Tabi to Michizure

タビと道づれ

Company: Frontier Works
Based on: Manga
Released: 2009.06.24


Tabi to Michizure is a story about Tabi (CV: Kugimira Rie) who wants to see her childhood friend 'Kou-chan' (CV: Sakurai Takahiro). One day she suddenly decides to visit the town where they lived, and instead of taking the train to school she takes the train there. When the conductor comes to check hee ticket she panics at first because she doesn't have one, but he gives her a stamp on her hand saying that it is "a ticket is a way to get where you want" and that the shape doesn't matter.

When Tabi arrives at the town where she lived before she is immediately ambushed by Yukita (CV: Minagawa Junko) and Nishimura (CV: Nakamura Yuuichi) who seem completely surprised that a train has arrived and start to question her about how she got here. Tabi first runs away but is nearly 'swallowed' by a large hole in the road that suddenly opens when she tries to take a shortcut to Kou-chan his house. Yukita saves her, and the two of them explain that this town has been repeating the same day over and over again.

Yukita his childhood friend Kanako (CV: Asumi Kana) comes by every day on exactly the same moment, begging him not to leave for Tokyo, using exactly the same words every day. Other people in the town repeat exactly the same pattern every day as well. No trains and arrive or leave, and each day is the same as the one before. Tabi is the first one to arrive in a long time, and along with Yukita and Nishimura the only one that notices that every day is the same, the other people forget this.

Yukita and Nishimura think that Tabi might be the key to solve the mystery of the town, and so Tabi and Yukita start searching for clues while checking which roads they can and can't cross. And so the days keep repeating.

This is a cute story, and for some reason it made me feel very nostalgic. I don't know, the idea of a rural town repeating the same summer day over and over again just seems so... peaceful. Throughout the story bits and pieces of the characters their past are told, especially about Tabi, Yukita, and Nanako, and some of them are quite surprising to.

Tabi has some problems with making friends, which leads to some hilarious moments as well. Yukita likes making strange metaphors, and is entirely too energetic and loud, but it is exactly this personality that gives him so much charm (along with Minagawa Junko her amazing voice work). Nishimura is like the one sane person, but still interesting.

The CD doesn't cover the entire manga, and some of the events have been shuffled, but overall I feel like this version is easier to understand (some things are explained better here). This also means that the CD ends about halfway through the story, but this isn't a bad thing at all. Although it does leave you with a couple of questions (I am mostly wondering about why Nishimura also keeps his memories).

In the free talk everyone talks about where they want to travel, or a story that has something to do with 'travel'. I am once again amazed by how annoying Kaneda Tomoko her voice is, it sounds like she is on helium 24/7. And for some reason Sakurai introduces himself as "Taka-chan" (probably because his role only has Kou-chan as his name).


Conclusion:
This is a really sweet story. It isn't all fluff and rainbows, but in the end it made me feel like plain everyday life can be happiness as well. And it made me feel like travelling. Though I'd prefer to do that during summer.

Jiyuu Kenkyuu

幼馴染とあなたが恋人を演じる自由研究、最後に恋は芽生えるか

Company: Cineria
Based on: Original
Released: 2012.11.09
Official site: http://www.ike-men.net/ci_jitop.html

The full title reads "osananajimi to anata ga koi wo enjiru jiyuu kenkyuu, saigo ni koi ha mebaeru no ka" (the research project in which your childhood friends and you act out love, will love bloom in the end?). Yes that is a long title, a bit too long if you ask me. But it does describe what this CD is all about: for a high school research project you and your childhood friends decide to do an experiment to see whether you will fall in love if you act like lovers.

You and your childhood friends Urabe Tsukasa (Suzuki Tatsuhisa) and Suzuki Youhei (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) grew up almost like family. Your parents were good friends since before you were even born, and you always went on vacation with all three families. Ever since you can remember you've been together. The CD starts with Tsukasa taking the train back to your home town and his reminiscing about the research project you did together, which eventually caused a great change in your relationship to each other.

At your second year in high school, right before the summer vacation, you decide to do this experiment for your research project together. You decide on a couple of rules: the pair that has to act as 'couple' always has to hold hand whenever you go somewhere, and the other person takes on the role of observer and has to keep a small distance. Also, you have to call the observer by his last name instead of his first name like you have been doing up to that point. If you really start to feel something for each other, you may confess your feelings on the last day of the summer vacation - and whether that feeling will be mutual or not will then be the end result of the research.

Which one of the two will be your 'boyfriend' is decided by rock-siccors-paper (they sound really cue doing that btw). Tsukasa wins and gets to decide who will get the boyfriend role. He appoints Youhei as your boyfriend, and himself as the observer. And so you begin hanging out with Youhei as your 'boyfriend'. This is slightly awkward in the beginning, but Tsukasa soon notices that you start to act more and more like an actual couple the longer you keep it up. He also starts to become slightly jealous.

Not only that, Youhei confessed to him that he has liked you for a while now. Tsukasa says that he will cheer him on, but this only makes him think about his own feelings more - although he doesn't really know how he really feel about it. One night while all three of you are staying over at Youhei his house for the night Tsukasa eventually kisses you in the spur of the moment when Youhei steps outside for a bit. Before you can react or say anything however, Youhei returns and you never talk about it again.

The cover of the CD is actually the final time that all three of you are together. You are watching the fireworks together, and this is when Youhei decides to tell Tsukasa exactly what he thinks about this entire experiment (throwing a few punches to make his point) and in the end this changes your entire relationship with each other...

Being a Sakurai fangirl I was already silently rooting for his character before I even started listening. However my hopes were destroyed in the worst possible way in the beginning. The opening words of this CD are... painful. I am not kidding when I am saying that this CD managed to make me cry within 30 seconds. And not just a few tears welling up, I mean literally crying. I do have to say that Suzuki-san his voice is beautiful here though. For some reason I didn't really associate his voice with more mature characters, but his grown up voice here was fantastic (as a child he sounds completely different).

Listening to this I am guessing that the script includes the actual lines that were said by the heroine. There is not just a small pause where you are supposed to have said something, but realistic gaps. They also don't repeat whatever you said for the sake of the conversation; this was written like an actual drama and you'll have to guess whatever you were saying. Of course you can deduce what you probably said from the flow of the conversation, but not everything. Whether this is a good or a bad thing I will leave up to you to decide for yourself. Personally it took me a short while to get used to, but I enjoyed it.

The beginning and ending aside, the middle part of the story (the part when you are doing the experiment) is kind of cute and bittersweet. It is the beginning and the ending that stab your heart with a thousand daggers. Cineria is really good with that... This story seemed less realistic than Kareshi Igai, but the way you talk and the lack of repetition (when a character repeats what you supposedly said) still make the conversation flow naturally just like in all their works.

I could have done with a free talk to heal my broken heart, but unfortunately there is none.


Conclusion:
If you are a Sakurai fan this CD is pure heartbreak. If you're a fan of Suzuki-san however, this most likely turns a bit more into a bitter-sweet love story. Although there is no denying that it is still plenty painful either way. I secretly which for an alternative version where the outcome is different, but I doubt my heart would actually survive listening to something like this again.

Ketsueikigata Danshi Character Drama CD A Type

血液型男子 キャラクタードラマCD 「A型」

Company: Frontier Works
Based on: Original
Released: 2009.08.26
Official site: http://danshi.me/blood/index.html


In Ketsuekigata Danshi several High School students are thrown into a dormitory because of an experiment by the school principal. All of them have a different blood type, which is exactly why the principal chose them, but what exactly he hopes to achieve with this experiment is unclear. Either way, they will have to deal with their new lives from now on.

