Howdy!

Nanowrimo the 2nd

2010-11-12T20:36:00.001-05:00

I'm taking part in National Novel Writing Month again this year.

I'm also failing horribly (less than 5K words, and the target is 50K by the end of November).

Did I mention I'm loving that I'm actually WRITING stuff? It's actually really fun!

What is my novel about? That is a secret, until the end of the month at least!

Paprika

2010-11-05T23:29:00.002-04:00

I watched Paprika today. It was a film by acclaimed director Satoshi Kon, released in 2006.

It was like a very good acid trip.

That's all I can say about it.

I'm still trying to process it...

Finished Eureka 7

2010-10-11T17:42:00.007-04:00

Lovely Monday, got a nice day off work (which would happen anyway if it wasn't Thanksgiving...) and managed to finish Eureka 7. Wow, does that sentence even read properly? Well it certainly reads properly, but it definitely doesn't read nicely.

Rewind.

I finally finished watching all 50 episodes today. In my opinion, it is definitely one of my favorite television series I've seen to date, though note that I did not follow shows like "Lost," "Dexter," or other critically-acclaimed series, my views are admittedly limited. Despite this however, one thing I did appreciate about Eureka 7 was the simplicity of it. It was about a boy who falls for a girl, and the many ups and downs of their relationship as they proceed to learn more about their world and each other.

All wrapped in a mecha shellcase of course.

One of the series' strengths was definitely the characters, how they mostly (not all) grow and adapt to the events around them. Watching the last episode, I could easily remark how Renton, the protagonist, changed from a wimpy kid to a confident young man. And all it took was 50 episodes!

The animation was, as well, top notch. Very clean despite how hectic the mecha battles were. There was a particular sequence in episode 49 where, for about 20 seconds, you could see the animation budget SKYROCKET because the sequence was just GORGEOUS to look at.

The main draw of the show, however, was definitely the growing relationship between Renton and Eureka, the character the show's name comes from. What starts out completely (and humorously) one sided becomes a mutual affection, ultimately growing into a mature, sensible relationship. Unlike other shows or movies (*cough How to Train Your Dragon cough*) the relationship isn't stuffed down one's throat, though it can be argued that the show benefited from the 50 episode count, as it allowed the viewer to see some of the highs, lows, and all the growing pains of a relationship.

But not all the highs and lows actually. In fact, one can state that the show was ultimately very naive about how it treated the relationship between the two protagonists, and I will have to admit, I agree. It is very naive, but can we, the viewing audience, really say it's naive because their relationship works, or because it doesn't come crashing down? The characters are not simple cutouts, they're complex, with fleshed out personalities and different quirks. Barring from mind that this is a television show, it can't be said that Eureka was made for Renton, that her very personality and character is one that supplements for Renton's faults and quirks. No, rather Renton and Eureka complement each other in a way that successful, real life couples do. To that end, yes the show is naive about its relationship because it doesn't fully explore the many lows of a new relationship, instead the relationship itself usually flits about, reaching many highs with not too many lows. However, the show is not naive about its relationship in the sense that the relationship itself is shown to be successful, despite how "in the real world would not last" based on the age of the protagonists (they're teenagers, Renton is 15 and Eureka is 16).

This post became far, far longer than I originally anticipated. My point remains though, Eureka 7 was (and is) one of my favorite shows to watch, though it has the unfortunate side-effect of making me feel empty when I'm done watching (similar to the feeling after reading Scott Pilgrim, or watching Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz).

Amazingly, watching Kurau: Phantom Memory does not elicit such an empty feeling, but that is also one of my favorite series to date.

Anyway, great series! Now to get a copy of the movie!

Eureka 7, Scott Pilgrim, and...that's it

2010-09-21T23:54:00.002-04:00

I'm currently (re)watching Eureka 7 on DVD, which I bought two weeks ago. I'm trying to stagger it so I don't watch the entire series in like...a few sittings. It's 50 episodes long and can be VERY easily marathon'ed.

Almost done, unfortunately. I'm on episode..35 or something? Pretty epic stuff, very cheesy romance type stuff too, but that's a bit of the charm. Also, lots of character development! A highly recommended series for people who like mecha with a serious story mixed in for good measure.

I'm also (re)reading Scott Pilgrim, which is just as epic as ever. I think Scott really grew on me over the last month, considering I haven't read the books since...last month. What I mean to say is that he isn't as annoying as I use to find him! He's kind of likable too!

Still a bit of an ass sometimes, but who isn't? My favorite character might just have to be one of the female characters, Ramona, Kim, Knives, any of them really.

Oh, and the movie DVD/Blu-Ray hits November. I...I kind of want to get it on Blu-Ray, but I lack the hardware. Also I've been buying a LOT of DVDs lately so...DVD will be my format of choice!

And that's it!

Perfect Blue

2010-09-16T22:58:00.002-04:00

I picked up a copy of Perfect Blue, the 1997 feature film directed by Satoshi Kon (who sadly passed away last month). It's suppose to be out of print, but the DVD case is suspect of being a new release...

In any case, I picked it up for a number of reasons.

1) Mr. Kon's recent passing led to a vocal outcry from the anime fandom, as many of his works have been lauded as exceptional.

2) I've never seen any of his work.

3) Perfect Blue is also his first work.

I watched it earlier today, with relatively high expectations. I must say, I was not disappointed. Animation is superb (though it is a feature film, which means higher budget), but everything about the film was fantastic. I would probably NOT watch it again until next year, as I'm not usually a fan of psychological thrillers (which it is, oh it is...) but it is just so exceptionally well made.

Even if it did make me squirm in my seat a bit.

Absolutely fantastic film, can not WAIT to see his other works (probably picking up Paprika next, but if anyone knows where I can get a copy of Millennium Actress for a reasonable price, let me know!).

I still can't believe it was made in 1997...definitely feels like something made around now.

I can breathe!

2010-09-08T13:30:00.001-04:00

What a long soak in the bath and a good night's rest will do for ya!

Doesn't really solve my other problem of sticking to the computer like glue, but hey, at least I can breathe!

I can't breathe

2010-09-07T21:37:00.003-04:00

I wish the title was a joke.

I'm writing this entry for record-keeping purposes, so that in the future if it happens again, I'll know how to deal with it.

I can't breathe well at the moment. Every time I look around my house I start getting a sort of...claustrophobic feeling, like the walls are closing in, and I start to hyperventilate. I push myself away from desks, tables, chairs, anything, and stand in the hyperventilate in place while I re-orient myself.

I think I know what is partially responsible, and if I'm right, then hopefully this problem goes away soon. Otherwise this will be a very...very bad week.

Who is Mr. Nobody?

2010-09-05T08:31:00.002-04:00

Mr. Nobody is, apparently, a sci-fi drama.

It is about one man reminiscing about his past, or his possible pasts, as he remembers 3 different lives depending on which of the 3 women he married and lived with.

It is also ridiculously broken and scattered in terms of narrative and editing.

It is also 2 hours and 18 minutes long.

It is also partly a philosophical, art film, though as one review states, philosophy takes the backseat to the striking visuals.

Make no mistake, the philosophical part of the movie has been done before (Run Lola Run anyone?). The editing is also, as stated above, scattered. It doesn't feel that each possible "past" gets enough screentime, despite the hefty run time.

I can not willingly recommend this movie to anyone. While I enjoyed it myself, the movie is so...different that the audience just might be as the movie is: scattered.

Scott Pilgrim's Life Journey

2010-08-22T20:53:00.002-04:00

That could totally work as a book title.

So...I'm back! Still keeping the blog as more of a journal for the future, but hey, I'm back, I'm updating (once in a while), and...yeah!

Watched the Scott Pilgrim movie (twice!) and it was FANTASTIC on both accounts. The first time I watched it I had only read the first volume (an hour before the movie), and absolutely loved it.

The second time I watched it I had read up to volume 4, at which point my opinion of the series was seriously waning. I kind of bought into the hype, of the geek chic, of the whole "life drama" sort of thing, and was very disappointed with volume 3. A friend of mine told me it picks up in volume 4, 5, and 6 (of which there are only 6 volumes), and volume 4 was definitely better than the 3.

Just put down volume 6 10 minutes ago, really liked it a lot. Definitely a bit weird to see the series end (what can I say, I fell in love with the characters, some of them anyway) but it was definitely a great read.

I can definitely recommend it to fellow geeks, and people that are open to very strange books. You don't have to like the main character though, I disliked Scott until the end of volume 6! Ha!

See you around, partner.

2010-03-26T15:58:00.007-04:00

I think the title of this post is particularly relevant, as it reflects the blog's name ("Howdy!" is rather...cowboy, n'est pas?), and it signals that this will be the last post.

The real last post of this blog.

