Nyanko no Doujinshi

自慢話

2005-11-17T12:19:00.000-08:00

HOWL IS HERE! HOWL IS HERE!

I'd preordered it from Amazon.co.jp and it came today! Yay! Here are some pictures of what the 4-Disc set looks like :) I haven't watched it yet...I'll post more as I watch it (after work...ooohhh! work is going to seem SO long today).

DISKS 1-2:
This is disks 1 and 2. The movie is on these disks. I haven't watched them yet, but I'm assuming it's not divided, and it's wide-screen and pan-and-scan...but I could be wrong.

11/18 Update: I was wrong. It's a different sound? codec? And it seems like the other language tracks are on the second disk. They are both wide screen. I don't think I'll be watching much of the second disk at all. It was amazing watching the first disk!!! the Clarity! The Colors! The Detail! I didn't realize all that I was missing from the cam-bootleg I bought off eBay! I didn't see the little mouse family, or the stripes on the spiders, that the bird footprints were made of blood, that Kabu was standing over the castle, that the things in the grate with Calcifer were little figures. AAHH THE MOVIE IS SO BEAUTIFUL! HOWL IS SO THE SMEX...I didn't realize how far down the towel went...oh! *blush* The movie is so much better when you can see all the cunning details *falls in love again* OH! And Howl wears TWO rings at the beginning of the movie and he gives one of them to Sophie! I didn't know that until last night! Things were easier to hear, too! I heard some lines that I couldn't hear from the bootleg : )

DISK 3-4:
Disks 3 and 4 are the video extras :) I can't wait to watch these! I still have to hook up the region-free DVD player...to watch it on TV, or I guess I could just watch it on the laptop...but like I want to watch it on the big TV!

11/18 Update: I lost the remote control to my region free DVD player and can't figure out how to select menu items from the actual player (can I?) It's a Sony...sigh. I couldn't find the TV remote, either. Just the TIVO remote. I did get the DVD player hooked up along with the TIVO DVD so I guess that's better than nothing...but well, I didn't get to see the extras last nigh *cry* Well, at least I have something to look forward to, tonight.

The 1/24 Second Film:
Yes! But ...there is no Howl in my 1/2 :*( I did get Sophie, the Witch, and Markl, though...so not bad? I mean I could have just got a wierd background scene, right? Maybe I can get a Howl one off Yahoo Japan Auctions...hmm...we'll have to think about it for a while. They're probably going to go for a pretty penny, but I think now is when they'll be the cheapest. Here is a close up of mine (yeah, you gotta love the great *cough, cough* photography :*(...). Here's a better picture of a piece similar to mine that I found on the web: 11/18 Update: I am currently bidding on a Calcifer -Frypan one. I want to see if I can get it for under $30. OOOH! I GOT IT! Calcifer is mine (a pictue from the auction) :The Howl ones are going for AMAZING prices! I want a sleeping Howl (....because he looks SO the smex then!): This 1/24 Second went for ... 15,000 YEN! That's about $150 dollars, folks! Aack! Then there was this one, the birdie howl: This 1/24 Second went for ... 16,000 YEN!I don't know if I'll be able to get one at those prices! Blonde Howl closeups are going for a LOT more they were that much with like 8 hours left to go. I forgot to bookmark one to see about what they were ending at. Maybe I'll do that tonight. I haven't seen any Towel Howl 1/24 Seconds yet. I wonder if no one wants to sell those? Hmm...

This one still has 22 hours and is over $250 US already: At least that's not the one I want. Wow, I mean that's a LOT, isn't it? It would be good to be rich...wouldn't it? *sigh*

Howl Released!!!!

2005-09-08T19:40:00.000-07:00

Howl's Moving Castle will be released on DVD 11/16/05!!!!

Amazon has opened a Howl Goods store!

Reserve your 4 Disk copy with a frame of the ORIGINAL film in a clear keepsake! Eeek!
So what's in the 4 disks?!

Disk 1: Movie
Language: Japanese 2.0ch Stereo Dolby Digital
Subtitles: Japanese, ENGLISH
Picture: 16:9 Vista Size (1.85:1)
Disk 2: Movie
Language: Japanese, English, French, Mandarin, Cantonese/2.0ch Stereo Dolby Digital
Subtitles: Japanese, English, French, Mandarin, Cantonese
Disk3: Video Extras
Storyboard Images/Theatrical Trailers/The World's Howl/Original Work Author Diana Wynne Jones Interview/English Dubbing Director Pete Docter Interview/Announcements
Disk 4: Video Extras
Mevius? (Mebiusu) Hayao Miyazaki Dialouge/ America-wide Premier Private Showing Video Moments/Good Afternoon, Laseter? (Lasetaa)-san/ This is How Howl's Castle Moved~ Digital Animation Director, Mitsunori Kataama, CG Commentary

There are other versions, but this the one I just pre-ordered :) Whee! I translated this as soon as I got the email from Amazon! I'm not responsible for errors in translation or errors on the amazon site, btw!

Edit: I forgot to say... Please note this is a REGION 2 disk and will not play on REGION 1 players. You need a REGION 2 DVD player or an ALL REGION DVD player to watch this :)

Asterisk

2005-08-23T16:42:00.000-07:00

Title: Asterisk
Circle: Tenshi no Hagoromo (天使のハゴロモ)
Publisher: Hiura, Saiki (日浦斎紀)
Size: B5
Pages: 32
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: 1May 2005
Site:No Site Listed :(

"色男、力はあるが、金はない。ついでにファッションセンスもないらしい。" (Heart breaker has power, but no money. Looks like he doesn't have a sense of style, to boot.) from Asterisk.

OMG! The art is sooooooo gorgeous! I love it! I saw the cover and I had to have it. Had to. No question about it; had to. It's gorgeous. There's a pretty translucent pink page with silver print on the first page :) There's no web site information in the dj, so I have to actually snail mail the author for permission...uh, I'll take the Howl-way out...I'll do it later...slither, slither...

The stories are a mix of sweet stories and comedic shorts. The stories that reside therein:

誘惑のマホウ　(Seductive Magic)
Howl asks Calcifer for help making a ring...why? Find out.
酷い戦争 (Horrible War)
Bad hair war? Could happen to anyone.
マジカル☆マジック０１(Magical☆Magic 01)
A very short two page story; Howl tries to impress Sophie.
マジカル☆マジック０２ (Magical☆Magic 02)
Another very short story; some magic tricks require timing...
ドロドロネバネバギブアーップ！！ (Drippy Drippy, Sticky Sticky Never Give up!)
An even shorter story spirited away...
マリッジ・ブルー　マリッジ・ピンク (Marriage Blues Marriage Pinks)
Yet another short story in which Sophie wonders what to think of Howl...
魔法のコトバ (Words of Magic)
...in which Sophie and Howl speak upon the definition of beauty (a honobono piece)

I want another dj by Tenshi no Hagoromo. I want a long, long lovely love story...sigh. The art is just too pretty, and I do like their sense of humor, too :)

Status: Need to Snail Mail for permission to post cover art.

As For the Rest, Become a Field, Become a Flower (後は野となれ花となれ)

2005-08-23T11:42:00.000-07:00

Title: Ato wa No to Nare, Hana to Nare(後は野となれ花となれ)
Circle: Yurafuwa　(ユラフワ)
Publisher: Memewo (メメヲ)
Size: A5
Pages: 156
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: February 2005
Site: Sonaeyo Tsuneni is Link Free.

