Denkyu: Anime Webzine

Editors Note

The month of love is upon us again. Most people think this is really a holiday for those who are in love or think they are in love. But there is the love of friendship as well. You don’t have to be in love with someone to show them how much you care. So go ahead and get your friend that cheap box of chocolates or a cute card. Love comes in many shapes and forms and all of it should be celebrated whether it’s with a gift bought from the store, something hand made, or simple words of “I love you.” or “I love being your friend.”

To celebrate the month of love, bust out those series and movies that are full of love. Of course, one of my favorites is Sailor Moon. Yeah yeah, shut up. All the friends that love me know darn well I was going to say that first. For something newer, Godannar! Or Diamond Daydreams. For a more comical twist, how about Ranma ½ or Princess Tutu. For something newer, Tsubasa Chronicles. For more of the friendship thing, try Angelic Layer. For a little on the weird side there’s Rumic Theatre.

If you are lucky and your significant other is into anime as well, order a pizza, curl up on the couch together and pop in your favorite anime that features a loving couple or a mushy love story.

Yep, that’s right! Denkyu is hosting its second annual Fan-Art Contest! Doesn’t matter whether it’s hand drawn and scanned or computer drawn. Fan service is okay, but please, no nudity. Also, please do this yourself. No tracing if it’s hand drawn and no doctoring someone else’s pictures if it’s computer rendered. We do ask though that it be anime, manga or video game oriented.

There will be two winners in each category, Computer Rendered and Free Hand. The prizes, which are being donated by ADV, will be announced when the winner’s names are announced. The winner’s pictures will be featured in the Denkyu eZine as well. Also, if you are a winner, you must be willing to give the contest coordinator your mailing address so you can receive your prize. If this is something you cannot give out then you won’t receive your prize and it will go back into the pot-o-prizes for the next contest, but you will still get featured in the eZine.

With your submissions, please include the following:
~Your screen name, artist name or real name.
~A website that features your artwork.
~And whether it was hand drawn or computer rendered. Last year, some of the hand drawn entries were so good it was hard telling if they were done by hand or by computer.

More than one submission can be made but you can win only one prize.

Mail all entries to me, Andromeda, at andromeda@denkyu.com . If you have any questions, please contact me through email, instant messenger or through private messaging at Denkyu. Messenger IDs can be found on my profile in the Denkyu member’s directory or on any post made by me in the Denkyu forums. Deadline for the entries will be Saturday, February 25th, by midnight.

Serves 4

8 snow peas
2-inch/5cm piece of daikon
1 quantity freshly cooked sushi rice
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
2 scallions, finely chopped
2 smoked mackerel, skin removed and cut into diagonal strips
½ cucumber, peeled and cut into pieces

to garnish
Pickled ginger
Strips of toasted nori
Wasabi paste

Cook the snow peas in boiling, salted water for 1 minute. Drain and put aside to cool. Shred the daikon using the finest stetting on a mandoline or a very sharp knife. If you are using a knife, then cut the daikon into long thin slices and cut each slice along its length as finely as you can.

Mix the sushi rice with the lemon juice and lemon zest.

Divide the rice between 4 wooden or ceramic bowls – they should be about ¾ inch/2cm full. Sprinkle the scallion over the top. Arrange the mackerel, cucumber, snow peas, and daikon on top of the rice. Garnish with pickled ginger, nori strips, and a small mound of wasabi.

Daikon is a long white radish that has a crisp white flesh and a peppery flavor. It goes well with fish and is often used as a garnish.
       

Written by Sojian

The movie starts off immediately in the heat of battle between the White Dragon and an assassin named Chicken Feathers in a bamboo forest. How did they get to this point? A good question because only a few minutes of the battle are shown before the audience is pulled into a flashback from the beginning of how Black Phoenix, played by Cecilia Cheung, became the White Dragon. Phoenix is a student at a Chinese University where the famed assassin Chicken Feathers soon kills her headmaster. White Dragon senior fights Chicken Feathers, but to no avail, as Dragon senior crashes through Phoenix’s roof. With Dragon senior unable to fight anymore she “uploads” all of her kung-fu powers into Black Phoenix, making her the new White Dragon.