Going on a trip for a bit, and while I do want to maintain a blog while across the ocean, I think it's time for a new blog. This one certainly has been around for quite some time, dating back to April 2005. Amusingly, the first post was actually not my first blog post at this address. I apparently deleted the first incarnation of this blog and revived it. Not this time.

This blog (and reader(s?)) has seen me through part of high school, university, and a break up. This blog has had entries written with the worst writing in my life. This blog has had readers come and go. This blog has been around for a very long time, but I think it's time to retire it.

The new blog is at lusat-r.livejournal.com. Hope you follow along.

See you around, partner.

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

2010-03-26T08:35:00.004-04:00

Watch it. Now. Youtube the trailer.

Even I, someone who doesn't like Michael Cera (for EXTREMELY biased reasons that are unrelated to him), wants to watch the movie. I think this has to do more with the fun of the action (wam! whip!) than the premise though (which is still fun).

Love is a drug

2010-02-24T19:59:00.002-05:00

A very, very bad drug. It gives the best high in life, but eventually the effect wears off and you come crashing down back to reality. And when you crash, you can crash relatively unscathed, or you can crash and burn, burn, burn until you feel like there's nothing left to be burned.

The worst is when you have to "detox," or get over someone. Because again, there are the highs, and the lows, the highs of life being worth living, of not thinking of the person at all, and the lows of constantly thinking of them, and constantly missing them to no end. But the lows don't stop there, oh no, they can drag on and on and on, and sometimes you wish you could just take everything back and redo everything. It'll be perfect, you think, no more mistakes, no more arguments, no loss, just gain.

Yet you can't, you can't take everything back, you can't turn back time, or simply change overnight and everything is la la again. No, you have to just move on, just move on and on to the next hit, and hope that the next hit sticks for good.

But it's hard to move on. It's very hard to move on. Because sometimes, sometimes, just sometimes you want to make that call, to send that e-mail, but you can't, and the only thing you can do is just...move on.

Waterloo

2010-02-17T23:30:00.000-05:00

I'm going to Waterloo next week.

Cold, freezing Waterloo.

I hope there aren't bears!

Walking with temptation

2010-02-13T16:12:00.004-05:00

So two posts ago I mused on how one shouldn't give into temptation, because it would be similar to taking "2 steps forward and 3 steps back."

Well I'm here to say "fuck that." I don't know what I'm going to do, but I do know that I want to type that right here, right now, I want to give in.

Because having a friend is better than nothing at all.

Or not, I don't know. I have some time to decide, after all. I hate walking with temptation.

Edit, like, an hour later: Well "fuck that" as well. After some thought, I think having no friend is better than nothing at all! At least I'm not fucking miserable when I talk to said "friend."

Trust me, if anyone is out there (as well as myself, should I stumble upon this blog in the future, and, for all intents and purposes, probably will), it hurts like fucking phantom pain right now (physiology reference) but it'll be ok, sooner or later, it'll be ok.

Right?

Anders Loves Maria

2010-02-07T00:12:00.003-05:00

Thus, the comic, Anders Loves Maria, has come to an end.

I started reading the comic...I think it was last summer. It started in 2006, so it's been a good 3 years and some change, though a lot of that time was due to short "hiatuses" (real life > web comic). I have to say, the comic showcases the brilliant highs and horrific lows of a relationship, with excellent writing and wonderful art. It was an absolute joy to read, and I implore anyone who has yet to read it to give it a go, clicking the link above will take you to the first strip.

I warn that it does have nudity, sex, and strong language, but this is one example where it is definitely not gratuitous.

Give it a go, it's definitely worth the effort.

The last post

2010-02-02T22:28:00.004-05:00

Not the actual "last post," but regarding the post previous. I think I should try and clear that up. Which I'm not actually going to, but go on a slight (slight!) tangent.

The important thing in, well, life in general, is not to try and not give in to temptation. Just look at Adam and Eve! I mean sure, at some points one might feel weak and vulnerable, but the important thing is to not break, to stay steadfast to your resolve, and just keep on moving.

Because one knows exactly what would happen if one gave into temptation. A short period of relief and then...anxiety, depression, panic, depression, anger, sadness, depression, nights of drinking, more depression, it goes on.

So even if it is two steps forward, one step back, it's still a step forward, and that's better than three steps back!

It also helps to check out horribly violent things to satiate the loneliness. Which is totally not the formula for making psychopaths, I hope.

Moving on

2010-02-02T00:04:00.000-05:00

Very slowly...

I need a Wii

2010-01-24T22:26:00.003-05:00

Not for Smash Bros.

Not for Super Mario Galaxy (but that helps).

Not for Legend of Zelda (that also helps).

For Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces. I need this game, I also need a Blu-Ray player (PS3?) and an HDTV, plus a copy of Sky Crawlers. I mean just listen to this music!

World, you know my birthday wish!

Shout out to the world!

2010-01-23T00:04:00.002-05:00

Thanks to G for the comment below, greatly cheered me up!

Looks like the next little bit will be VERY busy but hopefully there's a sweet reward for it all!

And we're back!

2010-01-17T17:09:00.000-05:00

And then I became motivated again!

Unmotivated

2010-01-16T23:20:00.002-05:00

I feel extremely unmotivated at the moment. I was thinking of working on an art project I started years ago, but I couldn't find the file.

Amusingly it's probably on my old computer.

There's a whole agenda of things to do, or things that I COULD do. It's not even all related to work, one of the bloody items is to read a web comic!

But again, point to the title, feeling extremely unmotivated, which is likely the reason why so many of my personal projects go on permanent hiatus.

Might as well push myself to do something...

Just chilling

2010-01-16T00:53:00.001-05:00

Just chilling at the moment.

Chilling.

Salad Days

2010-01-10T00:11:00.003-05:00

I miss that manga...

I recently came across the phrase "salad days," which reminded me of this 18 volume manga I read a long time ago. It was, essentially, a series of one-shots (yes...18 volumes of one shots) about various aspects of romance. It was important to note though, that some of the stories DO get continued with another chapter, and some of the protagonists of one story may serve as supporting characters in another.

Yet there were also a few stories that didn't have a continuation...and they really should've, because they were awesome.

Did I mention that I can't find it anymore? The manga? Yeah, not on my new computer, I'm guessing it's on my old one though. MIGHT be there...I should look eventually. The site I got the series from is now long gone, can't find it at all.

Oh? What does the phrase "salad days" mean? From wikipedia...

"Salad days" is an idiomatic expression, referring to a youthful time, accompanied by the inexperience, enthusiasm, idealism, innocence, or indiscretion that one associates with a young person."

It was originally from Shakespear's Anthony and Cleopatra, the quote also from the wiki entry.

"...My salad days, / When I was green in judgment, cold in blood..."

Ah, my own salad days...actually they weren't too long ago. I think I'll probably consider this moment as part of my salad days too, a bit down the road.

I miss those days, but the times change, as with the people. Just got to keep on looking forward...

To our own salad days!

Whatever will be, will be

2010-01-04T22:46:00.002-05:00

Que sera, sera. Whatever will be, will be. The future's not ours to see, que sera, sera.

I was told this earlier today. It's nice to have a bit of faith in, well, faith.

2010, Doctor Who specials, and break ups?!

2010-01-03T00:30:00.006-05:00

Well, firstly, it's 2010! Awesome!

I just finished watching 5 Doctor Who specials, pretty much back to back, as part of Space's marathon specials. They were:

"The Next Doctor"
"Planet of the Dead"
"The Waters of Mars"
"The End of Time, Part 1"
"The End of Time, Part 2"

I must say, I liked Waters of Mars and Planet of the Dead better than the End of Time, though it might be because I didn't join the legion of Doctor Who fans until very late and even then, haven't watched all of the new incarnation (2005 and onward). Still, gotta say, all those cameos in End of Time? Awesome. Kind of wished I didn't read about the bar scene though...that would've REALLY made me jump in my seat if I didn't know about it.

Though it still made me giddy inside.

The significance of these specials is that it's David Tennant's last run as the Doctor, starting with Matt Smith as the new Doctor when the series returns. Oh, and Russel T. Davies, one of the writers and producers of the revived show, is also leaving.

I must state, that David Tennant won me over with his portrayal, as well as his charming good looks...damn he's awesome...but the point is, it's his final run as the Doctor, and I will miss him so dearly. In fact, I've been dreading to see him leave the show for quite sometime...I don't think I'll take a liking to Matt Smith, reminds me of Gordon Ramsay, that chap.

My point though, is that ultimately, it was his (Mr. Tennant's) decision to make, and we, as the fans, must live with it. Of course, we can always go back and watch the episodes that feature him as the Doctor, if we want to remember him and see his portrayal again.

It's kind of like a break up, in a way. Things happen, things change, and ultimately we move on. We'll always have the memories of the past, but we ultimately will have to move on, less we become stagnant. You still miss the other person though...quite badly sometimes.

But life moves on, right?

To 2010!

