Ooooooohhhh maaaannn...busy busy busy. Lots of work to do and free time, aside from what I use to stay sane, is little. But, it's been three weeks, I should do something for the fans...if...I...have fans....uhh...

ANYWAY! A little while ago, I gave my piece on Parasyte -the maxim-, a real "meaning of humanity" piece of anime that I enjoyed watching. I don't binge anime, but thanks to Toonami, I'm able to view without paying some cost to enjoy good work. Some anime can be a hit/miss, but most of what is on can catch my attention.
So, Parayste wasn't alone in what I enjoyed watching. It was paired up with another anime that was on sometime before, but I never got the chance to see it from the beginning. Which was a shame...considering it's pretty dang good. But, things aligned, and the anime came back for a second run (been years since SAO's first/second season, so some take awhile to come back if at all), and this time I caught it.

KILL LA KILL!

With a name like that, you would expect a gore-fest of epic proportions...in a...weird way, kinda. Thankfully it's not that shocking "tons of blooooood" some horror films give out or that strange anime-like thing that happens in some Japan movies...but blood is a little bit of the plot, but don't worry about getting too screamish. It's an anime, not a graphic representation....

This anime follows the story of Ryuko Matoi, a young woman who's totally awesome, who's attitude reminds me a bit of someone I know. She's a raven-haired, with a splash of red, determined fighter who's got more strength than she thinks she does. But anyway, she's a strong person with an iron will who's searching for her father's killer, and her journey leads her to Honnouji Academy. Honnouji is...uhh...kinda one of those rank-based academies. You got the lower people in the slums...and the higher you rise, the better (possibly more demanding) your life is. Exactly WHAT they learn is lightly touched on...and given all the crazy stuff that happens, HOW anybody gets TIME to study is beyond me. The first episode OPENS with the Disciplinary Committee head throttling a student and hanging him (I don't know if he's...dead...uhh...) outside the school's walls to deter troublemakers. Yeah...hard school to uhh attend...oh yeah, and don't forget to attend either! That's even worse if your tardy!
Like most organizations, apparently, Honnouji Academy is run by a council. Consisting of Ira Gamagoori, a guy, who at times, is SO HUGE he can barely fit in a classroom, who leads the disciplinary committee. Also Uzu Sanageyama, who's sorta a kendo specialist who heads the athletic clubs at academy. Nonon Jakuzure, who heads the non-athletic clubs, but who seems to have more of a link to music-related material. And then Houka Inumuta, head of information and strategy, who's kinda your typical cold analyst. There are other, lower clubs as well, each having a head as well.
But they all report to the "great" Satsuki Kiryuin, a stone-cold ruthless president of Honnouji Academy. Seriously, this woman is cold and calculating...you can understand how Ryuko gets SERIOUSLY ticked off at her, especially when it's Satsuki she's aiming for on finding out who killed her dad.

Of course, a big thing in the anime and Honnouji Academy are "Goku Uniforms". No, these aren't fan appreciation shirts for Dragonball Z, but they are powerful. Goku Uniforms are clothes infused with "Life Fibers", material that increases the powers of the wearer. At Honnouji, most of the lower class ("No Stars") don't wear any. One Stars are basically most of the students, Two Stars are generally club heads, Three Stars are for the student council...and that's it. Satsuki? She doesn't wear one, she's strong on her OWN.
While Ryuko is pretty strong herself, she gest owned by a Goku Uniform quite fast. After a little gloom moment back at her home (well burnt home anyway), she falls, literally, into an underground chamber where she encounters a living uniform that bonds to her. Later called Senketsu, this sailor uniform (yeah, drool if you must, there is plenty of THAT stuff for ya guys. Good thing though? As far as I know, it's tasteful) is a Kamui, essentially a uniform MADE of Life Fibers. So, in some ways, it's like a 10-star Goku Uniform with a life of it's own. A little draw back is that this thing requires blood to function. Still, Ryuko is able to return and kick major butt, saving her unintended friend Mako Mankanshoku (one of the most eccentric and air-headed characters in all of anime), and start claiming to climb up the ladder to take on Satsuki.

The story seems like a revenge plot at first...but then it starts developing into a whole new thing when Ryuko's father's murder is revealed, Satsuki starts invading other Japan schools with a Goku army, and when her mother comes in along with the truth about Life Fibers. (Ragyo Kiryuin, by the way, takes the cake for the WORST MOM IN THE WORLD. See the anime till the end you'll see. Seriously...how can anybody do THAT to a child and just...toss them away like that...)

One thing that can be said about this anime though is...it's crazy fun. I mean, seriously, it is crazy. You got talking Sailor Uniforms, a group of people called "Nudist Beach" (that first thought you had? Yeah, that's what it is. Anything pointy on their leader, thankfully, glows bright purple.), and so many super transformations to make the Power Rangers hang their heads in shame.

Of course, some say that, having a female protagonist and...ironically as the antagonists as well...give off a bad vibe for women. The fact that Ryuko looks rather skimpy in Senketsu doesn't appear to help. Personally? I don't care. Ryuko is awesome, Satuski is powerful, and Ragyo is one of the most bizarre but shocking antagonists I've seen.
I see it for what it is, an anime, an entertaining show. It's weird as heck, but it is dang good fun and you will be cheering for every awesome moment that comes up. You'll laugh your heart out, cry at the big losses, and enjoy cool and creative battles nearly every episode.
The show is a wild ride, and as long as your mature about it (the show itself gets so crazy sometimes, it will be immature enough for YOU too hehehe), you will find and awesome deep, unique story that may make you think even longer about what to wear to that company meeting.

Anyway, I finished the show awhile ago along with Parasyte, and I've been poking around ideas for my own Goku Uniform (I'm not going kamui, I ALREADY dealt with THAT sort of issue already, NOT AGAIN). While 2-stars seem to be basic on looks, 3-stars get a neat transformation. But that made me wonder what I could have. Goku Uniforms are typical designed based on the job, mostly what club you head or what portion you take up in the student council.
With the direction things could go, and how fun it would be, I thought up that there should be a sorta "Gamer Club". Seriously, sounds good right? Who wouldn't want that? Now, that just left the design which I was thinking about on the holo-deck...I ALMOST have it down...I just need to---

---oh no. Please tell me that isn't choir music I just heard---!