Lyssi! What were your favorite animes you watched this year?
Another good ask ahhhh!
Well in case you didn’t know, this was my first year watching anime!! (shocking, I know haha) This year I think I’ve completed 12 series? I’ve randomly started a few others, am still working on some, while others I’ve dropped altogether. However, when I look back on what I have watched, there are 5 that certainly stand out.
5. Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan)
Attack on Titan was the one show I knew about before I started watching anime, but I put it off until about halfway through the year. After the first episode I was like “wtf am I WATCHING?!” But as I continued, the story absolutely captivated me. I binged the entire rest of the manga in almost one whole sitting (took 8 hours altogether, but I did have to pause for the night because...my heart...couldn’t take anymore at one point) and along the way I fell head over heels for Levi. 😍😍
4. Noragami
YATO YATTOO YAAAATTTTOOOOOONoragami is probably my most recent anime that I’ve fallen in love with. I fell deep into it almost immediately. I’ve never experienced such an instantaneous adoration for characters as I did for Yato, Yukine, and Hiyori. It is such a beautiful, painful, and heartwarming show. I love it so much!
3. Haikyuu!!
*collective gasp* There is no denying that Haikyuu!! absolutely consumed my entire life for a solid seven months. I love it so much, and I will always love it so much. Haikyuu often times gave me a reason to want to wake up in the mornings for a large majority of this year, and every good thing that has happened to me online this year happened because of my involvement with the hq fandom. I’ll never forget the feelings I experienced while watching, it will always be so special to me.
2. Boku no Hero Academia
Aaahhhh, bnha was certainly the dark horse of my anime experience this year. I watched it in June, before going to AX, and was like “Yeah that was cool I enjoyed it” but thought that was it. Then I watched it one more time and started the manga, which led me to the realization of “oh my god, I really REALLY love this???” I proceeded to watch it AGAIN and my deep investment in the story and characters was undeniable. (Then I fell into bakushima and that was that. My life was over after that point, rip)
1. Bungou Stray Dogs
SURPRISE! Bungou Stray Dogs literally means the world to me. Every time I try to explain why I love it so much I lose the ability to form proper sentences. I just....really resonate with the themes of this show. Feeling lost, trying to find a reason to live... Not to mention the art style is absolutely stunning and the music never fails to make me cry. It is so well done, every time I rewatch it I am consistently blown away. I really wish more people knew about this show, it deserves ALL the love in the world. I can’t wait for the movie next year, and I will be anxiously awaiting a new season!!
Pink: What are your main/favorite ships?My….favorite…..ship? *breathes in real deep*
BAAAKKKUUUSSSHHHIIIMMMMAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!
As if….that weren’t already obvious enough by now :DDDD
Yellow: Favorite fanfiction about your OTP?Okay so by now it’s out in the open that I’ve read an inhumane amount of bakushima fan fiction… (the number is approaching 100 quicker than I’d like to admit) so recently I’ve been compiling a list of recs to share with you all. It’s still in the works, but I have my solid top list of “MUST READS” finished :DYou can find this list of recs here!
Red: What do you like the most about your favorite ship?
Oh….man….there is so much I love about these two, it’s so hard to decide on just *one* reason. Above all else, I think my favorite thing is how well they complement each other.
For Bakugou, Kirishima grounds him. It’s no secret that Bakugou is a violently burning flame, never hesitating, but Kirishima keeps him steady. Kirishima doesn’t view Bakugou as the ticking time bomb that everyone else does, and I think that’s a huge reason why Bakugou warmed up to him so much. Kirishima is someone Bakugou can view as an equal and not a threat, which is why they are able to work so well together. Kirishima knows how to handle Bakugou, even in canon we see him as sort of the Bakugou-whisperer lol.
