Got a good recommendation on Twitter (I think it was kind of tongue-in-cheek, but I ended up running with it) and popped out my longest Aniwords column yet. I’ve kind of been trying to keep them around 750 words, but this one just got away from me…whoops! So, how about a full version of that lovely article thumbnail?
Blog Exclusive Content:
As I said last week, I’m still trying to figure out what cool, fun stuff I can leave here for you guys—based on a suggestion from last week’s comment section…a non-ordered list of some of my favorite anime couples/ships! (And an ask.fm ranking my favorite couples from the current season.)
- Ryuuji x Taiga from Toradora!
- Nia x Simon from Gurren Lagann
- Taichi x Chihaya from Chihayafuru
- Victorique x Kujo from Gosick
- Haruhi x Kyon from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
- Emi x Maou from The Devil is a Part-Timer!
- Mahiro x Nyarko from Haiyore! Nyarko-san
- Tsuda x Shino from Seitokai Yakuindomo
Yeah, so that’s fairly insubstantial, but hopefully it was worth the (minimal) effort in terms of being interesting for you guys!
(Also, if you do have suggestions for future Aniwords columns, I’m all ears!)
Mage in a Barrel 
With only three columns under your belt, “your longest yet” is a pretty low bar. 🙂 🙂
Outside of harem/romance anime, I’m not much into shipping myself… but this AMV popped up in my suggestions one day, and I found it pretty amusing.
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That video is amazing in every way. I want to make love it.
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Whoa, that was fantastic. Literally Haruhi would be the worst person to let ship ever. You disagree? Too bad, it’s already real.
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Oh my GAWSH, Bless. Your ships SUCK!
Mahiro x Nyaruko? HOW COULD YOU? I’ve been shipping the superior Mahiro x Kuuko pairing since 2013: https://fantasticmemes.wordpress.com/2013/05/19/shipping-mahiro-x-kuuko-haiyore-nyaruko-san/
Also, while Taichi deserves all the love and happiness in the world, I can’t see him with Chihaya. Chihaya x Karuta is the correct ship, anyway.
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Blocked for self-promotion of bad shipping blog posts! You will never again sully my blog with your terrible taste in ships while also getting traffic for your own blog!!!
I think if Chihaya ever grows up, she could be a good match for Taichi. I dunno if the way Taichi is attached to her is really healthy for him, though, so there’s that…
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Do yo0u ship anyone from BBB (too lazy to type the English title)? Because the header picture (is that what people call it?) is from BBB.
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I like White x Leo a lot. Leo x Zapp is one that amuses me a lot. Those are the only two that I think I’ve ever really gone for. All the Steven x, Klaus x ships don’t really do anything for me.
And Chain is just too good to be shipped. Guideline #1.
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Thought you’d mention Hibike!, but surprised that the ships are getting that ridiculous. The whole Yuri thing is so overblown but they’re doing it to other characters as well, just because they had a dramatic scene together? Makes me worry that these people take things too far in their head and don’t appreciate the drama on screen.
Great article, really happy for you having an opportunity like this. 🙂
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Thanks! I’m pretty thrilled to be able to be doing this kind of fun writing for such a huge audience.
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Reblogged this on danielomote123.
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Have to agree w/ Frog above. I admire Chihaya as competitor/karuta player, but goddamn she sucks as romantic interest.
Ships…. I like AmixRyo (Sailor Moon, and I don’t give a damn that the latter literally only appeared in a couple of episodes), MiekoxNobe (Your Hands are Whispering), KaoruxRi-chan (Kids on The Slope)….and the prime battleship I’m willing to go in a war with, KeimaxChihiro (TWGOK).
Aniword suggestions:
~OP and/or ED that you never skip
~Style>substance shows, or shows with great production/technical value but crap/inconsequential writing, and whether each is enough to outweigh the other
~Experience with real life anime club
~Unusually creative recap episodes
~Voice actors and do most anime watchers pay attention to their performance quality?
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I’m clinging to the hope that Chihaya actually grows up and becomes an actually good match for Taichi so I can ship them for more reasons than just “Can Taichi’s suffering be over? ;-;”
Keima x Chihiro is a good ship. Season 3 finale aghhhhhh
And thanks for the ideas! Some of those touch on things I’ve wanted to write for a while, but just haven’t felt like I was willing to do them. But Aniwords forces me to write, so yeah!