"う～ん、本当に何でも似合ってしまって困るよまったく"　（Hmm~, everything really looks so good on me; it's such a problem, really), Howl from Ato wa Hana to Nare No to Nare.

This is a nice meaty anthology! The art is a bit different from the cover. It's more of a sketchy style of art inside. I forgot which mangaka the style reminds me of. The expressions etc. are well drawn :) I really liked this one because it gave me something to read! Some doujinshi are just so short...

This is a complilation of Yurafuwa's earlier doujinshi:

いつもココロに赤いリンゴを。(A Red Apple, Always in My Heart)
This is a neat story about Morgan (yep, based on Castle in the Air). It's not easy being the son of the land's foremost magician! Ben and Lettie's daughter appears, too :) It's nice and long! Yay! The length of a normal yomikiri in a manga magazine :)
眠ても醒めても (Asleep or Awake)
1. ひらめききらめきときどきときめき (Insight Sparkle Every Once in a While the Heart Races)
  I love this title because of the rhyme scheme (HiRAMEKI KiRAMEKI TOKIdoKI TOKImeKI). It's really cute and lovely to say! Howl doesn't want to get out of bed and work...just another snapshot into what Howl and Sophie's life together might look like.
2. 愛情線360 ° Ｃ (Love Line 360 ° C)
  Another look into a moment in the lives of Howl and Sophie. Sophie decides that magic isn't necessary to style Howl's hair. She will arrange vain Howl's hair...
3. 一つの魔法　（終わりのない愛しさを与え） (One Spell (Granting Endless Love))
  Calcifer tells on Sophie. Poor Sophie can't even keep secrets from Howl. It's all Calcifer's fault!
Who said La La...?
Another yomikiri length story! Yay! Lovely, lazy Howl is sick, but still wants to go to the King's Castle? Hey, isn't something wrong here? Sophie thinks so...especially since Howl can't cast a spell decently and turns Sophie into a ???! Lettie helps put more suspicions into Sophie's head. What's going on here, Howl?!

Ｉ think this was money well spent :) What is the difference between a compilation and an anthology anyway? According to MSN Encarta, a compilation is a lot of things gathered together, but an anthology is a lot of things by different authors that is complied. So an anthology is a subset of a compliation, eh? Anyway, I like both :) I like longer stories than shorter stories (though some short stories are really clever), so I really liked this one :)

Oh, I think I forgot to say, but Sophie has red hair in all the stories of this dj.
Status: Emailed; waiting for reply.

Whee! Back from Australia!

2005-08-21T15:20:00.000-07:00

So I've come back from Australia to find a nice box of Howl dj waiting for me :) That's the good part :)

The bad part is that most of the doujinshi authors are not writing me back, so I can't use pictures of their cover art on Nyandou. Oh well. I'm going to make up my own "Request not Granted" and "Waiting for Permission" Howl FanArt to put up instead, but that will take a bit of time :P Yarg.

Well, it'll take a while for me to get through all the doujinshi :) Yay! I'm thinking of publicizing this blog soon :)...but I still think I need to work some things out...maybe I will wait until I've drawn something up for the cover art place holders...yarg. The site looks really plain without all the cover art, but oh well.

One Heart

2005-07-27T13:28:00.000-07:00

Title: One Heart
Circle: Isotope
Publisher: 胡登()
Size: A5
Pages: 22
Type: Offset
Pairing: None
Rating: G
Publish Date: 05.04.2003
Site: Isotope is Link Free with the provision that you email them.

OMG! The art is soooo pretty! I actually saw a post about Isotope's site before my doujinshi order came...and what do ya know? I had ordered 3 doujinshi by Isotope :) Twee hee hee! Fear not, I shall procure more! I ordered Secret Garden (the anthology and the not, and a few more!) Whee! The cover and the inside art do match :) The way they draw clothes is amazing! I so wish I could draw like this!

You have NEVER seen Calcifer, until you see THIS Calcifer! OMG! He's eating a log! Calcifer is SO HOT! No kidding! For reals! Oh? Did I mention this Calcifer is not the movie Calcifer? This may not be the book Calcifer, either!

There was a problem with this doujinshi...I so wanted more!

Waltz

2005-07-24T10:10:00.000-07:00

Title: Waltz
Circle: Shikisai Ongaku (色彩音楽)
Publisher: Haruka, Hikari (治香ヒカリ)
Size: B5
Pages: 28
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: 12.29.2004
Site: Shikisai Ongaku is Link Free with the provision that you email them.

"まぁ。。。大半の原因は僕のあるなぁ" (Well...it's mostly becasue of me, you know...), Howl in regard to Sophie cleaning all the time, from Waltz.

Yes! Yes! Good Howl! Appreciate Sophie's housework! Would that more men would appreciate and understand that they are the major reason for suffering-house-cleaning-women (who usually have to work full-time, too!)!

The art is true to the cover; very good, very cute. Howl looks so good in this one! He doesn't look exactly like in the movie, he's shoujo-fied, so he looks cuter :)

This is the first of their 4 (that I know of) Howl dj thus far. I love this circle :) Hmm...this one sold out at her first event, so there is a reprinting. It seems the first one has a textured (like striped-grooves) cover and the reprint has a shiny cover. I don't know if there was more than one reprint. There are two stories in this honobono volume:

Waltz
...is a very cute, sweet little glimpse into Howl and Sophie's world. This one is based on the movie version. There is a short character introduction at the beginning. Howl has black hair ♥
世界に一つだけの花(Only One [of these] Flower in the World)
...has a blonde Howl, and is based on the book version (after the second book, Castle in the Air, it seems..I haven't read that one yet). I love the fan girls at the beginning of the story...they act just like me!

I don't really know exactly why, but I really like Shikisai Ongaku's dj. They just strike the perfect chord with me, I guess. Howl is very sweet and I can relate to Sophie's feelings. I wish it was a bit longer, but then I get my wish :) As the circle continues to write about Howl, their dj get longer ♥

Fanbookish has a picture of the cover art for Waltz up :)
Status: Emailed, waiting for permission to post picture.

Doujinshi by Circle

2005-07-20T17:07:00.000-07:00

It seems like it might be a good idea to organize this whole mess, and so this is what I've come up with. This way everything can be "Neat & Tidy" and I can still use this blog to write about other non-review doujinshi topics.

