As we're in the middle of the Christmas season—or the “;holiday season,”; for readers who prefer their references to winter solstice celebrations remain a bit more neutral—it's time once more for what's become an annual tradition in this column: an appeal to anime and manga fans to share in the seasonal spirit of giving.

So as we do every year, tag-team partner in fandom Wilma J. and I would like to direct your attention to the online Child's Play charity drive, benefiting the Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children locally as well as children's hospitals in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and Egypt.

The effort, spearheaded by the co-creators of the online comic strip “;Penny Arcade,”; Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins, began in 2003 as a way to counteract negative stereotypes of video game enthusiasts as violent, antisocial types.

This year, according to a blurb posted on Kapiolani's wish list at Amazon.com, the need is mostly for movies and games as well as a few game consoles and DVD players. Items for the Xbox 360 and Nintendo's DS Lite and Wii appear to be in particular demand.

Just click on the game controller icon over Hawaii on the map at http://www.childsplaycharity.org and start shopping at Amazon.com. It's simple, and it's a perfect way to celebrate the season ...

Anime around town

» Aiea Library Anime Club: 3 p.m. Saturday at the library, 99-143 Moanalua Road. This month, librarian Diane Masaki will screen the first DVD from the first season of “;Ranma 1/2.”; Refreshments will be served. For more information or to RSVP, e-mail Masaki at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) ...

...» MangaBento: The first art show by this group of young artists, “;Okonomi—What You Like,”; opens Saturday with a reception from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Academy Art Center, 1111 Victoria St. For more information, visit http://www.manga-bento.com ...

Random plugging

Back in February 2007, Funimation tried its hand at creating an online portal for anime fans called Anime Online, featuring a social networking component and news about Japanese pop culture updated daily. The site shut down several months later due to budget cuts ... which was quite a pity, as the company had several good writers on its staff, including Portland, Ore.-based anime/manga blogger Gia Manry.

It didn't take long for Manry to rebound, though. Soon she had a spiffy new blog, “;A Geek by Any Other Name,”; where she was sharing news and interviews with a healthy dash of cheerful wittiness. And now she's the managing editor of Anime Vice (http://www.animevice.com).

Is it the unofficial second coming of Anime Online? Perhaps—Anime Vice has the same blend of news and social networking that Anime Vice had, as well as a small but growing collection of videos. I'm interested in seeing how another feature, a user-edited encyclopedia of anime and manga series, evolves over time—it has the potential to grow into something rivaling Anime News Network's online encyclopedia and Wikipedia ...