a recipe for insanity

[xparrot]

So the last couple weeks I've been making an earnest effort to break my brain, by watching simultaneously, an ep of one and then a couple of the other, two of the finest productions ever to come from folks who aren't afraid to try the really good crack: Kodomo no Omocha and Twin Peaks.

Kodocha I'd seen a dozen eps last year, but only just got ahold of the rest of the series. I love shoujo comedy, and I've never laughed harder at one. I'm not sure what else I can say, without going into how embarrassingly quickly shoujo can reduce me to squealing, giddy Hayama <3 Sana!!! girliness. Or how I want to be Sana's mother when I grow up. The famous writer, naturally, but I wouldn't mind the squirrel living in my hats, either.

Twin Peaks, I've never had the pleasure before, but it's been on my list for a while and my sister finally decided the time had come. Fascinating. X-files was a direct descendant, the bloodline is clear, but Chris Carter liked to pretend he was, uh, sane. David Lynch, not so much. That it's a soap opera--or a parody of a soap?--makes it even better, because no one's afraid to start chomping on the scenery, and you get that fantastic melodramatic soundtrack at all the right moments.

In case you aren't familiar with the series, it's about the isolated Washington town of CoopervilleTwin Peaks, the kind of friendly place where everyone knows everyone, and everyone's got their little secrets. And then a girl is murdered, the FBI is called in, and those secrets begin to come out as everyone's lives and minds unravel. It's a soap opera, it's a murder mystery, it's a damn creepy ghost story; it's also black comedy at its finest. Have to appreciate a show where two of the funniest scenes involve a funeral, and a man lying bleeding to death on the floor. ...well, I was laughing, anyway.

And there's Agent Cooper. I mean, I love all the law enforcement, Andy and Lucy (hee!), Hawk (yeah!), Albert (HEE!), and of course Harry. But Coop. Must love a guy who doesn't let the fact that he's a total neurotic nutball keep him from being perfect.

I've only seen the first half of it (to the resolution of the case, please don't spoil me beyond that!), and yes, I've been duly warned that it was cancelled on some of the worse cliffhangers known to fans, but it's worth it for the sheer, awesome weirdness. and Cooper.

Then, just to round things off, my anime club is showing Last Exile. Like, just the coolest show, highly recommended, if you're in the mood for jaw-droppingly gorgeous Miyazaki-airship-inspired anime and a twisty plot that drops a bombshell at the end of every other episode, and relies on the audience to put the pieces together. And gnine and I are madly in love with Alex Row. --well, not in love so much as in lust. The cloak, the hair...the brooding, almost-unbreakable composure...the torture...mmm...Alex... ...where was I?

Really, Last Exile is like Vision of Escaflowne, its fundamental sensibilities secretly shoujo-inclined. The war-torn political maneuverings and world-building and wicked cool flying machines in the end are all just a backdrop for human drama, romance and other intense relationships floating just beneath the surface everywhere. Since Escaflowne probably ranks as one of my five favorite anime ever, it's little wonder I love this one so much.

Though if Last Exile is Escaflowne, that makes Dio the combination of Dilandau and Merle...

Comments

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

Sophia is indeed much cooler than Millerna, and Alex...it doesn't need to be said. {{siiiigh}} ^^ But it does work as a comparison. and then the Lavie-Claus-Tatiana situation has a gender-swapped correlation to the Van-Hitomi-Allen. Though Van->Claus, since Merle->Dio (You gotta admit, Dio with a tail = too cute! "Immelman-sama!")

But does this all make Folken Alex, or Delphine? --Okay, gonna stop there.

--Actually Lucciola would more likely be that cool dog-lion man who serves Dilandau in the last few eps...stopping now!
...mmm, Dio & Lucciola...I'll probably post my bit of smut after we've finished the show...