The A Type CD puts the focus on Souma Aichirou (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) who is of course an A Type (mainly meaning that he is very serious). The CD starts with Aichirou complaining about the fact that he couldn't study because he had to move to his new house (where he is living together with the other characters). After that he overhears his housemates Akabane Hibiki (B Type, CV: Nakamura Yuichi) and Shirakawa Rio (O Type, CV: Suzuki Tatsuhisa) talking to each other on how they got bad grades and have to take a resit. When it turns out Kurosaki Miyabi (AB Type, CV: Kakihara Tetsuya) has to take a resit as well Aichirou flips and tells them that they will be studying at home for the weekend.

The next day Aichirou wakes them up rather forcefully (only Miyabi is already awake) and forces them to study. None of them want to because they already have plans, but they end up being forced to study anyway. He locks every door and window on the first floor so that they can't escape either. When they finally manage to distract him by asking him for drinks they try to escape through a second floor window. Kurosaki nearly falls of the balcony in his escape attempt and is saved by Aichirou, after which he still runs off anyway.

In the end, Aichirou ends up cleaning the house while the others go out and play. All of them return early because they are feeling guilty though. It turns out Aichirou saw that he was in the wrong as well, and he prepared dinner for everyone. Although... when they mention that they will properly study he switches back into his normal attitude xD

After the main story there is a situation part where you are studying together with Aichirou, who is being adorably clumsy.

The interaction between all the characters was fun to listen to. Of course they are all archetypes for each blood type, which results in hilarious chaos. The principal (CV: Yusa Kouji) also adds to said chaos by being a hilarious eccentric. Kurosaki is arguably the weirdest of them all, thanks to always being spaced out and talking in a really slow manner, but all of them are quirky and fun.

Aichirou is strict and serious, like a proper A Type. His entire family has names with "A" btw, his brother is Aijirou, and his sister Aiko. (The pronunciation of their names is closer to "Ei" if you'd write it in Japanese, but this way the link to A Type is made. All of the guys have the letter(s) for their blood type in their name). Aichirou is also very family orientated, as is shown in his phone call with his family, where he is instantly worried about whether they are eating properly etc.

The freetalk starts in character, after which is switches to normal. Everyone talks a bit about their blood type and whether there are times when they think that they are actually a different blood type (in Japan blood types are used as a horoscope, so every blood type is believed to have several character traits). When Kakihara Testuya does his talk everyone keeps inserting references to Germany (German AB-Type, questions about sausages and beer xD). The end of the free talk is once again in character.

A short -and chaotic- preview for the B Type CD is also included, in which Hibiki gives a short introduction to his story.


Conclusion:
Somehow I had pictured are more situation CD type scenario, but this is mostly about the boys their interaction with each other. Which is brilliant, so no complaints there. Looking at Miyabi his character description it seems like he is two-faced, so I sort of hoped that they would show that a tiny bit as well, but I guess I'll have to listen to his own CD for that.

Special: Favourite Seiyuu

As requested by someone in the comments  a long time ago, here is a small write up on my favourite seiyuu. My preferences are probably quite personal, and often the only argument is "I just love his voice". Really, I don't think I have any sane arguments to defend any of my choices. But that doesn't stop me from loving them.

I'm just writing this list based on who's voice I love. Despite listening to a lot of drama CDs and being a seiyuu fan in that sense, I seldom actually look for info on seiyuu or watch events. In fact I actively try to avoid seeing pictures of them because if I know how they look that starts to clash with the character image in my mind. So I can't really say much about their personality and things like that. I know some people are also fan of certain seiyuu (or actors for that matter) because of who they are, I just love them for their voice or acting skills.

(I'm really sorry if this is all very boring and stuff, but I promised I would write this so I wanted to make a proper post out of it)


1. Sakurai Takahiro
Sakurai has been at the top of my list for years now, with the one and only argument that I simply love his voice. The cause for my incredible Sakurai bias is one series and one series only: Are you Alice?. Sakurai = Alice (and vice versa) in my head. My love of his voice has reached the point where I still want to see Twilight in Japanese just because he voiced Edward. (I'm... not much of a Twilight fan in case you didn't know).

If we are not talking about drama CD my favourite Sakurai roles are probably Asbel Lhant (Tales of Graces), Clause Faustus (Kuroshitsuji), and the Medicine Seller (Mononoke), though I tend to go into fangirl mode as soon as I hear his voice.

Favourite drama CDs: everything Are you Alice (but especially the tokuten or anything where Alice acts out of character), Anata ga Ofuro de Noboseru CD Vol.1 Kusatsu, Fujoshi no Totsugikata / Fujoshi no Mikata, Fushihi Koubou Vol.3.



2. Hirakawa Daisuke
Second one without a valid argument. Hirakawa-san has a pretty interesting voice range, and I love both ends of it. When he plays hetare or clumsy characters, they are just so adorable that I cannot bring myself to dislike them no matter how clumsy they are. I prefer him using the lower ends of his range though, but sadly I don't know many examples. At either rate, I love it when he voices (slightly) dangerous characters.

I think I first really noticed him as Ace from Heart no Kuni no Alice, but what really sparked my fandom was Yandere Heavon vol.2. His yandere performance is -if you ask me- one of the best in the series, and the reason why I secretly keep hoping that almost every character he now voices has a hidden side... Going through his list of anime roles, I think I have literally seen none of the anime in which he voices a major role. So my love is solely based on what I mentioned above, haha.

Speaking of wanting to see Japanese dubs of movies; Hirakawa-san is the voice over for Orlando Bloom, and watching the Lord of the Rings or Pirates of the Caribbean in Japanese is also still on my to do list.

While I said that I only like seiyuu's for their voice and know little about their personality, I do love how polite and gentle Hirakawa-san always sounds in cast talks and interviews.

Favourite drama CDs:  Shuukan Soine Vol.1, Yandere Heaven Vol.2, Hougen Renai Vol.3, Anata ga Ofuro de Noboseru Vol.3 Misasa, Double Score ~Narcissus~, and his story in Kannou Mukashi Banashi Vol.6.



3. Okiayu Ryoutarou
I think that Okiayu-san was the first time I actually became fan of a seiyuu (before that I would like certain characters, but not specifically their seiyuu). This bias developed out of a character crush: Tezuka Kunimitsu from Tennis no Oujisama. Okiayu-san is one of the few seiyuu who's singing voice I also like, and I have several of his singles and albums (most of them are from Tennis no Oujisama xD). After I stopped watching the show the crush slowly died out though, but at some point I re-discovered him. By this time my Sakurai bias was already formed, so he is no longer at the top of my list anymore, but still a long time favourite.

When we're not talking about drama CD's, my favourite Okiayu characters are Tezuka Kunimitsu (obviously),  Dark (D.N.Angel), Gaius (Tales of Xillia. So I am really really really excited that he becomes a playable character in Xillia 2).

Favourite drama CDs: Shimekiri CD, O.To.Na Gentei Otogame CD Vol.2, Oujisama (warai) series. While not technically a drama CD, the drama part from Sasayaka na Kono Negai is absolutely brilliant.


4. Koyasu Takehito
Probably the only seiyuu who's voice I can recognise with 100% accuracy even if he speaks only one line. (although there has been one incident where I  failed to recognise him). Despite not being my favourite seiyuu ever, I have a habit of calling him "Koyasu-sama".

Despite the fact that he is often cast for characters with a cold and distant personality I love him more when he does sarcastic or comical roles. Especially if you can combine those two.

 The first time I fell in love with his voice is probably when I was paying Tokimemo, where he voices your teacher, Himoru Reichi. Despite originally going after another character his voice won me over and I started going after Himuro halway through the game. When on another character his route it always hurt like hell when I had to reject his invitations (T-T).

I originally played Tales of the Abyss in English, so I first discovered that he voiced Jade when I watched the anime, but that role is basically my ideal role for Koyasu-sama. In Hakushaku no Yousei his role is far more comical, and I spent most of Persona -Trinity Soul- fangirling over Ryou because he was voiced by Koyasu-sama.

