iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Wow... never seen this Tomo before (featured in the bonus booklet featured in the Azumanga Daioh DVD release by ADV). Surprisingly strong eyebrows.

A drawing of Tomo Takino in a somewhat dynamic pose, cracking her knuckles. Notably, her eyebrows are slightly thicker and more prominent than they're normally depicted.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Hm… a comment I found on this video talking about the translation of the dialect youtu.be/uWtN8UlwRlI (I thought it could point me in the right direction) does seem to imply there was some special feature or interview somewhere, so maybe your memory was correct. Can't find any record of it, though.

A screenshot of a YouTube comment by @FitterSpace that reads as follows:

"I can't remember where I heard this from, but someone from ADV talked about their choice to give Osaka a Houston accent for the dub. I think they said it was the first time an honest effort was made to translate a Kansai dialect in an anime dub because so many of the jokes in Azumanga Daioh rely on it (I think it was a DVD bonus feature, or maybe an interview somewhere). I just remember them saying they chose a southern accent because a lot of Americans speak that way, and having that one friend from the south (or being that southerner in another part of the country) is an experience a lot of Americans can relate to. Southerners also understand that they sound 'different' from standard American English, and they're often stereotyped, but in different ways than Kansai folk. Plus, ADV being based in Texas made it really easy to find someone who could pull off a southern accent. I do think a heavy Brooklyn accent would have been a more accurate choice, but like you said, I've never met anyone who actually sounds like that. I could go on all day about the interesting choices they made for the English dub, because I love seeing how they handle the impossible translations. A lot of it is technically inaccurate, but I can appreciate the effort they put into it, especially for its time. Also, there are several publications of the manga, each one translating her accent differently. The omnibus is the latest version, and it gives her an exaggerated Appalachian dialect."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Not quite a Boston accent, but the first English translation of the manga (as published by ADV Manga) gave her a sort of New York accent... though it may have not always been the most clear.

An image compiling two strips from the ADV Manga release of Azumanga Daioh. On the left is the introduction of Osaka, where her dialectical introduction is translated as "yo, how you doin'?" (with boldface emphasis on "you"). On the right is when Tomo argues with Osaka that she's a "phony Osakan," where takoyaki has been replaced with a "meatball sandwich," and "nandeyanen" has been translated as "fuhgeddaboudit!"

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Was looking up Saint Young Men and did a double take. Huh!? Did Japan start naming real-life stuff like Ultraman monsters? "Typhoon Hagibis"?

A screenshot of a passage from the Wikipedia page for Saint Young Men. It's cut off at the start, but it reads as follows:

"...October 5 and 12, 2019. Only the first half of the second season was broadcast in October because of the Typhoon Hagibis and it had to be rescheduled to January 25, 2020. The ten-episode third season premiered and finished before it on NHK, on January 11 and 18, 2020 respectively.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Every time I see the Tick holding this coffee cup, I think of the damn Shinji image of him doing the exact same thing. At this point they're brothers in arms to me.

An image of a panel from The Tick #1 where the Tick holds a cup of coffee and says "no, I'm a tick" next to a cropped screenshot of Neon Genesis Evangelion episode 7, where Shinji is holding a cup of coffee in the same pose.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

I'm imagining a guy who is fully convinced that Bakugo is an homage/rip-off of the Human Bomb, a semi-obscure superhero from the 1940s.

A screenshot of Wikipedia. Beneath a heading for "Roy Lincoln" and a subheading for "Quality Comics," it states the following:

"Roy Lincoln is originally a scientist working with his father on a special explosive chemical called '27-QRX'. When Nazi spies invade his lab and kill his father, he ingests the chemical to prevent it from falling into their hands. As a result, Lincoln gains the ability to cause explosions in any object he touches, particularly through his hands. He can only control his abilities using special asbestos gloves, which were retconned to be 'Fibro-wax' gloves after..."

It cuts off there.

