This week, I am going to review the anime "The Wallflower", also known as "Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge" (Perfect Girl Evolution).
The Wallflower is a comedy anime about four guys who live in a giant mansion, the landlady known as "Auntie" (Her name is "Mine") explains that if they want to stay at her mansion, they have to teach her niece how to be a lady, otherwise their rent will double!
The only problem is, her niece is "Sunako Nakahara", and she is not only creepy, but likes scary things, as well as darkness!
One time a guy she liked called her ugly, so now she thinks she is ugly, and hides herself from the people known as "Creatures of Light" (Pretty people), she refers to herself as a "Creature of Darkness".
She also gets nosebleeds when seeing a beautiful person! This won't be a simple task for the four gentlemen.
Check out a list of images, I screen-shotted from the show, on -> Pinterest! < - click
Characters Kyohei - Is kind of the main protagonist, he is hot headed, a big eater and does what he wants to do!
Sunako - Is
the main female character, she calls herself a creature of darkness.
She loves creepy things, her best friends are non animate objects,
Hiroshi is an anatomical figure, Josephine is a skeleton, Akira is a
half bodied anatomical figure, and another skeleton, Sargent George.
She's the kind of person that gets excited when there has been a murder, and wants to keep the murderer's bloody clothes....
Most of the time, Sunako is in chibi form. This is even recognized by the other characters, as they will look down to her when talking. She is rarely in her average size form.
Yukinojo (Yuki for short)- Is the most normal of the boys, he's kind, sensitive and generally a good person. He loves animals, and nature. He's more shy and quiet, unlike the rest of the characters. He is the kid of the group, and people tend to find him adorable like a kid, which annoys him.
Sunako has a soft spot for him, as one time she made dinner, and only let Yuki have some food.
On occasion, he has to cross-dress, and does not like doing it. He has a more androgynous look, so people have confused him as a woman before.
He's my favorite character, and he is also the only guy who does not get a girlfriend on the show. I believe he is gay, but not for that reason, there are subtle hints. and the biggest hint is when the gang gets to have some snacks, and he gets a popsicle and is just thrashing the thing in his mouth...
LIKE GURLLL...
Unfortunately, he apparently does get a girlfriend, I guess in the manga. Which makes no sense, he's literally got his ass up in the intro theme of the anime. He's as queer as they come!
Ranmaru - Is the narcissistic ladies man, he is all about women and sex. The Blanche Devereaux of the show.
I am honestly surprised that he is straight, he is the most feminine one of the bunch. Ranmaru and Yuki should honestly hook up, they'd be perfect for each other.
Noi - Is the second female character of the group, as well as Sunako's close friend. She is the last of the main characters, and gets involved with the other's shenanigans. She is energetic, sassy, but she can also get hot headed at times. She is also my favorite character alongside Yuki.
Auntie (Mine) - Is Sunako's aunt, she is very wealthy, and tends to appear out of no where via planes, limo's.. anything she has, is much bigger than a normal vehicle. A limo she came out of was twice it's size in width, another time, she came out of a plane that was so long, it didn't fit on the screen! She wants Sunako to become a proper lady.
Tamao - Is a minor character, she only appears near the end of the series, and Ranmaru's fiance. She's very sweet and kind. She is also rich, and sometimes helps out the gang by asking her butler for favors.
Goth Loli Sisters- Then there are the goth loli sisters, they are the definition of weird, and they're in just about every episode. Each episode contains the incredible foursome going after the boys, of course they always fail!
They're bizarre and weird, and they're there for comic relief!
Everything they say ends with the word "Nay".. there's even an episode where Kyohei starts saying it! Nay!
The kind of brutal abuse they receive is not something you should worry about, you'll probably be relieved when they get slammed by a door, or hit by a train...
There really isn't a word to explain them... well maybe idiots..
The girls devise a plan to get the boys to notice them, so they get a new brand of lipstick!
I originally saw the first part of the anime in summer of 2009, I saw the dubbed version. I really enjoyed it, and thought it was hilarious!
