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Is Ninja Hattori a cartoon or anime?
I've been watching this thing since I was 8, now I am curious to know what I've been watching all these years. I am not sure what makes an anime and a cartoon different, but I think anime has more violence content than cartoons.
In many of Ninja Hattori's episode, use of weapons, like sword and shuriken was shown. And in most of the episode you can see Hattori and Amada fighting, which is not suitable for a cartoon. Those fights can be compared to the fights in DBZ or other action manga and animes.
So what do you think, is it a cartoon for children or a action genre anime/manga?

Does this answer your question? What differentiates anime from regular cartoons?

It's Anime because it's made in Japan, and (generally) made for Japanese people.
Cartoons are animations in a broader sense, and as such, Anime is a form of Cartoon.
Made in Japan.
http://myanimelist.net/anime/4936/Ninja_Hattori-kun
It lies in the rating of the show and its targeted audience to determine what can be shown to viewers, low violence doesn't make something a Cartoon if that's what you mean.

Yes, Ninja Hattori is an Anime series because it's Japanese series adopted from the Manga.
Anime comes from manga, and this is one reason that Anime users like to watch anime than cartoons. Ninja Hattori specialized to represent Ninja cultures and techniques using weapons things like swords and others.
Ninja Hattori also airing in several Asian countries like India, it's a popular show airing in English and other languages on Disney Channel.
Reference:
https://ninjahattori.fandom.com/wiki/Ninja_Hattori-kun_(anime)

Regarding “This series is also available on other countries' channels”, this point might be more relevant if you can [edit] your answer to include examples of anime-only channels in other countries that air(ed) Ninja Hattori.

Just for fun mostly but RE: Anime comes from manga, that's often true but such a definition is rather incomplete. Pokemon's anime isn't based on its manga, its based on its video game which both predate its manga. We also have many anime which are not based on manga like God of Highschool animated by Mappa which is based on a Korean Webtoon (Manhwa), Batman: Gotham Knight, Pingu in the City and even some Ghibli films like Tales from the Earthsea based on an American children's fantasy series and Howl's moving castle based on a British YA fantasy novel


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Is it ever explained why Maya is rejected by the Ocean Agency?
In the anime: "Daphne in the Brilliant Blue," is it ever explained why Maya is rejected by the Ocean Agency?
I never found out, but in the 1st episode (I may have missed something) Maya seemed like the best possible candidate. So why the rejection?

Yes, it is explained and the reason is understandable. Ensure you have finished the series:

She was rescued by the Ocean Agency once she surfaced in a life pod, approximately 100 years after the Elpida catastrophe. She was resurrected, and unsuccessfully treated by the Ocean Agency psychologists. Her memories were altered with that of a different life, which was done to enable her to function and live her life. Her brother, whom was the only other survivor, surfaced ~60 years earlier and posed as her grandfather, and was not allowed to tell her the truth due to the involved risks and agreements he made to ensure her safety. She was rejected because she was a survivor of the city of Elpida, and the entire catastrophe was covered up, therefore making her a risk to the agency and government.

source: Stack Exchange

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Where can I find ratings of anime OPs and EDs?
I'm looking for ratings of opening and ending animated sequences (aka OP and ED). Usually an anime has multiple OP and ED sequences for each season and sometimes even more than one of each per season. It would be interesting to compare the ratings with other viewers.
I've seen rating sites for anime characters, character songs, music videos and soundtracks, so I suppose there must be some for OPs and EDs.

Sorry if I sound like a noob, but I google searched and couldn't quite find out what exactly does OP and ED's stand for.

It's explained in the first sentence. I'll edit the post for clarity.

So its Opening and Ending. Sorry about that. Just wasn't sure.

Wait, clarification - are you asking for sites that have ratings of the songs used for the OPs/EDs? Or are you asking about sites that have ratings of the OPs/EDs themselves (i.e. animation included)? I wrote about the former in my answer, but if you're looking for the latter, I'm not aware of any sites that do that.

For OPs and EDs. I'm not really interested in the songs alone.

Gendou's Anime Music has ratings on the opening and ending songs and offers links to buy the songs.
You commented that you are looking for something for something rating the animation as well as the music, and I don't know of anything like that, but Gendou's Anime Music site is a good reference for finding opening music based on anime title and for rating the songs themselves, so I figured it was worth a mention at least.

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Who are the members of an early design of Luffy's crew?
Browsing through One Piece wiki, there's a databook series called One Piece Green: Secret Pieces. I found a picture of Mugiwara Pirates early design. This is the picture.

I can see Zorro, Luffy, Nami, Sanji, and maybe Usopp, Brook, and Chopper. But who is the other two on the left? Did Robin and Franky replace them? Is there any official information about this picture?

there seems to be something written next to the characters.. someone familiar to the language could help out. Most probably that is the name of each of those characters. :)

I'm more interested in the drawing on the bottom left; who are they?

I have no good references but:
The mini character was supposed to be the shipwright and was replaced by Franky.
The other one was meant to be a plant obsessed character who was replaced by Robin and largely incorporated into the post time skip Ussop.

I haven't watched One piece yet and I don't think I ever will coz of the sheer number of episodes, but could please someone who knows the show's characters post their names in order from left to right on the pic?

The far left one is label "Shipbuilder," which would become Frankie. The second one from the left is labeled ("Plant/vegetation [something]). It seem all but those two characters were named (see bottom left box for the later concept). Only the shipwright and the herb guy were left unnamed as far as I can tell. It's possible that Usopp's current role mixes the herb guy and his current character role.

@Krazer you could state this as an answer.

I have no good references but:
The mini character was supposed to be the shipwright and was replaced by Franky.
The other one was meant to be a plant obsessed character who was replaced by Robin and largely incorporated into the post time skip Ussop.


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Where did Hibiki learn to pilot the Vanguard
Hibiki Tokai was NEVER a pilot. He was a junior maintenance technician that entered the Ikazuchi on a dare.
Then he got the Pexis Vanguard, and became an ace pilot.
Where did he learn to pilot? Was it offscreen training, or the pexis implanted the knowledge of piloting in his mind, or another explanation?

he's a "newtype" :p

@кяαzєя his hair didn't go gold at the end.


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Did they ever talk about who left the nanomachines/viruses on Mars?
Sorry didn't read the novels, but did they ever go into who left nanomachines/Methuselah virus on Mars?  Do they ever explore the concept of space/aliens again the story?
Seems like there are crazier things than humans, Methuselah or Crusniks in the their universe.

i haven't read the books or manga myself but from my understanding, Vampires/Methuselah were human colonists sent to Mars where the contracted the "Bacillus Virus" which is a Martian Virus, if there was life on Mars before humans arrived it could have been the cause of Martian Extinction though i'm not sure if it's a natural virus, engineered virus or a virus born from dead Martian's who evolved to be vampires but there doesn't seem to be any indication that the Bacillus Virus was alien in nature to Mars (ie. having came from somewhere else in the universe).
Crusniks Nanomachines were also found on Mars and if the Bacillus Virus is connected to Martian Vampires, then the Crusniks Nanomachines may have been made as a weapon to use against them as we know Crusniks feed on Vampires and are by far more powerful.
As for the concept of space/aliens that's what the Methuselah are to the Terrans in the very beginning as they where Humans who were changed on Mars and came back to wage war so in a sense they are aliens, the Ships we see at the beginning of the anime series is more than likely space ships from Mars at the beginning of the war.
Also in the anime the scenes we see Able, Cain, Seth anbd Lilith on a spaceship looking over Earth and at the end we see it. this ship is called Ark and i think in the novels it's covered again, see bellow (major spoiler)

 The Vatican destroy's the Empire's second largest City with a nuclear attack, Seth goes to reactive the Ark hoping to use it's Satellite Cannon to destroy the Vatican's nuclear launch facility
 Cain and Dietrich appear and take control of the Ark and it's revealed Cain plans to crash it into the earth and Able gets involved with the fight between Cain and Seth
 Seth is able to stop Cain's plan but is weakened where Cain then severs her head, killing her. the Order of Rosenkreuz twists the information framing Able for Seth's Murder and since Seth was the Empress Augusta Vradica, seen as the "Mother" of the Methuselah, and Able is allied with the Vatican the Empire starts and all out war with the Terrans

though i'm not sure if the above takes place in Rages Against the Moons or Reborn on the Mars

Nice response a lot of good points.  Only thing was I thought they only showed signs of vampirism near earth.  On Mars the virus was actually useful and they got infected on purpose.


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What happened to the aliens in Italy?
Gantz usually bring back people after they kill all the aliens, but when Kurono's team sent to Italy (chapter 291) Gantz sent them back to Tokyo even when the aliens were still there. So what happen with the aliens in Italy? Did they go away or what?
I didn't watch the anime, so I might be missing something here, or maybe there's some explanation ahead? I have already finished reading the manga, but maybe I missed something.

No italy chapter in the anime

It was a global mission, seems like that every team arround the world has a limit time to help in the mission. Kurono's team were out of time and living ones were teleport back.

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Do manga publishers accept mangas from multiple artists under one pen-name?
Is it allowed for a single legal mangaka entity to consist of multiple artists, each of which does different part of the job, like in Bakuman? For example, one makes the stories and the other does the drawing. Will a manga publisher work with such teams?

See Clamp

I can't imagine why the publishers would not allow that. Historically, it has been done by many writer circles − they publish their works under one pen-name, something the readers can remember easily than the actual names of several people involved. It's a good reason to use a pen-name and publishers generally don't protest if the artist want to use one.


