Hayate x Blade Ultra Drama CD Sanban Hoshi! Hyuuryuu Tsumeawase (はやて×ブレード ウルトラドラマCD さんばん星！ 漂流つめあわせ)

Hayate x Blade Ultra Drama CD Sanban Hoshi! Hyuuryuu Tsumeawase (はやて×ブレード ウルトラドラマCD さんばん星！ 漂流つめあわせ) broke my head. Just seconds ago, I could feel it go "pop." I'm pretty sure steam came out of my ears, too.

As with the first two of these Drama CDs, the 3rd of the series follows three shinyuu couples as they do utterly ridiculous things in the utterly ridiculous, mutually exclusive ecosystems that surround Tenchi Gakuen. We already know from the manga that there is a mountain behind the school (from Volume 11 and Volume 12.) We also know from the first of this Drama CD series, that that there is a jungle wilderness, and so, it should really come as no surprise that there is a beach as well. As the title translates to something like "An Assortment of Drifting" it should also not be too surprising that this CD follows our principles as they wander around these ecosystems aimlessly.

Hitsugi and Shizuku (and Tatewaki) go to the beach, where Hitsugi tortures Shizuku by crafting nefearious plans and tortures Tatewaki by torturing Tatewaki.

We are then allowed to enjoy an extended visit with Sid and Nancy that begins propitiously with Sid composing a little ditty about being hungry and ends up with her unpropitiously being eaten by a giant snake. (Clearly our Yuri military force needs Giant Snakes. We've had them in many of our best series!) Sid worries that Nancy will leave her, but when Nancy rescues her from being eaten, she realizes that she will never get that kind of fun with anyone else.

Next up, Akira and Sae. Is there a more typical couple in all of Tenchi? Akira's butchy grumpiness, Sae's complete unconcern for anything except having a little fun at Akira's expense and her ineffable cheerfulness in the face of hardship, like being stranded on a desert island....and even a very little Yuri-service for the Akira x Sae fans out there. Very little.

And in the end it was all one of Hitsugi's nefarious plots. ^_^ But that wasn't what broke my brain.

What broke my brain was the very final seconds of the CD as Tatewaki does her rendition of being the phone clock. You remember that, don't you? From the days before cell phones? You'd call the number and a woman's voice would say, "When the tone sounds it will be Eleven-thirty and 45 seconds in the morning," then the tone sounds. Then she'd say, "When the tone sounds it will be Eleven-thirty and 50 seconds in the morning," and it would repeat endlessly all day. Well, you haven't heard it done right until you've heard it done by Tatewaki. /pop!/ ~(^_^)~

There is a mini-comic that, if I were to live in Japan I could get by order from from this CD, but since my chances of getting here are small, so I won't be able to review it. If anyone does nab a copy, let me know how it is!

Ratings:

Overall - 9 just for Sid singing about how hungry she is. And Giant Snakes.

Not too long ago I said on Twitter than I consider Hayashiya-sensei to be the best story teller in manga. I stand by that. She loves her characters, that's obvious. And as a result, I love them too. ^_^

Hayate x Blade, Volume 14 should hit the shelves any day now...I cannot wait to review it. I have been planning this review for *months!* (^_^)v

Hayate x Blade Ultra Drama CD Niban Hoshi! Tokkuntsumeawase!

We've arrived at the 2nd of the new Hayate x Blade Drama CDs, Hayate x Blade Ultra Drama CD Niban Hoshi! Tokkuntsumeawase! (はやて×ブレード ウルトラドラマCD にばん星！ 特訓つめあわせ！)

Like the first of the series, this second Drama CD contains 4 short, funny, occasionally touching vignettes, following one of three shinyuu pairs at Tenchi.

Tokkun is "special training" and, as the title implies, each scenario is centered around some idiotic thing for which a character needs "special training."

 In the first scenario, Momoka comes across  Isuzu practicing jumping over the tobibako, the vaulting horse commonly used in Japanese schools as a part of their physical education curriculum. Isuzu tries to get by on Momoka's "guts" training, but does way better when Michi comes along and teachers her the right technique.