Favourite non-drama CD roles: Himoru Reiichi (Tokimemo Girls side), Jade (Tales of the Abyss), Julius (Heart no Kuni no Alice), Kelpie (Hakushaku to Yousei), Kanzato Ryou (Persona -Trinity Soul). His voice completely mismatches Aokiji (One Piece) his image in my mind, so I actually dislike the character because of that.

Favourite drama CDs: Are you Alice - Alice no Tea Party Vol.3 (I cannot express my love for this CD in words), Heartful Kareshi series (he voices a dove). Unfortunately he doesn't appear in that many drama CDs, but I am definitely going to track down more of them.



Honourable Mentions:
Fukuyama Jun and Takemoto Eiji. While I don't particularly like (or dislike) their voices, I've heard these two voice so many different types of characters that I just can't help but admire their skills.

For Fukuyama Jun it was the difference between Shimizu Keiichi and Lelouch Laperouge that first made me aware of this. Shimizu was the first character that I associated with Fukuyama, which is why that image is stuck in my head. After doing some research I discovered that I heard him in countless roles, without even recognising him. This video shows a some of those, although it is a lot easier to recognise when they are all put together. Lately I've been getting better at recognising his voice, although I often only recognise it but fail to pinpoint who it is.

As for Takemoto Eiji, just listening to the Oujisama (warai) series gives you an impression of all the different characters he can voice (he voices almost every side character in the series, this has also become somewhat of a running gag in the series).




After listing my favourite, I suppose it is only fair that I list my least favourite ones as well, although there are only two of them, and I think that they are quite obvious from various reviews that I have done (^-^;;)

Ishida Akira in situation CDs / otome games. I don't know why, but I cannot bring myself to like Ishida-san when he voices a boyfriend role. That being said, he can voice very convincing shota's, and I have less problems whenever he voices a normal role in any anime or game. It is just that I don't like boyfriend!Ishida...

Yoshino Hiroyuki whenever he uses that gyaruo/bratty voice, which is most of the time. He actually has a rather nice voice if he talks in a more serious tone, but unfortunately he is usually type cast for the former. My disappointment when I discovered that he voiced Debito in Arcana Famiglia was unending (although it is actually one of the more reasonable examples).

Disney - Koe no Oujisama Vol.2

ディズニー 声の王子様第2章～Love Stories～

Company: DisneyBased on: Disney song covers
Released: 2012.09.19
Official site: http://www.disney.co.jp/records/DLS/


This CD is all about popular seiyuu singing various Disney songs. The theme this time is love stories, although only some of the songs fit that theme. Other.... not so much. There are two versions: a regular edition that has only one CD, but an extra track that isn't on the limited edition. The limited edition on the other hand, has a second CD with duet songs.

Normally I'm not that much of a fan of seiyuu songs (with some exceptions) but this was just too interesting to pass up on. I'll review the CD track-by-track.

01. 白雪姫 ―朗読― (Snow White -Reading-) / Ishida Akira
This is a reading of Snow White (Disney version) done by Ishida-san. They did a good job of condensing the entire movie into just 20min of talking, although sometimes the lines that Ishida-san voiced as one of the characters seemed a tiny bit random. What I absolutely loved though is that they seem to have used the actual music from the movie. My nostalgia meters went to the max hearing some of the BGMs, and I instantly remembered the scenes from the movie. So all in all, a very good reading.

02. ハイ・ホー (Heigh-Ho)(Snow White) / Kamiya Hiroshi.
This song is so addictive!! I had completely forgotten about the first part of the song, so I hardly recognised it in the beginning (not to mention that the lyrics are completely different than in the original English version xD). But this song is so cheerful an addictive. Really, when you listen to it you become all cheerful and you just to have to sing along. One of my favourite ones.

03. キス・ザ・ガール (Kiss the Girl) (Little Mermaid) / Shimono Hiro
I predicted that this would be one of the cutest things ever - and it is. The entire song becomes so cute, and I love the arrangement. But more than anything: it is so incredibly cuuuuttteeeeee. That is all that needs to be said.

04. ユール・ビー・イン・マイ・ハート(you'll be in my heart) / Seki Tomokazu.
Was Seki Tomokazu his voice this high? I feel like I'm mixing the images of the different Seki's in my head. This is a good song, but the original has been locked into my heart so deep that there is simply no way that it can compare to that. But it is still good.

05. ララルー (Lalalu)(Lady and the Tramp) / Sakurai Takahiro
In case you are wondering, this is the lullaby from Lady and the Tramp. No idea whether it was written for the movie or already existed though. As cute as this song is, and no matter how much I love Sakurai his voice, singing doesn't seem to be his forte. But this is Sakurai singing a lullaby, so all my arguments are invalid, even against myself xD

06. 愛のうたごえ (Love is a Song)(Bambi) / Midorikawa Hikaru
I'll have to admit that I only saw Bambi once when I was very little, and I have as good as no memories about it. So obviously I don't remember thing song either. As a result it has no nostalgia value what-so-ever, which has the end result that I don't really like it. Least favourite song on the CD.

07. ベラ・ノッテ (Bella Notte)(Lady and the Tramp) / Okiayu Ryoutarou
This song is perfection. Sue me, but it is. The arrangement is beautiful, but even more than that Okiayu-san his voice is perfect for this kind of song. Definitely my favourite song on the entire CD.

08. いつでも一緒 (Good Company)(Oliver&Co) / Okamoto Nobuhiko
Cuteness attack number two. What I love is that the music breaks into an semi-epic arrangement somewhere halfway though, and then returns to the simple piano tune to repeat the beginning again. But as can be expected from Okamoto: cuteness all over the place.

09. グレイト・スピリット (Great Spirit) / Yamadera Kouichi
Yamadera-san seems to be getting all the truly epic songs (he did The Circle of Life on the first Koe no Oujisama). He gets away with it though. He really has a good singing voice for these kind of songs, although my real surprise came on disc 2. I can't recall the original song (besides it being epic) but I love this one anyway.

10. 塔の上のラプンツェル ―朗読― (Tangled -reading-) / Yamadera Kouichi
As good as the first one was, this one felt far too hasty. I almost ran out of breath just listening to it. I'd also like to ask how much someone who hasn't seen the movie actually understands what is going on, because I don't think it is the most logical way of telling the story either. What really surprised me is that they used the original English version of the healing incantation ("Flower gleam and glow, let your power shine", etc). It sort of felt out of place, although it is a very pretty song. If they would have cut all the lines that Yamadera-san reads in character, I think they could have avoided the rushed feeling that the story has now.


Like I said, the second disc is full of duet songs. It has only four songs, but they are each featured three times: the first time it is a normal duet between two seiyuu, the other two are like karaoke versions in which you yourself can sing a duet with one of the seiyuu. I'll only review each song once though.


01. 美女と野獣 (Beauty and the Beast) / Seki Tomokazu & Okiayu Ryoutarou
They somehow managed to turn this song into a duet. Seki-san his part is amazing, he nearly makes a convincing woman here. Unfortunately their voices don't really seem to match... Okiayu-san his voice sounds far too low in the duet version, but in the version with him alone it doesn't feel unnatural at all.

02. ハクナ・マタタ (Hakuna Matata) / Shimono Hiro & Okamoto Nobuhiko
Cuteness overload here. One of them sings Timon and the other Pumba, and they switch roles and repeat the song halfway though. Unfortunately, neither of them makes a convincing Pumba xD. And they left out some of the jokes, which is a pity. The refrain is incredibly cute and catchy though. Trying to sing along in one of the karaoke versions is a bit tricky due to there not really being a melody.

03. 輝く未来 (I see the Light - Tangled) / Midorikawa Hikaru & Sakurai Takahiro
This time it is Midorikawa his turn to sing a female role. Which he does rather convincing. Maybe this is because I love the original too much, but Sakurai his voice seems a bit to high for his part. In this song it also more obvious that singing isn't really his thing. Also, in the duet version it doesn't stand out too much but in his solo version you can clearly hear him going "sekaIIII ga maru de..." xD As far as the love songs go, this is one of the better ones though.