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Has Naruto ever killed anyone?
Just a curious thought I had recently. Naruto has been in an awful lot of fights but I can't recall if he ever actually killed another person.

I doubt it. Just like Fairy Tail and other similar series it's unlikely that the main hero would kill anyone, but an interesting thought never the less.

Naruto did kill Kakuzu and Pain however he did not kill any "human beings".

I just found something that I suspect might confirm your question here

Intentionally no, Naruto never wanted to kill except for those enemies worth killing for. But, I bet he maimed innocent people unconsciously especially when he reluctantly controlled by the Cubi inside him.

He killed the girl with rinnegan in Blood Prison movie

I think the whole killing thing is moved out of focus because it is a series for children. Would be very lackluster to fight in multiple wars and become hokage ("warchief" as in symbol of strength and pinnacle of power for a village) without killing. Very contradictory to the whole "this world is war-torn and mercyless" depiction

Technically speaking, Naruto never landed the killing blow on anyone.

Haku, even though beaten by Naruto, jumped in front of Kakashi's Raikiri.
Kakuzu, hit directly by the Rasenshuriken, survived, and later killed by Kakashi.
Pain's bodies were already dead. Nagato, the living puppeteer, sacrificed himself after hearing Naruto's resolve, with the Rinne Tensei, and revived all the people of the village.

You could say that Naruto was a major cause in all of these people's death, but he did not directly kill any of them.

'Cold blooded kakashi', name suits him well :)

He killed multiple white zetsus though ;)

@SahanDeSilva he made them into tree, so not really dead

@AnkitSharma I have challenged this claim: Do zetsu clones die when they converts into trees?

Naruto technically killed Kakuzu, though. Even if Kakashi didn't kill Kakuzu's final heart, Naruto's Rasenshuriken damaged the final heart to the brink of failure, and it caused extensive and irreversible damage to all of his cells. Even if his final heart somehow survived, he wouldn't have lived much longer, as the rest of his organ systems have been completely obliterated by countless microscopic wind blades.

There is someone I know. Yūra was defeated and killed by Naruto's Big Ball Rasengan. His corpse was later devoured by Zetsu.

It can be argued that he was a sacrifice for the jutsu similar to the Reanimation Jutsu.

Yes, but it is explicitly stated in the wiki that Yūra was defeated and killed by Naruto.

Yet the body used in the jutsu already died, so it was a living corpse.

A 'living sacrifice' means that Naruto actually killed him but under Memory-Concealing Manipulative Sand Technique of Sasori and Shapeshifting Technique from Pain. It is not the technique from the two (Sasori and Pain) that cause his death.

I know that this thread is old, but I just want to point out that Naruto did kill Aoi Rokusho with the Rasengan. Aoi Rokusho is a rogue ninja who ran away from the Leaf Village with the sacred Thunder Sword that belonged to the 2nd Hokage. Naruto attacked the Thunder Sword that Aoi sensei was using and that sent Aoi sensei plummeting down the cliff, which according to Aoi himself, is a fatal fall. This was during their mission to the Land of Tea (*ep 106 in Naruto). I think that's the closest thing Naruto has to killing somebody on his own without any variables.

Naruto killed white zetsus, you can see it here,
Naruto Vs White Zetsu
While if you consider them "persons" or not, it's debatable. This wikia describes them as race: humans
[White Zetsu]
This another wikia entry describe white zetsu as "mutated human",
Zetsu
And this other wikia entry,
White Zetsu Army
describes the white zetsu army as "originally humans who fell victim to Kaguya's Infinite Tsukuyomi and were bound by the roots of the God Tree." , later as "No longer humans" and finally as "Because of their modifications, their DNA is very similar to Hashirama"(who was human)
So to the topic question "Has Naruto ever killed anyone?", the answer is yes, and to the content of the topic question which is different "Naruto has been in an awful lot of fights but I can't recall if he ever actually killed another person." the answer is kind of.

Naruto's chakra caused them to turn into tree. Would it be considered killing? See comments below the first answer. I would consider it immobilisation rather than dead. Besides they are turning into trees which is not something dead (converting to one lifeform to another).

I have asked: When zetsu clones gets converted into trees, do they die?

@FumikageTokoyami answered there, also he killed with a kunai and other ways and that one didnt turn into a tree

Hiruko from will of fire was fatally wounded by Naruto's rasenshiruken
Not 100% sure if true but I watched th end part of the movie and it seems that he died from said blow

Can you provide proof of this?

Naruto killed at least 2 guys
https://naruto.fandom.com/wiki/Aoi_Rokush%C5%8D

Naruto then fought Aoi, and eventually defeated him with the Rasengan;
by aiming at the crack on the sword, Naruto was able to break it. Once
the Rasengan hit Aoi, it sent him flying off the cliff where he fell
headfirst into the water.[4] Seeing as he said that a fall from that
height was fatal, Aoi died from the fall.

https://naruto.fandom.com/wiki/Y%C5%ABra

Ultimately, Yūra was defeated and killed by Naruto's Big Ball
Rasengan. His corpse was later devoured by Zetsu.

https://naruto.fandom.com/wiki/F%C5%ABka

As they battled, Naruto noticed that Fūka was constantly switching
bodies to perform different elemental techniques, and that her hair
was of more importance to her than her body. In turn, he continuously
attacked her hair (which destroyed her bodies) and left her in her
purest state — a soul. As the battle came to a close, Naruto charged
at her with a Rasengan in hand, and she at him with her hair. The
former managed to land his attack first, resulting in her quick demise
from a blow to the head

I have also read that Naruto killed many other white zetsu. However, I haven't watched that part.
So yea, the 2 guys and white Zetsu.
Naruto himself has never shown compunction on killing at all. Like all Ninja, he fights to kill.

Well, there is one more guy that is killed by Naruto - "Shura":

Shura kidnaps Akio. Naruto and the others go to Shinobazu's base to free him. Shura beats Akio demanding to know where Gantetsu hid the stolen treasure. Todoroki charges in and Gantetsu gets captured. The building burns and Todoroki panics, but overcomes his fears to help Gantetsu and his brother escape. Naruto fights Shura and defeats him with Rasengan sending him plummeting to his death in the forests below.

I remember he killed Fuuka in one of the filler episodes by cutting her hair.

Welcome to the community. We hope you contribute well to this community. About your answer, it would be better if you could provide and better and more detailed answer with some kind of a proper reference. A one line answer probably wouldn't cut it for most of the questions around here. So try improving upon this answer for a start.


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Is there a trope for exotic-sounding names?
I'm talking about names that transliterate poorly to the Japanese tongue such as Light-Raito, L-Eru, Lelouch-Ruruush, Bleach-Bureechu (yes they all have an l, especially our one-lettered detective). Do manga authors place a premium on unpronounceable names because they sound the most foreign?
Apparently people eyes is a symbol of exotic. http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PurpleEyes is there a similar documented trope for L-ven names?

See: http://anime.stackexchange.com/questions/835/why-do-some-anime-in-japanese-contain-english and http://anime.stackexchange.com/questions/2357/is-there-a-tradition-behind-giving-people-names-from-english-words

Japanese is actually a sound poor language. Unlike English, which can be considered as a sound rich language, Japanese language misses many syllabic sounds like the letter 'l'. There is no specific pronunciation of the letter 'l' from English language in Japanese.
So, the pronunciation for letter 'l' in Japanese is actually eru.
Here is a link to all Japanese sounds possible here.


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Why does Uosuke say "Tai" at the end of every sentence?
In Fairy Tail 2014, Uosuke is a member of the Garou Knights, the most powerful executioners of Fiore (per the Fairy Tail Wikia). Apart from the fact that he loves fish or has a strange obsession with fish, is there any other particular reason why he says "Tai" at the end of every sentence.
I have a feeling that tai could be inferring/referring to fish tails (per his obssession/love for fish). Are there any other reasons as to why he adds "Tai" at the end of every sentence? If not, is it just for entertainment purposes? E.g. to be funny?

What do you think about Cancer?? Why he says -ebi? xD

@berserk- Hahahaha. Yeah, true that. xDDD

Tai is the japanese name for the sea bream, a fish known for its taste. A lot of anime characters add suffixes to their sentences, to give the character a little uniqueness, like Naruto's -ttebayo. So, since Uosuke really likes fish, he suffixes -tai to his sentences.


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Why do we see these witches in Rebellion?
In rebellion, during the fight

 against Homura's witch form, Homulily:

We see brief flashes of other witches:

Charlotte/Bebe,
**

And

Oktavia
**

Now, if Madoka's wish is absolute, these witches should not exist, but they do.
Why do we see these witches in rebellion?

I am not asking why these characters are there in another form. It is explained. I am asking why they are in witch form (even though briefly).

