Explanation of Libido in anime Seems like libido is the energy source for mechas in various series such as Star Driver, and Captain Earth. Exactly what is this libido it speaks of? Lust? Why is it that the world will supposedly end if something consumes all libido?

In simple terms, libido is another word used to describe life force, or orgone energy. You can think of it like mana.

  Orgone energy is a hypothetical universal life force originally proposed in the 1930s by Wilhelm Reich. -source

To answer your second question (paraphrasing from the source article):
Libido generates orgone energy, so:

No libido -> no orgone energy -> no life.


What is the episode of Naruto where the Second Hokage compliments Naruto on his Sage Mode abilities? I'm looking for a specific episode of Naruto in the war arc where Tobirama makes a comment about Naruto and him learning Sage Mode at Mount Myōboku. If I remember it was some time when they learned that Sage Chakra is effective at combating Madara.

There are two instances where Tobirama compliments Naruto.

The first instance is when they learn that only Senjutsu works on The Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki: Obito. In Episode 379, they discover about it and in episode 380, Tobirama compliments Naruto because he feels he is fighting beside his elder brother Hashirama.

In Episode 381, he compliments Naruto as he thinks he might be the only one to surpass Hashirama as the Hokage.


Is Misa Amane's early death a plothole in Death Note? According to the wiki, when a Shinigami dies, their remaining lifespan is given to the human they saved.

  Shinigami who die are reduced to dust, and their remaining lifespan is given to the human they saved.

Since Rem killed L and Watari, she gained their remaining lifespans. Additionally she probably still had some lifespan left. On top of that Misa was already given a lot of lifespan from Gelus (from which she lost 75% again). So does this mean all of this lifespan is transferred to Misa Amane?!

Yet according to her wiki page, she dies in 2011 at the age of 26, only seven years after Rem died.

Does this mean that humans are also capable of reducing their own lifespans? Or would the author have made a mistake by letting Misa die as early as she has? I know she lost 75% of her remaining lifespan through the two eye deals, but you'd think that the cumulation of L, Watari and Rem's remaining lifespans would be greater than just one year, wouldn't you?

It isn't a plothole. There's a rule in the Death Note that specifically covers this.

  The use of the Death Note in the human world sometimes affects other human's lives or shortens their original life-span, even though their names are not actually written in the Death Note itself. In these cases, no matter the cause, the god of death sees only the original life-span and not the shortened life-span.

(Source: Volume 8 of the manga)

Short Answer: It doesn't matter how much time Misa gained from the shinigami, or how much she lost from halving her lifespan. Every time someone relevant to your fate is killed by the Death Note, the future changes and your lifespan is recalculated.

Misa was living for the sake of Light. Light was killed by the Death Note. It would have been strange if her recalculated lifespan hadn't been dramatically shorter than before.

The fact she died on Valentine's Day in the year following Light's death strongly suggests she committed suicide because he was dead. This is also shown at the end of the anime.

Longer Answer: The same way killing a murderer with the Death Note can extend the lives of their future victims, killing someone with the Death Note can shorten the lives of their loved ones.

We see both of these examples take place with Misa. Her life had ended with the mugging, but she was indirectly allowed to keep living by the Death Note. Later, she had a long life ahead of her, but the Death Note indirectly gave her a premature death.

The best part of this rule is the last sentence: "In these cases, no matter the cause, the god of death sees only the original lifespan and not the shortened lifespan."

So basically, the lifespans that shinigami see aren't reliably accurate. They can only see the person's original lifespan. If the Death Note indirectly decreases someone's lifespan, that person's visible lifespan won't change.

This rule was most likely created by the author just to help ensure there wouldn't be any plotholes.

Note: This only holds true for the Death Note indirectly shortening people's lives. The user's original lifespan will still visibly decrease if they trade half their lifespan for shinigami eyes (as shown when Rem is reunited with Misa, as she is able to tell that Misa traded half her lifespan again).

The user's lifespan will also visibly increase if the Death Note indirectly lengthens someone's lifespan. Rule LIX states:

  A human death caused by the Death Note will indirectly lengthen some other human’s original length of life even without a specific intention to lengthen a particular person’s original life span in the human world.

(Source: Volume 10 of the manga)

The rule about shortened lifespans, rule XLII, is the only rule which states that "in these cases" the shinigami can't see the correct lifespan. There is never any mention of this regarding lengthened lifespans.


Is it possible to combine all five chakra elements? The title says it all... but I'll elaborate:

Initially we see techniques derived from a single chakra element (Katon, Doton, Suiton, Fuuton and Raiton). These are the most common, since usually a ninja can master only one chakra nature (since normally ninjas tend to have an affiliation with only one chakra nature)
Later we discover these can be combined in a number of ways, creating new elements (Mokuton=Doton+Suiton, Ranton=Raiton+Suiton, Youton=Katon+Doton, among several others). From what I understand, these are usually transmitted as a Kekkei Genkai. But I believe they can also be created by the combinations of the elements, by ninja who didn't inherit it from other generations (correct me if I'm wrong). These are not uncommon, but less frequent than the ones above (there are ninja who can master and possess affiliation to more than one chakra nature: Sasuke comes to mind, since he can master both Katon and Raiton. Katon is his clan's natural affiliation, and he mastered Raiton too. However, I don't remember if he has ever combined the both of them)
Even later, we find about combinations of even more elements by ninja who can master several elements, such as Muu (Nidaime Tsuchikage) and Oonoki (Sandaime Tsuchikage), who can combine Katon, Doton and Fuuton, to create Jinton. These are called Kekkei Touta. I don't know if they can also be transmitted through Kekkei Genkai, or if they can only be taught. They are even rarer than the ones above, since ninja can rarely master or be naturally affiliated to more than two chakra natures (Terumii Mei the Godaime Mizukage, can also master Doton, Katon and Suiton, but I don't think she ever combines more than two at each time).

My questions are:

Are combinations of chakra natures taught or only transmitted by Kekkei Genkai (or both)?
Are combinations of more than three chakra natures possible?
And the above question created a new one for me: Can a ninja master more than three chakra natures? (I think Kakashi does, but I am not quite sure about this)

Chakra element combination is supposedly a born trait. A shinobi is born with one chakra element, and can master a few more (secondary elements).
However, in some clans, such as the Senju, they were born with two elements, (both Earth and Water), and they could naturally combine them to form the Wood element.
Since we only thought that two element combinations were possible, and we discovered that three were indeed possible, I see no reason why there isn't a possibility for four or more.

 EDIT! Based on the latest manga chapters, it seems as if at least 4 element combination is possible. Although it's an initial estimate and the Third might be wrong about it.

We do have some examples for ninja mastering all five chakra elements, Kakuzu is a great example. He had all five chakra elements, Water, Earth, Fire, Lightning and Wind, in one body (though he did cheat and used 5 different hearts for it). So it is possible. It is also said that those who awaken the Rinnegan can master all six elements (Including the YinYang element).
About mixing them together, since that hasn't happened yet, we can't be sure.
EDIT!

 Six Paths Sage Chakra, which creates the Gudodama is called Kekkei-Mora and was confirmed to be a combination of all 6 elements: Fire, water, earth, lightning, wind and YinYang.


What does the note from chapter 14 say? Here's the note from the last chapter:

Utter this incantation!
  If you don't, you won't be able to see mermaids.

  ↓

  Mermaid, mermaid
  I beg of you
  Make my love come true
  For me, [do something with] blood and flesh

  (end of incantation)

(I know nothing about this manga. The last line of the incantation has an implied verb; one would need context in order to determine what verb should go there.)


Who was the first anime character to be on a body pillow? Also acceptable is the first anime to have body pillows (or dakimakura) as merchandise.

Anime body pillows are a big part of anime otaku culture - but this can't have always been the case. I doubt there were body pillows of the characters back in the 60s.

When did body pillows start being sold as merchandise for anime and who was the character to get the first pillowification?

I'm interested in officially licensed body pillows only - and specifically body pillows as opposed to normal pillows (if the line is vague though, that's fine).

I can't find a specific character, but I can give you a company!

According to this Wikipedia page, the company Cospa was one of the first companies to begin printing anime characters on Dakimakura. They started in the late 90's, however it's notable that non-anime Dakimakura have been around for a long time, in the form of what the Wikipedia page calls "security objects" (some object providing psychological comfort, especially in "unusual situations"). However I cannot find any pictures of cospa's early pillows.

That said I feel that the Wikipedia source on the country is probably reliable, because it cites Patrick Galbraith's "Insider's Guide to the Subculture of Cool Japan" which, along with his book "The Moé Manifesto" are great sources for answers to any other questions you might have similar to this one.


Why has she not changed at the end of Suruga Monkey? Why has

   Kanbaru not regained her human arm

by the end of Suruga Monkey in Bakemonogatari?

If the Rainy Devil is gone, why is she still the way she was when it possessed her?

So that this question can have a real answer, I'll expand my comment.

At the end of Suruga Monkey, Hitagi comes in and interrupts the fight between Koyomi and Suruga, announcing that if Suruga had successfully killed Koyomi, she would have hunted down and killed Suruga, adding a serious note to her joke in Part I that she wanted to be the one to kill him.

Koyomi then explains in the voiceover narration (translation from subtitles on the horrendously overpriced Aniplex USA Blu-ray):

  If one strategy was for me to overwhelm the demon, thereby making it impossible for Kanbaru's secret wish to be fulfilled, then notifying Senjyogahara that Kanbaru was trying to kill me, thereby making it impossible for her surface wish to be fulfilled, was another. Moreover, Senjyogahara swore in front of the demon that if I died, she'd kill Kanbaru. Not knowing wouldn't hold up as defense. For the Rainy Devil, the outcome had already been determined. I can't believe you were able to read its thoughts like that, Oshino.

Suruga's secret wish was to kill Koyomi out of jealousy that he was with Hitagi and she wasn't. The Rainy Devil tries to help her fulfill that secret wish in Part I, when she attacks Koyomi on his mountain bike as he rides home from Hitagi's apartment. Koyomi planned to fight Suruga until it was clear that she couldn't beat him, making the Rainy Devil give up.

