Cel Shaded Jason Yadao

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Anime groups host gatherings

Lots to cover in this column, so let's get straight to the news: » Oahu Anime Explorer will hold its monthly meeting Saturday from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. at HMC Academy, 555 N. King St. For more, visit oahuanimeexplorer.com.

» Mangabento's next meeting Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. is also the group's deadline for submissions for its art contest. Polish up those final lines and head to Room 200 at the Academy Art Center, 1111 Victoria St. For more information, visit manga-bento.com ...

Great Ghibli Giveaway

Speaking of contests, you still have until March 31 to enter to win "Howl's Moving Castle," "My Neighbor Totoro" and "Whisper of the Heart" on DVD. Given how there are just two entries so far that are 100 percent correct (out of five entries total ... come on, you can do better than that!), your odds of winning are pretty good.

Once again, the questions:

1. Which two Ghibli films were nominated for Academy Awards?

2. In which two Ghibli films do "soot sprites" appear?

3. Two characters from "Whisper of the Heart" also were featured in a later Ghibli film. Name the characters and the film.

4. In "Spirited Away," what color were the flowers that Chihiro held at the beginning of the film?

5. In "Princess Mononoke," what part of Ashitaka's body gets infected by the boar spirit, and on which side?

E-mail me with your answers at jyadao@starbulletin.com, or learn more at starbulletin.com/2006/03/13/features/yadao.html. Oh, and here's a hint: Read question No. 3 carefully ...

In Sunday's 'D&Q'

Take your average teenage girl, toss her into an alternate dimension where she happens to be the key to some prophecy, and let the good times roll. Wilma J. discusses two series in which this happens, "Red River" and "From Far Away," in the Sunday Today section ...