First off. when Homulily appears the Puella Magi were still inside Homura's Soul Gem which is still inside the Incubator's Isolation Field. the purpose of this field was to isolate Homura's Soul Gem from the rest of the universe to observe what happens to a Soul Gem before it shatters and taken by the Law of Cycles, hopefully understanding how the Law of Cycles works and ultimately control it to reinstate the Witch System for energy gathering (it being far superior to the current method of killing Wraiths as indicated by the Incubator at the end of series (after Madoka remade the Universe and Homura explained it to them))
Also Madoka was without her power. when she became aware of the Incubator's Plot she wanted to save Homura, however it was obviously a trap so her memories and power was given to 2 people, Sayaka and Nagisa. because Madoka sees and exists in the universe at all points in time it's hard to tell what happened in the universe while she was away however remember that it wasn't until the Puella Magi destroyed the Isolation Field and freed every did Madoka Kami descend.
with Nagisa and Sayaka, remember that Witches are Magical Girls who gave into despair. the result of Madoka's Wish, as the Law of Cycles, was to appear before a Magical Girl and allow them to die with hope, knowing they wont turn into the very thing they have been stopping in hurting they people they care about. Both Mami and The Incubators note that when the Law of Cycles takes a Magical Girl away their Soul Gem Shatters and we see this happen in the previous universe too, the same thing happens when they became a witch but instead the Soul Gem reforms into a Grief Seed.
Because Magical Girl's and Witches are the same and as the Incubators said

since this country calls women who are still growing up shoujo (少女 girls), for girls who on the way of becoming majo (魔女 witches), it's logical to call them mahou shoujo (魔法少女 magical girls).

one can assume that the potential to become a Witch is always present which is why Madoka could become a Witch after making her contract and destroying Walpurgisnacht in one attack (since what was she despairing over? Everyone else but Homura was already gone) and how she has to take a Magical Girl away before they become a witch. because Sayaka and Nagisa worked with Madoka in this mission to save Homura it's possible Madoka may have helped them control their Witch form or they learned to do it themselves as preparation for this1, no one really knows what becomes of Magical Girls when in Madoka's Care in.
i do discount the theory that their Witch Forms was apart of the powers Madoka gave them as Sayaka and Nagisa gave this back to Madoka in the end yet in Homura's Universe Sayaka was about to summon Oktavia before Homura interfeared

1: after all, they are dealing with a race who could hide Homura's pending transformation from Madoka, and they are conniving little white shits!

Just curious: wasn't the Incubator Field breach of contract? As it directly blocked Madoka's wish? Compare it to e.g., buying all the land in the U.S., but there is still a miltary base you're prevented from entering (that was not mentioned in the terms of the contract).

@JamesTheAwesomeDude well Madoka made her wish in the old universe which had Witches, remember that until Homura told them the Incubators never knew Witches or the former energy system they used existed. you can't have a contract to buy all the land in the US if the US never even existed in the universe

Witches are still created in the new universe, but they're unknown because Madoka whisks them away at the moment of their transformation. Those two are former magical girls who were taken by the Law of the Cycle. They're simultaneously magical girls, witches, and part of Madoka herself.


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How do anime streaming sites decide whether to acquire licenses from studios to show their anime?
What is the process of getting an anime for example onto CrunchyRoll? Let's say a new original anime airs in Japan and a lot of the viewers on the west want to watch it too.  What reasons does a streaming site consider before acquiring licenses to stream anime? How does a streaming site know what results to expect from streaming each title?

@Miles another question about the process of getting a license is here, and the third about collecting fan votes to stream something.

I think answers to those questions would be one of the trade secrets of Cruncyroll / Funimation. Because knowing what show will be popular enough to bring in enough paying viewers to cover the costs of licensing and translating plus some more is critical to their success. (but considering 90% of shows get streamed I would guess they just grab everything).

Without going into specifics, the process is the same for anime as for any other product in the world:

Is there an interest in the product? This can be measured in many different ways in case of streaming sites: polls, data analysis (who watched what, what do forums/discussion boards say), etc.
If yes, can a profit be made? (in terms of new subscribes, income from ads, etc)
If yes, is the product legal in the country you wish to sell it in? (If not, can it be made legal? Think pixelating private parts, etc)
If yes, can a license be obtained? (eg. are there no import/export restrictions)

The answers to all these questions, and a few others (technical feasibility for example - what if a series is only made in 4K and the distributor insist on not downscaling?) will enable a streaming site to make a proper business decision and either move forward with actually acquiring the license, or drop/shelve the matter.
A more comprehensive list of considerations, not specifically geared toward streaming sites but business in general, can be found on Entrepeneur, which is the most comprehensive overview of considerations going into a business decision.
Streaming sites, as a business, will ask those questions most suited to their respective fields (anime, series, movies, music, etc).

This sounds like a list of educated guesses. Do you have any sources to back up that these are the parameters the actual streaming sites evaluate?

These are part of industry standards and less guesses than common business sense. More detailed questions a business can (depending on what it is they are aiming to sell) be found on https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/78778, for example. I will add this to the answer.

Again, what are your reasons to think that this is what the streaming sites actually base their research on? Aside from it being common sense in most businesses. Ideally I'd like to see an answer from one of the employees of reputable streaming sites. For all I know their goal might be to make the brand of certain titles more recognizable in the west, and the streaming business portion is actually a net loss, funded by the japanese publisher. This is why I'm asking for proof and references.


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Why is Killer Bee still alive?
I just want to ask, in Naruto Shipuden when Madara extracted all the Tailed Beast by using the Gedo Statue. It is said that when the tailed beast is removed from a Jinjuriki the Jinjuriki will die.
I just want to ask, why was killer bee not dead and was able to have a dream under the infinite tsukoyumi. How is it possible?

Wasn't it just Naruto that got the Tailed Beast extracted during the war? IIRC Madara didn't need Gyuuki/Hachibi since he already have a part of Gyuuki (a tentacle Sasuke retrieved) sealed inside the Gedo Mazo.

Isn't it that Madara Also have the chakra of the Nine Tails ?? anyways ,Ahmm, i saw it that the Gedo released the color violet chakra chains that got the neck of the of all the tailed beast that includes Gyuuki.

According to this link

Madara then proceeded to chain them up and prepared to remove
  Yang-Kurama and Gyūki from their jinchūriki. Struggling against its
  confines, Gyūki apologised to B as it was extracted and sealed within
   the statue along with the other tailed beasts,
  but not before cutting
   off one of its tentacles, letting B survive through the chakra within
   it.

So in short he was having chakra worth of one tentacle which was cut off from Gyūki and just because of this he was able to survive.

Kurama should have done this too.

Bee used a tentacle escape pod. It's using the same rule that allowed
  the Jubi to be revived in reverse. As long as there was a portion of
  Gyuki's chakra, be was able to survive.

as stated here

are you sure about this ?

His answer is right, but it's generally not good to just quote forum comments, since they cannot be considered credible.

So yall know how naruto survives from getting the yang 9 tails removed, well its kinda the same thing that happened only he only had a little of the tailed beast's chakra inside him. B had one tentacles worth of chakra remain inside of him.


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In which episode does Rei Ayanami have a life reflection dialogue?
In which episode of Neon Genesis Evangelion does Rei Ayanami have a long dialogue, where she reflects on life saying things like "Who am I? What am I? What am I?". There are pictures of houses and in the background with some quiet eerie music you hear her voice.
I can't seem to find this scene that easily, and I really wanted to write the dialogue down.

It was episode 14 if i recall right
http://wiki.evageeks.org/Episode_14

And to go with it, an Analysis of the monologue:  Rei's Poem/Monologue, an Analysys


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What is the source for 50 total episodes of Twin Star Exorcists?
So far there are 25 episodes aired. MyAnimeList and Wikipedia claim there are supposed to be 50 episodes. What is the source for that number?

I've searched for a bit and found out the only known source of that information is from a chinese anime streaming company iQIYI on their listing page, as relayed by this Crunchyroll news post.


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Why does Gray have to kill END?
In the recent manga chapters, Natsu is seen fighting Gray, from Natsu's side, he just wants to move forward to beat FT's enemies, and I understand that Gray received his magic to kill END, but exactly why does he have to kill END? Did they explain this and I missed the chapter?

The premise of your question is wrong. He doesn't have to. He wanted to. He wanted to kill END, but he actually doesn't have to kill END.
Okay, let me explain what I mean by the statement above. Gray figured that Natsu is END. Does he have to kill Natsu? No. Natsu was perfectly human at that time, and as long as he is human and have control of himself, there would be no reason for him to kill Natsu. Besides, at that time the Spriggan 12 is yet to be eliminated. Obviously Spriggan 12 is a bigger threat than END that is clearly on his side. So, once again, he doesn't have to kill END (at least not at that time) and he certainly shouldn't either.
But, Gray wanted to kill END. This is the difference. He wanted to kill END, because END is one of the Demons of the Book of Zeref. Gray is obsessed with killing all of Zeref's demons (and eventually Zeref himself) because Deliora has killed his family and later his master, Ur. He is motivated by vengeance, and this desires blinded him about the fact that END is a nakama. This is proved by Erza managing to stop him by making him remember that no matter what, Natsu is still Natsu.

I haven't been following FT for a while, so would have to look for a confirmation. But from the previous manga I infer it is because

 END (Natsu) is one of Zeref's demons.

Gray has a very ugly history with Zeref's demons. One of them (Deliora?) destroyed his hometown, family etc. Then the closest replacement to a parent sacrificed themselves to save his life and seal the demon. He also learns his father was basically kept alive as a Zombie by the demons.
Then something curious happens.

He gains the abilities to KILL demons
He discoveres Zeref created all these powerful creatures to kill himself.

After learning the true identity of END as the last of Zeref's demons, Gray decides to kill him for his revenge (aka Sasuke Syndrome)

Thanks for verifying! I understood that but I just couldn't understand the logic behind it and thought I was missing something.

@Stupid.Fat.Cat Its the same logic Sasuke used to destroy hidden leaf after Itachi's death. He can't save Itachi so destriy leaf. Similarly Gray can't save his family but he can destory Zeref's demons. Natsu is the strongest demon created by Zeref.

@Stupid.Fat.Cat Hopefully Erza knocks some sense into him, and unlike Sasuke, He better actually listen and understand because he is not built to Hate like Sasuke is.

Gray is the only one that can kill END with his Ice Devil Slayer Magic as there are no other Devil Slayers known at the moment so there is a lot of pressure on Gray. On top of that, Gray's horrible history with Zeref's demons also contributes to his decision.