So far it seems there are reviews for (the ones that aren't links, I have, but haven't reviewed yet):

Akiba Touko
1. Sweet-Sour Time Replay
Aldebaran
1. Never Land (ネバーランド)
Angel Rose
1. Yasoukyoku ~Nocturne~ (夜想曲)
Atsuatsu Cook
1. Mahoutsukai no Deshi (魔法使いの弟子)
Azuma
1. Family Man
Blue Signals
1. Sparkling Shower
  This will not be reviewed. This is NC-18. ...and something that happens when you don't read auction desc. well... (same shipment as the other one) Oh dear、dear. The art is cute, though...
2. Kimi o Mahoutsukai ni (キミを魔法使いに)
3. Blackyu* Night
4. Soshite Boku ni Dekirukoto (そしてぼくにできること)
5. Pinkish Pink
Bombers
1. Howl no Hetare Yobanashi (ハウルのヘタレ夜話)
Brother Wolf
1. Toki no Mahoutsukai (時の魔法使い）
Caribbean Sexy
1. I Wish Upon a Star
2. Jyushofutei Mushoku (住所不貞無職)
3. Kimi no Kage Yurayura Yurete (君の影ゆらゆらゆれて)
4. 28cm no Chiheisen (28ｃｍの地平線)
Clover Shoukai (クローバー商会)
1. Hanazono de Matteiru. (花園で待っている。)
2. Kono Mune no Tokimeki o. (この胸のときめきを。)
3. Okurimono o Kimi ni (贈り物を君に。)
4. Watashi no Koishita Mahoutsukai (私の恋した魔法使い)
Delic
1. Howl no Aegu Shiro (ハウルの喘ぐ城)
Devil Children
1. Howl no Aegu Shiro (ハウルの喘ぐ城)
Gear
1. Kasei no Ningyou (火星の人形)
Glass Drop
1. Cherish * Cherish
  This will not be reviewed. *blush* It's NC-16...and something that happens when you don't read auction desc. well...haha. Oh dear. Still, the art is way cute!
Gomenne Shoukai (ごめんね商会)
1. Yosou (予想)　
Haregumodou (晴雲堂)
1. Star Child
Howl no Shiro de Kurashi Tai ☆ Seijyunha (ハウルの城で暮らし隊☆清純派)
1. Kimi ga Sakihokoru Made (君が咲き誇るまで)
Isotope
1. Lasting Castle
2. One Heart
3. Greenstuff
Jishuuteki Kamikakushi (自主的神隠し)
1. Mimi ni Nokoru wa Kimi no Utagoe (耳に残るは君の歌声)
Kanade Fujisawa
1. Family Man
Karakuri Circus
1. Sekai no Yakusoku
Katsumien (勝海苑)
1. Kanon
2. Shikisoku Zekuu Sono San(色即是空其ノ参)
3. Yasha Kisouden Soushuuhen (夜叉鬼想伝・総集編)
Kisekiya S (奇跡屋　Ｓ)
1. Yuuhei Jiken (幽閉事件)
2. Tooki Hi no Hako (遠き日の函)
3. Saa, Monogatari o Hajimeyou. (さぁ、物語を始めよう。)
4. Sense of Value
Lariat Keikaku (ラリアット計画)
1. Kimi o Mahoutsukai ni (キミを魔法使いに)
2. Blackyu* Night
LikeLife
1. Peculire
Lotus Root Orchestra
1. A Rec. Sounds Light
Lover's Kiss (ラヴァーズ・キス)
1. Kimi ga Sakihokoru Made (君が咲き誇るまで)
Majyo Shuukai Touri (魔女集会通り)
1. Ugoku Shiro no Howl-san 1 (動く城のハウルさん 1)
2. Ugoku Shiro no Howl-san 2 (動く城のハウルさん 2)
3. Ugoku Shiro no Howl-san 3 (動く城のハウルさん 3)
4. Ugoku Shiro no Howl-san Tokubetsuban (動く城のハウルさん　特別版)
5. Ugoku Shiro no Howl-san Tanbitekiban Jyunbigou (動く城のハウルさん耽美版　準備号)
6. Ugoku Shiro no Howl-san Tanbitekiban (動く城のハウルさん　耽美版)
Maron
1. Soshite Boku ni Dekirukoto (そしてぼくにできること)
Melanco
1. Sugar
Milk★Price
1. Watashi no Mahoutsukai (私の魔法使い)
Momozakura
1. Triangle (トライアングル）
Nejishiki
1. Piece of My Wish
NOT
1. Sunset & Sunrise (サンセットサンライズ)
Odamario@Akaimikan
1. Castle Imitation
OOGGG1!!!
1. Watashi no Mahoutsukai (私の魔法使い)
Orca
1. Ivory
2. Sugar
3. All For You
P.P.P Press
1. Nagareboshi (ながれ星)
Platinum
1. Howl no Aegu Shiro (ハウルの喘ぐ城)
Rever
1. I was able to meet you
Rin Rin House in Kotobuki
1. Hoshi no Hikari no Shihouette (星の光のシルエット)
Say;Gallet
1. Totsugeki! Tonari no Bangohan (突撃！隣の晩ごはん)
SH
1. Howl ni Kubittake! (ハウルに首ったけ！)
Shikisai Ongaku (色彩音楽)
1. Waltz
2. Merry-Go-Round
3. Sexy Voice
4. Hana no You ni Tori no You ni (花のように鳥のように)
Summer Child
1. Mahoutsukai no Deshi (魔法使いの弟子)
Taiyou no Nishi (太陽の西)
1. Blue Sky Blue
Tei
1. Soshite Boku ni Dekirukoto (そしてぼくにできること)
Tenshi no Hagoromo (天使のハゴロモ)
1. Asterisk
Tommy Toh(トミイ糖)
1. Honey
2. Jinsei no Jet Coaster Kirimomi Kaiten! (人生のジェットコースターきりもみ回転！)
3. Hauyon. (はうよん。)
Unknown Zone
1. Color of Heart
Warai no License (笑いのライセンス)
1. Howl ga Ippai　(ハウルがいっぱい)
Yurafuwa (ユラフワ)
1. Ato wa No to Nare, Hana to Nare (後は野となれ花となれ)
Yumeya Shucchoujyo (夢や出張所)
1. Hyakuoku no Hiru to Senoku no Yoru （百億の昼と千億の夜）
Zuihouzakura (ずいほう桜)
1. Shiawase no Komichi (幸せの小道)
2. Hoshi no Umareru Hi (星の生まれる日)
3. Dream's Dream

Other Doujinshi Sites

2005-07-20T16:38:00.000-07:00

Here are some other doujinshi sites I've found:

Aizu Winter
This is where I saw my first cover of a Howl doujinshi :) They are mostly interested in other doujinshi, though... They have cover shots and some data about the doujinshi. It looks like they sell doujinshi, too, but I've not bought anything from them.
Addiction
A Harry Potter doujinshi site; I think I might try a bit of Potter someday :) I listed this one because: 1. It's a doujinshi site. 2. It's a REVIEW site, like mine. Most doujinshi sites seem to be store or scanlation sites, so the formatting is quite a bit different and won't help me much...unless it's a store, that is! They have a Miyazaki section, but no Howl...still, don't you think Haku was pretty bishie? I do.
Impending Doujinshi
It seems to be Yaoi-kei.
Tokyo Jupiter
They have Howl :) Two I don't have, but have been lusting for, too...after all, who doesn't lust after Howl? *sigh*
Untouchable
Whee! More Howl! I've received permission to link them, even though they are not done yet. Right now it's layout (droolable Howl covers) and the reviews will be added later, so check often! It's got similar URL to Tokyo Jupiter above, but it's different. (Aside: I would recommend this site, because their manga and anime tastes are really good. I like a lot of the ones they've recommended :))
The Vivisection
This seems to be mostly about Final Fantasy type doujinshi...but I didn't really look at anything besides the FAQ.

Well, that's it for now! Hahahaha...

