Is Keiko Numata's backstory the same in the anime as it is in the the novel?

It would be fair to assume that her background is generally the same. All events leading up to and beyond the point you are referring to suggest the same woeful tale. Maybe it was an accident that occurred in one of her insane fits, or maybe they are scars of a previous attempt to contain her.

One thing is for certain, if you don't want to live anymore, and you want to make a very big mess, bite off your tongue.


Did Shinji activate EVA Unit 01's Berserk Mode?

In the original anime series, it was established that the berserk mode can't be triggered voluntarily. Moreover it was at least strongly hinted that the "berserk mode" is in fact

   the manifestation of motherly love and protection, as it always activated when Shinji's life was in immediate danger.

In the Rebuild continuity, there is the so-called "beast mode" that can be activated by the pilot, but it is only ever shown working for Unit-02, not for Unit-01. Therefore it is at least very improbable, if not outright false, that Shinji could have willingly activated this mode.


The episode starts with the words of a correspondent: "Marcelo Jarti, leader of the Jenoma democratic revolution, as well as military advisor to the current administration, was attacked in Panan City today". He was visiting and the shooting was pretty serious, so he was assumed to have been killed. Section 9's agents are seen confirming his identity in the beginning of the episode.

Major Kusanagi says:

  "Leader of the democratic revolution. Legendary hero. He and the current chaimran were the cenral figures in the revolution commanding the guerrilla war and leading it to victory. But after the revolution, he showed no interest whatsoever in politics, and backed the State Council chairman from behind the scenes, remaining true to his principles, staying a mere soldier. <…> The SAS and Delta Force have been behind five assassination plots against him, but he's miraculously survived each time. Nobody in his country doubts that he's their ̈„Immortal Hero“."

Then the guy with the scanner confirms that the signs of Ghost are present in Marcel's behavior. That doesn't absolutely prove his authenticity, but only says chances are high it's really him.

Director Aramaki of the Section 9 then briefs the team about the mission:

  In the past five years, Marcelo has come to Japan 12 times <…> Foreign Affairs Section 1 had been unable to ascertain his activities in-country. <…> They want us to find out why Marcelo has entered the country so often.

Bato responds: "He's a South American drug lord, isn't he? Something to do with that, maybe?" Major Matoko says it's unlikely that his interest is in making a drug deal, since he trades the classic drugs, while most of the Japan has switched to virtual drugs.

But then Marcelo is indeed seen with some drug traders. And after the investigation reveals that there are clones of Marcelo that look very life-like due to his subtle personality traits being copied over to them, it makes the same external appearance as the Ghost, making everyone think that clones are the real thing.

Marcelo is found dead and for some time now his clones have been keeping up his legendary work. Revealing the fact of his death to the public and other organizations could stir up a lot of trouble, so the Section 9 leaves things as they are for now.

The cybercrime case is closed, but what about the drug business? I don't know for sure, but I have a theory. It's likely that Marcelo's clones have been killed more than once during drug deals, but authorities decide to go with "he's alive, everything is fine" info every time because maybe they're interested in continuing the drug deals. Possibly they have a way to trace Marcelo's movements and ambush drug lords like that.


What are the original sculptures of the Sekko Boys?

Medici
Medici is a bust originally sculpted by Michelangelo dating 1526-1516. Giuliano de' Medici lived from 1479 - 1516.

Michelangelo and the Medici

Michelangelo, had a complicated relationship with the Medici, an Italian noble family of prominence in the 14-18th centuries. The House of Medici rose to prominence as Florence's preeminent bankers, amassing a fortune to be used for patronage of the arts.

You can see this sculpture in the Medici Chapel, San Lorenzo, Florence.

Hermes

This statue is a bust of Hermes and the Infant Dionysus. Dionysus was the Greek god of wine and theatre
Wikipedia Reference

Hermes is considered a god of transitions and boundaries. He is described as quick and cunning, moving freely between the worlds of the mortal and divine. He is also portrayed as an emissary and messenger of the gods: an intercessor between mortals and the divine, and conductor of souls into the afterlife. He has been viewed as the protector and patron of herdsmen, thieves, oratory and wit, literature and poetry, athletics and sports, invention and trade, roads, boundaries and travellers.

You can see this sculpture at the Archaeological Museum of Olympia, Elis.

Mars

Mars is a Roman god, who is thought to be an adaption of Ares - the Greek god of war. This bust is from the statue Ares Borghese and it can be seen in the Louvre, Paris.

St. Giorgio

AD 275–281 to AD 303
Know as St. George in English, he is a christian soldier who, according to legend, leashed a dragon and slew it in front of the townspeople after they swore to baptize themselves.
Read the legend
Donatello's St. George Sculpture can be found in Orsanmichele, Florence.


Which other nations are there in Attack on Titan world aside Eldia and Marley?

Aside from Marley and Eldia, the "Middle Eastern Allied Countries" (中東連合国), a certain "Eastern Country" (東の国), and a part of the world called the "Orient" (東洋) are mentioned. Mikasa is an Oriental. The Eastern Country and the Middle Eastern countries are probably part of the Orient, but these are not clear. As to whether or not they are more technologically advanced than Marley and Eldia, I don't know.

UPDATE:

   The name of an Eastern Country, "Hizuru" is mentioned in Chapter 98. Mikasa is a descendant of a once powerful clan in Hizuru.  As for the technological level of Hizuru, it isn't clear if it's higher than Eldia or Marley. We only know from Chapter 107 that Paradi is about 100 years behind the rest of the world, and that Hizuru will help Paradi catch up.


The answer is yes.

Based on the experiments Light did with criminals, as long as what is written in the death note is humanly possible it will happen. Like the criminals who wrote suicide notes and drew figures on the wall before they died. But if it is not possible they simply die of heart attacks, like the guy who was supposed to die in Paris but it was impossible for him to escape from prison and flee to Paris and then die there in the limited time that was written for him.

If you carefully plan the robbery and the timing and placing is not impossible for the victim to arrive at, it will happen.


Why does the first Season of Naruto have different Openings at the same time?

Generally, when it comes to anime, OPs are switched out every season (12-13 episodes/weeks) or so. This is also the reason why 2-season anime series mostly have 2 different OPs, and single-season anime(s) only have 1 OP.

Since Naruto's 1st season has 35 episodes (according to Wikipedia), it makes sense that there are 3 different openings: the 1st season of Naruto is a roughly-3-season show, meaning that there will be 3 different openings.

If you meant "Why not forget about having different OPs in the first place?" as your question, it's hard to answer. It could be that production studios might want to inject some variety into the series, so that people don't get bored of watching the same opening 10, 20, or even 30 times.


How long does it generally take to release a soundtrack?

This doesn't answer your broader question, but the K: Return of Kings soundtrack is scheduled for release on April 27, 2016.

  Are the soundtracks always released?

Not always, but I'd guesstimate that 80-90% of anime have soundtracks released at some point. Those that don't are mostly shows targeted at children, who are probably not likely to buy soundtracks.

  Essentially, I want to know how long it normally takes for soundtracks to be released after an anime's release.

This can range anywhere from "before the show is even done airing" (e.g. Shokugeki no Soma's first soundtrack album) to "not until season 2" (e.g. Nisekoi's first soundtrack album) to "yeah, we were going to release it soon, but lolno too bad" (e.g. Tokyo Ghoul - granted, they did put out an actual album half a year later).


Why are there dinosaurs and prehistoric animals in the opening of season 2?

I strongly suggest Rule of Cool. There are no dinosaurs or other prehistoric animals in the story, neither anime nor manga. But dinosaurs are damn cool.

If I have to try to find a connection to the series, the theme would be extinction. If all walls would be breached, then humanity would face extinction through titans, right?

Manga spoiler (don't read for more enjoyment of the series): With further manga knowledge, I would reformulate the above answer to

   Humanity inside the walls could face extinction in the near future.


Why doesn't Midoriya get any recommendations despite his good performance in the tournament?

You yourself mentioned the main reason. IF brought under control his quirk is exceptional. However, we as readers get the extra information that the characters of the manga don't have.

   He inherits the quirk from All Might.

Thus, Midoriya maybe capable of big things, but the other pro heroes will consider him a liability in practice because an injured person removes 2 persons from a fight.

Also note, though he achieved good results, he didn't do anything impressive showcasing his hero talent.

Obstacle Course Race. He won the first round because Bakugou and Todoroki were fighting against each other. 1B wasn't interested in the first place. He didn't use his ability at all! This is mentioned specifically in Manga.

Cavalry Battle. They barely scrape through. Though Midoriya planned well again. From the outside the MVP for the team was Tokoyami who defended well and was able to scrape through the qualification in the end.
PvP Tournament. 1st Round. Even after knowing his opponents weakness, he gave himself away. He lucked out in the end, when Previous One for All users triggered him from the hypnosis. He won since his opponent was weaker when they both didn't use quirks.
PvP Tournament. 2nd Round. Lost to Todoroki. He got his ass kicked tbh. He showcased his will power and helped Todokori assess his powers, but he was literally helpless. From the outside, it showed other Pro Heroes his vulnerabilities rather than his strengths!

Now, its different. He has formed his own style of battling and is interning with AllMight's former sidekick in the current arc! So look forward to Anime/Manga. Cheers


What is the song playing in the background in Naruto season 2 episode 7?

The Song u are looking for is:
Go Go Naruto!
Also, the Episode is: Naruto: 33 - Battle Formation: Ino-Shika-Cho!
Netflix has his own Episode Index.


Must you write the full name of a person in the death note to kill them?

David Connnor should be enough, in How to Use I it says

  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.

That alone should be enough. if, by some genetic miracle, 2 identical people with the same name existed then adding the person's full name (ie. Troy Delu vi La'Flash) may then allow the Death Note tell the difference between the 2.

IF, and this is a huge if, that 2 identical people with identical full names existed then it's quite possible they will be immune unless the cause of death was

  David Winston Connor dies from a heart attack in 40 seconds after writing his own name in the death note

but try and get someone to do that, also the odds of 2 people like that being born is insanely huge.

NOTE: To clarify a point raised by trlkly, How to Use: LIII talks about writing one's name across multiple pages, Point 1 says it wont work but Point 2 says that the front and back are still one page and talks about writing the surname on the front and given name in the back. this seems to imply that by name it would refer to the given and surname.


Does the "A Slice of Bread" short story from "7 Seeds" really exist?