Spoilers don't read it if you don't want to be spoiled. Forgive me if I'm wrong.

 So just adding to arcane's answer.. apparently in the manga it is revealed that Natsu is in fact the end and that he's Zeref's brother but died so Zeref has kind of brought Natsu back to life by making him as one of his demons. He also has made Natsu's memories of his family and Zeref himself to be erased. Apparently, if Zeref dies then Natsu will die too due to their 'unusual bond'. I don't know if this is true or not. Now, since Gray is the only one to kill the end he plans to kill the book of demons that Zeref owns, which of course will kill Natsu along with it.

I edited it and put everything inside a spoiler tag. Also try to find factual evidence and link it if you find anything. Don't use only what you surmise. If you think you're wrong try to do some research to be more certain


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What is happening in the first episode of Black Rock Shooter?
I've been trying to get into Black Rock Shooter but I can't get passes the first 3 episodes because I get really confused. Could someone explain what the first episode is about? It sorta goes all over the place and I'm not sure what they are trying to show.

Personally I don't think it has any meaning to it. It's just a pure action, no plot.

if you want BRS with plot just play PSP game version

it's been a while since i've seen the series but from what i remember it's revealed later on that BRS, Dead Master, Chariot and the like are "other selves" or the human characters and their fights match to what's happening in the real world, ie. Chariot detaining Dead Master = Kagari's possessiveness of Yomi. Chariot dropping Macaroons on the beaten BRS with Kagari;s voice saying "go home, go home" is from when Kagari was hostile to Mato visiting Yomi and Chariot carving that heart into Dead Master's chest is what heppened in the real world (when Kagari used a needle to carve it into Yomi)

(cont.) and it's later revealed that when people like Chariot and Dead Master are killed their real world selves loose their memories which later leads to the main crisis later on when which threatens the "other world" and revealing that there are human characters who are fully aware of their "other world" and it's nature

They are showing fighthing between.... I suppose those creatures are something like mental entities or something at another dimension but still connected to the humans. When there's a problem with the main character, for example tension between her and her friend, the representation of them in another dimension are shown fighting. The story itself doesnt really make sense, but if you stick to the actual human character's story, i think it'll be more understandable and enjoyable.


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Are there multiple realities in Re:Zero, or is it just one reality rewinding?
For example, in one timeline Subaru kind of screws up- Rem dies and Ram is furious at him and tries to kill him. He ends his life in that timeline by jumping off the cliff, committing suicide. This left me wondering "how would the people from that life continue to live?" Or rather, does that world continue?

nice job warning about spoilers right after a spoiler in the title :D

I don't think we'll ever find out, and this is because this way we would have more plausible theories to fantasize about. Authors of such time-rewind works usually don't reveal the exact mechanics. But idk, maybe it's already answered by the author in some interview. My opinion is whatever you think is more interesting, after all it's entertainment and whichever is more fun, is better.

It is actually a philosophical question. If there are multiple realities, but Subaru can only visit any given reality one time, then that reality is absolutely "gone" once he leaves it.  It can never affect him, nor he it. More generally, look at the real world, Terra. Is it (or our solar system, or our galaxy) fixed to one reality, or does it periodically phase thru one reality to another? Does it matter if we will never know the difference?

@Hakase it only spoils those that haven't watched the intro OR the first episode OR read any online synopsis. Because once you do, the title is not a spoiler, it is the plot description.

Wait..  i thought it was like video game where every time he dies he returns to check point.

@swswsws That's the entire point of this time rewind or parallel reality uncertainty − to get us thinking. And look what's happening.

Warning, spoiler-heavy answer.
There is break-down of most chapters of light-novel (numerous spoilers inside). According to summary of Arc 4,

 author gives a hint, that each timeline, where Subaru dies, may exist even after his death, at least, some events in some timelines are described.

You seem to be referring to the second trial to liberate the sanctuary. In that trial Subaru experiences the moments following his death across various previous loops. This isn't necessarily confirmation of multiple timelines, the second trial is about a present "that could be". Emilia's second trial shows her still living in the forest with Fortuna and Geuse, this is not a continuation of an existing timeline but a what-if scenario extrapolating from Emilia's experiences, Subaru's could likewise be the unrealized continuations of what "would have" happened had time continued after his death


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What's the correct pronunciation for Luffy or Rufi?
What's the correct pronunciation of his name? Luffy or Rufi?
At the One Piece wikia, it says "Monkey D. Luffy (モンキー･D･ルフィ Monkī D. Rufi)".

Btw it's differenty in some languages. The official translation in German is "Ruffy".

In the IPA: something like [mõŋ̩k̟ii　dii　ɽɯ̟͡β̞ɸi] (narrow transcription)

This answer needs a premise.
You see, Japanese don't distinguish between the L and R sounds. The L doesn't really exist and the R is not pronounced like in English. It's more similar to the Italian/Spanish R but it's not rolled. Also, FI doesn't belong to the standard Kana — ha, hi, hu (fu), he, ho — but it's constructed.
Based on this, you could say both (and probably for Japanese there really isn't a difference like for us). But apparently Oda meant the name to be Luffy (can't find a source yet), and since the Japanese language cannot faithfully represent this name it became Rufi, being the closest match to the actual name.

Luffy is the official spelling, which you can see printed on official merchandise.
「ルフィ」 (rufi) is the Japanese pronunciation of this name. The first syllable of it is pronounced by the average Japanese person as an alveolar tap (written in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as the fishhook-shaped ɾ symbol. Note how this symbol subtly differs from the English r letter) plus an "oo" sound (as in "root," "google," etc. Written in the IPA as "u" or in the standard symbol as ū. See the English Language & Usage SE for details on "u" here).
The Japanese syllabograms ra, ri, ru, re, and ro (ラ、リ、ル、レ、ロ、 or in hiragana, ら、り、る、れ、ろ) are alveolar taps, which are a type of liquid consonant that sound rolled. They do not directly correspond to any English letter such as R (which is written in the IPA as  . Notice that phonetically it is not the same as the thin fishhook-shaped ɾ symbol). An alveolar tap can sound approximately like any of the following English letters: R, L, or D. In Japanese pronunciation, it is equally acceptable to pronounce 「ルフィ」 sounding like a rolled R, a non-rolled R, an L, or a D.
Since many native English speakers do not grow up exposed to listening to the alveolar tap, many think they are hearing an R or L while listening to Japanese and therefore romanization of Japanese into romaji uses "r". This is the exact inverse of some Japanese people hearing an English R or L and thinking that they are hearing an alveolar tap. Some Japanese can distinguish the difference in listening to the English R versus L versus alveolar tap, even though they cannot accurately replicate  R and/or L, while some Japanese cannot hear the difference. Some can pronounce the difference between R and L. Some cannot originally distinguish and pronounce the difference but can learn to via phonetics training.
The natural English pronunciation of the spelling "Luffy" would most likely be with an L sound and a short "uh" sound (as in "ruff, "just," etc. Written in the IPA as  or in the standard symbol as ŭ). However, such an intended pronunciation would have been written in katakana as 「ラフィ」 (rafi) with an "ah" sound (as in "call," "also," etc. Written in the IPA as  or in the standard symbol as ô), so we can deduce that Oda did not have "luh" in mind as the correct pronunciation.
「フィ」 is a glide (not unlike a diphthong slide) of 「フ」 (fu or hu) + 「イ」 (i) = "fui" sped up becomes "fi". It is analogous to the long I sound (as in "sunny," ski," etc. Written in the IPA as "i" or in the standard symbol as ē).
In International Phonetic Alphabet, 「ルフィ」 is pronounced ɾ u f i. To present this in perhaps an easier-to-read spelling, we could write "roo + fee" where the "r" is rolled (as much or as little close to an English L as you like).


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What happened to Ichigo in Urahara's training area after meeting Byakuya (for the first time)?
I understand that during his initial training with Urahara something occurred that gave him (or awoke in him)

 hollow powers,

but hardly anything is said on the matter. And how come nothing like this never happened before, to the point of Urahara trying to make it possible. For Ichigo just happened?
And how does this play into

 Aizen's initial plan. Did he influence this event too?

While SingerOfTheFall's answer seems correct, it isn't.  When you find out about Xcution (organization of Fullbringers) you learn that they have been in an incident with a Hollow as a child.  As in, a Hollow killed their parents when they were young.
In Ichigo's case, his mother was attacked by a Hollow, thereby giving Ichigo Hollow powers.
From the wiki on how Fullbringers are made,

However, they differ in that they each have a parent who survived a Hollow attack before they were born. As a result, traces of the Hollows’ power remained in their mothers’ bodies, which were then passed onto them at the moment of their birth.

However, it probably didn't awaken until he was pushed to the edge by "training" with Urahara due to the Shinigami powers overwhelming the Hollow powers.  His situation is similar to what happened in the manga recently (major spoiler):

 Ichigo got Quincy powers by releasing a massive amount of spiritual energy.   He got Quincy powers because his mother was a Quincy.

Wait, how exactly does that happen? How does Ichigo gained Hollow powers from the Hollow?

@rae1n I've updated the answer and showed how fullbringers came into existence.

It's pretty simple. When Urahara starts training him, in the end of chapter 60,

 Tessai breaks Ichigo's Chain of Fate. Urahara explains that the corruption of the chain has already begun, and when it reaches Ichigo's chest, he will become a hollow. The only way to stop that would be to regain his Shinigami powers. Then they throw Ichigo into the hole, and seal him with bakudou 99.

