Desert Bus

Struck by Black Rain, Chapter 3 is done!

2012-01-07T10:58:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, and belated Happy Holidays! Chapter 3 of Struck by Black Rain is done, and you can pick it up here.

A couple of notes about this chapter. First, I really didn't care for it as much as the previous two chapters. The characters weren't engaging, the old man's rants go on forever, and there's not much action. Still, I did my best translating and editing it.

Second, I'm not sure why Yoshimura calls his friend Outa "kacchin", but it looked like just a nickname, so I left it in.

I hope everyone enjoys this chapter despite my criticisms. Stay tuned for another chapter of Tokimeki Tonight!

Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 4 Chapter 5

2011-11-18T10:16:00.001-08:00

The next chapter of Tokimeki is finally done! You can pick it up here.

This chapter was a fun one to translate, and the editing was MUCH easier than the previous chapter. No crazy redrawing required this time.

Enjoy!

Struck by Black Rain, Chapter 2 is done!

2011-08-24T18:38:00.000-07:00

I've just finished chapter 2 of "Struck by Black Rain" and you can pick it up here.

This was a pretty interesting (but very depressing) chapter. There's a lot more talk here than in chapter 1. The letter at the end was really difficult to edit in, so my apologies if it didn't turn out perfect. I tried the best I could. :)

Also, the father character uses the expression 目くそが鼻くそを笑う ("the pot calling the kettle black") a couple of times to describe people who are prejudiced against atomic bomb victims, and I must admit I don't quite understand why he uses this phrase. My guess (and it is just that) is that he uses it to mean that those who are prejudiced could have been hit by the atomic bomb as well (and perhaps are hiding it).

And for the fans of Tokimeki Tonight, I haven't forgotten about you. I'll have a new chapter of Tokimeki ready in a few weeks.

Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 4, Chapter 4 is finally done!

2011-06-18T20:18:00.000-07:00

After a lot of hard work, the next chapter of Tokimeki Tonight is finished! You can get it here!

The "find-the-prince" arc is progressing nicely, and I can't wait to find out what happens next. Also, this kept running through my head as I edited page 100 for what seemed like hours:

Struck by Black Rain, Chapter 1 is done!

2011-04-03T20:19:00.000-07:00

The first chapter of Keiji Nakazawa's Struck by Black Rain is finished! You can download it here.

Just a warning: this series is very dark and serious, as it deals with the aftermath of the atomic bomb. There's also a fair amount of swearing and violence (corpses, skeletons, etc.) so beware. This series is nothing like Tokimeki Tonight, which I will have more of soon.

In the meantime, the earthquake in Japan has ravaged many cities, destroyed at least one nuclear power plant, and may have contaminated Tokyo's water supply. So if you have some extra cash, please consider donating to one of the charities on this page

Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 4, Chapter 3 is done!

2011-02-22T16:11:00.000-08:00

Is finally finished!

After a long, unpleasant struggle, this chapter is complete and ready to read. You can pick it up here.

Please note that the second newspaper on pg. 69 isn't translated because I couldn't ready the headline on it. Everything else (besides sound effects) is translated, though. I don't like to leave text untranslated if at all possible.

I should be done with the first chapter of "Black Rain" soon, and then more Tokimeki Tonight. :D

Update: Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 4, Chapter 3

2011-02-02T18:27:00.000-08:00

Just a quick update. I've been through a lot in the last couple months: Holidays, a Caribbean cruise, the flu, and working on two huge video game projects (one of which has been released.)

On a side note, here is a picture of me in the Cayman Islands.

This chapter of Tokimeki is proving quite difficult; it's very text-heavy and there are a couple of weird puns that don't work in English.

I also discovered a small translation error from the previous chapter and fixed it. The updated version of chapter 2 is here. Apparently Mori and Shira visit the King, instead of vice versa. :/

Anyway, I'm hard at work on chapter 3, and it will be out later this month. Until then, cheers, and stay warm! :)

Sneak Preview

2010-11-30T20:13:00.000-08:00

First things first. I've removed some of the older individual releases from the MediaFire page and consolidated them into separate volumes to save space. Full volumes of the following are now available for download:

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Volume 1 link
Boy Alice in Wonderland, Volume 2 link
Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 2 link
Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 3 link

All the links in my previous posts will reflect this change.