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I have to admit I don’t quite have the hang of shipping. It just doesn’t quite make sense to me to ship couples that are official canon, actually together, happily ever after, no questions couples. For example, how do you “ship” Takeo and Yamato, when the whole thing is about them being together? Why would you need to root for them or advocate for them? It makes more sense to me to ship couples that are not actually together yet. But maybe I’m just missing something. 😉
The only ship I really care about at the moment is Yona x Hak.
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Shipping to me really is (or should be) more about celebrating a great couple than about advocacy and confrontation. If I enjoy a couple enough that I want to explore more of their lives (or potential lives) together, whether that means reading or writing new adventures for them, or fleshed out scenes that are mentioned but never actually shown in canon, or missing backstory or past events in their relationship, then what does it matter if they’re a canon couple or not? Even for canon couples, there are always new stories that can be told and new angles to explore. If someone’s heart is really into the pair and it inspires them to want to talk about and write about and draw fanart for that couple, then the “promotion” part of it should flow naturally out of the fan’s love and enthusiasm. That’s the best kind of advocacy anyway, much better than writing hatefics or trolling or getting up in people’s grills or other negative/angry things that some fans do. I’ve been brought around to ships (including canon ships) that I never gave a second thought to before by well-written fanfics where the writer clearly loved and appreciated the characters and just wanted to share that. Aggressive “advocates,” on the other hand, usually just end up turning me against the characters they want me to like.
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I dunno, shipping is ambiguous and nebulous and crazy and weird and fun.
Yona x Hak is a good ship, although Yona’s great enough on her own that if she never got into a relationship by her own choice, I’d be more than satisfied. Or she can marry Hak. Either. I’m happy. They’re both great.
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I tend to be a casual shipper most of the time too. I’ve learned over the years from both winning and losing ship wars and being baited countless times that it’s pointless to get too emotionally invested in the outcomes, because no matter what happens you’re more than likely going to feel disappointed on some level. Even if your favorite ship actually defies the odds and becomes canon, it won’t happen exactly the way you want, or the author won’t give it as much development as you’d like, or something else will happen that makes it less than 100% satisfying for you, if for no other reason than that you’re not the author and you don’t think the way he/she does.
Looking back, the first time I ever shipped anyone was probably Rick/Lisa in Robotech. Of course I was only 8 at the time and that was years before the internet, so I had no idea what shipping was. I just knew there was something about their scenes together that I liked (way more than I liked the scenes of Rick with that annoying Minmay).
Anyway, these are a few other anime ships that I’ve liked over the years, and why. This list is by no means exhaustive, it’s just illustrating some things I like to see in a ship.
Kyon/Haruhi (Haruhi Suzumiya) – Key factor: Mutual positive reinforcement. They’re even stronger together than they are individually, and they’re both really strong individuals to begin with.
Shirou/Rin (Fate/Stay Night) – Key factor: Balance/Equality (when certain anime adaptations aren’t screwing it up). Rin is on a much more equal footing with Shirou than either Saber or Sakura, and equality is huge when I’m deciding who to ship, especially in a harem or harem-like setup.
Kenshin/Tomoe (Rurouni Kenshin) – Key factor: A compelling story. This is one of the all-time great tragic love stories in the history of shounen.
Nanoha/Fate (Lyrical Nanoha) – Key factor: Longevity. I have very few yuri ships, but after four seasons and 15 in-universe years, it’s very hard not to like these two.
Yugo/Aki (Silver Spoon) – Key factor: Chemistry. This one echoes your point about chemistry over beauty. Aki’s not the prettiest character, nor is she even my best girl in the series. My best girl is Yoshino, me being a sucker for twintailed redheads and all. But I don’t ship Yugo with Yoshino; they have some cute friendship moments but zero sparks. OTOH, Yugo and Aki have a great relationship dynamic that grows and develops very naturally and believably over the course of the series, and some of their scenes together are pure gold, especially in season 2.
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Casual shipping is the best of both worlds! You get the fun of playing at matchmaker and romance-seer, while not having to get bogged down so intensely with it that it ruins your ability to be a good community member, enjoy the show, or otherwise not suck. (Which isn’t to say all hardcore shippers suck, but being a casual shipper keeps you out of the danger zone better.)
Oh, man how did I forget Hachiken and Mikage? I’m a mess and horrible. That ship is like the best thing ever and holy wow their moments in the second season just turned me into a total puddle. THANK YOU for reminding me of this.
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I don’t know if there’s a right way to ship, but there is a wrong way and ALL YOUR SHIPS SUCK.
Awesome trash can pic though.
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