An image of a short character bio for the Human Bomb.

An image of the cover for DC Comics' Freedom Fighters #1, featuring the Human Bomb.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Every so often I remember the Marvel Mangaverse version of Captain America, and how she seems to be clearly modeled after Yukari from Azumanga Daioh. *Why* did they do this? It confounds me.

An image showcasing a few frames of Yukari Tanizaki, from the anime adaptation of Azumanga Daioh.

An image of the Marvel Mangaverse version of Carol Danvers as Captain America, shouting "Avengers Assemble!" as other Mangaverse superheroes surround her (Iron Man, the Human Torch, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Spider-Woman, and Black Cat).

An image showcasing a couple of panels of the Marvel Mangaverse version of Carol Danvers as Captain America.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

A random YouTube stream that popped up on my feed seems to have (accidentally?) recreated the famous visual from the classic Argentine comic El Eternauta.

A screenshot of a YouTube thumbnail and its accompanying information. The thumbnail is a close-up the Lethal Company player character with the eyes from Tom Lea's "That Two-Thousand-Yard Stare" imposed over the visor. The video title is "I lied, we're playing lethal now" and it is uploaded by the account "Dova," with 17 views and a stream time of 3 hours ago.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Yeah, I certainly don't think these are the kinds of books you'll run into by chance at a Barnes and Noble. Surprisingly/confusingly... it seems that the US department store Target (learning now that they don't have them in Canada) has listings for them on their website??

A screenshot of the Target mobile website, with listings visible for the first volume of Sabrina Online and Sabrina Online: Baby Steps.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Damn. Always a shame to see celebrities ending up in bad places later on in life.

A screenshot of a news article from the BBC with the headline "Silence of the Lambs moth found in school compost."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

I've been marking any ads about or using AI as something I want to see less of (not that it always works). It's weird seeing the "genres" they're throwing at me now. I don't think Romania had anything to do with this.

A screenshot of the YouTube mobile app, with the options pulled up below a Google ad featuring its AI search features. The "see more" and "see less" buttons describe this as a "Google Romania ad."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

There are actually print versions of Sabrina Online that have been out for a while now! Both the original webcomic has been published in print (as two volumes) in addition to the more recent stuff (seemingly whenever a big enough arc/set of arcs wrap up). But aren't these... Sabrina *Offline*?

An image of the cover for the first volume of Sabrina Online.

An image of the cover for the second volume of Sabrina Online.

An image of the cover for Sabrina Online: Baby Steps.

An image of the cover for Sabrina Online: Homecoming & Skunks' Day Out.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Damn... Still thinking back to Deltarune Chapter 4. This reveal was crazy.

A screenshot of the Titan fight from Deltarune Chapter 4. However, it isn't a typical screenshot—the Titan is Sam Reich. He's been here the whole time.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Went to the comic store and was shocked to be greeted with my hero the Flaming Carrot, who is apparently guest-starring in a new Santos Sisters miniseries. Sure didn't see this coming!

A photograph of the cover for the first issue of the "Fun Special Mini Series" of the Santos Sisters, featuring the Flaming Carrot.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Damn—really, Google? I always thought she had those powers because of the radioactive spider that bit her.

A screenshot of a Google search result of the Marvel Database page for Cindy Moon. The website preview says the following:
"Cindy has a borderline social anxiety disorder, granting her superhuman strength, speed, toughened flesh, and numerous arachnid-like abilities."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

Doing some research… Um. They do Not call themselves that. (Okay, I actually did some research—it seems "yaoista" is a Spanish term that is used to this day, but there's nearly no record I can find of it in English sources. Like one GameFAQs walkthrough and that's about it.)

An image of a text passage from "The Americanization of Anime and Manga: Negotiating Popular Culture" by Antonia Levi. The text is as follows:
"But the 'Yaoistas,' as some of them like to call themselves, tend to be more Japanophile than any other fandom. The reason is probably because they are still in the same situation that anime and manga fans were in ten years ago. Yaoi has not yet mainstreamed on the Cartoon Network and..."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

My terrifying new Deltarune theory...