Suruga's surface wish was to be with Hitagi romantically, but Oshino realized that if Hitagi knew that Suruga had killed her boyfriend, she wouldn't be too keen on hooking up with his murderer. Sending her into the middle of the battle made it impossible for the Rainy Devil to get Suruga and Hitagi together by killing Koyomi, giving it no reason to help Suruga kill him. Fulfilling the secret wish was only a viable way for the Rainy Devil to complete its contract if that also fulfilled the surface wish, but once Hitagi knows, killing Koyomi directly counteracts the fulfillment of the surface wish.

To fulfill its contract and leave Suruga, the Rainy Devil has to grant her wish, but it fails to do so, made clear when Suruga confesses her love and Hitagi responds in her usual blunt fashion:

  Suruga: I'm in love with you, Senjyogahara-sempai...
  Hitagi: Oh? I'm not really in love with you. But will you stay by my side anyway?

So the Rainy Devil can't leave, because it hasn't fulfilled her wish, but it can't fulfill her wish, because the only power it has is sending her into a violent rage while she's asleep and it now knows violence can't solve this. It goes dormant.

Oddly enough, in the final scene where she goes to meet Koyomi, Suruga says, "The demon may have left me, but in the end, my arm didn't go back to normal." In-universe I can only attribute this to a misunderstanding on her part, because in Hanamonogatari, which takes place chronologically last in the series (beware spoilers below):

   Suruga finally does lose the demon to her old friend Numachi Rouka, and her arm goes back to normal. In the beginning of the Hanamonogatari novel, we see that she's been duct-taping her monkey arm to a pillar every night and anxiously checking the newspaper every morning to make sure she hasn't gone out and hurt anyone in her sleep, so she doesn't seem to be so sure anymore that the demon is gone.


How could a B hero class like Fubuki defeat a dragon level villain? In the webcomic, Fubuki battles

   Psykos

and defeats her. How could a B hero class like Fubuki defeat a dragon level villain?

Well if you've read the chapters concerning the battle then you should know how she wins.  It spends most of the chapter where she wins telling you exactly how she wins, right down to the mechanics.

First, don't forget that Fubuki is intentionally remaining B-class because she doesn't want to compete with Sweet Mask in A-class or her sister in S-class.  Her class is not indicative of her true strength.  Indeed, in general the ranks of heroes and monsters are both not necessarily accurate.  The anime and manga spend a little bit of extra time pointing this out, having a low-ranked and seemingly puny-looking monster turn out to be very strong, while you are explicitly told there are cases like this where the rankings are inaccurate.  Second, as I said, the chapter spells it out for you:

   She uses the move she calls "psychic whirlwind".  It details that normally psionic powers follow the path of shortest distance.  But she learned to control the path her powers take, and creates a whirlwind of psionic power around her.  So instead of her powers clashing head-on with Psykos's and getting crushed—because Fubuki does plainly admit that Psykos is stronger than her—they instead deflect Psykos' attacks harmlessly away.  Psykos subsequently wastes her energy, exhausting herself until she's easy pickings.

In other words, Fubuki wins because a fight isn't strictly about power.  Fubuki has the superior skill and compatibility to come out the victor.


What exactly is Madara implying about the Sage of Six Paths? Since Chapter 646 is currently the latest chapter, the question will be in spoilers.

   My question specifically pertains to whether or not all shinobi descended from the Sage of Six Paths. Is this what Madara is implying in the last panel of this picture: "[...] in effect, taught us all chakra..."?

 I think there are multiple ways to interpret this. One is that all shinobi are related to Kaguya, meaning everyone related knows how to use chakra.

 And the second way is that if one knows how to use chakra, then all their offspring will be born into the world able to use chakra. Therefore the Sage of Six Paths can simply teach others how to use chakra and then everyone else knows.

 There were probably some words lost in translation, so I am just confused now.

 Did all shinobi descend from the Sage of Six Paths or did the Sage simply just teach others how to use chakra?

At the moment there might not be a definite answer for this question, so here's mine based on my own interpretation of the chapter (with little or no evidence to back up) which might likely become obsolete owing to any twist in plot later on

  Chakra was initially an entity unrelated to humans or their physique until Otsutsuki Kaguya ate the Shinju's fruit and caused the inception of a generation where it would be a part of the human body (as a chakra system).

Secondly, Otsutsuki Hagoromo aka the Sage of Six Paths, the immediate successor inherited Kaguya's chakra and was likely the root from which the generation of shinobi branched out.

Further his likely mastery over the Juubi and becoming the first Bijuu could likely be attributed to the real beginning of shinobi who further learn to mix physical energy with chakra to create elemental energy (something perhaps, the Sage might have practised first and preached on to the subsequent generations).

At many points it is also mentioned that the Sage had two sons who later on branched out into Senju and Uchiha.

However though the Sage might be essentially the first to truly realize the power of chakra, it is very much possible that Otsutsuki Kaguya could have other children who might have inherited the gift of chakra and could have possibly been the root of other shinobi clans.


Why is Madara supposedly dead? According to Kurama, the Juubi's Jinchuuriki Wouldn't die when the Bijuu are extracted from him thanks to the Gedou Mazou.

So how could Madara have passed away?

That's because the Gedo Mazou itself was extracted as well (and sealed on the new moon on the other dimension).

Spoiler

 Click the image for a larger version

 We can see the Gedo Mazo getting caught up in the Rikudo Chibaku Tensei, while Madara getting spit out.

Madara didn't have the Gedo Mazou in him to provide life force when all of the Bijuu were extracted.


Why is Tomoko actions on her computer so exaggerated? In episode 1 when Tomoko is looking up on "Gaagle Japan" on how to make herself look more cuter it seems her movements are quite exaggerated, to the point where she is using the mouse in a way no normal computer user would. (as the mouse wouldn't normally track while up in the air like that)

Why is she doing this? is this a parody from something?

The scene itself is a parody from Death Note when Light is writing in the Death Note.

Comparative Video on youtube

The idea of the exaggerated movement of the mouse is that it's supposed to mimic what Light did with his pen as he was writing the name of criminals in the Death Note.

Also you'll notice all the shots of criminals dying in Death Note, in Watamote they are replaced with the sites Tomoko found, in a sense her "targets"


How do anime productions arrange for artists to do the end card illustrations? In nearly all anime these days, there's an artist illustration at the very end of an anime episode.

How do the productions get illustrators to do the end cards? Are they paid for it (if so, how much)?

How and why did this practice start?

There isn't just 1 reason, but could be several:

Plot Compression: this could be either a cause or a consequence. They compress the plot too much and they get forced to "fill" the extra seconds of air time.
Partneship / Sponsorship: Some partner or sponsor could ask for extra time of the anime air time (Squarenix in FMA comes to mind) at the end of the episode or after the opening. This could also branch to promotion of other works of the same or different production house or some artist (as Logan commented).
Promotional products: they could use this time to promote any "collections" product for hardcore fans or another version of the same franchise (like the Anime promoting the new Manga or L/N).

Any other reason is a mix of the previous three, but these are the main possible causes.


Are the English volume titles for EVA all referring to Bible verses, and if so, which ones? While browsing Wikipedia's list of chapters for the Neon Genesis Evangelion manga, I noticed that some of the English volume titles were clearly derived from Biblical texts. For example:

  She gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate (vol. 3)

This is probably taken from Genesis 3, when, after God finds out that the forbidden fruit has been consumed, Adam tries to pin the blame on Eve (v. 12).

  As one of us, to know good and evil (vol. 7)

This is taken from later in the same chapter (v. 22), when God speaks of his decision to banish man from the Garden of Eden.

With this in mind, are all of the volume titles Biblical references, and if so, what exact passages are these quotes from?

I will go through the titles in the order of their respective volumes.

Behold the angels of God descending: I couldn't find an exact match for this on the internet in a context that was about Bible and not Evangelion, but there is a partial match in Genesis 28:12, where in Jacob's dream, after he leaves home, "behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it [a ladder to heaven]."
A flaming sword, which turned every way: Genesis 3:24, where cherubim and the flaming sword are placed to keep guard over the Garden of Eden, to prevent entry.
She gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate: Genesis 3:12. Discussed in the text of the question.
The woman whom thou gavest to be with me: Genesis 3:12. Adam's reference to Eve when he tries to blame her.
If this be the work of men, it will come to naught: Acts 5:38, where Gamaliel argues against persecuting the Christians, with the reasoning that if the movement is illegitimate (i.e. "the work of men"), it will die out on its own, and that if the movement is in contrast "of God," then it will be successful either way, and its persecutors will have opposed God. The translation here, which I have been unable to identify, gives an exact match with the EVA title; translations such as the NRSV or KJV differ a bit from this wording.
Let me go, for the day breaketh: Genesis 32:27, after Jacob has spent a night wrestling with a man, generally identified as an angel, or as God.
As one of us, to know good and evil: Genesis 3:22. Discussed in the text of the question.
Come now, let us make covenant, you and I: Genesis 31:44, where Jacob and his father-in-law, Laban, make a covenant. Jacob earlier left Laban, for whom he had worked many years, and Laban had pursued him.
Tell me, I pray thee, thy name: Genesis 32:38, where Jacob asks for the name of the man with whom he has been wrestling.
If thou shalt afflict my daughters, or if thou shalt take other wives: Genesis 31:50, in Laban's conversation with Jacob.
Which long for death, but it cometh not; and dig for it more than for hid treasures: Job 3:21, where Job speaks after troubles arrive at his door.
Ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: this exactly matches the KJV translation of Ephesians 6:4, but similar themes appear elsewhere.
And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun: Revelation 12:1. I don't really understand the Book of Revelation, but this woman appears to be associated with the Virgin Mary or the Church.
And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new: Revelation 21:5. The man upon the throne appears to be Christ.

With all that aside, I've just finished reading vol. 10, and there seems to be (at least sometimes) a slight (if rather superficial) correspondence with the quote used for the volume title and the subject of the volume. For instance:

The two volumes with titles taken from Genesis 3:12 (which involves a woman) cover Asuka's arrival and interactions with Shinji.
Vol. 6, per the Wikipedia summary and my bad memory, is when Shinji is forced to fight Toji against his will, after Unit-03 is infected by an angel, which fits a quote about leaving a fight.


Which Black Jack anime most closely follows the manga? I love the manga, Black Jack, by Osamu Tezuka; it is truly a masterpiece.

Well, I want to watch the anime, so I looked it up on Wikipedia. Unfortunately, there are multiple animes, apparently. There is a

1993 OVA series, containing 10 episodes;
2001 ONA series, containing 12 episodes;
2004 TV series, containing 61 (or is it 62?) episodes.