I have a tendency to leave off on anime.. but in this case, I just didn't know where to get the second volume, as I had borrowed it from the library, and they didn't have the second part. ( I also didn't watch subbed anime yet, at the time.)
Fast forward to June 2014, and I was thinking about this anime and thought I would buy the complete collection online.
It was a great idea, I loved the anime so much 5 years ago, and I re-watched the whole thing and saw the episodes I did not see before. I really enjoyed the series! It's very funny and the characters are VERY interesting.
One of the funniest episodes had to have been the last episode, so if you don't like it, I suggest watching the first three episodes, and watch the last one, because it's hilarious!
Fortunately for the fans, the story continues on in the manga. I am not the biggest fan of manga in general, but I am going to get myself to read up to where the anime left off. I might read from the beginning, but I don't know yet.
Check Out My Pinterest Board for more images of the show! Link
Kya Dark Lineage stars Kya, a young woman whose half-brother Frank, finds a mysterious secret room in their house. Upon entering the room, Kya and Frank talk about Kya's deadbeat dad, who disappeared one day. Frank alludes that this secret room, was sealed from the inside, however, no one is in the room, or the remains of someone.
After tinkering with a strange relic, the item starts to glow, which opens up a portal, and sucks them in!
The screen fades, and Kya finds herself being rudely awakened by odd creatures in a forest.
(So much for getting her beauty sleep, maybe they want to know her skin care routine?)
The creatures recommend that Kya starts moving, as they are being chased by the villainous Wolfen!
( Translation difference. It's Wolfun in Europe, and Australia, while Wolfen for American and Canadian copies. Since I have the American version, I'll refer to them as Wolfen.)
Once they escape from the Wolfen, they run off to the home of these creatures conveniently called "Nativs".
Kya is brought to the chief of the Town of the Nativs, also conveniently called "Nativ City".
The city chiefs name is Atea.
(Atea carries a staff that houses a loudmouth, wisecracking bird that is purely comic relief. It actually gets Kya, and Atea into some trouble with Brazul at one point in the game.)
Atea clears up what happened to Kya, and her brother. The relic Frank was playing with, was a key to opening portals to other universes, when he messed around with it, it activated, and sent both of them to the Nativs universe. He sheds some light on the Nativs current issue, the Nativs are being terrorized by a man named Brazul. Atea discloses some interesting information...
1.Wolfen as mentioned before, are actually Nativs that were transformed into Wolfen. In order to free the Wolfen, and turn them back, Kya must "exorcise" them, in which Atea gives her the magical ability to do so.
2.Brazul, is actually Kya's dead-beat dad, Alan, who vanished years ago. He's the one who made the secret room in Kya/Franks house. This explains how it was sealed from the inside, and no remains of a person was found.
(Brazul, not to be confused with the country brazil, he was originally supposed to be a nativ!)
Kya wonders what happened to Frank, as he was not with her when she woke up. Atea comes to the conclusion that he must be with Brazul! Kya decides she is going to find/rescue Frank, help the Nativs, defeat Brazul and find a way back to their universe.
You'll soon realize that every Nativ that is a part of the story, has
a name starting with an A. Kya, Frank and Brazul are the only
characters without an A name. Even cut characters had A's as their name!
(Atea, Aton, Akasa, Area, Adada, and Apou.)
Atea imbues Kya with the power to exorcise Wolfen, which will turn them back into Nativs. Exorcising them also benefits Kya, as they open shops when the return to the city as Nativs. Before Kya can exorcise Wolfen, she'll need to knock them out, as well as find mana orbs, which give her the energy to perform magic feats.
Wolfen come in different shapes, and sizes, and some require more mana than others.
Afterwards, they go to the dojo master Akasa, who teaches her some "mad skillz". After Akasa shows Kya the ways of the Jedi fighting techniques to defeat Wolfen, she goes off to buy a weapon!
Kya, just strolling around town.
)Akasa doesn't do much, all he really does is teach Kya martial arts, and says is Bravo!
He's pretty much everyone's least favorite character, because he has no character development at all... I don't have a problem but I understand where people are coming from... It's okay Akasa, you can cry on my shoulder. )
On her travels, Kya meets another character named Area.