In the end of chapter 62,

 the chain corruption gets to Ichigo's chest, and he starts transforming into a Hollow - you can clearly see his mask appearing (though Urahara comments that the mask forming before body indicates that Ichigo is resisting the transformation). However, Zangetsu helps Ichigo to stop the transformation in the middle and regain his Shinigami powers.

So yes, the reason is simply that

 he was already half-transformed into a Hollow when he gained his Shinigami powers back and stopped the transformation.

+1 Plain and concise. However, how come Ichigo's the only to gain Hollowfication like this?


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Origin of the phrase "Hyuga are Konoha's strongest"
I have seen it being used in the episodes where Konoha was invaded by Orochimaru when Hinata's father engages the enemy stating that. Now I see that being used in the current ninja war when Neji remarks to Naruto about that?
Is there any basis for the origin of this phrase in the manga or anime anywhere regarding the strength of Hyuga clan?

Or they are just boasting, like 'we are the best'! A good tactic to impress your opponent! :)

It was seen first in the Chūnin exam, when Kakashi said this during the battle between Hinata and Neji. That path was followed in the fight between Naruto and Neji.
The reason is, that the members of the Hyūga can manipulate the chakra of their enemies and thus can win against most ninjas. And since the massacre of the Uchiha-clan, who could be better than the Hyūgas?

any group of long range fighters like shikamaru's clan for instance.

naruto bested him.. :P


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What constitutes as an Yin/Yang/Yinyang element technique?
As we know, the Naruto "Table of the elements" consists of more than just the basic 5.
In addition to all of the combination elements, (Wood, Ice, etc), we also have the three rather bizarre Yin, Yang, and YinYang elements.
What are they? What can they do? Tobi explained that mastery over these elements allows one to basically become God, completely erasing the boundary between dream and reality. However, is that all there is to it?
The Second Mizukage states that genjutsu is basically Yin element, what does that make the Yang element?
Also, what is the YinYang element? Is "God" the only jutsu there?
What about elementless jutsus like Shadow Clone, do they constitute as either of the three?

This will only partly answer your question, but according to naruto wikia 1,

Yin relates to one's spiritual energy and Yang relates to one's
  physical energy and it's necessary to utilise both of these in order
  to mould chakra for ninjutsu.

I thing that the phrase "become God" is used as a metaphor. According to the same wiki, the Sage of the Six Paths had absolute control over Yin and Yang, and was able to "make his fantasies come to life". This is described as 2

The process he used is explained to have initially involved the
  administration of imagination, and the spiritual energy which forms
  the basis of Yin chakra to create shape and form from nothingness.
  Then, through the application of vitality, and the physical energy
  which forms the basis of Yang chakra, he would breathe life into the
  prior form.

The Second Mizukage states that genjutsu is basically Yin element, what does that make the Yang element?
Yes, genjitsu is basically a subset of Yin release (Inton, 陰遁). Based on the fact that Yin relates to spirit energy, and Yang relates to physical energy, that makes perfect sense, because genjitsu techniques are basically illusions. According to the wiki again, the Yang release (Yōton, 陽遁) is "based on the physical energy that governs vitality" and  3

can be used to breathe life into form.

It's also the Yang part of the Nine-Tailed Fox's chakra that was sealed within Naruto. This causes the Yang chakra to have impact on other techniques when Naruto is in Nine-Tails Chakra Mode - namely, the Wood Release technique.
It is also implied that the elemental-less techniques, have their source in Yin and Yang (this is from chapter 316):

1Yin-Yang Release
2Creation of All Things
3Yang Release

Yin element:
The yin element techniques, the basis of imagination and spiritual energy, can be used to create form out of nothingness.
During the Kyuubi attack on Konoha Minato used the Shiki Fuujin to seal the Yin half of the Kyuubi's chakra within the Shinigami.
It is, as you (and the Second Mizukage) say, the basis of genjutsu.
Yang element:
The yang element techniques, the basis of vitality and physical energy, can be used to breathe life into form.
During the Kyuubi attack on Konoha Minato sealed the Yang half of the Kyuubi's chakra within Naruto.
Whenever Naruto is in Kyuubi chakra mode, nearby Mokuton technique created trees react to the Yang element's live-giving properties and develop into full-grown mature trees in an instant.
The Yin-Yang element:
These are a combination of the use of both elements described above. As Yin is related to the user's spiritual energy and Yang to the user's physical energy, it is necessary to use both of them in order to mold chakra to create Ninjutsu.
Yamato explains in chapter 316 (page 9) that the manipulation of Yin and Yang is the source of non-elemental techniques such as the Kagemane no Jutsu, Baika no Jutsu, medical ninjutsu, genjutsu, etc.
The Rikudou Sennin had such a mastery over these that he could use Yin to make his dreams take form and Yang to make his fantasies real.

Tobi explained that mastery over these elements allows one to basically become God, completely erasing the boundary between dream and reality.

The Rikudou Sennin's possessed an ability called Banbutsu Souzou (Creation of All Things), with which he created the nine Bijuu, out of the Juubi's chakra. Quoting from the Naruto Wiki:

The process he used is explained to have initially involved the administration of imagination, and the spiritual energy which forms the basis of Yin chakra to create shape and form from nothingness. Then, through the application of vitality, and the physical energy which forms the basis of Yang chakra, he would breathe life into the prior form. Thus the Sage used this to split the Ten-Tails into nine separate beings.

The jutsu Izanagi is also derived from this ability.
Also,

 Madara has implied that Yin–Yang element was involved in the creation of White Zetsu and his clones.

So basically, by mastering these one can become God, since he will be able to put anything that he imagines into life.
And to answer your question regarding Kagebunshin no Jutsu and the like, I'd say that they do come from the mastery of the Yin-Yang element, since they are not produced by any of the basic chakra elements, and they are indeed a product of your imagination come to life.

EDIT:
Unlike SingerOfTheFall, I do not think that the "become God" phrase is just a metaphor. As far as we know, the world they live in may be the creation of someone who mastered Yin-Yang elements, thus being able to put the world they have imagined into life (somewhat like what Tobi wants to do with is Tsuki no Me plan (although I believe he needs to do his plan like so because he does not fully master Yin-Yang elements)). I believe that is the kind of power Tobi speaks of when he says "become God".

References:
Elements, Yin, Yang, Yin-Yang and Banbutsu Souzou

Yin is spiritual energy and Yang is physical energy. You need to manipulate both spiritual and physical energy to mold jutsus.
In page 11 of chapter 510, Tobi explains that by administering imagination, and the spiritual energy which forms the basis of 'yin' power... he would create shape and form from nothingness. By administering vitality, and the physical energy which forms the basis of 'yang' power... he would breathe life into that form.
Chakra
As you are probably aware, a ninja's chakra is composed of a balanced mix of his spiritual and physical energy. These two components are Yin and Yang, respectively.
On Jutsus
The Yin and Yang nature seem to be the basis for most jutsus that do use nature alteration, but are non-elemental (e.g. genjitsu). It seems that Chakra is formed when combining spiritual and physical energy. Some people are more suited with one over the other, which might determine whether their balance of Yin and Yang naturally leans towards either side. Therefore not all jutsus require an exact balance of these two Yin and Yang. Instead varied proportions of the combined forces by different means based on the intent of the user determine the jitsu.
Inton (Yin Release)
Jutsu like genjutsu and the Yamanaka Clan's psychic jutsu are spiritual and which focus on the mind. So they must use Yin and Yang nature alteration, emphasizing the Yin. These all seem to be jutsu which focus on extending your own chakra to your opponent and connecting your mind (e.g., implanting an illusion) to theirs. Whether it’s to implant an illusion, read their mind, or project thoughts etc. This basically uses spiritual chakra as a manifestation of your mind.
Youton (Yang Release)
Jutsu like Shadow Clones, medical jutsu, and the Akimichi Clan's size jutsu are physical. They focus on manipulating physical substances or creating them from chakra. They must use Yin and Yang nature alteration, emphasizing the Yang.
Summary
Yoton (Yang Release) creates life force. Inton (Yin Release) materializes imagination. Onmyoton/In'youton (Yin-Yang Release) is a combination of both Yinton and Yangton (you could say the Sage of the Six Path's unique application of this is a bloodline ability). It allows one to imagine something and materialize it without giving up anything but chakra. In other words, giving form to one's imagination.
Yin + Yang = Chakra
Yin = Spiritual Energy
Yang = Physical Energy
Yin Release = Uses spiritual energy extending the mind
Yang Release = Uses physical energy extend the body
Yin-Yang Release = Yin Release + Yang Release

So what you basically mean is that every jutsu belongs to the Yin'yoton element...

No. I'm saying different jutsus are created though the manipulation of different proportions of Yin and Yang.


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How Black Star was influenced by the Kishin's hallucinations?
Caution: contains spoilers.

In episode 23, when Black☆Star approach to Eruka he was under an illusion. When it comes to the sixth sense (soul wavelengths), Black☆Star admitted he immune to the effects of the Madness. So why when he use the Enchanted Sword he was affected by the madness illusions?

Where exactly is it said that he is immune to Madness? I can't seem to find it...

in this wiki.
"Black Star, however, replies that he has a dull sixth sense, and thus will not feel the madness."

Ok, found it. Expect the answer soon :P

Ok, it took me some time to find it. You are referring to this:

Knowing what kind of person Black☆Star is, I wouldn't take his statement neither too seriously nor too literally.
It is known that it is possible to overcome madness if one has bravity and a strong heart. Black☆Star definitely has those. In fact, it is shown in the Baba Yaga's Castle mini-arc (if you excuse me for calling it a "mini-arc"), that Black☆Start indeed is capable of overcoming Madness, at least to some point. Note that in that mini-arc, after Black☆Star encourages the other characters, they are able to overcome Madness as well after hardening their minds.
We also know that later Black☆Star

 gets the ability to use Madness Release (Hakkyou, 発狂) changing his Wavelength to one of Madness.

