Lifted from..of all people, Michael Genshimer, who moved to Kansas like a bazillion years ago.
Man there's so much wrong with America it's starting to collectively weigh down on my mind.
Wednesday, September 29, 2004
Tuesday, September 28, 2004
What makes you so special?
Wow
Just wow. The perspective in here is riveting, and scary at the same time.
The amount of politics and fragile ground the government had to tread is mind-boggling.
They had to prevent people from suing...for what?
That they couldn't prevent planes from smashing into towers?
And now you have this mess of compensation and what makes these victims so much more special than other terrorism victims.
And the greed and money fights...sickening.
Just wow. The perspective in here is riveting, and scary at the same time.
The amount of politics and fragile ground the government had to tread is mind-boggling.
They had to prevent people from suing...for what?
That they couldn't prevent planes from smashing into towers?
And now you have this mess of compensation and what makes these victims so much more special than other terrorism victims.
And the greed and money fights...sickening.
Sunday, September 26, 2004
CLICK HERE TO ENLARGE YOUR
I should have known the introduction of "exclusive/premium" services on photobucket were a bad sign.
Obviously free hosting for 9999999 pictures was going to give in at some point, and now I can see how it's slowing down picture upload times.
Ah well, can't you get anything for free on the internet anymore?
No, not those godamn iPod offers you bastards.
Obviously free hosting for 9999999 pictures was going to give in at some point, and now I can see how it's slowing down picture upload times.
Ah well, can't you get anything for free on the internet anymore?
No, not those godamn iPod offers you bastards.
Saturday, September 25, 2004
FUCK
FUNimation Anime Weekend Atlanta Announcement (11:21 AM EST): According to information received from our contacts at FUNimation, they announced at their 10 AM panel at Anime Weekend Atlanta this morning their acquisition to the domestic distribution rights to Gonzo's latest series, Samurai 7.
FUCK YOU FUNIMATION.
That is all.
FUCK YOU FUNIMATION.
That is all.
You were killed by $Ladyevil$
Heh, nothing like the ridiculous sense of accomplishment at having done something so utterly worthless and small and stupid but yet awesome at the same time.
What did I do you ask?
I pulled off a trick jump in Prisoner in Halo PC not once, but three times!
Go me, go me, go me...yeah I'm sad.
But still I have a feeling of accomplishment.
Also in a ridiculous CTF on Battlecreek, my teammates finally listened and we pulled off the old "throw the flag through the roof routine" at least 3 times or so.
One time I managed to throw it onto the roof without a teammate being there...he got it later.
New singlerplayer game...Galaxy Angel.
It was a love sim yes (Not H though), and I like the characters and their designs (they're an anime after all).
Chitose is...awesome.
Anyway I'm playing the third one in the series, I have very little to no knowledge what is going on cause it's all in Japanese, but it still rocks.
What did I do you ask?
I pulled off a trick jump in Prisoner in Halo PC not once, but three times!
Go me, go me, go me...yeah I'm sad.
But still I have a feeling of accomplishment.
Also in a ridiculous CTF on Battlecreek, my teammates finally listened and we pulled off the old "throw the flag through the roof routine" at least 3 times or so.
One time I managed to throw it onto the roof without a teammate being there...he got it later.
New singlerplayer game...Galaxy Angel.
It was a love sim yes (Not H though), and I like the characters and their designs (they're an anime after all).
Chitose is...awesome.
Anyway I'm playing the third one in the series, I have very little to no knowledge what is going on cause it's all in Japanese, but it still rocks.
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
Friday, September 17, 2004
I...want to kill this man so badly I can't stop
Ok Heihachi is quite a dual faced character.
He said he usually cut wood, in fact he told Gorobei he never cut a person...
BUT he seems to slip into the role of killing people with no problem.
On top of that he seems the harshest when it comes to betrayals, immediately going for his sword on Nodoka...
To top it off, in 12, he's REALLY mad at the peasant, and even states his desire to chop his head off quite plainly.
The fact that he SMILES ALL THE TIME with those damn niko nikos ^_^ just makes it weirder.
Does he have some issues?
Cause a normal woodcutter wouldn't make a jump to being a merciless samurai so fast...
He said he usually cut wood, in fact he told Gorobei he never cut a person...
BUT he seems to slip into the role of killing people with no problem.
On top of that he seems the harshest when it comes to betrayals, immediately going for his sword on Nodoka...