NyanDou Doujinshi FAQ

2005-07-20T08:01:00.000-07:00

I just dived into doujinshi because I wanted more Howl. I didn't know the first thing about them, so there were a lot of things I didn't quite "get". There were a lot of terms I didn't know...and lots of other stuff...and I STILL don't know much. Here's a bit of what I have figured out (this is a work in progress ^^;):

A5: This is a standard metric paper size. This doesn't seem to be as popular as B5. I measured my A5 doujinshi and got a width of 5.81" and height of 8.25". ProAV says it is 5.83 x 8.27 inches.
B5: This is also a metric paper size. This seems to be the size most doujinshi are. ProAV says it is 6.93 x 9.84 inches.
Circle (サークル): A group (or a single person) of artists/writers who get together to create a doujinshi.
Chara (キャラ)： This may also be spelled "kyara"? This is an abbreviation for "character".
Copybon (コピー本): A doujinshi that the author/circle has literally copied machined and stapled together. It sounds like this happens when the author/circle can't meet the printer's deadlines. This is the same thing as "copyshi".

Copyshi (コピー誌): A doujinshi that the author/circle has literally copied machined and stapled together. It sounds like this happens when the author/circle can't meet the printer's deadlines. This is the same thing as "copybon".

Doujin (同人): This is an abbreviation for "doujinshi".

DJ: This seems to be an neat English abbreviation for "doujinshi".

Guest (ゲスト): When one someone else other than the circle/author writes a piece for the circle/author's doujinshi, the someone else is called a "guest".

ＨｏｗＳｏｐｈｉ（ハウソフィ）: This is a Japanese abbreviation of "Howl x Sophie" :)

Off (オフ): This is an abbreviation of "offset": a printing style using a transfer of ink. In doujinshi-land, this seems to mean that the book is bound.

Ｏｆｆset (オフセット): This is a printing style using a transfer of ink. In doujinshi-land, this seems to mean that the book is bound.

ProAV: The first site that Google listed with definitions of metric paper sizes.

Sairokushu (再録集): A doujinshi that is a compliation of previously published doujinshi. These are bigger (of course), and probably more worth your money...only most sellers don't write that these are a collection of previously published ones...so you might buy it, but already have all of the stories :(

Yonkoma (４コマ・四コマ): These are usually (almost always) gag parodies. Just as the Japanese says, there are 4 komas (squares/areas, erm...I don't know the cartoon word for this) on the page.

Some other Doujinshi FAQs (if I've taken information from them, they would be credited in the definition of the term. Non-credited definitions are things I found out on my own just by reading the actual doujinshi/buying them/collecting them):

Vivisection FAQ from the Vivisection. I found this during a Google search. I have yet to read the rest of the site ^^; ...but I learned that it's possible that the circles don't want their websites linked to! Eeek! I'll have to take out links later on tonight... :*(

This was interesting, though I don't think I learned anything new...but why didn't I think to go to Wikipedia first?

Wait for Me Happily Ever After. (幸せな未来で待っていて。)

2005-07-18T14:00:00.000-07:00

Title: Shiawasena Mirai de Matteite (幸せな未来で待っていて。)
Circle: Howl no Shiro de Kurashitai ☆Seijyunha (ハウルの城で暮ら隊☆清純派)
Circle: ラヴぁー・スキス
Publisher: Urumyan (うるみゃん)
Size: B5
Pages: 58
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: 12.29.2004
Site: Lovers Kiss is Link Free.

"やっと☆二人きり☆だよ！" (Finally, it's just ☆the two of us☆!) Howl, from Shiawasena Mirai de Matteite

The Art is pretty close to the cover. It's slightly shoujo-fied, but looks a lot like the movie Howl. It doesn't look exactly like, but I don't think the author intended it to. Calcifer is very cute in this one ♥　 Some of the art is a bit more sketchy (you know with more lives) and some less (more stylized), but it's all pretty good. I had to get this one because I loved the cover so much! It's so bright and cheerful, and Miyazaki (the blue and greens).

The stories in this volume are very honobono/romantic ♥ I like that kind of story :) I have yet to see a wedding scene in a doujinshi yet, though :*( Maybe someday. I had a hard time finding titles...maybe I'm just dumb :P The stories are:

幸せな未来で待っていて。 (Wait for Me Happily Ever After)
Another look at Howl when he was young...what might have happenened after Sophie disappeared back into the future ♥ Squee :) We liked it.
(Calicifer was Watching)
4 block? (4coma) gag; What do you call the squares in comics?
No Title
This is a look at explaining what "I'd been looking for you" meant in the movie :)
No Title
I love this one ♥ It takes a look at what was in the boxes of clothes that Howl got for Sophie in her new room :) I wanted to know what kind of fancy stuff Howl the peacock might have picked!

There are reprinted stories from 「わがままダーリン♥かんしゃくハニー☆」(Wagamama Darling Kanshaku Honey) at the end:

わがままダーリン♥かんしゃくハニー☆ (Selfish Darling ♥ Hot Tempered Honey☆)
This one is very honobono :) It's set right after the book. I like Sophie's braids. Miss Angorian appears, too! This is the first time I've seen Miss Angorian in a doujinshi!

Hmm...I have the first and second printing of this one :) Tee hee hee. The second printing has typed Japanese. The first is handwritten, but the handwriting is so neat that it's still easy to read. I thought I had two of the same, so I was going to sell one...but it's neat to see the differences in the first and second printings, so I'm going to keep both :)

Wai! 34 Howl doujinshi came in the mail for me today :) WHEE!!! I'm soooo sooo happy! Reviews to be posted soon! When I get a few more reviews in, I'll have to post this to a Howl Community :) Whee :) ! Oh, too bad I still have to work today :*( So my Howlage will have to wait...well, I do have a lunch break coming up!

Hmm...I'm starting to think that maybe this isn't the best format...maybe I should make an entry for each circle, and just add the doujinshi reviews under the name of each circle...hmm... That's not that great an idea either because then it'll be hard to figure out which ones are new? Then I'd have to make the top entry a "New Reviews" blurb with links to the circle entries? I haven't seen too many doujinshi review pages, so...maybe I'll take a look see at what other people are doing...

A question for those who read these reviews...how do you keep your doujinshi? On a bookshelf? Mine are stacked on top of books lined up in a bookshelf...but that's not enough space...and I don't have enough money for a bookshelf...and since most of them don't have spines, it's hard to find a specific one. I would really appreciate some advice :)

Status: Waiting for Photo permission.

Color of Heart

2005-07-13T19:49:00.000-07:00

Title: Color of Heart
Circle: Unknown Zone
Publisher: Nagata
Size: B5
Pages: 24
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie, Howl Vs. Kabu (haha!)
Rating: G
Publish Date: 01.09.2005
Site: UZ is Link Free.

"貴方何で私の部屋の間取り知ってるの？" (How do YOU know how my room's laid out?!) Sophie, from Color of Heart

There are 4 full color pages at the beginning. They are very abstract (like oils or something. I'm not an artist, so I may be wrong...). I guess you could say they look very grown-up-looking. Well, so is the rest of the doujinshi. It's a very adult manga illustration style. I don't know why, but it reminds me of Cowboy Bebop O_o;

It's a collection of short stories. I'm beginning to understand that this is how most doujinshi work! I initally thought the whole doujinshi would be one yomikiri-like (yomikiri = not serial) story, but I think I was wrong. Satoru: Doujinshi are a collection of short stories. The stories are as follows:

Color of Heart
ちょっと気になった事　(Something that Bothered Me a Bit)

The thing that struck me with this one is how the grammar matches the movie...did that make sense? What Howl "says" matches the way Howl talks in the movie :) You can "hear" the whiney intonation, the raised voice :) It's pretty cool. Well, at least so it seems to me!

