Play It Cool, Guys: Laughing at your mistakes

Play It Cool, Guys is a cute and wholesome anime about a group of guys who are clumsy. They push doors that say “PULL”, or vise versa. They are the type to panic about losing their phones while being on their phones, or grab a shoehorn instead of an umbrella by mistake. This is not a Boys Love series, by the way.

I wouldn’t consider myself a clumsy person, but I’ve had my share of embarrassing moments. Moments that make me cringe whenever I am reminded of them. Moments that make me want to lock myself in my house and never come out for ten years. I think it’s my reaction and some negativity, but hey, I’ve gotten better. It used to be a hundred years instead of ten. Hahaha.

But when I see these guys make embarrassing mistakes, they move on from them. Especially Shiki, who laughs whenever he does something clumsy or embarrassing. I really admire his positivity.

In Episode 12, Futami makes a few mistakes in a handball game. He isn’t doing his best. Later on, he has a thought that I found really inspiring. “If you have to have lame moments no matter how you live, then I want to at least be a guy who can laugh them off.” FYI, I don’t like the word “lame” in there but I believe it’s a translation (mis)choice more than anything. I think you can get the gist of what he’s trying to say.

I want to be somebody that can look back and laugh at my embarrassing moments. I don’t know when it’ll happen, but I feel hopeful that I can overcome these mental challenges one day. One step at a time, right?

Play It Cool, Guys is currently airing. The show will be wrapped up in a few weeks – perfect timing if you want to start now. 😉 (Unless you’re a binge-watcher like me…)

Play It Cool, Guys – Screencaps

I fell in love with the anime, Play it Cool, Guys. Unfortunately, I haven’t heard many people talk about it. It’s underrated and deserves more attention! There aren’t many pictures of the characters posted online, so here we are. I’ll do it myself!

This anime is very wholesome, and the characters are so lovable. The episodes are only 10 minutes, which isn’t nearly enough time. I need more! I plan to go into more detail about the main reasons I like the show. I’m still gathering my thoughts at the moment but stayed tuned. ^^

Watching The Way of the Househusband: Learning Things from Anime

I’ve come to appreciate and enjoy The Way of the Househusband a lot. I recently finished Season 2 of the anime as well as the Netflix live-action, The Ingenuity of the House Husband (2021). As you may know, the series follows a legendary former yakuza member, now turned house husband. Tatsu manages the cooking and cleaning in the house for his family – his wife, himself, and their cat – and he’s also really involved in the community. He has hobbies such as crafting, and he’s exceptionally skilled at all of these things. He has a wealth of knowledge, is budget conscious, and knows how to scope out the best deals.

I found a lot of educational value in watching the series, and I even tried out a couple of the activities shown in the series. In Season 2, Episode 4 of the anime, Tatsu makes an air freshener out of baking soda and lavender essential oil. I love lavender and happen to have lavender essential oil at home and empty glass jars, so that’s what I did. I put one in my room and another one in my washroom. Best of all, it was inexpensive.

In Season 2, Episode 4 of the anime, Tatsu buys a felting kit and felts a cat. I became really inspired when I watched that episode, and guess what? That’s exactly what I’m going to do. I’m going to look for a felting kit and felt something of my own. I’ve never felt something before, but I love crafts and I think it’ll be fun to try something new.

I plan to watch the Japanese drama, Gokushufudo (2020), which is different from the Netflix live-action. I just love the series because it’s so chill and covers topics I’m interested in. I wouldn’t say that I find housework fun, but it’s interesting to see how everything works because Tatsu explains his process. It’s an entertaining and fun watch, AND I’m learning at the same time. ^^

P.S. The actor who plays Tatsu in The Ingenuity of the House Husband (2021) voices Tatsu in the anime.

To my blogger friends

To my blogger friends,

Thank you for the recommendations. I must thank Irina for introducing me to Ajin, one of my favourite anime. I think the context was that I tweeted that I needed an anime recommendation and listed some of my favourite anime. Then Irina commented Ajin, and she was spot on with the recommendation.

Thank you Nora for tweeting about the Japanese BL drama, Old Fashion Cupcake. I watched it the same night, and it was a 10/10.

Thank you Shoujo for writing about The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System. Thanks to your post, I was able to enjoy the donghua and then I read the books. Now I am obsessed with SVSSS.

Thank you Crimson for tweeting about buying Hashihime of the Old Book Town on Steam. I am enjoying the game so much! Even the most random thing can be significant.

Thank you Jon Spencer for recommending Japanese Tales of Mystery and Imagination by Edogawa Rampo. I don’t remember the context too well, but I believe it was over Twitter. Rampo is my favourite author of all time, and I recently read The Edogawa Rampo Reader!

There are countless instances like these. We learn about anime, dramas, books, and games one way or another, right? Thanks to all of you, my life is a lot more colourful.

Recent Anime Convention/Artist Market Hauls

Minicomi 2022

I mainly look for MXTX stuff now so I’m glad I found some stuff! I also found a hand-painted pin of blue hydrangeas, my favourites. My boyfriend gifted me the galaxy desk mat in the picture.

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SFU Summer Festival 2022

No MXTX things this time, but I’m really happy with my haul. It was really cool seeing a print of the UBC Anime Club clubroom, as it brought back a lot of memories from my exec days. I like the Karamatsu detail haha. It was my first time seeing Link Click art so I had to get it! My boyfriend gifted me the cute spoon.

Anime Cosplay: Rin Tohsaka from Fate/stay night

Platinum End – Episode 1-9 Impressions

I’m a huge fan of Death Note so naturally, I had to check out Platinum End.

