Fanime Was Lit

June 10, 2016

Well shit has it already been two weeks since Fanime? It’s hard to believe something we looked forward to for so long has already come and gone. We had an insanely good time and it was nice to be “con-goers” again after running a table at SacAnime Winter. I’ve been meaning to do a write up on Fanime but <Goldblum voice> Life…uh…finds a away…to get in the way </Goldblum voice>. Instead I’m gonna write some random sentences and you can fill in the context.

Guys twerk better than girls. Linecon, amiright. Yo Son I heard you like gears. These badges are fucking ugly. Why is a mirror wearing a top hat? Can you feed it to me? Oh Shit, Waddup! It’s Yami Yugi! Micropenis! I’m gonna build a wall and make the titans pay for it. Can you step on me? Hip Hop in the main room. Wake up the hero! Karaoke is lit. CWF! My brother in arms. Everything you know is wrong. Critic Acid and Salt are used to preserve tomatoes.

That probably makes zero sense to most of you reading but if you know, then you know.

So whats next for the Senpai Social Club? Our next confirmed con is SacAnime Summer 2016 where we will have a table in artist alley. We plan to have a couple new releases by the time the con rolls around. There might even be a special release debuting there. Until then be sure to keep up with us here or on our social media profiles to get the latest updates.

Thanks to all the supporters who came and said whats up. It’s always nice interacting with you guys. Special shout out to Jade, Megan, and Percy for kickin’ it with us the whole convention. Also gotta thank Rian Synnth, Karlibra, and Law of EMZ for supporting us. Fanime 2016…twas lit fam.

Stay woke, kohais

- Matthew

2016 Anniversary Release : The White Dugout Tee

May 17, 2016

Where did the time go? There are some days where it feels like only a month had passed since we took our first squad photo at Fanime 2015. With Fanime 2016 right around the corner it’s hard to believe it’s been almost a whole 365 days since this photo was taken.

When we started Senpai Social Club we had no idea it would grow into what it has become. All we knew is that we wanted to become a “thing”. We forged so many ideas in our Playstation Party chats that we knew we had to bring them to life. The first of those ideas would become our flagship shirt design, the Dugout Tee. We originally printed only enough shirts for the three of us but an error by our supplier gifted us with a couple extra shirts. One of which we were able to sell to our very first customer.

Since then it’s been an incredible ride and learning experience. With this being our first major milestone, we’re taking it back to where it all started, the White Dugout Tee. We were originally going to release both color options of the Dugout Tee but ultimately decided to go with black to fit our “all black” motif. However, this is a special occasion and it calls for a special release.

Limited to 20 pieces, the White Dugout Tee will first be available Fanime 2016 attendees. They will then be put up on the web store following the conclusion of the convention. These shirts will not be reprinted once they sell out.

Thank you all for the support over the last year. You guys will never know how much it means to us here at Senpai Social Club. Here’s to you, plebs.

- Matthew

2016 Drop One: The Posted Tee

May 3, 2016

Last Friday we officially kicked off our 2016 line with our first release, the Posted Tee.

We decided to keep things minimalistic with this one. It’s definitely our most subtle shirt and is currently the only design that does not feature a back graphic. If loud and obnoxious is not your style, the Posted Tee is the perfect shirt for you to rep the social club with.

Posted Girl is one of our favorite graphics to date and we hope to see her across your chests! And if you love her as much as we do she might end up on a few other products that we may or may not have in store for you guys…stay posted.

- Matthew

Anime Bento Vol. 1

April 26, 2016

So I’ve spent my time watching a lot of anime lately. I figured I might as well share what I’m watching with you guys. So begins the first installment of Anime Bento where I pick out 5 anime I am currently watching and or have just recently finished watching and talk about my impressions of them.

More often than not, you can expect to see a random assortment of shows that which make up this rundown. Hopefully you can get some interesting opinion on shows you’ve already seen or maybe get some insight into shows you haven’t seen. I cannot stress enough that these are not reviews, just my impressions/thoughts on a show. Although this will involve critique, it will not be anything critical or even objective. Oh, and I don’t read manga, so don’t expect me to draw on any of that when referring to shows that are an adaptation of a manga. With that being said, let’s get into it.