04. みんなネコになりたいのさ (Everybody wants to be a cat) / Yamadera Kouichi x2
This is the song that completely blew my mind. Not just because it has an amazing arrangement and I love this kind of jazzy music, but because I would have never guessed that this is sang by one person (although I'm not sure about the voice of Marie -the little cat- in the end...). I swear, one of the singing voices could be a convincing imitation of Louis Armstrong, while the other one is completely normal. If you compare all the different tracks in which Yamadera-san speaks/sings they all seem so different it just amazes me.



I like most of the songs. I still think that most seiyuu -save for some exceptions- aren't the best singers, but the fact that these are all Disney songs, nice arrangements, and/or just incredibly cute makes up for that. Some of these songs are just so cute and addictive I can't help but to love them

Dogs - Bullets and Carnage 2

Dogs - Bullets and Carnage II

Company: Shueisha
Based on: Manga
Released: 2008.10.23

Dogs is set in an unnamed, post-apocalyptic European city, where violence, crime, genetic manipulation and other scientific brutalities have become common. The story focuses on four antiheroic protagonists who, through a series of coincidences, meet as they search for a way "below", looking for answers to their individual pasts (description shamelessly taken from wiki. again).

The first drama CD covered the prequel manga, and this second one covers the first volume of the Bullets and Carnage manga.

At the start of the CD Haine (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) and Badou (CV: Ishida Akira) save a bunch of kids from a brothel. After that a lot of things happen at once. Naoto (CV: Itou Shizuka) visits the church where the Bishop (CV: Seki Toshihiko) and Nill (CV: Noto Mamiko) live and they all get into some problems there. Meanwhile Heine gets kidnapped by a crime gang and wreaks havoc there, while his 'brother' Giovanni (CV: Nakahara Shigeru) also wants to meet him and play around while Luki (CV: Kugimiya Rie) and Noki (CV: Tsuji Ayumi). And while all of this is going down Mimi (CV: Shiraishi Ryouko) and Mihai (CV: Ootsuka Akio) get into some trouble of their own. If you are overwhelmed by the amount of names just listed rest assured - it is just as confusing while listening to the actual CD.

While the first CD was pretty easy to understand without any knowledge of the manga the story becomes pretty convoluted in this second CD and it becomes a lot harder harder to understand. This is partly due to the rather large amount of characters and the story telling which shows short scenes from various events occurring at the same time. The result is that you have to pay really close attention to get who is doing what. While I usually like fragmented storytelling, there are so many things going on at once that it becomes a bit too confusing.

Near the end there are two tracks that are a bit more lighthearted. The first is about Zack (CV: Tanaka Kokoro) and Baran (CV: Souma Yukito), two members of the gang that Badou beat to pulp in the previous CD. For some reason Kiri and Mihai took them in to work at the bar. Both of them have fallen for Kiri and swear to protect her and the bar. The second track is about the boss of the same gang being chased around by Luki and Noki. While the two of them are still only little kids they are incredibly dangerous bounty hunters and they turn every hunt into a game of 'tag' (with weapons).

These two tracks are more comical, and also the most comprehensible. As an ending it was a good choice, but it would have been better if the rest was also a bit easier to follow.


Conclusion:
While I can recommend the first drama CD to anyone who likes darker stories, this second one is probably better only to listen to if you know the manga/ anime. Or even better to skip it as a whole.

Otenki Sentai How Weather

お天気戦隊ハウウェザー

Company: R45° / Sousakubou
Based on: Sentai Parody
Released: 2011.01.15
Official site: http://www.how-weather.com/


Otenki Sentai How Weather is a sentai parody in which all characters are based on different sorts of weather. On the good side we have Hare (clear weather), Ame (rain), Yuki (snow), Kumori (clouded), and Rai (lightning). Together they form the group "How Weather" and fight the evil organization Chuuihou (wheather warning). The entire organisation is actually only three people though: Hyou and Arare (hail) and Taifuu (typhoon).

In the first track the narrator explains that "How weather" is a telivision program aired on sunday morning, and that we should see how everyone is doing. Eacht track is dedicated to one of the characters, and one to Chuuihou. Don't expect any real sentai action though, instead the tracks are about the daily lives of all of the characters.

And the characters are what makes this CD brilliant. Hare (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) is a lovable egoistic hero. In his track he caught a cold (because he slept with only his underwear on in the middle of the winter) and no-one really wants to help him because they think he deserved it. Rai (CV: Terashima Takuma) like an impulsive kid. He works part time at a family restaurant, and his adventure is all about him not liking curry and running away from home.

Ame (CV: Toriumi Kousuke) is a major narcissist, and seems to enjoy getting scolded for some reason. His episode is all about, well, him being a narcissist. Kumori (CV: Suwabe Junichi) is a complete otaku, and is always busy playing online games (his latest being Final Dragon Fantasy Quest Online). He is usually muttering complaints in the background, but in his own track he is making entire monologues out of it. His story is about meeting someone from an online game in real life.

Yuki (CV: Hirakawa Daisuke) is like the mother of the family and usually act like housewife. He is usually sweet, but when he gets annoyed his personality switches completely. He is tends to make more severe remarks against Ame. Yuki is bloodrelated to Hyou and Arare, which is the reason why everyone is so friendly with each other. In his story there is a time sale in the supermarket, and absolutely nothing will get in the way of him going there. Not even a properly scheduled battle with Chuuihou.

In Chuuihou their story all of them go to a family restaurant for dinner (the one where Rai works). Hyou and Arare (CV: Toyonaga Toshiyuki & Ichiki Mitsuhiro) act like a bunch of high school girls worrying about stuff like diets, while Taifuu (CV: Ookawa Tohru) is as weak to their manipulation as ever.

As you can see, there is no actual action going on what so ever, the narrator even comments on this at the end. While they are supposed to be fighting everyone is getting along just fine. Taifuu even writes an overly polite letter to announce that they are coming when they do come to fight, and brings proper gifts when visiting. All of the characters are interestingly quirky, and the result is a lovable chaos.  I expected Hirakawa-san to act like a housewife based on his character description, but I didn't expect the switch to a more S side when annoyed, nor the voice drop accompanying it so that made for a nice surprise and a happy me.

There is a secret freetalk track, in which everyone talks about the CD and something to do with the weather, as well as their hopes for future installments in the series. Everything is going pretty normal untill Ichiki-san his turn, by which thime the rest is laughing so hard that he can't get on with his talk. He also does a final bai-bai, after which the recording simply continues ( ´艸｀)ﾑﾌﾟﾌﾟ


Conclusion
I'm not entirely sure my enthusiasm for this series is showing in this review. BUT I LOVE IT. From how it fails to be a proper sentai story to all of the characters, to the seiyuu and everything in between. I picked this up because there is a new CD (vol.4) coming soon, but this together with re-listening Hero Academy-J just might have sparked a new love for sentai parodies.

Dogs - Bullets and Carnage

Dogs - Bullets and Carnage

Company: Shueisha
Based on: Manga

Released: 2007.10.22


Dogs is set in an unnamed, post-apocalyptic European city, where violence, crime, genetic manipulation and other scientific brutalities have become common. The story focuses on four antiheroic protagonists who, through a series of coincidences, meet as they search for a way "below", looking for answers to their individual pasts (description shamelessly taken from wiki).

This first drama CD covers the prequel manga, and only introduces the four main characters and various sub-characters. Doesn’t make it any less interesting though.

In the first track everyone meets in a cafe. Timeline-wise this is the present in the series. Not much happens in this track, it is a bit out of the everyday (albeit weird) life of the characters. The later chapters sometimes switch between the past and the present when introducing the various characters.