Yes, a short story titled A Slice of Bread exists. It was written by a Romanian author Francisc Munteanu. The original title is O bucată de pâine. In Japan, it is known as 一切れのパン (Hitokire no Pan).
The story is about the escape of a Romanian who was captured by German troops during World War 2. During the escape, he met a Jewish rabbi who gave something wrapped in a handkerchief. The rabbi said that it contained a slice of bread and only to open it if it is really needed. [...] (spoiler ahead about the ending)

 After a long hardship and without opening the handkerchief, the escapee reached home. When his wife asked what the handkerchief was, he answered with "a slice of bread", but when he opened it, a piece of wood fell instead of a slice of bread.

For info in English, looks like the same short story was published in Meanjin Quarterly, v.25, no.3, 1966, p.297-305, but apart from that, the detail in English is lacking. Though, it is kind of popular in Japan due to it being included in the Japanese (national) language textbook for middle-schooler.

The full story in Japanese can be read in this blog.
The abridged version in Japanese can be read in this blog.
The English publication can be accessed/bought from Informit.


What does the ending of Death Note (manga) mean?

Yes. It is indeed meant to invoke that.

Throughout the series we see Light fall more and more into a trap where he kills to protect himself, instead of just "punishing" criminals. His ultimate aim was to usher in a new era where crime was non existent and himself to be the saviour (read God) for the people still living.

Though he died, in the end he did affect multitude of people with his reign as that of Kira and eventually a cult (religion is too strong a word at this point) of his worshippers formed who worship him and probably undertake a spiritual journey for their saviour.

This is what the wiki describes as the scene you described,

  In a place with high mountains, thousands of hooded people of all ages walking by candlelight. The group parts and a hooded woman dressed in white walks to the edge of a mountain and clasps her hands in prayer. She says, "Kira, our saviour." Source - Wiki

This is typical for a spiritual group. Think Teerth Yatras for Hindus or Hajj for Muslims. I am expecting this to be inspiration for the scene.

On a side note, unnamed Kira worshiper was drawn with her face shown because Obata "personally wanted to draw something pretty in the final chapter"


Why was Araragi unable to understand Dramaturgie / Episode / Guillotine Cutter when they first met?

He was speaking another language.

Going off the English version of the Kizumonogatari novel, page 81 shows that Dramaturgy spoke something that Araragi didn't understand. Vertical displayed this by just having a bunch of black boxes in quotations (dunno how Nisioisin did it in the Japanese novel, but I'm sure it's something similar). Page 82 starts with Guillotine Cutter reprimanding Dramaturgy for not using "the language of the land you're in", meaning that Dramaturgy was speaking a language other than Japanese.


What's the song that plays when Naruto and Sasuke fight with Rasengan and Chidori in episode 216?

It sounds to me like Samidare (Track 28 of Shippuuden OST 2).

Note that parts of this track also sound vaguely similar to Ochibabune (OST 2 track 26), Yamagasumi (OST 2 track 22), and Utsusemi (OST 1 track 7), so it can be easy to confuse them.

Incidentally, Utsusemi was playing in the immediately preceding scene.


Is the Evangelion Remake a remake or a sequel?

It's interpretation.

There's nothing official whether there is a sequel or not. Aside from Kaworu saying weird stuff about "next time" or "this time" (and a weird translation of Kaworu's voice actor mentioning something about "looping" in an interview), all of the other instances (including the large chalk outline) of possible "time looping" or "rebooting the universe" have been explained in-universe or through story-boards in a way unrelated to any sort of sequel, "time looping" or "rebooting". This is not to say such images aren't meant to make people think that, or at the very least, as a reference or a nod to the original series.

The seas are red as a result of second impact.
The chalk outline is from an accident before second impact.
The blood stain on the moon, also from second impact
Second impact in this universe occurs chronologically as the same Second impact in the original series (Antarctica expedition, Misato's dad dies, releases of Adam(s))
Kaworu saying stuff about "next time" and "this time", unexplained

Kaworu has always been saying weird stuff, even in the original series, or, perhaps he's the time-travelling wizard in this version of Evangelion. It's up to your interpretation, and there's a lot of ways to interpret things, especially since we've been given such all encompassing world changing events like Instrumentality, of which we know next to nothing when it comes to the details or mechanics.


Is there an audio commentary for Ghost In The Shell series and movies?

I found a page that lists Blu-Ray sets you can buy for SAC, and those contain audio commentaries. That indicates that there are audio commentaries, but I'm not sure if they can be gotten not on the Blu-Ray set. As far as I can tell, there is no audio commentary for Arise, but considering that it hasn't been released on any sort of disc form, that might change.

On Wikipedia, it says about the original Ghost in the Shell film that:

  Manga Entertainment released the film on Blu-ray on November 24, 2009; this version contains the original film and the remastering, but omits the audio commentary and face-to-face interview with Oshii which was listed on its box.

But from what I can tell, the 2004 DVD release and the 2007 Blu-Ray releases have the commentary, and the 2004 special edition also included things like character dossiers and a creator's biography.


What's the Piechart about in the Character Panel of Cyber City Oedo 808?

It's their origin/race.
The labels on the pie chart are:

Mongolide (Mongoloid)
Europide (Caucasian)
Negride (Negroid)

which are actually in German.
The respective kanji is:

人種 (race):

黄色系 (Mongoloid)
白色系 (Caucasian)
黒色系 (Negroid)
その他 (others)


Why are people who haven't done anything wrong taken into custody?

Crime Coefficient is a measure of a target's probability/propensity to commit a crime. The MWPSB uses it as a measurement to determine if a target is a latent criminal or otherwise.
It is calculated and determined by the stress level (Hue), and other biological readings of a person via cymatic scan through the Sibyl System.
Level of Crime Coefficient

Under 100 - Suspect is not a target for enforcement action. The trigger of Dominator will be locked.
100 to 300 - Suspect is classified as a latent criminal and is a target for enforcement action. Dominator is set to Non-lethal Paralyzer mode. Suspect can then be knocked out using the Dominator.
Over 300 - Suspect poses a serious threat to the society. Lethal force is authorized. Dominator will automatically switch to Lethal Eliminator. Suspect that is hit by Lethal Eliminator will bloat and explode.

Source

Make sure to check your crime coefficient!
Unhappily my coefficient is of 420 so I no longer belong to this world.


When would Sakamichi no Apollon have taken place?

The story goes from 1966 to 1977. Here's a breakdown for every episode with some exemplary screenshots for every period. This doesn't detail every single event since many episode span a larger time, but it should be easy to extrapolate from this:

1966, start of the first year in high-school. I found no mention of 1966 in the anime, but it's in the manga. At the latest we can infer this later on, when we hear about Coltrane's death in ep7.
Still summer 1966

End of summer 1966

Christmas 1966

January 1967 (first day of school after winter vacation)

April 1967, start of the second school year

Summer 1967

Since they have the festival afterwards and festivals tend to be held in autumn afaik, the episode might span a few months.
Winter 1967 (plans for Christmas)

Since Jun came back this summer and wasn't disowned yet when he last appeared, the flashbacks must be referring to the very beginning of the Anpo protests, which according to Wikipedia started only in 1968.
Christmas 1967

Starts (probably) after winter vacation, so it's January 1968. Continues until summer 1968 (by now they are in their third and final year).

~Autumn 1968, last school festival

~March 1969. Graduation from high school.

"Eight years later", so probably 1977


How can I identify child-appropriate manga?

The content deemed acceptable for Japanese children generally differs from the concept in other countries; manga contains all genres of stories, so one cannot responsibly presume that just because a title was marketed at Japanese kids, that you would likewise consider it appropriate for your kid of the same age.

As one example:
The popular girl's series Sailor Moon was published in the manga magazine Nakayoshi, which was marketed toward elementary school-age girls (1st through 6th grade). This series includes strong language, bullying, violence, death, war, genocide, refugees, lovers' suicide (more than once), non-consensual kisses (forced while awake, while asleep, while drunk), a father fondling his adult daughter while brainwashed, human/animal romance, demonic-style alien possession of human bodies, nudity, cross-dressing, a non-monogamous lesbian couple, and non-graphic sex resulting in teen pregnancy (the 90s anime version, also marketed toward children, also added wrist/ankle restraints for a rape-like, pain-inducing entering of victims).

There are many manga reviews on the web, including those that specifically for parents and teen/preteen/kid readers on what sort of possibly objectionable content is included in the title (such as strong language, violence, nudity, gender-bending, innuendo, sexual content, etc.) and what sort of general content you can expect (for example: horror, potty humor, serious themes like depression/body image/sexual orientation/prostitution/parental abandonment/bullying/suicide) and let you as the parent or the reader use your own judgment about whether a title fits what you deem appropriate at what age. Browsing reviews also allows you to seek out titles that reinforce and contribute to your family's values (such as traits of selflessness, generosity, celebration of uniqueness, etc.).

Some good starting places are:

A Parent's Guide to Anime
Good Manga for Kids at Manga Bookshelf
Good Comics for Kids at School Library Journal
Kids Manga at No Flying No Tights

Since you have a daughter, she may be especially interested in shoujo manga, which was written with the target audience of Japanese girls. Within shoujo, nearly all genres of stories are included; some titles are very cheerful and innocuous and teach a moral-of-the-day, others are dark and heavy. Good starting places to get informed are:

What is Shoujo Manga?, What Shoujo Manga Are and Are Not, and Recommended Shoujo Manga by Matt Thorn, a professor in the Faculty of Manga at Kyoto Seika University (one of the world's experts on shoujo manga)
What is Shoujo? at Energetic Heartbeats

Some shoujo manga review sites are:

The Classics at Shoujo Corner
Emily's Random Shoujo Manga Page  (despite its unassuming name, contains many detailed reviews)
Heart of Manga
Shoujo Savvy
Shoujo Manga Recommendations
Romance Manga Reviews
Shoujo Manga Reviews
Shoujo Manga with Anime at Anime Manga Reviews

More general review websites include MangaBlog and Kuriousity, and a Google search will find you many more.


What is the song playing in Attack on Titan episode 17 when Jean is about to attack the Female titan?

I found it, it's Ətˈæk 0N tάɪtn, the first song in the "Attack on Titan" Original Soundtrack album.


It will not be possible for Himawari to awaken the Tenseigan on her own. This is because the only way to awaken the Tenseigan

  is by combining Hamura's descendants chakra (within the Otsutsuki Clan) with the Byakugan (the Chakra of the Hyuga Clan).

Naruto is an Uzumaki, a clan that is closely related to the Senju Clan, and so he already possessed a bit of Hagoromo's Chakra (also being a reincarnation of Asura). However, that is not the same as Hamura's Chakra.

Note that Hagoromo is the first twin who possesed the Rinnengan, while Hamura possessed the Tenseigan and through blood line dilution, Hagoromo's two children inherited separately, his chakra and a lesser version of his eyes, which could be combined together to give his Original eyes. The same thing occurred with his younger twin.)