Area, (Are-Ray-Ah)
Area wants to race Kya on these translucent snow board type items, which Kya can use to ride on water. Kind of like a surf board, and a snowboard combined.
Kya needs one of these eventually to get to certain parts in the game, unfortunately, you never get to race Area. (Oh well, maybe Sonic is free for a race?)
Area is a minor character, but he becomes more relevant in the middle of the game, and appears in more scenes later on. He has a very screetchy voice, and is kind of sassy.
Kya goes to the weapon shop, and buys a weapon called a Boomy. These weapons are very similar to a boomerang, the only difference is the name, shape and the fact that Kya puts it into her hair like a hair clip when not in use.
The Boomy, Weapon and great hair accessory! Just as long as you don't have a problem with monster guts getting entangled in your hair!!
You can only kill monsters with the Boomy, you can't hurt Wolfen with them. You can however hit them with it, and confuse the hell out of them! Which is always the best when another Wolfen is around, as they will think the other Wolfen hit them, you will then witness a brawl between the Wolfen! It can be very entertaining! (Better get some popcorn, the fight is on!)
Before Kya can start her adventure, she must find a blue egg. Much to Kya's confusion as what this egg has to do with anything, she goes off to the Flying Forest to retrieve it! The blue egg is not for dinner! Although, an omelette would be good right about now... The egg hatches as Kya obtains it, and a cute little guy known as "Stuff" pops out!
"Stuff", is a magical creature apart of a rare species called "Galbos". Stuffs abilities allows Atea to communicate with Kya telepathically. This way he can help her on her adventure, without busting a hip, or a nail! Once Kya, and Stuff become besties, she can start her adventure to not only find her brother Frank, but rescue all of the Nativs, defeat Brazul and find a way back to her world.
Did you know?
•According to an unlockable art gallery you get after beating the game, Kya is older than Frank. • Kya and Frank share the same mom.
Here is the opening video to the game.
Other possibly interesting, to non interesting characters are as followed.
The Snore: If you talk to certain Nativs in the city, they warn Kya not to talk to "The Snore", because he is so boring, he never makes an appearance, so I'd say Kya and the players dodged a bullet? I can only imagine him as a secret playable character, where he makes enemies fall asleep in a 20 meter radius!
Adada is a character they did not use in the game, he looks like he may have been unintelligent.
Apou, looks like the Nativ City Zoo keeper, so I'm assuming they are one of the same. He seems nice. With all the smelly animals he's around, I wonder what cologne he wears!
What you will see in Kya Dark Lineage
Plot & Story: The plot is very basic, it's about Kya going to find out a way home, finding her brother on a failed Grindr date, defeat Brazul and free all of the Nativs. You aren't going to get too much of a a crazy storyline, it's a good story, but it's very simple and basic.
It's a basic action adventure game, there is about one plot twist in the middle of the game ( I may have made a hint above). Overall, it's a breezy storyline! There's a few unanswered questions, and the way the end the game, leads to many different variables that could change the story.
Visuals: The game was made in 2003, and in my opinion, it has better graphics than some of the games today! Kya Dark Lineage is a very scenic game, and is one of the greatest (and my favorite) aspects about it. The game gives you a sense of calm, with the beautiful places Kya gets to go to, everything is just so nice and pretty that you really wish it was real so you could just go there and experience it all!
Soundtrack: The soundtrack in the game is good, it's pretty calm, and casual. There are only about three songs that pump up the beat and get your blood rushing, everything else fits with the great nature scenes, it soothes you to walk around in these different areas. Each song fits every place perfectly.
A forest gives you a calm nature feel, while invading a fortress full of Wolfen gives you a nice "sneaky-snake" type song.
Gameplay: The gameplay is fun too, you run around throwing the boomy at monsters, and yappy little dogs that eat your homework!
