Almost 40 years represented here.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 02:14 AM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
Post contains 12 words, total size 1 kb.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 11:37 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 4 words, total size 1 kb.

Dourakuoyadi(?) has added pics from two Japanese modeling conventions. The focus is mostly on the Yamato/Starblazers models but there are all types and they are gorgeous. See here and here.

^{This is not from Laputa...it is from a Fleischer Superman short that inspired Miyazaki.}

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 11:24 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 45 words, total size 1 kb.

I overslept by quite a bit.  I'm running hither and yon and can't get past the feeling I'm just some rat in a maze. Now I'm am having difficulties with a prism right now and I've  made a Faustian bargain with a potato who I'm convinced is plotting against me.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 03:49 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 388 words, total size 3 kb.

1 It looks like someone managed to save much of his work here: http://66.90.103.241/album.php?id=11520

I've always liked his iPod girls.

-j

Posted by: J Greely at Fri May 20 19:37:28 2011 (fpXGN)

2 Seriously, ow, but still better than a heart attack.

And way to go turning misfortune into academic credit.

Posted by: Pixy Misa at Sat May 21 05:00:15 2011 (PiXy!)

3 Whoa!  That site is massively not safe for work.  Good thing I don't have an office-mate.

Posted by: Mitch H. at Mon May 23 16:20:47 2011 (jwKxK)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

  My midichlorean levels are embarrassingly low.

I had been completely unaware of Star Wars Day, until I saw a link to this post over at Ace of Spades. It is a good read actually, discussing the macroeconomic, political and diplomatic ramifications of blowing up Aderaan. No. Really. Read the whole thing.

Also... propaganda posters.

Heightists.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 05:27 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 58 words, total size 1 kb.

I had planned to watch Angelic Layer this evening, but this afternoon I happened into DVD#1 of K-ON!, bought it, went to a friends house and we watched it.

This is the show that dominated its time-slot in Japan and was such a phenomenon that the 13 episode series was brought back as a 26 episode show and a series of OVAs. This show is legendary. It is considered one of the crowning moments of awesome in anime...

All that plugging however,  means that this quiet little show is so oversold that it cannot help but disappoint if one has been following the buzz.

After all the hype, I was expecting, I dunno, Lucky Star + The Simpsons + Bacon.

4 episodes in there there is no bacon.
There is however, cake in abundance.

Once you get past the hype, K-ON! is a cute, rather dry, sitcom that revolves around three of the 4 members of a music club at a girls preparatory school who try to save their club and their dreams from the clubs weakest link. The characters thus far are mostly pretty engaging....mostly.


 Ritsu Tainaka is driven, ambitious, undisciplined and a little mad. She wants badly be a drummer and ends up president of the Light Music Club by default (when she joins, she is its only member).


Mio Akiyama has been best friends with Ritsu for many years. Despite this she seems more or less sane and well adjusted.  A competent bass guitarist, she nevertheless joins the club under protest. However, she quickly becomes quite determined to make the club a success.


Tsumugi Kotobuki is rich beyond the dreams of avarice and has had a quite sheltered life thus far. This prep school is in many ways her first real interaction with normal people. Having mastered the keyboard as a child she was initially intending to join the glee club. She changed her mind when she saw Mio and Ritsu arguing. She decided that these are the sorts of dysfunctional people that get into wacky situations like on TV. She is a superb cook, has impeccable manners and a kind personality, but it is unclear if she thinks of her friends as people...or pets.


Yui Hirasawa seems to be the result of a science experiment that successfully combined the traits of fingernails, a chalkboard and ADD. An utterly unfocused spaz, she joins the club despite the fact that she can only play the castanets. She is a valued asset to the club because a minimum of 4 members are required to maintain the club charter. To that end the other members provide her with much cake. They also persuade her to try and learn the guitar.

 I'd seen episode 1 in Japanese some years ago, and had thought it had potential. My biggest problem thus far is Yui who is initially such a cringeworthy exercise in fail that I find her painful to watch at times. Note that it is obvious by episode 3 that she has a genuine problem and is trying to deal with it.

However, 4 episodes in, I'm already seeing that there is actual character development going on, particularly in Mio and Yui (who seems to be becoming a slightly less central character).

It is a cute show and I did laugh. The interplay between the characters various flavors of awkwardness is developing a comedic synergy as it progresses.