Were there any parts of the manga that were skipped in the anime?

Yes they did skip some of story in the manga version.  There was one part in particular where they make a manga, and in the anime they submit it whereas the anime they just said no I'm going to turn in a better one.  I'll add the episode\chapter numbers when I find it.
Starts sifting through chapters


How many number of anime sales in Japan is considered as profitable?

That depends and the answer will vary per anime because the cost of making one season of anime varies. However, from here,

  According to Masamune Sakaki, a CG creator in the anime industry, an average 13-episode anime season costs around 250 million yen (or $2 million).

If we take that as an example and say that each Blu-ray would cost at around 5000 yen, which is more or less the case if you look at some sites selling them, the anime would have to sell at around 50000 Blu-rays for break-even, and even more for profit and a budget for another season. This is only if they're trying to recover costs based on Blu-ray sales alone, but anime tend to have other merchandise you can buy aside from Blu-ray.


Who does the image labeled "god level threat" in OPM webcomic chapter #77 belong to?

I presume this is the image you are referring to:

As W. Are said in the comments, this is Garou. Fubuki even immediately recognizes him as such at the very beginning of the next chapter.

Garou has been fighting almost continuously through difficult battles for some time now, and he's pretty jacked up. Blood and dirt have caked onto his body and hair.  His hair has matted up into a more horn-like appearance as a result, and his overall appearance is more monstrous.  Which, seeing as he wants to be a monster anyway, is all to his liking.

   This is Garou's ego speaking, ultimately. The association has never attributed a God-level disaster threat to Garou. Nothing has definitively stated that the prophesied God-level disaster has been dealt with, or otherwise passed, by the end of his arc. There are a few scenes, one with Homeless Emperor a few chapters later from the one under consideration here, that implies there is a greater force to be dealt with, though. But Garou does know about the prophesy, as pretty much his first appearance is at the hero's association where the information about the God-level disaster gets stolen by Sonic and spread around. He immediately associated the prophesy with himself and his goals.


Can 2 different species do a dance fusion and work?

Simple answer is : it depends.

In the manga, it was stated that there are certain requirements to the Fusion Dance as opposed to the Potara Earring fusion, such as the mergers need to have equal power and roughly similar height, but in recent interview, Akira Toriyama said that it is possible to merge no matter the conditions, as long as it all goes well and it is even possible for a larger number of people to merge.

Source : http://dragonball.wikia.com/wiki/Fusion


The backstory of van Hohenheim and Father is discussed in chapter 74 and 75. All we see is this:

The Dwarf in the Flask talks to slave no. 23, whom he names.
Van Hohenheim is taught to read and write, and ends up in a better position in the household.
The king wants immortality, and the homunculus tricks him and destroys the whole country, excepting Hohenheim.

The only thing relevant in these chapters to how the homunculus was created is this: it notes that blood was taken from Hohenheim to create the homunculus.

From chapter 74:

The notion that they have blood relation is repeated later in chapter 75, but this is the main thing we ever get as to the origin of the Dwarf in the Flask.

It's possible of course that there might have been more information in bonus material to the series, but the fact that the Wikia lacks anything beyond this and that I've never seen any serious commentary on this among fans of FMA suggest that this probably isn't the case.


In which episode of the F/SN Unlimited Blade Works anime do we see Illya's body Command Seals?

The picture you have provided has the art style of a game/visual novel and not that of an anime, especially the background.
This is because the scene is not shown in the anime adaptation of Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works, or any of the other anime adaptations of the Fate series, but is from the Visual Novel's First Route: Fate.
Here is a picture of her Magic Circuits without the background along with some information about it:

Illya has unsurpassed potential as a Master amongst all Masters past and present. 70% of her body is composed of Magic Circuits. They are also her Command Spell and show themselves as a red pattern all over her body when she generates magical energy.Source


Do Shojo and Bishonen overlap, or are they seperate?

Shoujo is a genre of manga/anime targeted at girls. There's an explanation here that covers it, but basically, it's manga/anime where the target demographic is 8-17-year-old girls.

Bishonen is an aesthetic/style that refers to pretty boys, who generally have feminine and delicate features. It most often shows up in shoujo and yaoi manga/anime, but it isn't exclusive to them. An entire manga/anime can be drawn in the bishonen style or individuals can be. (Wikipedia)


Do the bodies Orochimaru inhabits change to look like him?

After researching in some wikis in spanish

Orochimaru, Spanish Naruto Wikia

It is said that Orochimaru changes the host body to look similar to his original body. However he can't change the height of the new host.


What was changed into an immortal object?

As you say yourself:

  Was this an error, in that the message was supposed to refer to this boss removing his own immortality? If not, what exactly did this message signify?

While googling, I came across some posts on a forum which seems to say that it is a wrongly translated message and that it should say something like: "immortality status changed".
I'm not sure if it's accurate but it seems to tell the exact same thing.


You know how they explained in Shippuden thaat they discovered Chakra and stuff and figured out how to use it to their benefit? There are five ninja villages. Konoha, Sunagakure, Kirigakure, Kumogakure, Iwagakure. They are all conviniently placed close to eachother by the lands they are in. There maye be many other villages around them like the Iron village or whatever its called with the samurai that look like stormtroopers. Villages that do not wish to be associated with the ninja world, so they cut themselves off from it completely and are never mentioned in Naruto because they do not have any purpose besides being in the world itself.Now, because this website doesn't like guessing, I'll call this an educated guess, seeing as it is backed up by some evidence, at least. I hope that was a good answer, and actually I've been thinking about that too. Like, what other countries and continents are there besides the land of the fire and et cetera?


Are real-life products always connected to the show they have on their packaging?

This is simply merchandising, and it has nothing to do with the show itself. It's like being able to buy Tshirts, mugs, hand towels, baseball caps, etc with the name/logo/picture of a character/etc from a certain show. It's to make money from something other than DVD/BD sales or in the case of films, box office take.

In certain cases, there's a marketing collaboration. This is almost always a mutual thing, product gets a bit of marketing by placing the anime into its products (hand cream, champagne, eye drops, shaving razors, etc) and the anime gets a bit of marketing from the people who normally buy this stuff anyways. Depending on the specifics of the contract, there could payment for either the property or advertisement or in some cases, royalties.


What are the instances where a Weekly Shounen Jump serialized manga would not be released in a given week?

You have to understand that the manga industry is in fact an industry and normal industry situations happen.

The reasons behind a manga not coming out can be the same reasons some shop or company does not work at certain periods of time, but more specifically I've seen the following:

There is a public holiday for that period in the country of the publishing (e.g. Golden Week).
The author of the manga is taking a break after a two-chapter release. (Which basically means that the author already did this weeks job last week)
The author is on vacation.
The author is on an unpaid leave due to reasons of his concern.
The author is sick and cannot work due to that. (Pretty much calling in sick, in layman terms).

Any other reasons a normal person may not be able to work at a job all also apply here. If by chance there is a public holiday but a chapter still comes out, chances are the author prepared the chapter beforehand, and is enjoying the holiday like everyone else, although it appears that he was "working" that week.

EDIT:

As pointed out by Miharu in the comments below, there also might be a rare situation where a manga which is based on a currently airing anime has caught up to the anime and therefore might take a break to let the anime progress a little further. (Personally I haven't seen this phenomenon though.)


Can Brook marry a real woman and have real kids (human kids)?

Yes

I could not find any verified references as to which of the two possibilities listed below is correct, but based off the fact that he is non-existent parts can interact with the things around him [relevant AAM question] I am leaning towards the first.

1.
Brook just acts like most people when reproducing and via the Yomi Yomi no Mi fruits powers, somehow it all just works. The sound waves in his chest bounce off something, his urine is aimed by something so it seems probable that if he just went through the motions, (whether or not his wife could feel anything) then his non-existent organs would also operate normally.

2.
This is to cover all bases, and explain why it would be possible, although admittedly not practical if he was unable to become aroused or physically respond down there. Because Brook has other liquids, it is fair to say that he does have sperm and we know that if nothing is happening, eventually Brook would have a wet dream. I would like to refer to this article about frog underpants that was placed on the frog in a very early experiment to learn about the basics of reproduction where they placed specially made underpants on the male frog, placed him with a female, waited for them to mate and then collected the frogs sperm and analysed it. Well in theory, brook could wear a similar apparatus to collect and preserve his own sperm, which could later be used by his wife to produce a child.

Plus there is always adoption


Which is the highest recorded power level in Nanatsu no Taizai?

As per the wiki's page on Balor's Magical Eye, the highest known-for-certain power level recorded in Nanatsu no Taizai is Ludociel's impressive 201 000 (Chapter 286, page 14). However, we know that Mael has a 200 000+ power level (Chapter 278, page 12). As this is relatively vague, Mael may or may not have a numerically higher power level than Ludociel.

Since Mael has often been described as the strongest Archangel in-universe, it is almost certain that his actual power level goes beyond 201 000. Alas, since it has never been recorded precisely, we cannot actually confirm this.


The treasure in One Piece is at the end of the Grand Line. But isn't that the same as the beginning?

No, there is a reason why they can't.

Basically the New World is beyond the Red Line, but you cannot "walk" on it, or cross it. It's a huge continent, very tall that you cannot go through. You can't cross the Calm Belt either, unless you have some form of locomotion such as the Navy or Boa Hancock.

So the only way is to start from one of the Four Seas, then to go the Reverse Mountain and follow the Grand Line until you reach Raftel, which supposedly is where One Piece is located.


Why don't anime studios hire native English speakers?

From time to time non-native Japanese speakers are employed as voice actors in Japan, but it's very unusual. A more ambitious anime production might use native speakers of other languages to voice minor roles whose only lines are not in Japanese. It's even rarer for a recurring or major character whose lines are mostly in Japanese to be voiced by someone whose not native speaker, even though the character is supposed to be a foreigner.

I think there are two main reasons for this, both from a "supply" and "demand" side of things. The first the Japanese public don't appear to be used to hearing their native language spoken in foreign accents as people in the United States and other western countries are. It not something they see in movies and TV shows, and rarely in their daily lives. Even a slight to moderate foreign accent, as you would expect from a foreigner in Japan, would be off-putting and risk being incomprehensible in parts.

The second is that while there are unquestionably large numbers of native speakers of foreign languages in Japan, very few would be willing to work for the low wages voice actors get in Japan. There is an endless supply of native Japanese wannabe voice actors, with over 100 voice acting schools to train them, all desperate to get jobs in the industry. By comparison, the supply of would be foreign voice actors is all but non-existent. I know a number of people who moved to Japan, got jobs and became fluent in Japanese but they'd all be taking massive pay cuts to work as voice actors. In most cases hiring a native speaker of a foreign language would be much harder and probably more expensive than hiring someone born in Japan would be.

