(L) Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou

[NaweG]

For those of you interested in seeing the animatic/storyboard version of the "Everybody's Ships" chapter from YKK, it's now up at YouTube.

Would love to know if folks:

A) Are interested in seeing this version of these (since I can make these much faster than the fully animated version)?

B) Comments on the sound, music, etc.

Thanks!

[NaweG]

Based on the chapter of the same name from YKK, Chapter 2 is now up on YouTube. As always, comments and suggestions are appreciated. This time it's in color and has a bit more of a musical score

[Jiji]

For an amateur-produced video, I think you're doing an excellent job. Can it improve? Of course, but it's really good for a fanvid. Caitlin's voice work was good and improved from the first to the second one.

Of course, there's a ton of things that could be suggested, they only require tons of money and time and work and...

- Another voice for Makki might be fun. Caitlin did a good job expressing two different people, but a "little girl" voice would be even better.

- The lack of animation isn't a big disappointment, but what would really make it come "alive" is the addition of more layers of sound. Currently, you have two: dialogue and music. If you could find some sfx for the ocean, birds, wind, what-have-you, it'd be fantastic. I've always been impressed with Samurai Jack for that reason. They use about 8 layers of sounds in that show.

- I would suggest a song to fit Alpha's dance in the second vid. Something bouncy, with a beat of "walking step", about 80 - 100 bpm. It'd be a good comedy "beat" if it stopped suddenly when she sees the old couple and gets embarrassed. ^_^

Sooner or later, people involved in the industry are going to notice this, NaweG. I hope they offer you a job at that point! I'm liking them a lot and I hope to see as many as you can do!

[NaweG]

Originally Posted by Jiji

For an amateur-produced video, I think you're doing an excellent job. Can it improve? Of course, but it's really good for a fanvid. Caitlin's voice work was good and improved from the first to the second one.

Thanks for the comments. My biggest problem with adding sound effects at this point is my toolkit. I was able to upgrade from WMM to VideoSpin for the most recent chapter - which moved me from being able to mix in just one audio track to two audio tracks. However, to be able to also add in sound effects requires that I either never have all three going at the same time (possible but difficult), or I find an inexpensive video editor that can handle three audio tracks. I'll keep looking as I'd love to get more of a sense of place in these, but if anyone has some suggestions?

Originally Posted by Jiji

Another voice for Makki might be fun. Caitlin did a good job expressing two different people, but a "little girl" voice would be even better.

Caitlin has actually worked up a pretty nice voice for her next appearance as Makki, so we'll see if that helps. Part of the problem for someone new to the series is that depending on the chapter you see Makki as fairly young, and then almost overnight she's a young adult. That's partly my fault as a director as well. But I think I'm learning

Thanks again!

[glycine4]

Originally Posted by JokerD

The managa that nothing happens indeed. Nothings happens on screen, everything happens offscreen and we are left wondering.

Still I wonder with Oji-san and sensei dead, is the village dying or deserted. Also there's been no talk of the other Alphas for a while now, I wonder if they still visit her. Or she's gonna be real lonely.

First time posting here but saw one of the comments about Oji-san and Sensei.

Just for your information, and I don't know if this may be a spoiler about Doctor (sensei) and Oji-san but am wrapping in around a spoiler just in case.

Spoiler for Oji-san and Sensei:

We know that those old folks passed away. If you see the page 10 of Chapter 134-Radio, you see Alpha sleeping near her cafe with a radio on and one panel shows a field with 2 similar looking mounds. Those are grave sites, shapes are very much common in Japanese and Korean culture, implying that those were for the Sensei and Oji-san.

Lastly, I just want to say, this manga is the best manga that I've ever read so far. It is amazing.

[NaweG]

Assuming y'all still want to be updated about these, I've just posted Chapter 3 (Hot Sand).

If you've forgotten how that particular chapter of the manga went, this one has Alpha, Makki, and Takahiro go on a trip to the beach.

Hope you enjoy!

[NaweG]

Alpha's Cafe Chapter 5 is based on the Two Cups at Opening and Maruko, Maruko chapters of YKK - ヨコハマ買い出し紀行 /Yokohama Kaidashi Kikō (quiet country cafe)/ manga by Hitoshi Ashinano. Alpha has just finished rebuilding her cafe, when she gets two surprise visitors. Fully voiced and with musical accompaniment.

This one is about 7 and a half minutes, so make sure you have some time on your hands

[Ashlotte]

So by happenstance (And maybe alittle subconcious curiosity ) I clicked on G.Zeus' siggy link the other day and figured "Well I've heard enough people mention YKK in passing and I dislike being ignorant about it so why not check it out..."