The second track introduces Mihai (CV: Ootsuka Akio) and Kiri (CV:Ohara Sayaka). After being away for many years Mihai returns to town and visits Kiri, who now runs the cafe/ restaurant Buon Viaggio. Hanging on the wall there is a picture of Mihai, Kiri, Milena (CV: Matsutani Kaya) and Ian (CV: Yusa Kouji). Milena was Mihai his former lover, and Ian the son of the (mafia) boss Mihai was working under at the time. Ian was entrusted in Mihai his care by his father, however he grew jealous of Milena afraid that she would take Mihai away from him.

Seeing the picture on the wall Mihai remembers several of the events surrounding Milena her death, and confronts Ian. The switching between timelines was the most confusing in this story, in the other ones it is a lot clearer.

The third track introduces Badou (CV: Ishida Akira) an informant with a serious nicotine problem. Badou, more or less by accident, obtains some compromising foto’s of a gang leader and is promptly hunted down by the entire gang. He is saved once by Mihai, but while he explains his situation and negotiates for Mihai to be his bodyguard while staying at the cafe they are attacked by the gang again. Fortunately his nicotine level is so low by then that he goes on a rampage, defeating the entire gang on his own.

Badou his story was the most lighthearted of them all, caused both by his normally wimpy personality and the fact that he ends up covered in trash a couple of times. That, and all he can think about while being chased around is somehow obtaining a cigarette.

The next track introduces Naoto (CV: Itou Shizuka). When she was little her family was slaughtered by someone wielding a katana, causing her to lose part of her memories. She is taken in by the swordsman Fujimine (CV: Koyama Rikiya), who teaches her how to fight with a sword as well. Naoto thinks that Fujimine is the one that killed her family and lives to kill him, but before she gets the chance he is killed Magato (CV: Kusao Takeshi)., who also tells her that the real killer is still out there somewhere.

This was the saddest story of them all. Naoto her conflicting feelings are just too sad. In fact, no one in this story seems to be exactly straight forward with their feelings. Magato his final speech makes me think he actually liked her, despite his earlier attitude.

The last character to get introduced his Heine (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) who underwent various genetic manipulations when he was a child. As a result, he recovers from wound very fast, even from almost fatal ones. It also gave him a very violent second personality. Heine encounters Nill (CV: Noto Mamiko), a young girl with angel wings. He tries to save her from some thugs, but she is re-captured a little later, while the attack leaves Heine heavily wounded. Which doesn’t stop him from retaliating and going to save her a second time, dragging Badou along as diversion.

The final track are some more hints at the continuation of the story, but, just like the first track, not really memorable compared to the rest. The story is told in a somewhat fragmented manner, and how the various characters meet isn’t shown (except for maybe the how Badou en Mihai meet). I kind of like this style, and it fits the dark atmosphere of the world it is set in.


Conclusion:
I was obviously interested in this because it has Sakurai, but if you like action packed and darker stories this is definitely a recommendation. Too bad that this is only a prologue, and while the first volume has been turned into a drama CD you’ll need to read the manga (which is still ongoing btw) for the rest of the story. Luckily, the manga is very stylish as well.

Touhou Youyuki ~Shounen Ou to no Dai Ichi no Meiyaku~

東方妖遊記 ~少年王と第一の盟約~

Company: Kadokawa Beans / Lantis
Based on: Light Novel
Released: 2011.09.21
Official site: http://www.kadokawa.co.jp/toho/


Touhou Youyuki is based on the light novel series by Murata Shiori. The drama CD covers the events of the first novel and tells how Kou met several of the characters that he travels with later on in the novels.

The story is about Kou (CV: Kaji Yuuki) who is a normal boy living somewhere in a village on the shores of the Yellow River (China) together with his -slightly overprotective- brother Shun (CV: Nakamura Yuichi) and his sister Riyuu (CV: Nakahara Mai) who hates men.

The story begins however with someone placing a small child on the river in a basket, and sacrificing himself so that the child will be carried downstream safely. Before we get to know who the child really is however, the story switches to Kou, Shun, and Riyuu as they get on a boat because they are moving to a nearby village. Kou does seem to have an irrational fear of water though...

When they arrive at their destination someone called Shou comes to greet them and while they are still exchanging greetings they see Fuuga (CV: Hosoya Yoshimasa) the local landlord. Shou tells them that Fuuga is researching the cause for the recent heavy rain and high tide of the river. It is said that the monster "Kada" (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) is responsible for this, and that the only way to slay it is to use a sword called the "enshouka".

Fuuga and his servant Ruien (CV: Namikawa Daisuke) try to locate Kada by using fortune telling, but Ruien discovers that Kada is still sealed away. Meanwhile Kou and Riyuu caught off guard by a sudden rainstorm while gathering mushrooms, and hide in the same cave where Fuuga and Ruien were. And where, coincidently, Kada is supposed to be sealed. They discover that Kou can the spirits there, which apparently sounds like "the voice of a snake crying".

A few days later the cave collapses because of a landslide, releasing Kada -and lots of tiny look a likes. While Kada rampages the rain only becomes worse and the entire village needs to be evacuated. Fuuga attempts to use the enshouka to slay Kada, but is unable to wield the heave sword. Meanwhile Kou is convinced that Kada is only in pain and wants to save him...

When I started listening to this I was sceptical -adventures set in ancient china aren't really my thing- but I quickly came round. It is an interesting story and has both funny moments (especially Riyuu her dislike of all men except Kou and Shun) and enough suspense. Neither the plot nor the characters are ground breaking, but it is entertaining enough.

Because this only covers the first novel in the series there is hinted at a lot more plot than this CD actually covers, such as Fuuga being convinced that Kou is the lost master that he was supposed to serve, and Shun apparently being suspiciously skilled in handling anything that threats his siblings and especially Kou. These aren't really obstructive though, the story works well as a one shot. And if you reeeealy want to know how things continue you could always read the novels.

I hadn't really paid much attention to the cast, so Kada being voiced by Sakurai came as a pleasant surprise to me. His voice is heavily distorted while Kada is rampaging though, so maybe pleasant isn't really the right word.

A manga adaption of the series ran in the monthly Asuka, and I know there is at least 1 other short drama CD that came as a bonus with the magazine. The question is how to get my hands on that, because it is about Kou and Ouri (the name that Kou gave to Kada after he calmed down and became loyal to Kou) their life right after the events of this story. Which basically means more Sakurai for me.


Conclusion:
As this covers only the first novel the story obviously continues after this, but we are not left with any cliffhangers or anything, which is good because this way it also works as a one shot drama CD. Like I said, it is nothing extraordinary but enjoyable none the less.

Anata ga Ofuro de Noboseru CD Vol.1 Kusatsu

あなたがお風呂で のぼせるＣＤ  第1弾「草津編 」

Company: em2
Based on: Onsen
Released: 2012.02.29


Anata ga Ofuro de Noboseru CD is a series that has personified various onsen from all over Japan. By using this CD (which stands for "Compact Dream") the personified spirit of an onsen appears in your bathroom, and takes a bath together with you. The first one to do so is Kusatsu Onsen, voiced by Sakurai Takahiro.

The CD begins with you talking to the guide (CV: Fujiwara Keiji) who offers you a CD to help you relax and relieve stress. That is as far as his explanations go, although he does recommend pausing the CD and taking a deep breath in case things become too much to handle.

In the next track you are in the bath when Kusatsu suddenly appears, you freak out and faint. He carries you to the bed, and when you wake up he is reading manga in your room. And still walking around naked. After changing into a Yukata, he explains that he is there to help you relax, and complains about the guide not doing his job properly.

Because you didn't know about him coming a says you should just "relax on your own or something" while he reads manga, but eventually you do end up taking a bath together. Although you refuse to go naked, instead you're both wearing a bath-towel (much to Kusatsu his dismay). Before you enter the bath you first need to wash, Kusatsu is washing your back, coming needlessly close at times.