There's a slight hope that things might change. The currently airing anime series Sakura Quest has handled foreigners and foreign accents better than any anime I've seen (which admittedly isn't saying much). Their's a recurring character from a foreign country that speaks Japanese with a foreign accent voiced by an apparent foreigner (Vinary Murthy). In a couple of episodes there were Spanish tourists who were apparently voiced by native Spanish speakers as they spoke convincing Spanish and terrible Japanese. But I don't know if this is really a trend and I can't see the expectation of Japanese viewers that foreign characters speak fluent and accentless Japanese being changed so easily.


In Melty Blood, is Shiki Nanaya the master or servant of White Len?

White Len's contract with Nanaya (this is the supressed personality of Tohno Shiki, from Tsukihime) is a symbiotic (yet seemingly contradictory) one -- she maintains his existence with her TATARI powers, while he supplies her with the prana she needs to survive.

However, in the White Len ending in Act Cadenza, Nanaya clears states that he is in the "master" role:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4O_rLYRESs#t=454s


If you mean publication order, the K wikipedia article's manga section doesn't list all the publication dates, but seems to list them in publication order.

By serialization publication start date (end date included if applicable/known):

2012 ? (no later than November) - 2013 ? (tankobon release 2013 April): K Stray Dog Story
2012 May - 2013 July: K -Memory of Red-
2013 October - 2014 July: K -Days of Blue-
2013 December - 2015 April: K - The First
2014 January: Gakuen K
2014 June: K: Lost small world
2014 December - 2015 July: K: Countdown
2015 April - August: K: Missing Kings
2015 May - November: K: Dog and Cat
2015 September: K: Dream of Green
2015 October: K: Return of Kings

Sources: K Project wikipedia article and Anime News Network Encyclopedia.

Based on the various summaries and news articles, I've placed them in approximate chronological order (some of the stories overlap) using the anime series as a guideline.

Before K TV

K: Lost small world
K -Memory of Red-
K -Days of Blue-
K: Stray Dog Story

Adaptation of K TV

K - The First

After K TV / Before Movie

K: Dog and Cat

Adaptation of K Movie

K: Missing Kings

After Movie / Before K TV2

K: Countdown

Before and/or Overlaps with K TV2?

K: Dream of Green

Adaptation of K TV2

K: Return of Kings

Alternate story

Gakuen K (comedy spin-off where all characters attend high school together)


Why are these animes called so? (something;something)

The Wikipedia entry for Steins;Gate begins with the following two sentences (emphasis mine):

  Steins;Gate (シュタインズ・ゲート Shutainzu Gēto?) is a Japanese visual novel developed by 5pb. and Nitroplus and released for the Xbox 360 on October 15, 2009. It is the second game in 5pb. and Nitroplus' Science Adventure series following Chaos;Head and was succeeded by Robotics;Notes.

The entry for Robotics;Notes is fairly similar:

  Robotics;Notes (ロボティクス・ノーツ Robotikusu Nōtsu?) is a Japanese visual novel developed and published by 5pb.. The game was released on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles on June 28, 2012, with a PlayStation Vita port released on June 26, 2014 under the title Robotics;Notes Elite. It is the third game in 5pb.'s Science Adventure series following Chaos;Head and Steins;Gate and is described as an "Augmented Science Adventure" (拡張科学アドベンチャー Kakuchō Kagaku Adobenchā?).

Finally, the entry for Science Adventure reveals the following:

  The Science Adventure series (科学アドベンチャーシリーズ Kagaku Adobenchā Shirīzu?) is a Japanese video game franchise created by 5pb. in collaboration with Nitroplus. The series currently consists of four main visual novel games; Chaos;Head, Steins;Gate, Robotics;Notes, and Chaos;Child which have each received various ports, sequels, and spin-offs, as well as various manga and anime adaptations.

So, yes, it is as you assumed: They're part of the same series, made by the same company.

As for why the developers decided to use a semicolon in the name: why not?


What should a university-level course about manga and anime culture cover as part of its curriculum?

Some Notes Before Reading

This is an imaginary course that I have created. I think it gives a broad enough overview of the subject for a single term, but I think it could be extended easily to a two term course if a more in-depth knowledge was required.

I'm assuming 1 hour lectures twice a week, enough time in seminars to do full screenings, and a knowledgeable lecturer. There are 8 weeks to a semester, as described by the original question.

The course could be an elective for new students studying film, media studies or a similar subject.

It could be easily enough adapted for an online course through discussion forums and recorded lectures/seminars.

Course Syllabus

Week 1: Introduction to Anime/Manga Culture

Lectures

A - Introduction to course and its aims, Brief overview of syllabus and related items
B - Anime vs Cartoons, Brief description of differences and history

Seminar - Watch an episode of both a distinctly "cartoonish" show and an distinctly "anime" show - (Suggested Looney Toons Vs Cardcaptor Sakura) . Discuss and follow up with a less clear-cut comparison (Suggested: Avatar: The last Airbender)
Homework - N/A :)

Week 2: Anime in the Western World

Lectures

A - Mainstream anime - Ghibli, Pokemon
B - Broader interest - Crunchyroll, Vertical Publishing

Homework - Watch and review one student-chosen translated animated film that displays distinct cultural differences from western shows.
Seminar - Watch lecturer-chosen film and have an interactive discussion cultural differences and etc with the class (Suggested: My Neighbour Totoro for both its popularity and contrast of culture [beliefs in spirits, etc])

Week 3: Genres of Anime/Manga and their development

Lectures

A - Anime/Manga genres & their associated tropes & features
B - Gekiga Movement, Moe and the history behind some of these genres

Homework - Read and review a work by a Gekiga author (Suggested Osamu Tezuka)
Seminar - Screenings of episodes of well-known titles within different genres. (Suggested "Sailor Moon", "Naruto", "Gundam")

Week 4: Anime & Manga during Wartime

Lectures:

A - Background information about Japan & WWII
B - Manga as a political medium

Seminar - Screening of "Grave of The Fireflies", "The Wind Rises", or other suitable item
Homework - Read lecturer-selected war-themed manga from this period (Suggested MW by Tezuka).

Week 5: The evolution of Artistic style

Lectures:

A - History of artistic style - Humble beginnings to 1999's
B - Recent Changes in style - 1990's to Present

Seminar - Comparing and contrasting recent shows with ones from different time periods (Suggested: "Saru Masamune", "Doraemon", "Ranma 1/2", "Akira", "K-on")
Homework - Essay comparing a modern anime to a pre-1990's anime

Week 6: The anime production process

  Note: Week 6 could be replaced with extended discussion of week 5 if the lecturer so desired

Lectures:

A - Acquisition of an anime, pitches, support.  Second half of lecture to describe the production process
B - Production process cont., Sales & Promotion

Seminar - An inspection of different works, analyzing the reasons why they greatly succeeded or failed (Suggested "Neon Genesis Evangellion", "Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water" for successes)
Homework - Write report on contributing factors to anime commercial success

Week 7: Akibahara, Otaku and the obsessive culture surrounding anime

Lectures

A - Cosplay, Conventions
B - Otaku, Social stigma, "Weeaboos"/"Wapanese"

Seminar - Screenings of convention recordings (both East & Western) and otaku interviews (There are several documentaries that cover this topic) - With optional discussion afterwards.
Homework - N/A

Week 8: The increasing ubiquity of anime

Lectures:

A - Anime stylism in government posters, advertisement, increasing appearance in everyday japan
B - Revision Lecture (Assuming an exam at the end of term)

Seminar - N/A
Homework - N/A

Assessment:

Personally I would have a 50:50 ratio of coursework to exam marks in order to attain a final grade. This exam would consist of a 2 and a half hour exam covering topics from each section of the course. Coursework would be graded on the quality of the deliverables, with additional marks for novelty.

With an online course, this may be adjusted to suit the setup accordingly.

Suggested Additional Reading Materia

Selected volumes of http://mechademia.org/
Anime: A history by John Clements
A Geek in Japan: Discovering the Land of Manga, Anime, ZEN, and the Tea Ceremony  by Hector Garcia
Starting Point by Hayou Miyazaki
A Drifting Life by Yoshiro Tatsumi

What will I get out of this Course?

The students will, after this course, be able to:

Appreciate differences between anime and western media
Understand the culture around the media
Understand the genre types within the media
Be able to identify and discuss the different periods of anime
Recognize many anime references within other media


Does this Arboretum Rooftop Building exist?

The actual rooftop garden does not seem to exist, but there is a likely model for this building, which is located northwest of this temple.

It seems to be a private building this is a school that teaches Ikebana/華道. It's likely this rooftop area is not open to the public. This seems to be the closest match to the building depicted in the anime.


Haki was unknown at that time so any Logia users we saw hurt were due to their specific fruit's weaknesses:

Crocodile has the Sand Sand Fruit which is weak to moisture.  If you get sand wet it clumps and, therefore, can be hit.  Luffy takes advantage of this by getting himself wet, swallowing large amounts of water and regurgitating it, and using his own blood to wet his fists.
Ace's fruit allows his body to be made of fire. Nevertheless, he is burned himself by the Lava Lava Fruit which is hotter.  Lava outclasses Fire.
Enel is simpler.  Rubber is a really good insulator and is, therefore, "immune" to electricity in this story. As electricity is outclassed by the rubber, Luffy can hit him.


I have not watched One Piece, but after reading the Gear Four Techniques wiki, both Boundman and Bounceman are appear correct - it is just a matter of how it is translated.

Boundman
Luffy's first Gear Fourth form is called Boundman (弾む男 (バウンドマン) Baundoman?, literal meaning "Bounce Man"; Viz and Funi subs: Bounce Man):

When plugging in 弾む男 (バウンドマン into Google's Japanese to English, it translates the text to

Bouncy man (Bound man)


What is the significance of the asimov system?

ASIMOV is kind of OS (or program), used by Earth force.

It's main module to control kataphrakt as you seen in the image above. But who develop it, what else it can do, it's still unknown (for now).


Why is Hana the only person credited for uniting Suzuran?

The differences between them did not lie in their strength as a fighter. Most agree that both of them were strong, some would even argue that Harumachi was stronger.

The differences were all about what they did outside of fighting itself. Where even their intent of fighting have a nuanced difference.

