More about shojou

LadyM: Ranma’s shojou, isn’t it?
Wil: No, it’s full of fighting.
LadyM: But Utena’s full of fighting too.
Wil: Besides, Ranma was first published in Shonen Jump.
Me: Ranma’s shonen because the romance is just there to provide an excuse for fighting. Utena’s shojou because the fighting’s just an excuse for romance.

(Speaking of which, Toshimasa Takahashi, the editor-in-chief of Shonen Jump magazine, died unexpectedly a few days ago at the age of 44. I heard about this via ¡Journalista!, an excellent comics weblog.)

A respite from winter

All last month, during the single-digit cold spell, I was pointing out to people that it’s usually worse in February. Well, so far, not so bad. It was 48°F today. Expect 50 tomorrow, but with rain. Not bad at all.

I strolled around the Union Square area today, hunting down that exercise equipment store I’d seen a couple of times but couldn’t remember what it was called or avenue it was on. I eventually found it — a branch of Omni Fitness, on Broadway between 12th and 13th — but not before wandering up and down Third, Fourth, University, and Fifth, as far down as St. Marks Place. They’ve got what I’m looking for, but they’d charge $65 and take 7-10 days to deliver it. I’m better off trying to get someone with a car to help me out.

Stopped off at NY Central Art Supply, picked up a small pad of German oil-painting paper (Ölmalpapier, ’cause everything’s funnier in German), which I figured ought to be fine for acrylic sketching, though now I see that the same company also makes a paper for acrylics. Also a new sketchbook, square, pretty cheaply made with what I now find is pretty crappy paper, but it ought to lie flat for scanning.