The point of that Fuuma Asuka pic is the contrast between Fuuma and his shreds of red cloths against the large ominous shadow of Fuuma with wings in the backdrop. Perhaps this is forming a series of shadow pics, since we already have a Subaru with the shadow of Seishirou in the background two months back.

Fanservicey illustration was represented by "bathtub" Kamui this month.

I think I neglected to mention this, but there was a set of mini-playing cards that came free with Asuka. The suit of Spades was represented by X, with Kamui as the King, Kotori as the Queen, and Fuuma as the Jack. Unfortunately, they were taken off old illustrations.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 01:48 p.m.(Wednesday, June 26, 2002)

Lika, that boy is mine, all mine! I'm not going to share him with his fangirls. RL Clamp eye-candies are a protected species. I wonder how much it costs to fly to Germany. *sighs* *drools*

Mura, I wouldn't be too certain about Fuuma's skills in bed. After all, Nataku chose Karen over him, and Kakyou is still pining for Hokuto despite everything. Meanwhile, Subaru hasn't forgotten Kamui despite becoming the Sakurazukamori/DOE.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 01:04 p.m.(Wednesday, June 26, 2002)

Kamui isn't stoned. Subaru paid him a visit and they both got laid, and then they had a little pillow fight, which made them hornier. And so they had to take a cold shower together in the tub. Kamui is really smiling at Subaru. *grin*

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:44 a.m.(Wednesday, June 26, 2002)

Asuka August updates are ready.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:52 p.m.(Tuesday, June 25, 2002)

Ko, the cover pic features a wet smiling Kamui sitting in a bathtub of feathers; the one-page insert is a gorgeous Nataku carrying a lotus; the two-page insert is boring Fuuma in uniform. Sorry, no Keiichi.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 03:33 p.m.(Tuesday, June 25, 2002)

To Kerianne and everyone else who doesn't give two hoots about Subaru. Karen and Aoki are fine, and Ginza is still standing. Hmmm...Karen's kekkai held up well at least twice. She gets the prize for Most Useful Dragon of Heaven. Anyway, the updates will only be ready tonight in about 9 hours' time.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 01:47 p.m.(Tuesday, June 25, 2002)

I'm a lovesick puppy and it's all Sat-chan's fault.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:40 a.m.(Tuesday, June 25, 2002)

Kerianne, I could only hazard a guess that male animanga characters are generally less irritating than female animanga characters because the guys...

1. have better hair;
2. don't have disproportionate boobs;
3. aren't physically weak as well;
4. look anorexic because they are (the female characters usually eat like a pig and still look anorexic -- how unfair); and
5. don't squeal in high-pitched voices.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:25 p.m.(Monday, June 24, 2002)

About your Fuuma poll, you missed out his stylist. Whoever's given Fuuma his makeover did a good job with Subaru too, though I wish he'd do something about Subaru's hair.

Sat-chan, I believe I've already told you how yummy that photo looked. But I forgot to ask, was that a guy or a girl? I think I need to make a trip to Germany. *smirk*

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:16 p.m.(Monday, June 24, 2002)

Kerianne, you've got a point about the whole yaoi thing. It was Nazca that made me realise that Subaru's personality was not that much different from the female lead, Yuka, whom I disliked. They're both in love with a charismatic man who is their bitter enemy. They both do nothing much besides mope and angst. While they both tried to help the hero, who is also in love with them, they both consciously made decisions that would ultimately hurt him and all their friends.

But I wouldn't put it simply as an urge to see two guys f***ing. It just seems to make the character flaws easier to accept when the character is male. Call it sexism in manga, or the attraction of doomed romance.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 01:42 p.m.(Monday, June 24, 2002)

My Asuka will only be arriving around Tuesday. So please don't pound my site looking for more Subaru scans. Yes, his Royal Goodness appears this month with a new eye, for those who are still clueless. But no, I don't think he's molesting Kamui yet. That's probably reserved for the annual December shock issue (I hope *smirk*).