Michi then wanders over to her own shinyuu, Otoha, who is having a crisis. She is, apparently, an ojou-chan who, despite her promise to learn to cook, has never really bothered. With her parents arrival imminent, Michi tries to coach her into being able to make the world's best meat and potato dish. Now that Michi has suddenly become awesome, she's really pulled out the stops. Otoha does managed to cobble something edible together, but her parents change their plans and never get to experience it.

The third scenario will make absolutely no sense if you're not completely caught up on the manga. After her defeat En-Suu has shifted her focus away from kicking ass to...eating. She obsesses about fish, specifically. In this vignette, En-Suu importunes Meiko to help her get better at Japanese. Mei, annoyed at being interrupted while reading tells En-Suu to go figure it out for herself. Which she does. A teacher asks where her cousin has gone, but Meiko doesn't, honestly know. After weeks, En-Suu returns suddenly. Apparently while she was out looking for practice, she got a job at a sushi shop and now speaks fluent fish with a thick "old guy shopkeeper" accent. This all has to be heard to be believed. ^_^

The final scenario is a revisit of all of the players in various little dribs and drabs.

Once again, not something you're gonna grab if you're not already besotted, but if you are - hurry up and grab it while it's hot.

Ratings:

Overall - 8


The third of the Ultra Drama CDs is already available and features Sid and Nancy, Hitsugi and Shizuku and Akira and Sae. If you are a Hayate x Blade fan and do not get the third Drama CD, I'm revoking your fan club membership. ^_^

Hayate x Blade Ultra Drama CD! Ichiban Hoshi! Zekkyoutsumeawase!

Hayate x Blade Ultra Drama CD! Ichiban Hoshi! Zekkyoutsumeawase! (はやて×ブレード ウルトラドラマCD いちばん星！ 絶叫つめあわせ！) is a series of 4 short character pieces that aren't tied into any one particular arc, but are in and of themselves really funny and, in the case of the final track, touching.

The title, for what it's worth, appears to mean something like: First Star! An Assortment of Outcries!

The first track follows Hayate and Ayana as they patrol the school at night. Hayate gets to scream at just about every shadow and Ayana is allowed to trot out any number of grumpy, rude replies - just the way we like her.

The second track follows Jun and Yuho as they track down the real culprit in a series of underwear and bikini thefts. Everyone in the school is convinced that Jun is the criminal except for Yuho...not because she's being nice, mind you. She just knows this isn't Jun's M.O.. The real culprit is found, but it's not who you might think. ^_^

The third track was laugh out loud funny as Yukari accompanies Maki in a short walk that wanders across cliffs and into the jungle to find a good place to paint from.

The final track is more emotional than the others. Ayana and Hayate have it out over what Hayate really cares about and Yuho and Jun have a tender moment together. To wrap it up we spend a few more moments with Yukari and Maki, who seems to be able to find Yukari's softs spots instantly.

Nothing here is really moves the story forward and you wouldn't be getting this if you didn't already love the characters. But, for the third and fourth tracks, if you *do* love the characters, this is a nice set of side stories that allows you to spend more time with them, get in a few chuckles and even an "awww" or two.

Ratings:

Overall - 8

Hayate x Blade Mini-Drama CD

If you bought the deluxe version of Volume 13 of Hayate x Blade, you received a Mini-Drama CD. As with most of the other HxB Mini Drama CDs, this one has a pervasive feel of fourth wall destruction and chaos.

Hitsugi has once again decided to record a Drama CD and to that end, she has gathered together the main characters of the story so she can inform them of her decision. This gives an opportunity to become reacquainted with the character's voices - and to acclimate to the new voices in the cast, most notably Ensuu, Mei, Sid and Nancy. In all honesty, this CD could have ended after Sid and Nancy are introduced and I would have been happy, but no...Hitsugi has a much, much more diabolical plan, erm, planned.

For it is Tatewaki Hikaru who is called upon to step to the front and upon whose broad shoulders Hitsugi-sama places the important task of writing the script for the next Drama CD! Which is to say, she leaves Tatewaki alone in a room with some crackers and tea and a computer and tells her to clean up when she's done.

