This year, when Lent came to an end, there were an unusual number of very pretty Magic Knight Rayearth cels on the market. I've never seen a MKR cel that wasn't just plain lovely in color and design, and the artistic work in the sketches gets me in the solar plexus every time. (No, not there ... 2 inches higher, right in the hara, or "belly," the source of spiritual energy in Eastern mystic traditions.)
So ... better and better ... when Lent ended there were four nice cels that went with genga sets I'd already acquired:
1. From the opening moments of Episode 49, the adventure that brings all the threads of the story to climax, a terrified Nova being confronted by Hikaru for the last time.
2. Also from the concluding episode, Alcyone sealing her doom by revealing Debonaire’s secret.
3. A powerful A1 cel of Hikaru starting to cast Fire Arrow, as well as
4. the incredibly intense A7 cel (second key) from the same sequence.
These last two were especially important to me, as my "Fire Arrow" gengas were a hard-fought win on YJ two summers ago, during which I did the absolute maddest thing I've ever done in my life: I bid using both SMJ and Rinkya, confusing two stubborn (and well-heeled) Japanese bidders into thinking two absolutely mad American bidders were engaging in a price war. ("Yesssss ... my preciousssss ... the lot will be oursssss .... do not be crossss with me ...)
I was sure I'd been bizarrely, irrecoverably foolish when I won the lot (for more than I'd ever paid for gengas, by a long shot). This sheepish feeling lasted nearly a month ... until I opened the plastic case from Rinkya and saw what I'd won.
And now two cels from the same cut ... hitsuzen ... in honor of the occasion I've changed my avatar ... AIR fans will recognize the allusion.
The rest of the mad May update will take some time as it's peak paper-grading time now at my college. But watch for more MKR, TnN, CCS, Slayers, KKJ, Palme, and, of course, lots and lots of PPGZ (soon appearing in the US on Cartoon Network! Mahou Shoujo Rule!)
Back to the papers ... "Yesss preciousss ... must earn money ... for celsssss"
and a quick dash back to the paper stack (if you don't watch them, they miscegenate and create even more papers to grade...)