Is there such a thing as comic timing in a manga? If there is, it's great in this doujinshi! I really don't know how to explain it...it's just the right things said at the right time. Like recognizeable lines from the movie...at the right time...and it's *grin* very clever. Quite funny. Like I really lol'd. *blush* Gosh, it's just that good. I guess the adult drawing style juxtaposed with the comic antics are just...so way funny *cheesy smile* Gee, I hope I used that big word right...haha.

Someone is selling one with a pub.date of 12.28.2004, so evidentally this isn't a first printing...hmm...I should stop posting pictures with no reviews...I should just do it all at once...I thought it'd be cool, like a preview...but then I have to scroll to see which ones I didn't do... :P

Status: Need to request permission for pictures.

Watashi no Mahoutsukai (私の魔法使い)

2005-07-05T22:02:00.000-07:00

Title: Watashi no Mahoutsukai (私の魔法使い)

Circle: Milk★Price & OOGGG1!!!
Publisher: Higashi, Seiya(東聖夜) & Mizutama (水玉)
Size: B5
Pages: 58
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: 05.29.2005
Site: Milky Milky Milky
OOGGG1!!! Both sites are Link Free.

This was the only Howl doujinshi I could find at Anime Expo...but then again, I don't fight through people to dig through boxes. I just ask the people working there. I was surprised to see how many people working there didn't know their own stock of doujinshi...or many authors/circles. Gee, no one knew Amagi, Sayuri :*( Some of them didn't even know Howl!!!! Argh! Maybe there were more, but I'm not the kind of person who can fight through a crowd of people. I guess you could say I'm just a scaredy cat. Maybe I'll find some at Comic Con where the anime booths aren't as crowded?

This one was full of a lot of short stories:

My Magician
My World, My Precious
? (I can't find a title for this...erm)
Kiraboshi

I'm sleepy. I'm going to have to finish this tomorrow.

Status: Emailed, waiting for permission to post picture.

Nagareboshi (ながれ星)

2005-07-05T21:59:00.000-07:00

Title: Nagareboshi (ながれ星)
Circle: P.P.P. Press
Publisher: Denjin Club
Size: B5
Pages: 44
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: 05.29.2005
Site: Denjin Club is Link Free.

Whee! They kiss :) This is a really cute story with really cute art. It's a very shoujo-like style (the art is). I got it from the ebay seller, Snottyskids. It got bent in the mail :*(

There is only one story in the manga. (The plot is similar to another doujinshi I have...but I can't quite remember which one...it'll come to me. I'll have to get back to that thought.) Sophie is talking to Howl about what he said (in the movie) when he first met her, "捜したよ” (I've been looking for you). The story fills in what this could mean (which is pretty much what the other doujinshi author concluded, too...I agree! This is what Howl must have meant! How romantic!) Howl in this doujinshi is very lean and tall, with a sort of "high school boy" type attitude (you know, the cool, cute guy lead in most shoujo manga centered around school life).

I guess mine is a second printing. The first printing date is 05.04.2005.

I guess today isn't a writing night...this whole entry is rather disjointed and unorganized...kind of like my brain...this is your brain...this is your brain on lack of sleep...that kind of thing, I guess.

Status: Need to request permission to post pictures.

Sekai no Yakusoku

2005-06-29T12:34:00.000-07:00

Title: Sekai no Yakusoku
Circle: Karakuri Circus
Publisher: Shino
Size: A5
Pages: 16
Type: Copybon
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: 05.05.2005
Waiting for permission to Link

This is my first copybon (lit. copy book, a doujinshi created with the copy machine instead of a publishing company)! It's pretty neat. It's very small and stapled together. It has this translucent paper for the cover (with the picture on it). I have to go find the scanner later and scan this in . I hope it scans ok; maybe the wierd paper will do wierd things?

The artist's style is very different. It's really *REALLY* sketchy; almost as though it's all done in pencil and the artist never got around the penning the final copy in ink. Still, the characters are cute when you get past that. It looks like it was scanned into a computer and printed on an ink jet.

It's one story, set after the movie ends...about Howl remembering things. It's a "cute, sweet" type of story. I don't think I can say anymore without revealing the whole plot line since the story is so short ♥

Edit: It scanned pretty well, don't you think? Well, it's a bit dark...

Status: Need to request permission to post pictures.

Jinsei no Jet Coaster Kirimomi Kaiten! (人生のジェットコースターきりもみ回転！)

2005-06-29T10:59:00.000-07:00

Title: Jinsei no Jet Coaster Kirimomi Kaiten! (人生のジェットコースターきりもみ回転！)
Circle: Tommytoh (トミイ糖)
Publisher: Tomiito, Matsu (富糸まつ)
Size: B5
Pages: 22
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: 05.29.2005 (3rd Printing)
Site: None Listed :(

"ここに来てから一回も着替えてないのー！！？" (I haven't changed once since I've come here?!!", Sophie, from Jinsei no Jet Coaster Kirimomi Kaiten

Haha! That's my favorite line from this doujinshi :) Now to get back on track...the art it very close to what's on the cover. It's a little rougher but cuter on the inside. It's definately on the shoujo-side of the manga illustration spectrum! This is a mostly a comedy doujinshi, so there are some really wierd, not-cute images of Howl, but that makes it funny!

This doujinshi is printed on pink and yellow paper! This is new to me; new to the world of doujinshi as I am. It's prety cool. I love the shade of pink they used; very delicate. The cover is glossy...otherwise it's the normal B5 offset format. Oh, colored paper might be normal? I don't really know yet.

This is yet another doujinshi of Many-Short-Stories. I'm pretty sure this is the format of most doujinshi (now! I wasn't before!). The titles of each story are:

人生のジェットコースターきりもみ回転！(Tailspin on the Roller Coaster of Life!)
呪い(おれ荒れ) (Curse (I'm Wasted)
恋だね (It's Love, Isn't It)
家族崩壊 (Destroying the Family)
反省点 (Point to Repent)
プレセント (Present)
sign
This is the longest story and it's a romantic plotline. It's the ever-so-popular "Was that you?" theme...there. That's vague enough it won't spoil any plotlines, eh?

I think it's wierd when titles aren't capitalized, but it isn't so I'll keep it that way :P Anyhoo, most of these are one to two page dealies, so I can't really summarize them without giving away the plot. I can say that most start with scenes from the movie...and twist them :) I like that kind of thing.

These were cute, but alas, short again. Doujinshi are really hard on mega-volume manga lovers.

Status: Need to request permission to post pictures.

Howl ga Ippai　(ハウルがいっぱい)

2005-06-29T10:58:00.000-07:00

Title: Howl ga Ippai　(ハウルがいっぱい)
Circle: Warai no License (笑いのライセンス)
Publisher: Kutsuki, Kazuyai (くつきかずや)
Size: B5
Pages: 32
Type: Offset
Pairing: None, Howl x Marukuru
Rating: PG (some inuendo, some yaoi)
Publish Date: 12.29.2004
Site: None :(

"じ～～～～～" (Stare), fx, from Howl ga Ippai

*ROTFL* like, really! It makes me grin even now! In case you haven't noticed, this is a comedy! ...and I really liked it! Oh, but I must put a disclaimer in...you won't get some of it unless you've watched some other Ghibli (Nausicaa, Mononoke Hime, Lupin III: Castle of Cagliostro) . I didn't get the Lupin movie reference :( I knew it was one, but I'd never seen the movie, so...