This would be a recurring theme and an important point, Harumachi's attitude was to care for a group of friends (which he didn't really admit to either). Tsukishima's was to care for everyone (which basically is the crux of everything). To do that, he set out to be the boss of Suzuran.
One of the most important differences was that Tsukishima set out to be Suzuran's boss, but Harumachi didn't, in fact the opposite, in that he knew that he was the strongest there but steadfastly refused to be called a boss. While that may seem trivial, it is the very essence of the question you posed - that Hana wanted to be a boss and became one while Harumachi rejected the title.
Another difference was the makeup of the school while they were considered to be "boss" (Using it loosely as Harumachi wasn't a "boss"). While Harumachi was there, there were many competing factions ("gumi") that were there and they had their issues with each other, fights, etc. They weren't united. They might fight together for a common cause, like the time Harumachi managed to mobilise the school, but when they came back, it went back to normal.
Compare this to when it was the Hana-Gumi. All "Gumi"s were either absorbed or "beaten" such that they were following the Hana-Gumi. Consider the FBI, were even though they didn't merge, they formed a shadow force that followed the Hana-Gumi's will.
Tsukishima probably had more charisma, in the way he carried himself and was some sort of moral compass for everyone. He naturally was well liked and drew people to him, and he welcomed them and always helped everyone out, even strangers. Compare this to Harumachi just trying to get his way with his fist. No doubt both succeeded, but perhaps, the way it was done was one of those differences people look for in a leader, a boss, in the self declared hell-hole of the area.

Perhaps there are many more differences, but I think I tried to cover the most major points that would shed light on why. Technically, there was no explicit reason given by the author, but that was because I think he was trying to show the difference and have you make up your own mind.


I think that yes, body rejection was possible, but we only ended up seeing situations where it hadn't happened.

Barry was number 65 (or something). I think it's possible some of the other 64 failed in their soul transpositions.

We did see Al loose consciousness a couple times - I assume that's when his armour was rejecting his soul.

I think that Alphonse was protected by plot, though.


Can you explain the ending to Ousama Game?

Chiemi's twin sister Natsuko is the real ousama, but Nobuaki does not realize it since he wished for the Ousama Game to never come about, because of this Chiemi was forced to switch places with her twin (in the new dimension his wish created) and thanks to that Natsuko wasn't angry at her father for abandoning her and her curse never comes about and thus remains dormant within her system.

Since in Ousama Game-Kigen it is implied that strong negative emotions are what trigger the virus to emerge, remember the scene (with the original Natsuko)  where she was in the shed crying because her mother and the village were tormenting her due to the fact that she was in love with her own cousin?

That HUGE AMOUNT OF STRESS is what caused her immune system to weaken enough for the virus to enter her.

Consequently Nobuaki is unaware of this so he continues to go about his daily life and ask the twin Natsuko to be his girlfriend without knowing it's not Chiemi.

(NOTE THE PAUSE & THE EXPRESSION ON HER FACE BEFORE SHE TOLD HIM YES)

iN the end the virus will be laying in wait until a future generation triggers it to the point where another King's Game begins.


Why in My Hero Academia some of top 10 students from the entrance exam are in B class?

You seem to be thinking that "A is better than B" like it would mean on an exam grade, explicitly ranking the classes, but that's not the naming system in use here.  Typically in Japan  it's the same as naming them Class Orange and Class Rhino. They're just distinguishing between the groupings at the same grade level, not ranking them.
Unlike in most American schools where everyone in the same grade tends to be lumped together with fluid groups that vary between every single course and travel between rooms for each of their courses, the Japanese system tends to break the student body into chunks who all stay in one room as the teachers themselves move between the classrooms. That's why classroom scenes always start with the students already there, in the same room as always, and the Teacher walking in just before beginning to teach.
So being "Class A" just means you're in Room A all the time (except for PE and anything else that the room is inadequate for), not that you're among the best.  If your schools have ever had a "Homeroom" class, it'd be like grouping you by "Mr. Fenster's Homeroom Class" and "Ms. Manotti's Homeroom Class".
A few schools might use the secondary labels to imply some sort of hierarchy, by trying to group like-minded or similarly-abled students together, if they can support such variations in curricula, but this is not necessary.  And your entrance exam results imply a random coin-toss selection: approximately half (6 of 10) went into one class, and the other approximate half (4 of 10) went into the other.


In episode 55 of Dragon Ball Super, what does Goku's action to the King of All towards the end mean?

I think it's just due to the fact that everyone else fears the King of All because he can wipe out the universes that people are too afraid to approach him casually.

In this regard, Goku is the only one who can do it because Goku's personality makes him extremely bold and un-phased when dealing with beings which could wipe him or anyone else out of existence.


Why does Minori have a flower on her head?

This is a little tenuous, but the kanji in Minori's name seem to have kind of a plant theme to them. In Japanese, her name is written 櫛枝 実乃梨 (Kushieda Minori). The kanji 枝, read eda, has the meanings "bough", "branch", "twig". The kanji 梨, read as ri, means "pear tree". That could be why they chose to symbolize her with a flower.

Denshi Jisho page on the kanji in Minori's name.


Why are train scenes so common in anime movies?

As senshin mentioned, train rides are a huge part of the average Japanese person's daily life. Scanning the average daily ridership column on Wikipedia's list of urban rail systems in Japan, you can see that most of the lines are somewhere in the 500,000 range. Tokyo's busiest system, the Tokyo Metro system, carries around 6,000,000  passengers per day across all of its lines. Comparing that with this list of rapid transit systems in the US, you can see that the busiest is New York's subway system, which carries around 9 million passengers per day, but the numbers rapidly fall off and the San Francisco Bay Area's BART system, in fifth place, is only in the 400,000 range. As for US light rail, it starts in the 200,000 range and falls off from there.

As to your second observation, I don't know if you meant something specific by "very emotional", so if I've missed the mark, please do clarify. The most obvious reason why train scenes are more than just traveling scenes is that traveling scenes are bad writing. I ride the train every day, surrounded by a thousand other half-asleep people staring at their phones. It's quite boring. Reproducing that in anime is not a good call, especially when you're making a film and have limited runtime in which to tell your story. So if there's a scene on a train, it's going to advance the story somehow, and emotional scenes are much easier to do on trains than fight scenes or infodumps on classified government projects. In my experience, anime films (that aren't based on an existing series) tend to be more on the dramatic and emotional side anyway, so it's likely that many of their crucial scenes will be emotional ones.

Sometimes the train also serves as symbolism for something; this page suggests that the train in Eva symbolizes Shinji's way of dealing with the world. (Trains are definitely a place where people have their AT fields up at full strength.) The authors set a scene on a train because the fact that it's in a train makes some subtle comment about what's happening in the scene.


How many Counter-Guardian does Alaya have?

According to the Wiki Category "Counter Guardians" on the Type-Moon Wikia there is 4 that are named but there can be more, as Krazer mentions that 7 have appeared to retrain Primate Murder in certain Timelines but we do not know the names of these ones. 2 however were created parody/side works so they might not actually be proper Counter Guardians that Alaya can deploy

Anyway, the 4 Counter Guardians we know the names of are:

EMIYA (Emiya Shirou): we know this one being Archer from Fate/Stay Night. a future version of Emiya Shirou
EMIYA (Emiya Kiritsugu): This one if from Fate/Grand Order as an Assassin Servant who is Kiritsugu, Shirou's adoptive father

  Assassin's True Name is EMIYA, Kiritsugu Emiya. An assassin who was incarnated as an agent of the Counter Force. Originally, he was not a Heroic Spirit. Although he was an individual who murdered many people as an assassin, his existence has not been engraved in the Throne of Heroes. One of the “imitation Heroic Spirits” also referred to as Counter Guardians, and someone who would have never existed in the proper human history. Yet, this "if that might have been" possibility exists now only due to the threat that attempts to destroy human history itself from its very foundation... in the Grand Order case alone. His soul was called out from the circle of deterrence in response to this threat.

Okita Souji: commonly know as Devil Saber who first appeared in the parody manga Koha-Ace. Devil Saber is isn't the same as Sakura Saber and is sorta like an Alter but not listed as one.

  Devil Saber is a Counter Guardian formed through Sakura Saber's spiritual foundation taking in a Holy Grail filled with Seven Servants. Essentially an Okita Alter, her ascension grants her support from the Counter Force.

TOHSAKA: first appearing as a Master (and not a Servant) in Capsule Servant which was a side game that was released with the PS Vita version of Fate/Hollow Ataraxia. as you can tell by the name she is Tohsaka Rin who became a Counter Guardian in a world where Shirou didn't

  TOHSAKA is a "miraculous" Heroic Spirit born in a world line in which Shirou Emiya did not become the Heroic Spirit EMIYA.

  Because of her severe debt, she made a contract with the World to become a Heroic Spirit. Having decided that there were too many Grail Wars occurring across the different dimensions, and because she was a relatively new Heroic Spirit, the World tasked TOHSAKA with destroying the various Holy Grails, reducing her debt slightly for each one eliminated.

However because of the nature of Koha-Ace being self aware and the parody nature of Capsule Servant (ie. how The World is shown to be like Seele from Neon Genesis Evangelion) one could debate whether Alaya can actually deploy either one


Could Haise Sasaki regain his memories if he accepted his ghoul side?

I waited for someone else to answer this question and no one did. As I said earlier, the answer will be opinion based as there is no evidence we could provide from the anime/manga. However, I will try to answer it best to my knowledge (my opinion of course)

Haise Sasaki, the protagonist of Tokyo Ghoul:re, is a First Class Ghoul Investigator, the mentor of the Quinx Squad and a member of Team Mado. You can predict (from Season 3's first episode or if you've read the manga) that he is self-contained, good-natured individual. As a Ghoul Investigator, he comes off as trustworthy, loyal and devoted. While he portrays a serious demeanour toward his work, Haise is also merciful to some extent, as he believes that an Investigator should not annihilate ghouls unnecessarily.

  Haise Sasaki is an amnesiac and remembers nothing of his true identity

Just for your information that if you think Haise doesn't remember that he was a ghoul before, you are wrong! He experiences memory loss yet he is aware of his ghoul side to some extent.

But, unlike Kaneki who accepted his ghoul side, Haise rejects it and seem to be disgusted by his ghoul side as when it tried to convince him to accept it, he ignored it and thought of his mentors (Akira and Arima) to give him courage.

Thus if he accepts his true identity (which seems to be very unexpected for now) and meets up with his former ghoul friends, he might regain his memories and full power.


Who is this person from commercial break "The World God Only Knows" manga?

That is a famous advertisement for Oronamin C. The advertise ment is very iconic and most readers would know where it is from, similar to the Uncle Sam ads in the United Stats. In the World Only God Knows, the ad is being parodied, advertising the book instead of the drink.

