ISML 2011: The field is now set!
By JR Salazar (Bongaboi)
April 1, 2011
As the cherry blossoms rained down in Japan, the 2011 International Saimoe League field was completed after 15 days of Preliminaries action.
Tsumugi Kotobuki was weeping tears of joy at a victory rally with Ui Hirasawa at Japan Women's University when she earned the most votes in Pool 1 with 3,715. To celebrate, plates of cake and cups of tea from the Kotobuki combine were served to the masses.
"Oh my gosh, I feel like I will wake up from this dream," Kotobuki said, overcome with emotion. "I have qualified for the world's greatest competition of them all, the International Saimoe League. I will do my best to make everyone happy because I love you all so much. To everyone who has supported me through the good times and the bad, thank you very much! This is for you!"
Ui finished with the second-most amount of votes in Pool 2 with 3,563.
"I qualified for the 2010 International Saimoe League through Phase III, and history seemed to repeat itself," Ui said. "I hope to do very well at this year's edition, and I am certain that onee-chan (Yui Hirasawa), Mio-sempai (Mio Akiyama), Mugi-sempai and Azusa-chan (Azusa Nakano) will do well, too."
Kuroko Shirai earned the third-most votes in Pool 1 with 3,237. She and Index Prohibitorum were celebrating at Tokiwadai Junior High School in Academy City.
"Onee-sama (Mikoto Misaka) promised me a crepe if I qualified for the ISML," Shirai said with her mouth full, "and now I am snacking in the sweetness of it." Swallowing her morsel, she went on. "I don't know how I'm going to do at this year's International Saimoe League, but I think I might surprise a few people, maybe even onee-sama."
"I would love to see you try," Misaka snarked next to her.
"To everyone here in attendance, I send you my thanks for your support and hope you will vote for me as I begin my journey," Shirai said.
Also qualifying for the regular season from Pool 1 was Mafuyu Shiina, who garnered 3,484 votes.
Index earned the most votes in Pool 2 with 3,626.
"I give God's blessings and thanks for allowing me the chance to compete in the world's most highly respected anime character competition," she said. "It is my hope that everything will go well, and that I will improve on my performance from two years ago.
"It is refreshing, and an honor, to be back."
Also back for another run is the inagural ISML champions Fate Testarossa, who earned 3,266 votes and virtually flies the flag for the Nanoha/TSAB franchise.
In Tokyo, a special rally was held for Asami Iwasawa and Shiina of Angel Beats. Iwasawa earned the third-most votes in Pool 3 with 3,252 votes and Shiina earned the third-most votes in Pool 4 with 3,057 votes.
"We come into this tournament as longshots," Iwasawa said. "For both of us, it is an honor to be competing in a tournament like the International Saimoe League because it doesn't come very often, if at all. So we will hope to do the best we can."
"Neither of us is expected to contend for the necklaces, let alone the Tiara," Shiina added, "but to be in this tournament is all we both need in the end. I don't think we could ask for more, aside from a victory or two."
Nagi Sanzen'in earned the most votes in Pool 3 with 3,640 and Louise Francoise Le Blanc De La Valliere earned the second-most votes in the pool with 3,465.
Haruna and Seraphim of Kore wa Zombie Desu ka? were also celebrating their entry into the International Saimoe League. Haruna earned the most votes in Pool 4 with 3,749, while Seraphim earned the second-most amount of votes with 3,545.
"Finally!" Haruna exclaimed, giddy as ever. "I thought we would be shut out from a tournament as awesome as the International Saimoe League. I owe this to you, the fans, for voting me and my good buddy Seraphim into this year's ISML. We're gonna have a lot of fun these next few months, so stay tuned!"
"At last, I get measure my skills, sowrdplay and know-how against the finest in the world," Seraphim said. "As a vampire ninja, I thirst for blood. It is in my DNA since the day I was born. With this being said, I look forward to drinking the blood of the conquered at this year's ISML."
C.C. earned the second-most amount of votes in Pool 4 with 3,682.
Laura Bodewig is another newcomer to the tournament, having earned the third-most votes in Pool 5 with 3,188.
"It is important that we emphasize the word 'International' in the phrase 'International Saimoe League,'" Bodewig said at a rally at the Infinite Stratos School Battle Arena. "By 'International,' it's not just competitors from Japan. We now have competitors from England, France, China, Finland, and finally, my country, Germany.
"With that said, I extend a hearty Vielen Dank to everyone who have supported me during this preliminary stage. I hope to put in a good performance, and hope that all of Germany will support my cause this season."
Holo earned the most votes in Pool 5 with 3,635.
Ayase Aragaki earned 3,533 votes to finish first in Pool 6 and punch her ticket.
"People often compare me to Rena Ryuuguu in a way because of her yandere dynamics," Aragaki said at a pep rally in Tokyo. "I dismiss such comparisons because I am unique in my own way. At first, I dismissed the International Saimoe League as a waste of time because Kirino [Kousaka] introduced me to it. But when I saw that people were voting for me and saw something in me that they liked, I thought that this was a good idea after all. I am touched by your support and I hope to pay you back with a strong performance in the ISML this year. Thank you!"
Mato Kuroi rounds out the newcomers to the International Saimoe League. The Black Rock Shooter herself earned 3,329 votes to finish third in Pool 6 and qualify for the ISML.
"I never knew that I would stand a chance and take part in something like this," she said with a smile on her face, donning her costume at a victory rally at her school. "It's straight out of a fairytale.
"To every one of you who believed in me, thank you. It's an honor to be among the 50 best young women in the world. It's something that I take considerable pride in. I look forward to having fun during my time here in the ISML."
Konjiki no Yami (Golden Darkness) finished second in Pool 6 with 3,448 and will fly the flag for ToLoveRu for a third-straight year.
April 24, 2011 will mark the beginning of the 2011 International Saimoe League regular season, and Match Day 1 of the Aquamarine Period. Stay tuned to the Bedlam on Baltic Avenue (bedlamba.blogspot.com) and Bongaboi on deviantART (bongaboi.deviantart.com) for continuing coverage of the 2011 ISML. And join the ongoing debate online at internationalsaimoe.com!