All in all, I liked it. I'm going to pick up at least the second disc. After all, it's hard to go wrong with cute girls and cake.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 04:24 AM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
Post contains 635 words, total size 4 kb.

 Some time ago I picked up the box set of Angelic Layer and I recently watched the first disc. My curiosity was piqued by the fact that Chobits was sort of a sequel to this show, and while Chobits was not entirely my cup of tea, it WAS quite interesting.

Unlike Chobits, this seems very much to be a kids show, but at the end of the first disc it seems to be quite an engaging and thoughtful one. 

The place Tokyo:
The time, 20 minutes into the future (of 1999):
Misaki Suzuhara arrives at Tokyo station having come from her grandparents farm in utter sticksville prefecture.
While negotiating the multilevel maze that is the station her attention is drawn to what seems to be a female wrestling match with exquisite choreography. She is then set upon by a really creepy guy in a lab coat who explains that this is the newest sport in Japan:Angelic Layer.

It seems that a few years prior, someone carried the Tamagotchi concept to its next level. Instead of a virtual pet in an egg-shaped locket, the angels are little humanoid robots sold unformed in "Angel Eggs" and customized by their owners both physically and mentally. They can be maneuvered via a thought control interface on an appropriately equipped table and naturally  the first thing that occurred to girls all over the nation was to have cock-fights with their little humanoid robot pets. This is now a HUGE phenomenon throughout Japan, with national tournaments, prizes, and so forth.     Cyber-cafes are giving large amounts of space to Angelic Layer training arenas.

Misaki rather impulsively spends most of her money on an angel starter kit and promptly suffers a scissors mishap while styling her dolls hair. This results in it not having the flowing locks most Angels do. Still, she adores it, names it Hikaru and decides to learn how to operate it. In short order our heroine unwittingly finds herself in an official match, which she wins, and through the machinations of 'creepy lab coat guy' she is enrolled a tournament; thus begins the Angelic Layer career of Misaki and Hikaru.

This is over a decade old but it holds up well. There's a lot of depth here, both in the world and the characters. Misaki Suzuhara actually has a fairly dark back story. It is unclear if her grandfather died or is simply unable to care for her. What is clear is that her mother abandoned her to her grandparents some time ago, in any event she is now staying with her aunt. Her mother does not want to meet her daughter even though she now lives quite close to Misaki. There is also a side plot about something genuinely weird and not a little dark going on.  For all that, it is a upbeat, even inspiring show. The production values are pretty good and the world is exceedingly well imagined.

The details of the fights and their choreography are well thought out, and, this being CLAMP, there are a lot of nice touches like the fact that there is a high value placed on presentation (one is required to have a really spiffy opening monologue) The "sport" attracts a lot of young people, who, regardless of stature or physical ability, can be sports stars...vicariously...through their dolls. A lot of thought went into this.

There is a lot to like about this series 5 episodes in and while I'm not entirely sure where it is going I am very interested to find out where it ends up. I'm liking it.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 11:58 AM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
Post contains 598 words, total size 4 kb.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 06:18 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 4 words, total size 1 kb.

People from an imaginary future, talking about how viewers can get info on a real program that won't exist in the future.

Oh my!

Perhaps I should convert my dollars into quatloos.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 08:03 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 35 words, total size 1 kb.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 08:40 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 2 words, total size 1 kb.

1 Who's the one in the back with the green hair? I don't recognize her.

Posted by: Steven Den Beste at Mon Apr 25 17:25:23 2011 (+rSRq)

2 I'm not sure.
I assume she is from 'season2' which is part of a large 'to do' pile for after exams.

I expect we'll have an answer here or at your site long before then though.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Mon Apr 25 18:44:05 2011 (EJaOX)

3 Her name is Emiri Kimidori.  She first appeared as the supposed-girlfriend of the President of the Computer Research Society ("Mysterique Sign", season 1), then later was the secretary of the Student Council. 

She's also (probably) a Human Interface, just like Nagato... in fact, she might be her superior.
In other words, she's a minor character... or not.

Posted by: Wonderduck at Tue Apr 26 19:53:00 2011 (EJaOX)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 07:32 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 4 words, total size 1 kb.

Interweb supersleuth Colleen Doran is on the case of Rob Granito, who has been doing the convention circuit passing himself off as the 'ghost artist' to many of the big names in the industry, and selling pirated copies of their work as his own.

Read the whole thing.

More here.

The chutzpah of this jerk is awe inspiring.

