Before I got into Bleach, I used to think that anime was totally and completely stupid. Whenever I was brave enough to turn on the TV and taste a few minute's worth of whatever anime tampil happened to be on, I found myself either laughing at the lousy akting and cheesy animasi atau rolling my eyes at the melodrama and wooden dialog. To puncak, atas it all off, my geeky dad has this weird obsession with old, awful anime shows; namely Speed Racer and Yamato. He's constantly cuing up acak episodes online and making my little sister watch them. (I protest loudly and flee to the refuge of the selanjutnya room whenever he does that.)
So how on earth did this homeschooled Christian teen grudgingly convert from animephobic to Bleach fan??
I do know that Bleach was the first anime to warm me up to the genre. But beyond that, I'm not sure. Maybe it was summer boredom. atau maybe it was my curiosity. I wanted to know what it was about anime that made so many people crazy about it. A lot of my friends, past and present, loved that kind of stuff and I could never understand why. Whatever it was, it made me brave enough to venture out of my strictly no-anime zone and find some answers.
And let me tell ya, Wikipedia is a marvelous thing. :) I learned about the art of anime/manga, how they use layers of color, different styles and exaggerations to convey emotions; and I learned to see anime shows not just as TV shows, but also like comic buku coming to life. So many things began to make sense after that. And soon I started wondering...was all anime as stupid as Speed Racer and Pokemon? Could there possibly be a tampil that someone like me could enjoy? If anime was so popular, there had to be a good reason. So I dug deeper.
Again, I don't remember how atau why I chose Bleach. All I know is that after watching the first episode, I thought "You know, this isn't too bad! It's weird, but I actually kinda...like it!"
Of course, Bleach has its pros and cons. It's definitely a PG-13 show, with some scary/violent images, language, suggestive content and crude humor scattered throughout every adventure. (Not for the little ones, folks!) And there are several times where I roll my eyes at the over-dramatic voice acting, wooden dialogue and the occasional Gary Stu-ness from Ichigo (see my "Mary Sue 101" artikel if anda don't know what I'm talking about). But hey, that's just anime for you.
HOWEVER, the artwork and secara keseluruhan, keseluruhan "look" of it is pretty nice (and not too obnoxiously cartoonish. Usually, anyway.) And the main characters are people anda can really root for and care about; memorable, well-rounded and likable. This tampil earns lotsa brownie points from me on the character development. (And Ishida rocks. It's like Legolas goes all math-genius and gets superpowers atau something.) :) There are moments of fun, weird, goofy comic-relief, others that kill me with suspense, and still others that are beautiful and heart-warming.
But what I appreciate most about Bleach are the messages hidden in it. The strong themes of friendship, loyalty, perseverance, selflessness and fighting for what's right are inspiring and speak volumes to me. Ichigo's determination, compassionate jantung and total willingness to risk his life for his friends is wonderful to see; and though he's obviously human, making mistakes and struggling through obstacles, he is strong in his Good Guy role and steadfast in the responsibilities that go with it. (And he's respectful of the girls, even when they try to flirt with him! WOW!!)
Ichigo makes for a good, solid hero. And though Bleach is very much a secular show, as a Christian, I can see a lot of meaning in it that others may not. Ichigo's battle with his "inner hollow" in season 6 reminds me so much of the constant struggle I have between the new me and my old sinful nature. The fact that he was able to conquer it in the end reminds me that through God's strength, I too can conquer.
And I am also reminded that every hero in every story, whether the storyteller is aware of it atau not, is a dim reflection of the ultimate Hero and Champion. Every hero is an echo of something greater.
Even in anime. ^__^
So how on earth did this homeschooled Christian teen grudgingly convert from animephobic to Bleach fan??
I do know that Bleach was the first anime to warm me up to the genre. But beyond that, I'm not sure. Maybe it was summer boredom. atau maybe it was my curiosity. I wanted to know what it was about anime that made so many people crazy about it. A lot of my friends, past and present, loved that kind of stuff and I could never understand why. Whatever it was, it made me brave enough to venture out of my strictly no-anime zone and find some answers.
