Bethel Anime Club

Hey all—

One must have a mind of winter
To regard the frost and the boughs
Of the pine-trees crusted with snow…

…and that “mind of winter” will working, constantly working, ceaselessly working towards the destruction of all its enemies. Following the delightful examination of Eugénie’s admirable character last week, the dark underbelly of Parisian society strikes back with two of the most detestable characters ever to inhabit an anime. Marquis Andrea Cavalcanti is merely a cad, a lewd and creepy womanizer with a filthy soul; but Héloïse de Villefort, the step-mother of the quiet and hitherto unexamined Valentine, is truly a paradigm of all that is despicable: poisonous, lustful, gluttonous, greedy, and deeply impure, her vileness is guaranteed to make you squirm. Can it be that the Count’s revenge has worthy targets?

And have been cold a long time
To behold the junipers shagged with ice,
The spruces rough in the distant glitter…

…and it becomes increasingly clear that Kano’s heart has been cold a very long time indeed. Her story is rounded out in this episode as Yukito discovers her connection to the past and a mysterious feather—what does her always-present bandanna hide? Is Kano’s secret darker than Yukito suspects, and what is her connection to the mysterious winged girl?

Of the January sun; and not to think
Of any misery in the sound of the wind,
In the sound of a few leaves…

…although actually, the January sun is getting pretty hot around Kokoro Library! But when the girls take a trip to the beach, Kokoro does indeed encounter misery: a sick girl, shut off from the world, who wishes only to touch a dolphin. Can Kokoro bring joy to the heart of one cut off from reality?

Which is the sound of the land
Full of the same wind
That is blowing in the same bare place…

…the sound of the land is painful, for it groans from the destruction of the village and the war that the alien relics have sparked. In the second-to-last episode, the battle rages with its full fury: can Shin and Sara reconcile and combine their forces to stop the slaughter? Hint: I strongly doubt it.

For the listener, who listens in the snow,
And, nothing himself, beholds
Nothing that is not there and the nothing that is.

The roads aren’t that bad around here, so don’t miss Anime club! Although I say that, I’m afraid that I must inform you all that due to a last-minute complication in the form of driving to Chicago, I won’t be able to make it tonight. Fortunately, Matt’s got Gankutsuou and I’m sure he won’t forget to bring it, while everything else is on the HD of the instructor station (and I’ll leave the DVD remote in the classroom). Have fun, everyone!

—Matthew

Hey all—

Come away, O human child…

…to the Shrine, and the past. Following last week’s astonishing revelation, Kano’s behavior becomes stranger and stranger—it almost seems as if she is possessed by the memory of some terrible sadness. Can Yukito and Misuzu save her, or will that mysterious light take her back to the field of silvergrass forever?

To the waters, and the wild…

…the birthplaces of humankind. The mystery surrounding humanity’s past deepens following Sara’s song and display of mysterious power—and some of the secrets begin to be revealed. How will these surprises alter the course of the future? Can Sara be made to open up to the scientific team, and are their intentions as noble as they seem? Most importantly, why is the ancient holy song of a group of (strangely) Japanese-speaking Pacific Islanders in French?

With a faery, hand in hand…

…our mouths will utter a melody of joy. Kokoro is beside herself with happiness when she discovers that her favorite author, Himemiya Kirin, will be visiting the library… but for some reason, Aruto doesn’t seem that pleased. It is just literary snobbery, or might Miss Kirin’s books have something to do with Aruto’s constant sleepiness? Warning: This episode contains cosplay.

From a world more full of weeping than you can understand.

Gankutsuou is to a large extent about weeping, and in our first episode Albert may succumb to tears as he uses the Count’s sword to fight his first duel… with Maximilien! The source of the dispute is a simple question that will run through both of tonight’s episodes: “do you love your fiancée?” As Albert struggles to find an answer, we will meet Eugénie’s despicable parents and, perhaps, find a portrait of true decency in the midst of terrible corruption. Can it be possible that, despite their engagement, Albert and Eugénie could fall in love?

Because of the Faculty Liaison’s possible lateness, we may switch the viewing order around a little bit tonight. Nevertheless, tonight’s concentration of good stuff (including lots of Japanese people saying the word “potato!”) is high enough to cause overstimulation of the happiness centers in your brain—exercise caution. I’ll see you all tonight!

—Matthew

PS:
Away with us he’s going,
The solemn-eyed:
He’ll hear no more the lowing
Of the calves on the warm hillside
Or the kettle on the hob
Sing peace into his breast,
Or see the brown mice bob
Round and round the oatmeal chest.
For he comes, the human child,
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world’s more full of weeping than he can understand.

Hey all—

I caught this morning morning’s minion, kingdom of the daylight’s dauphin…

….as he descends to Earth in power and terror! Although Albert has spent his time in his usual pursuits, wasting time with his friends and maintaining his cold feud with his parent-chosen fiancée, his complacent Parisian luxury is shattered as the Count of Monte Cristo makes good on his promise to return. What is Albert to make of the strange events that follow the meeting of the Count and his mother—can it be that the sins of the fathers will soon be visited upon the innocent children?

…dapple dawn-drawn Falcon…

….strafing the island with all guns blazing! As the new humanoid weapons—or are they bird-men?—battle above the island of Mayan, Shin races through the forest towards the Sacred Well. Can he reach Mao before a stray shot vaporizes her, and what revelations about Sara might this “Sacred” place hold?

…in his riding of the rolling level underneath him steady air…

….that encompasses all and in which all dream of flight. Yukito begins to adjust to the idea of staying the summer in this new town, even acquiring a real job, but there are more and more mysteries in the behavior of the people around him. What is so special about the shrine on the hilltop, and is it possible–just possible–that in the clouds and the shimmering wind there might lie such a thing as magic?

…and striding high there, how he rung upon the reign of a wimpling wing in his ecstasy!

….And of course there shall be plenty of ecstatic happening (mixed in with perhaps a few tears) at the Kokoro Library! The sisters have decided that it’s really time to do something about the dearth of visitors, but how can they attract more people to a place so remote… and in this great campaign, what can little Kokoro possibly do to help out?

…then off, off forth on swing, as a skate’s heel sweeps smooth on a bow-bend: the hurl and gliding rebuffed the big wind. My heart in hiding stirred for a bird,—the achieve of; the mastery of the thing!

Yes, it will be another heart-stirring and high-soaring meeting of the Anime Club as characters develop and mysteries deepen! Remember, this semester 75% of our shows—everything except Gankutsuou—are unlicensed, so you’ll be able to find downloads on our website (be warned that the Macross Zero encodes are really badly compressed, so they’re a lot larger than they ought to be). Don’t miss it—I’ll see you all tonight!

—Matthew

PS: No wonder of it: sheer plod makes plough down sillion shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear, fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermillion.

Hey all—

Your President strongly encourages you to check out the official Anime Club Website (it’s http://bethelanime.ath.cx/ in case you’ve forgotten) for information on all the shows with which we’ll be kicking off this semester. Tonight,

—we will be taken to the moon for Carnivale, where a machinery of vengeance shall be set in motion that will soon catch us all in its blood-greased wheels!

—we will witness a war in the sky, the birth of a new kind of weapon, and the despair of the old-fashioned soldier brought low!

—we will rejuvenate our battle-scarred hearts with a trip to the library… but perhaps all is not well, even in the land of altruism!

—we will see the beginnings of a mystical summer, and meet a strange, sad girl… a girl who dreams of flying in the sky…

I shall say no more now in hopes that you 1. check the website (and comment!) and 2. come on down! We’ve got some truly great series lined up this semester, you mustn’t miss them—I shall see you all tonight!

—Matthew