...as is hit total lack of riting skillzez, wich caim bak2 biet him weh he tryed to use sockpuppetry to verifye his credetchulz.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 06:16 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 126 words, total size 1 kb.

I just received word from Sentai Film Works that the street date for High School of the Dead is June 28th.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 03:29 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 191 words, total size 2 kb.

I just watched Kannagi.
This re-imagining  of Galatea was an above average show, albeit a bit uneven.

 ^{Looks like Kyo-Ani did a cross promotion with Pizza Hut, despite the fact that no pizza is ever consumed in the series.}

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 10:34 PM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
Post contains 249 words, total size 2 kb.

1 When Yamakan screws the ending of Fractale, are you going to reconsider blaming the cancellation?

Posted by: Pete Zaitcev at Tue Mar 8 01:04:28 2011 (9KseV)

2 Nah, these days it's extraordinarily rare for an anime to get cancelled mid-airing like that, and it certainly didn't happen to Kannagi. 14 episodes isn't really that unusual, especially with the last one being DVD-only (as is the case here). See also both seasons of Haruhi (14 TV episodes), K-ON! (13 TV + 1 DVD), Sora no Woto (12 TV + 2 DVD), Elfen Lied (13 TV + 1 DVD), Full Metal Panic! TSR (13 TV + 1 DVD)... you get the idea. I didn't much like the ending myself. Too much angst for this sort of show. First half was quite good, though.

Posted by: Andrew F. at Tue Mar 8 02:32:57 2011 (2hEN4)

3 Can't agree with the recommendation. Show was uneven as all get out, meandering between rom-com hijinks, otaku references, and mawkish get-over-yourselves-already melodrama. Nothing that hasn't been done before, elsewhere, and better.

It didn't get canceled midway or anything like that, it was just a one-season show that they left open for additional seasons, but thankfully will never see them.

Wasn't even particularly fun to work on. Show thought it was a good bit more clever than it turned out to be.

Posted by: Avatar_exADV at Tue Mar 8 06:09:38 2011 (mRjOr)

4 @Pete Zatciev: I'm not familiar with Yamakan. Is the strong opening/ weak finish a pattern of his?

@Andrew F:
I did not know that the last episode was DVD only.That puts a rather different spin on the last two episodes as broadcast. This would have been a pompous, dour and depressing ending  rather than an attempt to get the show back on track. 

@ Avatar:
I understand. The recommendation is a tenuous one. Still, the first DVD was excellent and while the second DVD is a letdown, it was merely mediocre, not egregiously bad.  Oh, and I laughed.

I disagree slightly that it was good there was no more of the show.

'cause...I'd like to see more of that show on the first DVD ... you know, the one where the emphasis is on dealing with the need to excorsize the 'impurities' and the implications of these things being caused by the callous machinations of the zoning boards all over the place ...that show where the comedic bits were just comedy relief...with the other goddess being rather more malevolent ...that show on the first DVD, you know, that series that wasn't a harem show, where the characters appeared to learn and grow... you know, THAT show.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Tue Mar 8 09:55:13 2011 (EJaOX)

5 Brick, Yamakan did some work on Haruhi (apparently he was responsible for the infamous dance ED, and directed a couple of episodes) and then directed Lucky Star... for four eps, then he got kicked off the project and things improved a lot. The only other major works he's directed are Kannagi, and now, Fractale.

He catches a lot of flack because, well, he's a troll. He took getting kicked off Lucky Star personally and since then he's said a lot of stuff that seems to indicate that he thinks he's hot stuff and just unappreciated. Apparently he decapitated a Ui Nendroid at a press conference, too... (er, as an incidental, he didn't call the press conference just to decapitate Ui. I hope!)

Posted by: Avatar_exADV at Tue Mar 8 17:28:10 2011 (pWQz4)

6 Oh. OK. Actually, I had heard of his guy I just couldn't remember his name.


I didn't see the problem with the first four Lucky Stars, the differences with the later episodes certainly didn't seem jarring.
(In fairness though, this may be due to the excellent English version.)

OTOH though, even allowing for the fact that most of these stories come through the fan filter, he does seem like a bit of a prima-donna.  Maybe he should just get a job at Gainax. 

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Tue Mar 8 18:29:01 2011 (EJaOX)

7 I like Kannagi a lot.  My current desktop is named Nagi...  Though admittedly since my naming theme for my personal computers is schoolgirl goddesses who are the main and titular characters of their own series, my pool of names is somewhat limited.