Frankly, I'm stumped. I just want to watch the anime adaptation of the manga, and I'm unsure which one is most true to the manga, and I don't feel like watching all 3 of these.

So, which one is most an anime adaptation of the manga?

Black Jack 2004 Series so far is the most accurate.

I've read up to Volume 5 in the Manga, and so far (I've seen ALL OF THESE) the 2004 one has more elements of the original story composed by Osamu Tezuka.

What I like especially about the 2004 (& Black Jack 21) is that each episode even shows (in the introduction) the name of the chapters from the original Manga that the Anime is based off of.

If you want to watch something that's most closely related then I recommend the 2004 TV Series.

Although, like any other Anime Adaptation, there are bound to be some changes.


Is Genos really a cyborg? So Genos has been a "cyborg" since he got that surgery. But is he really a cyborg?

To me, a cyborg is a human with robot parts attached to their body, but I have seen no human part in him. His face doesn't count since it has mechanical parts. So is he a cyborg or not?

Does he just say he's a cyborg because he used to be a human? Or he does have little human parts in him, but we can't see them?

In the One Punch Man Wiki, the page about Genos says:

  Genos  is a 19 year old cyborg and the disciple of Saitama.
  He has an entirely mechanical body in the model of a handsome young man. His face and ears look like that of a normal human, made of an artificial skin material, and his eyes have black sclera with yellow irises.

  http://onepunchman.wikia.com/wiki/Genos

Now, if we look at some definitions for the word cyborg:

  1. "a person whose physiological functioning is aided by or dependent upon a mechanical or electronic device."

  http://www.dictionary.com/browse/cyborg

  2. "a person whose body contains mechanical or electrical devices and whose abilities are greater than the abilities of normal humans"

  http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cyborg

  3. "an organism, often a human, that has certain physiological processes enhanced or controlled by mechanical or electronic devices, especially when they are integrated with the nervous system."

  4. "a living being whose powers are enhanced by computer implants or mechanical body parts"

  5. "a human being whose body has been taken over in whole or in part by electromechanical devices; "a cyborg is a cybernetic organism"

  Source for definitions no. 3, 4, 5 :http://www.thefreedictionary.com/cyborg

  6. "a cyborg (short for "cybernetic organism") is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts."

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyborg

Based on definitons no. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 we can positively say that Genos is not a cyborg for "he has an entirely mechanical body" (first paragraph) and does not contain any human flesh or tissue, contrary to definiton no.6 : "a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts."

In definition no. 5 it says "in whole or in part" giving a small possibility to say that he is a cyborg but it is rather an affirmation without a solid base.

I think that he says he says he is a "cyborg" because it sounds better and cooler than "robot". His name in the Hero Association " Demon Cyborg (鬼サイボーグ, Oni Saibōgu)" sounds better than "Demon Robot". Or maybe it was an action made deliberately by the author himself.

In the end, it is the right of everyone to call him as they wish, this fact not being such an influential aspect of the story.


The instrumental music during Midoriya's monologue on My Hero Academia season 3's prologue Every episode starts with Midoriya's monologue,

The prestigious school that turned out many heroes, UA high school
enrolled in there hero course I continue to run towards my dreams... [...]

During this scene, there is an instrumental song that plays in the first 18 seconds of the show.
What is this instrumental song?

This one is about the first 30 seconds of "Combat Liscense!".

It's the 5th song of disk 2 for the third OST (My Hero Academia 2018 Original Soundtrack)

Link to Amazon MP3 JP for preview, proof and a possible where to buy.

Note: track is about half way down under the Kanji 戦闘許可!


Why didn't Obito die after using Rinne rebirth? In the Episode 391 of Shippuden, Reanimated Madara gets his own real body by forcing Obito via Black Zetsu to use the Rinne Rebirth Jutsu.

Similar to Nagato at the end of Pain arc fight, Why didn't Obito die since he used the same Jutsu as Nagato.

The wiki clearly states in exchange of own life, the Jutsu is performed.

Can anyone explain this?

In Chapter 657, right after Madara is brought back to life using the Rinne Rebirth jutsu, the scene moves to the Kamui dimension, where Zetsu confronts Kakashi, Minato, and a fatigued Obito.

Zetsu explicitly stated that Obito will die from using the jutsu. And then,

So Black Zetsu was the reason Obito was able to postpone his unavoidable death.


Who are the Four Generals based on? In the anime, there are four generals: Lucifer, Alciel, Malacoda, and Adramelech, and they all work under the devil. I'm wondering which group of 4 these demons are based on.

I've mostly thought that the 4 princes: Satan, Lucifer, Belial, and Leviathan can be counted out because Satan is included in, but I'm not 100% sure.

There are also the four horsemen of the apocalypse: Pestilence, Death, Famine, and War.

There are also the 4 demons at the Euphrates, but I don't know too much about them.

I'm not sure about any other groups, but I'm sure they must be based on something, the anime was great with tying in the Christian faith into the mix, so I can only assume that they'd include the four generals as some sort of a reference.

Lucifer is based on the fallen angel Lucifer, who was banished from heaven for revolting against God. (At least in the Hebrew and Christian mythology, but he also appears in other mythologies.

Arsiel is another name for Azazel, at least according to the satanist bible, The Bible of the Adversary.

Malacoda is based on the character of the same name who appears in Dante's Inferno.

Adramelech is a deity mentioned in the Hebrew bible and is considered a demon, like many other pagan deities.

Seeing how the four of them have almost nothing to do with each other it is likely that the author just picked some random demon names from the western culture.


Can all Saiyans become a Legendary Super Saiyan? Legendary Super Saiyan requires one to have consciousness while maintaining the form. What we have seen so far (canon and non-canon) was the berserk state, where the user is simply out of control.

As we know in order to attain Super Saiyan 4 one needs to have consciousness during the Golden Great Ape state. The Great Ape forms have been known for all Saiyans to be a berserk state that can only be triggered when specific conditions have been met. The user is "rewarded" with tremendous power, but no control. This all is extremely similar to Legendary Super Saiyan Berserk. Once the user gets consciousness in the state he/she can then evolve into the next stage, which would be Super Saiyan 4 (for Golden Great Ape) or Legendary Super Saiyan (for Legendary Super Saiyan Berserk).

Since both forms (LSSJ and SSJ4) require the same amount of consciousness and mental fortitude, does this mean that they are basically the same? I found it extremely difficult to find some actual information on the progress of the two being unlocked so therefor this conclusion is purely theoretical.

Assuming they are, all Saiyans are able to become a Super Saiyan 4 with enough training, consciousness etc. Are all Saiyans also able to become a Legendary Super Saiyan or is it purely genetic? From what I've seen so far, the only distinctive features it has, is emitting enormous amounts of ki. We have seen that Saiyans were leaking ki all over the place, so in that sense it should be possible for all Saiyans eventually, or am I completely wrong?

Sources: mainly dragonball wikia, Reddit, the series from which DBGT for knowledge about SSJ4, DBZ+DBS for knowledge about LSSJ and DBS for Whis explaining loads of things.

I believe the transformation is purely geneticFirstly, there is no explicit reference in the Canon - Series to Broly's form being referred to as the Legendary Super Saiyan. Broly's transformation is referred to as Full Power Super Saiyan and when Kale uses the similar transformation, Vegeta states that it might be The Saiyan's True Form, which you can see here.

With reference to your point stating that we have seen these transforms only in their Berserker state, that would be incorrect.  This is because we see Kale control her form during her second fight against SSJG Goku alongside SSJ2 Caulifla.Although I cannot state an explicit reason why a regular Saiyan cannot attain this form as there haven't been any official statement released with regard to this, I suppose I could make a reasonable argument indicating why this transformation is genetic and has not something every Saiyan can attain.If we first look at the way Kale attained the transformation. She had no notion as to what a Super Saiyan was. Her anger out of jealousy resulted in her transforming to this level of power which shocked Caulifla and Cabba. Before she transformed. So it clearly doesn't require greater power as Caulifla was stated that be much stronger than her, it doesn't require any specific training as again, Kale was indicated to be inferior to Caulifla in every single way. The only unique way in her transformation compared to Caulifla's, is that she was angry. However, Goku, Vegeta, Cabba & Future Trunks transformed into the regular Super Saiyan forms out of anger. And clearly, their level of angry was much greater than that of Kales. Hence, based on that precendent, the only reason we can argue why Kale attained the form is because of her genetics.While Broly in his Super Saiyan form had yellow hair, Kale in her "Regular" Super Saiyan form had yellow hair with a tinge of green. The form wasn't indicated to be superior to a regular Super Saiyan and it was even referred to as a normal Super Saiyan( As Champa states he couldn't understand why 2 Super Saiyans were struggling against Goku).  Again the only explanation for this points to genetics.Now let us examine the form. Is the form the strongest possible Saiyan transformation? No. While Broly was strong, it wasn't the form that made him strong. He was holding his own against SSJB Goku in his wrath form which more or less was like a powered up Base form(With the power of the Great Ape). Hence, the form made him several times stronger. Just like his Super Saiyan was stronger than Super Saiyan Blue Goku. Kale, on the other hand, was much weaker than Broly in her base which is why her iteration of the form was much weaker than SSJB Goku.Continuing with my point above, this establishes the fact that there is no reason from a Plot perspective why Goku or Vegeta should master this transformation. The Super Saiyan God and Super Saiyan Blue transformations are still Superior. Goku and Vegeta's training with Whis have resulted from them in going towards the route of Ki Control(Which involves hiding and suppressing your level of energy), unlike this form which is the complete opposite. From an aesthetic standpoint, if you look at Broly's & Kale's ki, aura, energy and all their attacks, they all seem to share the same green color as that of the form. Vegeta and Goku's signature attacks would break that pattern if they were to ever tap into the transformationNow let us look at fusions. Fusions tends to share the genetic characteristics of both the combined fighters. When Kefla transformed into SSJ1 and SSJ2, she retained the green hair in both those forms, which could only mean one obvious thing. The trait made its way from Kale's genetic makeup. If it was a unique form, it would've been acknowledged as one, however, it wasn't.Finally, Adding on to my first point, the one common trait that Broly and Kale share is that the two of them had absolutely very little knowledge with regard to transformations and the main trigger in case of the two was just anger. We have seen all the Saiyans display anger and reached powered up states like Vegeta did against Beerus, Goku against Goku Black & Zamasu and attain transformations like the SSJ and SSJ2. At the same time, we have also seen Trunks attain a completely new unique transformation which made him stronger than Kale. That indicates the form isn't the peak or the maximum level of a Super Saiyan. It is only a unique level of power with unique aesthetics which only Broly and Kale can use. With reference to the movie, I do understand Vegeta's hair turns Green and Goku's ki turns Green as well. However, I strongly feel this was done to create some form of contrast between the Saiyans and Broly for fans who are new to the franchise and have less knowledge about the transformations. Or, it could be solely an artistic choice. The reason I strongly feel the same is because, the green hair Vegeta displayed was a transition between Super Saiyan and Super Saiyan God. Vegeta has Never displayed that form a single time in the series and to be fair, it wasn't even indicated as an explicit transformation as it seemed more like a transition shot between SSJ and SSJG. Another interesting theory which some people seem to think is that it was a way to indicate to the fans, the different levels of power of the Super Saiyan forms(The Full Power Super Saiyan(LSSJ) form is > than the Super Saiyan while inferior to the Super Saiyan God). Then again, this is just a theory.


