After a little bit of soul-searching (don’t I have a blog ? where is it ? since when haven’t I posted something ? am I bored at work right now ? should I find a subject ? hey didn’t I start it in November last year ? anniversary coming soon ?) I realized :

THIS BLOG IS ONE YEAR (and one day) OLD !!! (insert applause, flowers, rainbows, butterflies and dancing hippos.)

I MANAGED TO KEEP IT UP FOR ONE YEAR !!! (sure, if you don’t know me, you won’t realize how amazing this is.)

Unfortunately, I started this thing in order to talk about anime, and my interest in said entertainment dropped dramatically during that time, so I started writing about just anything. Also, I wanted to do episodic blogging, but let’s face it, I can never keep up with it. See, I’m even behind on Darker than Black ! Hopeless. I can’t update regularly, because I don’t have the time (sometimes I do have free time  ! But there’s always something better to do…) and besides, if the prospect of low stats affected me (my stats are always low and anyway, judging by the fact I post my art, you should know I don’t go for Internet celebrity) my posting schedule has no effect whatsoever on my stats (they even go higher when I don’t post ! If I knew how I do that I’d probably make a fortune).

Found your way through all the brackets ? Good for you ! So  now, what ? I mean, I created this mess, so, what should I do with it ? Should I do something with it ?

But hey, this post has no picture ! I like pictures ! Let’s find a random one  :

(Not so random. I love Delirium, and I just finished Brief Lives.)

And I forgot : a song !

twas a dark, cold night…

And a little girl was running, running…

Good demonstration of the Garbage Defense

Unfortunately, finding refuge is not that easy when you have memory-wipers after you.

errr, trick or treats ?

There is one that got through the net by pulling the old infirmary trick : Nika and his old secret base are here to save the day. Complete with junk food, old rifles and pamphlet printer. Because Suou is not going to stay huddled in fear forever, she’s stronger than that.

now, on to the Slander attack !

…you have a squirrel on your head…

Nika’s help is short-lived, he does have more pressing matters to attend. Like, trying to get his girl back. Everyone understands that.

But wait, back to Hei for a moment, I thought I saw something…

CIA ? Whut ? and you’re an alcoholic now ?

So, where’s the Syndicate in this ? Oh, I’ll wait and see (and hope I’ll get an answer). Anyway, he’s got new playmates :

Hat and rose talkative guy

Reinforced concrete suit guy, a.k.a Garbage boy

and here is his partner, Ninja girl ! always bring a ninja with you…

…they also do comic relief and yuri bait. Awesome.

Hei gets to find Suou first, and mistake her for Shion (as the little weasel intended I’m sure). But realizing his mistake, he runs away (with her) from the MI-6’s magician, the army and the two Japanese contractors. He manages to take down the magician, but the Japanese geeks have new tricks up their sleeves…

and I bet it hurts…

…a lot.

Now, two important questions to ponder :

and what is he ?

]]> http://dohrnaira.wordpress.com/2009/10/18/darker-than-black-ryuusei-no-gemini-02-hide-and-seek/feed/ 0 dohrnaira snapshot20091018145254 snapshot20091018144948 snapshot20091018145321 snapshot20091018145730 snapshot20091018145844 snapshot20091018145644 snapshot20091018151000 snapshot20091018150312 snapshot20091018144903 snapshot20091018145116 snapshot20091018150559 snapshot20091018150550 snapshot20091018150118 snapshot20091018145046 http://dohrnaira.wordpress.com/2009/10/15/art-is-soooo-subjective/ http://dohrnaira.wordpress.com/2009/10/15/art-is-soooo-subjective/#comments Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:10:00 +0000 dohrnaira http://dohrnaira.wordpress.com/?p=1412 ]]>

Since Darker than Black is back on air, and I haven’t posted ugly drawings in a while, here’s a picture to celebrate !

I still won’t deface my homepage with it, so click at your own risk. In my defense, it’s two years old and I hadn’t started on kanjis yet

Désolée, ça me fait trop rire et j’ai pas de Twitter
http://www.jeansarkozypartout.com

Go, and catch a falling star,
Get with child a mandrake root,
Tell me, where all past years are,
Or who cleft the Devil’s foot,
Teach me to hear mermaids singing,
Or to keep off envy’s stinging,
And find
What wind
Serves to advance an honest mind.*

It all starts with a meteor.

and cute twins with hats

They say a falling star means someone has died. In their case, it seems it also means someone is born anew. This is the night Suou’s twin brother becomes a Contractor…

Two years later, Suou lives a fairly normal life in Vladivostok. But what do we have ? MI-6 Contractors hanging out in bars ?

a new one, nice to meet you, Whisky guy

That doesn’t stop our lively girl sneaking pictures of her friends Tanya and Nika during a particularly meaningful and sweet moment, and fail to convey any of its beauty to her now heartless brother.

the enthusiastic approach…

vs. the realistic approach to love

dream is the word

But your world can change overnight. Adorable blushing girls can suddenly become capable of pest control and incapable of emotions.

wow, not so cute and happy anymore

Tanya leaves in an army truck towards her new fate, leaving behind a fairly distraught Suou. Unfortunately, this is only the beginning. Upon coming home, Suou finds herself running away from Special Ops, hearing her brother telepathically, finding her father dead on the floor, and caught up in a Contractor fight.

miss !