However, according to the same wiki that you referenced, even he has a possibility of slipping into Madness if he uses this ability for too long. It is also stated here that the stronger the Madness Wavelength, the harder it is to overcome Madness.
Considering the above, another important note is that in Baba Yaga's Castle mini-arc, Black☆Star was rather far away from the source of Madness, while in the episode you mention he was right near it; more than that, the source was kishin himself.
So I think that while Black☆Star indeed has some sort of resistance to Madness, his statement in that episode was partly bragging, partly overestimating himself and underestimating the enemy, which eventually let him susceptible to the (quite powerfull themselves) illusions.

If the stronger the wavelength, the harder to withstand the madness.
How come "death" himself didn't overwhelmed by it?
After all, he has the most powerfull wavelength.

@Hashirama, you mean Death the Kid in the same episode? He was caught in the hallucination right when he entered the kishin room (that's in chapter 21 of the manga), but managed to realize that was a hallucination after some time

No no, I mean THE "Death" (his father).

@Hashirama, how is Shinigami related to this exact episode? Nevertheless, Shinigami is arguably the most powerful character in the series, so he should definitely be able to withstand kishin's madness. He has also already faced and beaten kishin before.

The Shinigami related to the first comment (refer to the first sentence I wrote).

@Hashirama, ahhh! I think I have misunderstood your first comment! By saying "the stronger the wavelength, the harder to withstand the madness" I was meaning Madness Wavelength, not any Wavelength at all. Shinigami should probably have Anti-Demon Wavelength type, I think. I'll fix the question to remove this ambiguity.

Very well, I accept.


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What is the mon in Jin's kimono?
In the anime Samurai Champloo, there is a character called Jin who is defined in the Samurai Champloo Wiki as:

(..) a spectacled man with messy black hair tied in a loose ponytail with two strands that frame his face. His attire consists of a simple blue kimono adorned with multiple symbols that are four squares in a diamond formation on the right pec, sleeves, and back of his kimono. Also wears a brown beaded bracelet on his right wrist.

These symbols are called mon, and his looks like this

Wikipedia's page on the character says that this mon resembles that of the Takeda clan, and provides a link to the story of Takeda Shingen, as well as a broken link.
Is this really the Takeda mon? (has the author every stated this, or is there any official reference)
Or is it all just speculation and the pointing out of similarities? (which may just have been inspirations)
Or could it be some other less-known clan's mon?

There is no way to know for sure, as it is not explicitly mentioned. While several other clans did use this design, the Takeda are by far the most well known. The four diamonds in this mon is said to stand for Takeda Shingen's famous, inspirational motto: "Swift as the wind. Silent as the forest. Fierce as the fire. Steadfast as the mountain," which was drawn from the writings of the Chinese strategist Sun Tzu (of "The Art of War" fame).
It should be noted that Yukimura bears the Houjou mon (looks like a Triforce),  who were neighbors of the Takeda and over time have been both allies and adversaries to them. Perhaps Jin and Yukimura's relationship in the show is a symbolic microcosm of the parallels between the real-life families?


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Did Yagami Light take a risk while handing over the Death Note to Rem?
I didn't understand the scenario where Yagami Light relinquishes ownership of his Death Note for the first time.
He trusted Rem to give it to such a person who would have traits like that of Kyosuke Higuchi.
What if that plan had not worked? Didn't the entire plan hinge on Rem's choice of the person?

People are predictable. Especially if you know one's personality in advance, you can almost accurately predict what one might do with great power, such as the Death Note.
Light is far from stupid, he knew exactly what would happen. He knew he'd use the Death Note to achieve a higher status, and that his and L's team would come and investigate. All a part of clearing their own name.
Basically, Light knew exactly what he was doing. Very little was left to chance in his plan.

Yes. He did take a risk. But he knew his plan will all work, and it did. He knew how people will react and what he'll do next just basing with a person's personality because he is genius and smart (but he used it for bad acts, though). Think about it, he even knew what he'll do himself if he loses all of his memories about the Death Note and I guess knowing oneself is the most difficult thing to do, so judging and knowing what other people will do in a particular situation would be easier for him.


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Do we know how Senju Hashirama died?
The wiki says that Hashirama died shortly after the creation of Konohagakure.  Do we know how he died?  I mean, he was powerful enough to stand up to Madara, so I feels like it would be no small thing that could kill him.

Well.... I may have something to do with it :)

It's unknown exactly how did he die, but here's what we can find. His wiki page says:

 Hashirama died shortly after the founding of Konoha in one of the many
 wars that were raging during this revolutionary era, but not before
 passing on the title of Hokage to Tobirama.1

However, if we head to the Konohagakure wiki page, we will find a more specific note:

 Hashirama died during the First Shinobi World War, necessitating his
 brother Tobirama Senju replace him as Second Hokage.1 Tobirama would
 also die during the war, appointing his pupil Hiruzen Sarutobi as his
 successor before sacrificing himself to ensure his pupils' escape from
 Kumogakure's ninja.2

Now, here's what we know about the First Shinobi War (emphasis mine):

 The First Shinobi War was the first of the great wars that involved the majority of
 shinobi villages and countries. The war started not long after the system of one shinobi
 village per country was established by the founding of Konohagakure. To try and
 maintain a balance of power, the First Hokage divided the tailed beasts among the
 other five villages3 when he began his peace talks with them.

So it indeed looks like he died in the First Shinobi War, which is not too surprising, considering that

 his brother - the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju - died in the same war2, in which other Kages and Tailed Beasts were involved.

1 Character Databook 1, page 116
2 chapter 481 pages 4-10
3 chapter 404 page 14

In my opinion, the First Hokage is meant to be a more mystical aspect throughout the series.
They start off at a very early point in the original Naruto series explaining how powerful he was, and they reference that continuously more and more throughout the series. The same can be said for the Sharingan. Orochimaru is obsessed with research concerning both if them, and we see plot developments all throughout the series with both of them.
My theory is that Hashirama was killed off in order for these plot developments to occur. Unfortunately we don't have much information on this, but I think that the reason why it's so gray in that area is to allow for future plot developments to happen.
Obviously the First Hokage was incredibly powerful. Madara even goes so far as to say that even with his Rinnegan/Eternal Mangekyo/Mokuton jutsu, he still wouldn't be a match for Senju Hashirama. It's kind of hard to believe that he died in a random shinobi battle.
Lets not forget that Hashirama's Mokuton-infused cells granted Madara an enhanced life span, but they also grant insane chakra-reinforced strength and chakra-enhanced abilities. With Mokuton cells, Danzo was able to use Shisui's Kotoamatsukami once every four days, rather than   once every 10 years.
We know that he is dead during to Orochi and the Third's battle. So maybe he was killed by a random group of vague assassins that never get mentioned again in the series. If that's the case then that is one big gray splotch on an otherwise colorful canvas. Because if there is one thing I've come to respect out of Naruto, it's the writers attention to detail and the complexities of the series... Not some half-assed plot tie up where the most powerful ninja in the known world gets vaguely killed in the first shinobi world war.

It says that he died sometime before or at the early stages of the first shinobi war, Tobirama also died during that war and Hiruzen became Hokage then

During Orochimaru's reanimation of the 1st hokage, based on the reanimation he's still wearing a combat armor which means he's in a middle of fighting, neither assassinated, sacrificed for something or died because of some reasons.
Or maybe since he's also one of Orochimaru's primary subject's for experimentation, Orochimaru might have done something on the 1st's body, he might have poisoned it or something. No one really knows this is just only my theory. But if our theories isn't still right the death of the 1st hokage still remains a mystery

I know I'm late, but Madara died right after telling Obito what to do, he didn't wear any armor, but when revived by Kabuto, he got the armor.

I believe that Hashirama's story is a lot colder, different and more true to his character, then what people presume.  Hashiramas life was an extremely difficult hardship to bear and not anyone could just be, what he was.  When I say this, I don't just mean physically but emotionally and mentally, as well.  He spent his life, trying to juggle peace, family, friendship and justice for everyone.  He was constantly being tugged by opposing opinions of what peace truly was, or what kind of consequences would come of his actions as a hokage....who would it benefit? who would it hurt?  Would peace truly come of all this, between the Senju and Uchicha clans....or any clans!?  I believe that Hashirama became tired of it all.  He coudlnt balance all this - and no matter what he did, true peace would never come of all his goals.  When Madara read the Naka Shrine; he found out that true peace just wasn't possible; for it was all an endless cycle of death and hatred between clans.  After much time and many years of Hashirama fighting, fighting and more fighting - he started to understand what Madara was trying to say but could never get to that extreme of an solution.  He probably couldn't convince himself of what was right and wrong anymore.  True peace was a catch-22.  There was no way to really reach it.  This could've had a big part to do with Hashiramas standards of peace, since they were so high.  He couldn't bear the fact that he failed(at least by his standards), and like he always says "conflict, no matter what the era".  Even the most powerful people in the world have a limit.  His heart could only take so much killing and blood spilling.  Think about this: A man who speaks of nothing but peace and love....seeing nothing but war and hate.  The Hashirama that we all know, was a genuine human being with a soft heart and eventually that heart cant take anymore pain.  Yeah, im saying it, because this is what I believe his character truly reflects:  I think he let himself die in war -or- killed himself.  He was just tired of it all and saw no more purpose or meaning, so he hands the title to his brother and goes off to war with the intention of dying without people knowing it was premeditated.  Maybe he wanted people to learn a lesson from his death, if they could figure him out.  A great and extremely significant character like Hashirama, has to have a very significant death, not just by dying in battle.  He was either truly depressed of this fate that could not be altered by his leadership and skills.....or......he wanted his death to be something that people could learn from.  He figured, he goes out with a mark on the world.  His death maybe would be another component of people in the future finding something more close to true peace.  All his successors would learn from him.