Along the way to becoming the White Dragon she admits to her girlfriends that the only lover she would ever take is the Second Prince Tian Yang. Coincidentally she is able to woo the prince at one of her recitals where she plays various musical instruments on a rotating platform, smashes a guitar against a pillar reminiscent of the Who at Woodstock, while the audience does the wave, and finally she dives into the audience to be caught by the Second Prince no less.

Enamored by her beauty the Second Prince asks her out on a date. But there is a problem! With the acceptance of White Dragons kung-fu powers she has obtained a large zit on her face. After talking to the former White Dragon the answer is obvious. To get rid of the zit, she must steal. Since robbing from the rich and giving to the poor gives you a good heart, and a good heart leads to good circulation, and good circulation will help clear up her zit she does it. With enough time to spare to go on her date with the Second Prince of roller-skating and tennis. (In the Ming Dynasty no less)

Of course tragedy rears its ugly head again as the Second Prince seems to be the next target for Chicken Feathers. Phoenix, not accepting this, dawns the veil of White Dragon and goes to put an end to Chicken Feathers. This leads up to the bamboo forest battle from the very beginning of the movie. The movie continues with a few more fights, a few good laughs, a romance, and even a happy ending that so defies the overly drama-filled endings of movies like “Hero” and “House of Flying Daggers”. I do not intend to spoil the rest of the story, as it delves deeper into what happens to White Dragon.

Overall I found the movie to be very amusing, this is not a serious movie at all. There were a lot of comedic jokes throughout the first half of the movie and even a few sprinkled in the second half. Being set in the Ming Dynasty there were a lot of jokes involving things from the future, like the Phoenix’s “download” of the Kung-fu powers even McDonalds get the spot light for a bit. However I would also say that there are only a few martial arts fights in the movie along with a sappy romance angle as well. Between the comedy, action, and romance I would say it’s evenly split and can’t be said to belong to any one of those genres.

I would recommend this for those that just want to watch something with martial arts in it. Or since Valentines Day is coming around (on sadly a school Tuesday) White Dragon would make a good stay home flick with that special someone for those not wanting to go out into the throngs of couples that will be filling every restaurant and scenic spot out there.
       

Written by Andromeda

From a small lake at the edge of town, three young girls have emerged – Shem, Hamu, and Japheth, sisters from another world. Equipped with magical powers, they must save the Earth from extinction. However, there is something sinister trying to stop them. And on top of saving the world, these magical girls have to live like normal human girls – they go to school, hang around with friends and even fall in love.

Ark Angels is a new twist on the biblical story of Noah’s Ark. It’s a magical tale of Noah’s three daughters and their quest to save endangered species and humans from becoming extinct. They believe in the good that many human’s possess and that because of this, they shouldn’t be destroyed.

The mysterious person known as The Lord seems to think otherwise. The Lord wants to wipe humans out of existence before they destroy the Earth. Earth, whose spirit embodies that of a man, disagrees and also believes in the good that humans possess. When God appears during a meeting of all creatures, The Lord decides to give humans another chance and entrusts this mission of mercy to those who still hold hope for humanity.

This shoujo fantasy adventure is a beautifully drawn story with a comical twist. The art is quite amazing. Each endangered animal used in this story has a soul that appears in the form of a human. The costumes each of them wears portrays their animal bodies quite well. Even their quirks, like the fruit bats need to sing, is written into their character. And for those of you who love pretty boys, there are plenty of pouty lip pretty boys running around.

This story should also be listed as comedy and not just fantasy adventure. There are many situations that these sisters get into that turn out funny, all because of each of their personal quirks. There are a lot of characters in this story, but each of them is so different and that it definitely adds to the enjoyment. Ark Angels is a wonderful mix of visual stimulation and fun.

Licenser: TokyoPop
Artist: Sang-Sun Park
Retail: US $9.99
Availability: Now Available