The boomy you use for targets, ropes and hard to reach places. Eventually you get a boomy that Kya can control with her mind, which is just awesome. (Whoever said your mind is weak, was wrong!) You can even use the boomy to explore places Kya cannot reach, or even places that aren't supposed to be there. (Mainly glitches)
Fighting Wolfen is probably the most entertaining aspect, it's definitely the best part about the game, and I know most Kya fans love fighting Wolfen. The only way to completely defeat a Wolfen is to exorcise them. If you don't exercise them, and you die, or leave the level. They come back like an unwanted boomerang! (Or that ex that just doesn't take a hint!) Which is something you may intentionally do just to fight the Wolfen over, and over again, it's just that fun and addicting!
Besides fighting, you also have water boarding, there are many slippery slopes Kya has to board down, dodging smelly boys, things and the like.
You also have a Freefalling aspect to the game, there are certain parts where Kya must jump into an open area, that shoots out big bursts of wind. It'll blast her high into the air to get to unreachable places. There is even one area where there are plenty of these windy areas that you use to continuously fly to another place.
Mini-Games:
There is also two kinds of mini games. The first are actual mini games that are located in different areas of nativ city, they're all separate blue type houses. You go inside, talk to the Nativ and then you can play a mini game! There are plenty of different games, from keeping "Mickens" from eating food (So cruel!), to hitting rockets with the boomy. It has scores and everything, the default scores are scores from the creators.
The other kind of mini game is the Nativ city zoo keeper, Apou. Who would like to create a zoo of rare animals, Kya can go around the world looking for monsters of a different color, and capture them for Nooties (The currency).
They get harder, and harder per monster, the first captured animal is in Nativ City. The next one is a Red Sinoc, which constantly charges after you making it more difficult to capture! Some captures get really difficult near the end.
Levels - There are 9 different areas in the game, that count as different levels. Each place has a different terrain, and obstacles, and sometimes Kya has to go back to these areas to retrieve certain items.
With the power of mana, Kya can unlock magical wind elevators, that allow her to revisit places she's been to before.
Regions are as followed
The Roots - The Roots is a Jungle terrain, this is the first place Kya appears in, and is actually more of an optional place to go to until later in the game. There is almost no story to this world except right in the beginning.
Nativ City - The town of Nativs, it is the only place to purchase items, as well as play mini-games and chat with the locals. (Didja hear? The snore sniffs glue, pass it on!)
Flying Forest -The Flying Forest is my favorite level! I bet you didn't think it was actually flying! Because well... it kind of is! Each section has a different atmosphere to it, which I think is really cool. This is by far, my favorite region in the game.
Hunters Domain - The hunter's domain lies the hunter, a rogue Wolfen who is one of the very few characters to also have a boomy! He never uses it in the game, it's just in his character artwork...
The place is mainly a rocky desert terrain, which also introduces the Jamgut, a horse like creature that allows Kya to get to places quicker.
The Quarry - Quite possible one of the most annoying places in gaming history! But only because of this one area where you have to freefall, until the end. One "death", and you're sent back to the start!
The Air Post - This is possibly where Nativs go to send their mail, either that or to shoot people in the air, and then get chased by rabid dogs with big teeth! (No really, Kya gets to do that in this place.) The air post is much like the Quarry, and the Hunter's domain, it has a very rocky/desert terrain.
The Forgotten Island - Is a dark volcanic level, it's one of Brazul's secret hideouts. (Is that where Frank went on his Grindr date with Brazul?? Who knew! Well you know what they say, red selfie lighting is the best kind of selfie lighting!)
The first thing you do when you get to the Forgotten Island is grab your board out, and board on down a slope while being chased by lava that will obviously melt your ever existence.. yay!! What fun! :D
Wolfen City - Yes, because Wolfen need their own city too you know! It's similar to Nativ city, except if you were to buy something, your face would be clawed off!
It's much smaller, but it is like Nativ City, and the Flying Forest combined. I love the beginning area to the place, it'd be a nice place for a picnic!
Food for thought...
In the beginning of the game, Aton suggests that Nativ City, is not the first town for Nativs. I think Wolfen city, was the original town for Nativs. But was taken over by the Wolfen, so they fled, and made a new town. Which I believe is Nativ City, as it is suggested to be a hideout that Brazul doesn't know about. (Therefore, he can't change Nativs to Wolfen, to join his "cult".)