On to the more interesting stuff. :) I'm happy to announce a new translation project in the works: "Kuroi Ame ni Utarete" ("Struck by Black Rain") by Keiji Nakazawa. It's a collection of stories set in the aftermath of the atomic bomb. Parts of it are pretty racist, and apparently it was very controversial when it was written. However, I think this manga is an important part of history, and I'm excited to work on it. Here's an interview with the author of the manga, and below is a sneak peek of chapter 1:

Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 4, Chapter 2 is done!

2010-11-20T22:39:00.000-08:00

Yes, the next chapter of Tokimeki--Volume 4, Chapter 2--is finally finished! You can click here to get it.

This story is the exciting conclusion to the Yoshioka arc, and it looks like the next arc may center on Shira and Mori's mission to find the other prince.

I'd like to wish my US readers happy Thanksgiving (and my Canadian readers a super late happy Thanksgiving)! I'll be having lasagna, breadsticks, and Chianti, because I can't stand turkey or ham. :P

Anyway, more Tokimeki Tonight to come soon, plus a sneak peek of a new series I'll be scanlating. Stay tuned!

Boy Alice in Wonderland - FINAL Chapter

2010-10-04T22:33:00.001-07:00

Chapter 8, the last chapter of Boy Alice in Wonderland, is finished! You can get it here.

Like I said in my previous post, this is not a "story" chapter. It contains a short comic about the author and a two-page essay about psychology and manga. (The essay was a pain to translate!) Of course, there are also some extras, like the color cover of the manga.

Also, special thanks to Lisa (Busy) for helping out with the editing for Volume 2. I couldn't have finished this series without her.

I know Boy Alice isn't for everyone, but for those who do like it, I hope you've enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed translating it.

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Volume 2, Chapter 7

2010-09-10T00:05:00.000-07:00

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Volume 2, Chapter 7 is done! Pick it up here.

This is the final "story" chapter of the series. What we have left is the last chapter, which revolves around the author, and the omake (extras).

It's a shame that the series ends how it does, but I hope everyone has enjoyed it. Look for the last chapter and omake to be out soon!

Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 4, Chapter 1

2010-08-15T15:37:00.000-07:00

Tokimeki Tonight Volume 4, Chapter 1 is out. You can pick it up here.

It looks like the current story arc is coming to an end. I'm curious to see how Ranze will foil her new romantic rival.

You may notice that this chapter is ~20 pages shorter than the previous ones. Volume 4 will be split into 8 chapters of about 20-30 pages each. This will allow me to release chapters faster and avoid the stress of working on 50-60 pages of text at once. :P

Enjoy chapter 1, and hopefully I'll have more out soon! =)

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Volume 2, Chapter 6

2010-07-08T19:45:00.000-07:00

Wow, has it really been two months since our last release? Time flies when you have to deal with real life stuff. =)

The latest chapter of Boy Alice is done. This chapter is less surreal than the previous ones, except for the part when the Prince gets a nasty electrical shock.

Pick up Volume 2, Chapter 6 here!

In other news, I contacted Manga Fox, and it seems that Boy Alice was removed from their site because of inappropriate content, not because it's pending commercial release. Hooray!

Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 3, Chapter 4

2010-04-07T20:51:00.000-07:00

Volume 3, Chapter 4 of Tokimeki Tonight is finally done. It's available here.

This chapter is very text-heavy, but there are a lot of great moments in it. I love Mori's heart-to-heart talk with Ranze, and when Ranze says Youko's eyebrows make her look like Brooke Shields.

I know releases of Tokimeki have been rather sporadic, and that's because 1) each of the 4 chapters per volume is is 40-50 pages, and 2) I've been focusing on Boy Alice in Wonderland because there's only a few chapters of it left. It's finite, whereas Tokimeki is endless.

Starting with Volume 4, I'll be releasing Tokimeki in smaller chapters. There will be 8 chapters instead of 4, with about 20-30 pages apiece. This will mean smaller but more frequent releases of the series, and also that I won't feel as rushed.

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Volume 2, Chapter 5

2010-03-13T21:11:00.000-08:00

The latest chapter of Boy Alice in Wonderland is finally finished! This chapter finds Arisu really getting in touch with his feminine side and confiding more in the Prince.

You can pick it up here.

Plot-wise, this is the most surreal series I've ever translated. Some of the chapters seem to take place in an alternate universe, and it's hard to tell the different between this other universe (or universes) and the "real" world within Boy Alice.