And let me tell ya, Wikipedia is a marvelous thing. :) I learned about the art of anime/manga, how they use layers of color, different styles and exaggerations to convey emotions; and I learned to see anime shows not just as TV shows, but also like comic buku coming to life. So many things began to make sense after that. And soon I started wondering...was all anime as stupid as Speed Racer and Pokemon? Could there possibly be a tampil that someone like me could enjoy? If anime was so popular, there had to be a good reason. So I dug deeper.
Again, I don't remember how atau why I chose Bleach. All I know is that after watching the first episode, I thought "You know, this isn't too bad! It's weird, but I actually kinda...like it!"
Of course, Bleach has its pros and cons. It's definitely a PG-13 show, with some scary/violent images, language, suggestive content and crude humor scattered throughout every adventure. (Not for the little ones, folks!) And there are several times where I roll my eyes at the over-dramatic voice acting, wooden dialogue and the occasional Gary Stu-ness from Ichigo (see my "Mary Sue 101" artikel if anda don't know what I'm talking about). But hey, that's just anime for you.
HOWEVER, the artwork and secara keseluruhan, keseluruhan "look" of it is pretty nice (and not too obnoxiously cartoonish. Usually, anyway.) And the main characters are people anda can really root for and care about; memorable, well-rounded and likable. This tampil earns lotsa brownie points from me on the character development. (And Ishida rocks. It's like Legolas goes all math-genius and gets superpowers atau something.) :) There are moments of fun, weird, goofy comic-relief, others that kill me with suspense, and still others that are beautiful and heart-warming.
But what I appreciate most about Bleach are the messages hidden in it. The strong themes of friendship, loyalty, perseverance, selflessness and fighting for what's right are inspiring and speak volumes to me. Ichigo's determination, compassionate jantung and total willingness to risk his life for his friends is wonderful to see; and though he's obviously human, making mistakes and struggling through obstacles, he is strong in his Good Guy role and steadfast in the responsibilities that go with it. (And he's respectful of the girls, even when they try to flirt with him! WOW!!)
Ichigo makes for a good, solid hero. And though Bleach is very much a secular show, as a Christian, I can see a lot of meaning in it that others may not. Ichigo's battle with his "inner hollow" in season 6 reminds me so much of the constant struggle I have between the new me and my old sinful nature. The fact that he was able to conquer it in the end reminds me that through God's strength, I too can conquer.
And I am also reminded that every hero in every story, whether the storyteller is aware of it atau not, is a dim reflection of the ultimate Hero and Champion. Every hero is an echo of something greater.
Even in anime. ^__^
1. “Am I still
asleep? Because
you’re way too
gorgeous to be
real!"
2. “I’m a dual
sword-user. That
means I’m good
with both hands."
3. “Let’s play a
game! If I step in
your shadow, then
I have to buy you
a drink."
4. “Your beauty is
lebih intoxicating
than a jug of sake
- and I would
know."
5. “My motto is -
‘Make love, not
war.’"
6. “I like a woman
who tells me what
to do. And man,
am I ever hoping
that you’ll tell me
to have a drink
with you!"
7. “Wow! You’re
hotter than Yama-
jii’s bankai!"
8. “Let’s not play
games. If anda like
what anda see as
much as I do,
then let’s get out
of here.
Together."
9. “I always
thought I was
good at making an
entrance. But
man! When you
walked in, it was
like the rest of the
room vanished!"
10. “My kimono
would look great
on the floor with
both of us lying
on it."
asleep? Because
you’re way too
gorgeous to be
real!"
2. “I’m a dual
sword-user. That
means I’m good
with both hands."
3. “Let’s play a
game! If I step in
your shadow, then
I have to buy you
a drink."
4. “Your beauty is
lebih intoxicating
than a jug of sake
- and I would
know."
5. “My motto is -
‘Make love, not
war.’"