And this, my friends, is the most amazing thing ever. Asano Mayumi has forever changed my impression of both Tatewaki and voice acting in general. The next scene, as Tatewaki bemoans her fate, mutters crazily to herself and chortles - not just chortles, but does the BEST CHORTLE EVER - alongside of dialogue recitation as she types, I considered myself schooled in the ways of voice acting by a Master.

The next scenes are a series of odd couple pairings, presumably in the scenes Tatewaki was composing. The wrap-up allows Hitsugi to be mean to her once more.

Then came the Bonus Track. Apparently I was not the only one impressed by Asano-san. The theme was "what character would you like to be," and without hesitation several of the actresses stated that they wanted to be Asano Mayumi - to which I replied, "Agreed!" This despite the refrain from everyone else pointing out that Asano-san was not, in fact a character, but a real person.

Ratings:

Overall - 9

All I know is that the star of this Mini Drama CD was Asano Mayumi-san. The manga is totally worth getting - this CD is worth moving both heaven and earth to get.

Maria-sama ga Miteru Drama CD: Parasol wo Sashite

The good news is that, phew, that's behind us now. No more Rainy Blue ever again...until the manga catches up. D'oh!

Well, for the moment, we can wallow in the comfort of the 14th Drama CD of the Maria-sama ga Miteru series, Parasol wo Sashite, in which Yumi gets back both her favorite umbrella and her beloved onee-sama.

This Drama CD is a 2-disk set, each disk has about 45-60 minutes of material.

The first disk has the half of the book in which Yumi meets Katou Kei and her older relative, the entirely adorable Yumiko. The second has the appearance of Youko and the revelation of what Sachiko has been going through for the past few months.

Two scenes in this story were critical to my understanding of the characters. When Touko snaps at Yumi outside the cafeteria, it occurred to me that, at that point, Touko has no idea that Yumi does not know what's up with Sachiko. So, to see Yumi having fun with classmates is upsetting. Of course, yes, Touko's a absolute jerk about it, which adds to the drama of the scene. But in the second half of the book, Touko knows that Yumi doesn't know, which is probably one of the very first bricks in the wall she builds between Yumi and herself.

The second scene that really blew me away, was the scene with Kei's older relative, Yumiko. Kei imagines her to be a taciturn old lady and Touko later points out that she was clearly used to frowning alot. But something about Yumi's unexpected kindness opens up Yumiko in a way that I think she could never have expected. Yumiko tells Yumi something so important that I missed it the first 30 times I read/watched/read/listened to this scene. She says, simply, that if Yumi loves her onee-sama, she should tell her. Verbalizing this changes Yumi's whole perspective...and Yumiko's own life.

Of course it was nice to encounter Sei and Youko again, and "meet" Kei.

And the whole bit at the end that had gotten cut out of the anime, about Youko being too competent to forget an umbrella, then not having one, proving that she was totally discombobulated and Sachiko's mother obsessing over convenience store food were told in full, to my immense pleasure.

The second disk also includes a bonus track, in which the actresses point out that it had been almost a year since they recorded Rainy Blue and how they were all kinda tense about that not being resolved.(Most of them have now read the novels, something I find fascinating.) But the thing that makes the bonus track priceless is right in the very beginning, when they are all talking about how emotional this CD is and Itou Miki says that saying "I love you Yumi," was really emotional for her. When Itou-san says the words, "I love you, Yumi," Ueda Kana immediately replies, "I love you too, Onee-sama!" And I, and the entire cast of Maria-sama ga Miteru screamed of "Ow! That hurt!" as our hearts exploded from the cuteness. (^_^) Toyoguchi Megumi says something like, "Aw, c'mon, I don't want to see that!"

So, although it took a really long time to get...Parasol wo Sashite was totally worth it.

Ratings:

Overall - 9.5

Now that I think about it, this novel had *three* adorable adult characters - Sachiko's mom Sayako, Kei's relative Yumiko and "Miffy-chan," the middle-school teacher who returned Yumi's umbrella.

