Drive-by Update

[sensei]

People know that I've been flying pretty low during the last weeks, getting used to a big commute from Cephiro to Arl and back, and doing academic stuff in Arl and unpacking boxes in Cephiro. My updates have been drive-by events: a quick stop to toss a few scans out the window, and then it's gun the motor and head for the next appointment. Still, I've managed a respectable update a bit at a time. New (or kinda new, at least no major fuss made over them yet):

• an intense Popo from the climactic scene of A Tree of Palme,
  
  a pretty split-screen cel of Umi and Fuu from MKR.

Five new CCS cels:

• A new Meilin/Fight Card cel, (this and the next two were delightful housewarming presents from Reithejelly)
  an interesting kabuse cel of Meilin,
  a small but nice image of aspeechless Tomoyo, and
  two cels of a wishlist character, the inexpressibly cute Li Teddy that Syaoran makes for Someone Special during the 3rd season: one shows Teddy’sFirst screen appearance, and the other shows Syaoran letting Yukito hold him for a moment.

Tonde Buurin cels with original backgrounds, including

• a brain-frozen Keiko
  a lightning-struck Keiko.
  Karin and Ton-chan finding the Nose of the Messenger of Justice (Buurin's ancient Japanese avatar) in a creepy crypt, and
  Karin studying hard for midterms.

Plus new reanimations from Vampyworx:

• dougas from Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne (a positively hypnotic one of Jeanne catching her breath) and
  from the new CGI series Sasami: Mahou Shoujo Club (poor Sasami with brimming eyes) and
  gengas from Slayers, including Lina being shot at and also being blown up!

Currently under construction is a new gallery devoted to yet another episide of Powerpuff Girls Z, this one being Ep. 44, or Kaoru Loves Biceps! (Buttercup gets a makeover!) The images are up, but descriptions are slow in being added: still, PPGZ sketches are never less than energetic, so have a look anyhow.

There's more to come ... but they may not make it to the scanner until October. Watch for more Ep. 44 PPGZ sketches, more Buurins with backgrounds, more interesting sketches from the under-the-radar Sasami: Mahou Shoujo Club, and ... ta-da! ... nekkid Sakura!

(Err ... the kind of Sakura that lives around the bend from me on Tail of the Fox Drive, I mean.)

Gotta go: guy behind me in the Hummer is tired of laying on the horn and is reaching behind him for something big and metallic that I don't wanna see any more closely.

S

[ReiTheJelly]

I really like the new Rayearth cel - very dramatic!

[tex-chan]

Lovely update! The Tree of Palme is incredible. So much emotion! I love the split-screen MKR -- very, very pretty. I have found I'm no fan of the actual show, but the artwork is amazingly gorgeous. And this cel is a perfect example.

I adore the new Tonde Buurin. The colors and artstyle, as always, are so intriguing, and I find the cels to be very expressive and fun.

The new CCS are lovely, as well. The first teddy bear link didn't work for me, as it took me back to the Tomoyo-chan cel -- although seeing that cel twice is certainly a treat; it is so lovely. I love the one of Li holding the bear -- too perfect. And the Meilin kabuse cel is gorgeous! Somehow, just seeing the black linework makes the motion in that cel stand out so much more.

Congrats on being able to park long enough to share a fantastic update, and I'll look forward to your next one!

[sensei]

The first teddy bear link didn't work for me!

Sorry, TC: the "copy" on this computer sticks and sometimes I end up pasting the previous link twice. I fixed it now.

(http://sensei.rubberslug.com/gallery/in ... mID=217139 for general reference)

Thanks, rei and TC for the comments on the Rayearth cel. I've never seen a really plain or boring cel from this show, at least up front in person. Even with the line fading (which seems unavoidable with the colors they used for Fuu's hair and costume, as the paints apparently react with the trace lines), it is a beautiful, colorful image. I had a tussle over this one on a Sunday morning, but it was worth it.