Character Theme at the moment

2009-12-24T14:27:00.003-05:00

Music video here

Wow, am I feeling emo.

Happy holidays everyone.

Edit: and now it seems I'm getting mild panic attacks.

Great.

Oh, and for anyone curious, I didn't finish nano, but I'm still continuing to write the story. I'll put it up somewhere when it's done.

Fun games I found

2009-10-15T14:33:00.002-04:00

1. Quintessence - The Blighted Venom

There's more cutscenes than there is gameplay, and the combat itself is a bit...unpolished, but you get used to it. I gave it a bit of time, and the story totally enraptured me. Despite a few grammatical issues, it is an absolute blast to play.

2. True Remembrance

Just started it right now, so I can't say anything. Will give it time though. I'll update comments later.

Oh, and my nano idea? Went through a "oh gawd I hate it, gotta scrap the whole thing!" to a "I've accepted it, and I'll make a change that I'm pleased with."

I should write ideas down

2009-10-04T13:42:00.001-04:00

Seriously, I keep having random ideas for Nano and yet I worry that I'm going to forget it all in November. I really have to write them down. If only there were less distractions! If only there were less of those damn butter-

Oh hey! A butterfly!

Watched Evangelion 1.0 and Nano's ending

2009-10-01T13:53:00.004-04:00

So I watched Evangelion 1.0 yesterday with a couple of friends and I got to say: it was good. Not flabbergasting excellent, not jaw dropping great, but a very solid "good." It was similar to the original series, though there were quite a few changes (many superficial), a lot of cuts to the character development, and a much more streamlined plot exposition.

Though Shinji still whines.

A lot.

While I felt a bit annoyed at how the introduction (first 30 minutes or so?) was practically the first episode, and how slow the middle was, I have to say that the last battle in the movie was so worth all the trouble. Sure, the change was a superficial (transformations are quite superficial, and Misato's speech was done later in the series I think), but the animation was awesome and it all worked so nicely together.

And now we wait for 2.0 to be licensed....

Son of a nutcracker.

In other, unrelated news, I have an ending for my nano novel, and I think an epilogue too. Hooray. Still not sure about the sex of the protagonist though.

NaNoWriMo Outlines

2009-09-26T01:03:00.001-04:00

I should really start trying to outline my novel, if I can even call it that.

Yeah....REALLY start.

Do these posts seem more like tweets than anything? Probably because they're so short.

Hm, so, here's a question: protagonist - guy or girl? I'm more inclined toward the female sex, but I don't think it will really influence the story.

Wait, if it doesn't influence the story....OH NOES, THE NOVEL IS CRAP BEFORE I EVEN STARTED!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

2009-09-18T00:17:00.000-04:00

Love is War

7 voices, 1 awesome scream.

ADV Films is no more, restructures into smaller companies.

2009-09-01T22:25:00.003-04:00

Kind of shocking, to be honest, but after reading this informative article

HERE

It turns out the company is restructuring into smaller companies, and most people were rehired.

For the record? ADV Films has been around for a LONG time, since 1992, when anime was first gaining ground (hooray for DBZ and Sailormoon!).

At least it's not COMPLETELY dead.

Oh, and movie reviews below.

Movie reviews!

2009-08-25T23:53:00.001-04:00

Reviews are - okay, MINI-reviews are - fine, small paragraphs about my impression of the movie but not really critical enough to be a review (THERE!) are here! Read for your interest! Or not!

I'm going to assume you know SOMETHING about the movie, but there'll be a line to describe the movie without too much spoilers.

District 9
"Aliens have landed...more than 30 years ago."

- Above average

This is the big movie, the one that most people should be familiar with. I'm going to be outright: I disliked the camera. Far too shaky, and far too grainy (and this was generally for the whole movie, I believe). It works when you do something documentary style, which is how the movie STARTS, but then it has these sequences which, quite frankly, are NOT documentary style, and the grain/shakiness really disturbs my eyes.

I read a comment somewhere that really hit the nail on my dislike of the movie. It didn't really explore the plight of the aliens. I mean sure, they show where they live, what they eat, the things they have to go through, but that's never the center of attention, which brings me to my next point.

The focus is not on the aliens, nor is it their plight, the focus is on the main character (whose name I forget), and his own trials and tribulations. Everything else around him, they're the accessories, things that are there, but we aren't meant to focus on. And that's part of the problem, I did NOT like the main character.

He was an idiot, and an ass (on his part, from what I can recall he has a couple of idiot sequences, and a few ass moments). The guy was a spaz, and while there are plenty of movies that I like that have asses have their protagonist (Sky Crawlers comes immediately to mind), by the end of the movie I felt moved by the characters. In this case, I think I automatically thought, when he has his first idiot moment, okay, that's it, you're an idiot, you're on your own on this.

But for all that criticism? I still thought the movie was above average, great character designs, great action, interesting premise (if not a bit tired, sans the aliens part).

One Week
"A man has cancer, and will travel Canada for the last hurrah."

- Barely Above Average

It has a narrator. I mean, it has a voice that is not the main character's, but will actually voice over some parts. At first it's kind of jarring, but you get used to it.

The main character is played by Joshua Jackson (Canadian!). He finds he has cancer, with little chance of survival. Depressed, he buys a motorcycle, and goes west (he starts in Toronto), visiting provinces, people, and the Canadian wilderness.

Wow, is all I can say after watching the movie. I definitely would not have made the same decisions as Ben Tyler (Jackson). It's slow, kind of boring sometimes, and does not have those great epiphanies that some movies have, but what it does have...

It does have Canadian things, these little tourist spots, fun little sights, things that make you appreciate Canada all the moreso. Which is why I made it barely above average, because really, it was an average film, but with Canadian stuff? Bonus points.

W.

"It's about George W. Bush, Junior."

- Above Average

It was good. Trust me. It was good. It actually made me feel sympathy for the guy (and NOT by playing melancholic music, for the record).

Aren't I a generous reviewer?

That, or I just pick awesome movies *totally not modest at all*

I read a book

2009-08-23T00:02:00.002-04:00

I know. Terrifying.

It was an old book, from 1995, written by an author that I was introduced to from high school. It was called "The Hundred Secret Senses" by Amy Tan. I read her previous work, "The Joy Luck Club," for English class. I later found "The Bonesetter's Daughter," and read that too.

I can't quite say why Amy Tan's work interests me, though I'm almost sure it has to do with her portrayal of eastern traditions and rules.

I also can't even begin to express how...strange it is to finish a novel in two days (though it was only ~350 pages, with relatively large print). It's quite nice to just throw in a CD into the disc player, turn up the stereo, and read, though problems arise when you realize you don't have a lot of CDs (need...music...).

I will likely be participating in National Novel Writing Month this year. I don't have a story, or characters, or anything. I do have a theme though. Now all I need is a beginning, middle, and end.

Cape No. 7

2009-08-18T22:04:00.003-04:00

I watched a Taiwanese movie called "Cape No. 7" today. It's tagline was:

"Everybody's heart habors an undelivered love letter"

For the record, I didn't pick it up ONLY because of the tagline. It also apparently won awards and the like. Amusingly, I couldn't read the synopsis on the back, but hey, with awards and a tagline like that, instant winner.

Right?

Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuure.

It all takes place in Taipei, which is a place in Taiwan (really?!). The main storyline in the movie is about an upcoming concert at a beach, but the singer is...Japanese.

This displeases the representative councilman.

So he convinces the host of the concert (who is NOT Taiwanese) that the opening band will be composed of locals.

And then there are a bunch of characters that, together, form the band.

Oh, and it also delves (barely) into the pasts and presents (I mean it, barely) of the members' love lives. It's definitely interesting. Amusingly there are 3 predominant languages being spoken in the movie.

Mandarin.

Taiwanese.

Japanese.

And of course I can't understand any of them, but that's what subtitles are for.

From a kind of rough start, the movie reaches a pretty good high point, and then just ends rather abruptedly, without a lot of epilogue (especially for a certain couple). Aside from this little...irk of mine, I can safely say that I liked the movie, but it definitely isn't for everyone.

I found that it was very...interesting in the fact that you never really find out EVERYTHING about any of the characters. There's a few motivations and such, but nothing substantial, and yet it still remains an enjoyable movie.

Oh, and the characters aren't very likable. Still solid movie though, despite that (didn't exactly like the main character from The Skycrawlers but that was an AWESOME movie).

House season 4 (?) finale

2009-08-17T23:57:00.004-04:00

I watched the season 4 (I think it's 4) finale of House again. It was the one where the case was....

SPOILERS

When Amber was dying due to the bus crash. Unfortunately she died at the end.

For all the drama, I love that episode, in the most bittersweet way possible. Acting was solid, and you feel just the right empathy for the characters involved (except House's team...I still haven't warmed up to the new team).

It was a very good episode. Definitely not the best television there is, but better than average I think.