The art is very good; a slightly grown up version of a Miyazaki Howl. Though this is a comedy dj, the art remains really good all the way through. I assure you that Howl is *quite* droolable.

It begins with a collage of different Howls, then a short manga about the author's experience when she saw the world premiere of "Howl no Ugoku Shiro"....LUCKY!!!! The author cried during the movie. I didn't....hmm...*sheepish* I guess I'm not very sensitive? *sigh* The "meat" of the dj is full of 1~2 page comedies, some of which (IMHO) you don't even need to know Japanese to laugh at...or empathize with *cheesy grin* The titles of these shorts are:

ハウルがいっぱい (Lots of Howl)
The author talks about how she felt when she saw the premiere of Howl's Moving Castle in Japan.
レッスン１ (Lesson 1)
そ言う年頃 (At That Age)
These are so short, I can't talk about them without spoiling things but this one is SOOOOO funny!...and I so understand how Sophie feels! *drool*
レッスン２ (Lesson 2)
美少年がいっぱい (Lots of Bishounen)
素材がいっぱい (Lots of Reference Material)
There's lots of reference material to be found when you are dj-ing a Ghibli work; this is the author talking about reference materials.
１０年後
This is the kinda-sorta yaoi one. There doesn't seem to be very many yaoi Howl dj...well, from where I've been looking anyway.

There's a collage of Howl cosplay near the end :) I thought it was cute. Oh, and this one had the title on the cover printed in pretty silver foil! Fancy! Oh, I forgot. Most of these take scenes from the movie and twist them; waaaaay twist them.

Fanbookish has a picture of the cover art for Howl ga Ippai up :)
Status: Need to request permission to post pictures.

Sense of Value

2005-06-29T10:56:00.001-07:00

Title: Sense of Value
Circle: Kisekiya S (奇跡屋　Ｓ)
Publisher: Sakurai, Shiori (桜井汐里)
Size: B5
Pages: 32
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie, Michael x Martha
Rating: PG (some violence)
Publish Date: 05.04.2005
Site: Kigurumiya has given NyanDou permission to Link.

" 「僕の存在を認めない」人だけしかいない世界から解放される一瞬だよ" (It's the instant where one is freed from a world where there are only people who "don't acknowledge my existance".) Howl, from Sense of Value

Yep! This is a serious dj (I have since learned that "dj" is an abbreviation for "doujinshi" here in the states). There's yet another surprise! This piece of Howlage is based on the book (though I think they used the movie for some of the visuals). Howl is soooo waaaay bishie in this doujinshi. He's also got a more "grown-up" personality. He's even cool, sometimes. In the Miyazaki film, he comes off as more of a cute, young guy. In this dj, sometimes, he has a "Gackt-ish" cool, binan type attitude.

The art is very shoujo; good shoujo. It doesn't really look like the movie at all. You'll be very surprised when you see the Witch of the Wastelands! Martha is very cute looking :) Marukuru is Michael, and older :)

The dj starts with a character introduction. This is good because the character's personalities are more what the author interpreted from the book, rather than from the movie (she even says so). The titles for the two stories in this dj are:

SENSE OF VALUE
Howl x Sophie
This is completely an original take...it does happen after Sophie lives with Howl, so I'd say this is after the book. Sophie is quite...spunky! Poor, gorgeous Howl...looks like a J-rock god ♥ SQUEEE!
チェザーリの片隅で (In a Corner of Cesari's)
Michael x Martha
This is a cuter story that "Sense of Value". It's about the beginning/middle of Martha and Michael's relationship. Martha's personality is very cute...can't say anymore or I'll spoil it!

It seems this is the sixth Howl dj from Kisekiya S. I have a few more by them, but certainly not six! I'll have to keep a sharp eye out! I so want more!

Note: Kisekiya S prefers that none of their illustrations (including cover images) be displayed on sites other than their publishing companies' and distributors' sites. Therefore, the cover illustration will not be displayed on NyanDou, according to their wishes. However, NyanDou has received permission to link, and so you may find thier artwork on their page!

I Wish Upon a Star

2005-06-29T10:53:00.001-07:00

Title: I Wish Upon a Star
Circle: Carribean Sexy
Publisher: Itsutsubashi, Wase
Size: B5
Pages: 80
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie x Kabu
Rating: G
Publish Date: 2.06.2005
Site: *Carribean Sexy Night*

"何だろうマダム、いわゆる月のものだろうか" (Madam, what could it be? Is it that "time of the month"?) Howl, from I Wish Upon a Star

The art is very shoujo. It doesn't much look like Howl or Sophie from the Miyazashi movie at all. It's very cute, though. I reminds me of Aoi Hiragi (a Ribon mangaka) and Ai Yazawa mixed up, if that helps anyone any. The inside art is a bit different from the cover. It's a bit more sketchy inside; her faces are really expressive. The cover is the only one I've seen like it. It's a textured pearl; really neat! The pages inside are off-white with BLUE print! Whee! It looks nice!

You can really sink your teeth into this one! It's one nice and long story :) ...there was even a moment where it pulls at your heartstrings and you feel that twinge (you know, that "kyun" feeling!) of sorrow. I really loved it. Oh, and I so want more! It's the first Howl doujinshi that made my heart go kyun! Hey! Heeeyyyy! No, Howl! No eating hearts! *I wish!* (<-tee hee! I wish upon a star...) How would I describe the plot without spoiling it? It's a very shoujo-manga plotline. I guess it'd be honobono-romantic (There is one short, one page gag-comic about the King and Suliman, but that's pretty much all the gag). It focuses on Sophie and her insecuries. There's not that much Howl in it, I feel there's more Kabu...Hmm...then I'll outline the beginning a bit...Sophie is cleaning, and comes upon a stack of old love letters from various girls addressed to Howl...ooh! She doesn't read them though (I would)! Understandably, she's a bit upset and gets insecure. How does Howl fix this? Where does Kabu come in?! Letty?! Water scenes? Oh, you so have to get this one! Status: Need to request permission to post pictures.

Shiawase no Komichi (幸せの小道）

2005-06-29T10:53:00.000-07:00

Title: Shiawase no Komichi (幸せの小道)
Circle: Zuihouzakura (ずいほう桜)
Publisher: Hasutsuki, Rae (蓮月らえ)
Size: B5
Pages: 36
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: 12.29.2004
Site: Zuihouzakura

Okay! I'm starting to figure out what information to put up on doujinshi :) Whee! This is Zuihouzakura's second Howl doujinshi :) The first one is "Hoshi no Umareru Hi" and the third is "Dream's Dream." <-(I will have to figure out how to use anchors in a blog....huh...well, that's for later...) I'm not quite sure how best to approach reveiwing these...hmm...I'll get back to this later.

This is a collection of sweet, short, comedy stories:

ソフィーさんのお願い (Sophie's Wish)
サリマンｖｓソフィー (Suliman vs Sophie)
ソフィーさんの独り言 (Sophie Talking to Herself)
カブの受難 (The Passion of Turnip)
ムユウビョウ(Muyuubyou)
近ごろの私 (Me, Lately <-4 square manga about author)
ソフィーさんの悩み (Sophie's Worries)

Most of them are set after the movie :) Some of the stories take a scene from the movie and change it slightly. The art is pretty true to the cover (just a little bit less nice); don't forget that this is a comedy, so of course, sometimes the faces are distorted into that gag-comedy-parody-type look. The text is in print, so it' s easy to read (sometimes I have trouble reading messy authors' writing :*( ) .