Yeah, it's uneven.  Maybe if I had to subtitle it I'd have found it annoying, but just watching it normally I found it very engaging.  I'd recommend it too - it's not a classic for the ages, but it's a lot of fun.  And the opening credit sequence is delightful.

Posted by: Pixy Misa at Sat Mar 12 00:55:15 2011 (PiXy!)

8 A lot of the backgrounds were copied from areas near Sendai, the city most damaged by the earthquake.

Posted by: muon at Sun Mar 13 23:06:14 2011 (JXm2R)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

Funimation has re-released Utewarerumono in a Super Amazing Value Edition. As a result I now own this unpronounceable title, and a few weeks ago I watched it.

 

^{Do NOT make fun of the trenchcoat}

It's just refreshing to see a show where the men are men and not jackwagons or wimps.

The show is exceedingly well paced and has a very humanistic streak. It doesn't pull its punches (characters die) but it is at times a downright inspiring show.

Utewarerumono  contains 19 episodes of the some of the most satisfying adventure anime I have ever seen.

Unfortunately it is a 26 episode series.

^{This is just episode 20 child. There is more fail coming than your young mind can possibly imagine.}

GAINAX call your office...Mary Sue broke in and stole one of your endings.

The last 7 episodes of this show form a bone crushingly painful cascade of stupidity wrapped in schizophrenia and bound together with a truly impressive level of contempt for the audience.

I cannot type enough swear words do justice to the ending of this show. Frankly about the time the mechs show up (yes...the mechs) I had real difficulty following it. The story got disjointed nonsensical and downright hateful.

...but wait there is more...

 It tried to weave together 2 separate, out of order, quite dystopic flashbacks into the story.

Here is a semi-coherent overview of the flashbacks which I knicked from the Wikipedia entry.

In the present age, an archaeological expedition unearths a mysterious fossil, a fossil of a disfigured beast. Unknown to the archaeologist, the fossil is the embodiment of a forgotten god, known as Witsuarunemitea. Another scientist, his superior, stumbles in, and after some confrontation, the mysterious stranger explains that humanity isn't ready for this Missing Link, the gap in evolution between men and apes. To prevent him from talking, he shoots the archaeologist. As the archaeologist slowly dies, his blood touches the fossil, and the forgotten god awakens.

Witsuarunemitea, a shattered and forgotten deity, sees opportunity in the dying archaeologist. He offers the archaeologist life, in exchange for becoming his vessel, so that Witsuarunemitea can finally find the sleep he so desires. Time passes, and eventually he becomes frozen in ice.

With Witsuarunemitea still bound in sleep as his mask, the archaeologist re-awakens many years into the future. He finds himself in an underground research facility, where he is being studied as an ancient human specimen. The archaeologist learns from the researchers that humanity is now unable to exist outside of a greenhouse environment, and hence the remnants of humanity now live underground.

Mizushima, a researcher, is assigned to the care and study of the archaeologist, who is now referred to as the Iceman. Upon discovering that the 'Iceman' can withstand the bacteria on Earth's surface, the researchers look to harness his unique genome and emulate the invigorating characteristics of his mask. Of the thousands of creations, only a select few prove to be viable, including experiments 3510 and 63. Experiment number 3510, a beautiful young girl, is given the name Mikoto by the Iceman; as is experiment number 63, a girl with black wings, whom is given the name Mutsumi. Mutsumi, acknowledging she has come from the Iceman's DNA, addresses him as "father".

The genome project encounters some problems, however, and the researchers in charge decide to re-freeze the Iceman for later study. Mizushima, aware of the human side of the Iceman, urges him to run, and gives him the facility's master key, a plain-colored ring recognized by the facility's doors.

The Iceman runs from the facility, taking Mikoto with him, whom he has fallen in love with. After a few years have passed, Mikoto gives birth to a daughter. The researchers, however, put on environmental suits in order to pursue the Iceman and recapture both him and Mikoto. Mikoto is dissected for further research, but while Iceman is being prepared to be frozen, his rage awakens Witsuarunemitea.

Outraged by the treatment of Mikoto, a new side of Witsuarunemitea begins to form. Filled with rage, Witsuarunemitea destroys most of the facility. Appalled by what the humans would do to obtain immortality, Witsuarunemitea grants their plea, transforming them into immortal gelatinous beings. Eventually, the great god accrues so much rage as to split himself into two halves: one which seeks destruction, and another, which seeks only to be destroyed.