For Kirishima, Bakugou is someone who motivates and inspires him. Honestly I’ve lost count of how many times Kirishima has had his eye on Bakugou in canon, commenting on his fighting, his strategies, his behavior. Bakugou, in his own way, knows how to encourage Kirishima. He can detect when Kirishima is having self-doubt and he will have none of it, thank you very much, you are a damn good hero and you are STRONG, DAMMIT!!!
I’m convinced that these two are such a good pair. They just fit together so well. There is literally no one out there who could understand and handle Bakugou like Kirishima can. There’s a panel in BNHA SMASH, the spin-off manga, where Kirishima and Bakugou are teamed up, and Kirishima comments how he is the only one on earth truly fit to be Bakugou’s partner.
Do you have any advice for someone like who wants to learn Japanese? I would really like to learn it but any time I start looking into it I just get overwhelmed. I have no idea where to start and how to make a plan for it. I'd really appreciate any insight you could give. Congrats on your move to Japan!
Hello friend, welcome to the very challenging world of learning Japanese. Before I answer this, I would like to be transparent in the fact that I’ve only been studying for 6 months, and for a majority of that time I did not take it as seriously as I should have, so over that amount of time I feel like I have barely anything to show for it. However, I can definitely point you to some fantastic resources and give you advice coming from a beginning learner’s perspective. :)
This post might get a little long, so I’ll put a cut here! Keep reading if you have any interest at all in learning this amazing language.
So, you wanna learn Japanese huh? *wiggles eyebrows*
You’re in for quite the experience. Learning any language is a very difficult, but very rewarding journey. However, Japanese is considered one of the most challenging languages to learn, and for good reason. It is SO easy to feel overwhelmed when first starting out--actually--it’s easy to feel overwhelmed no matter where you’re at in your studies. Learning Japanese is like opening the doors to a brand new world. There is just so much, and the amount of “content” and experiences you "unlock” is amazing.
If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that there’s no “wrong way” to start learning Japanese. If you read any blog about it, you will see tons of different advices for starting points, so don’t feel like there’s a certain formula you should follow. As for me, I suggest the very first thing you do is Learn Hiragana.
Hiragana is one of the Japanese syllabaries, and the one you will be seeing the most often as you begin. I’m a firm believer that you really can’t start learning vocabulary or grammar until you are familiar enough with the hiragana that you can read the words without thinking “errr....crap, what sound does that make again??” (I still get that way with katakana, the other syllabary, but we aren’t talking about that right now lol)http://www.hiraganaposter.com/ is a great resource that shows you the entire hiragana chart, their pronunciation, the stoke order, everything. Study it in chunks. Memorize them one row at a time until you have them down. I personally have a pretty good memory so I was able to get the whole chart down in a day, but it will vary from person to person. Write them over and over, say them as you write them. It’s imperative that you are able to not only recognize them, but be able to say them as well!
Next, I would say find a resource to actually study from. I have used the Genki Elementary Japanese textbook/workbook, which is commonly used in college courses, but I quickly got tired of the textbook-style format. Now, I’ve been using this awesome website called Japanese From Zero which I seriously can’t recommend enough. The entire first course is totally free, and if you like it you can subscribe for full access. My favorite thing about this course is that it comes with videos for each lesson. I found I learn so much better when I have someone actually explaining the concepts to me. The structure is great, you learn new vocabulary, grammar, and phrases in every lesson. I’ve learned a lot from it so far.
Piggy-backing off of that, I’d like to suggest that you focus on grammar. Sure, Japanese is considered difficult because of the syllabic writing system, but that’s a piece of cake once you’re able to read hiragana/katakana. The real hard part comes with learning sentence structure and grammar rules. I personally have struggled and gotten burnt out the most when I try to sit and learn a ton of vocabulary (I hate it ugh) but honestly, vocabulary will come with practice of the language. What you really need to get down is the grammar, which JFZ does a great job of covering.A fantastic resource that I use daily for looking up vocabulary is Jisho.org, which is an English->Japanese (and vice-versa) dictionary. There’s an app, too, which is what I always use.
