random thoughts about random things

Actually, that’s a blatant lie. This one’s not manga, it’s manhwa. “Man wha?” you ask, and you ask that with good cause. “What man?” is indeed the first thought that should come to your mind when you read that. Or it might not, because alot of people are weird. Manhwa is Korean manga. South-Korean that is. I doubt Kim Jong-il is too enthusiastic about sharing this stuff with the rest of his country, and I bet the guy himself’s too busy wanking to cheesy japanese yaoi or dubious tentacoo (tentacle, for you unenlightened unwashed masses) hentai than taking the time to read their southern brother’s comics, much less encouraging his countrymen to be creative. Anyways, enough about that, this is about a whatman comic, a South Korean manga.

Unbalance X Unbalance

You know that seriously hot teacher you had when you went to school that every single able guy (even the asexual and the gay) used to ogle with big eyes? You didn’t have one? I think that’s a tragic loss for you, seriously. We had so much fun running around talking about this amazingly beautiful, hot and awesome teacher that we all stared at with dreamy mesmerized looks, and certainly not paying attention to what she was talking about, just her moving lips. You didn’t have a teacher like that? I did, in Canada, and while I’ve forgotten her name, I’ve certainly not forgotten her. Hell, half the school will probably never forget her. Damn.

Yet again, enough about that, kind of. Enough about my nostalgic dive about past youthful worships and more about Unbalance x2 (it’s called that as well), a manga about Jin-Ho, a high schooler, who falls in love with Hae-Young, his high scool teacher. They meet in an unusual way, and I found this twist rather refreshing; he returned her wallet which she had lost, after he’d borrowed cash from it. She discovers this, and demands that this should be considered a loan, and that he should pay back asap. Not a good start, kind of, because he discovers the next day that *du-dum-tsh* she’s his new homeroom teacher.

Sounds cheesy? Oh yeah, it makes that cheese platter seem sparse. The good part is that this stuff’s awesome cheese. The right kind of cheese. Brilliant cheese, and in such abundance I’m in 7th heaven. Allright, exaggerated, but in all honesty I love this series. Maybe because it’s South Korean and not Japanese - allowing some form of change in atmosphere, perhaps it’s the author, or I’m just a complete sucker for teacher/student mangas. Whatman’s?

Your first thought might be “Uh, dude, are you smoking crack? Isn’t that the kind of shitty stuff only a pubescent retard would read?”, and I guess you’re right. While I certainly don’t find myself fitting that profile, you might think I do, which isn’t correct, so sod off. I consider Onegai Teacher (Or Please Teacher!) one of the most enjoyable animes I’ve ever watched in my life, so I’m probably biased in alot of ways. On that note, you should check out Onegai Teacher, atleast in the manga-form, or you’re a dumbass. /smug

One of the things that really struck me is that the series didn’t feel clichè at all (except the harem-stuff, but we love harem-stuff, don’t we?). Cheesy as hell yeah, and often clichè (I know, I’m contradictory, but I wrote feel you *expletive*), and unlike clichèes cheese tends to be seriously awesome, but it still feels different and interesting. The scenes and dialogue feels real, the setting’s fun, and I completely adore the characters in the series. One of the great points about the series so far is that it hasn’t been necessary to fire up the hilarity truck. While there’s alot of humour in it, it’s never exaggerated or anything like what you find in the Japanese harem-mainstream (*double-checks to make sure he’s not talking out of his ass* Nope, there’s none), it’s more of a warm and natural kind of humour that won’t make you go all “GUFFAW *breathes*”, but mild chuckles and grins. I found that really nice and refreshing.

Errr… just get your ass in gear and read it you idling fop!

/Unbalance X Unbalance

On another, but as usual related topic, Martin (u got linqd punk!) picked up Claymore! He’s now reading about Claymore Claire and her Cool & Convincing Claymore Comrades. For one, he’s loving it. Second, it makes me so happy he’s picked it up on my recommendation. Third, sometimes the inner battle of not releasing spoilers can be a daunting task.

Now, one thing I’m wondering about is how smart and well-received it would be to provide direct links to manga-downloads (and anime) here. I’ve even got a pretty awesome FTP I could roll out for the most lazy buggers if the interest is there as well.

And Ingar, ask Martin about the mp3(’s) I sent him the other day if you’re keen on hearing examples of Gundam SEED music with Sahashi Toshihiko at his best if you haven’t already.

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