Being a strictly manga person until now, I'm surprised at how short doujinshi stories are. Still, they are really cute and it's neat to see "the world as other Howl fans see it". I really did like this short collection of stories.

I'm not sure what else to write, as I don't want to spoil the stories for people, especially since these are short comedies. I don't think they'd be so funny if you already knew the ending. Maybe I will put up a translation...then again, most of my blogs are short lived because I don't have time and things in life are not too good lately :*( Sick selves, sick parents, and work will do that to you)) I might not ever get that far.

I might even move this to LiveJournal...because I like the idea of cuts and I don't know if Blogger supports cuts. Then I could put a translation behind the cut and things would look nice and neat... such are today's musings.

Or I could translate for doujinshi...like a trade of sorts...I'm highly motivated by acquiring things...eh, I'm not sure, though...that'd be like giving away work, because I don't think anyone would want to pay me my usual rate...seeing as they aren't companies or anything...oh well, I can be tempted.

EDIT: Yesh, I did find out how to link posts :) Permalinks. Neat.
Status: Need to request permission to post pictures.

Howl ni Kubittake! (ハウルに首ったけ！)

2005-06-29T10:52:00.000-07:00

Title: Howl ni Kubittake! (ハウルに首ったけ！)
Circle: SH
Publisher: Houjyou Karen (北条カレン)
Size: B5
Pages: 30
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: PG (H.B.B = Howl's Bare Behind ♥)
Publish Date: ?
Site: SH_Web is Link Free.

"ハウル命♥" (Howl is Life) Karen, from cover illustration

Agreed! This is one of my favorite Howl doujinshi :) It's way fan-girly! With all the "eeks" and "love-loves" and "drools" you could possibly think of...and do! I so understand where she is coming from :) I think that's why I love this one. There aren't so many fangirls to share Howl-Love with...and it's nice to know that other people are as obsessed with Howl as I am!

The art is very un-Miyazaki Howl.　It's pretty much in the author's original style, which is exactly what you see on the cover. The stories are based on the movie. It's set mostly during the movie (not after, or before, I mean). I would categorize it mostly as humor more than romance or honobono. It's definately not serious...well, it's seriously Howl-Obsessed, though :)

It begins with an introduction from the author and then launches into a summary of the characters (completely opinionated!). There are a few short stories in this one, and a lot of how the author feels about Howl :)

ハウルに首ったけ! (Obsessed with Howl!)
This is a reflection (with pretty piccies) of how the scenes the author liked best from the movie and why...but it's SO OBVIOUS why! ...well, if you love Howl :)
Sleeping Beauty
This is the only serious story in the book. I guess you could categorize this one as "setsunai" (bittersweet, I suppose)... there really isn't a good English equivalent to setsunai, you know... it's kind of sweet. Eh. I like the comedies in this one better :)
ある朝の風景 (Scenes From a Morning in the Life of)
This is 4coma-ish. It's cute :) I love Sophie's attitude. It made me grin.
気の迷いだったんです。 (It Was Just a Whim. (yaoi))
This one ends all too soon! It's a comedy with a teeny-weeny bit of an SM theme...Kabu! Well, I never!

I really enjoyed the author's handwritten asides (most of the text is printed, so it's easy to read). *grin* I suppose I share the same sense of humor? Well, if nothing else, the same mindset!

Well, I'd totally buy this one again, if I had to do things over! You may have noticed that I try not to say anything patently bad about anything (if I do, it's because I feel that strongly!!). I don't think I have to be negative about anything; there's plenty of other people doing and saying bad things in the world (I seriously believe in "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything". People aren't so stupid that they can't infer by your silence)...so I'll only talk about what I liked in each one. Granted, if I don't say much, I probably didn't care for it that much. If I never finish the review, then I didn't care for it that much. This one I did care for...quite a bit♥

Status: NyanDou has received written permission from Karen Houjyou to post the cover art of "Howl ni Kubittake!" here! Whee! 北条カレン様本当にどうも有難うございます！

Hoshi no Umareru Hi (星の生まれる日)

2005-06-29T10:51:00.000-07:00

Title: Hoshi no Umareru Hi (星の生まれる日)
Circle: Zuihouzakura (ずいほう桜)
Publisher:Etou, Kira (えとう綺羅)
Hasutsuki, Rae (蓮月らえ)
Size: B5
Pages: 22
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: 12.29.2004
Site: Zuihouzakura

"メリークリスマスソフィー♪　夜這いはプレセントなんって嬉し。。。" (Merry Christmas, Sophie ♪ A nightime visit as a present? I'm so hap..." Howl, from Shiawase no Komichi

That was a bit tricky to translate. "Yobai" is when someone sneaks into someone else's bed for the purpose of...erm...hmm...making love :) I didn't want it to sound too H, because the dj is not, so I settled on "nighttime visit" with this explanation. So I still stick with the G rating. Nothing happens visually...or verbally really.

The art; I always start off with the art. I think it's what's probably most important to American readers because I get the feeling from reading some lj's that a lot of them can't read Japanese. The cover and the insides are pretty much exact. Well, Hatsuki-san did the back cover and Etou-san did the front cover (shown) , so the front cover is not indicative of the whole dj, but Hatsuki-san's style is just a little more shoujo-fied that Etou-san's...but still, they are pretty similar in quality, I think? In short, it's good!

There are two stories in here. I would call this shoujo-comedy. I wouldn't go so far as to call it "gag".

夢のプレセント (The Present of a Dream)
Rae Hatsuki wrote this one. It's cute. It's Christmas with Howl! I didn't think of one of the punchlines until I saw it, and I SO agree! You will need to have seen Laputa for this one! Did I spoil it? I hope not. No, I don't think I did. Nope :)
全ては僕の為だけに。(Everthing, Just for Me.)
This one is by Kira Etou...in which Howl buys Sophie a gift ♥

Zuihozakura also put out Shiawase no Komichi and Dream's Dream :) ...and yes, I will review them all! Mwahahaha!

Whee! With this review, I've filled in all the "preview pics" and have at least something for every entry! I just need to tweak some entries up a bit (the older ones when I hadn't decided what format I wanted) and I will post the link to this in a Howl community! Wai! Wai! Oh, maybe I should upload an avatar first...I'm not sure I like this avatar...and I drew another one, but I need to color it. Hmm...

Status: Need to request permission to post pictures.

Triangle (トライアングル）

2005-06-29T10:50:00.000-07:00

Title: Triangle (トライアングル）
Circle: Momozakura
Publisher: Uduki Momozakura
Size: B5
Pages: 36
Type: Offset
Pairing: Howl x Sophie
Rating: G
Publish Date: 05.05.2005
Site: Koharu Biyori is Link Free.

"僕がキレてカブを殺そうとしだす前に。。。” (Before I snap and attempt your murder, Kabu...) Howl, from Triangle.

This is Momozakura's second Howl doujinshi. The first one is "Childhood Dreams"(which I don't have yet :P) . I love the shiny holographic cover on this one :) That's the reason I got it, btw. I don't know much about doujin circles or anything yet, but it looked really fancy and pretty!