An image pointing out that the non-binary flowers from Deltarune are named "Seth" and "Green," like the actor Seth Green. This leads into the fact that Seth Green also portrays Chris (from Family Guy).

An image continuing from the previous slide, taking "non-binary Seth Green" and equating it to "non-binary Chris" (from Family Guy). For Deltarune fans, the phrase "non-binary Chris" will remind them of the character Kris. The bottom of the image then has a few absurd parallels and loose connections between Chris (from Family Guy) and Kris (from Deltarune).

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

In Japanese, 裏 (ura) is often used in video game contexts, like 裏ボス (ura-boss) meaning "secret boss." When I was researching this, I learned that Japanese has the term "ura-menu." * Kris, you need to order a 4x4! We need to get another Shadow Crystal! ❤️ Protein Style® Animal Style® * NOOO!!!

An image of the "not-so-secret menu" from In-N-Out Burger, notably containing both "Animal Style" and "Protein Style."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

DELTARUNE SPOILERS #deltarune #deltarunespoilers #deltarunechapter5 Word on the street is that people are calling this character "Taco."

A drawing of Aqua from Deltarune doing her signature cool pose.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

Made the mistake of looking at the Fandom wiki for Earthbound, and they're telling people that Onett is pronounced "wunt." Yeah yeah yeah, it's ONEtt TWOson THREEd FOURside, but the original Japanese "オネット" kinda tells you English speakers had the right idea at first. One't!?

An image of the very first part of the page for Onett on the Fandom Earthbound Wiki. It reads "Onett (/wʌnt/)."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 23/05/2026

If anyone's curious about the aforementioned excerpt, it was the incomprehensible "cocks / you're the best" thing with Maya and Ritsuko that sometimes gets posted when people talk about Maya. For some reason, people never source the right doujinshi when people ask where it's from.

An image of a couple of panels from the Evangelion doujinshi "MERRY BOX" by 黒てんぐ (Kuro Tengu) translated into English, where Maya spins around and then says "cocks," prompted Ritsuko to respond and tell her "you're the best."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

What a fun surprise! I was looking for the origin of a strange excerpt from an Evangelion doujinshi that gets spread around sometimes... but instead I was completely shocked to find the Genshiken! What the hell are you guys doing here!?

An image of a page from "ASUKA TRIAL 2" by 黒てんぐ (Kuro Tengu), featuring Asuka and Shinji making a special bowl of Ramen adorned with Asuka imagery.

An image of a page from "ASUKA TRIAL 2" by 黒てんぐ (Kuro Tengu), noting that the "Asuka Special" ramen comes with a figurine, before showing that some members of the Genshiken—Madarame, Sasahara, Kugayama, and Tanaka—are also at this shop.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

Dang it... I want to listen to the Charade theme, but Rivers Cuomo won't leave. Go away, Rivers! Shoo!

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

Michael Jackson's MOONWALKER with "Overwhelming Power" (圧倒する力) from the soundtrack of Space Runaway Ideon (伝説巨神イデオン)

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

This is just a work-in-progress test (and there are many other factors going into this font that I still may need to work the kinks out of)... but I'm looking forward to being able to share more about this later on. (18/18)

An image of a work-in-progress font, displaying only the text "Hamburgefonstiv."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

On the other hand, we have Lightmorning. I think this might be the best example of a proper and respectful English font taking on the aesthetic of a Japanese/Chinese typeface. (12/18)

An image showing the "Lightmorning" font, by Jin Hashiba (http://bridgeco.jp/ or Twitter @bridgeco_jp).