In Kunimitsu no Matsuri, it is just an advertisement in the background. I am not familiar with the story of Kunimitsu no Matsuri, but I do believe it takes place in relatively recent years, so I'm assuming the ad was placed in the background to show the area is old and dead (because that ad campaign ended in the early 70s).

FYI, the man in the ad is Kon Oomura, a comedian and actor. While most Japanese people know the advertisement, many probably don't know exactly who the man is, since it is such an old ad.


Which characters are featured in the Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood eyecatches?

I will refer to the first eyecatch of each episode by the number of that episode suffixed by the letter a, and to the second by appending the suffix b.
I have considered the names displayed along the images for this count. Thus, some characters may appear more than once referred to by different names, like King Bradley and Wrath (since these may be regarded as alter-egos), and some may only have reference to the fact that the name appear shortened or something similar, like Winry and Winry Rockbell. The only debatable choice is that I differentiated between Greed in his first body and in Ling Yao's body. But then again, you just need to add one to your count if you'd rather count them as only one character (since Greed only appears once in his first body).
The list follows the order of first appearance, appending the number of the episode a character may have been re-featured after the name.

Edward Elric - 1a, 2b (as Edward Elric 11 years old), 20b, 26a, 35a, 41b, 44b, 45b, 63a, 64a (as Edward)
Alphonse Elric - 1b, 2a (as Alphonse Elric 10 years old), 20a, 26b, 35b, 51b, 64a (as Alphonse)
Cornello - 3a
Rose - 3b
Nina - 4a
Alexander - 4a
Shou Tucker - 4b
Roy Mustang - 5a, 10b, 17b, 29a, 31a, 53b, 62a (as Mustang)
Scar - 5b, 21b, 22b, 59b, 61b
Tim Marcoh - 6a, 29b, 43a
Winry Rockbell - 6b, 9b, 22a (as Winry), 23b (as Winry), 39a, 44a, 46a, 60b, 64a (as Winry)
Sheska - 7a
Maria Ross - 7b, 18b, 50a
Denny Brosh - 7b
Slicer - 8a
Barry The Chopper - 8b
Hughes Family - 9a
Maes Hughes - 10a
Paninya - 11a
Dominic - 11b
Sig Curtis - 12a, 12b (without name)
Izumi Curtis - 12a, 12b (without name)
Roa - 13a, 14a
Bido - 13a
Martel - 13a, 14b
Dolcetto - 13a, 14a
Greed (first) - 13b
May Chang - 15a, 25a, 60a
Shao May - 15a, 25a, 60a
Ling Yao - 15b, 28a
Focker - 16a
Gracia Hughes - 16b
Henry Douglas - 17a
Alex Louis Armstrong - 18a, 43b (as Alex), 45a (as Alex), 52b, 55a (as Alex)
Jean Havoc - 19a, 21a, 50a
Lust - 19b, 25b
Lan Fan - 23a, 24a, 48a
Envy - 24b, 53a, 54a
Van Hohenheim - 27a, 42b, 50b (as Hohenheim), 63b
Pinako Rockbell - 27b
Greed (Lin Yao) - 28b, 45a, 47a, 56b
Riza Hawkeye - 30a, 30b, 58b, 59a (as Hawkeye), 62a (as Hawkeye)
Solf J. Kimbley - 31b, 33a, 41a, 49b (as Kimblee)
Grumman - 32a (as Mrs.(?) Grumman), 47b
Selim Bradley - 32b, 37a
Olivier Mira Armstrong - 33b, 36b, 43b (as Olivier), 45a (as Olivier), 55a (as Olivier)
Miles - 34a
Sloth - 34b, 54b
Raven - 36a
Pride - 37b, 42a, 49a
Yoki - 38a
Zampano - 38b, 39b
Jerso - 38b, 39b
Slave Number 23 - 40a
The Little One Inside the Flask - 40b
Wrath - 45a
King Bradley - 46b, 56a, 61a
Gluttony - 48b
Mannequin Soldiers - 51a
Heinkel - 52a
Karley - 55b
Fu - 57a
Gold-Toothed Doctor - 57b
Buccaneer - 58a
Darius - 59a
Scar's Brother - 61b
Our Father - 62b
Trisha Elric - 63b
Roy's Team - 64b

The number of times each character that is featured more than once appears, in decreasing order:
Edward Elric is featured 10 times, Winry Rockbell 9 times, Alphonse Elric 7 times, Roy Mustang 7 times, Scar 5 times, Alex Louis Armstrong 5 times, Olivier Mira Armstrong 5 times, Van Hohenheim 4 times, Greed (in Lin Yao's body) 4 times, Riza Hawkeye 4 times, Solf J. Kimbley 4 times, Tim Marcoh 3 times, Maria Ross 3 times, May Chang 3 times, Shao May 3 times, Jean Havoc 3 times, Lan Fan 3 times, Envy 3 times, Pride 3 times, King Bradley 3 times, Sig Curtis 2 times, Izumi Curtis 2 times, Roa 2 times, Martel 2 times, Dolcetto 2 times, Ling Yao 2 times, Lust 2 times, Grumman 2 times, Selim Bradley 2 times, Sloth 2 times, Zampano 2 times, Jerso 2 times, and every other featured character appears only once.

This count may differ if one decided to count the number of times a character is seen, since some characters appear without being referenced by their name, like in the case of Roy's Team in the last eyecatch. If one decides to count those, one should add: 2 to the count of Maes Hughes (9a as Hughes Family, 10b back facing camera), 1 to Gracia Hughes (9a as Hughes Family), 1 to Elicia Hughes (9a as Hughes Family), 2 to Roy Mustang (10a back facing camera, 64b as Roy's Team), 1 to Envy (16a shadow can be seen behind Focker), 1 to Riza Hawkeye (64b as Roy's Team), 1 to Jean Havoc (64b as Roy's Team), 1 to Kain Fuery (64b as Roy's Team), 1 to Vato Falman (64b as Roy's Team), 1 to Heymans Breda (64b as Roy's Team) and 1 to Black Hayate (64b as Roy's Team).

All the image files are contained in this Google Drive folder (it contains a full-sized and a thumbnail for each of them, 'cause it's the same folder I used to upload the pics to Taisho).


Did they manage to extract any information from Annie Leonhart after she was captured?

As far as the story goes, they were not able to abstract any information from Annie yet, because she had covered her whole body in a particularly hard crystal.

This happened back in chapter 34, but was the last we have heard and seen from Annie.


What happens when you perform Izanagi/Izanami with Rinnegan?

I don't think you can perform those Kinjutsu using Rinnegan. They are unique to Sharingan. As for his eye that Madara got after decades, it was by using the Hashirama cells.
He collected those cells during his fight with Hashirama and cultivated them during his time with Black Zetsu.

So to answer your question, NO you can't perform Izanagi/Izanami using Rinnegan.


Is Black Rock Shooter the only anime soundtrack that features vocaloid singers?

It's probably going to be pretty rare for anime soundtracks to be featured with a Vocaloid singer, since the talent tie-ins and money for making anime want to promote their in-house talent so they want to use their own (live) singers. You can see a lot of famous vocaloid producers get hired for their music but instead of the vocaloid voice track, they use in-house talent for the voice:

ryo(supercell) gets hired by Sony Music to make Bakemonogatari's ED, "Kimi no Shiranai Monogatari", but sung by Yanagi Nagi
kz(livetunes) gets hired by Sony Music to produce the song "Irony" for Oreimo, but sung by ClariS
Toku-P had one of his existing Vocaloid songs "Color" used for the Freezing OP, but sung by MARiA
40mP also had one of his Vocaloid songs "Evidence" used for one of the Fairy Tail OPs, but sung by DaisyxDaisy

source


How did Sasha not blow off Samuel's leg? Simply because the hook is not the same as a high-caliber bullet. Even among bullets, only those powerful enough have the capacity to sever someone's limbs off. I have never seen a hook, or something similar like a spear or arrow, that can blow off someone's limbs. If you notice during the anime and manga, the hook does not explode when it latches unto something so I don't see why someone should expect it to blow off someone's leg.

The hook is not as big as it seems and might I ask: how did you know that it didn't go through his leg? Because it was never depicted, both in the manga and anime, that it didn't go through. The hook could have gone through the leg then slid and latched to a bone in Samuel's leg. It is possible that this happened in less than a few seconds. It is also possible that hook did not hit the bone as it went through.

To prove my point that it does not explode, look at the wounds on Samuel's leg. You can see that it pierced his flesh cleanly.

Here is that same scene as depicted in the manga.

And to show you how small that 'big hook' actually is, notice its size (encircled in red) compared to the ODM Gear part attached on the back of the hips (also encircled in red):

The hook has enough force to penetrate deep enough into concrete, yes, but not all the way through. It is not as powerful as you think, only enough so that the hook can latch unto something. If it was, then they would have used it as a weapon too.


You forgot that Katakuri can see few seconds into the future with his observation haki, so he already "saw" Luffy transform into his new form.

It has nothing to do with other fruit users, so far Luffy is the only one who can use "gears" as a transformation mechanisms and it will most likely remain like that through the series.


I'm wondering how complete it is when compared to the novels

Youko Nakajima is the main character in the anime, while in the manga she is only one of many main characters and her story is focused upon in only two novels.
Most of the main characters are the same, although some were added as supporting characters, their role being to externalize some of Youko's problems that were internal in the novels.

  Several events and existing characters in the series were expanded in the anime series, though the series general maintains the overall plot and themes introduced in the novels. Notably, the anime introduces the events of the fourth novel, The Twelve Kingdoms: Skies of Dawn, before the third novel, The Twelve Kingdoms: The Vast Spread of the Seas.

Also, if it isn't in keeping with them, why was it axed?

  The original scope of the series included adapting the sixth novel, Tasogare no Kishi, Akatsuki no Sora (featuring Youko leading the Twelve Kingdoms to find Taiki); elements of the sixth novel had already been alluded to throughout the second arc of the series. However, the series was cancelled after the completion of the arc featuring Shoryu and Enki's past.

It does not state the reason for the cancellation though.

Source: The Twelve Kingdoms Wiki page on the anime


Which song plays while Hughes and Mustang talk during episode 30 of FMA:B?

It's Happiness ~Requiem from The Blind Alchemist~ by Akira Senju, the 28th track from the album Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood Original Soundtrack 1.


Manga Video is just the distributor and co-producer of the anime Ghost in the Shell. The production company is, as hungerartist pointed out, Production I.G.. Manga Video only helped in production by contributing money.

To answer your question: Yes, Manga Video sill exists and yes, Production I.G. still produces anime.