Why did Zeke change from an Eldia enemy to an Eldia ally? Something I missed from the anime, or it wasn't explained, or it wasn't explained yet -- why did Zeke change from battling eldians to being their ally? I looked for an explanation in the wikia, but I couldn't find an answer there either. Is this explained in the manga? Why did Zeke change from an Eldia enemy to an Eldia ally?

Is this explained in the manga?

yes.

Why Zeke changed from an Eldia enemy to an Eldia ally?

SERIOUS SPOILERS WARNING!!
everything is going according to manga and you'll understand everything just in time.
I suggest you wait for the following episodes.
if you don't mind spoilers continue

Zeke had a goal, from the begging of becoming the beast titan. he wanted to change All of the Eldians genes so they can never bear any children. he wants to do that to stop all of the Hate and wars in the world (I guess :D). So, to do that he needs to contact the founder titan. so I don't think he was an enemy to Eldia he was acting so he could achieve his goal in the proper time.


What does "shirobako" mean in terms of the anime? Shirobako is supposed to mean white box, and is a conjunction of "shiro" (white) and "hako" (box). The "h" in "hako" turns into a "b" when you join the two words. Thanks @LoganM for the explanation.

Is there any meaning to making this the title? Is it an anime production-related term?

Amusingly, there is an "anime collaboration cafe" in Tokyo called SHIROBACO (no direct relation to the anime Shirobako). They have a page explaining the origin of their name:

What's SHIROBACO
"SHIROBACO" = "white box"
In the anime industry, this refers to a video recording that is distributed to members of the production staff prior to airing. Though technology has advanced and it has become easier to receive video in digital formats, the video is still referred to as a "white box", just as it was when VHS was in use.

Here is an image of one such white box that I found on some dude's blog:

Sites on the internet are saying that Shirobako had a scene early on where optical discs (which would count as shirobako these days) were being distributed to the people at Musashino Animation. I assume they're right; I don't remember there being a scene like that off the top of my head, but that's probably because I was distracted by Miyamori being cute.

At the end of episode 12, once they have sent the last episode of Exodus to the station, NabeP brings a shirobako (in this case, a white optical disc) of the last episode to the show-completion party.


How come sports anime never have tryouts? This might sound like a weird question, but hear me out. In all of the anime that I've seen that revolves around high school sports, they never seem to have the concept of the "tryout".

Keep in mind that I live in the States, so my perspective will be biased. When I was in high school, all of our sports teams required prospective members to pass the tryouts in order to join. Basically, the coach/advisor of the team would administer an exam for the new potential members, to gauge their proficiency in the sport. If they were deemed satisfactory, they are granted membership into the team. If not, then they are rejected.

However, in all the sports-related anime that I've seen, it looks like any student could just submit an application and join the team. They often don't even care about their skill in the sport, since I've seen many sports anime where new team members can be complete novices. So how come they don't hold tryouts/auditions to make sure that all members of the team are above some baseline level of competency in the sport? I'm sure this would greatly improve their performance in competitions and such. This isn't limited to anime either, since I've also seen it in Japanese soap operas. Is it just a cultural difference?

Japan is very different from the US, and I've picked up on some of subtleties that by watching waaaay too much anime.

Japan

Japan is a socialist state, Asians are very communal, and from what I can tell, sports are not just sports, but also clubs.  Students join a single club, be it a sports club, or the epitomous occult club.  Oftentimes the captain of the club has final say on who can join, and we've seen in many anime that there is paperwork involved.  As stated in the comments above, sometimes even a stellar rookie doesn't have access to contribute, instead letting the older students play on the team and/or first string.

In Japan (probably many Asian cultures), the student would be worried about embarrassing his teammates if he was unable to contribute.  Once accepted by the team, if he or the team feels that he was especially under performing, social ostracization would kick in.  You've probably seen this in anime where people talk loudly behind their hand and say awful things.  This shaming would be an effect to make the under performing team member quit the team.  Shame is a big part of Asian culture, and not a big part of the American way, so it might be hard to wrap your head around how important it is to them.  I don't fully get it, but I can see that it exists.

The USA

Contrast that with the US, where individuality is encouraged, sports teams are not clubs, and students can usually join clubs and sports teams.  There's usually not paperwork to join, though a liability waiver might be signed.  As stated above, there's free reign to let awesome rookies perform, so it's highly desirable to find out who your best players are, and a tryout is one way to assess how good your incoming players are.

In the USA, you might join the sports team, go to practice, and participate in the background until you hit your breakout moment.  Since you're not in an anime (Netflix is working on that though), you might not find a breakout moment, and you might just be a small contributing member.  If the school or team is big enough, there might be a limited number of slots on the team, so tryouts would be in order.  I'd hazard a WAG that even though Asia is more populous, they have more (and smaller) schools, where here in the US, schools can get a lot bigger, thus triggering tryouts due to size more often.

Anime

In anime, the MC usually joins a non-performant or loser team (take Hinomaruzumou (MAL) for example), and then through plot armor, awesomesauce, friendship, and some tsundere, makes it a winning team.  That's not usually how reality works, East or West.  But that's what makes an entertaining anime.  In an anime like this, the club captain is usually trying to get the minimum number of members so that the club doesn't get cancelled, so tryouts would be counter productive.

In anime where the club is not in danger of being forcibly disbanded, the MC usually has some desirable trait to make the club captain try to recruit the MC, again bypassing any kind of a tryout.  I'm not a big sports anime fan, but every time I've seen a sports anime (or an anime with sports elements), it fits into either of these categories.

Sources: Watching too much anime, and therefore osmosis of Japanese culture.  Also, the comments above that should have been answers confirm my osmosis.


What is Cyua singing at the beginning of "AL℃-@"? At the beginning of "AL℃-@" (track 09 on the Aldnoah.Zero soundtrack), before the German lyrics ("Ich reich dir meine Hand" and so forth) kick in around 0:46, the vocalist (Cyua) is singing something. Whatever it is, it's not part of the printed lyrics, and it contains the word "Aldnoah". Beyond that, I'm not sure what she's singing.

I doubt that there are any official lyrics for that part of the track, but perhaps someone who has learned how to parse Hiroyuki Sawano's mangled German could weigh in?

Here is a short extract of the segment in question: http://clyp.it/h3hfpevb

This is only vaguely an answer to my question, but: the second OST included the piece "Harmonious" (also used as the ED for episode 23), which is a vocal piece to roughly the same melody as "AL℃-@" (this is a standard Sawano trick, as with "MKAlieZ" vs. "aLIEz"; "アZ-Kat" vs. "A/Z"; and so forth). Like "AL℃-@", it has a 16-bar vocal introduction from 0:19 to 0:35 (albeit in 3/4 rather than 4/4), but with actual comprehensible lyrics:

  煌めく欠片
  降り注ぐ空に
  未来繋ぐドア
  隠した

Roughly,

  The shining fragments, falling through the sky, concealed the door to the future.

Now, this clearly isn't what Cyua is singing in AL℃-@, but as mivilar  noticed in the comments on Cole's answer, Cyua distinctly appears to be singing the word 未来 mirai "future", and it lines up with what the singer (Amamiya Sora / Asseylum) is singing in the third four-bar segment of the introduction to "Harmonious". Unfortunately, I have difficulty identifying any other correspondences between the known lyrics in the introduction to "Harmonious" and the unknown lyrics in the introduction to "AL℃-@".


Anime I watched as a kid on VHS where a girl draws a star to beat a computer virus-like enemy This anime is set in a Japanese town. One of the main characters is a girl with short brown hair. She went to high school and owned a special bracelet with special powers. Whenever she was in danger, she drew a star in the air and then her friend (or something) got bigger and everything so that he could beat the enemy. The enemy was some kind of computer virus I think.

Well, in one episode, that virus went into the telephone cable from the payphone, so it was connected with every phone in that town. Then the virus made the telephone ring, and when someone answered the phone, the person got sucked into the cables.

In another episode, that virus turned everything into gold.

In yet another episode, the director of the high school where the girl attended was possessed by that virus, so he ate everything he saw and turned into one awful creature — he walked in both arms and legs (like a dog), but his stomach was towards the ceiling (just like gymnastic figure "the bridge").

And there is one more thing, the opening video begins with the high school that the girl went to.

It can be Corrector Yui

It is the year 2020 and computers have become an integral part of daily life for most people. However, a teenage girl Yui Kasuga is one of the few who cannot use computers at all, despite the fact that her father is a software developer. An evil computer called Grosser wants to take over the ComNet (what the Internet is called in Yui's time) and as the programs that have been developed to stop it (called "Correctors") need her help, she is sucked into the ComNet where she is recruited by a corrector called I.R., who gives her downloadable element suits that allow her to become the ComNet Fairy Corrector Yui who can fight Grosser's computer viruses.
In the first season, the series revolves around the war against Grosser, and reveals the mysteries that surround the Correctors, their seemingly missing creator, and the relationship that he seems to have had with the corrupted computer.
In the second season, Yui and the Correctors must fight with a mysterious virus who menaces the ComNet, and also cope with the mysterious Corrector Ai, a Corrector who tends to work on her own and seems to have her own agenda. The key to the mysteries seems to be a strange little girl who seems lost and may be related with the devastating virus appearances.