Unfortunately for Kya, she gets captured, and spends most of her time there in their HQ where the two most hardest to exercise Wolfen lie! The Wolfen are obviously just jealous that Kya has a better hair care routine than them!
The Fortress - Is the last level in the game, it's pretty small. All Kya does is enter it, and has to battle tons and tons of Wolfen at the same time. There is a short sewer board part in this level, after that it is boss battle time! (Can you believe Brazul would make Kya get her cute jeans dirty in SEWER WATER, rude!)
Old Designs
Kya wasn't always Kya, in fact, first she was a witch named B-Witch, who had a pet catr. Later, she became Karaboss, a girl in a Halloween like world. Afterwards she became Kya, but at first she was only 6 years old!
B-Witch
Karaboss
My Opinion
I always recommend Kya to everyone I know, it's such a fun and great underrated Action Adventure game. Chances of making a sequel are slim to none, since the group who made the game "Eden Games" went out of business, they eventually came back, but have other projects they're working on. Their publisher however is Atari, which is still around, but they don't care about Kya at all, which could be a good thing if someone else could publish another game.
Kya in my opinion, had one of the best websites of all time, it was very cool and interactive!
Here is a video I posted on youtube playing around with it.
You would hover over the world map choosing which part of the site to go to.
It's a shame the lease was up and they took it down! It was a really awesome website.
This is another video I took of the website, it is on the bio where it explains the story.
It's very hard, but even though the site is down.. there's still a way to view it, and hopefully it can stay that way!!
Unfortunately, only bits and pieces of the site seem to be viewable, but feel free to poke around and see if there is anything else.. If you find something, please put it in the comments below.
Overall, Kya Dark Lineage is one of my favorite games, it is filled with action, adventure and scenery that is just beautiful! I recommend it to everyone!
A sequel would be pretty awesome, they could even make it a plot twist.. we can play as the Snore and bore enemies to death! Mwahahaha!!!
Kya Dark Lineage is a stand alone series, due to the fact that, although it's an amazing game, it's poor advertising just did not let it get through the door... especially when really hyped games like Ratchet & Clank, and Jak & Daxter were coming out at around the same time back in 2003. (Some people actually compare Kya to J&D.)
Make sure to check out the Kya fan page, and group on Facebook! As well as the Kya wiki!
* Yap Yap Yap, why ya talkin' all the time!?: When people talk to me when I have earbuds/earphones on. I cannot hear you, so do not continuously talk to me as if I can hear you.. I am in fact listening to music, so if you don't want me to hear you, continue.... Otherwise wave to me, flag me down, don't tell me your life story and then get mad because I didn't hear you and didn't even know you were in the room!
• Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar: No, I am not perfect. But there is a difference between "Talking like this" and "Talken lyke dis an ad a semiculun fer no reasun ;:". People who are really bad with their spelling, grammar and punctuation. You know, people that talk liek dis an dun no hw 2 spel ore use prppr unglish n dnt no wat punctiation is ore how 2 spel dings pprpprly.
Also, people who use words like "There going to work", and "It's over They're". Royally piss me off..
(I'm not adding a period for that one to prove my point)
• Public Affection: I hate it when people make out, and or kiss in front of me. I find it so disgusting, especially the kissing sound! I find that so gross! I don't care who it is, stranger or no stranger I find it really gross and uncomfortable to be around, not to mention awkward if all of a sudden everyone around me is making out.
*Cue war flashbacks from highschool*
I especially dislike it when my relatives do this, as two of my cousins have done this with their significant others a few times. Especially one time when we were all at a table, it was so disturbing, awkward and uncomfortable that I left. At least have the decency to not do it in front of me, it's also kind of rude since I am single, you're just going to make me jealous, lonely that I don't have anyone and just plain uncomfortable!
When I was in high-school everyone was making out everywhere, and it was very gross too, I'm happy I don't have to worry about that anymore.
