A few days ago,I semi-ranted in about people criticizing fandoms they barely even know. I must be be very unlucky because once I again I stumbled upon another entry criticizing this time, of all things, my favorite and most underrated WJ manga--Houshin Engi. Now,I'm really an open-mided person. I understand not everyone can like the same things I do ;I respect that. As a matter of fact,I love reading really in-depth reviews citing the good and bad points of my favorite series. I don't mind if the writer eventually states in the end that he/she doesn't like [insert title here]--that's his/her choice. What is good for me might be bad for him/her and what's good for him/her might be bad for me. Taste is subjective ,after all. What irked me in that person's post is that he never gave an in-depth explanation why he thinks the manga sucks. But wait...how on earth can he do that? He has not even read it! (>_<) Sure he has seen the anime and he thinks it bad.I can sympathize; I, as well as most Houshin Engi fans, don't have much love for the anime either. The anime started with the same premise as the manga and then just decided to take its own path. I can list down all the difference between the two media but that'll only take long. My point here is do not use the anime as a gauge as to how good or bad a manga is. A bad anime doesn't necessarily equal a bad manga. This holds true in the case of Houshin Engi. Of course, that person still might find Houshin bad even after reading it. Well, this is where preference comes in and I have no right to complain if he doesn't like it. Like I've said taste is subjective. At least,his opinion was formed because he discovered firsthand that it was bad, instead of unjustly assuming that it just was. Whew.I finall got that out of my system. Ranting about things once in a while does feel nice.XD And now moving to some more positive things... Kirimi just translated the Talkroom in D.gray'-man's 9th volume and just like the past Talkrooms, it was hilarious, especially because it was a Noah special. They are totally a quirky family and that's why we love them. Poor Tiki-- he was picked on most of the time. I love the question asking about who was more idiotic between Kanda and Tiki if the are both capable of answering a Level 3 elementary school question. *lol * Once again –poor Tiki. Poor Kanda too. Now everyone in the fandom will now think they indeed are dumb. XD Hoshino, what do you have against them? *** Untitled (Mieru Hito,Gen,729 words so far ,Myoujin + Himeno) In the Utakata Mansion, they were a family. Myoujin was the protective older brother--a guardian who had always kept them safe from all sorts of harm. They, on the other hand, were the supportive younger siblings he never had--always there to cheer him on when he needed it most; siblings who had never left his side even when worse came to worst. Because that's how it was in a family... Everybody stays together until the very end. Or that's what Himeno had deluded herself to believe in three years ago. At sixteen, she was a believer of forever. At nineteen, reality kicked her back to her senses and made her realize that some dreams just weren’t mean to come true. One by one, she had seen her family disappear before her very eyes. Some had decided to finally cross over to the other side; some, meanwhile, had exchanged the not-so-quiet life in the Utakata Mansion to see more of the world. And now it was time for her to leave as well. Tomorrow, she would be graduating from highschool --and tomorrow, she would also be going home. As much as it hurt her to do, she would have to say goodbye to the Utakata Mansion and to Myoujin. Furtively,she glanced at the white-haired man across her. He was quietly eating his dinner,which she found rather uncanny. Myoujin always had stories to tell. All this silence was making her feel rather uncomfortable, and so as a solution, she cleared her throat, put on a casual expression and tried to sound a bit cheerful as she started a conversation.” So,how was work today?” Myoujin must have been startled for she saw him jolt slightly. Then, his mouth slowly curved and formed that lazy grin of his and Himeno found herself looking at the familiar laidback Myoujin she was normally accustomed to. “It went well. The ghosts at Suzuhara-san’s store were quite cooperative. They promised not to bother the customers during the day.” “That’s good to hear.” It was Myoujin’s turn to clear his throat. “How about you, Himenon? How was the…graduation rehearsal?” “It was… all right,” she finished with a smile. But her smile was as false as the grin that was still plastered on the exorcist’s face. Both were aware of each other’s pretense yet neither said a word about it. For once, they found lying to be the best course of action. “So…what time is your graduation ceremony again?” he asked casually. “Around nine.” “Ah…” “Myoujin-san…” “Hmm…?” “If you’re not busy or anything, I hope you can attend the ceremony tomorrow. It will really make me happy are there since Grandfather can’t make it. But if you don’t have any time to spare, that’s all right. I understand.” Furrowing his brow, Myoujin tapped his chin using his forefinger. “I think I have an appointment tomorrow…” Himeno’s face fell. “Oh.” The white-haired man chuckled.”Silly girl! I was just kidding. Of course, I’ll be there. A landlord should never miss such an important event in his tenant’s life. But of course, you have to promise we’ll have a post-graduation celebration, probably at the new restaurant downtown? “ “Are you kidding me? That place is so expensive!” she exclaimed while staring at him incredulously. “No way!” “Oh come on, Himenon,don’t be so stingy!” he teased. . “Uh-uh. No,no,no..You’re going to rob me of every single yen I have if we eat there. I won’t have enough money for my train tickets!” Myoujin paused to think.”That’s true,” he finally said after a short moment of taciturnity. Then,he smiled. “Well,maybe you can walk your way home? You can use the exercise. You do look like you’ve gained some weight…” “I do not!” . Myoujin laughed while looking at her childish expression. For a moment, Himeno, look annoyed, but as he pursed his lips together to mimic her pout, she began to laugh as well. Laughter filled the Utakata Masion, though sadly not for long. Gradually, the sounds died down, until only soft, nearly inaudible chuckles remained. There came an exchange of strained smiles, followed by the return of another awkward silence. Outside,the crickets continued with their nightly song. Little by little, their smiles faded. And then, simultaneous sighs were heard. Their pretenses crumbled. “We suck at this, don’t we?” Another sigh was the only thing she could give as a reply. *** A portion of the Mieru Hito fic I'm writing. It's sad no one's writing Mieru Hito fics in English. It really sucks when you tend to love fandoms that are not popular or non-existent in the Englsih fandom. For once,I want to read Mieru Hito fic which I don't need to translate first. | 
I have to admit that I was not really a fan of Ikki x Ringo when I first got into Air Gear.Individually? Yes,I do like them. As a matter of fact, Ringo is my favorite Air Gear female chara while Ikki ranks second to Kazu in the male category. As a couple, Ikki x Ringo that time didn't really hold my interest. I was more drawn to Sora x Rika and Ikki x Kazu. But after re-reading Air Gear, I realized Ikki x Ringo isn't that bad--actually, I realized how they are so meant to be. 