Managed to read through it over the course of a weeks nights and here I sit wondering if theres something wrong with me...Every review everywhere I read without fail gives this series glowing reviews and yet here I sit 14 volumes later throughly...unimpressed?

Eh yea I hear lynch mobs coming already heh...But yea...I don't know what else to say but it left about as much impression as half the things that I've read or seen lately which isn't really much...And yet here sits mountains of reviews making me think whats wrong with me heh.

I guess I wouldn't feel so mistaken if I didn't like YKK's genre, but its actually the complete opposite of that...Aria, Somedays dreamers, Sketchbook, H&C, and well...Ok just about every show or manga labeled SoL that I've seen/read yet i've throughly enjoyed and yet the one that seems to be so universally hailed as the pinnacle of the genre barely struck a chord with me?

Meh guess I'm just a freak...Maybe I should have read it slower or something...Probably has a completely different feel when you space it out across years of readership...

[G. Zeus]

Lynch mob in 3...

2...

1...

Spoiler:

Even Alpha can't please all customers.

It's understandable, I guess. Abunai of ANN once mentioned that YKK "makes more demands of its readers and viewers" than other SoL stories so some people might actually have to exert effort to like the series. My own opinion of the manga was initially pretty lukewarm too and that only changed after I came across the final volume and convinced myself to go through the series again.

Then again, maybe it's just like that thing between the Alpha types and brown sugar. YKK's fanbase seems to be composed mainly of older and/or sentimental peeps.

[NaweG]

Originally Posted by G. Zeus

YKK's fanbase seems to be composed mainly of older and/or sentimental peeps.

Hey, I resemble that remark!

[Jiji]

Originally Posted by Kimichi

Every review everywhere I read without fail gives this series glowing reviews and yet here I sit 14 volumes later throughly...unimpressed?...Meh guess I'm just a freak...Maybe I should have read it slower or something...Probably has a completely different feel when you space it out across years of readership...

Not gonna lynch you, look: no rope or anything. :P
I came upon YKK halfway through it's run and didn't space out my reading of it over years, so I'm not sure that would help necessarily. It could be smaller things about how you read your manga. If it sparks your imagination while reading it or not, if you read a few panels and find yourself staring off into the distance or not...it's hard to say. The "work" that Abunai refers to is that sort of thing. People who dont' like YKK are mostly people who want it all shown to them, but YKK encourages the imagination to run wild. Some people just don't read that way.

I'm not saying to change the way you read, either. If you don't like reading that way, then reading it will seem more like a class assignment than pleasure and who wants that?

And yet here sits mountains of reviews making me think whats wrong with me heh. ... Ok just about every show or manga labeled SoL that I've seen/read yet i've throughly enjoyed and yet the one that seems to be so universally hailed as the pinnacle of the genre barely struck a chord with me?

I know it's disconcerting to find that you are at odds with just about everyone about something or another, but don't let that worry you. If you don't like YKK, then you don't! As a teacher, I would encourage anyone in your position to try and analyze why you don't like it, but it's not that important, really.

I'm just glad you're not doing what I see all to often, which is to say, "I don't like it therefore it sucks" instead of "I don't like it. It may be good, but *I* don't like it."

Having said all that, you might give it another try. It took me four tries to like ARIA (manga) and I kept trying because of the same thing you're saying: everyone liked it but me. heh.

[Solais]

Becasue G. Zeus' really irritated me, with that signature, like telling me, "You should read this manga!", so I finally read it.

Well... I loved it! It was a really beautiful story, without an actual ending. At some places, it was really melancholic, but I really liked it. It became one of my favourite manga.

Now, maybe it's strange, but since somebody said that YKK's successor is ARIA, I can't really stop thinking about that, the ARIA is not only a succesor, but maybe a possible sequel. It's maybe just my optimistic view of the world, that after every night, there always be a new morning... maybe there is a new morning for the humanity as well...

This manga really made thinking for hours, about life, and everything... (and about ways how to connect the two mangas together...)

[G. Zeus]

Well, whaddya know? Advertising still works.

Originally Posted by Solais

Now, maybe it's strange, but since somebody said that YKK's successor is ARIA, I can't really stop thinking about that, the ARIA is not only a succesor, but maybe a possible sequel. It's maybe just my optimistic view of the world, that after every night, there always be a new morning... maybe there is a new morning for the humanity as well...