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 12:37 p.m.(Sunday, June 23, 2002)

Kurot-chan, where do you get your Hunter x Hunter OVA from?

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 08:06 p.m.(Saturday, June 22, 2002)

Ammie, while I agree that Kimura Takuya is cuter, I feel that Takenouchi Yutaka would make a much better Aoki. He's good at playing matured, sensitive, romantic leads. Takuya tends to be better at arrogant or "bad boy" male leads.

BTW, Takizawa Hideaki (my recommendation for Kamui) and Naohito Fujiki (Yuuto) shared a "kiss" in the J-drama, Antique. Okay, so they were demonstrating to this clueless chap how to kiss a girl, and the contact wasn't shown onscreen, but it was still fun yaoi fangirl bait in a series that flirted with yaoi hints without actually crossing the line. *grin*

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 03:25 p.m.(Thursday, June 20, 2002)

*massages Lika's wrist* Feeling better, dear? Take care. I know the pain.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:08 a.m.(Thursday, June 20, 2002)

Kurot-chan, as I've mentioned before, the shounen-ai UST stuff in Hunter x Hunter was unique to the anime, probably to attract the fangirls. The manga is rather dry on relationships, straight or gay, though Hisoka is still freaky about Gon and Kurapika, but only as potentially worthy opponents. There's also Hisoka's strange friendship with Irumi. Otherwise, the possibility of Leorio x Kurapika is almost non-existent. Still, I can't figure out what Kurapika would see in Leorio. He considers that man an idiot most of the time.

Am reading Kugutsu by Takahashi Akira. Though it's labelled a shoujo manga, the style is really very shounen. More so than Saiyuuki or E'S. The artwork is luscious though. Story-wise, I'm still trying to figure out.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:02 p.m.(Wednesday, June 19, 2002)

Volume 3 of the Chinese version of Data is out in the stores. Sakura and Yuki are such a delightful little couple. Sakura is especially cute when he goes all jealous and protective over the clueless Yuki. *hearts* However, Tachibana-sensei seems to be casting hints that the two of them were on opposing sides in their past "unremembered" incarnations. But I just can't see Sakura turning mean on Yuki.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 03:50 p.m.(Wednesday, June 19, 2002)

Thanks, Kurot-chan, for the lovely Kurapika! Kuroro in his rock-star jacket is a little hard to draw. But I much prefer to see him in the dark suit, bandage on his forehead being optional. Have you seen those episodes yet? Also, Kurapika's fight with Ubogin was cool. And now I'm thirsting for the OVA, which completes the Gen'ei Ryodan arc (the TV series ends on a cliffhanger -- remember to sit through the credits for the last episode), and is apparently unavailable in any of the stores here in Singapore. *pouts*

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 08:52 a.m.(Wednesday, June 19, 2002)

Kurot-chan, that is so cute! Perhaps Killua's eyes should have a more upward slant at the sides to give him a sinister charm. Could you do a Kurapika piece, preferably with Quoll (aka Kuroro) please? Pretty please? *poor imitation of Gon's stubborn but cute glare* Oh yes, don't forget the nen chains too. Kinky.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 01:58 p.m.(Tuesday, June 18, 2002)

Pretty Nokoru! He sure looks like Kamui's older brother.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:22 a.m.(Tuesday, June 18, 2002)

Heheh. I got 1-5 of Yorozuya from Kino months' ago. But don't worry, they seem to restock (and go out-of-stock) the series very quickly. I like it. All three protagonists have serious medically-certifiable psychological disorders, and yet they're saner than anyone of the X bunch.

BTW, can anyone tell me where I could find the OVA for Hunter x Hunter in Singapore? The TV series stopped just as the Gen'ei Ryodan arc was about to get really interesting, and the rest of it can only be found in the OVA. Email me please. I'm desperate for some Quoll x Kurapika action here.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 12:24 p.m.(Monday, June 17, 2002)

Lika!! What in the world have you done to Miss Jailbait Bunnygirl?!!