Once you're in the bath he almost starts singing but you stop him. Instead, he starts counting to 100. With the same sloppy attitude as before, so at times he counts slow, then faster, then slow again, at 80 he's grown tired and wants you to count the rest, and when he eventually does count the rest he skips a few numbers.

After that he teases you a bit more, and washes your hair. During this time he becomes more and more 'dere' even saying that he doesn't want to go, and that you should come visit him before he has to leave. The guide also comments on things going smoothly somewhere in between, but Kusatsu throws something at him so that he leaves xD

Finally the Guide and Kusatsu give you a tour of the actual Kusatsu Onsen. At the start they both sing the song that Kusatsu wanted to sing before. They describe everything the onsen is supposed to heal (just about everything judging from that incredibly long list) and name the local food specialities (in Japan every place has it's own food specialities, and half of the travelling is about trying all of it).

I didn't know what to expect when I started on this CD, except that it would likely take place in my bathroom, but this was pretty hilarious. To be honest I already loved the CD when you fainted in the beginning, and Kusatsu was going all "yeah I saw everything, I had to carry you to the bed". He gradually warms up to you, which is kind of cute.

So a CD where you are in the bath together can't be all cute right? Well you're not mistaking there. There are some pretty suggestive lines throughout the entire CD ("I'll do something that wiol make you feel good all over" for example). And there was no mistaking the line "I guess you will have to wear a turtleneck for a while". Overal the level of suggestiveness was never too much though. A few lines here and there, but then again you are taking a bath together with someone so that is pretty much to be expected.

Kusatsu has a bit of a 'whatever' attitude, especially in the beginning. Maybe I feel like this because Sakurai will always be Alice? to me, but if you ask me this is exactly what it would be like if you took a bath with Alice. Minus the final dere maybe, but in the beginning their attitude is so similar it made me laugh. (Also, I love Alice, so for me this was a major like)

The cast comment is pretty funny. Sakurai talks a bit about Kusatsu, apparently he he has been there a few times himself. Then he answers a few questions that he was given: Whether he has an item that he often uses in his normal 'ofuro life' (a light that turns your bathroom into a sort of planetarium), Whether he washes his head or his body first, and in what order he washes his body (his head first, and his body starting at the 'vital points'), Whether he likes his both hot or lukewarm (hot at home, onsen a bit less so that you can enjoy them longer).


Conclusion:
Onsen gijinka is probably another one of those things that are only possible in Japan, it is fun though. This CD made me want to go to the actual onsen to see whether it reminds of this CD, because I've mostly been wondering how you personify an onsen. Exactly how do you give it specific personality traits? Either way, this was a lot of fun. Even if you don't feel like listening to every entry in the series, listening to those by your favourite seiyuu is definitely worth it (but go listen to all of them anyway).

Fujoshi no Mikata

腐女子のミカタ

Company: Motto! Entertainment.
Based on: Fujoshi?
Released: 2012.03.21
Official Site: http://www.movic.co.jp/book/radio/fujoshi/index.html

Fujoshi no totsugu kata (How to marry when you're a fujoshi) was a CD is that you have been proposed to, but you hadn't told your boyfriend that you are a fujoshi yet. Just as you're were wondering what to do 5 butlers appear and claim that they want to help you. This time the situation is not that dire, but the fujoshi all over the world Japan are in trouble, and our 6 butlers are here to help again.

Unlike the first CD, where one butler was your main help in each track, they all try to help you this time. The butlers are still the same: The cool Aoi Ryuuji (CV: Toriumi Kousuke), The hotheaded Akagi Eichi (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) , the princely Midoriyama Shion (CV: Okiayu Ryoutarou), the no-longer-trainee-but-now-novice Kikawa Miki (CV: Ishida Akira), the sadistic Kurosaki Goro (CV: Yusa Kouji), and -now actually there from the beginning- the legendary Goshirakawa (CV: Kondo Takashi).

They are holding a meeting on how to help fujoshi all over the country, when the emergency bell rings. Arriving on scene to find their client collapsed, a re-enactment of a highschool club scenario helps them to get our victim revived. The problem is the lack of Moe in the workplace, so our butlers come up with all kinds of strategies. From the subtle use of small fandom-items such a straps and catchphrases to carefully find out whether there are any other fujoshi in your office, to shipping your co-workers for personal moe.

The second problem is what to do when you want to confess to someone, so they practice various -and mostly unrealistic- confession scenes with you, and tell you not to worry in case your confession is refused. (if someone were to comfort me like that, I am almost hoping I'd get refused).

In the third track they think of all kinds of things that could be wrong, and of course their client has all of these problems (a deadline for a doujinshi, no more space to put things, no space on her harddrive, etc). The main problem however is the deadline. They come up with a nice little cardgame to decide pairing. There are cards that describe someone their job and age (student, salaryman, etc) and cards with personalities on them, you draw two of each to decide what your main characters are going to be. (How exactly you are going to make those pairings work is left in the middle).

In the fourth track their client has money problems, so they come up with all kinds of ways to save on money, and how to do a job interview. Still, you might not want to follow Kurosaki his instructions to answer "69" when asked what your favourite number is. The best part is probably when say raising vegetables on your balcony to save money, and eventually gijinka (personify) them, giving al of them fitting but hilarious personalities).

In the last case their client is having troubles studying for her exams. The idea here is to lock all your stuff away and seal it with something of your favourite fandom that you would have to break to reach your stuff, so that you really think twice before you open it again. After that they give some tips on how to make your studying more moe, and turn the arrival of Perry his ships and the opening of Japan INTO A BL SCENE. Ok, just really suggestive phrasing, but it is hilarious none the less. Also, they declare maths to be tsundere.

In the final track they all say some moe lines, go Power Rangers on us again, and say that they will always be there to help a fujoshi in need.

Just like before I've been laughing far too much thanks to this CD. Although I really did miss a lot of references this time. I knew when a reference was being made, but I just couldn't tell of what of who it was. Like in the first track they use a lot of catchphrases, and I know a lot of those, but I don't know who they belong to.

Our butlers have picked up a new little trick too; saying "Oui Monsieur" whenever they follow someone their instructions. It is a bit butchered and just made me giggle like an idiot, but it is funny none the less.


Conclusion:
You might really have to be a bit of a fujoshi to really enjoy this. Then again, if you know enough of the lifestyle like myself it is still plenty of fun. The solutions they come up with are still hilarious (gijinka fruits and veggies, really? Someone make me this please xD) and you can't really go wrong with that many butlers in one CD to begin with.

Tiny×Machinegun FILE:1 THE KNOCKDOWN

Tiny×Machinegun FILE:1 THE KNOCKDOWN

Company: Rejet x IM Bullet
Based on: Original
Released: 2012.02.29
Official site: http://rejetweb.jp/txm/


The city of New York is being protected by it's police force "Captain VANEAST". Tiny McDaniel is a new police officer in the force, full of energy she wants to dive into the work, but at the moment the only mission she gets is helping kids cross the road safely...

The CD starts as a TV show. The Seventh TV has gotten wind of the News that Tiny (CV: Tamura Yukari) is joining the police force and is holding a special on it. McDaniel is a famous name in the police force thanks to Tiny her grandfather being a famous 'hero' in the force, and Tiny her brother Reigand (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) is treated like a hero by the half the city.

Reigand and Wolf (CV: Toriumi Kousuke) are trying to capture two criminals; Tom and Jerry (CV: Morikubo Shoutarou and Yonaga Tsubasa). The two of them aren't really dangerous, more a bunch of idiots, until Jerry flips. Tiny is close by and saves the day, all on live television.

Unhappy with the uninteresting small jobs she gets, and wanting to help her brother more than anything (Tiny seems to have a bit of a brother complex. Luckily Reigand spoils her as well) she sneaks out to catch herself some criminals. She finds a promising looking wanted note for Midou Zen (CV: Fujiwara Keiji) who is wanted for attempted murder. Of course this isn't as easy as it seems, especially because Midou turns out to be an ex cop, and her brothers mentor.