April, who was working undercover at Suou and Shion’s dad’s lab, ice-shrapnels an unknown guy. Something seems to be the matter with Shion. He’s the “core of the meteor”, or so Suou heard the guy interrogating her dad say before killing him. What guy ? Adult. Asian. Wearing a mask. Now that rings a bell, doesn’t it, April ?

and if it wasn’t enough, you’d recognize that cable anytime…

uh oh, looks like Yin has not been taking good care of you lately

Another star falls. April is dead. Shion is missing, voluntarily. Suou stands in the snowy woods. So does BK201.

Impressions :

This show has actually made me write another post when I was thinking about leaving this blog to wither quietly away. Darker than Black is one of my favorites, which are the ones that don’t simply fall into the “it’s fun/it’s stupid/it’s got giant robots” categories (I am weak that way, you may have noticed). It just glues me to my screen. It makes me think, sometimes feel, drool over background art or fighting scenes. The first episode did all that at once. So now I wait, and hope.

*John Donne, from the opening of Stardust by Neil Gaiman

1) Get the villain to go berserk with weird bionic weaponry and basically kill himself

I will kill the last of the Primes !!

2) Kiss the girl

oh my, did he make the first move ? did he ? then everything is possible ! I’ll stop exploding !

And voilà ! Let’s all go back to our Care Bears villages and have kids and bake bread !

Yes, that’s all. The Valkyria Superpowers/Valkyria Juggernaut/Max is an ambitious traumatized madman ? Not exactly something new. This series went from fun and intersting to MIGHTY EXPLOSIONS and hackneyed drama. Endings are never easy, this one didn’t knock my socks off, but it did the job. I might be biased because they killed Jaeger, though.

Just watch this in loop mode until I get back in blogging mode (and Valkyria 26 is subbed)

Mmmm, even less.

HAHAHAHA Cordelia does not want you as husband, Maximilian you are so PWNED

Not to mention a Valkyria-obsessed heartless bastard

Meanwhile, Selvaria goes nuclear.

KABLOOIE !!

And let us hope General Damon is dead, everyone !

Not updating much, I see ! Well, not watching much either.
Then I will do with what I have, and what I have been showed.
Want to follow me into the realm of music ?..

It seems part of my family still hasn’t given up on me and try again and again to educate me about music. I am a willing pupil, I am just not very gifted (and hard-working).
Last night, the lesson was “Discover Johann Christian Bach” (1735-1782). Last son of good ol’ J.S, spent his time between Germany, Italy and England, composing operas and influencing a young brat named Mozart along the way.
Granted, the conditions were optimal.

Concert at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées (Exhibit 1)

with Philippe Jaroussky (Exhibit 2)

and the young up-and-coming marvelous orchestra everyone in the world should know by now, Le Cercle de l’Harmonie (Exhibit 3).

Been there, heard them live before and loved it. Optimal, I said.
Except I was dead tired and afraid to fall asleep on the spot. I know I would have to endure pitying glances at family reunions for a while if I did that (sadly, it happened before), so the stakes were high.
The plan was to stay awake through this :
Jean-Chrétien Bach : « Vo solcando un mar crudele » (Artaserse, scena ultima, aria di Arbace, 1760)
Récitatif et rondeau « Sentimi non partir… Al mio bene a lei che adoro » (1779, pour M.Tenducci)
Haydn : Concerto pour violon et cordes en sol majeur Hob VIIa : 4
Jean-Chrétien Bach : Récitatif « Perfida Cartismandua » et cavatine « Tra l’orror » (Carattaco, acte 2, sc. 1, cavatine di Caratacco, 1767)
Air « Pugna il guerrier » (La Clemenza di Scipione, 1778)
Air « Cara, la dolce fiamma » (Adriano in Siria, aria di Farnaspe, 1778)
Symphonie en sol mineur opus 6 n°6
Récitatif et rondeau « Ebben si vada…Io ti lascio » (vers 1778, rondeau favori de M. Tenducci)
Air « Ch’io parta ? » (Temistocle, aria di Lisimaco,1772)

And you know what ?

I DID !

It was enthralling and beautiful. I am no judge, but my dad is, and the way he (among others) was applauding and shouting “BRAVO !!!” confirm it was exceptional. But why am I telling this interesting tale of “How I Spent Yesterday Evening” ?

Because there will be a CD to buy !

Hehe I guess advertising is not beyond me…I hope it doesn’t show :-°

It will be out on November 2, and available online as soon as September 28 !

If you want some samples, you can listen to the singer here and the orchestra here (performing other pieces of music).

Thank you for bearing with me and I hope you will like it !