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Tag: television

My Favorite Things: “Kids on the Slope” and Watanabe’s canon

Kids on the Slope is slice-of-life anime, and it’s also a rare case of director Shinichiro Watanabe (Cowboy Bebop; Samurai Champloo) adapting an existing work: a manga called Sakamichi no Apollon by Yuki Kodama. Wikipedia summarizes the plot like this: The beginning of summer, 1966. Because of his father’s job situation, freshman high school student [...]

10 Comments by  /  July 9, 2012  /  Posted in: Meta, Otaku Academy, Pimp
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I still think you should watch Madoka.

A while back, I wrote a bit about why you should watch Puella Magi Madoka Magica. At the time, I had only watched four episodes. Now I’ve seen all twelve, and I still agree with that. Here’s why. Puella Magi Madoka Magica, currently streaming for free on Crunchyroll, is quite frankly one of the best [...]

No Comments by  /  June 2, 2012  /  Posted in: Meta, Otaku Academy, Pimp
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Girls, Women, and Choice: Why you should watch Madoka

I’ll admit it: I’m late to the party, on this one. Since January 2011, the anime-watching public (online and off) has been enamoured of Puella Magi Madoka Magica, and I’ve been scoffing at it. They said it was deep. I scoffed. They said it was meta. I scoffed. They said to give it some time. [...]

2 Comments by  /  March 8, 2012  /  Posted in: Meta, Otaku Academy
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I’m on TVO this evening!

Today I made my first appearance on television with The Agenda with Steve Paikin, a panel show on TV Ontario that airs five nights a week at 8 and 11. I was in a segment with Rob Sawyer, Jesse Hirsch, and James Hughes. We were talking about The Future, and I got to relay a [...]

4 Comments by  /  February 3, 2012  /  Posted in: Canadians like it on top, Pimp
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Why the New York Times should give me Ginia Bellafante’s job:

Maybe you missed it, but New York Times writer Ginia Bellafante just insulted about half of HBO’s new audience share. It took place during a review (and I use that term loosely, here) of HBO’s new series Game of Thrones, adapted from George R. R. Martin’s exceedingly popular Song of Ice and Fire series of [...]

8 Comments by  /  April 15, 2011  /  Posted in: Meta, Otaku Academy, This is why we can't have nice things
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What anime can teach you about ending a story

Warning: the following contains spoilers for the endings of Cowboy Bebop, Fullmetal Alchemist, Neon Genesis: Evangelion, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Battlestar Galactica, LOST, Supernatural (current) and The Prisoner. I’ve noticed an alarming trend in television finales, lately: God.

16 Comments by  /  May 24, 2010  /  Posted in: Otaku Academy
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AMC now streaming B-movies online

Yes, now you too can watch poorly-dubbed Italian classics like Playgirls and the Vampire, for free, on AMC. This is the perfect way to celebrate Halloween, unless you a) live near abandoned barns you can explore or b) have a goodly amount of small-batch bourbon and a toolbox of Hammer films at the ready. (Parties [...]

No Comments by  /  October 28, 2009  /  Posted in: Meta, Pimp
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5 Supernatural endings that are better than BSG's

God shows up in a white Impala and banishes Lucifer to Hell with a bitchin’ guitar solo. (God is played by Jimmy Page.) Alternatively, God shows up in a white Impala and tells everyone this was all just a test of humanity. Then Dean punches him in the face. (God is played by William Shatner.) Dean [...]

1 Comment by  /  September 14, 2009  /  Posted in: Pimp
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A weekend well spent

I had a good weekend. It involved learning Japanese, visiting The ROM, and learning how to play Crokinole from Karl Schroeder, who is enough of a crack shot that he can manipulate the board such that you might feel a little bit better about your total lack of hand-eye coordination, until you realise what he’s [...]

No Comments by  /  March 16, 2009  /  Posted in: Canadians like it on top, Life, These fragments I have shored against my ruins
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Attn: Neuroheads

TVO is hosting Mysteries of the Mind week, with coverage on everything from precocious kids to narcolepsy.

No Comments by  /  January 10, 2009  /  Posted in: Life
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  • Madeline Ashby…

    ...is a science fiction writer, strategic foresight consultant, anime fan, and immigrant. Her debut novel, vN, is available now. (Here are some reviews.) Her non-fiction has appeared at BoingBoing, io9, WorldChanging, Creators Project, and Tor.com.

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