BTW, I can't marry you without making her awfully jealous.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:10 p.m.(Saturday, June 15, 2002)

Japan beat Tunisia 2-0 to top Group H! *cheers* They'll be meeting Turkey next in round 2. Meanwhile, Belgium pipped Russia by 3-2 to set up a meeting with Brazil. Congrats.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 04:21 p.m.(Friday, June 14, 2002)

By some strange booboo, my email address in all my outgoing mails have been changed to a certain person "@stb.com.sg". Anyone who has received any emails from me with the above domain, please respond to alison@starhub.net.sg instead. I hope my ISP solves this problem soon, or I'll have their necks.

I wonder how long this problem has been going on. If I hadn't forwarded Isa's S/K fic to my office email, I wouldn't even be aware of the problem.

On the soccer front, the top two pre-tournament favourites, Argentina and France, have crashed out of the competition and are now on their journey home. Spain has made it, and so has England and Germany. But if upsets continue in this fashion, don't be surprised by a Japan vs South Korea Finals. It must be the food. Raw fish and live octopi downed with kimchi and the fieriest sake. A very lethal combination guaranteed to take out the toughest athletes from the other side of the map.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:57 p.m.(Wednesday, June 12, 2002)

Japan defeated Russia 1-0!! Go Inamoto!!!

Incidentally, I believe the English match commentator must be suffering from mild dyslexia to keep pronouncing Yanagisawa's name as "Yanigasawa".

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:27 p.m.(Sunday, June 9, 2002)

France may have the skills, but I guess they just don't have the luck. Grand conspiracy from match officials or not, if you just can't score, nothing can help you.

Some pleasant distraction. Nekoi-sensei's frolicking Cat-girls from Wish. Picture taken from Clamp's album.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:39 p.m.(Thursday, June 6, 2002)

Hee! Ammie, was one of them meant to be the "tying the tie" scene? *grin*

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:07 a.m.(Thursday, June 6, 2002)

Chinese manga translators need healthy doses of imagination when it comes to translating titles. How else do you explain two different manga by Tachibana Kaimu (bishies/adventure/shounen-ai!) having the same title in Chinese? Both Turning Point and Ashita no Tamago share the Chinese title Niu3 Zhuan3 Wei4 Lai2. Incidentally, I should hit myself for not noticing Ashita no Tamago when it was serialised in Asuka some time back.

In football news today, congrats to the US. And the luck of the Irish must really be shining brightly, the poor Germans.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:53 p.m.(Wednesday, June 5, 2002)

France lost! *wails* Still, it's not the end of the world. They still have two chances to catch up. I want my Les Bleus vs. Azzuris final.

Anyway, I've decided that Clamp really got the wrong animation team to do the X anime. How else could one explain how a straight shounen manga like Hunter x Hunter came to become an anime dripping with shounen-ai hints and fan-service (much to the consternation of its male fandom), while a shounen-ai manga like X got straight shounen treatment? Incidentally, I wonder if it's possible to describe the Dragons' powers within the structure of the Nen system. It might explain how Yuuto gets to have two types of battle skills.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 12:21 p.m.(Sunday, June 2, 2002)

World Cup Football begins this evening. I'm wishing for a France vs. Italy Finals this year. The Italians don't really have any strong opponents in their half of the table, so it should be easy. France needs to get by Brazil and Argentina to get to the Finals. Hope Zizou recovers soon.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 03:48 p.m.(Friday, May 31, 2002)

If you can read Chinese and are a Hunter X Hunter fan, this is a great site, with summaries and screencaps from the TV series, fanarts and fanfics etc. It would have been perfect, if the site-owner could get hold of the OVA summaries as well. This is an interesting cosplay photo of Killua and his creepy mom.

