All the Right Notes: Occult Academy

...or, an alternative title: How bad pacing can ruin a story.

When crafting a story in any medium, there are many aspects that must be addressed in order for that story to be successful.  Plot, characters, dialogue, and depending on the medium, animation, design, music score, etc.  There are plenty of good stories that satisfy--at least to a basic degree--most of these requirements.  Coming up a bit short on a few of them doesn't always ruin a story.  A good story can still have problems.

There are instances, however, when one aspect of a story can be so poorly done that it can change the image of the entire tale and completely ruin it.

A recent anime I checked out, Occult Academy, is the victim of such folly.

On the surface, I thought I would enjoy Occult Academy.  The art style is clean and detailed; it is well-animated, has a pleasant enough score, and its characters are initially compelling and enjoyable.

Halfway through the episodes, however, my opinion had completely changed, and I believe I can chalk it up to one sole reason (a reason you may have gathered from the fancy alternative title to this review).

Check out the rest of the review after the break!

Stop being so gorgeous, Occult Academy, you haven't earned the right!

All the Right Notes: Chihayafuru

When I was about halfway through Chihayafuru, I knew it would be the perfect show to illustrate what, I think, is a very important question for me: Why do I love anime?

Obviously, I don't want anyone to think that I uncritiquely watch and enjoy every single anime ever made.  This is far from the truth.  The word "anime" is basically a catch-all for all Japanese animation, a good portion of which I do not think is worth my while.  (I recently attempted to watch Chobits and was personally put off by it, for example.  Panty and Stocking, despite its popularity, is the same.  Not really my taste.)  However, I still confidently say that I do love the medium of anime.

Generally, Americans have a very strict view of animation.  Outside of America, however--notably in Japanese animation, of course--animation as a medium does not have the stigma and expectations Americans tend to give it.

So what does this all have to do with Chihayafuru?  Read on to find out!

This isn't your typical children's card game...

Check out the review after the break!

Spoilers and Stories

As you might know, I am currently writing/drawing a graphic novel entitled Everdusk (which can be read here).   Really quick, here is a short summary of ED: "Everdusk is the story of Sol’aar, a country that has been under the whip of slavery by its southern neighbor, Galena, for nearly two centuries. Now, the pieces of revolution are falling into place. In the face of crushing oppression, four god-blessed heroes must come together in and overcome their individual bitterness order to obtain their country’s independence and learn what it truly means to become an everdusk."

Obviously, Everdusk is a fantasy-adventure genre tale.  I've always been a fan of fantasy, magic, medieval things, etc.  And just as obviously, as I work on Everdusk, I draw the cast of ED a LOT.  This includes drawing the magical characters using their magic.

Now I have struggled with one question constantly as I have drawn these pictures.  Should I post them on my deviantART (or the Internet in general, such as here), or not?  Is it spoilers to post some of these characters using magic?

I think there are kind of two circumstances here.  One is that the character already knows he/she is a magic-user.  In that case, I don't think it would be any problem posting pictures of them using magic.

What about characters that are introduced in the comic who are not initially aware of their powers, however?  In one way, it's almost as much as a surprise for the audience as for the characters when their powers are revealed.  To be honest, though, I think we can all admit that it's usually clear when a character is going to have magical ability of some kind.

Let's look at some pictures in question.  Both the following pictures are of Mai, the main character in Everdusk.

The one on the left was a speedpaint I just completed this evening.  The picture on the right is a commission by Hchan on deviantART (QUICK PLUG she is an awesome artist with her own awesome webcomic, dream*scar, and you should totally check it out!).  Both of these pictures show Mai quite clearly using some kind of magic.

At this point, it's silly to pretend otherwise as to Mai having magical ability.  Although Mai learns this fact early on in Everdusk, it still has yet to be officially "revealed."  (I have to add, though, that I have not yet revealed to anyone the nature of magic in Everdusk, so although you see this sparkly fun, I don't think many of you could accurately guess what it exactly is.)

So, is it a spoiler to post art like this about things like graphic novels you're working on?  Should you keep all this kind of art from the public until it's officially been introduced in whatever you're writing/drawing?  Why or why not?  What d'you think?