Tokyo Ghoul (Dub) Final Impression:

I decided to blind buy this show on a whim. I mean, I know that the show is incredibly popular, but nothing really drove me to watch it until it came out on blu- ray and I saw it for sale for a relatively low price. Overall, I can say I was surprised at how interested in the show I actually became while watching it. The show by no means is a masterpiece, but I did enjoy it quite a bit. Maybe it has to do with how much I enjoy the idea of “enemies hiding in plain sight”, which is an aspect that I enjoyed very much about Parasyte. Of course, there are a lot of parallels between this show and Parasyte…..I mean a lot, but I do think that while both shows are very similar in the ideas they implement, I think Tokyo Ghoul manages to stand out on its own. I will say that I do think Tokyo Ghoul’s story misses a lot of opportunities to be a better show by not being as dark in it’s “darker” moments as it could have been. I found the lead up to a lot of the tense moments in the show to be promising, but only to have an anti-climactic resolution. While the show left me underwhelmed a lot of the time, I still did find the show enjoyable and would recommend it to people as a casual watch.

Available for stream on Funimation

Tokyo Ghoul √A (Dub) Final Impression:

So directly after finishing Tokyo Ghoul season one, I jumped right into season two, which is a good thing cause the first two episodes of this season are what can be considered the actual conclusion to the first season instead of the cliff hanger ending that it actually had. It felt a little off starting off a new season with essentially the conclusion of the previous one, but hey, I’m not a director, so what do I know? Continuing on from that, the show for me honestly loses all the momentum it had from the first season. A lot of the characters that you watched develop and got to know in the previous season, play lesser roles or are just quiet overall, while new characters are introduced and they themselves don’t do that much either. It’s typical sequel syndrome. The show tries to do a lot more on a bigger scale than what the first season did, but in essentially fewer episodes. It introduced new plot points that honestly didn’t even need to be there. Once the show reached its conclusion, I really couldn’t will myself to care about anything that was happening nor about any of the characters really. That being said, I do think the final scenes of the show are brilliant, just not the build up.

Available for stream on Funimation

Prince of Stride: Alternative (Sub) 1st Impression:

Within this last year, I’ve been getting pretty into sports anime. Well, thats kind of a lie. I’ve been enjoying specific sports anime in particular that are warming me up to the idea of watching more sports anime is a more accurate statement. Namely, Ping Pong The Animation and Haikyu!! have gotten me pretty hype. I should say I have seen and enjoyed Air Gear and Big Windup! in the past, but have never been inspired to check out more sports anime since. So when I saw a show about parkour, I jumped, all pun intended, at the opportunity to get excited about another sports show. After watching the first episode, this show definitely gives me the same kind of vibe that I got from Haikyu!!, which is exactly what I was hoping for. While I still haven’t exactly wrapped my head around how the show’s alternative relay race STRIDE works just yet, I’m sure just like every other sports show out there, there will be plenty of opportunities where the show explains the sport to me. I originally watched the first episode subbed, but since the show is being simulcast dubbed, I decided to wait till the series is finished and watch it that way.

Available for stream on Funimation

Haikyu!! 2nd Season (Sub) Final Impression:

Speaking of Haikyu!!, I could not wait to start the second season when it initially started airing. I absolutely loved the first season, so it was hard to hold back from watching the second season as it was airing since I knew I would run right through it. I wanted to wait till it was finished and I was not disappointed. The show continues to do an excellent job of showing the trials and challenges of growing together as a team, and shows that just having talent alone is not enough if you want to be the best. With all the initial major relationships having been formed in the first season, the second season wastes no time in getting right to the meat of the show, its volleyball matches. Just when you thought the team was at its best at the end of last season, at the start of the second season you see just how weak and underdeveloped they really are in the bigger scale of things. The journey of seeing them correct their mistakes from the first season and becoming an even stronger team is inspiring at times, and at others grueling. Its a tough battle, but I loved every second of it. If you have any or even the slightest interest in this show, I highly recommend you check it out.

Available for stream on Crunchyroll

The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan (Dub) 1st Impression:

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya will forever be a show I hold in high regards. It was one of the earlier anime I ever watched and also is a show that is just quintessentially anime through and through. Even more so though than that, I loved the movie The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya. To me, that movie was the perfect way to end a series like Haruhi Suzumiya and it did it in such a way that didn’t play to the lowest common denominator like a lot of other anime series movies tend to do. That being said, I approached the spin-off series, The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan, with a level of skepticism. The series takes place in the alternate universe that was introduced in the Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya, but completely misses the mark on what the significance of that alternate universe was in the cannon of the show. The show basically seems to disregard anything connecting it to the original series/movie besides the use of characters and location in favor of making a conventional slice of life romantic comedy. Granted, the show is enjoyable and the returning cast members on the dub end of the show reprising their roles is awesome, it just loses anything that it had going into the show that separated it from the status quo. The show loses the brilliance it gained from the original introduction of the Nagato Yuki in the movie, and instead gives us a Nagato Yuki who feels just like any other reluctant shy girl from a slice of life romantic comedy anime. That’s not exactly the worst thing ever, but in the big scheme of things, there really isn't anything here that resembles what made the original series and movie so great.