I wonder if the manga is worth reading. The TV series is certainly captivating...when it's focused on Kurapika and his feud with the Genei Ryodan. Gon bores me. Killua, who's probably a good reflection of Seishirou's childhood, suffers from being associated too often with Gon. Leorio is the comic-relief, so he's okay. I just wish there were more Kuroro x Kurapika fanfics, if any at all.

Incidentally, given the not-pronounced "X" in the title, are we meant to slash every character in the series? *ponderous grin*

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:19 p.m.(Tuesday, May 28, 2002)

Kira, that looks like Rukawa from Slam Dunk. I might be wrong of course. Anyway, there's a flaw with that quiz. We all know that real bishounens are gay and wouldn't really be interested in any girls. The rest are merely confused or married.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 07:49 a.m.(Saturday, May 25, 2002)

Asuka updates are ready. Something finally happens. Go read and find out.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:56 p.m.(Thursday, May 23, 2002)

Mura, Saiyuki is no longer serialised in G-Fantasy. It has been moved to a new magazine called Zero-sum by some previously unheard-of publishing group called Issaisha, probably to support the readership level just as Lawful Drug was shifted around to support the now-defunked Shoujo Teikoku. I suspect that Issaisha is still related to Enix since almost all the mangaka featured on Zero-sum were under Enix, including Yuiga Satoru who has never been with any other publishers before. But G-Fantasy is still cool for E'S alone.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 08:47 a.m.(Wednesday, May 22, 2002)

Megan, bring your kitty to the vet now! The same thing happened to my beloved Misha, and it turned out he had serious kidney failure. Bring her to the vet before it's too late!

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 11:00 a.m.(Monday, May 20, 2002)

Lawful Drug volume 2 is scheduled for release on July 1st according to Clamp's official site.

Lika dearie, have some chicken soup. I wish I could keep you warm, but just thinking about it should give you a good nosebleed that should clear up any blockage. *wink*

Ooo...the hard-to-find poster collection for Koori no Mamono no Monogatari somehow turned up at Tiong Bahru Plaza's Comics Connection today. It was the only copy and I grabbed it before they've even unpacked the stuff. And it's the original Japanese version too. *drools over dreamy images of sexy bishies*

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 01:56 p.m.(Thursday, May 16, 2002)

Meia, I suspect that a fatal accident must have had occurred near that spot.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:36 p.m.(Wednesday, May 15, 2002)

My condolences, Taryn. So sorry to hear about your grandma. Please take care. And don't let those people bother you. Yes, some of us have to work harder for what we want, and even then, we may not succeed. But at least we can be proud of the fact that our lives are defined by our own efforts, and not by leeching on the success of others.

Satsuki-chan, I'm glad you're all right. Belated happy birthday!

But where has Ammie gone to?

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:18 p.m.(Tuesday, May 14, 2002)

While discussing X with my long-term fic buddy, something about Fuuma and Seishirou struck me. Fuuma has the ability to resemble one's most important person. So does that mean that Seishirou could have momentarily mistaken him for Subaru once? But if he didn't, and the manga certainly never suggested he did, what does it say about his feelings for Subaru? Or is this another plothole?

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:30 p.m.(Friday, May 10, 2002)

Taryn, good to hear that it isn't that serious.

I can only think of one way where consensual Hisoka x Muraki fic would work...in a HxH/YnM crossover. Hisoka would probably have the good doctor for lunch. Clowns are scary. While we're on the topic of HunterxHunter, why is the kana-pronounced name "Kurapika" spelt as "Curapikt" in all the HxH merchandise? How in the world is the "-kt" pronounceable as "-ka"?

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 11:28 a.m.(Friday, May 10, 2002)

Satsuki dear, where have you been? You've disappeared for so long it's getting scary. Hope you're okay.

Mr. Sunglasses has to be one of the most replicated character designs in manga/anime. Anyway, he's the scary housekeeper-cum-bodyguard from Komisch, a shounen-ai sci-fi mystery-comedy by Tachibana Kaimu.