Horrible Nightmare B4 Xmas game, and about this blog

2009-08-15T00:42:00.002-04:00

Heard of the game "The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge"? Released a few years back for the (then) generation of consoles (Xbox, GC, PS2). I got the PS2 version a few years ago.

A few of the voice actors return (Chris Sanders, original Jack, is back!) but a few are changed, for the worse. Like, rip out your ear-drums worse.

Gameplay is total crap, fixed camera is really poor, combat is poor, and Jack yells "Soul Robber!" too many times. Oh, did I mention that? Jack has a gooey thing on his right hand that can extend like a whip.

Yeah..................

Positive is that you can "transform" into Pumpkin King Jack and Santa Jack and wield fire-powers (fire-breathing!) and unleash horrifying presents. [Pumpkin King was at the beginning of the film, before Jack jumps into the fountain. Yes he looks cool]

I popped it in today for some fun, not realizing that...

1) I restarted the game so I didn't have level select.

2) The gameplay sucked, a lot.

The ONLY redeeming feature (aside from the licensed characters) is the fact that boss battles, while retaining the crap gameplay, also have dance sequences.

Yes, dance sequences. As you hit the boss repeatedly, musical notes pop out. Collect enough of them and then you have to press button prompts in accordance to a song (new lyrics attached to old music) and then dish out big damage, not enough to KILL the boss usually, but a lot more than that dumb whip.

So yes, those are cool. Not cool enough to GO THROUGH THE HORRIBLE GAME, but cool.

Also: about this blog. I know its updates are erratic. You know the updates are erratic. Is there a lot of point to it? No (but was there ever?). So I'm taking down the comments thing, kind of getting sick of seeing "0 comments" all the time.

Bye now.

The more I watch

2009-07-29T19:40:00.002-04:00

Coraline and The Girl who Leapt through Time, the more I like those two films. It's not just the fantastic voice acting, beautiful visuals, or great stories, but the medium as well.

Stop-motion animation and the animation in GLTT both have these distinct charms to it. Coraline, with its fluidity, its precise movements and lip-syncing. The Girl who Leapt Through Time with it's fantastic character designs, soft, entrancing colours and backgrounds.

Two great films, just fantastic films.

And apparently the Director, Writer and Character designer from The Girl Who Leapt Through Time are collaborating again for "Summer Wars," which opens in Japanese theaters on August 1st! Definitely looking forward to the reviews about it.

Girl Who Leapt Through Time

2009-07-27T15:09:00.002-04:00

Not going to be overly long about this: good film, I like it. Ending (or the last third) seems...weird, but I liked it still.

Watch it, it's great!

Finally finished Princess Tutu

2009-07-23T00:57:00.001-04:00

Just marathoned the last 6 episodes today.

It was an awesome show. Highly recommended to anyone.

Finally saw Coraline

2009-07-22T00:11:00.003-04:00

So I finally managed to see Coraline today. Picked up the DVD and spent a good...3 hours and 22 minutes with it.

I watched it twice (it's 1 hour 41 minutes). Once by myself and the other time with my mom.

Well, considering I popped it in expecting Nightmare Before Christmas quality storytelling and characters...

I was horrifyingly disappointed. The movie feels a bit rushed to me, the characters are...interesting but I just couldn't feel a proper connection. Animation wise the entire thing is superb, camera work and cutting is great, but, again, it felt rushed.

Shame too. Oh, I tried watching it in 3D, I couldn't get it to work but my mom did. Oh well.

I definitely can recommend the movie though, it's a great movie.

And I also saw Valkyrie today, the Tom Cruise film about the attempted assassination of Hitler. That was pretty good actually.

Cough got worse

2009-07-17T17:20:00.001-04:00

The cough got worse.

It's a bit past hacking and more towards "why am I starting to taste blood?!"

Cough syrups not working.

I think this counts as debilitating.

Atlus has the best PRs ever.

2009-07-15T22:48:00.001-04:00

"The title 'Kenka Bancho: Badass Rumble' perfectly suits the gameplay style, attitude, and humor that PSP owners can look forward to when the over-the-top brawler arrives early next year," said Aram Jabbari, Manager of PR and Sales for Atlus. "The game is about demonstrating to your rivals that you are the ultimate badass. This is accomplished, unsurprisingly, by burying your fists and feet into the faces and/or guts of your foes. The title was voted in by a 3-to-1 margin, which means that fans strongly felt it was the best fit for the game, or, that they all giggled uncontrollably at the sight of the word 'badass'. Either way, everybody wins, except of course for the titles not chosen."

Best PRs ever.

Need...remedy!

2009-07-15T18:13:00.002-04:00

Anyone out there in internet land have a remedy for annoying dry coughs?

Seriously, I'm afraid this thing (cough) is going to stick around for a long time, so now's the time to get rid of it.

Princess Tutu is really freaking good!

2009-07-08T20:25:00.000-04:00

Yep...really freaking good.

Damn that's a great show.

First impressions of Princess Tutu

2009-07-08T13:37:00.002-04:00

At first the series kind of, horribly typical.

Good hearted, yet clumsy female protagonist? Check.

Friends that tease the protagonist often, but with good intentions? Check.

Quiet pretty boy, that appears to have a substantial role? Check.

Louder, obnoxious pretty boy? Check.

Other female that is better than the protagonist in many ways? Check.

What appears to be shoddy animation? Check.

Nothing distinguishable? Che----wait.

What's this about ballet?

Starting episode 3, I perked up and found the series to be good. Not amazingly excellent, but good and strong enough to be distinguishable.

Though so far (after 4 episodes), it really seems to be monster-of-the-week formula. And we all know how THOSE series turn out (hint: either really freaking good, mediocre, or horrible).

I'm putting money on really freaking good.

Going to open...

2009-07-07T18:24:00.003-04:00

Princess Tutu and watch a couple of episodes tonight.

I bought it around December? Haven't opened it since I was saving it for a special occasion.

I'll see if it really is one of the best magical girl anime, ever.

I want to...

2009-07-03T19:27:00.001-04:00

Spend $156.96.

Plus tax.

...

What the hell?

Awesome! Eva movie release dates!

2009-07-03T16:33:00.001-04:00

1.0 is coming out in theaters this September (TO TORONTO!)

DVD: 1.01 is coming out around the same time.

Blu-Ray and DVD: 1.11 will be coming out next spring (3 additional minutes and better image quality).

[I'll either get a Blu-Ray, or more likely just wait for the DVD 1.11).

Also: Eureka 7 movie is licensed! I think! By Bandai!

HOORAY!

LE or Reg. Edition?

2009-07-02T09:04:00.004-04:00

I am super seriously eye-ing the movie "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time" on DVD, but I don't know if I want the regular or limited edition!

Feature disc
Japanese 5.1 Language
English 5.1 Language
English Subtitles
Audio Commentary
Premiere Event in Tokyo
Hanako Oku "Garnet" Music Video
Theatrical Trailer
Promo Clip

Limited Edition Extras:
High quality artbox
Original Soundtrack
A second DVD which contains:
Main Feature with Storyboards
Audio Commentary
Direction File (A Talk with the Director Mamoru Hosoda)
Behind the Scenes at Premiere Event

I really don't care too much for the artbox (don't have any shelves to show-off my artboxes...), and I don't care much for the second DVD.

But the soundtrack! Oh how I love soundtracks! Even now I still listen to the Persona 4 soundtrack once in a while.

YOUTUBE. HELP ME DECIDE!

Also: to those on Amazon (who I know aren't going to read this, but I want to vent) selling "5 cm per second" (DVD) for at least $190+, just because ADV discontinued it...

"Fuck off." Right there. Just right there.

GAH! EVEN EBAY IS SELLING THEM FOR FREAKISH PRICES!

DAMNIT ADV! DON'T YOU STILL HAVE THE LICENSE?!??!?!?!?!?!??!?!

I saw Transformers 2

2009-06-29T21:00:00.003-04:00

Worse than Transformers 1.

And it has nothing to do with the empty plot, characters, crap ass character designs, or robot testicles.

You heard me. Robot. Testicles. Yes they're there. You can NOT miss them. They are also COMPLETELY and UTTERLY out of place. If you're a person that would (or will, or have) laughed at the idea that DEVASTATOR, had balls, then you will like the movie.

I on the other hand, watched The Sky Crawlers after the crappy empty Transformers movie, and liked that one.

I liked that one a lot.

Oh damn Hughes! (And Evangelion movie spoilers)

2009-06-28T12:52:00.002-04:00

So FMA Brotherhood ep. 10 is on Youtube (which works better than Funi's site...)

Hughes died.

Again.

I am saddened.

Oh, and apparently there's been a huge change in the new Evangelion movie, in terms of changes to the original television plotline.

Remember Unit 4, the black Eva, that got infected with an angel?

Yeah...Toji isn't the pilot. It's....

It's......

Asuka.

On MJ, Farrah Fawcett, and Transformers 2.