I would however never want to kiss in public or near anyone, I don't want to see it, and I respect not everyone wants to see it either. I'd be too shy to do that anyways, and or afraid of being discriminated against as well.
• Loud Cell Phone Calls: I hate it when people talk loudly on the phone in public places! As a public bus rider (Ex bus rider as of 2015), I do not want to hear a grown woman screaming to someone on the phone, and saying very nasty words. Although the woman was not near me, and had nothing to do with me, I was literally afraid, and couldn't wait until I got off the bus or she did.
People do it all the time too, and it's just so rude! Do that somewhere else, not in front of me! The only time you should talk on the phone in front of people is if you work in an office, and even then it's a bit of a separation from others. (Desks, Cubicles etc..)
This has happened a few times before to me with loud, rude people.
• Sticky Fingers: When people are handing out paper or money and lick their fingers to make it stick, THAT....IS.....DISGUSTING....USE....WATER....NOT.....YOUR....DAMN.....SPIT...ESPECIALLY....
IF....THE....PAPER....IS...MINE!
As someone who works in retail, this is also gross when people do that with money.. it happens frequently and I am shocked to see that people would do that with money. There have been studies and people have found really disgusting things on money, from diseases, to even feces!!! Why would anyone do that is beyond me!
•Kids!: I have always disliked children, and found them REALLY ANNOYING! Now that I work in retail it's even worse! Parents do nothing to stop their little crotch gremlins from touching everything in the store, misplacing, breaking things and let's not forget the temper tantrums, and screaming for 2 bloody friggin hours!
If you cannot control your kid, either leave the store, or get some friggin duct tape to shut that kid up!
Me and one of the ladies I work with are always talking about how these parents let their kids run rampant ruining all of the merchandise, and throwing things everywhere. Parents these days do nothing to stop their gremlin children from running rampages!
Also, if anyone wants to start a new thing where we call Children "Chillens", "Gremlins" or "Babbys", let's totally start it!
• When you message or text someone and they never respond! (Like ever): This I absolutely hate, it makes me think that you're ignoring me, and don't really want to be my friend. If you do not want to talk to me, or be my friend, just say so, I may dislike you afterwards, but at least I know not to even bother with you anymore.
This has happened to people I know in the real world, and it's annoying, especially when I message them with something that is INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT!!!
This has happened three times to me in the past 3 years that I remember in particular, two were really important, the other one was about trying to re-connect with an old friend, in which the person never responded, so I have no chance at talking to them again.
I'll understand if they don't respond for a few days, as I do that too because I'm a mess. lol
• Nice Pic: I don't understand when someone joins a website like a message board, and they put a bio about themselves. They put in where they live, this and that. They put in an avatar, but they never make any posts on the forum, or they never make any comments on the website.
I do not understand that, what is the point if no one ever see's it! Since if you don't make a comment no one will know you exist, and they will not look at your profile to find out that one time you went to Peru and found a gold coin.
What are your pet peeves? Post in the comments below.
So, I tried out this anime called "Strange +". It's about a group of people who have a detective agency. A man named Kou went out to find his brother Takumi, he finds out that Takumi went to work at a detective agency. Takumi did not want to go back home, so instead, Kou joins Takumi and his friends on adventures as detectives.
It's actually a short, each episode is 2-3 minutes long. The anime is a comedy/parody anime, and I have to say that just after watching 3 episodes, it is HILARIOUS!
The anime is very interesting and also has something for everyone, and you'll notice the references to other anime. Especially Sailor Moon!
The characters are interesting, Takumi is a cross dresser who acts the type of most cross-dressing characters in anime, but at the same time he doesn't. (If that makes a lick of sense!)
The one female character Miwa has giant breasts, and is obviously a parody of all of the anime with women who have big breasts (Which is basically every anime.)
You have Masamune who is obviously the fan service for anyone into guys, and he tends to go shirtless.
Then there is Kou, who seems like the usual hero type character.
This post was made a week ago, and I've already watched the series twice and I LOVE IT!! I am excited the next season is airing soon as of July 2014.
I recommend you try it out, check it out on Animeplanet.