Maria-sama ga Miteru: Premium CD, Volume 2

Maria-sama ga Miteru Premium CD, Volume 2 jumps right into the drama. By which I mean the drama of Yoshino and Rei coming to terms with the fact that their relationship will have to change forever.

In "Kibara Panic," a date with Nana becomes a race to see who Rei's omiai partner is. Yoshino learns that Nana is disturbingly like a former Yellow Rose that she knows well....and is at least her equal in every way.

Yoshino is forced to come face to face with her feelings about Nana in "Kibara Shinken Shoubu." Yoshino begs Rei not to let go her as she tries to ride a bicylce, but when Rei and Nana cross swords in the dojo, it's Yoshino ends up casting the past aside to embrace the future.

Both of these were brilliant, funny, emotional dramas. Yoshino and Rei, the bickering couple of the Yamayurikai, cannot go on as they have. For Yoshino to grow, Rei has to let go, something she doesn't really want to do. Yoshino also has to stop being grasping, but she knows she's cheating by having someone else to lavish attention on. In the second drama, Yoshino has time to recognize that her love for Rei is obsessive and has been in many ways, suffocating to her beloved cousin.

Nana is a wonder. She's Yoshino's equal on every level, and has more than just vocal similarities to the former Rosa Foetida. She likes interesting things, is up for an adventure and no matter what Yoshino throws at her, she's right there to stand by Yoshino's side. Using Nabatome Hitomi was a stroke of genius, because it does give Nana more than a little of that slightly "hrm...this sounds familiar" feeling.

The final track is a bonus talk by Ueda Kana selling us all the current Marimite goods and reminding us to follow the Oshaka-sama mo Miteru series (about Yuuki and his life at Hanadera  and which I have been reading and may just review at some point, because the last book had a great ending.)

Ratings:

Overall - 9

A really lovely CD if you like the Yellow Rose family. Which I do.

Drama CD: Maria-sama ga Miteru Winter Special 2009 DJCD

Champagne for New Years' Day, sandwiches and a lot of giggling start off the Maria-sama ga Miteru Winter Special from 2009.

Shimizu Kaori (Noriko) still calls Noto Mamiko (Shimako) "Onee-sama" for our entertainment, and we learn important things like Noto-san likes roast beef and Shimizu-san is really good at janken pon.

Since we have the White Rose sisters in the house, it's not that surprising that the drama this time is "Shirobara no Mono Omoi," in which we and Noriko learn the tip of the iceberg of Shimako's complicated family situation and Noriko finally meets Sei. As Noriko and Shimako discuss what a calm and peaceful souer couple they are, Shimako is dragged off into by a man who pulls up in a car. The situation is unlikely, but Noriko's got a steel trap mind even under stress, and guesses who Sei is on her first try (her image is different than she expected but 1) She refers to Shimako as "Shimako" - no honorific and 2) Noriko saw her at the kendo match and she guesses that she's a Lillian U. student when she first sees her outside the gate.) Noriko apologizes for figuring it out so quickly and not giving Sei a Yumi-esque reaction.

Sei...is Sei. (I'm still/again amazed at Sei's speech patterns. I don't think I've ever heard/read someone is so all over the place in the way she speaks, from super casual to formal in three words.) And Noriko, after talking to Shimako that night says what anyone might say - "Is that *really* your Onee-sama?" lol

The whole segment is actually pretty funny. It's the first time we see that Shimako is a steady ship who has a whole family of stormy seas - and it's only going to get stormier.

The only negative of the Drama part was that the Foley was pretty intrusive. I really didn't need to hear the swallowing that clearly. lol

The final segment tests the actresses' memory and art skills and they are both better and worse than you'd expect. The CD insert amusingly includes all three of their attempts at reproducing the Lillian logo, so you can have a good laugh.

Ratings:

Overall - 9

All in all, another excellent hour spent with "old friends." Unfortunately, this CD appears to be sold out on Amazon JP, so you may have to resort to finding it elsewhere.