*wipes forehead* Okay, even just that seems like a lot, but it’s a good starting point! If I could say just a few more things..
DON’T freak out about kanji. Kanji can be scary. But don’t overwhelm yourself by learning it right away, it’s not crucial to the beginning of your journey. I’m only just now starting to study kanji. It doesn’t even pop up until Course 3 of JFZ, so don’t stress about it just yet!
DON’T expect yourself to have magic translator abilities after a little bit of study. I tried to tell myself that I’d sit down with my original copies of manga that I have and try to translate things for practice. I had a bad time. *seriously, learn as much grammar as you can before even attempting this, you’ll just get discouraged!!*
DO find a friend to talk to about Japanese. This is important. Learning something on your own is not nearly as effective. You’ll have questions, you’ll hit road bumps. It’s always so nice to have someone to talk to. If you do end up using JFZ, they have a chatroom that members can use! You can totally talk to me about it too, I’ll try to be as helpful as I can. ^^
DO set up a study routine. 15 minutes a day, 20 minutes a day, even a little longer, whatever is reasonable for you, set it and stick to it. Try not to overwhelm yourself with too much in one sitting, though. Brains certainly hit a point where they’ve had enough, so you never want to overwhelm yourself.
DO expose yourself to Japanese content daily. As if we needed an excuse to watch more anime lol. But really, watch anime, listen to Japanese music, watch interviews of your favorite seiyuus, and while you do it PAY ATTENTION to the language. The more you expose yourself to it, the more natural it will sound, and it is so cool when you start picking up and recognizing phrases and vocabulary as you continue studying.
DON’T give up! There will be times where you want to. Japanese is hard. But like I said earlier, you open up an entirely new world, and it’s amazing. Stick with it!!
I wish you luck in your studies. I really hope this rambling was helpful to you. If you have any other questions, my messages are always open! Feel free to ask and I can do my best to answer or at least point you in the right direction. :)
I also want to take a second to acknowledge @recklessopinions, my amazing friend who has been the ultimate Japanese senpai for me over these past several months. ALL of these resources were referred to me by her, and she’s been such a fantastic resource, practice partner, and friend. Thank you for everything Ann! <3
What's your favorite nekoma moment? (From the manga or stage play or anime)
How about….From all three? ;D *WARNING: MANGA SPOILERS*
YEAAAAAAAAAH!!!!When Nekoma secured their spot in Nationals, I was so so happy. I can’t wait to see this moment animated…*cough*…..
I’m so weak for Nekoma’s intro for Karasuno Revival LOOOK AT MY BOYS. LOOK AT THESE CATS. (look at shouri’s thighs) I LOVE THEMMMMMM(I also really love the iconic chant in the stage play, but I couldn’t find a gif of it D:)
LMAO honestly, if this doesn’t give you the clearest depiction of Nekoma, idk what does. I remember I laughed so hard when I watched this OVA for the first time because of this part. *cries* I just really love them T_T
Yellow: Favorite fanfiction about your OTP?HORRAH! I’ve technically already answered this but I will never miss an opportunity to share the Bakushima Fic-rec List I have recently made :DD I will be continuing to update it, but I have my absolute favorite already listed, so please do check them out! ^^
18: Any HCs for the entirety of Class 1-A?
I am such a sucker for dorm life tropes. Gimme all the sleep-over parties, gimme all the movie nights, gimme all the board game parties that end in disaster and ruined friendships, I WANT IT ALL. (If anybody’s got some good dorm life fics…please send them my way!!!!)
Apple: Favorite popular HC?
DRAGON KIRISHIMA.
Also, I really love the HC that Bakugou likes to cook and is really good at it.
Which one of the engeki haikyuu plays is your favorite? Or favorite engeki haikyuu moments?