This does make for a much more interesting read, though. ;)

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Volume 2, Chapter 4

2009-12-26T12:54:00.000-08:00

Happy Christmas/Chanukah/Boxing Day/Kwanzaa/Winter Solstice/Festivus/Wintereenmas!

The next chapter of Boy Alice in Wonderland is all done! =) You can pick it up here.

Happy Holidays from Desert Bus Translations! =)

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Volume 2, Chapter 3

2009-11-04T12:36:00.000-08:00

The next chapter of Boy Alice in Wonderland is ready! In this chapter, Arisu is transported to the mysterious Spade Kingdom. Whatever will befall him/her now?

This release was super-speedy thanks to my brand-new editor, Lisa. She also goes by "Busy". Hooray for Lisa! =D

You can pick up the chapter here!

As always, stay tuned for more!

Boy Alice in Wonderland - Help Wanted

2009-10-12T23:12:00.000-07:00

To the person who sent me a PM offering to help with Boy Alice--

I would be delighted to have some help with this project. I didn't see your email address in the PM, so I don't know how else to get ahold of you, though.

Please email me at eiennihen@me.com if you're still interested in helping out, and we can go over the details. :D

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Volume 2, Chapter 2

2009-09-21T22:58:00.000-07:00

The next chapter of Boy Alice in Wonderland is finally finished! You can pick it up here.

One thing I did want to mention about this series is the use of Arisu vs. Alice. Arisu (亜利州) and Alice (アリス) are essentially two forms of the same name in Japanese. It may seem a little strange for the Prince to call the main character "Alice," whereas everyone else calls him/her "Arisu," but there are two reasons that I decided to translate it this way:

1) The difference between the two names does not translate well into English.
2) The Prince constantly refers to Arisu as a girl without any of the other main characters noticing, and refuses to acknowledge that Arisu is male. This is apparent in the original as well as the translation. So it would make sense for him to use the female version of Arisu's name, Alice.

This was a short but interesting chapter. I hope you guys enjoy it. =)

Still Alive!

2009-08-21T13:31:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's been two months already! The next chapter of Boy Alice in Wonderland is still forthcoming. Here's what I've been spending most of my time on lately:

Dark Half
Tear Ring Saga
For the Frog the Bell Tolls

I hope to have the next chapter of Boy Alice out in September. Then I'll start working on more Tokimeki Tonight, which takes much much longer.

Cheers!

Tokimeki Tonight, Vol. 3, Ch. 3 is ready!

2009-06-16T16:17:00.000-07:00

After a lot of work, chapter 3 is finally finished! You can pick it up here!

This chapter was a huge editing job, specifically page 126. I love the fact that Christopher Lee, one of my favorite actors, is included in the Etou Family Tree. For those of you who don't recognize the name, Lee is best known for his role as the title character in "Horror of Dracula" from Hammer Films.

Click here to see the trailer for "Horror of Dracula"

Speaking of which, does anybody have a favorite version of "Dracula"? I confess, mine is the 1992 Francis Ford Coppola version. What's your favorite?

New Tokimeki Tonight Chapter soon!

2009-06-14T22:49:00.000-07:00

Hey! Just a quick update. I'm hoping to finish the next chapter of Tokimeki Tonight sometime this coming week.

It's a long chapter with a ton of redrawing (and the Etou Family Tree), but I'm steadily moving through the editing phase. Look for another update soon! :)

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Volume 2, Chapter 1

2009-04-22T18:38:00.000-07:00

Good news! Carash finished most of Vol. 2, Ch. 1 of "Boy Alice in Wonderland," so I just had to edit the last few pages. You can pick it up here.

This was a pretty interesting chapter, although why it's titled, "The Story of Young Sinbad" I have no idea. "Boy Alice" can be a pretty weird series sometimes...

Coming up next, more Tokimeki Tonight! :D

Still alive!

2009-04-18T18:19:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm still very much alive and doing okay! Through the last few months, a dear friend of mine passed away, my laptop broke, and my car's alternator crapped out on me. So yeah, I've had to deal with some pretty harsh real-life stuff.

In addition, I've completed a massive translation protect that I've been working on for over a year. So that's a plus, at least.