Platinum End is a killing game in which the winner becomes the god of the world. Mirai Kakehashi is granted wings and red arrows that make people fall in love with him. He learns that his childhood friend and crush, Saki Hanakago, is also a god candidate. Things become complicated when a god candidate that goes by the name of Metropoliman begins killing other god candidates. Kakehashi and Hanakago team up with another god candidate, and they try to stop Metropoliman.

I didn’t go in thinking that Platinum End would be on the same level of greatness as Death Note. After all, it seems too difficult to make something at the same high standard. However, I couldn’t help but compare Mirai Kakehashi with Light Yagami of Death Note. Although I was not a Kira supporter, I prefer Light Yagami over Mirai Kakehashi any day. They are opposites. If anything, I felt frustrated watching Kakehashi’s behaviours and words in the show. He has no backbone, and he doesn’t act when he needs to. Does he want to stop Metropoliman or not!? I may be a bit harsh, but I also don’t understand his logic. He rushes in to stop Metropoliman, but then he hesitates in the crucial moments.

Hanakago does not stand out at all. She’s also unhelpful in stopping Metropoliman. I thought she had changed in episode 9. I was excited (even though I thought it was an unbelievable and dramatic change) but perhaps I was wrong.

The events in Platinum End are random. The characters have no plan when they try to stop the villain. Metropoliman, on the other hand, is intelligent. I can think of a long list of characters from other shows that can do a better job than Kakehashi and his group.

The characters feel so unbalanced. I’ve written about intelligence and ambition, but even the characters’ appearances seem so unbalanced. Kakehashi and Hanakago look so plain compared to Kanade Uryu (Metropoliman). Even the other villains so far have more eye-catching designs (e.g., Mimimi Yamada, Hajime Sokotani).

I’ve been complaining a lot. I don’t think I’m being nitpicky, though. I really enjoyed a certain episode, as it was exciting and intense. However, I finished episode 9 and have yet to experience that again.

The question is whether to continue this series or not. There are 24 episodes, so we haven’t reached the halfway mark yet. At this point, I’m reluctant to recommend this anime.

For those of you who are watching this show, what do you think?

When I Tell People I’m a Villain Stan

In my last blog post, I wrote that I was struggling to blog. Lo and behold, I came up with this blog post idea. It’s funny how life works sometimes.

Before I get into it, Happy birthday Xue Yang! He is one of my favourite characters of all time.

I am a villain stan. When I tell people that I love villains, they often give me disapproving looks or insult my favourite characters. This type of response is so normal that I just laugh now.

I have a type.

There’s this meme I’ve seen a couple of times, and it’s pretty funny.

It’s true. I don’t like all villains. Appearances aside, I don’t like villains that pretend to be good and hide behind a curtain (Jin Guanyao from The Untamed; Zhao Jing from Word of Honor). I also don’t like villains that manipulate, lie, and use others (Light Yagami from Death Note; Zhao Jing from Word of Honor).

I like characters that are outwardly chaotic. Everyone in that fictional world knows they are the villain. Hidan from Naruto Shippuden, Deidara from Naruto Shippuden, and Xue Yang from The Untamed are a few examples. A character with an evil laugh is a bonus.

I also love Juuzou Suzaya from Tokyo Ghoul, but I don’t exactly consider him a villain. The lines are blurred because he works for humans and kills ghouls. At the same time, the humans are sometimes painted as the villains.

I also like calm and intelligent villains, like Scorpion King from Word of Honor and Jun Kanzaki from Bloody Monday.

Moral Compass?

Back to the meme posted above, I feel that the normal thing to do is to side with the good protagonist, almost as if it’s automatic. I question that! Why should I side with the protagonist? Just because they are good? What if the protagonist is the villain? Whose side are you on? Examples I can think of are Death Note, Moriarty: The Patriot, and Word of Honor.

It’s a fictional story. Does your moral compass even matter here?

I don’t need a tragic backstory.

Most villains have a tragic childhood story, like their parents were killed when they were young trope. I don’t think it’s necessary. Sometimes, they can just be evil. I don’t need a backstory on why they turned evil.

I won’t defend a villain or apologize for their actions.

I am NOT a villain apologist. Like I said, I don’t need them to have a tragic backstory. Some people use it to justify a villain’s actions. I am fully aware that what they did was wrong. Again, it’s fictional.

I don’t agree with their actions most of the time.

I don’t. And I don’t think this is a pre-requisite to liking a character. In fact, I don’t even see how this relates to why you should like or dislike a character.

They make the story entertaining. Some series would cease to exist if there was no evil. Rather than admiring a hero’s journey, struggles, and perseverance, I would rather applaud the villain on their boldness.

I don’t expect them to win (or live).

Knowing how most stories go, the villain almost never wins. And sometimes, they die. This is expected, and I’ve already mentally prepared myself for this to happen right from the start. This is just the reality.

Bottom line: Fiction =/= Reality

Back to the responses I get when I tell people I like villains, why do people react like that? The villains are not real. Does me liking a mass murderer in a fictional story mean that I like criminals in real life? Of course not. It would be ridiculous to assume that I do. For the record, I have zero interest in real life criminals.

It’s so easy for me to make the distinction between fiction and reality. Me liking a character that does terrible deeds does not mean I support that behaviour in real life! I really don’t know why this is so difficult for some people to understand.

Air dry clay – Oddish/Luffy’s Straw Hat

… and some other sculptures.

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Follow my Art Instagram @misswavesart

Anime Cosplay: Yuno Gasai from Mirai Nikki

I’ve cosplayed as Yuno before. Click here to see the photos from last year.

I made the ribbon hair ties. 🙂