What Sharingan does Indra have? Does Indra have the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan  or the normal Mangekyo Sharingan? I don't know if he has the EMS or the MS because he is the first Uchiha.

Indra has MS, a strong MS at that. What you're having confused is that Sasuke's EMS and Indra's MS look the same, because after awakening his EMS, Sasuke was able to use Indra's chakra (being his reincarnate).


Does Kyros have two legs on this picture? Is that me or Kyros has his second leg back when sleeping on the first page of chapter 794?

As mentioned by Aditya, there seems to be different versions. The official US release, like several online pages, shows Kyros with only one leg:

However, Viz released volume 79 on August 2, 2016, over a year after chapter 794 was first released. A possible mistake could have very well been noticed and corrected in the meantime.

I found a scan of the original Tankōbon 79, released on October 3, 2015 in Japan. It also shows the correct picture:

Not as likely anymore but given the large popularity of One Piece, eleven weeks might have been sufficient for a correction.

So I went even further back, up to the very origin of this picture. I ordered Weekly Shōnen Jump #2323 and on July 18, 2015, this picture looked like that:

So it was indeed a mistake!

I discovered a while later that One Piece Wiki lists all mistakes that have been found so far in each Tankōbon as well as the corresponding correction. The one mentioned here can also be found there.


Anime song (I think Naruto) I have a song stuck in my head and I THINK it's from Naruto or Bleach but I am not sure. I am sure it's from an anime though.

http://vocaroo.com/i/s0su2gQh82mV

Any ideas?

I hummed the song in Soundhound and it recognized it thanks a lot guys! It's

  Aqua Times - ALONES

It's the 6th Bleach opening theme song.


What's with this face in Nichijou? In Nichijou, characters sometimes make this kind of face when something frustrating or very stupid happens:

Is this a reference to some other popular animated character, or is it a unique way of expressing an emotion in Nichijou?

I think it's just Nichijou's art style and how it expresses the fact the characters are gone past surprise at strange happenings and have come to accept it, the glazed over eyes and straight-line emotionless mouth indicate this quite well.

In cases where it's something stupid, it gives the impression that the characters can't even justify a response, because the joke or suggestion was just so stupid that it's not even worth the effort. So they give blank expressions and try to move the conversations on. This is usually accompanied by an awkward silence. This is common outside of anime as a 'tumbleweed moment'

I'm pretty sure that it isn't a reference to any other animated characters and is just Nichijou doing its own thing :)


Were there any significant differences between Space Battleship Yamato 2199 and the original series? For the most part, the story between Space Battleship Yamato 2199 and the original TV series from the mid-70's seemed to follow the same course. It's been decades since I've seen the original series, are there any major differences in the retelling of the story between the two?

Obviously, the animation has been much improved in 2199, and most of the characters seem pretty similar to their 1970's counterparts.

The question is deceptively simple, deserving a thorough answer. Read on...

Yamato 2199 is neither a slavish remake of the original, nor a "reboot" or "re-imagining" in the vein of typical TV and cinematic returns of older shows. Instead, it might be best described as a careful, even loving, reconstruction of the series for the modern era. Even the music is composed by Akira Miyagawa, the son of the original composer Hiroshi Miyagawa -- that gives an idea of the sense of continuity embraced by the series. (And, interestingly, the younger Miyagawa recreated the scores note-for-note by ear from recordings because the original sheet music has been lost.)

I'll try to avoid any significant spoilers...

The familiar characters are all present, with many new ones added and minor characters re-defined and in many cases fleshed-out in much greater detail.

There is really no significant gender-bending. One fighter pilot character who was basically mashed-up out of two different ones during the original two series due to haphazard editing and re-writes from the TV series to the movies, (though in different ways in Japan and in the American re-release) has been retconned into two different individuals, one of them female. That's about the extent of it.

There is also a retcon/rework among the Garmillan/Gamilas/Gamilon cast of Talan/Masterson into two individual, related characters which eliminates the occasional who's-who debate there.

There is a subtle re-work of the characterizations of Kodai (Wildstar) and Shima (Venture) that balances their natures more. Shima is more aggressive, Kodai more introspective from the start. It allows both characters to play out a wider range of motivations and reactions, altogether for the better -- they are multi-dimensional characters now, less cartoonish.

Yuki (Nova) is much more complicated of a character than before. The romance that blossoms between her and Kodai gets off to a far rockier start, but the characters' discoveries of each other also play out to greater effect than a simple boy-gets-girl tale.

Mamoru Kodai's (Alex Wildstar's) martyr role is still there, still a deep emotional motivation for his brother, and is taken several steps beyond into a greater significance as well.

Captain Okita (Avatar) is still the steadfast, introspective ship's captain, still motivated by deep sadness and a sense of loss tinged with unfailing hope and determination. His bold tactical skill plays out even better than before; he is authentically the ship's "Old Man" captain in every way.

Interestingly, a few characters from the Comet Empire story arc make an appearance here. Should the new series progress, there are a few anchors for it placed already.

Entirely new characters, many female, have been added on both sides of the conflict to add depth and to dig out of the male-dominated rut of the original shonen anime style of the original series. There are also an additional Iscandaran, female as all others have been -- Isacandar is still a dying race.

The Garmillans (as the latest translation goes) are treated to much greater detail. They're not the cardboard-cutout bad guys save for Dessler/Desslok as before. They still maintain their WWII-era Nazi overtones, though it's rendered in a richer, multidimensional style. There are reasons behind their motives, political and otherwise. In fact, the Garmillan subplots delve into internal power struggles, questions of honor and of right and wrong, and conflicts that drive the main story. Dessler's pride and hubris are explored more deeply -- and we even see (extremely) fleeting moments of doubt an self-examination in him -- making him every bit as intriguing as ever, and with new insight. Other Garmillans become interesting characters in their own right. There are still a few fawning lackeys and boastful idiots among them, but they server the plot well.

This time around, the Earth forces aren't 100% in the right. Earth's political factions exist, and have contributed to the Garmillan conflict. There are shades of gray this time, even among the Yamato's crew, which add some very good subplots of self-examination and redemption.

Over-arching themes abound, and are more complex. The dualities of right/wrong, oppression/resistance, twin worlds Garmillas/Iscandar, even Yuki's (Nova's) mistaken identity for a certain Iscandaran are woven through the story in ways that add depth and introspection that was barely hinted at in the original series.

There is also a deep, underlying and very Japanese theme of the question of the use of great military power. The spectre of WWII runs deep in the new series, and is examined thoughtfully. The dates of the Yamato's launch and return revolve around the date of the Pearl Harbor anniversary. The Yamato launches, secretly armed with an adaptation of peaceful Iscandaran technology (the Wave Motion engine) turned into the most powerful weapon in the galaxy -- the Wave Motion Gun. How the crew of the Yamato use that power leads to both ruthless self-examination by the Captain and crew, and by Starsha of Iscandar. The honor -- or lack thereof -- versus necessity and bravery of covert attacks by both Earth and Garmillas are replayed and examined with much soul-searching by characters on both sides. Combatants from both sides meet, sometimes unexpectedly, and must come to terms with their own motivations, and even similarities. These scenes play out in an amazingly unblinking philosophical tone.

There is a clear attempt to ground the story in better science than before, without diminishing the original concepts. In some cases, the early theories that the original played on have simply progressed, and the new story takes the advantage. There is a cleaner presentation of how the new Yamato is truly a new ship built inside the hulk of the old -- though throughout we see details of the old ship retained (such as a WWII-era builder's plate on the interior armor skirt of a gun turret) that have been retained, lending a realistic sense of history and shipbuilders' tradition.

Instances of deus ex machina that made for pivotal plot points in the original are carefully played out with all the sense of wonder as before -- but -- by the end, they all have an explanation, scientific and spiritual. The way these critical scenes are handled is often startlingly philosophical and cinematically masterful. The story telling technique banishes any underlying weakness in the original plots and instead injects a sense of wonder that re-captures the impact of the original for a modern audience. This alone makes the series well worth watching.

Certain pivotal scenes play out nearly exactly as the originals or are improved upon, if it's possible. For instance, the death of Captain Okita (Avatar) is scripted and timed virtually frame-for-frame to the original -- the impact simply can't be improved upon. Others, such as the Yamato's blast-off from Earth are both tightened and given added detail. The Rainbow Galaxy battle is fleshed out with even greater detail of the Garmillan carrier plane launches -- depicting them intentionally with all the details of a real deck launch, with deck crew signals, catapult operations, and signal lights for the pilots -- all to drive home how the "enemy" isn't so different from "us".

If there is any complaint to be made at all, it's probably that the gratuitous fanservice could have been cut back. But -- the originals weren't without it, and there is a sort of tradition for it to stand on. And in some instances, it's used to good effect to break up dramatic tension where any other form of comic relief would have come off weak or forced. In other words, humans will be humans... despite life-or-death circumstances. So, even the fanservice manages to nudge its way into the duality thread that runs so deeply through the story. I'll give it a pass this time...

All in all, Yamato 2199 succeeds brilliantly as a modern update that does not diminish the original, yet stands on its own as a definitive interpretation. This is truly a worthy Space Battleship Yamato series that earns it's right to carry the name. In fact, it goes so far and does so well that it virtually defines how a remake should be done with respect to any movie or series, anime or otherwise. It is that good, startlingly so, even.


In which Death Note manga chapter does L die? I want to start reading Death Note manga but I have already seen the anime till L's death. Which manga chapter should I start reading from?

L dies in chapter 58 named "Feelings Within".


Appearance of Ruby's Mother I just finished the latest volume of RWBY. I didn't get a clue about Ruby's Mom, but I'm still curious though.

Yang succeeds in finding her mother which is Raven Branwen and I'm already satisfied with the answer because Yang got her picture. But I'm dissatisfied with Ruby's mother which is in the white robe.

What about her weapon? Her semblance? Her appearance? Can we determine who Ruby's mother is from these?

Well, it seems that Summer Rose is a Huntress in the same year and team as Qrow, Taiyang, Raven, and Summer. Each character seems to be similar to another character from TEAM RWBY. Summer seems to be very similar to Ruby at the time. She's shy, which is why she hides under her cloak, and also looks very similar to Ruby.