UWAAHHHH GOOOOOD ASK
This is a hard choice because I’ve only watched Winners and Losers once, but I thought it was an absolute masterpiece. However, I think Karasuno: Revival has a very special place in my heart because NEKOMA and also I truly loved Ikejiri’s performance, so I’d have to say that’s my favorite one so far.
I have...SO many favorite moments, omg.
I’ll never be over Shouri, quite honestly. He is the most perfect Kuroo and this quick monologue ALWAYS destroys me completely asdkfjsald
In the anime, I honestly didn’t care much about Ikejiri, but in the play...wow, I CRIED. He put on such an incredibly moving performance...it still gives me chills.
Okay so this isn’t the actual gif but I wanted a nice kagehina haha. There’s a moment (I thiiink it’s in Winners and Losers...man, I really need to rewatch that..) where kageyama and hinata essentially echo back and forth to eachother their first argument about “Only the strongest stay on the court” and.....it was probably the most powerful moment of engeki haikyuu for me.
BELIEVE ME THERE’S MORE but there’s so many I can’t think of more specifics right now haha
hey!! i really agree with what you said about bakushima, so i wanted to ask "orange". i'd also like to ask question 11. for me it's tottaly bakusquad haha~ also number 18 cuz i'm addicted to headcanons. thanks in advance, have a great weekend and happy holidays!!
Awww YAY! I am so glad you enjoyed my post about bakushima. I could probably write an extremely lengthy essay on their relationship honestly hahaha. Now onto the questions ^^
Orange: Fluff or Angst?
Solid mixture of both. Now, I say this especially regarding Bakushima... purely fluffy fics can often toe dangerously on the line of OOC for Bakugou. (Honestly I’ve read some fics where it’s just been like this....is not Bakugou😅) Bakugou is a very very difficult character to characterize when it comes to emotional expression. I think sometimes we want to live in a world where Bakugou isn’t the emotionally constipated, prideful young boy he is. But.....we’ve gotta face facts haha. That’s why the fic 2 A.M is my absolute favorite Bakushima fic....the characterization for Bakugou is so incredibly accurate, I’m blown away every time I read it! And in terms of angst, I’m all for it as long as it gets resolved, lol.
11: Dekusquad or Bakusquad?
Okay real talk right now. I absolutely adore characters in both squads, however, if I myself were a student in Class 1A, I’d for sure want to be in the Bakusquad😎
18: Any HCs for the entirety of Class 1-A?
Haha honestly keep these coming, I have a lot of fun thinking up Class 1-A shenanigans!!
Okay so get this. You know how Bakugou swears, like, A LOT. Well, I am convinced that at some point, someone, (probably Kaminari) decided it would be a fun idea to keep track of how many times he swears on a given day. He and Ashido keep a post-it note on the inside of their desks to keep track as the day goes on, and soon word gets out and Sero proposes a class-wide bet (unbeknownst to Bakugou, of course) to guess the average amount of swear words that come out of his mouth daily.Ashido, Sero, and Kaminari hound all of Class 1A, clip-board in tow, to gather each of their guesses while Kirishima is out sparring with Bakugou to distract him. The class ends up getting surprisingly competitive about this. The only problem is, now every time Bakugou swears, muffled giggles can be heard amongst half of the students.
“WHAT THE F*CK IS SO FUNNY?!?” Bakugou shouts back at them, causing even MORE laughter, and in turn, more swearing. Kaminari ends up getting accused of “playing dirty” by making comments at Bakugou with the sole purpose of riling him up, (his guess is one of the highest in the class, go figure).
At the end of the day, Yaoyorozu compares all of the data to come up with the most accurate and unbiased number.
Kirishima wins with the dead-accurate guess of 132, and everyone sulks out of the room muttering “Of course he won” “That’s just unfair.”
(Bakugou enters seconds later, after noticing everyone leaving and mutters under his breath “What the f*ck is going on?”)
ASK ME BNHA THEMED QUESTIONS!
(or just ask about headcanons at this point honestly lol)
