Anime

SAO Physical Therapy


Here’s what I like to imagine Stephen’s post-stroke physical therapy is like:

A Hero's Reward, from the Queen of the Cait Sith

Live-action Ikkitousen


Yes, the ultimate panty fight will be live on stage in Tokyo from November 30th to December 9th, with the role of Hakufu played by a talented thespian most recently seen here hawking whipped cream and jello, Shizuka Nakamura.

A modest sample of Shizuka’s qualifications for the role is presented below; more here, if your heart can take it.

more...

Thoughts and Prayers, Bad Haiku Edition


When engineers sleep,
catgirl breeding runs amuck;
Steven, get well soon.

Also:

AsoIku Doctor's Orders

Yui's advice on enjoying Sword Art Online...


Sage advice from a chibi AI

Appreciating strong female characters...


…with boobie mousepads and naughty hug pillows. I confess I’m just glad that they’ve left Silica-chan out of it for now. For now.

That’s not the only Asuna merchandise available, of course; you can get figures and coffee mugs and cellphone straps and keychains and iphone cases and posters and coasters and throw pillows and t-shirts and dog tags and cosplay outfits (starter, endgame, and post-Fairy Dance) and sword and wig and tote bag and wtf is all this shit?!?.

Okay, sorry, had to get that out of my system. I wouldn’t object to the Immortal Object t-shirt, though, if it came in XXL (which, being Japan, it doesn’t).

Pirate merchandise


Bodacious Space Pirate merchandise, that is, including a calendar and your very own 1/1300-scale Bentenmaru.

[Update: in vaguely-related news, AsoIku book 16 came out last week. I really need to catch up on these.]

Dear Sword Art Online production team,


If the anime concludes with the Fairy Dance arc, as it appears it will, I will be very disappointed if it doesn’t snow in the final scene.

(based on comments about how it ends and the presence of Kanae Itō in the cast…)

Endgame


So, I guess what happens in Aincrad, stays in Aincrad.

An amusingly trollish article at Sankaku Complex suggests that the end of the first arc in Sword Art Online has angered all the folks who thought they were watching a different story. Yes, it’s true, they didn’t meticulously document the leveling grind, the steady attrition of the player base, or the ruthless boss fights, and we’re all better off for it. As Kirito said, 「他人のやってるRPGを傍らから眺めるほどつまらない事はない」, “there’s nothing more boring than watching someone else play an RPG”.

In related news, desperate Democrats are imagining an Eighties-movie training montage set to the theme from Fame in which Barry the underdog overcomes all the weaknesses that got his ass kicked up between his ears in the first debate. Unfortunately for them, the real soundtrack may end up being Scandal’s Goodbye To You or Johnny Hates Jazz’ Shattered Dreams.

“Need a clue, take a clue,
 got a clue, leave a clue”