Identity-wise, all that is known is Summer is Ruby's birth mother, and Yang's stepmother. She died when they were young, and that's all the fans really know. Hopefully, Volume 6 gives us a little more depth.


What does Zeniba represent? This is how I interpret the story of Spirited Away:

The bathhouse represents the society. People work with each other towards a common goal. Every night, 8 million gods come to the bathhouse and workers serve them, worship them. In a way they deal with them, do business with them. In Asian cultures, fire, air, earth, water, food, etc. are represented as gods, so bathhouse very accurately represents a working society. The 'spell' breaks if they stop working.
Yubaba is the culture. She manages the bathhouse. She is tyrannical and rules over people by taking there real name and giving them a new name.
Chihiro was given a new name by Yubaba, 'Sen', which means 'one thousand', similar to how a person is given a roll number or employee number in an organisation. That number becomes his new identity.
Haku has forgotten his real name. Similar to Islamic terrorism, he's become a slave to the tyrannical culture. He'll do anything the culture tells him to do.
The baby is the belief system of the society. Yubaba is overly protective of him.

One thing I can't understand is, who is Zeniba, Yubaba's twin sister.

Yubaba and Zeniba are two parts of a whole.
Yubaba keeps baby locked in a room, afraid that he might get sick because of germs. Zeniba turned baby into a mouse so that he might have a little freedom.
Zeniba lives in swamp bottom.
There used to be trains running between bathhouse and swamp bottom in old days, but the return trains from swamp bottom have stopped. Now it's a one-way road towards swamp bottom.
The tickets to swamp bottom Kamaji gave to Chihiro had been with him for 40 years.
'Zeni' has two meanings in Japanese, 'money' and 'ancient'. 'ba' means 'old lady'. The meaning of Zeniba which seems to fit the story is 'ancient old lady.
Yubaba wanted to steal a seal from Zeniba, which was supposedly very precious.

So what does Zeniba represent in this story?

For me, it was old money vs new money. Yubaba keeps rushing to make money, accepts tourists etc. Money became not the means to an end but the end itself. Her bathhouse is modern corporation, Zeniba's house is old school mom and pop store. Chihiro gets her first job in a large corporation, gets treated as disposable, grows up... But it is no way to live, to truly be adult, that is not the true meaning of adulthood. There has to be more to life than money. And it is Zeniba which shows her true grandmotherly kindness and gives her some peace and respite from the story.

In a way, Zeniba is at peace with nature. She takes what she needs from it, but no more than that. Yubaba uses nature to gain money and she only cleans the river god for gold. And Zeniba doesn't do much, maybe because she is retired; in modern world, people don't search for her, her ways are not wanted anymore. Her entrance in the story can be seen as reaction to Yubaba's actions.

"You and your corporate thinking are not all powerful and all good, Yubaba. I will show you the different way to do things. The old way!" Zeniba says with her actions. And it turns out that there is value in old ways, in traditions long forgotten. That is my interpretation at least. They represent old ways to do business and grow up and new ways to do that and you need to understand both to be a complete person and live in modern society which at the same time has long traditions.

Also, an interesting thought and a way of looking at the story:
Sen didn't search for Zeniba until she has seen naked greed of her coworkers, until she has seen them consumed by it. A lesson can be seen as this: As long as you spend all your time at work, you will not see your parents again. If that is what you truly want, then stop working, visit your grandmother and your parents will return to their senses and see you again.


Has Crocodile already "awakened" his Devil Fruit Power? Crocodile is the first villain that easily beats Luffy (twice) while Luffy survived due to Robin's interference and luck. However, one of the comments on his devil fruit power struck me.

Chapter 178: Wikia (Anime Episode 110) Emphasis mine

  Luffy is astonished at Crocodile's power while Crocodile comments that he does not just possess his devil fruit ability like some people, he mastered it and demonstrates this by creating a hole of quicksand.

Crocodile can absorb moisture and convert anything to sand, i.e. he can permanently convert something to sand. He also completely annihilated the palace garden. He can create large sandstorms which can run for days. He can control sand in the city which can cover it like a fog. These abilities seem to point in a direction outside the limit of Logia powers.

We also know Crocodile knows about awakening. In Chapter 544 Crocodile is the person who tells us about the awakened Zoan type Jailors

  Crocodile then reveals that the Jailer Beasts were all "awakened" Zoan Devil Fruit users, saying that their extreme physical endurance and recovery point were their advantages. Crocodile states that the other three would soon awake and that the Boss of Hell would be arriving soon.

So is there some reference about Crocodile and his DF powers? Maybe something Oda has said in SBS, about crocodile, limits of Logia powers or Awakened Devil Fruits.

Other Observation: Akainu and Aokiji may have awakened DF's since they converted Punk Hazard into Freezing side and Burning side permanently. (Also Akainu burning Ace). Enel may have a hand in the island that is permanently spewing lightning etc.

From how I see it and how it's described in the series, the awakening is the ability to manipulate the environment e.g. Doflamingo's awakening. Like when Kuzan and Sakasuki went at it on punk hazard and permanently changed the weather.

Another example is when Crocodile turned everything around him into the sand during his second fight with Luffy (Mizu Luffy)(Chp 201). Also, there are the times Crocodile talks about "utilizing your devil fruit better"(Chp 178) or being "a different breed of pirate"(Chp 178) though this may just be Crocodile being cocky. He seems to have a vast knowledge of devil fruit awakenings anyway as he was the one who informed us about the jailer beasts being awakened and even told us the effects had on them.(Chp 544)

Also, once he was defeated, it started to rain again(Chp 210), and though many people say "Oh, Smoker used the dance powder on Crocodiles ship" or "Crocodile used the dance powder another place to keep it from raining", but Smoker specifically said to Hina that he didn't (Chp 212) and that would have to be perfect timing so I think Crocodile is awakened and can keep his devil fruits weakness away.


Does Luffy have "Gomu Gomu no Jet Yari"? In Gear 2, 3 and 4, Luffy has several of his original attacks improved according to his respective gear forces.

Gomu Gomu no Pistol is Jet Pistol in Gear 2nd, Elephant Pistol in Gear 3rd and Culverin in Gear 4th.
Same goes for Bazooka, and without Gear 4, it stands for Gattling Gun as well.

These just mere examples, as he has quite a lot of attacks. I wouldn't even ask about all of them, so I'd like to focus on one absence I noticed.

Luffy has Gomu Gomu no Yari which appeared as Rhino Schneider in Gear 4. Does it have Gear 2 (and 3) versions?

In the anime: Gomu Gomu no Jet Lance was used against Blueno and was a Gear 2 attack.  Note that Lance is similar to a Spear which is what Yari refers to.

Gomu Gomu no Jet Spear was used after the timeskip against Monet as a Gear 2 version.

I am not aware of a Gear 3 version.

This is all from the wiki.


I bought a figure of a girl with a baseball bat, but I don't know who of I was in Akibahara when I came across a load of stalls selling second-hand figures. I couldn't resist and bought some stuff from my favourite series. Also, I bought a figure of a schoolgirl with a baseball bat who seems to be floating on top of some water with lotus flowers.

There doesn't seem to be any company markings on it, apart from maybe a 'C' at the backside of the base. I don't have a ruler, but I estimate it to be about 5.5 inches tall. Unfortunately I don't speak Japanese, so I couldn't ask the seller.

Does anyone have any ideas what series she could be from? I'd really like to put a name to the face (and watch the series also)

She seems to be Natsume Reiko from Natsume Yuujinchou

Sometimes, she's shown with a baseball bat with some seals on it, which she uses to fight youkai. This is a picture of her wielding the bat:

For extra confirmation, the same figure can be seen on Amazon with 夏目友人帳 (Natsume Yuujinjou) and 夏目レイコ (Natsume Reiko) in the description.


Does Wata no Kunihoshi manga have a continuation after chapter 6, or an anime adaptation? The manga is called Wata no Kunihoshi (in English, "The Star of Cottonland") and it is a shōjo manga by Yumiko Ōshima.

It's about a kitten girl named Chibi NeKo. I've read all the way to chapter six, and can't seem to find a chapter seven.

Do you have any information at all, regarding the continuation of the series or any adaptations it may have had in animation?

Wata no Kunihoshi has a total of 24 chapters, divided in 7 volumes, which were published between 1978 and 1984. There was also a movie, released in 1984.

Fortunately, someone might have heard your request, and chapter 7 got a fan translation just a few days ago (August 10). I'm sure you can find it. Hopefully the rest gets translated too, at some point.


Is Kinana relevant in the manga? I may not remember very well, but I think it was after the Edoras Arc that Kinana makes her first appearance in the anime as a maid within the guild.

We know for a fact that she was previously Cubelios, Oracion Seis Cobra's partner.

Her only relevance as Kinana in the anime was to hear him at the end of the filler arc (anime only) including the "New Oracion Seis" and I think she reappeared again at the end of the Dragon King's Festival for the same purpose (poor girl).

And as I don't remember very well how things turned out in the manga at the end of that same arc, my question is

Did she serve any purpose at all in the manga as Kinana?

Simply no. You don't even see her in fights. Such a shame really.


How did Ki-ja the Hakuryuu (the White Dragon) get this scar? In the preview for Episode 10 of Akatsuki no Yona, it was shown that Ki-ja had this scar on his back.

It is revealed in Chapter 70.5 - Extra Chapter: Upon That Back of the manga and in the OVA Akatsuki no Yona - Sono Se niwa.

   It was caused by the previous White dragon, who was also Ki-ja's father, at the moment of his birth as a mark of desperation.


Why does Exodia still appear in the intro of the first Yu-Gi-Oh! series? Every time I watch Yu-Gi-Oh!, I see Exodia and I remember that Weevil throws all of the pieces but Joe saves a few, not all of them, so Yugi can’t summon him. However, The Exodia is still shown in the intro.

Why?

The intro sequence showing of monsters at the end only changes 3 times in the original Yu-Gi-Oh! series

At the start of the series, Yugi became famous for not only defeating Kaiba but also summoning Exodia which is shown in the flashback prior to his grandfather saying it hadn't been done before. So, Exodia became an iconic card to Yugi's fame, enough so for Weevil to go for Exodia only.