2009-06-26T11:54:00.005-04:00

I'm sure most (if not the entire world) has heard that Michael Jackson has died at the age of 50.

And while I would love to get into his role as the King of Pop, his music, his high's and low's (and what low's they were!), I think we all have an opinion of him, and nothing that can be said will change said opinion.

Before yesterday, I didn't really know Farrah Fawcett, which is a shame because she was huge back in the heyday.

I hope they are both in a better place.

On the subject of Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen, I knew I would have problems with it when I saw the redesign of the Fallen. Don't scroll if you don't want to see it!

This is the original (according to the Transformers comics) design of the Fallen.

Notice the classic "box" look of the Fallen. Notice how he is on fire. Note that, as the Fallen, he is perpetually on fire.

Now, if you were to ask "Vyl, what's your opinion on this character's design," I would say "fucking cool. It may not be the most awe-inspiring design ever, but it's fucking cool."

THIS is the Fallen as seen in Michael Bay's film.

Notice how the Fallen looks nothing like it does in the comics, and how it's so...so...alien. Granted, the Transformers ARE alien, but at least they kept the "giant hunks of metal" look (which lead to it being EXTREMELY hard to differentiate between Decepticons).

This is just...no.

Oh, and then Devastator appeared, and he also looked ridiculously different. In fact, he was no longer "Devastator," but rather, the Hunchback of Cybertron.

Did I mention that Soundwave is a jet?

A jet?

Now, issues with the designs aside, I can't say much more, other than what was already said on Rotten Tomatoes (which has a 22% rating so far, for the record). I anticipate that this movie will be better than Terminator Salvation, if only because there's more action, but in terms of plot and characters?

If the first movie was any indication...yeah, what plot and characters?

Feeling ill

2009-06-25T14:40:00.002-04:00

Feeling sick at the moment. Muscle weakness and generally bitter attitude.

Fucking awesome.

Hopefully this summer cold will be over by next week.

Exhausted

2009-06-14T15:14:00.001-04:00

I just did one of the most exhausting things in my life, so far.

There's a 95% chance that it isn't what you're thinking.

Pervert.

Why hello there...

2009-06-14T11:29:00.001-04:00

http://www.funimation.com/Evangelion/

Coming to Canadian (CANADIAN) theaters (INCLUDING TORONTO) on September 30.

HELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLO Evangelion 1.0!

So Saturday was pretty interesti-

2009-05-19T10:41:00.003-04:00

OH MY GAWD WHAT'S BEHIND ME?! PARANOID TURN ABOUT

See the readership on this blog does not include Saturday party's attendees (and to that one reader: dude, your illness would've been SCARED away after Saturday) which allows me to say this:

Fuck, Saturday has made me super paranoid.

See, we watched some Dr. Who episodes, which were pretty good. I find it between Stargate SG-1 and Battlestar Galactica, in terms of "campiness" and "serious business" respectively.

Though the amount of disbelief needed to be suspended by Dr. Who is sometimes a bit too much.

But more to the point: there was one episode called "Blink," which was purported to be creepy as hell.

Naturally, at 10 (or something) at night, the only thing to do is watch scary/creepy stuff.

Now I state this: the writer for that episode is awesome. The director is also awesome (according to Wiki, the director for Blink only directed that episode: it shows).

Heavy on the suspense, and the "pop-up" scares. Great atmosphere, and the extreme "lack" of the Doctor makes it all the scarier. Because for some reason, when the Doctor's around, I felt safe.

"Blink" was about these quantum beings that could move super fast, when they're not being seen. When they are seen, they take the form of angel statues, usually in some pose (usually looking like they're weeping, hence they're the "Weeping Angels.")

A lot of the scare comes from the whole "if you blink, they'll pop up and goodbye!" Naturally, the heroine of the episode decides to sometimes look away and turn back, which results in-

AH! SCARY!

And now, whenever I think of the Weeping Angels, I feel scared and look back like a paranoid maniac.

...

OH GAWD!

The stupidity over the flu

2009-05-04T13:40:00.002-04:00

Small rant about the H1N1 (or "Swine") flu.

1. Apparently some Canadian students that went to China to learn Chinese were detained over fears of having the flu. Yep, apparently when they got off the plane in Changchun, they were met by health officials who proceeded to isolate them and take their temperature. They subsequently were quarantined for 7 days.

Okay, I find that a bit of an overreaction, but sure, that makes sense. We have people that have contracted the flu, so be wary of all Canadians coming in.

Yeah, no problem with that AT ALL (can you tell I'm being sarcastic?). Seriously though, it is logical to monitor them, in case they really DO have the flu. My bigger problem with this is...

What about the rest of the passengers? Did the Canadians have a separate cabin? Were they on their private jet? Really? Isolate ONLY THE CANADIANS AND NOT THE PEOPLE THEY FLEW WITH?!

Apparently this is not a policy instituted by China, but it seems to be a provincial thing (I guess?). So...yeah. Stupid. On so many levels.

2. Did you hear about Egypt? And how they're killing pigs? And they haven't had any cases of Swine flu yet (I think)? And it's just a precautionary measure?

Did you hear about how some people are refusing to eat pork?

Did you know that people eat pork, raw, regularly?

Wait, they don't? So then why don't they buy pork? Because of the H1N1 flu?

...

Did you know that people are really, really stupid? REALLY, REALLY, FUCKING STUPID?

For the record, there are worse things. Like legalized rape in marriage. Note it's an old article. Also note, it is very real. Note that (as I read from the Metro a few weeks ago), female protestors against the law were stoned by supporters of the law. The supporters also shouted "death to the Christian supporters!" (or something like that, there was definitely death, and Christian, and supporting Christianity).

Yep...I love how all of humanity has learned what "equal human rights" is all about.

Screw you (insert video game title)

2009-05-04T00:54:00.002-04:00

I think every gamer has games that just make them want to say "Fuck!" in frustration.

This one's for my collection of video games.

Screw you Steambot Chronicles, for the frequent load screens, horrible glitches that prevent completionists from getting 100%, and for being so damn charming to play!

Screw you Sky Gunner, for being so awesome and yet having NO CHANCE OF A SEQUEL.

Screw you Megaman, and all your incarnations too! For not having proper sequels that tie up the plot!

Screw you Pokemon, for recycling the same crap over the years and STILL being wildly popular (I stopped at Gold, for the record).

There's a few more games I can dismiss with valid comments, but alas, their awesomeness level far exceeds their faults.

Also: I saw Bioshock for the PC today. It was 10 dollars.

10.

Dollars.

I didn't buy it. Should I?

Let's all stare now / I got...

2009-04-22T19:23:00.005-04:00

First, what all freaking launch copies of Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abbadon (yes, long name, jokes have been made already) will look like.

*stare*

Did I mention this is what all launch copies look like? Yes, launch, LAUNCH copies. Did I mention it also costs only 40 bucks? Almost budget price?

...hey, people still have PS2s! PS2 is still relevant! Relevant-ish!

ATLUS IS COOL!

In other news (hence the slash in the title), I went SHOPPING today at a game store on campus to find some old PS2 games (STILL RELEVANT!). Guess what I find? Not what I was initially looking for, no...I got.

SKY GUNNER!

That old game? Was looking for it for 4 years? Rare?

It was worth it. Tested it today, works beautifully. Graphics are pretty...2002, the gameplay gets laggy as hell sometimes, but oh damn if it isn't fun.

So, freaking, fun.

Now if you'll excuse me.

It's so beautiful...

When pranks go too far

2009-04-21T14:41:00.002-04:00

You know how some people propose during a ball game?

You know how one prankster sets up a marriage proposal at a ball game, except the groom-to-be doesn't know he's proposing?

You do now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMHidjDB_Uk&feature=related

And the rebuttal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bI7AUgp5fPI&feature=related

My thoughts on "Braid"

2009-04-14T18:09:00.002-04:00

You know Braid? The game? First came out on Xbox Live Arcade and now is on PC?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braid_(video_game)

My thoughts on the game are as follows. Note this is after playing the demo.

It is good, nay, it is great. It is a well-made game. It is also extremely...over-hyped (git off that pedestal!). Great game, not "run out to play it NOW!!!" but good, solid game.

Puzzles are thoughtful and clever. Frustrating sometimes, and despite what is said by others, there was no sense of accomplishment when I did a few of them.

Gorgeous art, music is good, but forgettable (to me, but y'know my tastes, they're all over the place!).

Writing is...well I can't say it sucks after reading a small argument about it. It is very...it's pretentious. It's unclear, but in a "bad" way. There is no sense of intrigue, slightly convoluted, and you can get across the same meaning(s) without sounding pretentious. I say meaning(s) because some of the text is open to interpretation, or at least that's what people say.