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Where do Kekkei Genkai abilities (genetic abilities) originate from?
In Naruto there is a group of abilities called Kekkei Genkai (血継限界). They are told to be "genetic" abilities which are (usually) passed down genetically within specific clans.
Notably, the eye techniques (Dōjutsu, 瞳術), such as sharingan, are also a subset of those.
How did those abilities first appear? Did they appear naturally, or were they made on purpose as a result of experiments?

Sharingan:
I'm guessing this would've appeared naturally, as with other Doujutsu (Byakugan and Rinnegan). Legend has it that these clans descended from the Rikudou's eldest son, who received his father's "eyes": his powerful chakra and spiritual energy.
Kekkei Genkai Ninjutsu:
I think these were developed by ninja who possessed special abilities and chakra nature affiliations. They were, later on, passed down on the next generations. According to this Leaf Ninja's page, they are creations indeed.
Potential Bloodlines and Genetic Advantages:
There are also Potential Bloodlines and Genetic Advantages, which also seem to be passable down onto the next generation, such as Suigetsu's and Mangetsu's body, which is unique to them and gives them a genetic advantage (I think these could've been the basis for the development of some Kekkei Genkai in the early stages of clans, though not in Suigetsu's and Mangetsu's case). I don't think they are considered Kekkei Genkai, but they could've been linked in early stages of development of a clan's special technique. I found out about these in this Leaf Ninja's page.

The Sharingan itself originated from the Ten Tails, he had what I like to call a "Sharinnegan", a Rinngean rippled eye, with Sharingan marks on each ripple.
The Sage of Six Paths inherited that power when he became the Ten Tails' Jinchuuriki, which was then genetically passed to his eldest son.
From my understanding, Sharingan is considered the Yin, while the Senju vitality and life force is considered the Yang. They are two halfs of the same whole, which is why a combination of the two can achieve the ultimate power.
Aside from that, "normal" elemental Kekkei Genkai is the result of a specific bloodline being born with two (or more in some cases) elements. This results easy manipulation and fusion of both elements, into the new Kekkei Genkai. These were probably learned/created early in the bloodline, and then taught to new members when they came of age.
There are also other Kekkei Genkai, like Kimimaro's bone jutsu, and Suigetsu liquefaction jutsu. These aren't explained in much detail, but they are probably some sort of genetic mutation which enabled their chakra to preform these techniques. Because it's a genetic mutation, only those bloodline members can use it.
There were expirments in Kekkei Genkai transfer and the results were inconclousive. It was seen that the Sharingan and even the Rinnegan can be succesfully transplanted and operated in the new host quite easily. However, when Orochimaru attempted to transplant Hashirama's cells into newborns, only one out of fifty survived and accepted the cells.

It seems that the first Kekkei Genkai was the rinnegan of Rikudo Sennin. Because he was the first ninja, I don't think that the Kekkei Genkai was an experiment, he literally "just had it".
Other Kekkai Genkais like the Sharingan are mutations of Kekkei Genkais (compare JNat's answer).
Maybe combinations (like Hakus Hyoton) are just mutations, suddenly appearing somewhere in the world.

I think Kimimaro's Shikotsumyaku would also be a good example of something that "suddenly appeared" and is possessed by just a single person.

I think you are wrong regarding Kimimaro. Kimimaro belonged to the Kaguya clan who possessed the Kekkei Genkai that allowed them to manipulate their bone structure. This ability is called Shikotsu Myaku (Corpse Bone Pathways).

I think they just appear.  The reason why I say that is because of Kimimaro.  Kimimaro came from a clan where no one had his kekkai genkai.  (It was so vicious that his own tribe was afraid of him.)
His kekkai genkai just appeared.  It's probably how most kekkai genkai appeared.  I can't imagine someone "came up" with the Byakkugan or the Rinnegan.  They're just genetic, like being really tall or really smart.  They just are genetic combinations that run in bloodlines.

In chapter 217, page 4, Kimimaro says, when talking about his Kekkei Genkai: "...The Kaguya clan... Now it's my ability alone.", which seems to suggest that it wasn't his alone before. Also, Naruto Wiki's page on the Kaguya clan says that, although only a select few members of the clan posses the ability, Kimimaro was one of them (and the most talented).

"The ability seems to be rare amongst the clan members, as Kimimaro is the only known user even prior to his clan being eradicated." Kimimaro is the only known user.  link

Ok, but the line in chapter 217 seems to suggest that there had been other users before him, despite being indeed rare.

Kekkei Genkai is not something that is solely related to a technique, it is something that limits the other users to use the same technique to its full potential. We can say that it is the affinity of a clan to do the technique better and to improve it to further extent. You could use a Kekkei Genkai, but it will not be as strong and effective as it would be when done by a member of that particular clan" Kakashi had a sharingan but could not defeat Itachi as he did not possess Kekkei Genkai.


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Why does Shinnosuke ask people if they like peppers?
I sometimes watch this anime called Crayon Shin-chan in Portuguese (in which it is simply called Shin-chan). Flirty as he is, Shinnosuke (its main character) is often inconveniently messing around with women. Sometimes he walks up to them and, as if to break the ice, asks them "Do you like peppers?". After this either the women get very embarrassed or his mother knocks him in the head (or both).
Also, in one opening theme he sings that "pepper tastes so bad".
Is this something specific to the Portuguese version of the anime?
Is its only significance related to his childishness (him being a five-year-old child)?
Or is it supposed to mean anything other than that (and makes more sense in Japanese)?

Think of what a (Japanese) green pepper looks like~

The progression of the phrase goes like this:

ピーマン好き (Do you like [green] peppers)？ ニンジン食べれる (Do you like to eat carrots)？ 納豆にはネギ入れる方？ (The method of sticking negi [spring onion] into natto [fermented soybeans] "Are you the type who puts spring onions in their natto?")?

This phrase doesn't translate very well, but it's an equivalent to South Park "fish sticks" gag:

Do you like to put fish sticks in your mouth?

Ohh, I see. And what about the opening theme? When he sings that "pepper tastes so bad"? That is a little bit weird considering that interpretation. Or is it the Portuguese translation that is weird?

I think that is because kids hate green peppers. According to Shin-chan, green peppers taste like crotch. I seem to recall some dialogue that went something along the lines of: "I can't eat green peppers, they taste like crotch!" "Duh! Everyone knows that! It's like saying monkeys fling poop!"

@Krazer: One would wonder how he knows how crotch tastes like...

@SF. He's Shinchan. Of course he's eaten crotch. Probably on a dare or because someone told him its great.

The last bit ("納豆にはネギ入れる方") is more like "Are you the type who puts spring onions in their natto?".


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How does the Organization create Yoma?
In the beginning of the series, it is assumed that the Yoma have always existed and the Claymores were created to fight them but it's never mentioned where they come from. Later on, it's revealed the Yoma were created by the Organization to fight a species of dragon descendants.
How is it that the Organization creates these Yoma?

From chapter 126, it's revealed that the Organization

creates a parasite from combining flesh from a Dragon's Kin with flesh from a captured Dragon. This parasite will infect the brains of humans and turns them into Yoma.

Spoiler image
Miria had previously speculated that the there was a war raging outside of the land where the Claymores were and that

the two sides were the people who run the Organization and the descendants of Dragons and suspects that Yoma were created by the Organization. In chapter 126, she learns from Rimuto, an Organization member, that the Yoma were created by the Organization as a cover for them to develop Claymore. The Organization's goal was to create a weapon to fight the Dragons and Dragon Kin that could awaken but then revert back to human form. Previously, awakened warriors couldn't revert and they just left them in battle to die.


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What are the responsibilities of key staff members in an anime production?
With any given series, there's a lot of names and titles being thrown around in the opening and closing credits.
What are the typical key roles (E.g., art director, color-setters (iro shitei), producer, director, series coordinator) and their primary responsibilities? Are there also any roles or departments exclusive or work differently in anime production than in traditional or western animation?

There's a pretty good summary of a lot of the positions here.

Original Creator
Director
Enshutsu (Animation Technical Director)
Character Designer
Animation Supervisor
Key Animators
Inbetweeners
Producer
Art Director (Art Model and Background)
Color Coordinator
Finisher
Special Effect / CG Artist

These are just a few highlights:

Original Creator (gensaku)
  The original creator is the person who came up with the concept for
  the story originally. This may be the original manga creator, a
  novelist, game developer, playwright, author, oracle, prophet, or
  whoever can come up with an original idea.
Enshutsu
  Often translated as animation director or technical director. Enshutsu
  is one of the most difficult and most important jobs in the Japanese
  animation industry. The enshutsu is between the director (kantoku) and
  the production staff. He is responsible for checking and supervising
  the show through the production, from initial story to the final
  released product, and in many cases, has almost total control over it.
  He checks the animation drawings as they are being done, sets up the
  scenes before they go to camera and supervises the sound and voice
  recordings and all the editing amongst many other jobs. The exact job
  and responsibilities vary from company to company, and from show to
  show as well. Sometimes the enshutsu ends up as the whipping boy for
  the director; sometimes he or she carries the show and the director
  sits back and watches. On larger productions there is sometimes more
  than one enshutsu and usually quite a few assistants. It is important
  to have a good knowledge of animation production as well as artistic
  talent to do the job and it usually takes four or more years in the
  industry before someone can do the job right.
Inbetweening (douga) The inbetweeners use the key drawings as reference points and produce drawings that fit between the
  positions on the keys. This smoothes out the movement and makes the
  animation look better. (The more inbetweens there are, the more fluid
  the movement becomes and the more expensive the animation becomes.)
  Inbetweening is a relatively non-creative job. It is more tracing than
  anything else. The hours are long and the key animators are sometimes
  very hard to work with. The cruelest part of being an inbetweener is
  that they rarely get to work on anything they are fans of and what
  they do get to work on they burn out on quickly. (I know some
  animators and an enshutsu that you can send into convulsions by
  whispering "Ranma" in their ears.) After 2 or 3 years of grueling
  inbetweening, animators who can handle it are usually promoted to
  keys.