Available for stream on Funimation

I’m currently typing this while I should be preparing a debate for my argumentation class

- Daniel

#62M9 Button Pack

April 9, 2016

Having just wrapped up our second “6 To My 9” Giveaway, I figured now would be a good time to elaborate on the prize. If you didn’t know already the prize is an exclusive button pack consisting of five different designs. This pack will not be available for sale and can only be obtained through winning the giveaway. Up until this point only two of the five designs have been officially unveiled. The pack as a whole is random as fuck so allow me to break down and explain why each design is included.

DABBIN DAPSSome of you may know back in January we had an Artist Alley table at SacAnime Winter 2016. The table provided us with our first IRL meeting with our now friend, artist Book Jackson. He was unable to snag a table at the convention so we of… — **DABBIN DAPS**
Some of you may know back in January we had an Artist Alley table at SacAnime Winter 2016. The table provided us with our first IRL meeting with our now friend, artist Book Jackson. He was unable to snag a table at the convention so we offered to advertise his art in exchange for an original piece. He drew up our mascot Daps doing our signature pose for that convention, The Dab. Needless to say we loved it and wanted to return the favor. The Dabbin’ Daps button was included to utilize the drawing and give Book more exposure as a thank you.

WONTON SOUP!As fun and exciting as having a table during a convention is there is also a lot of downtime that goes with it. You can only see the same cosplayers walk by so many times before you have to find new ways to entertain yourself. We had a f… — **WONTON SOUP!**
As fun and exciting as having a table during a convention is there is also a lot of downtime that goes with it. You can only see the same cosplayers walk by so many times before you have to find new ways to entertain yourself. We had a few extra buttons around so we offered them to anyone who would come to our table and yell “Wonton Soup!”. Why Wonton Soup? Because it’s delicious. Why Lemongrab? Because having anyone else on the button would be UNACCEPTABLE!

BRA MEMORIALI’m now realizing there is an unintentional theme forming with all the designs. The Pink Bra button stems from yet another SacAnime Winter instance. As we were setting up our Artist Alley table on Day Zero we ran into a small problem. Af… — **BRA MEMORIAL**
I’m now realizing there is an unintentional theme forming with all the designs. The Pink Bra button stems from yet another SacAnime Winter instance. As we were setting up our Artist Alley table on Day Zero we ran into a small problem. After some brain storming I concluded that the solution to our problem was a giant pink bra. The bra also served as a landmark to direct people to our table incase they had trouble finding us. Unfortunately we were told to remove it because selling hentai is ok but a hot pink bra is offensive.

FACESWe just thought these would be funny. — **FACES**
We just thought these would be funny.

There you have it, the #62M9 Giveaway button pack. Our gift to you. Be sure to enter the next round of the giveaway on May 6th!

-Matthew

Pokemon 20: Here To Remind Me I'm Old

February 11, 2016

Lately, I’ve been watching what some would say is an unhealthy amount of Funhaus videos using the YouTube App on my PS4. As some of you may know there is no ad blocker on the app, therefore I’m forced to watch at least 10 seconds of any given ad. The Pokemon 20 ad came on about every other video and it wasn’t until the 20th (see what I’m doing?) time I saw that little indian boy running that it hit me. Pokemon is 20 years old

In first (or maybe it was second, I’m old) grade a couple of my friends were talking about this awesome new cartoon known as “Pokemon”. They turned to me and ask me “Whose your favorite Pokemon?”. I had no idea what Pokemon was at the time but from what I understood it was a show about monsters that fought each other. Instinct told me any show that involved monsters fighting usually had a dinosaur in it so I looked them dead in the eye and confidently said “The Dinosaur One.” Sure enough Charmander and all his evolutions are still my favorite Pokemon to this day. I retold that story because I still remember that moment perfectly. It was my first introduction to Pokemon, which unknowingly gave me my first taste of anime fandom.

Pokemon was the first video game series to completely consume me. I still remember walking around Target with my copy of Red version in hand alternating the box from front to back. When Pokemon Yellow was announced my Dad drove me to Toys R Us to reserve my copy. I lost my shit when Pokemon Gold & Silver revealed to me that there was more than just 151 different Pokemon. Pokemon Stadium was the last Pokemon game from my childhood that had its grip on me until Fire Red and Soul Silver tugged on my leash. And now here I am, a twenty-something year old trying to EV train my gang of pocket monsters.

Of course you can’t reminisce about Pokemon without mentioning the trading card game. I was never into baseball cards so Pokemon cards were the start of my short lived card collecting career. I remember going into collectible stores and staring at the Charizard card through the display case. My little ass hole brain couldn’t comprehend why my Dad wouldn’t just buy this $80 piece of shiny paper for me. I mean, I asked nicely. My binder game was on point though, with my whole collection beautifully displayed in protective sleeves. Unfortunately I have since lost my entire collection.