Somehow, I don't find that strange at all since those two titles have many similar themes and both leave plenty of room for imagination and speculation. In fact, I've been trying to tie up the stories of three manga series with Ai-Ren as the scorching afternoon, YKK as the calm twilight, and ARIA as the new dawn that follows (Neo-Venezian backgrounds would be hard to pull off though ).

[NaweG]

Alpha's Cafe Chapter 9 is based on the One Who Sees, Walks, and is Delighted chapter of YKK. Alpha and Sensei meet for the last time in this heartwarming chapter that deals with aging, loss, and the hope for the future. This is the finale for the Alpha's Cafe series, and features a full vocal track as well as musical accompaniment. At the end of the episode there are the normal chapter credits, and then a very special Series credits with images that weren't used previously in the series.

Hope that my fellow YKK fans have enjoyed these!

[G. Zeus]

Quoting my own post at ykk@pander.us:

After two years of reading and writing various posts and reviews for the series, I think I'm having less trouble now in describing YKK as a whole and pointing out most of its merits. However, I noticed that among its various elements (plot, setting, themes, narrative and art styles), the characters seem to given the least amount of in-depth discussion. So I'd like to ask you guys: What is it about Alpha and the rest of the cast which makes them more memorable than other characters that we may have come across?

As a guide, some of you might want to check the Wikipedia article for "fictional character".



The conversation that started it:

Feel free to respond here or in the original thread.

[Jiji]

I almost feel disqualified from speculating on this, being a Ph.D. candidate in English literature, but I felt I had to point out this:

Alpha's character benefits from the length of the series. 11 years of monthly installments provides plenty of "text" from which to draw examples of character. OTOH, Ashinano gives very little away in terms of her character. I'm reminded of the famous quote of Ingrid Bergman from her role in _Casablanca_, where she said she tried to keep her expressions as blank as possible, knowing that the audience would read into her face whatever they felt she *must* be feeling.

I feel the same thing happens with Alpha. We do get a few glimpses of her interior thoughts sometimes, but mostly there's very little hint of what is going on inside her. We are left to fill in the blanks ourselves. When I have some time, I intend to make a character analysis sheet, listing those instances when we do get *something* of her character from the "text". I'll post it here when i do. ^^

[G. Zeus]

Bump & minor update:
C&C featured Alpha Hatsuseno for the spotlight a few weeks ago. She later earned 26 "yes" votes and only 2 "no" votes but 65 members did not know her so she'd need another round of voting to be formally inducted into the club.

Spoiler for my post at that thread:

For an anime/manga character, Alpha Hatsuseno stands out partly because she doesn’t. She has no peculiar catchphrases, running gags, outrageous activities, unorthodox philosophy, or even any specific plot to follow. The result is an unusual hybrid of the real and the ideal: she stands out because she is paradoxically both ordinary and special at the same time.

As Archaeon mentioned in the YKK review, the most unusual thing about Alpha is the fact that she’s a robot. She may have the external appearance of a regular woman (with the exception of hair color) but her body functions are somewhat different and, more importantly, robots never age. These facts, combined with the few details given about the state of the world, could have easily been used as material for another run-of-the-mill science fiction series. Instead, they were used to complement and highlight the more “ordinary” aspects of the story. Despite being artificial creations, the robots were created in the image of mankind (literally and figuratively) and as such, Alpha is human in both her actions and experiences.

And it is this human element that keeps the series going. She’s very much down-to-earth and this makes it easier for readers to relate to her (or to understand her, at the very least). Loneliness, boredom, making new friends, keeping old ones, saying goodbye to others, losing parental figures, reminiscing about childhood, expanding one’s horizons, etc. These are all so common that, in effect, we readers are invited to reflect upon our own lives as well. She doesn’t simply share insights. She shares the experience from which we may draw our own insights. The world shown in YKK may seem unrealistic in that it’s free of violence or suffering but her interactions with and within it allow readers to see how similar it is to our own world in many ways.

Of course, “normal” does not necessarily mean “plain” or “predictable”. Because she’s not bound by any particular stereotype, trying to anticipate what she would do or say in any specific situation is difficult, if not impossible. Most chapters feature relatively mundane activities or conversations, but every now and then, the mood suddenly changes in the span of a few pages and such complex emotions are evoked with gesture and/or a few choice words.