Maybe I've been reading too many scientific articles (which use a different style of writing) but in my opinion, if you read something once, it should be practically crystal clear, but there's a small little cloudiness. That "cloudiness" is the intrigue, it's what makes you do a double take, to re-read the text and interpret it different. Braid's writing is just...a lot of steam surrounding a lot of decent message.

This is where I plug in two free, downloadable games (one of which is Mac friendly, the other is not).

Cave Story: solid platformer, great music (more memorable to me), fun story, and lovable characters. Completely made by one person over a span of...5 years? It's been translated into English, and I highly recommend trying it. http://www.miraigamer.net/cavestory/

Iji: action side-scroller, good music, much less "cute" than Cave Story, but very fun. Made in RPGMaker by Daniel Remar. Great game, highly recommended. http://www.remar.se/daniel/iji.php

Are these games better than Braid? That's up to you, but for me, the answer is "yes."

[Side note: part of the reason is that to me, the Braid demo suffered from being extremely disconnected. It's a traditional platforming puzzle game, no doubt, but that's also a flaw to me. Each world feels so separate from another, there's no unifying story to it all. Sure, a lot of the story is told in the books, and they serve as back story/background info, but tell me: why? Why should I care about this guy who is trying to rescue the princess? Where does his time manipulation come from? While it is true that years before, games like Mario or Zelda had minimal story like Braid, but we've come far, far from those times.

Take a game like Ico or Shadow of the Colossus (same creator by the way, but meaning is the same). Minimal story, a lot of it is kind of like grasping at straws, but they both make you BELIEVE, they both IMMERSE the player into their world, they tell a COHERENT story, something that Braid (at least the demo) does not do. And yes, I completed World 2, part of World 3 (up until the demo lets me) and part of World 4 (demo...it's weird).]

I'll pick up Braid, eventually. I really don't like the whole digital distribution thing, I like having a physical copy with me.

****ing Xbox 360s

2009-04-14T09:40:00.002-04:00

Red Ring of Death is one form of hardware failure that was "fixed" with the new Jasper models of the 360.

Now it's a "E74" error that signals hardware failure.

Fucking 360s. Say what you want about the Wii or PS3 and their many, MANY faults. Hardware failure is NOT one of them.

Or at least it isn't as "common" as the RROD.

"True her..."

2009-04-13T17:38:00.003-04:00

"True her--per-rotism is a very rare event."

What was that? *Rewind*

"True her-per-rotism"

*Rewind*

"True herperrotism"

*Rewind*

"True herperrotism"

OH WHAT THE FUCK IS HERPERROTISM?!

(It turns out it was "True hermaphroditism is a very rare event." That's right, hermaphroditism.)

A note about joining OCTs

2009-04-13T10:32:00.003-04:00

OCT: Original Character Tournament

Quick rundown: people are paired off into battles, each person must depict their character defeating the other character SOMEHOW. Can be in comic, flash animation, LIVE ACTION (seen that once, and it was AMAZING).

The note: the character you're entering should not be all-powerful. In fact, this is a VERY BORING character.

Super strong? Check.

Super fast? Check.

Kind of snarky? Check.

Can break the JUDGE NPCs without a sweat? Check.

Any weaknesses? Nope.

No, wait, I saw one character that had a weakness. Apparently the dude has an eye covered by his hair that can he move aside to use...ILLUSION JUTSU - no wait, just some sort of hypnosis. Which is kind of familiar...oh if you take out the eye or something the character dies.

Yes, a weak spot that's a tiny little part of the body.

No. Thousand times no. A character should have flaws, no, MUST have flaws. It makes them interesting. Even Superman has a flaw, what with his weakness to kryptonite and Lois Lane.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised to see these characters coming from the minds of 13 and 15 year olds.

Note: technically this applies to any sort of story writing.

I watched FMA: Brotherhood

2009-04-11T16:07:00.003-04:00

Eh...

You know that scene in the first episode of FMA, where Ed is taking on the chimera (that WAS the first episode right?) and the chimera starts chewing on Ed's arm?

Before being pulverized?

That was a good scene. It was a good episode.

FMA: Brotherhood's first episode was not a good episode. It was a mediocre episode. If I hadn't known about FMA before and was just watching it for kicks, no, I wouldn't be interested in keeping up with the series.

But since I DO know about FMA, I guess I'll keep watching it, eventually. Probably streaming off Funi's site.

[On a side note: oh Funi, I wuv joo!]

FMA: Brotherhood

2009-04-09T09:25:00.002-04:00

It's the second season of FMA, basically a remake but it will remain closer to the manga. A few people have said the first episode is mediocre, but I like the theme so far. I think I'm going to try and watch it tomorrow.

Legally.

Apparently at 12 today Funimation is streaming the first episode with subs (http://www.fullmetalalchemist.com/) so hopefully it'll still be up tomorrow.

Urgh-bluah-ah-gah-er-gah!!!

2009-04-04T11:57:00.001-04:00

That's my expression to this neat little product.

Now if you excuse me, I have to "Urgh-bluah-ah-gah-er-gah" my breakfast into the toilet.

The Playstation 3

2009-03-25T16:59:00.002-04:00

Very expensive? Yes.

Not a lot of great games (for me)? Yes.

Not a lot of great games coming out (for me)? Yes......no?

So far in the PS3 library, there's been Little Big Planet, Killzone 2, Metal Gear Solid 4, and that's kind of it (well, off the top of GameFAQs lists).

Those are all exclusives by the by, and I'm not really interested in any of them. What game would really force me to buy a PS3? No, not Final Fantasy XIII (which is coming out on the 360 anyway), nor God of War III, or Kingdom Hearts whatever-other-crap-Nomura-brings-out (yes, I'm really not fond of KH anymore, too many flaws and very cliche).

What game would REALLY push me to buy a PS3? The next game from Fumito Ueda, the creator of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus (which I am proud to say I both own). Awesome games, such awesome games. I may not have replayed either of them for a long time (SotC got kind of boring after 4 times, and Ico just scares the living **** out of me at times), but I can say that the experience of both games has not left me.

They provided something extremely different and highly satisfying, something that was just...beautiful. It was kind of like Battlestar Galactica, an awesome show just overflowing with greatness, but I will probably never rewatch it again.

I'll probably buy the DVDs though, but never watch it again.

Read it! It's urgent!

2009-03-21T11:30:00.002-04:00

Don’t dismiss this outright as the work of some raving lunatic. There’s some sense to this story, if you’ll just hear me out…

Look, we all wonder if time travel is possible, right? Well, let me tell you something… it is. I’m from the future, actually. I know you probably don’t believe that, but seriously, I’m from the future. It’s a really great thing; getting to see the past, watching events unfold… stuff like that. We know more now than we ever would.

Behind all the fun, though, there’s a more serious aspect. We aren’t supposed to go in our own lifetime, and we are NEVER allowed to contact our past selves. Let me tell you, I’m breaking that rule right now. Yes, kid, you’re talking to yourself. Your future self. I’m going to be executed for this, but you know what? I accept that. I’m preventing something by talking to you that is WORSE than death. I can’t tell you outright what to do, because the filters would catch it. This is the closest I can get, trust me. I can, however, send a little message.

You should probably read the first word of every paragraph, now.

Note: I got it off someone from DeviantArt who got it off someone else off LJ.

BSG Series Finale: Reaction

2009-03-21T00:22:00.002-04:00

First things first. So many spoilers here, be wary if you haven't seen it and plan to!

I'll admit, there were a lot of "FAN-GASM" moments.

1. Seeing rebel Centurions? Awesome.

2. Great battles, point-blank range indeed!

3. Awesome character portrayals, as always.

Kinda scattered thoughts here. Okay, I'll admit that I ALMOST cried when I saw Lee first jump down into the colony and there's this great shot of him with Centurions running alongside him. I mean, that was just...no words. No words.

I really hated Boomer before this finale. I mean just...everything she's done? Really hated her guts, don't care if she felt some remorse when she handed Hera over to Cavil at the end of the last episode, still hated her.

Then I saw her rescue Hera and give her back. Saw that she really wanted to repent (I guess?) but I still hated her. Kudos to Athena.

Entire scene in the CIC? Awesome, kind of a..."what the frak" moment when Cavil just handed Hera over (was it out-of-character? I think it was, a bit). Lovely scene of death and destruction after (eat karma!).

Second half of the finale? Lot of people I hear disliked it. I liked it, liked it a lot. Real 180 degrees given the show's nature, but I liked it. Real wtf moment with Kara Thrace. Honestly? I'm not 100% fond of the deity thing, but I can accept it.

I'll say it though, I cried once during the finale. It was when Adama and Roslin were in the shuttle, and "that" happened. I cried. I knew it was going to happen, sure, but the way it was shown just...it made me cry. It made me cry.

And for those that dislike the second hour? I think it split the fandom in two. Why did *I* like it? Three words.

Neon. Genesis. Evangelion.