Maria-sama ga Miteru Special CD, Volume 4

The Maria-sama ga Miteru Special CD, Volume 4 begins with what was a most obvious and silly gag as Nabatome Hitomi introduces herself as Torii Eriko's VA, followed by Itou Shizuka as Rei, Ikezawa Haruna as Yoshino and then Nabatome-san starts to introduce herself again as the voice actress for Arima Nana to complete the Yellow Rose family roster, but starts to laugh and completely blows the gag. :-)

This was followed by....sweets! The crackling of plastic and the various "yum" noises will be familiar to anyone who has listened to any of the previous CDs. Also the random conversation about nothing much.

This is followed by the drama Frame of Mind, which really struck home just how *much* Tsutako and Shouko there is in and around the series. Because, we're *still* not done with them. I keep saying we've got all the pieces, but we're nowhere near the end. :-)

Frame of Mind covers the mystery of a handful of film cartridges that Yumi received from a 1st-year that say "Takeshima Tsutako" in katakana on them and that Tsutako herself says are not hers. Yumi, Great Detective Yoshino and Tsutako investigate the mystery and find out the criminal was....! We learn that the 3rd-years of the Photography Club are not above hazing the new kid on the block, which will lead into another trick they play in a later story, on the new club president-elect. Man, that Photo Club is tough. :-) This story has the added attraction of Yumi's realization that the Photography Club is not just made up of Tsutako and Shouko. :-)

This drama is followed up by "Souer no Kizuna" where the entire Kibara Family is eerily in synch and they all laugh alot.

Ratings:

Overall - 9

Once more, a hour of fun and another drama to add to the ole iPod. When I get the whole series on there, no doubt the iPod will break and I'll have to start from scratch..... And can you believe that I am *still* not done with the pile of stuff I brought home from Japan three months ago? There's still a pile of Light Novels and at least two CDs left. Phew.

Canaan Radio CD and Aoi Hana Sweet Blue Radio CD

I'm still making my way through the last of the items I bought while in Tokyo. Not surprisingly, the Light Novels take the longest. And since I'm now working from home, I no longer have a commute during which to listen to my Drama CDs. (I know, I know, poor me....) Today I happened to be driving down the office, so I had a chance to listen to the Aoi Hana: Sweet Blue Radio CD. It has very little Yuri. I had listened to the first Canaan DJCD a while back, but as it also has only the vaguest hint of Yuri, I decided to not review it.

Well, while it's true that both of them have very little Yuri, they both have something much more important in common - the content is primarily the voice actors and actresses screwing around and cracking themselves up. I figure that's worth mentioning.

To start with, the Canaan Drama Cd was backwards. That is, although Maria and YunYun are on the cover, the content actually features Tanaka Rie (Liang Qi) and Ohkawa Toru (Cummings.) The two of them really don't need us during this CD, because they are perfectly capable of amusing themselves without us. There were times during the conversations where they had themselves laughing so hard I couldn't for the life of me understand a word.

They also both slip in and out of their roles freely so, when Ohkawa-san makes a bad joke, Qiang Li suddenly threatens him with punishment. I recall (it was a few months ago that I listened to it) that there were at least a few scenarios in which Tanaka-san, as Qiang Li, moaned with desire over Alphard. That was pretty much what Yuri there was.

Likewise, in Sweet Blue Radio, Gibu Yuuko (nicknamed "Gibuling") and Takabe Ai ("Rabuling") really didn't need us so much. :-) The bulk of the radio CD was the two of them doing their best impressions of other kinds of voice jobs - AM and FM radio announcers, the person in a department store that calls for lost people, the women on all those ubiquitous food shows who ooh and ah over mundane items like the sandwich she gushes over. Of these scenarios, the one in which Takabe-san does her impression of an AM radio DJ actually made Gibu-san snort out loud. That was worth hearing.

Also amusing was the next to last track in which Okudaira Akira was a special guest and when she "leaves" the studio and "forgets' her handkerchief, Gibu-san "runs after her" and "misses" guest Manjoume Fumi when she comes to visit the studio. It was idiotic, but they were having fun with it.

In this CD, there is a 'memory' of Fumi telling Akira that she likes her and Akira responding that she didn't mind, no...she was happy about it. That's about it. But it was a sweet moment.