As for a position that is present in anime production but not as common in western or traditional animation, I could could only find one position that might fit the bill.

Color Coordination (Iroshitei)
  The Color Coordinator decides all the colors for everything that will
  be painted/colored by the shiage department in the show and creates an
  iroshitei hyou (color model pack) that the staff can refer to when
  painting. This job requires not only good color sense but a good
  memory, as the CC should be able to keep an idea of what the colors
  for the whole show look like in her head so that when questions come
  up about small details and things not in the iroshitei hyou she
  doesn't need to pull all the models and think about it.
  The CC makes
  color models of each of the characters and the props, mecha etc. in
  the computer paint system. The painters use these models when coloring
  the various scenes.
  In the old days of liquid paint, there were 327
  commonly used Taiyou Shikisai (Taiyo Paint Company) cel paints but
  they had over 1,000 in their catalog. Each color had a code number
  which originally was its equivalent to the DIC (Dai Nippon Ink
  Company) code. Color code numbers were usually a letter followed by
  numbers like GY-40 and RP-99. (Some companies used another paint
  company - Stack - but their paint was more expensive (and higher
  quality) and the paint codes were different.)
  A good way of telling
  that you had done this job too long is when you lookout a train window
  at a sunset or forest and find yourself determining what paint colors
  they it is composed of. Computers have made life a lot easier with
  16.7 million colors ending the need for weird paint codes but now you look at that sunset and wonder what dpi you would have to scan it in
  to get good output quality.

I'm sure other types of animations have color coordinators but this one is somewhat specific to anime since it deals with a specific Asian company and their limited paint color selection.
The full page is worth a read as it has a lot of the Japanese names of positions in addition to their translated names.


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Why does Kakashi Hatake always wear a mask?
Since his childhood as depicted in manga/anime, Kakashi always wore a cloth mask covering his face, making only eye(s) and a portion of forehead visible.
What was the reason for this?

to look cool...

@Rokuspace, you mean handsome?

I have collected a few reasons, which are actually assumptions..

Because he was an ANBU. All the members of ANBU wear masks for various reasons. (hiding their identity, their feelings, expression, and so on, making them merely fighting robots)
Since his childhood days, he always was looked down on by the villagers because his father sacrificed a mission in order to save his comrades. This resulted in a huge loss to the village (maybe in terms of reputation and economy). He wanted to hide himself.
Moreover, people could easily mistake him for his father since they look similar (one example: Lady Chio attacking Kakashi Hatake because she mistook him for his father Sakumo).  He tried to hide himself with his mask, though people vaguely remember it since a generation has been passed.

Though all the above reasons aren't really valid now (in both the anime and manga), Kakashi still wears mask, for which the reason is unknown.

Just an idea Kishi had. And here is a piece of information from a blog:

In an interview the question, "Why does Kakashi wear a mask?" was asked. Kishimoto's reply was that he saw ninjas as being "mysterious" or something, so in his character design he made Kakashi wear a mask, but he didn't do that with other characters because it's too difficult to get their expressions down when you can't see their entire face.

Blog link: [click here]

Ninja's are mysterious, but lets give the main character an orange jump suit!

lol can count the orange jump suit as mysterious, Why would you wear such a flashy outfit as a ninja who hides in the shadows

Naruto wears orange to stand out. He wants to attract everyone's attention, not blend in to the crowd. It is also a remember to the audience that he is the 9 tails fox, as it is the color of the 9 tails fox.

@user1526, adding to starPilot's, color orange signifies ENERGY, a will to be sportive and always ready .. that's the character of Naruto ..

@user1526 are ninja's in orange jumpsuits not mysterous to you?

There is also a theory that Kakashi uses a mask to cover up his face simply because he is so handsome. This is actually backed up by some episodes that show Kakashi talking to women, who almost flutters with delight after having seen his face. Didn't he also get a discount in a store at some point?

@RogerM, filler episodes don't matter in serious business :P

I thought it is to hide his Sharingan, because he can't activate/deactivate it like native uchiha's. Its always active, if the eye is open all the time it'll drain the chakra unnecessarily. Thats the reason he is hiding it under the mask.

It's not just about hiding right eye .. It's about covering his entire face (except his left eye) ..

@InfantPro'Aravind' Sorry I was wrong. Because, kakashi was wearing the mask even before getting the sharingan. Also, I don't agree with your 1st and 3rd assumptions. because, he was wearing the same mask even before his ANBU phase, and how people would think of him as his father during his childhood (he was just a kid)

@RikuduSennin, That point is whatever age it's applicable to.. It's an arguable point but evidently, lady Chio mistook him for his father, which vaguely suggests us that it could have happened with other people as well..

Ofcourse lady chio mistook him when Kakashi was an adult,, My point is, he was wearing the mask even when he was just a genin(a kid), how people would get confused between a kid and a grown man(his father) ?

Well.. That's also the reason he continued to wear mask even in his adulthood .. (agreeing to other reasons which are applicable to childhood)

2nd reason applicable first .. then 3rd

If he wanted to hide himself, he wouldn't have joined the ninja school only. I think he wanted to his emotions when people talk about his father, thats why he started wearing mask. But, kishi's answer is much better. Nice analysis aravind :)

Yes .. all that matters is what author thought .. :)

@SirDuckduck lol for that matter all of Naruto's actions are very anti-ninja.

In the Rock Lee spinoff manga and anime, Kakashi says he wears a mask because when he reads ecchi ecchi paradise, he has nose bleeds :)

I've been wondering this myself, and I've watched enough Naruto to make formulate a pretty well-thought out guess.
Kakashi has always worn the mask, before even joining the ANBU and all the tragedy in his life. I believe that his father wanted him to be in the ANBU and started fundamental training for it at a young age, like hiding your emotions with a mask.
At first it was probably nothing to serious, just a regular mask. But he didn't start to wear it "religiously" until his father's death, maybe it is the only thing left to remember his father, or possibly to just honor him by wearing the mask he gave him. Or I could be totally wrong.
I speculate that the mask has a connection to his father because he would have had no reason to wear it in the first place. it would make sense if he had started to wear the mask in his teenage years after the death of his father, Minato, Obito and Rin to mask his pain and emotions, and to represent his stone cold stature. But he wore the mask since a young child before any pain entered his life, so it leads me to believe the mask could only have to do with something between him and his father, perhaps because of influences of the ANBU , or history of Sakumo (kakashi's father), or out of sheer honor, or maybe something completely different, that's just my observation.
Only time will really tell.

I think Kakashi wore a mask as a little boy because his dad, Sakumo, made him. What I mean by this is that Sakumo was pretty famous as a ninja and almost everyone knew him, as a result of that he was afraid someone was going to hurt his kid to get revenge or something. So he wanted to protect Kakashi by making him wear a mask every time they got out of their house like that no one would know how his face looked like. Also he trained him like that he would be strong incase he was not going to be there to protect him.
I think this because we already know Kakashi never had his mom as a little kid nor he remembers seeing her. That means she had to die when he was born or when he was just months of being born (or maybe she just left, but that is not my point). Since she died, Sakumo did not want to loose another person he loved, so he made Kakashi wear a mask.
Than after Sakumo died Kakashi felt ashamed of his father, so he decided to keep wearing the mask like that noone would know he was Sakumo's kid. But still some people knew because of his hair. Than latter on Lady Chio mistook him for his dad, somehow.
Also he is pretty handsome (shown in the picture below), so I don't think he wore a mask to hide his face because he was soo ugly. Because he's not.


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Is there a Jounin Exams for ninjas?
In Naruto series, there are what we called ninja ranks: genin, chuunin, and jounin. To be promoted to a higher ninja rank, you need to passed at least an exam, like in the academy, if you were able to graduate from the academy, you'll be promoted to genin, to be a chuunin ninja, you need to pass the chuunin exam. How about being promoted to Jounin, is there a Jounin exam too? :)

You don't have to pass an exam to be Chunnin, there are other ways of doing it. Kishimoto once said in a interview that Naruto can become a Chunnin anytime he wants to, but he just wants to do it through the exam. For that matter, Naruto became a genin despite failing the test, because Iruka pretty much appointed him. :)

I think this link might help
naruto wiki.
Here it is said that it is yet unclear if there is an exam.
There is a mention of a Jounin Exam in Kurama Clan Arc (episodes 203 to 207),
and that they are apointed.
This info only counts for Naruto anime btw.

It's not clear yet. Maybe there are exams or maybe they are promoted because of their abilities. Sometimes, there are "special-Jounins", which have some special abilities like Anko, Ibiki or Ebisu.