot of Japanese cosplayers, on the other hand, really are outstanding, especially somewhere like Comiket. But... most of the really good ones are models, hired by someone or other to do it, or they're aspiring idols hoping to get scouted. In both cases it means they're the top bracket of an extremely deep bench, the Japanese equivalent of Hollywood starlets. They ain't hobbyists, that's for sure.

Even so, I doubt there will be many willing to try to do Hestia, and damned few who will do it well, for reasons I think should be obvious.

Posted by: Steven Den Beste at Thu Jun 4 01:35:46 2015 (+rSRq)

They ain't hobbyists, that's for sure.

Actually, a lot of them are. While Comiket has a lot of booth babes they tend to be inside where photography is disallowed. Most of the photos are of people in the "Photos Allowed" enclave and the vast majority of them are hobbyists, often quite serious ones. They may sensibly be looking to monazite their hobby by parlaying it into a career in film, gravure, or (more likely) an internet following, but a lot of them do like the source material.

American fangirls get a bum rap. Comiket has half a million people and the photos that get passed around are the top percent of a percent of a pool that is orders of magnitude bigger than any US con. The few big US cons (far smaller than Comiket) produce some impressive cosplay displays and while Comicon is mostly booth babes and aspiring actresses, shows like Dragon Con have cosplayers that are truly impressive hobbyists. Like Japan, many of the fangirls that can do so attempt to monetize their hobby like Jennifer Nigiri did (which is perfectly rational and appropriate. You're only young once.) In my experience many of them also genuinely like the source material.

The other thing to remember is that one reason many people go to cons to have fun and be around people who won't judge them too harshly if they dress a bit goofy.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Thu Jun 4 09:31:58 2015 (ohzj1)

Figure C's "how to cosplay Hestia even if you haven't got the rack" offers a plausible way of emulating her Divine Gravity, but I suspect frequent re-taping will be necessary. Describing the less-gifted as "oppai ga samishii" seems a bit harsh, though.

Tape and spirit gum can only do so much, and yeah, that was indeed harsh...

I'll take this moment to apologize to all of my female readers, not for posting some morphologically unlikely cheesecake (that's how this blog rolls) but rather for having the comments section devolve into DFC bashing, "fake fangirl inquisitions", just a touch of yellow fever, and the oppression that is spirit gum....all because I gave a snarkily technical tl;dr response to what was a rhetorical question.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Thu Jun 4 09:50:33 2015 (ohzj1)

There was one American girl, maybe ten years ago, whose website I found who was doing cosplay, and she really did have the figure and the looks for it, and it was outstanding.

She eventually switched to a membership site and started doing soft-core porn.

Posted by: Steven Den Beste at Thu Jun 4 10:12:48 2015 (+rSRq)

14 For those following along at home, "oppai ga samishii" means "a desolate chest".

Posted by: Steven Den Beste at Thu Jun 4 11:00:24 2015 (+rSRq)

15 Yes. That is what it does mean, and it is mean.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Thu Jun 4 21:43:17 2015 (ohzj1)

16 It will be interesting to see if fan artists and cosplayers embrace Hestia's look as enthusiastically as they have her ribbon. And we now have a new look for Bell's dishwashing mentor Ryu, which opens up a DFC possibility for group cosplay, at least based on her initial appearance (the book 5 illustrations disagree).

Oh, and the description of book 5 includes a full-service hot springs adventure.

-j

Posted by: J Greely at Fri Jun 5 15:31:39 2015 (ZlYZd)

17 On topic, a quick image search for "hestia cosplay" turns up a number of qualified women, a disturbing number of men, several young ladies suffering from ribbon failure, and at least one Very Little Girl. I'm sure we'll see a lot more before the year is out.

-j

Posted by: J Greely at Fri Jun 5 16:52:53 2015 (ZlYZd)

18 I think I'm about to get my heart broken. Is Hestia

Posted by: Steven Den Beste at Fri Jun 5 21:06:21 2015 (+rSRq)

19 Steven...Hestia is...well...

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Fri Jun 5 22:37:04 2015 (ohzj1)

20 On the bright side

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Fri Jun 5 22:40:05 2015 (ohzj1)

21 The trick is for us to become cartoon characters. Then by the laws of harem anime, we'd immediately have a Strange Cute Girl move in with us, with more on the way. The house would get destroyed on a regular basis, but the way to solve that problem is to move into Tokyo Tower; they've gotten pretty good at rebuilding it.

-j

Posted by: J Greely at Sat Jun 6 00:56:12 2015 (ZlYZd)

22 Yeah, but also by the laws of Harem anime, if we ever DID get the notion in our noggins to sample the wares, all of the rest of the haremettes would take great exception to it and do everything possible to interfere.

There's a reason most of those heroes try to ignore the bounty around them.

You're better off with a Broken Doll, because then everyone's cheering for you to work it out, only she's really dysfunctional until you finally get to that point, and then poof, the series is over.

Posted by: Mauser at Sat Jun 6 04:09:44 2015 (TJ7ih)

23 Well, yes, but even without being able to seal the deal, we'd still be surrounded by flirtatious eye candy with whom we constantly end up in Compromising Positions. And unless Lum is involved, the consequences aren't nearly as bad as real-world college boys face; sending someone to prison for consensual sex is too wacky for anime. Now those dolls are really broken!

-j

Posted by: J Greely at Sat Jun 6 11:21:04 2015 (ZlYZd)

24 I dunno about those consequences being not that bad. Explosive Nosebleeds at the moment you accidentally cop a feel is pretty worrying. I had a nosebleed once that required two applications of Silver Nitrate to stanch, and that is an agony I wouldn't wish on anyone (well, maybe with a few exceptions...).

Posted by: Mauser at Sat Jun 6 22:24:45 2015 (TJ7ih)

25 You know... I don't think those are moon pies at all. Croquettes?

Posted by: Avatar_exADV at Tue Jun 9 18:45:05 2015 (pWQz4)

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