Both CDs are more silly than special. If you love the series and/or the voice actors and actresses, its worth it for the giggling, the puns, the utter goofiness when people who get along screw around in front of the mic.

Ratings:

Canaan DJCD - 7

Sweet Blue Radio CD - 8

Aoi Shiro Drama CDs

Thanks to the generosity and kindness of Japanese blogger, Okazu hero and my friend, Komatsu-san, I had the pleasure of listening to two of the Aoi Shiro Drama CDs - "Glass Shoes" and "Engage." These CDs are not available for purchase - they were probably included in magazines as extras.

Both disks are more similar to the Yuri Hime version of the story than the Jive Comics version. The emphasis is on character and "fated meetings" rather than on plot or game elements.

In the first CD I listened to, "Glass Shoes," we meet Shouko through the eyes of Momoko, much as we do in the YH comic. In "Engage" we get both Sawacchi and Shouko's thoughts as they find themselves attracted to one another as if they were meant to be together.

Through no fault of anyone's, I kept imagining frail Sawacchi as Hyatt from Excel Saga. It completely ruined the dramatic tension for me. lol

Much more than either of the manga series, these Drama CDs dwelt on the gravitational pull these women have on each other. Shouko's thoughts are the closest to something that approaches falling in love.

Both Drama CDs are short - about 25-30 minutes, and neither would need prior knowledge of the series, although it definitely helps.

Ratings:

"Glass Shoes"
Overall - 7
Yuri - 3

"Engage"
Overall - 7.5
Yuri - 5

Of all of "other" media I've seen for this particular Visual Novel/game, I think I actually liked this one the best. The Jive comic was utterly choked by it's own sense of destiny, while the YH Comic was scattered and didn't really tell a story. As prologues go, these CDs weren't too bad.

Yuri Drama CD: Sasamekikoto~ The Longest Day of Sumika

The Birthday Gambit. We all know it as one of the most tedious plot complications possible in anime and manga. Whether it devolves into the "What, it's your birthday?" series of painful lies that end up in a surprise party or the "Invite everyone, even my enemies" style party in which chaos consumes the plot, anyone that has read or watched more than a few anime or manga series will be familiar with the mortification that consumes us as we watch yet another agonizing birthday celebration. What could possibly be worse?

Well...it could be rendered into a musical number about your hopeless one-sided love for your best friend, sung by everyone else in your life.

And this, my friends, is the plot of Sasamekikoto~ The Longest Day of Sumika.

So, it's Sumi's birthday and all she really wants is for Ushio to come over and spend some time with her. Ushio, ever insensitive to Sumi's feelings, begins to obsess over getting Sumi the perfect gift. Of course, the perfect gift would have been for her to come over, but no, that's not likely, is it?

Sumika ends up inviting Kyori, Miyako and Tomoe, and Kyori ends up inviting "Akemi-chan" and of course there's Nori and Sumika's brothers and father. Everyone arrives for the party, including Sumika's homeroom teacher except - you guessed it - Ushio.

At which point the Drama CD becomes an overproduced and slightly snarky musical number that I'm singing in my head even now. For a very limited time I will make this annoying song available to you, because I believe that pain shared is pain halved. If you want to hear what Sumika's party sounded like, you can find it here. Whatever you're expecting...don't. This is a brutal commentary on what other people think Sumika's life ought to be like and it doesn't make her happy. In the original track, which is the longest on the CD, Sumika resists being dragged into the musical number as long as she can.

When Ushio does eventually show up, very late, she accompanied by her sempai, because you see she wanted to get Sumika something perfect, but ruined the dress she was making so took the train out to the beach and forgot her cellphone and purse and couldn't get back and...here's a really pretty shell for your birthday.

Oh, Sumi, please forget Ushio. Please. She's a clod. Be slightly hurt and grow up and find someone wonderful, okay? Thanks.

In any case, this CD is perfectly in keeping with the anime, in that it's unfocused, mostly in Sumika's head and silly. You could do worse for a Drama CD.


Ratings:

Story - 7-WTF
Characters - 7
Yuri - 3
Loser Fan - 1

Overall - 7

Really, the song is incredibly sticky. Someone needs to make a AMV to it.