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

This blog post www.webcreatorbox.com/blog/japanes... gave me a nice selection of examples for fonts that face this problem. "ポ" for "M," "尺" for "R," "あ" for "a"—it's not synthesis, but rather just appropriation. (11/18)

An image showing the "TokyoSoft," "Kaneiwa," and "Pray for Japan" English fonts.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Now, the thing about that Excel Saga logo is that it's getting into the territory of "mimicry typefaces." America has a bad history with stereotypically "Asian"-looking typefaces as shorthand to give readers an exotic or oriental feeling, disconnected from any real culture. (9/18)

An image of a sign at the 1893 Chiacgo World's Fair that seems to state "日本茶園" followed by "Japanese Tea Gardens" in a "wonton font," composed of large triangular brush strokes.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Sometimes English releases will take some of the aesthetics of text logos a bit more directly, like this version of Excel Saga (エクセル・サーガ). I think the preservation of the dakuten at the end is funny. It looks a little like [EXCEL SAGA"]. (8/18)

The Japanese cover for Excel Saga (エクセル・サーガ) vol. 1.

The English cover for Excel Saga vol. 1.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

A while ago, a friend of mine noticed that the English Ace Attorney "Objection!" graphic, strangely enough, has some Japanese calligraphic inspiration (note the ascenders and tittles). Funnily enough, we also get some dual-language blackletter for Barok van Zieks' graphics. (7/18)

An image of the original Japanese version of the "Objection!" (意義あり！) graphic from the Ace Attorney series.

An image of the English version of the "Objection!" graphic from the Ace Attorney series.

An image of the original Japanese version of Barok van Zieks' "Objection!" (意義あり！) graphic from The Great Ace Attorney, the subseries of Ace Attorney.

An image of the English version of Barok van Zieks' "Objection!" graphic from The Great Ace Attorney, the subseries of Ace Attorney.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Getting into typographic design in general (and less about trying to "trick" people about the language they're looking at), I always think about this Japanese logo design for Princess Knight/リボンの騎士, which is clearly based on the blackletter style. Very fun yet clear! (6/18)

An image showing some traditional blackletter book hand.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Unfortunately, as a native English speaker, I don't think there's any way that I would get confused and try to read either of these as English text—though I do appreciate the aesthetics of them. What I think *is* potentially confusing is... the font "Kapakana" (かぱかな). (4/18)

An image showcasing the "Kapakana" font by Kousuke Nagai (Twitter @sigurepunch008), specifically in all hiragana. The following text is written:

"じんるいしゃかいのすべて
のこうせいいんのこゆうの
そんげんとびょうどうで
ゆずることのできないけんり
とをしょうにんすることは"

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

It seems one brave soul—bluecheeseman on the Japanese blogging service Note—stepped forward to try and answer the same question. note.com/bluecheesema... Below are their katakana script and hiragana script, based on serif text (roman type) and sans-serif text, respectively. (3/18)

An image showcasing a katakana typeface modeled after a traditional English serif typeface (also known as roman type).

An image showcasing a hiragana typeface modeled after an English sans-serif typeface (also known as gothic type).

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

First of all, a lot of Japanese discussion also centers around the English font "Electroharmonix." While it's similar to "Soul of Coffee," it doesn't exclusively use existing Japanese characters, and instead modifies them to be (a little) more readable as English letters. (2/18)

An image showcasing the English-language font "Electroharmonix," by Typodermic Fonts Inc.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Alright, taking the mask off now. A few years ago, this "らロひレロチてロチチモモ" (Soul of Coffee) thing went kind of viral, and even made its way into Detective Conan—English text using Japanese letterforms, confusing anyone who knows Japanese. …But what about the reverse?

A photo of a cup of coffee with the Japanese letters "らロひレロチてロチチモモ" written on it in place of the English text "Soul of Coffee," due to a slight resemblance between the characters.