The Buurins are always a treat, even though much of the show is available, if at all, in 10-minute chunks on YouTube dubbed in Mandarin Chinese. (Ep. 1 is, however, now available there with unidiomatic but serviceable English subtitles). Wait until you see the "Karin with the Spiky Bats" and "Kaoru Is Initiated into the Soul Reaper Club"!

Tree of Palme deserves more attention, I believe. Yes, the movie is largely incomprehensible in plot (think "Ghost in the Shell" set in Frank Herbert's "Dune" universe with crazy moments from "Akira" added when something dramatic is supposed to happen). But not really any more so than "Princess Mononoke," and the main plot, which radically deconstructs Pinocchio (complete with an evil fairy godmother who bloodily slices and dices half of the supporting cast whenever she has a chance) is really very powerful in its best places.

You just have to sigh and forgive Nakamura for the dreadful "Hurry! Soma is mobilizing!" moments when the crackle-faced clones scurry all over, and have faith that there's better -- much better -- around the next narrative corner.

[funshine]

fantastic update. so many lovelies i can't choose a fav

[sensei]

Thanks, funshine. I'm just happy that, even if truly excellent artwork from shows like CCS is getting more and more difficult to snag there is still pretty and enjoyable (and often equally compelling) art from other, lesser known series.

[carkiechu]

Awww! The Syaoran holding the cute teddy out to show Yukito is so adorable!! *giggle*

Great update Sensei! ^_^

[RoboFlonne]

Plus new reanimations from Vampyworx:

• dougas from Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne (a positively hypnotic one of Jeanne catching her breath) and
  from the new CGI series Sasami: Mahou Shoujo Club (poor Sasami with brimming eyes) and
  gengas from Slayers, including Lina being shot at and also being blown up!

Beautiful Animations! Wow! Very very nice, I haven't seen any animated! I just love them !

[iwakuralain16]

The teddy cels are cute!!!!! I love the titles of your posts... LOL

[sensei]

Thanks, carkiechu and iwakuralain16 for your comments on Li Teddy. Yes, I've been emotionally drawn to this guy ever since the first time that I saw the series. And, if I had the money and the opportunity, what I wouldn't bid for a cel of Syaoran's hands handing Li Teddy to Sakura's hands at the end of Ep. 70. (I've seen cels of Sakura jumping toward Syaoran at the end of the 2nd movie ... but never one from this cut. They must all be in heavily guarded bank vaults in Osaka.)

Thanks for calling attention to Vampyreshoujo's great animations, Roboflonne! She's done quite a few for me (check out the Inuyasha reanimations!) and every one is a revealing gem of some sort.

[kizu]

Great MKR. Like you I love the split screens. I find the the Karin cel, very nice. I like determined shots of characters, especially when it's easy to relate to like this one. LOL. Those animations are awesome. That's why I think sketches are nice as well, you can do much with full cuts (that is the word right? I don't know much about sketches... *sad*).

[ryoendymion]

i love the meilin kabuse cel! it works so well on its own with the colored bg

and the 2 animated slayers sketch sequences are fantastic

[sensei]

Sensei waves to Betarians from balmy Newfoundland, where he's just done a Ph.D. exam for one of the locals (thesis on whether online message boards generate real communities or not)

Thanks kizu and ryoendymion for visiting. I too love that "homework, here I come" pose. Reminds me of when I'm at work on a book chapter, and the books I've just scavanged for references and examples pile higher and higher all around the chair where I'm working, until I can barely get out for a coffee break. And Meilin has to be one of my favorite characters in CCS, so even her outline has a lot of voltage.

kizu, you're exactly right: a "cut" is what animators call an entire run of sketches for a scene. Sometimes the dougas aren't very exciting, especially when many of them are partials. But Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne for some reason has dougas that are as pretty, sometimes prettier, than the earlier sketches. And some shows, like Slayers, one gets the feeling that the animators were having the time of their lives creating these images. (I get that feeling about PPGZ too.)

Sensei heads out to the market in search of partridgeberry jam.