Hmm...what to say about this: My tracker told me someone was talking about me, so I went to look. Someone described White Radish...pretty accurately, in fact -- although he didn't know that we've actually animated four shorts, not three, but the first isn't owned by White Radish anymore, so there's nothing about it on this site. Anyway, he mentioned that The Evil At Tentacle High is an H title, and everyone seized on that and assumed, assumed, assumed. Sexual content has the same kind of stigma that anime itself has. A non-otaku will look at any anime and say "Oh, that's a cartoon. It's a children's medium. Nothing worthwhile will ever come out of that." Or worse: "Why are you telling a serious story in what's obviously a children's medium?" So, too, if something is categorised as "hentai," people assume it to be worthless...People commenting on the board called it "the lowest form of anime" and "the easiest way for a no-name small company to squeeze their way into professional animation...a pity." Other people say, "It's a pervert's medium." "Nothing worthwhile in that." Or worse, and I've really heard people say this: "Why are you wasting such a good story on a hentai animation?" People, please! I know I've chosen an uphill battle in the fight against stereotypes, but is it too much to ask that people look into things independently before making judgements and jumping to conclusions? Just a little? I've seen a lot of anime, of just about every genre, including hentai. There are as many genres of hentai as there are genres of any other anime. There's science fiction hentai, fantasy hentai, magical girl hentai, slice of life character drama hentai, coming of age hentai...you name it! The only difference is that they include sexual content. That's all! The ones that I've enjoyed and own have solid, engaging stories. Only one anime comes to mind as a storyless romp from one titillating encounter to another, and that wasn't even hentai, it was CLAMP's Miyuki-chan in Wonderland! Now, admittedly, my experience is coloured by my own tastes. That is, I prefer stories without rape and excessive violence, the sort that would be rated R here. So I don't really know what X-rated hentai is like. All I know is, the stuff I watch has good storytelling, and it has to! Why would I care whether person A has sex with person B unless it had a story? If I had to categorise The Evil At Tentacle High, it would indeed be "hentai." But aside from the sexual content, what is it? Well, it's satirical, and very funny! I took it on as a project not because it meant I'd get to draw lots of nudity, or because I thought it would sell well, but because I thought it was a great satire of tentacle hentai! Likewise, Pink Lemonade's emphasis is heaviest on story and character development -- something I consider very important. The sex is not forced or out-of-place, it comes quite naturally in the story. Obviously, if any given viewer has some kind of neurosis about sex, then it doesn't matter how good the story is; they'll hate it regardless. But such people are not my audience, and not my concern. It's not my job to explain why sex is normal and good. That fact should be obvious, and to my audience, it is. Of course, if the others want to leave their neuroses at the door, they're welcome to come in and take a seat, and they just might find themselves entertained -- and if they stick around for the whole story, they might even find themselves watching something that makes them think.

The DVD collection of shorts is ready. It contains Apprentice, The Item, The Evil At Tentacle High, and 3 trailers. It's $15, and it replaces the VideoCD collection of shorts on the order form (although if you prefer the VCD, you can always ask for it, but it will not contain The Evil At Tentacle High.

It's getting close to Halloween, my favourite time of the year! Click here for an animated Flash greeting card especially for Halloween! (Requires the Flash 5 or 6 plugin.)