In addition to this, she has so many facets that it’s wonder that all of these were somehow fitted onto a single character. She is cheerful by default yet solemn on many occasions, appreciative of both company and solitude, frank towards others yet subtle in displaying certain thoughts and emotions, innocent yet mature, unaging yet continually growing up, optimistic despite the twilight of humanity, a free spirit who’s well aware of her obligations, and a person who remembers the past, lives in the present, and looks forward to the future.

I also happened to stumble upon this interesting YKK AMV on Youtube:

Spoiler:

song: I'll Be Your Home by Rin Oikawa

lyrics:
Don't look back
Don't regret
Time's falling out of these hands
I'll let you leave me

Go on,
You know Home is always inside your soul
All the light to bless your way
Don't be afraid
And I'll be your home

In this time
In this place
This moment is all we have
And tomorrow we never know

Every precious time
Let it go
Somewhere away
You will learn, and you'll love,
forgive the past and you can move on

All the distance
You've come to a place
Then you see that your home is away
Now the sun is rising

lighting up your sky again brightly

Every precious time
Let it go
Somewhere away
You will learn, and you'll love,
forgive the past

Go on,
You know Home is always inside your soul
Wherever you go
Whatever you see
I'll be the place
And I'll be your home.

[G. Zeus]

Yo. Just wondering if I missed something in these lists.

Spoiler:

Official sites:

Spoiler:

Kodanclub.com: promising works (manga)

ヨコハマ買い出し紀行公式ＨＰ (OAVs)

Where to order:

Spoiler:

Acclimate Solutions

CDJapan

Sasuga

Scanslators:

Spoiler:

Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou Translation (missing in action)

Cafe Alpha Manga Scanlations

Iscariote (hi-res scans, French)

Other sites for reading/downloading:

Spoiler:

BoxTorrents (old link for manga, new link for manga, OAV set1, OAV set 2)

hatsuseno.org (direct download, zip files of separate chapters)

One Manga (online browsing)

Mangadownload

Database entries:

Spoiler:

Wikipedia

AnimeDB (OAV 1, OAV 2)

Anime News Network (manga, OAV 1, OAV 2)

Anime-Planet

Baka-Updates Manga (manga)

MyAnimeList (manga, OAV 1, OAV 2)

TV Tropes Wiki

Reviews and various articles:

Spoiler:

YKK reviews page on MAL

Animefringe

AnimeLife

Anime on DVD.com (OAV 2: ep.1 & ep.2)

Azure Flame Reloaded

The Comics Journal (near the bottom of the page)

destroying all monsters (the last arial)

Drastic My Anime Blog

Karmaburn

Madinkbeard

Okazu

Rossman Reviews and Ratings

Senile_Seinen Rants and Raves

Star Crossed Anime Blog

Stochastic Manga

Suguru’s Dame-Dame Anime Blog

Unknighted Manganime

Yet another review of Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou

YKK on LiveJournal

Wallpapers and other images

Spoiler:

3 consecutive posts at Animesuki

Danbooru

Freddie's wallpaper

Minitokyo

ヨコハマ買いだし紀行 イラストギャラリー (various images and what appears to be fanfiction)

photoshop coloring by a friend of Northlander (set 1, set 2)

Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou Tribute by Kero

Forum threads and discussions:

Spoiler:

The Age of Evening Calm (formerly known as Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou @ pander.us)

Anime News Network

AnimeSuki

One Manga

scans_daily

Other stuff:

Spoiler:

YKK - Behind the Panels (interesting YKK trivia)

If you think there's something else worth adding, feel free to bring it up.


Incidentally, the torrent at BoxTorrents was recently replaced and I'm not too excited about the change since I prefer Neil's wording. For comparison:

MP version


Misago version

[aaronibus62]

anyone out there still into discussing YKK?
I hate the fact I came into this thread over 2 years late :-(

What really annoys me is that Ashinano Hitoshi ended YKK to produce Cub no Isaki, which isn't as good in my eyes.... but neither was Position anywhere as good, except for the story where some kid saw a flying ship at midnight.... "I saw the ship, and there it went!"

I was into ARIA at one point but YKK seems more "reality based" and accesible to my mind than ARIA....

If Aria's main character were a direct clone of Alpha and drawn in Ashinano's style, I'd be nuts about it :-)

[G. Zeus]

Nah. As I see it, YKK came to an end as a result of its own developments rather than Ashinano having to work on another series. Some might say that the final volumes feel rushed, but I think that only emphasizes the passage of time and the transient nature of life.

As for the other series and post-YKK syndrome, a word of advice: It's fine to take note of similarities, but you're better off not making direct comparisons. It's best to appreciate a series for its own strengths.