To me, the second hour reminded me of the original ending to the TV series. Before the alternate endings made by the movies. Total change in style, but used the same characters, and had an uplifting message. And I liked the original NGE ending.

Oh, and I thought the show ended with that BEAUTIFUL shot of Adama looking over the land. That was just gorgeous.

And is almost making me cry right now.

Good show. Good show. Very satisfying for me.

Terminator: Salvation

2009-03-20T11:30:00.004-04:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcg5t0mT8V4&feature=related

Y'know after watching the trailer like...5 times? I can actually say I'm genuinely excited to watch T4 (especially after the disappointment that was T3). I mean sure, trailers are edited to make things look GOOD, but I have to point out 2 things that make it "fresher."

1. It's set in the future of the Terminator Universe.

2. There's no "They sent another Terminator to kill a young John Connor. Yes, another one."

Also? SCARY MARY POPPINS!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2T5_0AGdFic&feature=related

Frak!!!

2009-03-18T22:24:00.002-04:00

It's Frakking Friday!

Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

In other news: Hideo Kojima (creator of Metal Gear Solid, and Zone of the Enders) just got a big fat promotion in Konami.

You know what he should do? Make Zone of the Enders 3. I would buy a PS3 for that hands-down.

Sure changed the box art

2009-03-09T11:35:00.006-04:00

So "Welcome to the NHK" was first licensed by ADV Films, who managed to release 5 of the 6 individual discs.

And then Funimation bought the license.

And announced they were releasing half-season box sets of the show.

Which really pissed people off since to get the last disc, you had to pseudo-double dip into buying the second box set, which had a chunk of the same episodes.

Well Funi just released the last individual disc. Which is good. And they kept the same style of art for the cover. Which is also good.

Sorta.

If you please, exhibit A: the cover to the second half-season box set.

Now exhibit B: the cover to the sixth individual disc.

As you can see, there's quite a difference in...style. Which led to many consumers to be hesitant to the individual discs at their Best Buy.

In fact, the disc is so...

Uh...

Bunnies?

Bunnies.

Bunn-ies.

It's uh, disc, cover, bunnies, uh, ecchi, ecchi-rific...

Ecchi-rific....

Headaches

2009-03-01T16:51:00.003-05:00

For some reason I'm having these chronic headaches. They show up pretty much every week since January.

it's starting to bug me now.

Edit: Here's something that made me smirk.

And now I'm wondering if there'll be some sort of stupid Autobot-Decepticon team up vs. the Fallen.

No. No team up. Please no team up.

DVDs I should really pick up

2009-02-24T23:32:00.003-05:00

Before they go bye-bye:

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time - comes in limited edition and standard edition. Published by Bandai, not too much worry.

Escaflowne: Complete Collection (Anime Legends) - currently at 42% off. Wait what?

42% off?! MUST. ORDER.

Cowboy Bebop Remix: Complete Collection (Anime Legends) - never seen it but I should get it. Just...because.

Gundam Wing Complete collection sets 1 and 2 - when I have a job. I mean it's REALLY expensive.

5 Centimeters Per Second - *discontinued* Hey, ADV? I know business is REALLY bad (how the FUCK did you lose the license to Gurren Lagann last year?) but really? Discontinue this thing? Really? Breaks my heart.

My freaking heart.

Getting married via Little Big Planet

2009-02-14T20:09:00.004-05:00

Interesting news

Step 1: Make a Little Big Planet level.

Step 2: Make this level your proposal.

Step 3: Make ANOTHER level.

Step 4: Get married using the level.

Step 5: Don't feel freakishly embarrassed.

Yep...totally real, apparently.

Now *I'm* not going to say anything negative. Except that that's something I would never do.

But hey, who am I to judge right? If that's what the couple is comfortable with, then by all means. We, the rest of the people, shouldn't judge on what THEY want.

Now the HALO wedding....

So my computer has a virus.

2009-02-08T13:38:00.002-05:00

Or ten!

Seriously, 10. I was like: "what? Oh, just crap in the recycling bin and a game I downloaded."

Did I mention it was one of them indie freeware games? Awesome indie freeware games. Gotta play more!!!

In other news: Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War II looks awesome. It's like Dawn of War I, but it isn't!

I never played DoW I, just going by what I hear. Apparently Relic (developer) got rid of base building (angering many) and focused more on squads and tactics (making some people happy). The best comparison I have heard is that it's like:

Myth. That computer game. Err...trilogy of games. Where you get a squad, and you have to kill...things. Replace things with "other squads" in multiplayer. There are reinforcements, by the by.

If you REALLY want a comparison, it's like "Company of Heroes," another game I never played.

About Warhammer 40K, I never got into it. Sure, I spent 363 dollars on the Tyranid Army Deal a few years ago, and I never really expanded it, and the only time I ever played I got brutally murdered because of gawd damn weapons THAT IGNORE GAWD DAMN ARMOR SAVES THEREBY TOTALLY BREAKING MY ARMY INTO NOTHING.

AND LET'S NOT FORGET THAT THE TYRANID INFANTY HAVE A SHIT ARMOR SAVE, +5, YOU NEED TO ROLL A 5+ TO NOT GET KILLED. OH WHAT THE FUCK?!

Of course, this is in a sense counter-balanced due to the "without numbers rule", where you can pretty much load the table with Tyranid infantry without penalty. Of course, I never had that much infantry...

Oh, and the price point. 50 dollars for a miniature. Seriously. If I had the money.

And the dedication.

It would've been awesome.

THE POINT I'M TRYING TO MAKE IS: Dawn of War II has Tyranids, and it is more "action" oriented (it is real-time).

And they can jump.

Far.

Into Space Marines.

It's fun.

From lecture

2009-02-07T23:26:00.002-05:00

Professor: "Because rats have two uterine horns"

Me: "We can do CRAAAAAAZY shit with them!"

And that's when I collapsed

2009-01-27T18:13:00.001-05:00

""Each and every copy of the game's limited quantity launch will ship with a rare Raiho collectible plushie," according to official word. That's a swell bonus, one that looks to be included in the $39.99 USD purchase price."

http://kotaku.com/5140383/atlus-makes-devil-summoner-2-official-exceedingly-precious

And that's when I collapsed.

Rant: lecture slides

2009-01-26T23:03:00.000-05:00

What the FUCK is with lecturers and their OBSESSION with using BLUE as a background colour?

Do you NEED a background colour? It's called WHITE SPACE, LEARN IT AND LOVE IT.

Seriously! I have to print off these slides and the printer is just BLEEDING the ink!

OH LOOK! I LOST ANOTHER CARTRIDGE. THOSE DON'T COST MONEY!

What do they think I'm made of? MONEY? I mean if I were made of money I'd be shooting up!

Drugs!

Specifically erythopoeitin! Ups the production of red blood cells y'know?

Geeky joke? ALRIGHT!

Afro Samurai: Resurrection was...

2009-01-26T09:03:00.000-05:00

"Entertaining."

It's the sequel (?!) to a 2007 (?) show that involved a samurai.

That has an afro.

Who lives in a world with two specific rules regarding two headbands.

The one with the #1 headband is the best samurai in the world. There may be other properties, nothing magical though. However, he can ONLY be challenged (to the death) by the one with the #2 headband.

The one with the #2 headband is the only one that can challenge #1. So, everyone has to fight #2 to get the headband.

Afro is #2. He seeks #1 for revenge because #1 before was his father, but then #2 killed them, so now Afro must kill #1.

And that's pretty much the first season! Okay, so I never really WATCHED the first season...in its entirely.

But when the movie (Resurrection) is shown on television, gotta watch it. Also: Mark Hamill voiced an evil henchman!

I LOVE YOU MARK HAMILL! ONE OF THE BEST VOICE ACTORS IN THE INDUSTRY!

I can't believe I didn't notice this!

2009-01-21T12:10:00.002-05:00

http://i195.photobucket.com/albums/z158/drachenmeister/Twilight-1.gif

So in Persona 4 you have the option of reading a book in the night. It's just a small description of the book everytime you read it, and it boosts stats. Not very......yeah it's bs but it was nice of the developers to put it in as an option.

So, book about a teen girl, in new town, with vampires.

Yes, it's almost physically painful to read. To think this could be the new "Harry Potter".

Note: I haven't read Twilight, I will never read Twilight, I have no interest in Twilight. Shining emo-vampires (yes the word "emo" is used correctly I believe) I have no interest in.

How to not be a jerk when leaving a lecture

2009-01-19T17:26:00.003-05:00

1. When a lecture ends, it means it's over. It doesn't mean talk to your friends for the next 5 minutes.

2. Is it that hard to put your notes into a binder, place the binder into your backpack, and zip it up within a minute?

3. Cell phone use is prohibited in the lecture room, so TAKE IT THE FUCK OUTSIDE.

4. Gotta do your make-up? It's called a washroom.

5. Stand up, put on jacket. A maximum of 10 seconds.

6. If you have a laptop...you're excused. It does take a while to turn it off.

7. Get. Out.

When scripting goes wrong

2009-01-14T09:07:00.001-05:00

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=JoODv8LVib8

Hey, at least they don't moan more than they needed to.