Last but not least, the Anime. I bought the VHS (google it kids) which contained the first three episodes of the original series. From the moment Ash got fried to shit by thunder I was hooked. I remember having to constantly adjust the tv antenna (google that too kids) so I can watch the show since I didn’t have cable. I wasn’t able to watch every episode but there are two that stand out to me in particular. The first being when Ash decided to try to release Pikachu to be with the wild Pikachus and the Cubone episode. Those episodes did what no other cartoon (or show) had ever done to me before, they got me choked up with emotion. The theatrical movie gave me my first dose of plot twist when they killed Ash for five minutes. What a rollercoaster ride that was, and I HATE rollercoasters.

When I think back to Pokemon and my childhood I have nothing but good memories. It played such a huge role in my life and shaped a lot of who I am today. Who knows if Senpai Social Club would even be a thing if Pokemon didn’t exist. So Happy Birthday Pokemon! Twenty years later you still find ways to improve on the same formula that got us all hooked in the first place. Here’s to hoping history repeats itself and you give all the jr Senpais the same experiences you gave us.

Gotta go catch em all, later Plebs

- Matthew

High School [Anime] Never Ends

January 31, 2016

It’s a question I ask myself more often than I’d like to admit as a dedicated anime fan. I lament the thought of even asking myself such question for I know it suggests the future possibility of letting go of something I don’t want to, though the question still finds ways into creeping into my psyche. Ten years from now, will I still love anime the way I do now? Part of me says “yeah, no duh, it shouldn’t even be a question”, but another part of me recognizes that I’m only getting older, and anime characters? Well they’re about as stuck in high school as my old classmate Justin. Well, until he eventually dropped out after his third semester as a super senior. Point is, as the years go by, my ability to relate or even remember how to relate to a majority of anime characters in most anime shows will start to fade.

As high school kids in real life start to more and more resemble toddlers to me, so do the matters of high school kids in anime seem more trivial to me. Sure I can relate to the angst and uncertainty these characters feel, but I can also see the stupidity and naivety just as easily. The struggles that these characters experience feels less and less real or compelling because the real life you is smarter and more cynical. Sorry, I might be projecting just a bit.

While I can confidently say I still enjoy anime set in high school settings such as shows like Clannad, Full Metal Panic!, Angel Beats, and School Rumble just to randomly name a few, I do find myself tending to enjoy shows more often when they handle more young adult matters. Not because they’re more mature per say, but because I find them just more relatable. This is to be expected as this is where I currently find myself in life. Some shows I really enjoyed, that partially had to do with their more older setting, include Golden Time, Wagnaria!!, and Servant x Service.

All three shows are fairly silly and comedic, but to me they have a certain relatable charm that capture where I’m at in life. Yeah Golden Time is still a romantic comedy anime, but it focuses more heavily on the quality of the relationships as opposed to the idea of just getting into a relationship for the sake of being in one. Like how Golden Time is in a college setting, that was the main difference I noticed in the relationships I formed while in college as opposed to the ones I had in high school. In terms of Wagnaria!! and Servant x Service, both anime deal with joining the work force. While these shows do feature high school kids, the main drive of the shows is very much becoming an adult and working. No silly high school shenanigans, just silly work shenanigans. The humor is the same, but at the same time not, cause it’s not set in high school. It sounds silly, but it’s also really all there is to it. If a show can keep away from the boundaries of a high school, then it’s less likely for people like myself to project their disdain for the immaturity of high school onto the show itself. Everyone can relate to a character maybe being stupid, but high school stupid is a time sensitive experience we will all outgrow. Except for Justin. Justin just dropped out of it.

My main point out of all of this is that anime relies heavily on the high school setting when I don’t think it has to. Sure, it’s what the market demands, but I also believe there is a largely almost untouched young adult market that is looking for more shows that speak to them. Anime doesn’t need to be set in high school to keep its charm. At this point, its become almost absurd how many shows utilize the high school setting. It in of itself has become almost a joke within the anime community along with the obligatory hot springs and beach day episodes. All I ask is for a larger recognition from anime studios that the older anime community is only going to continue to grow and that there is a lot of room to thrive in a market that doesn’t appeal to just teen angst and up skirt panty shot fetishes. Anime set in high school should never disappear, but it also shouldn’t be more than half of the shows coming out every season, but what do I know? I’m just a nerd with a laptop.

I’m currently typing this while marathoning an anime set in high school.

- Daniel

It all started with three dudes in a bathroom.

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