The other good news is that 1)I have completed the script for the next chapter of Tokimeki Tonight, which I managed to save along with all the Tokimeki scans when my laptop broke, and 2)I've taken over as editor for Boy Alice in Wonderland, and will start editing the next chapter this upcoming Tuesday.

This particular chapter of Alice is pretty graphics intensive, but hopefully I'll be able to finish it in 1-2 weeks. Then I'll get to work editing Tokimeki...

Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 3, Chapter 2

2008-11-27T10:03:00.000-08:00

After a job change, a computer change, and a whole bunch of other real life junk, I've finally gotten around to finishing Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 3, Chapter 2. This chapter continues the Aron story arc, and includes a poignant heart-to-heart between Ranze's mom and dad. Pick it up here.

Also, we'll have more Boy Alice in Wonderland for you soon. Our editor has been the victim of a bizarre gardening accident, but hopefully she'll be able to resume working on Alice and put the tragedy behind her. :)

Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 3, Chapter 1

2008-06-22T19:04:00.000-07:00

Whew! I'm exhausted, but Volume 3, Chapter 1 of Tokimeki Tonight is finally done. This chapter introduces a terrifying little guy who pops out of walls and steal sweets, and even includes a boxing match between Ranze and Youko. You can pick it up here.

Also, SakkaOnna, the translator of Reiko Shimizu Collection #1 has a brand new release. It's a Shimizu stand-alone called "The Rest of the Dream", and it concerns a young rock star kidnapped by a spoiled rich girl. As always, Shimizu's art is beautiful and her subject matter strangely haunting. Download it here.

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Chapter 8

2008-05-04T12:50:00.000-07:00

More genderbending fun! Pick it up here.

We've also got the bonus chapter, the Prince and I along with some bonus images.

And for those of you who haven't been keeping up with the chapters, here's all of Volume 1.

Reiko Shimizu Collection #1 up for download

2008-04-23T11:05:00.000-07:00

I recently got permission from the translator of Reiko Shimizu Collection #1 to host her work on Mediafire. This is good news for people who either don't have bittorrent or can't get any seeds. Pick it up here:

A Million Pound Love
A Fairytale Judas
Noah's Spaceship
Metal and the Bride

Also, the next chapter of Alice will hopefully be out by this weekend. I know I can't wait!

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Chapter 7

2008-03-08T16:49:00.000-08:00

The new chapter is available for download here. It's short, steamy, and satisfying!

On another note, I'd like to take this opportunity to plug a favorite one-shot of mine: Noah's Spaceship by Reiko Shimizu. It and Shimizu's other works are a delicate, feminine take on science fiction with a heavy dose of drama. I recently found an English scanlation of Shimizu's short stories available for download at the Pirate Bay. At the moment, this is a bittorent exclusive. Pick it up and experience the joy of Shimizu!

Black Lagoon licensed

2008-01-25T19:34:00.000-08:00

This is an e/n post about one of my other projects, Black Lagoon. It has nothing to do with the releases featured on this blog.

I found out on January 9th that Black Lagoon has been licensed by Viz, and the first volume is due out in August. I was pretty upset when I heard the news, honestly. I've put an enormous amount of time and effort into this series; up until now, it's been a huge part of my identity as a translator. When I broke the news to Vorbis, my editor, he was shocked but said he'd expected it to happen sooner. He and I agreed to stop releasing it, per the scanlator's code (which is more like a set of loose guidelines, really). I understand that it being licensed was only a matter of time, and that nothing I say will stop it from happening, but I want to at least make my feelings known.

Black Lagoon has been my favorite project so far; it's also been the most difficult one I've ever worked on. It was full of slang, foreign language, and obscure pop culture references. During these past two years, it helped me become a better translator and changed the way I localize source material. Most of all, though, it was fun to translate. The plot was entertaining, the characters were interesting, and there was always a challenge. My favorite storyline was "Das Wieder Erstehen Des Adlers" ("The Eagle Rises Again"), in which the Lagoon crew attempt to recover a priceless painting from a Nazi submarine. I was quite disturbed by the scene in which the submarine is ambushed by enemy ships and the soldiers on board realize they're going to a watery grave. I took a great deal of care to make the captain's final speech to his men sound as brave and moving in English as it did in Japanese. I also remember that it took twenty minutes to properly translate the name of the medal that Levy finds ("Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords") from Japanese to German to English. The original had kanji with the German name beside it in katakana. I had wanted to include the German name in the English version for accuracy's sake, but it was just too long. Black Lagoon has given me a lot of fond memories, but these two are the ones that really stand out.