I'm still laughing.

Woooooo! Funi picks up new Eva movie!

2008-12-31T22:28:00.002-05:00

Yay!!! Funimation has licensed the first new Evangelion movie! To be released in 2009!

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2008-12-31/funimation-picks-up-evangelion-1.0-anime-film-remake

Recent encounters with murder stories

2008-12-30T22:41:00.002-05:00

So with any murder story, there's always a motive, a reason why the killer, uh, kills.

Sometimes it's because of an affair.

Sometimes it's a mercy killing.

Sometimes it's just revenge.

Recently though, I can't help but find that a lot of murder stories have really bad motives, maybe even terrible motives.

What is a terrible motive?

Killing people because they're insane. That's it. There's no reason, it's just because they're insane. (which, really, is the motive behind many if not all serial killers). And I guess that, when a murderer murders multiple, seemingly unrelated people, then the motive will default to "insanity."

But when you get a line like this:

"...or a culprit that gets his kicks from killing people!"

Well...really? Really? That's it? It's for kicks? Kicks? B-o-r-i-n-g.

Truth!

2008-12-28T11:52:00.003-05:00

Truth: Persona 3 FES was hailed as one of the most kick ass RPGs on the PS2 by a number of industry sites (http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/937269.asp)

Truth: Persona 4 uses the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" ideal, to essentially take Persona 3 FES and fix all the complaints (amusingly, there were a few things I had issues with).

Truth: Persona 4 was hailed as one of the best RPGs on the PS2, or even in general (http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/945498.asp). I swear Game Informer is the outlier. Jerks.

Opinion: Persona 4 kicks ass.

It's...so....choreographed!

2008-12-16T14:28:00.000-05:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vvdh7ebcdg

NEWS: This is disgusting

2008-12-15T17:48:00.001-05:00

http://kotaku.com/5110323/teen-shot-parents-because-they-took-away-halo-3

Just...just...I really have no words. It's absolutely disgusting.

My childhood! Oh **** my childhood!

2008-12-10T09:02:00.000-05:00

What the **** happened to my CHILDHOOD?!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yo4t8PeqJ6E&eurl=http://kotaku.com/5106241/dragonball-movie-trailer-is-a-new-kind-of-stupid?autoplay=true

WHY?!

I was SO skeptical of it but I had SOME SORT OF HOPE.

NOW THAT HOPE HAS BEEN MUTILATED.

AS HAS MY CHILDHOOD!

(Maybe I should use that as my catchphrase).

Run with us!

2008-12-02T00:27:00.001-05:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usFFKNRB2z8

We got everything you need

Run with us

We are free

Run with us

I see passion in your eyes

Run with us

We are free

I approve!

2008-12-01T17:08:00.002-05:00

The fanboy in me is pleased.

The critical gamer in me is also pleased.

Hooray!

http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3171567&p=2&sec=REVIEWS

Persona 4 gets A+ from 1up!

(Note: commercial reviews are just like user reviews, so...they're still relatively crap, but hey, a score's a score!)

Is it really possible to criticize a Nature Genetics paper?

2008-11-24T11:23:00.003-05:00

I mean sure it isn't Nature, but it's still a subsidary of Nature.

Oh, and Nature is one of the most influential publications in the Life Sciences.

Seriously though, criticizing a Nature Genetics paper?

Whose premise is ****ing clinical?!

No...there are no mouse models of the disease, maybe because it's already been done!

All the techniques are stock too!

Seriously...

If you have a Nintendo DS

2008-11-19T12:44:00.000-05:00

You should,

No, OBLIGATED,

You are OBLIGATED to pick up Chrono Trigger DS.

Because it is just that damn good!

What makes Chrono Trigger such a classic?

2008-11-02T15:36:00.002-05:00

I'm listening to some CT music on Youtube, stuff from the OST, or the Play! symphony concert set, and since I'm such a nostalgia junkie, I remember how awesome a game Chrono Trigger is.

And then I remember: Yuy has (repeatedly) stated that she never got the whole "Chrono Trigger is AWESOMESAUCE" thing.

So then, what makes Chrono Trigger so great? What makes it better than other games from the SNES era? What makes it so that it stands so strong even now, so many years later? What makes it better than Final Fantasy 7? (Besides NOT having an overly sensitive villain...Jenova is NOT your mom Sephiroth!)

Here we goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! This is actually going to be very brief. Oh and there are spoilers, spoilers for a more-than-decade old game.

Story

As with any story, everything sort of starts off small. Go to the fair Crono's mom says. Help out Lucca, she's your friend.

And then bam, Crono runs into Marle, and he's tasked with hanging out with her around the fair. Eventually she gets wrapped up into a Time Warp and it's up to the silent protagonist to save her!

Things happen, characters are met, and eventually everything sort of hits the fan.

Sounds pretty typical, right? Gotta save the world and what not, so hop to it! Well in theory, you could actually go face the Final Boss at almost ANY point in the game! But if it's a first playthrough, you gotta go through the lengthly storyline first. There's comedy, tragedy, and everything inbetween, so it has the elements necessary for a good story.

And of course it's ENGAGING! The tragedy and death of the main character permeates all the characters, and it just plain sucks. Go visit Crono's mom after Crono dies, she acts like nothing's wrong, which just pulls at the heartstrings. Of course, if you choose to save him, then all's well and it's back to saving the world! There's nothing like saving the world with likable characters, and really, it's the characters that make the story so engaging.

Characters

Lovable, totally lovable. Designed by Akira Toriyama (and they're pretty good) every character brings something to the table. Marle is the good conscience of the group, Lucca's the smart one, Robo slowly learns what it means to be human, Frog brings his awesome sense of honor (and theme!), Ayla brings her gung-ho attitude, and Magus, well, Magus is just badass.

Music

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NITRZK8z0ek

Timeless, absolutely timeless. This is some of Mitsuda's best work, period.

Gameplay

Battle is relatively simple, but strangely fun when you start pulling off dual and triple techs! It's always great to see the cool animations. But there's a ton of stuff OUTSIDE battle that's also kickass! Decisions made during the game will affect a number of things. Eat a man's lunch and it'll bite you back in court! Refuse to give back Marle's pendant and it'll be used as character evidence! Of course, if you choose to be a nice guy, then this will rule in your favor.

And the sheer number of sidequests is just...amazing. The sidequests often serve to tie up a few loose ends in the story: resolving Frog's past, or rescuing the chancellor, they're all really fun to do!

Replayability

13, I think. 13 different endings. Some are pretty standard, some are awesome, and some are just downright hilarious! You will be playing the game for a WHILE.

An "enhanced" port for the DS is coming out soon in Japan, with a North American release to surely follow. If you've never played CT before, this is the best chance to do so legally and see why it can stand up against the test of time.

WOW!

2008-11-01T23:40:00.000-04:00

http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B001H14C8C

It's already available for pre-order on Amazon's American counterpart.

WOW! Seriously, that's a lot of stuff!

Awesomeness in a single video

2008-11-01T12:40:00.006-04:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kB1of0y2Ch0

So awesome.

New Kingdom Hearts games EDIT

2008-10-20T16:36:00.004-04:00

So there's two new titles, one for the PSP and DS each.

The PSP one is a prequel, the DS one is sort of a side-story, between KH1 and KH2 (and before Chain of Memories).

The prequel...looks like KH1 and KH2, which means decent (not spectacular) plot that should only really last for 6 hours, but stretched to 20 because of intervening side-stories involving Disney storylines.

And said Disney storylines become a horrible mash of its former self. Seriously, just play KH2's Lion King world, horrible.

The DS game on the other hand, details the exploits of the antagonists from KH2, Organization XIII (looks like XIV now with a new female member).

Yes, those antagonists, in the game when HALF the gang was missing and the other HALF you didn't care about because their involvement in the game was like so:

Before climax: "Sora! We're the bad guys!"

Before battle: "Sora! Let's fight!"

After battle: "Urgh, you beat me..."

Notice that their names are not mentioned, AT ALL. In fact, for a certain boss, the before-battle dialogue was this, WORD FOR WORD.

Sora: *gasp* YOU!

Villain: I'd rather we skip the formalities.

After battle

Villain: How could you...Roxas.

Sora: That's Sora!

VILLAIN DIES.

Damn piss-poor excuse of villains...

Edit: if anyone knows where I can get the Persona 3 OST, that'd be pretty cool. Go youtube "Memories of the city" to hear the awesomeness.

I'm going to, uh, pump some iron or something. Totally not becoming emotional.

Totally not.

One of the greatest inventions known to humanity

2008-10-18T12:10:00.001-04:00

http://www.tamponcrafts.com/gun.html