Meanwhile the rest of the force is deployed to watch over the presentation of one of Lian Jenkings (CV: Miki Shinichirou) his new inventions. After an incident involving Midou, Lian was gravely injured and is now in a wheel chair, and has devoted his life do developing machines that help people who cannot walk freely. Unfortunately many of them seem to be abused by criminals, creating a bit of a tension between him and Reigand.

His newest invention is a gigantic machine that will help clean the city. Unfortunately, someone has tampered with it, and in the middle of the presentation the thing runs wild. Wolf and Reigand try to stop the thing, Tom and Jerry get involved to create even more chaos, and in the end the day is saved by Midou, who has by now kidnapped Tiny...

TxM starts with a light hearted and funny scene, but quickly shows glimpses of a much more serious story underneath. If you know some of IM label there other works this should sound familiar, as this is how Ninomiya Ai writes her stories. Although this story has neither the amount of crack of for example Are you Alice, nor the really dark edge of any her other stories (as of yet at least).

Tiny is really cute, how she wants to try her best and help her brother the city and personality wise the complete opposite of the rather silent Reigand (which is a shame, I would have loved to hear him talk more *is shot*). The end of the story leaves Tiny in the hands of Midou, and her character description says she turned a lot of people against her after she started to work with him, so that makes me curious how this continues.

Tom and Jerry were credited as quest characters, which is a shame because I would love to see more of them. They are complete failures as criminals, but way too funny to listen too, so I secretly hope that they will have some sort of cameo later in the series. The reporter from Seventh TV, Patricia (CV: Shouji Umeka) is another hilarious character, only out for her scoop and always hanging around Tiny to report on how cute she is.


Conclusion:
While being a good stand alone story, this CD really feels like it was just the introduction to the world of TxM, introducing us to all the characters and surroundings, opening a path to kick off the real story. Luckily there are at least two more CD's (and a game) in the works.

Penguin Enishi

I didn't know what to start with after the hiatus (there is so much I need to catch up on!) so I eventually decided to go for the review that spent the most time as a pile of notes:

ペンギンゑにし

Company: Frillia Record
Based on: Original
Released: 2012.01.27
Official site: http://frillra.jp/pengin/


Penguin Enishi is a story about a small shrine in that is nicknamed 'Penguin Shrine'. The head priest recently died, leaving the shrine in the hands of his two sons, Miki and Tane. However neither of them is an official priest, and if the head office doesn't send a new priest, the shrine will be abandoned.

Miki (CV: Ono Daisuke), the oldest of the two, is trying to obtain his qualification as priest. But even though he gets the top score at the exam, he has no supernatural abilities and therefore fails the exam everytime. Meanwhile Tane (CV: Shimono Hiro), the younger one, does seem to have abilities, but he is still in high school and cannot become a priest yet. The two of them are actually half brothers, they have a different mother.

A little while ago a talking penguin calling himself Enishi (CV: Nakata Jouji) suddenly appeared at the temple, claiming that he is a god. Miki is sceptical, but Tane is overjoyed so the penguin gets to stay. Now all he does is eat a lot and cause trouble in the neighbourhood (although he does claim that he can be useful, stating excellent skills with word and excel among his strong points).

Meanwhile Hazumi Ten (CV: Sakurai Takahiro), who is Tane his halfbrother (although Tane refuses to see him as a brother) and works as a police officer, brings along the ghost of boy (CV: Suzumura Kenichi). The only thing the boy remembers is Miki his name. While trying to find out his identity, they discover that his name is Nishimaki Kento, and that he was a year under Miki and Ten while they were at high school, and slowly they start to discover why the only thing that he could remember was Miki his name...

Between all of this there are scenes with Chidou Nene (CV: Maeda Ai), Ten and Tane their mother. She left her first husband (Ten his father) and remarried Chidou Daiju (Miki and Tane their father) but left the house and has been living on her own for a while. Nene seems to have become the love interest of Ichikawa Tadamaki (CV: Koyasu Takehiro), although his motivations can be doubted, and neither does he seem to be entirely human...

I'm trying to summarize all this while trying to avoid spoilers, as this is an interesting story. Not all is as it seems in the beginning, and there are some interesting developments. There is a lot of humour as well; especially Enishi is a good comic relief. The pacing of the story was really good as well, and I'm interested in seeing how it will develop (especially with regards to Ichikawa his intentions).

In this review the relations between everyone may seem a bit hazy, but it is all very simple. When in doubt, just take a look at the character chart on the official site here.


Conclusion
A good story, not too much supernatural activity, the right amount of humour and penguin induced chaos, and lots of potential for the next part. Also Koyasu-sama and Sakurai, just saying.

Yukishiro Gakuen no Yukai na Hitobito ~Toshishita Kareshi~

年下彼氏。 ツンでヤンデレの弟編

Company: Mujina
Based on: Original
Released: 2012.01.25
Official Site: http://mujina.kkjinnai.co.jp/index.html


Yukishiro Gakuen no Yukai na Hitobito is a series of  drama CD's, loosely connected by taking place at the same school and some recurring characters. This time the focus is on the brothers Mukai Yukihisa (the younger one) and Mukai Tatsuhisa (the older one). Both are voiced by Sakurai Takahiro in this CD

Toshishita Kareshi shares it's setting with another CD: Toshiue Kareshi. While this one centres on the younger brother, that one centres on the older brother. You can think of the two CD's as parallel worlds, the setting is the same but things are slightly different.

You (the listener) and the one year younger Yukihisa have been dating for over a year now. You're both in the same school, and both in the astronomy club. Coincidently (not really) Tatsuhisa is a math teacher at your school, and the consultant for the astronomy club. While his friends often tease Yukihisa about how far he has gone with his girlfriend, the truth is that they haven't even held hands yet. But he is planning to change all that at the yearly astronomy club camp.

But things end up very differently. The bus in which they where on their way crashes. Everybody survives with small injuries, except for Tatsuhisa who ends up in a coma. And while his body is in a coma, his consciousness ends up inside of Yukihisa his head.

Yukihisa is of course less then happy about this, for more then one reason. All his life he felt like he has been in his perfect brother's shadow, and now he has the person in question inside his head. And seeing the strongheaded Yukihisa create all kinds of problems with his girlfriend, Tatsuhisa at some point decides to (temporary) take over his little brother his body to solve certain things....

Much of this drama focusses on Yukihisa his complex towards his brother. That also makes this drama a surprisingly serious one. And when I say serious, I do mean serious. Admittingly, Yukihisa doesn't really have it easy either. All you talk about when you see him is Tatsuhisa, so you can't really blame him for suspecting that you're in love with his brother either. Then again, Yukihisa isn't the most sensitive person either.

My first thought when hearing him was "so cuuuute". But after a few lines you discover that he really is a bit of an immature brat, and an incredible tsundere. I don't think you should call him yandere like in the title though. True, he does want to have you to himself, but within normal parameters and most of this comes from him feeling threatened by the presence of his brother.


Conclusion:
A surprisingly serious entry to the series, but a good CD non the less. Yukihisa his complex can get a bit annoying, but more then that I sympathize with him. He does have one of the best closing lines ever though.

Ouritsu Ouji Gakuen vol.3: The Prince of Thumbelina

 王立王子学園 vol.3 親指姫の王子様

Company: R45°project
Based on: Fairytales x School life
Released: 2012.01.15
Official Site: http://rpgakuen.com/


Ouritsu Ouji Gakuen (Royal Prince Gakuen, RPG for short) is a school where princes go in preparation of their future career as royalty. That means normal lessons, but also stuff like dancing lessons and other things you might need as royalty. Other than the fact that the entire student body are royal princes, it is a very normal school. It is not like you'll notice any of this in the CD's.