One thing that always bothered me was that people kept complaining about our release time (roughly one chapter per month). This became more prevalent toward the end. You know, considering both Vorbis and I have full-time jobs, families, and other interests outside of scanlation, one month is a damn good turnaround time. But then, that's what you get with a popular series, people always want more and can't be bothered to wait. I didn't work on Black Lagoon because it was popular, though. In fact, when I first started translating it back in August '05, it was fairly unknown. The series only truly gained popularity after the Black Lagoon anime was released in the US. This is the reason I usually shy away from translating a high-profile series: there's always the chance you'll wake up one day to find out it's been licensed and is no longer fair game. At which point you just have to cut your losses, move on, and hope the company that licensed your project doesn't screw it up.

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Chapter 6

2008-01-21T09:19:00.000-08:00

Today on Springer, cheating princes and the gender-bending boys who love them! You can pick it up here.

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Chapter 5

2007-11-23T13:25:00.000-08:00

Here's Chapter 5 We now return you to your regularly scheduled Arisu.

Tokimeki Tonight, Volume 2, Chapter 4

2007-11-04T15:45:00.000-08:00

Holy updates, Batman! Vol. 2, Ch. 4 of Tokimeki Tonight is out. Does this mean Volume 2 is complete? Yes it does, and the whole thing is available for download here. Stay tuned for Volume 3!

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Chapter 4

2007-10-29T09:06:00.001-07:00

For those of you who don't already know, Chapter 4 is out! Watch as Arisu doubts his masculinity at every turn!

Boy Alice in Wonderland, Chapter 3

2007-10-07T13:45:00.000-07:00

Chapter 3 is finally ready! Has Arisu become a woman yet? Read on and find out!

Also, Vol. 2, Chapter 4 of Tokimeki Tonight is almost finished. And while we're on the subject, is this

not the most disturbing thing you've ever seen? It's Ranze looking at Makabe and Kamiya. (The thing she's holding is her report card.) Creeps me out every time I see it...

Boy Alice in Wonderland, chapters 1 + 2

2007-09-02T13:18:00.000-07:00

Are now available for your viewing pleasure!

Chapter 1 and Chapter 2

I want to thank Carash the Cold for editing these. It's hard, monotonous work, lemme tell ya. Well, enjoy!

- Eien

Fushigi no Kuni no Shounen Arisu

2007-08-08T08:14:00.000-07:00

AKA, Boy Alice in Wonderland. This is new series we're working on. It has lots of TG and Shounen Ai elements, so it's not your typical series! Volume one is currently in progress. Here's a sample of some of our work. More to come soon! お楽しみに!

Second Release!

2007-07-06T15:20:00.001-07:00

Now for your downloading pleasure, here's Tokimeki Tonight Volume 2, Chapter 3, in all of its torrent glory.

And for those of you who missed it, here's Chapter 2.

Chapter 3 was really fun to work on. I did most of the editing over 4th of July, and there was very little redrawing (thank God). You may also notice that the pages are bigger. Instead of shrinking everything down like in Chapter 2, I left the scans at a robust 700x1100 pixels. I used a combination of Komika, laCartoonerie, and laFayette fonts to give it a more comicbook style. I still refuse to do sound effects, which are an unholy pain in the ass.

Also, take a look at the Tokimeki Tonight Opening and Ending Theme on Youtube! Cute!

Take a ride on the Desert Bus

2007-06-09T17:24:00.000-07:00

I've finally found new hosting since losing my Angelfire site. I decided that I'd rather have a blog and just post the chapters in torrent form. Once I get a little more adept (read: less retarded) at Bittorrent, I'll start posting torrent files. For now, though, I'm still working on Volume 2, Chapter 3 of Tokimeki Tonight. I've got the translation done, with just the editing to go.

Chapter 3 is one of my favorites, actually. We learn more about Aron, Ranze gets a bunch of clones (one of whom is badass), and Mori and Shira dress up as schoolgirls. It's really a shame this series never got picked up; it's very clever and fun to translate.

Another project I'm working on at the moment is "Boy Alice in Wonderland," a manga with a lot of TG elements. This is a WIP with my fiance, who's doing all the editing. Look for more on that later.