It's not until the "Virtual World" arc (season 3) that Slifer the Sky Dragon takes Exodia's place even though Slifer is never summoned by Yugi until the next arc/season. However, Slifer became an iconic card of Yugi just like how Obelisk was Kaiba's and Ra was Marik's until Yugi won all 3 God Cards, which is reflected by the change of the intro's end of the next arc/season despite that Yugi never summons all 3

   until the very end of the final season by Atem when he dueled Yugi

So ultimately, the monsters shown at the end aren't necessarily monsters that Yugi has summoned but more iconic to Yugi as a character.


Did they ever talk about who left the nanomachines/viruses on Mars? Sorry didn't read the novels, but did they ever go into who left nanomachines/Methuselah virus on Mars?  Do they ever explore the concept of space/aliens again the story?

Seems like there are crazier things than humans, Methuselah or Crusniks in the their universe.

i haven't read the books or manga myself but from my understanding, Vampires/Methuselah were human colonists sent to Mars where the contracted the "Bacillus Virus" which is a Martian Virus, if there was life on Mars before humans arrived it could have been the cause of Martian Extinction though i'm not sure if it's a natural virus, engineered virus or a virus born from dead Martian's who evolved to be vampires but there doesn't seem to be any indication that the Bacillus Virus was alien in nature to Mars (ie. having came from somewhere else in the universe).

Crusniks Nanomachines were also found on Mars and if the Bacillus Virus is connected to Martian Vampires, then the Crusniks Nanomachines may have been made as a weapon to use against them as we know Crusniks feed on Vampires and are by far more powerful.

As for the concept of space/aliens that's what the Methuselah are to the Terrans in the very beginning as they where Humans who were changed on Mars and came back to wage war so in a sense they are aliens, the Ships we see at the beginning of the anime series is more than likely space ships from Mars at the beginning of the war.

Also in the anime the scenes we see Able, Cain, Seth anbd Lilith on a spaceship looking over Earth and at the end we see it. this ship is called Ark and i think in the novels it's covered again, see bellow (major spoiler)

   The Vatican destroy's the Empire's second largest City with a nuclear attack, Seth goes to reactive the Ark hoping to use it's Satellite Cannon to destroy the Vatican's nuclear launch facility
 Cain and Dietrich appear and take control of the Ark and it's revealed Cain plans to crash it into the earth and Able gets involved with the fight between Cain and Seth
 Seth is able to stop Cain's plan but is weakened where Cain then severs her head, killing her. the Order of Rosenkreuz twists the information framing Able for Seth's Murder and since Seth was the Empress Augusta Vradica, seen as the "Mother" of the Methuselah, and Able is allied with the Vatican the Empire starts and all out war with the Terrans

though i'm not sure if the above takes place in Rages Against the Moons or Reborn on the Mars


How is the ability of a Devil Fruit discovered? Since there is just one Devil Fruit for a specific ability, how does one know about what ability it holds?
For example, Buggy and Teach knew about the powers their Devil Fruits would have provided them.
It is mentioned that they had read about it.
But if the fruit occurs only once till the user dies, how did they find out about the fruits' powers?

There are a number of ways to know the abilities of a Devil's Fruit.

There's a Devil's Fruit book in the Grand Line, which lists several Devil's Fruits. Sanji mentions this book in Chapter 464. Spandam and Teach also make a mention of it.

For Devil's Fruits whose ability is not known before, it can only be found out after actually eating it. In Chapter 385, when Kalifa and Kaku eat unknown Devil's Fruits, Lucci tells them that they will begin to sense the changes in due time.

When a Devil's Fruit user dies, their Devil's Fruit will respawn, and hence its abilities would be known.

In SBS Volume 48, the author Oda Eiichiro promises that a certain professor will eventually appear in the story, and explain what Devil's Fruits really are. We can expect to know more about identification of Devil's Fruits when that happens.


Doujin, doujinshi, doujinshika and doujinka. What's the difference? In a world of self-published manga/anime/other related stuff, there are doujin, doujinshi, doujinshika and doujinka. What's the difference between those four?

Also, are these term used exclusively for anime and manga related?

TLDR;

Doujin: Fandom created works
Doujinshi: a (Broader)category of Doujin
Doujinshika: A very, very limited form of Doujinka
Doujinka: A Doujin creator

Now In more details

A Doujin

A Doujin, actually stands for a group of people that stand to achieve something, or share the same interests/hobbies.

However, it also depicts the work they make. Which in Western cultures, is often perceived to be derivatives of existing work, or analogous to fan fiction. Which is often true, as works are based upon popular games/manga/anime, but is not limited to. As there also exists original works within the Doujin.

A Doujinshi

The term Doujinshi stands for self published work. It is often considered a broader category of Doujin, as it covers Anime, hentai, games but also art collections. Where as other sub categories of Doujin, such as Doujin music/soft/game/H cover far more specific areas.

Doujinshika / Doujinka

Both these terms stand for creators of Doujin. These terms are often used interchangeably in both english and Japanese a like.

The usage of Doujinshika is said to be so limited that is often even considered to be incorrect. So the generally preferred term is Doujinka

Doujinka often reffer to themselves as sākuru or in case of single artist kojin sākuru. Which in place, reffers to the original meaning of Doujin,

a group of people that stand to achieve something, or share the same interests/hobbies.

So are these terms limited to Anime and Manga?

Well, no. These terms strike a larger category than just A&M and it's related contents, and could be used out of it's context all together.

However, they are so often used in context of A&M and it's related works, that especially in Western Cultures they will be considered A&M related.


If a white person/American was to make anime is it still anime? So let’s say an American decided to go to Japan and produce their own anime, would it still be considered an anime even if the person is not Japanese but creating it in Japan?Im not really looking for the difference between anime and cartoons, but more of what things have to be done to consider it an anime or what has to be done so that it’s not considered an anime. For example: Where it’s produced, who is producing it? etc.

Hopefully that makes sense..

Yes I believe it would. I’m pretty sure (not 100%) but I think Avatar the last airbender is considered anime even though it’s an American production


What is happening at the start of episode 12 of Steins;Gate? At the start of episode 12 of Steins;Gate, Okarin and Mayuri have time traveled 70 million years into the past. They are in an arid desert environment which appears to be the inside of an hourglass. Mayuri says that you could say that they are just one of many versions of themselves, but you could also say that they were the originals. Shortly before dissolving into sand, she says that their wills will carry on to the versions of themselves in Akihabara 70 million years in the future.

In the future, Okarin snaps out of a daze, like he does when he time leaps. Does that imply that Okarin remembers the incident? Was the incident symbolic? If this was one of Okarin's attempts to save Mayuri, why didn't it happen in the alpha/beta/gate timelines?

Steins;Gate sort of uses the many-worlds time travel theory referenced by John Titor. There are many discrete worldlines, like parallel universes. When Okarin leaps to the past, he is moving from one worldline to another; his actions do not affect the future in the worldline he leaped from, only the future of the one he is currently in. The worldlines exist independently. Kurisu talks about this briefly in episode 22, shortly before Okarin time leaps.

This is why Okarin and Suzuha can use the

   time machine to travel to the past twice and not run into other time traveling versions of themselves; both times they traveled to the past they landed in a different worldline.

When we see the scene from 70 million years ago, we are seeing a version of Okarin and Mayuri who have traveled to the show's current worldline from a separate worldline we didn't see.

They would have had to travel using

   Suzuha's time machine. SERN's experiments and Okarin's nightmarish memory showed that sending physical objects through time turns them into gel. The time machine appears to offer protection against this.

 It is unclear why they traveled so far back into the past; perhaps the time machine malfunctioned.

 Mayuri had to explain to Okarin that they were 70 million years in the past. Suzuha also lost her memory when using the damaged time machine. It is unclear why Mayuri retained her memory. Perhaps her reading ability is quite strong; she displayed knowledge of alternate worldlines on multiple occasions.


What did Light write before killing Shibuimaru Takuo? So I decided to rewatch Death Note. In the first episode, there's a motorcyclist called Shibuimaru Takuo - Light's second victim. In the scene where he is about to kill him, according to my subtitles, he writes:

  Shibuimaru Takuo: car accident

And we see this:

I don't know Japanese, but it seems to me that all the lines are the same, except for the two last ones.

Since that guy is just his second victim, what exactly happened in that scene? What do these lines say, and why did Light several of them, over and over?

From what I remember (although I don't know enough Japanese to confirm this), he was trying every possible different spelling for the name of the victim.
The Death Note wiki page on the first episode also states this as a fact (in the sixth paragraph in the synopsis.

Now, if you've already watched the series and are currently re-watching it, you're already familiarised with the rules. The one that is significant in this particular case is rule #2 (highlight by me):

  This note will not take effect unless the writer has the person’s face in their mind when writing his/her name. Therefore, people sharing the same name will not be affected.

This means that Light was trying every possible spelling of the name, because at least one of them would match with the face pictured when he wrote the names. This also means that no collateral casualties would occur, as that particular person's face was being pictured in his mind.
If I'm correct on this, the first column are different spellings for Shibuimaru, the second for Takuo, and the third column refers to the death ("accidental death" (事故死) is what it says).

He did not have to try this out with his first victim because he got both his face and name from TV.

Long story short, he was trying to match a name for that face by going through every possible spelling.

Editing in some info from the below comments:
This does not appear to violate the rule on rendering the Death Note void if the user misspells a person's name more than 4 times, if one of the first four spellings was correct (which seems to be the case).


Why is it Soifon didn't know about Shunkō? After Rukia is rescued and everyone is off fighting battles, during their fight Soifon says she developed a new technique which she only just perfected and hasn't even gotten a name.

however Yoruichi says it does have a name calling it Shunkō, she even explains that the reason why the Stealth Force's attire is designed the way it is is because of how Shunkō works and that fabric on the arms and back would be blown away.

Yoruichi is Soifon's mentor and took her place as head of the Stealth Force when Yoruichi disappeared. if Shunkō was developed between Yoruichi and Urahara after they left then the design of the Stealth Force's attires wouldn't be so linked to it.

So how come Soifon didn't know about Shunkō?

The answer was stated in the same episode that it was revealed.  Yoruichi explained to Soifon that she did not want to teach Shunko to her because it was too unstable (if I recall correctly), with Yoruichi stating "Even I can't control it."

Edit: I did not read all the comments under your question and did not see that you already knew that much, here is the rest of my answer;  This also explains why Soifon would never have witnessed Yoruichi using the technique, because it was unsuitable for battle.