In this series you both spend time together with your main prince, as well as with multiple characters. Each CD features three princes, and you get to spend some quality time together with the 'main prince' as well as some -often funny- lively moments with all three.

The third and final CD of the first series centres on Hiiragi Motochika (CV: Kaji Yuuki), Who represents the tale of Thumbelina. The prince in the orriginal story is a flower fairy, which is reflected in the fact that Chika (as everyone calls him) loves flowers a lot. Chika has a very cheerful but selfish personality, and is pretty loud.

You spend quite some time with Haibara Kouki (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) and Shirase Yukito (CV: Toriumi Kousuke) this time. There are two longer tracks with them, one where you have cooking class. The theme is supposed to be 'home cooking' but all Chika wants to make are desserts. The second one is a scene where you have to tend to the flower beds. This is where Chika has his moment of unusual behaviour; he is faaaaar to passionate about it.

Contrary to the first two CD's, Chika doesn't need his friends their help to confess his love to you. Instead, a large part of his CD is dedicated to his feelings of jealousy and guilt towards his friends because he likes you. However in the end he does choose to confess to you, and tells this to Kouki and Yukito as well.

Like I said, Chika is a bit of a brat. However he explains this in the first track: he is the youngest child in the family and at some point discovered that if he would whine he would get anything. This eventually led to him being used to getting everything he wants, so he doesn't really get serious about anything. Luckily he isn't as bratty as in the second CD any more, because things were getting really out of hand in that one.

Unfortunately, this still leaves Chika as a sort of 'usually acting genki but has some angst going on in the background' type. Which really isn't my thing. The combination of those things is... not my favourite, let's keep it at that.

Sadly, the cast talk is also back to being quite generic. All of them made a small comment and that was it. I had secretly hoped they would do something silly again like last time, but too bad.


Conclusion:
Chika is too genki and bratty for me, add in the slight angst, and I start to loose interest. Still, for fans of Chika is reckon this is a good CD, because for once he is more than just the moodmaker.

Yandere Heaven ~karei naru Saionji-ke Hen~ Tokuten

ヤンデレ天国（ヘブン）～華麗なる西園寺家編～ アニメイト特典　　
ヤンデレ天国（ヘブン）～華麗なる西園寺家編～　ステラワース特典

Company: Holic Works
Based on: Original
Released: 2011.12.29
Official site: http://www.hobirecords.com/yandere5/


Yandere Heaven is a series in which you (the listener) become the object of affection of two rather dangerous characters. In the beginning things seem ok, but then their love becomes obsessive. This time you are loved by the twins Saionji Ran (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) and Wakasa (CV: Hatano Wataru)

If you ordered the CD at either Animate or Stellworth, you would get a special CD that tell the story of what would have happened if you choose neither, and the three of you continued to live together. Order at Animate and you would get the Ran version, order at Stellaworth and you would get the Wakasa version.

Instead of choosing one of the two brothers in the main drama, you continue to live together with the three of you. Ran and Wakasa have made 3 rules: 1. they can spend a day with you alone, this rotates on a daily basis (one day with Ran, one day with Wakasa, and so on). 2. No days are skipped. 3. You spend the night with the three of you. If they break any of these rules they will have to leave the mansion.


Ran version:
Ran wakes up first, and sees both you and Wakasa still sleeping beside him. Wakasa seems to be having some sort of dream where he is fighting someone RPG style. It is Ran his turn to spend the day with you, so he wants Wakasa out of the room. Wakasa still wants to sleep however, so Ran threatens him with a paper knife to get him out. You're still sleepy though, and Ran says you must still be tired because 'Wakasa wanted to try out a lot of things last night', so he lets you sleep a little bit more while he contemplates on the current situation.

Wakasa version:
Wakasa wakes up to find you still sleeping, but Ran already awake. Ran mentions that he didn't sleep much because of all the things Wakasa did last night, and asks him whether he noticed that you actually passed out in the middle of it. Wakasa seems to be sorry for not noticing that (wut?!?) but replies that Ran seemed to be enjoying watching it, and that he still has 'a lot of things that he wants to try out with the three of you together'. After that he throws Ran out so that he can spend the rest of the day with you. While you are cooking something, Wakasa contemplates on the current situation.

Both brothers lament about the fact that in the end they couldn't betray each other, and that even though they are not fully content with the current situation, this seems to be the only option. I'll have to admit that it is a highly... unusual situation. Except for Ran threatening Wakasa with a paper knife, there is not much yandere going on here. But it does make you realize that the situation that you are currently in is... tiring? dangerous? insane? I don't know what to say really.


Conclusion:
I was mainly rather surprised at what Wakasa is implied to be doing. I don't really like these much as an addition to the main drama. Nothing much happens, but the implications of what is going on... this is one situation you definitely don't want to be in. 

Yandere Heaven ~karei naru Saionji-ke Hen~

ヤンデレ天国（ヘブン）～華麗なる西園寺家編～

Company: Holic Works
Based on: Original
Released: 2011.12.29
Official site: http://www.hobirecords.com/yandere5/


Yandere Heaven is a series in which you (the listener) become the object of affection of two rather dangerous characters. In the beginning things seem ok, but then their love becomes obsessive. This time you are loved by the twins Saionji Ran (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) and Wakasa (CV: Hatano Wataru)

The twins live alone in a mansion, and have completely opposite personalities. Wakasa is very social, but doesn't have a job and instead spends a lot of time photographing things as a hobby. Ran on the other hand hates interacting with people, but will inherit his fathers company and is apparently very good in doing business (without ever leaving the house, I might add). You come to work at the mansion as a live in maid, an arrangement made by their grandmother.

The first time you see them, both Ran and Wakasa are speechless for a moment, but quickly turn back to their normal manners. Ran (much later) tells you that you look very similar to their dead little sister. Ran can keep you and the memories of his sister apart, but he is afraid Wakasa can't.

It is not much later that Ran discovers that Wakasa his entire room is full of pictures of you, and when he confronts him about that Wakasa in return says he know of the app Ran installed on your phone (it tracks where you are and records whatever is said). They both start to argue about how they envy the other, and that they will never hand over you to the other. The result, is that you have to choose which one you will stay with.

This CD was much more subdued that the previous ones. Even the scene where Ran and Wakasa are yelling at each other never gets as insane as Yandere Heaven 3 or 4. Although it was pretty intense. The fact that Ran already sounds scary from the beginning, and that there is little difference between his normal and 'yandere voice' is probably part of that. He does say some very obsessive things though (he is willing to do anything you want, including committing suicide, all you need to do is ask). Wakasa has a more traditional 'I want you all to myself' stance but the difference between his normal social attitude and this strong desire to monopolize things is somewhat amazing. He does however allow you outside to take walks, considerate isn't he?

Overall, I think there was more tension throughout the entire CD, but it sort of lacked a real climax. Or maybe I am just a prisoner to Sakurai his voice, and would follow it to the end of the earth of my free will. Who knows. I absolutely loved the music themes for both brothers though, especially Ran his (yandere) theme.

The cast talk was a lot of fun. Sakurai and Hatano do their cast comment together, talking about the two characters and yandere as a whole. Sakurai says types like Wakasa are bothersome, while Hatano says that he sort of understands the feelings of both characters. Their cast talk is very cheerful, and they obviously had a lot of fun during the recording, in short, the complete opposite of the drama CD itself.

I am kind of curious about the tokuten CDs. There are two of them (one for Animate, and one for Stellaworth) which depict a situation in which you didn't choose either of the brothers and continue to live with the three of you. Hopefully they will show up online sometime soon so I can review those as well.


Conclusion:
What can I say? This CD feels a bit more subdued. So for those of you who don't like your yanderes batshit insane, or who have never tried it before, it is probably very good. In fact, if you want to start on this series this might be the best one to begin with. Now that vol.6 is out you should start with that, it is even more subdued.