6. “I like a woman
who tells me what
to do. And man,
am I ever hoping
that you’ll tell me
to have a drink
with you!"
7. “Wow! You’re
hotter than Yama-
jii’s bankai!"
8. “Let’s not play
games. If anda like
what anda see as
much as I do,
then let’s get out
of here.
Together."
9. “I always
thought I was
good at making an
entrance. But
man! When you
walked in, it was
like the rest of the
room vanished!"
10. “My kimono
would look great
on the floor with
both of us lying
on it."
juuroku de
kimi to ai
Hyakunen no koi wo
shita ne
Hirahira to maiochiru
Sakura no hanabira no shita de
Aitakute kakenoketa
Hi no ataru kyuu na sakamichi ya
Kouen no sumi futari no kage wa
Ima mo kawaranu mama
Kimi to boku to sakurabiyori
Kaze ni yurete maimodoru
Mada minu mirai wo mune ni daite
Miageta saki wa ha momoiro no
sora
ENGLISH VERSION
I met you
at 16
And we shared a cinta a
hundred years old
Under the fluttering, dancing down
petals of the sakura tree
I wanted to meet you, so I ran
up the steep bukit, hill road where
sunlight lands
In the corner of the park our two
shadows are
unchanging even now
You, and me, and the sakura
weather
We sway in the wind and dance
back where we were
Holding to my chest a future I can't
yet see
I look up and see a berwarna merah muda, merah muda sky
kimi to ai
Hyakunen no koi wo
shita ne
Hirahira to maiochiru
Sakura no hanabira no shita de
Aitakute kakenoketa
Hi no ataru kyuu na sakamichi ya
Kouen no sumi futari no kage wa
Ima mo kawaranu mama
Kimi to boku to sakurabiyori
Kaze ni yurete maimodoru
Mada minu mirai wo mune ni daite
Miageta saki wa ha momoiro no
sora
ENGLISH VERSION
I met you
at 16
And we shared a cinta a
hundred years old
Under the fluttering, dancing down
petals of the sakura tree
I wanted to meet you, so I ran
up the steep bukit, hill road where
sunlight lands
In the corner of the park our two
shadows are
unchanging even now
You, and me, and the sakura
weather
We sway in the wind and dance
back where we were
Holding to my chest a future I can't
yet see
I look up and see a berwarna merah muda, merah muda sky
we got to the soul society and saw a figure all in black.
"HEY!" princess sora yelld.
the figure took off running and we ran after him.
"is that who framed me?" i asked.
"yes it is and were gonna capture him and prove anda innocent!" she yelled.
we chased him to a dead end.he turned but a shadow coverd his face so we couldnt see.
"i know anda framed amezuki-chan!its time for anda to come clean! tell us who anda are!" sora-san demanded.
he steped out and we both gasped.
"yes your right,i did frame her...it was the perfect cover.".
"AIZEN!!!!".
He smiled and kneeld down.
"go ahead,capture me i have no further business here." he said.
we walkd over to him and did as he said.
"Amezuki,do anda realize what this means?your really innocent!",she cried
"i though anda had no doubt i was innocent..."i said.
"uhhhhhh...lets go!!!"
and we left for the captins meeting going on
"HEY!" princess sora yelld.
the figure took off running and we ran after him.
"is that who framed me?" i asked.
"yes it is and were gonna capture him and prove anda innocent!" she yelled.
we chased him to a dead end.he turned but a shadow coverd his face so we couldnt see.
"i know anda framed amezuki-chan!its time for anda to come clean! tell us who anda are!" sora-san demanded.
he steped out and we both gasped.
"yes your right,i did frame her...it was the perfect cover.".
"AIZEN!!!!".
He smiled and kneeld down.
"go ahead,capture me i have no further business here." he said.
we walkd over to him and did as he said.
"Amezuki,do anda realize what this means?your really innocent!",she cried
"i though anda had no doubt i was innocent..."i said.
"uhhhhhh...lets go!!!"
and we left for the captins meeting going on