• Bakumatsu Rock, one of the shows I am reviewing for ANN, ended this week. I was more disappointed by the ending than by the show overall. I also wrote about Nobunaga Concerto 9 and a very Australian episode of Free!

• Heroine Boys and Princely Girls: How “Nozaki-kun” is Challenging Gender Roles in Fiction. I just discovered the Josei Next Door and now my goal is to write reviews as thoughtful as hers.

• It’s only mid September, but if you want to join the Reverse Thieves’ sixth annual anime Secret Santa, now’s the time. All you need to participate is an open mind for overlooked or undervalued shows.

• Remember when the History Channel tweeted the events of the Titanic in real time last April? Now some ambitious soul is live-tweeting the One Year War, a fictional conflict that makes up the basis of the Gundam franchise.

• These are the seven best lesbian anime series ever made. I wasn’t into Noir, but otherwise I’m inclined to agree.

• There are still two spots open on the ultimate fujoshi tour of Japan: the 11-day BL Teafighter Tour. It gets its name from Teahouse and Starfighter, two of the Web’s most artfully drawn BL comic series.

• Finally, as the summer season winds down and you find yourself in between series, I highly recommend taking a break to check out some manga. I can’t put down My Wife Is Wagatsuma-san, which I love for its hyperbolic humor and sympathetic portrayal of losers as the heroes of their own lives.

Screenshot via Free! Eternal Summer.