This is a common trope in anime. Many examples of it can be seen on Dragon Ball with Master Roshi:

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0-Ep3UI2SI [potentially suggestive content]

According to AnimeNewsNetwork, it is a long-standing Japanese folk belief.


The origin of the Black Saints (暗黒聖闘士) was revealed in the data book Saint Seiya Cosmo Special published in 1988 (and re-edited in 2001), but it's canonicity is debatable. While it was aproved by Kurumada himself at some point, it wasn't directly written by him, and was published during the middle of the Poseidon arc weekly release, so there's plenty of later retconning that has some contradictions to what's shown on this data book. I don't think there's a full translation of said databook, but there's quite a few summaries around the internet, the one I'll be taking most info from is this one, while the introduction is only in Spanish, the actual content of the summaries are mostly both in Spanish and English, though there are some pieces that are exclusively on Spanish.

Around the time the Gigantomachia took place, the Continent of Mu (where the Saints Cloths were made) sank to the depths of the Pacific Ocean, with it, the knowledge of the crafting techniques along with the lives of the alchemists that created the Cloths were lost. But circa 1500 AD, an island was discovered by alchemists rebel to the Sanctuary that was apparently what remained of the Continent of Mu and was called Death Queen Island, there they started working on creating new Cloths, but since the knowledge was lost by the ages they could only craft imitations of existing ones, the most copied one being the Phoenix Cloth, the only real Sacred Cloth that still remained on that island and the strongest Bronze Cloth ever made. While their power could not compare to the originals, they were still powerful enough to be a worrying issue to the Sanctuary, especially since the warriors that claimed them were not Saints, but the warriors who were denied Saint status for they only gained a superficial understanding of the Cosmo and rebelled against the Sanctuary. As such, the island was sealed by the Sanctuary, and a keeper sent to guard the island and supress the Black Saints. By the time of the original Saint Seiya series, this keeper was Guilty, Ikki's master and Esmeralda's foster father. When Ikki killed him and broke his mask, the seal was broken and the Black Saints released


What was the result of Sanji's battle in episode 794? (spoilers)

Sanji lost the battle. I was almost sure but now I've confirmed it.

From the brazilian wiki last sentence (and translated by me):

  Judge stabs one of his soldiers and attacks Sanji with Denji Shaft, that makes an explosion sending the defeated Sanji far away.


In the anime, what happens to Akame after the fall of the empire?

What happened to Akame?
I only read the manga but as paulnamida mentioned, if you want anime-only events about Akame's whereabouts, you are out of luck since all you get is a post-credits scene which does not even mention specifics as to where she is exactly:

  'In a post-credits scene, Akame wanders in a desert, ambushed by several people who appear to be Teigu users. She again states that as a survivor, she shoulders the feelings of her deceased comrades, and begins battle with the group of bandits.'

This doesn't tell really tell much. Did she get out, or was she caught? If she escaped where did she go? As mentioned above, she was not caught but as to where she went or where she was headed to during the post-credits scene, no one knows.


Why do some characters have their weight measured in apples?

For the sake of the topic, I won't go into full detail to the symbol of the apple in human culture as a whole. I will only focus on one point, and that's the fact that the apple symbolizes Knowledge (due to the bible, with the forbidden fruit and all).

You can easily find a lot of pictures of apples being associated with books or pencils, being used as a graphic for schools (mostly kindergarten, or primary school), and because of that, you can loosely associate them with children.

Now for the two examples mentioned in the question:

In Hello Kitty's case, it is a show aimed for children; so it makes sense for them to use Apples as an alternative over using actual units of measurement, you could say that they did it for the "Cute" factor.
In Mekaku City Actor's case, Marry Kozakura is a somewhat child-like character (and Kawai too); so you can use THAT as a reason for using apples to state her weight. Or simply, it's rude to state a lady's weight; so the creators did it like this as a "joke", and the reason they chose Apples instead of other fruits is the same as in Hello Kitty, for the "Cute" factor.

another factor could be that, an apple's weight and size is common knowledge; but that's just secondary at this point.


How was SAO copied for ALO when Kayaba said it was all being deleted after SAO was cleared?

Because ALO was created before SAO was cleared.

Argus created SAO but after Kayaba started the Death Game the families of victims of the game sued the company which bankrupted them and forced them to sell the Cardinal System to RECT Progress Inc

  When Kayaba Akihiko effectively trapped 10,000 players in the game, many of the deceased players' family members sued the company. Argus then filed bankruptcy, selling their rights to the Cardinal System to RECT Progress Inc., which used it to create ALfheim Online.

Source: Argus > Chronology > Aincrad Arc

Cardinal is the backbone of SAO and a portable version was in the World Seed which is why in the Seed Nexus one can easily convert their accounts between games. however ALO is different because the Wiki suggests that, aside from SAO, ALO is the only other VRMMO with a highly advanced version of Cardinal, probably because the portable version is simplified for normal users while RECT Progress/Ymir are using a full copy from Argus.

Suguha also started playing ALO while Kazuto was still in a Coma because she wanted to know Kazuto better

  Suguha originally disliked VRMMO games for it hid peoples' nature and reality, as it did with Kazuto. She took up ALO in order to understand Kazuto better when he was trapped in SAO.

Source: Kirigaya Suguha > Background (2nd Paragraph)

as such ALO was built and running before SAO was cleared.


Is there a canon explanation as to why Naruto still likes Sakura?

I don't think there can be a canon answer to this because it is not something shown/talked about in either the manga or anime. However, when you were young what did your crushes do to get you to have a crush  on them? I know in my case, almost nothing. They just had to be attractive. My guess that is true for Naruto as well.


How does Sticky Fingers' ability work toward Pesci in Golden Wind?

Bucciarati seperated Mario Zucchero's head earlier in the manga with seemingly no effect on his body ¹
Bucciarati also seperated his own body into parts earlier in the same arc which stopped his blood circulation ²
He chose the second option when he ripped Pesci apart. He also beat him to death (which would explain all the blood). After throwing the parts to the river it is not shown whether the pieces came back or not but Pesci is already dead by then.

1: Chapter 462
2: Chapter 497


How was Shoto Todoroki able to resist One for All?

The answer is basically given in chapter 22 of the manga. When Midoria tells All Might that he managed to hit Nomu without breaking his arm, they come to the conclusion that Midoria subconsciously limited his power output to avoid causing lethal harm to other humans. Mostly possible, that during his fight with Todoroki, he has limited his power in the same way.


Who is the bad guy in Aru Zombie Shoujo no Sainan?

While most anime follow the good vs bad script Aru Zonbi Shōjo no Sainan is not one of them. We have two sides: the zombies, and the zombie adversaries.  Neither can be described as good as both commit immoral acts. For example, the zombies kill innocents (the caretaker in the first place), while the zombie adversaries constantly betray each other.

Nevertheless, the story of Aru Zonbi Shōjo no Sainan can be understood as a clash of values. In Euphrosyne Studions worldview, loyalty plays a major role. This is demonstrated by her punishment of Masahiro Abe and her venturous rescue attempts to save Alma.

The college kids on the other hand are betrayed by Sayaka. Who is betrayed by Takanashi. Who is betrayed by Mako. And I nearly forgot Abe tried to sell his group out too.


What were those Poneglyphs from the Alabasta arc?

As you can see from this list, episodes 101-102 which Luffy, Zoro and Chopper find the Poneglyph it's actually a filler episode.

So this Poneglyph wasn't introduced in the manga, so that means that whatever was wrote on it doesn't matter.


Why did the men and women in Vandread split up to begin with?

Once upon a time, in the future (roughly two thousand years from now), a colonist ship departed Earth, heading for the stars on it's journey to discover a new world to populate for the human race. This journey proved successful with the discovery of not one but two neighbouring planets suitable of colonisation. However, the colonists grew into conflict with each other - A conflict that divided the crew by gender! The men settled on one planet, which was dubbed Taraaku while the woman settled for the neighbouring planet, Mejarru.

I couldn't find much to support this but it sounds like something that fits the anime.

Source


History

Tezuka is considered to be the father of the post-war anime. The concept of anime exists in the early XXth century but there were no real standardization. I think Tezuka was the first ever to define some rule and above rule, the first one to be able to have a mass production as stated here (the conquest of the television)

Moreover, I guess it would also be interesting for you to find out per your favorite genre. For instance, if you like mecha, clearly Tezuka is a name to quote. If you are more into romance, well...  once you have found your focus, you can highlight some masters and their productions. Afterwards, you can make the relationship between those productions and you have your history :)

But looking for the father of anime is like looking for the father of science-fiction to me: you can almost say whatever you want as it is pretty hard to define it objectively.

Your essay

As for your essay, I did some myself when I was a student. My favorite topics were:

Comparison of anime and Japanese history. A good example is why the anime in the 90s are somehow apocalyptic (Evangelion, Ghost in the Shell). Without entering into the detail, I made the parallel with the economic crisis. If you follow this axis, and I recall properly, you can split into big period: post war (50s), the early stage (70s, early 80s), golden age (80s-90s), democratization (2000s)
Comparison of mecha and Japan's past. You find a lot of symbol in the mecha etiquette and it somehow reminds the formerly glorious samurai (e.g. the Lancelot launching procedure in Code Geass). You can develop either toward the "Japanese are looking for their golden past" (once again Code Geass is a good example but Gundam series is like a golden mine) point or "Human always wanted to overcome their condition thanks to the technology" (Evangelion, Gundam...). Well, I'm not a mecha expert ._.
Impact of Japan culture in the anime and impact of the anime in the Japanese culture. Unlike in the West, anime is fully part of the Japanese culture, regardless if they are happy with it or not. And the dependency is on two ways. A good example for me is fashion where sometimes the border between cosplay and clothing is pretty thin.


Do ANBU Black Ops use a teleportation justu?

According to the wiki, skilled users of space–time ninjutsu (Teleportation ninjutsu) are:

Minato Namikaze, Obito Uchiha, Sasuke Uchiha, Kakashi Hatake, Tobirama Senju, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, and Shin Uchiha.

So after seeing these names, I don't think any ANBU member was using teleportation jutsu, but, it could be the Body Flicker technique, according to me.

If it is indeed the Body Flicker technique, then in conclusion, those ANBU members were simply moving at such untraceable speed, that for others, it seems like that they just teleported.

So in short, it was not teleportation jutsu, but it was their greater speed which makes it seem as if he teleported. Also, I have seen one more question which says how Naruto was able to use teleportation jutsu, but in reality it was not teleportation, but it was simply his greater speed.


Is Sasuke's new dojutsu same as Kaguya's third eye?

No, Sasuke's dojutsu is different from Kaguya and Madara's third eye.

Sasuke has the Rinnegan while Kaguya and Madara have the Rinne Sharingan.