The volume contains a single story, a love triangle between Howl, Sophie and... you'll have to get the doujinshi to find out who the third person is! A darker side of Howl and ? is revealed, though this is still only merits a G rating. It's more dramatic than any of the others I've read thus far; quite angsty, really.

There is the barest hint of yaoi in "Triangle" (nothing visually, just a line that makes you think that maybe there's something else going on somewhere...). I don't care, but reading other sites and auctions, it seems some people really do care, so I figured I'd put that out for the people who really do care.

The art was really good, btw. It's a lot like the movie, but slightly shoujo-ized. Howl is very pretty ♥

In short, it's a pretty interesting read. It's a pretty stark plotline; very human, not very fairy tale.

Yasoukyoku ~Nocturne~ (夜想曲)

2005-06-29T10:49:00.001-07:00

Title: Yasoukyoku ~Nocturne~ (夜想曲)
Circle: Angel Rose
Publisher: Amagi, Sayuri (天城小百合)
Size: B5
Pages: 96
Type: Offset
Pairing: Filla x Michael (yaoi)
Rating: NC-17
Publish Date: 08.18.1995
Site: None listed :*(

"おまえ。。。ほんとはおれに抱かれたいんだろ？" (You...[deep inside] you really DO want me to make love to you, don't you?)Filla, from Yasoukyoku

Iya~n! This one made me blush (for reals)! I was so excited to get my hands on the Matendou Sonata doujinshi (by Sayuri Amagi herself!) yesterday! I've loved Matendo Sonata ever since I was little, but I didn't know about the doujinshi until a few weeks ago...I wonder if there's more?

Oh, but it was good...but very...shocking! It's like Amagi, Saruri meets Sugi, Emiko or something! Wow! It was a little embarassing to read! I would say that M.Sonata is like PG-13 or maybe R (because of the violence), but this one is definately NC-17...quite unexpected.

Of course the art is very professional :) Yesh...Filla and Michael look really good :) Very good...uh *blush* Yes, nice, nice...quite bishie, yes...very *drool* Huh? What? Naw, that wasn't me! I don't drool *salivates*

I really, really, really love Matendou Sonata...so I really, really, really loved this one. I would totally spend the $XXX+ that I did spend on this one again. No kidding. That's how much it cost me. You see, it's quite old. I think I'm lucky to have found it at all :) ...but even though I loved it...I don't know how to review this. It's oh well. Let's say though I may enjoy such things I don't talk about them, eh?

Well, the art is just like the manga because the mangaka drew it...so it's just well, the "secret-hidden-desires" version :) Tee hee *blush* Oh, gee...I feel so wierd...

Toki no Mahoutsukai

2005-06-29T10:49:00.000-07:00

Title: Toki no Mahoutsukai
Author: Kuroi, Hiroko (黒井　ひろこ)
Circle: Brother Wolf?
Published: 03.27.2005
Other Info: B5, 18 pages
Type: Doujinshi
Subject.Based On: Howl's Moving Castle (Howl no Ugoku Shiro)
Subject.Main Chara: Howl x Sophie

I loved this one. Howl looks very much like he does in the movie :) Whee :) ! This is a very sweet doujinshi :) It's based around the part in the movie where Sophie sees young Howl...I liked it because it make me think about the movie a bit more...kind of like "Aha! She's right! There was more meaning to that line!) It was a bit funny :) I think it really picked up how the movie "felt" :)

I'm not so sure of how I want to write these manga reviews...so for now I'm just jotting down thoughts...which I'll add to and edit as time goes by :) I think I'd like to put the information in a nice table of some sort...and eventually add some cover scans or something...but I think I'll have to ask the author's permission first, if I can... that would probably be the Right Thing to do...I was wondering if I wanted to do some translations...but I probably don't have time, and I'd rather do paid work than free...but maybe when I feel generous...

Sour - Sweet Time Replay

2005-06-29T10:47:00.000-07:00

Title: Sour-Sweet Time Replay
Author: Tohko Akiba, Fujimino-makeinu
Furigana: No
ISBN: None (doujinshi)
Link: Kemonogoya

Yay! My first doujinshi! Isn't it pretty? *preen* The cover is slightly pearly... :) Fancy!

I'll have to finish the review of this one later :) I had to watch the rest of Jyuuni Kokki to figure out who some of the people were --; There is no furigana next to the names and I think some of the characters are from episodes I hadn't seen yet.

Status: Emailed, waiting for permission to post picture.

にゃん同へようこそ！

2005-06-29T08:50:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Nyanko no Doujinshi (にゃん子の同人誌) (or NyanDou (にゃん同) for short) :) I am your host, Nyanko (にゃん子) This is a world of MAGIC and WONDER...erm...no...it's full of doujinshi (and consequently NOT full of money :P) and reviews. Here are some answers to some questions you may or may not ask (I'll add more as time goes on):

What kind of site is this anyway?
This is my doujinshi review site! It's mostly romance-type, shoujo doujinshi...and then mostly Howl doujinshi (with some Katsumi Nakagawa, Miyazaki and hopefully more Amagi Sayuri thrown in). I might branch out into LOTR or Harry Potter or something (less mainstream, but more me :) I'm an avid manga reader), but you definately WILL NOT find smut, smut, H, hardcore stuff here. There's plenty of sites like that and well *blush* I personally just don't think I could really talk/write about stuff like that (and even if I could, it just wouldn't be in public!). It's just not me. In short, this is a girly-girl Howl♥ Love♥ site. Oh, in case you were wondering there might be a bit of yaoi because a bit of yaoi is healthy and fun, but it's mostly not.
Who are you?
Nyanko. That's all the internet needs to know.
How did you get into doujinshi?
I saw Howl's Moving Castle and couldn't get enough of it :) I wanted more...but there was no more, but wait! There's doujinshi!
What was your first doujinshi?
Sour-Sweet Time Replay. I'd ordered the Howl ones first, but they were shipped from Japan, while this one was from Canada, so it beat the others here.
What does the "rating" mean?
I'm basically going off the MPAA rating system (well, I think they are the people who define movie ratings?)...or rather my interpretation of it. I don't think many doujinshi fans are that young, but well, you never know. The rating system is:
1. G: General Audiences
  Okay for everyone :)
2. PG: Parental Guidance Suggested
  Maybe little kids will have a problem with this (or their parents!). Maybe there's a bit of violence...or a hint of something that's not just hugging or something. Eh, if they'd show it in Ribon, it's probably PG, right? Hmm...but is Ai Yazawa's "Nana" really PG? Hmm....oh, but wait, that's in Cookie, isn't it? Haha.
3. PG-13: Parents Strongly Cautioned
  You might be a bit wierd if you let your kids see this without explaining life, love, hate, etc. Maybe there's a bit of violence...gee, I really don't know what the differencew between PG and PG-13 is. I think I'll just use PG, but I'll leave this here to show what an idiot I am.
4. R: Restricted
  You are wierd if you let real little kids see this. Maybe there's a bit of murder, or maybe a bit of fan service. I guess Sho-Comi would be at this level. It's a comfortable level. Maybe some Lady's Manga would fall into this category, too?
5. NC-17
  I think it may be against some law if you let little kids see this! I guess this would be graphic H or something. You probably won't see this on this site, sorry. Amagi Sayuri is the exception, though! All bow down to Amagi Sayuri (because before there was Howl, there was Filla ♥)!!!