Arsenal won their league double. *does a little celebratory jig* Talking of soccer made me wonder which side would win in a 7-a-side soccer match, the DOH or the DOE? I suppose with Fuuma as striker and Satsuki's Beast almost impenetrable at goal, the DOE have a fantastic advantage. But Kakyou would sleep in defence, while Kusanagi and Yuuto won't play. And Nataku won't know how to make a move without explicit instructions from daddy...plus mommy is playing for the other side. The DOH have more hardworking players, even if Seishirou is playing.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:06 p.m.(Thursday, May 9, 2002)

The day isn't too bad after receiving this sweet little fanart for Catharsis of Fate.

So what's the prognosis?

Actually, I was the one who suggested that Subaru is a brat. No, he doesn't kick and scream, but he's still one angsty brat. He knows that his decision to pursue his wish is hurting everyone around him (included Kamui) but he doesn't give a damn. And he tries to justify his decision by (mis)quoting his late sister. If Hokuto were still alive, she'd probably have bashed him on the head with her giant mallet. To make things worse, Subaru has been trying to encourage Kamui to act the same way.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 09:08 p.m.(Wednesday, May 8, 2002)

Simple, because Seishirou is not an animal who rapes little boys under Sakura trees.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:29 p.m.(Tuesday, May 7, 2002)

It'll have to be books. I don't think I'd have brought enough batteries or own a good radio that'll last me a lifetime.

There must be another X out there. The one by Clamp that I'm reading doesn't contain this description of Kamui.

Yokatta. I hope it'll get better soon.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 04:49 p.m.(Tuesday, May 7, 2002)

The definition of a "brat" must have changed. *tries to hunt for an OED*

Really, almost everything that's under-16 and less than 5ft tall seems to be labelled a "brat" in anime fandom. Kamui is no longer a cool brat because he's not a brat anymore. Fuuma might qualify (notice how "unhappy" he was when Kakyou tried to help Kamui in X14), except that he's too tall and too old. Same thing applies to Subaru with his insistence on getting his wish fulfilled at all costs, the world be damned.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 11:32 a.m.(Tuesday, May 7, 2002)

A thought: Just because Kamui is a very plausible threat to the Seishirou x Subaru pairing doesn't make him a whiny brat. As far as I can observe in the manga, he angsts in silence and doesn't go bother Subaru all that much. I doubt he even realises he likes the guy in that special way.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 06:48 a.m.(Tuesday, May 7, 2002)

Taryn, best to seek a second opinion and make sure it's not appendicitis. My best friend once went to see the doctor at the hospital about pain in her abdomen. She was forced to wait for more than an hour for a stupid doctor on duty who diagnosed it as normal cramps and sent her home with some painkillers. But the pain proved too excruciating and she had to rush to hospital again. This time, a more experienced doctor took one look at her and instructed the nurses to prepare for emergency surgery. My friend would have died if surgery were delayed any longer.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 06:40 a.m.(Tuesday, May 7, 2002)

Urgh! My PC somehow got infected by the Haptime virus. If you've received any emails from me with a fwd: header, please DELETE IMMEDIATELY. Do NOT open the message, or any attachments.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 05:06 p.m.(Sunday, May 5, 2002)

A male ex-colleague once removed shells off the prawns for me, but I thought nothing about the gesture at the time. I had presumed it was "old world" gentleman's behaviour. He was twice my age after all, though single.

Hmmm...took a short break from blogging, and people are into Seishirou x Kamui. I could only see Kamui forced into it because Subaru is being held hostage inside the damn Tree. Pure rape wouldn't work. I still believe that Kamui would have blown Mr. Sunglasses to bits had he not have to worry over "Eeeks! Kamui-chan! You're bleeding!" Kotori. And Kamui wouldn't go, "Wahh!". He's not Keiichi. *grin*

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 10:21 p.m.(Saturday, May 4, 2002)

As much as I like Kai, it is time for a change.

-- Subaru hugged Kamui at 04:58 p.m.(Saturday, May 4, 2002)