Both the dojutsu might look similar in design, but they're not.

A side-by-side comparison of the two dojutsu shows that although they have similar circles, the Rinne-Sharingan has nine tomoe whereas Sasuke's Rinnegan has 6 tomoe.

Another visual difference between the two is the color. Later in the manga, their colors were revealed.

  - Madara and Kaguya's Rinne Sharingan is red in color.

  - Sasuke's Rinnegan is purple in color, just like a normal Rinnegan.

Coming to technical terms, the Rinne-Sharingan can be acquired only if the person is the Ten-Tail's jinchuriki. Also, it is seen that the Rinne-Sharingan is activated on the user's forehead as a new eye, unlike how the Rinnegan is attained.

Therefore, it is clear that both the dojutsu are not the same and what Sasuke has is a Rinnegan.


Were the other trainers from Pallet town ever revealed?

First, the things we know:
Ash got late and had to pick the reserve Pokemon Pikachu. The other 3 starter Pokemon already got picked, one of which was picked by Gary. At the end of the series, you could see that Gary picked Squirtle.

So the question is, who picked the other 2 starters and where were they mentioned?

Your question really inspired me to find a answer. I found answers on multiple sites.

On reddit

  In the series, Ash and co. encounter a Charmander that was abandoned
  by its owner. We might infer that the original owner was one of the
  other two Pallet Town trainers. In addition, the Bulbasaur Ash and co.
  encounter was raised in the Hidden Village, which the article linked
  states was a haven for, among other things, abandoned Pokemon. So it
  appears possible that the other Pallet Town trainers also abandoned
  his starter Pokemon.

On serebiiforums

  These two mystery trainers' sole purpose in the anime was to be a plot device so that Ash would miss out on all 3 standard starter Pokemon and get Pikachu.

  Gary got 1 of them (and it wasn't revealed until the very end of
  Johto) and for marketing purposes, Ash had to have Pikachu as his very
  first Pokemon...

  So they invented 2 other trainers to get the remaining Pokemon... and
  they were referenced a few times until after Ash got the Earth badge
  and returned to Pallet town. That was when Oak said that the "other
  two" gave up and flunked out. Thus writing them out of the show
  permanently... never to be referenced again.

So it seems that these 2 mysterious trainers were just there to lose their starter Pokemon after a short time, so Ash could find them and train during the series, the 4 most favorite Pokemon of every kid. (Squirtle came to him from the firefighter)

I think the 2 trainers weren't meant to have a big part in this series. They were just needed to give Ash the rare Pokemon everyone wants to have.

But this is just my personal opinion.


Why does Takuto break Wako's seal at the end of Star Driver?

It was because he wanted to save Sugata

Sugata wanted to seal Samekh with him forever, meaning he wanted to sacrifice himself. And Takuto wanted to save him, that's why he broke Wako's seal. Takuto's only chance of saving him was to break Wako's seal to unseal the Zero Time. Wako wanted to save Sugata as well that's why she allowed Takuto to break her seal, agreeing both without a single word (which was just amazing for me!).

I hope I answered your question clear. This is purely based on my understanding of the ending. :)


Who is it that killed Zephyr's crew and then became a warlord?

The Warlord who killed Zephyr's crew is not named even in the current chapter of the manga.

Nevertheless, it was stated that the pirate who killed Zephyr's crew became a warlord during the timeskip. Therefore, there are only three possibilities: Trafalgar Law, Buggy and the currently unnamed warlord. However, it it also not yet revealed whether the unnamed warlord is a devil fruit user.


Why do guys in anime often lack nipples?

Animated male nipples are not a matter of legal Japanese censorship (or copyright law). It is fine to air them on TV in prime time. As Ray noted in a deleted answer, Dragonball, viewed as a most-typical shounen anime aimed at children, features male characters whose nipples are easily visible.  Although the series garnered many adult and female fans, the characters are not particularly intended to look comely or provocative to the target audience. The innocuous nipples in Dragonball can be there because they are not intended to be viewed as attractive.

In contrast, mainstream character designs that aim to captivate the viewer in a romantic or sensual way are more likely to be nipple-free, because a well-known aspect of creating fantasy is to paint a rosy picture and subtly remove pesky details that can snap a viewer out of the lovely reverie back to stark reality (the old adage “less is more”).  Nipples are not considered to contribute toward this end, in the same way that Japanese people do not generally shave or wax (since this site is 13+ I'm not going to provide citation links but you could Google that) but we are never shown body hair in regular manga and anime: in real-life, we know these anatomically exist, but drawing them does not help the audience escape into daydream. (Hentai titles and hentai doujinshi have a different goal, so that is why you are more likely to see male nipples there than in mainstream titles.)

Free! is a bishounen (pretty boy) title, so the characters are intentionally drawn to be eye candy. Even more so than the earlier bishounen anime series, Free! and other more recent titles such as Binan Koukou Chikyuu Bouei Bu Love!, Uta no Prince-sama, Harukanaru Toki no Naka de, Kiniro no Corda, Dance with Devils, Diabolik Lovers, Brothers Conflict, K, Kamigami no Asobi, Starry Sky, Shounen Hollywood: Holly Stage for 49, etc. focus heavily on the eye candy aspect, such as including stages of undress, characters striking sensual poses, “camera” angles and lingering shots that accentuate their figures, etc. The character design is intended to garner fans who crush on the characters and buy all manner of merchandise sporting those characters.

Bishounen characters are not as prevalent in shounen titles as in shoujo, but they are now widespread (f you look at the bulk of shounen series from the 80s, 70s, and 60s, you will find far fewer bishounen characters there, especially as primary protagonists), partly based on changing cultural preferences (something along the lines of metrosexual) and partly on expanding otaku demographics (pulling in the potential female audience can be more financially-viable than it was in the past). Noragami is not marketed toward women, but it follows in the current trend within shounen series of those that try to appeal to readers/viewers beyond the target demographic.

Historically, the naked body was not considered to be attractive in Japanese culture. The classic Heian era (11th century) novel The Tale of Genji illustrates how people wore layers and layers of clothes (women wore 12 layers), and had sex while (nearly) fully dressed and in the dark (see pages 30-32 of The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu: A Reader's Guide by William J. Puette). Some consider the origin of bishounen to date as far back in Japanese literature as the protagonist of The Tale of Genji (i.e. Hikaru Genji as the proto-bishounen). Genji was the era's ideal man. He considered imagining his lover without looking closely as preferable to viewing the unattractive details of her actual body.


In Sword Art Online, why does Suguha practice only one Kendo move?

I assume you are refering to this move:

Sword Art Online - Episode 15

While I'm not an expert in kendo, the way kendo is usually depicted makes me think that that specific move is one of the basic excercises that kendokas need to practice as much as possible. It's one of the most common moves in kendo-centered series/episodes. Some examples:

Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Romantan - Opening 1

Bamboo Blade - Episode 1

Katanagatari - Episode 9

A similar move in combat is the head strike (men), which Suguha used when she had a match with Kirito:

Sword Art Online - Episode 15

Bamboo Blade - Episode 6


How can you tell when Vegeta is fighting in super saiyan god or in super saiyan blue in the manga?

SSJG Vegeta has a black pupil in his eyes while SSJB Vegeta doesn't.Also,  the shading in case of SSJG is slightly darker than SSJB. However, it is slightly more difficult to see that. SSJG VegetaSSJB Vegeta


In which episode of Sailor Moon S did Michiru meet Mamoru?

Note: I don't recall any earlier points where Michiru and Mamoru interact in civilian form, and I've been keeping an eye out for this since I started watching this season a week ago. It's possible I may have missed something though.

In episode 4 of Sailor Moon S, Michiru and Haruka observe Mamoru from a distance during and after the concert. (They are sitting some distance away from the five "confirmed" Sailor Guardians and Tuxedo Mask, and they have opera glasses. Haruka points out Usagi and her boyfriend, whom Usagi had been complaining of feeling inadequate for, to Michiru.)

In the beginning of episode 9, Mamoru explicitly interacts with Michiru. He has gone with Usagi and the other girls to watch Haruka at a motorcycle race. After the race, Usagi talks to Haruka and Michiru, bringing her friends and Mamoru. (It's worth noting, however, that there is no introduction---"This is Mamoru; this is Haruka and Michiru"---in this episode. Either the introduction is simply handwaved, or they were introduced at an earlier point, before they are shown explicitly interacting for the first time.)


Why didn't the SSS create powers like Tachibana Kanade (Tenshi) did?

If they remember how to do it, they can create weapons.

Also, at some point they can try to create things they don't remember (for example, the cannon at guild basement).

Probably, one or two people from the guild remember weapons, and they instruct the others.

For creating skills (power, abilities, body weapons), they need to know how to code and have a computer. They can get a computer from the computer room #1, but they also need the Angel Player software and a programmer (and apparently, only Takeyama knows how to do it).

Also, you don't know if the Angel Player is a software from the afterlife, or a software created by Tenshi. Maybe, the software itself is more difficult to create.

Lastly, if I remember correctly, Tenshi is the longest afterlife inhabitant.


There hasn't been any change, I think.

The real and first name is ゴール・D・ ロジャー (Gōru D. Rojā, Gol D. Roger), but he is also known by the name of Gold Roger. I think it's just an in-universe thing.

That said, his real name carries the D. which in the story is being described as "more than a simple initial", often mentioned when talking about The Will of the D:

  In the series, few characters have the middle initial "D.". This mysterious middle initial has been called "the Will of D" (Dの意志 - D no Ishi) or "D's will" by several characters in One Piece. [...]

By the way, the  meaning for the D. has not been revealed yet, but it certainly holds great importance and is likely to be a major point in the development of the One Piece story.


Why can Tobi not just use space-time ninjutsu to capture Bee and Naruto?

The answer is because of the nature of his jutsu. His jutsu works by moving whole or part of his body into the other space. His jutsu has a weakness in that the bigger the object he is transporting, the longer the time needed for him to do it. This was noted by Konan and was mentioned during the fight between Konan and Tobi when the latter was about to retrieve the Rinnegan from Nagato's corpse. If I remember correctly, to move his entire body he needs about 5 seconds.

Now add another person to the equation and you get 10 whole seconds before he can do the jutsu successfully. 10 seconds next to a Jinchuuriki that knows you're going to kill him. There's no way they're just going to sit tight and enjoy the trip. So this makes kidnapping the Jinchuuriki and ganging up on them at the hideout like you're suggesting as an impossible thing to do.


In Root A, did Hide feed himself to Kaneki so that he would heal?

Hide let kaneki eat him so kaneki could regain his strength and the 2nd season of the anime doesnt follow the manga.