Suddenly, Mutsumi appears, and empowered by Witsuarunemitea's divine blood, she puts both halves of Witsuarunemitea to sleep. Meanwhile, the few successful genetic experiments from the research facility begin to repopulate the Earth's surface, as the original humanity slowly dies out and is forgotten. The research facility is sealed away forever, and the people are told it is Witsuarunemitea's holy land.

Years later, a shift in the world awakens the two halves of Witsuarunemitea, who begin to combat each other; the destructive side wanting to help the populace of the world reach new height through wars, and its opposite through peaceful cooperation. The empress of Kunnekamun (whose people; the Shakukopuro, are being massacred) seeks out the destructive side, and is granted with a power called the Avu-Kamuu, massive bio-mechanical constructs covered in platemail, allowing them to exist in the world of war and hegemony.

Eventually, the fighting of the two halves causes a great earthquake. Arurū, a young girl of Kenashikourupe, is in the process of climbing a tree to recover a beehive when the earthquake strikes, and falls, becoming greatly injured. Erurū, Arurū's sister, prays Witsuarunemitea to heal Arurū, and promises, in exchange, her body and soul. Witsuarunemitea obliges.

Both halves of Witsuarunemitea are heavily injured in the battle, and both halves are put to sleep. The destructive half was found by Dii, a scholar of Onkamiyamukai, who fuses with the demigod. The half that wishes to be destroyed retains his body, and is found in the woods by Erurū.

The events of Utawarerumono then take place.

...and now gentle reader, you are one of us
tekalili! tekalili!


If you did not read that , you are likely still sane.

Note that that only covers the flashback portions of the plot...the "present" plot has the previously wise cast becoming mind numbingly stupid...before the whole insipid mess just collapses under its own incoherence.

I know these writers can write...they wrote the first 19 episodes, so unless they switched writing teams 3/4s of the way through
this isn't likely incompetence.  I think it could be sadism.

Or perhaps this was made for the American market and this is one of those cruel jokes they play on foreigners...like natto.

Which, come to think of it, brings us back to sadism.

ahem...
 
I'm going to refrain from recommending this series...but if anyone's interested I have a complete set right here.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 06:13 AM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
Post contains 632 words, total size 11 kb.

While I wrack my school and illness addled brain for content, d.merril has combined Tezuka and Pez to good effect.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 12:38 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 29 words, total size 1 kb.

Oh noes! Star Turtle Village is 4 ninjas short of the number needed to maintain  our elemental decompressor! We need space turtle ninjas!

...What?

You don't wear black or blue pajamas and adventure?
You don't have experience in space?
You aren't a turtle?
Well, fear not 'cause we aren't picky!
We have a crackerjack apprenticeship program headed up by a highly respected...ummm...dolphin..ninja...biker...ummm...

...actually...we don't know WHAT the hell he is but he's very good at his job so you can learn your ninja trade right here!

Since we are classy SPACE ninjas (with a fashionable Turtle motif) we take care of our members. We have a Ramen shop, a Burger Ninja and a Pizza Witch in our food court and if that doesn't impress you we've got SCIENCE!^tm, and a Party House with a fully stocked Juice Bar. We even get to beat up on  undead zombjas periodically 'cause we are just that bad ass.

Click on the banner above to start your ninja career today and not only will you be able to tell your grandkids that you saved an entire village from being elementally undecompressed....you'll even know what the heck that means!

Just remember to keep all kunai stowed and all hands and feet onboard the elephants.

Please note that this week's announcements are sponsored by:

 Ankh-Morpork Assassin's Guild:
Inhumation with a contemporary touch.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 07:49 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 229 words, total size 2 kb.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 05:25 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 21 words, total size 1 kb.

Over at The Kawaii Menace, Don asks a very good question...

By the way, what the hell is “mild thematic material” ?

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 06:54 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
Post contains 30 words, total size 1 kb.

Someone named Shin1701 has pics of some of the props from last months Yamato movie on display here.

There are clips alleged to be from a new Gatachaman movie here.

Also Sentai Filmworks seems to be something other than dead. Their catalog has 10 new releases solidly scheduled, and in the true spirit of 'Zombie ADV' they have announced a DVD release of High School of the Dead.

^{Art, despite being by Ueyama Michirou, is reportedly a bit off model.}

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 02:39 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
Post contains 84 words, total size 1 kb.