Why do first, second, and third grade of Japanese students wear different uniform in Anime? I noticed that in most of school-life anime the first, second, and third grader usually wore different uniforms. It's not completely different. Sometimes the differences are pins, ribbon, indoor slippers, tie, and so on. But, what does the reason behind this?

I watch some Japanese dramas. But, couldn't recall any title that has those differences.
Is this really part of Japanese culture?

PS: In my country, most students wear uniform too. But there's no differences of uniform between first, second, and third graders.

In my country (Indonesia), our school uniform has a badge that indicates what grade we are. It was not just my school, other schools here also have it like this. Thus, this is not/no longer (since Indonesia used to be under the occupation of the Japanese forces) a Japanese specific culture.

As to why we have it that way, a page in Wikipedia explained it well. Basically, the uniform was modeled after the sailor uniform. The difference between Freshman, Junior, and Senior uniform rooted back from the rank hierarchy in the army. Think of advancing class as advancing in rank, like from a Sergeant into a Major, and then General.

Edit: Added from the Tomato Cabal Line group discussion (credit to Krazer), the color on the uniforms and shoes denote the year the students belong in. The color is rotated each year. E.g. the color of the graduated senior becomes the color of the new incoming freshman. This is so that you can tell who is your senior and who is your junior. The color is rotated so that you don't have to change color every year.


Where is Eren's father Dr. Jaeger? So I finally got around to seeing what the fuss was all about with Attack on Titan anime series, by marathoning it in two days, and I am glad I did. Do note that I just finish watching the anime series only, so if it's answered in the manga, please indicate spoilers.

The thing that stood out for me though was the complete absence of Eren's father after the first two episodes, and the fact that no one seemed in the least bit concerned. We know he was (probably) not dead, because in the second episode, he was seen riding back home concerned about whether his wife, Eren and Mikasa were safe. In Eren's memories, he also seemed to be aware of what was going to happen (or saw it as inevitable), so it seemed unlikely that he had been killed, particularly with no mention of it.

However, aside from some recurrences of Eren's dream/memory, there was no sign of his father at all, and nobody seemed to care. Eren and Mikasa didn't mention or even recognised the absence. And the various soldiers, generals, etc. didn't seem interested either, even though Eren made it clear that his father had something hidden in his basement, possibly related to his ability. I would have thought that someone would have interrogated him further on what his father was doing or what could be in the basement. All we seem to know is that he had been traveling somewhere for a week or so.

Is there an explanation as to where Dr. Jaeger was during the 5+ years? Is it just an oversight that Eren's father is so glossed over by the series? Seems kind of weird when he's potentially a crucial character in the same vein as Annie's father.

The whereabouts of Dr. Jaeger are revealed in chapter 62. To give you an idea how far ahead that is, the latest episode (25) plays out during chapter 33, so you are basically halfway through.

   Eren has eaten his own father. This event happened somewhere during the time-skip of the second chapter, so Dr. Jaeger has basically been dead for most of the series.


Is Goku aware that he is in the UI state? Based on discussions, questions and answers, Goku achieves the UI state when he is at his limit.
But when he achieves it, is he aware of that?
Does he feel different?
If so, then why doesn't he recreate the changes and feelings to control the state and use it more efficiently?

If he was aware the first time he entered  is kind of unsure, however the second time he definitely was. We see him casually talking with Kefla(she asked him if that was ultra something, he responded its called ultra instinct). Further into the fight he mentioned he is getting the hang of it(meaning he is somewhat in full control) however, as Whis has mentioned it, he still thinks about his attack thus limiting his full potential in the state.
There is still room for improvement in this state, but he is gradually mastering it. I think when his rematch with Jiren will happen he will be in full control.


Was it ever explained why Vegito split back into Goku and Vegeta in Buu's body? I've always been curious about this. It is mentioned that fusion using the Potara earings will keep you fused forever. So why did Vegito split inside Buu's body? I remember Goku and Vegeta saying they were glad they split, but I don't recall them explaining how it happened.

The reason behind the splitting back was never explained in the anime.

In episode 273, The Innards Of Buu, after Goku and Vegeta splits back into their former selves, Goku asks:

  "Why'd we separate once we let the barrier down?"

To which, Vegeta has no idea about.

In the original manga, however, Goku tells that it must have been the "bad air" inside Buu.

This was confirmed in the Daizenshuu.

Daizenshuu 4, pg 163, entry for Potara Earrings:

  Special Characteristics: To use them, the two people who will merge simply each take one of the two earrings and put in on their left or right ear, respectively. Furthermore, after merging the power is greater than with Fusion. However, the two people will automatically merge as soon as the earrings are put on, and in principle will be unable to ever split up again, so caution is needed when handling them. The merged person will only split up when touched by the air inside Majin Buu’s body. Also, while with Fusion the post-merged clothing is the native dress of the people of Planet Metamor, when merging with the Potara not only are the two people’s bodies mixed together, but their clothing is as well. In addition, pathetically enough the East Kaioshin and his attendant Kibito merged together without knowing a thing about Potara fusion.

UPDATE:

According to Episode 66 of Dragon Ball Super, the official explanation as to why the splitting occured, is given by Gowasu:

  Goku asks Gowasu how come he and Vegeta split before when he was told the effects of Potara are permanent, and Gowasu explains that those who fuse that are not Supreme Kai will only stay fused for one hour.


Why is Tsukune allowed into the monster school, in Rosario+Vampire? So Tsukune's father just finds someone drop a school admission letter, and give it to Tsukune. And then he goes into a monster school, and where the magic to stop humans doesn't work, and becomes a normal student. Am I the only one who finds this weird?

Is there any reason he was allowed in the school? Surely the teachers/headmaster would realise he is not a monster, and that he is using someone else's admission letter?

The trick to this is, that noone in the school knows he is human except

   the headmaster, who dropped his letter of admission in the first episode

and maybe the bus driver, who is revealed to be:

   Nurarihyon the supreme commander of all monsters in the last episode of the 2nd season manga.

additionaly to the end of Capu 1 (it's their Season)

   he almost dies and Moka Akashiya turns him into a part-vampire to save his life

The plot device used for this is, that in School no one is allowed to show their true form, but have to disguise as humans. This allows him to wander freely in this school for monsters.

At the same time of the revelation on who the Bus Driver is, the true reason is also revealed:

   Nurarihyon (aka the Bus Driver, aka the supreme commander of all monsters) wants Tsukune to be the next headmaster of the school of monsters.


Who captured Kokuo and killed Han? In Naruto, as far as I know,

1-tail was captured by Deidara
2-tails was captured by Hidan
3-tails was captured by either Tobi or Deidara
4-tails was captured by Kisame
6-tails was captured by the Six Paths of Pain.
7-tails was captured by Kakuzu

So by process of elimination, Tobi, Konan, or Orochimaru were responsible for the capture of Kokuo. I ruled out Zetsu because in the data books he was faster than 4th Raikage and as strong as him. Alongside his mist armour makes it quite hard to picture Zetsu killing him.
Who captured 5-tails?

Unfortunately, the simple and short answer is that we do not know who captured the Han and the 5-tails. It could have been anyone of the Akatsuki, including previous unnamed members.
Aside from knowing that the 5-tails has been captured, the only glimpse of information we have on when Han was possibly captured is mentioned by Deidara Naruto Chapter 266. We cannot say for certain which two Jinchuurki Deidara is mentioning here, as we're only shown a handful of tailed beasts being canonically captured. Assuming Han and the 5-tails was one of these two, then his capture was prior to the start of Shippuden


Which powers does the Black Asta transformation give to Asta? So far we see that Asta when transforming into Black Asta can fly and gets his skin covered with some black sustance in parts. But what others powers does he get when transforming? Does he get some protection or enhanced skills? Or is it just the possibility of flying?

Apart from the ability to fly, Asta's speed and strength are greatly increased when he enters his anti-magic state.

  An extra perk and probably the most useful effect of the flow of anti-magic is on his mind. It improves his focus and clears his mind.

Asta also gains the ability to sense strong mana. Actually, its more like his Black Asta form is automatically drawn to strong magic. And depending on how much Anti-magic he channels through his body, the overflowing energy erodes magic near him.


Why didn't Tobi use Kamui when Minato used Rasengan? During the fight between Minato Namikaze and Tobi (in episode 248 The Fourth Hokage's Death Match of the Naruto: Shippuden anime, or chapter 502 and 503 of the manga), Minato escaped from Tobi's Kamui, despite having been caught in the technique unexpectedly.

3 minutes and a few seconds later into the episode, the two ran towards each other. At an extremely close distance, Minato pulled off a Rasengan. Considering the bright aura and the sound it makes, I'm pretty sure Tobi noticed it.

Tobi let the kunai that Minato had thrown pass through him. So instead of using Kamui to let Minato phase through him, why did Tobi keep going? Minato had already escaped from Kamui once, and that was when he was caught unexpectedly.

In chapter 502 from page 8, Tobi fought with Minato. As nhahtdh commented, there is no reason to use the same jutsu twice when the opponent can avoid it.

The image below shows Minato's inner thoughts moments before they clashed against each other in the second image.

In the second image you posted above, if you take a closer look

You can see the kunai passing through Tobi. If you are not aware, Tobi was actually using Kamui to let the kunai pass through him. However, to attack, Tobi had to solidify his body. Tobi couldn't attack and defend at the same time with Kamui. Correct me if I am wrong here.

As you can see from the above picture, Tobi touched Minato and was going to attack. I don't know what jutsu he was going to use, but Tobi was confident that he would win, so his whole body was solid and he was not using Kamui.

Hiraishin Level 2 was faster than Tobi's attack, and Boom. Rasengan.

So the reasons why Tobi did not use Kamui to let Minato's attack pass through him:

Using the same jutsu twice against an elite shinobi is foolish, unless one has well-grounded confidence that it will work, or has another motive.
Tobi was confident that he was going to win this fight, as you can see on third picture.
He was unaware of Hiraishin Level 2. As you can see, he was surprise when Minato jumped to the kunai.


Why doesn't Sasuke have his left hand in Boruto: Naruto the Movie? Sasuke is missing his left hand in Boruto: Naruto the Movie. In the manga, Tsunade gives him a new hand but he gets it removed. Why?

Sasuke refused tsunades offer for the arm to remind himself of his sins. This is quoted straight from the manga.