A panel from the original Japanese release of Detective Conan (名探偵コナン) featuring the aforementioned concept of writing "てロチチモモ" for "coffee."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

This might be a better test for everyone. 日本語話者、これはどうですか。

An image of some text in the Kapakana (かぱかな) font.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

English speakers! What do you think of this? 日本語話者、これが読めますか？

An image containing two sets of text from an experiment done by bluecheeseman on the Japanese blogging service Note.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

The Avenging Metaist (復讐のメタイスト) is an absolutely crazy oneshot. There's a lot more to it than just this, but... I actually burst out laughing when I read the two pages I share below. I wonder what would happen to "gyaru who's kind to otaku" discourse if they read this…

An image of the thumbnail cover for The Avenging Metaist.

An image of the main cover for The Avenging Metaist.

An image of page 9 of The Avenging Metaist. It introduces a character identified as "Shiyu," who loudly and happily greets the protagonist, calling him "Otaku." He awkwardly responds to her greeting.

An image of page 10 of The Avenging Metaist. The narration introduces Shiyu as "a gal who's kind to otaku," as the two continue to talk.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

After months of not doing it (being busy, getting sick, then still being busy), I ended up finally writing another little article for myself. This one is called "Boku no Opinion on Fandom Perception of Japanese Language." I will be talking (complaining) about the image below.

An image from the social media of the Kodansha Manga Academy, which talks about the importance of the "henshusha," which they clarify is not a term for "editor" and is instead "a role unique to Japanese publishing," before stating that "there's no English word that does it justice."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

Since that Obama was edited to look like the mutant cockroaches from Terraformars... the transitive property should apply, and thus Zeit looks like those, too. Purchasing this action figure immediately and customizing it into the first Totally Accurate™️ Zeit Zeiger action figure.

A photograph of the Terraformar figure made by Figma in a running position.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

Not to stir shit, but... baffling comments have began appearing. Even if there are bad choices in some of the later points the first person brings up... do they want Pyra and Mythra to be called "Flame" and "Light"? Have both of these commenters never seen any words with "pyro" in them before!?

A screenshot of a comment that begins with the following:

"Congrats on five years. The Dr. Slump patch, the trailers, the whole approach of championing obscure games. Great work. The Segagaga situation is a cautionary tale worth telling.
On 'wokealizers,' though: you dismiss this too quickly. Lumping everyone in with the one guy arguing about word order in your replies isn't fair. The frustration comes from real, documented patterns.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Nearly every character and location renamed, stripping deliberate thematic naming. Homura and Hikari (flame and light) became Pyra and Mythra, losing the symbolic duality the writers intended."

A screenshot of a reply that states the following:

"f*ck me. I grew up speaking english.
i had no idea pyra meant something fire. and mythra meant light ?
wait i looked it up it's not english. its greek. might as well just use japanese at that point. and mythra makes no sense"

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Nirvanna the Band the Show "The ボトムズ"

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 02/03/2026

Just stumbled on an interesting fact I've never heard mentioned before: the original Japanese packaging for Tamagotchi was labeled with English text saying "Tamagotch." This makes it slightly more clear that it's a portmanteau between "tamago" (Japanese for "egg") and "watch."

An image of the original Japanese packaging for the first series of Tamagotchi, with the title being an all-caps rendering of "Tamagotch."

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

Hey #genshiken fans (the handful that are on this site), I'm starting a project where I hope to go through the Genshiken manga and analyze the official English translation chapter by chapter, noting unique elements of the translation and (especially) pop culture elements that may have been missed.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 12/12/2025

A Phantom of the Paradise icon I drew two years ago, and one I drew just now. I guess I just really like using the Phantom as an icon.

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Commander Cello @commandercello.bsky.social · 01/12/2025

A little bit of sleuthing led me to Trends International as well as the official name "Batman Manga Punch" (www.trendsinternational.com/st4630.html). While I can't be sure, I saw somewhat similar "manga" takes for Disney Princesses and Star Wars items while searching for the listing on their site...

An image of a Disney Princesses poster with a classic shoujo anime art style.

An image of some wall art for The Mandalorian depicting Grogu in a manga-like style, including Japanese sound effects.

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