To top it off, in 12, he's REALLY mad at the peasant, and even states his desire to chop his head off quite plainly.
The fact that he SMILES ALL THE TIME with those damn niko nikos ^_^ just makes it weirder.
Does he have some issues?
Cause a normal woodcutter wouldn't make a jump to being a merciless samurai so fast...
Thursday, September 16, 2004
Link spam
I'm going to start putting random links instead of just spamming them across AIM. That way I can force you to come through here to view them.
Wandering eyes.
Wandering eyes.
Monday, September 13, 2004
A Child Can Not Beat A Man
(Is it me or did the toggle for bold grow from bracketsboldbrackets to some wacky span style = value thing)
Second anime review is Samurai 7. This is an adaptation? of Akira Kurosawa's original film The Seven Samurai. I googled this film, turned up its IMDB page, and along with it, A GIGANTIC FUCKING SPOILER. Curse you IMDB for having that right on the movie's fucking front page. Now I'm not sure how closely the anime will follow the film (40 bandits has become 40 no-buseri, these gigantic mecha things which are simply outrageously cool), but all the names are already completely identical. Plus according to those who have seen the original film, the characters are falling into their movie roles as they mature.
Ok, to me, who has never seen the original, this series is good. It's done by Gonzo, home of the big disappointment yes, but hopefully they won't screw it up knock on wood. The series really is good at depicting each samurai's character, and the peasants of the village they are defending aren't just "save me jebus peasants." Rather they're human, and scared, and well...rather pathetic at this point. (Let's go hire samurais and kills nobuseri...oh noes the nobuseris knows! Let's hope the samurais dont come! Oh noes they came!) But I really like how the character designs (borrowed as they were, even for the shifty peasants), are turning out. One slightly bad thing though, all the names are exactly the same, meaning there's no easy to remember shinji ikari crap here. You got seven main guys, plus kirara/rikichi/komachi, and it's sortta hard remembering their names. From left to right in the main smoke picture:
Katsushiro is the newbie. He's a samurai by birth, but he's never been on a battlefield (Kirara passes over him initially because she doesn't smell blood on him even though he saved them in the city.) He's a ladies man...but it's sort of obvious who he likes (Kirara). He also views Kanbei as his master and looks up to him. He hasn't killed anyone yet. (Bwahaha that's changeeeed) I have to say him and Kikuchiyo really play well off each other, cause you got a guy who's pretty bad/useless with the sword and someone who's ok with it...but completely careless. The odd couple, for sure.
Kikuchiyo is the clown. He's NOT a samurai by birth (which means he technically can't be one), he has a stolen lineage scroll and can't read his own name on it (If that's you, you're a girl. or if that's you, you're 10 years old!), carries a gigantic sword, but he can fight. He's also a machine-samurai, another thing that sets him apart. Kanbei has not acknowledged him yet as a samurai, because he really isn't. He often gets into trouble and is a little dull in the head, but he's hilarious. Plus he has this exhaust pipe nears where his neck/mouth would be and when he's mad it whistles. He and Komachi get along really well.
Kyuuzou is the perfectionist. He is BETTER than Kanbei, he dual weilds swords, and he was pitted against the group at first. Having fought Kanbei, and wanting him alive (To kill), he went against his masters and is no longer welcome with them...so he joins. This guy is GOOD.
Kanbei is the man, the general, the leader. He was a general in a war that was lost (evidentally he failed or something), and is now commanding six samurai to defend a village. He views it as a war with little reward and no glory, but he is the leader nonetheless. Respected by everyone, even Kikuchiyo, even though he hides it.
Gorobei is the entertainer. He became one after the last war ended and samurais had no way to eat. He is lively, and constantly making wagers. (I bet if I can catch that arrow before it hits me, you'll treat me to dinner.) He also has a freaky side...he seems to get off on dangerous things (arrows being shot at him, getting cut, etc.) But he has a sense of humor, and this pair of zoom binocs!
Shichiroji was once Kanbei's right hand man (He's the pilot you see in the opening sequence of the first episode), but after the war (Another failed general?) he settled down as...a dancer inside a pleasure quarters house...or something like that. He is the ONLY one who does not fight with a sword, rather he uses this weird polearm type deal. He also has a woman who saved him from death...and they were almost going to be an item...but she knows he wants one last war. So he leaves his settled-down comfortable life to join his former comrade and fight some nobuseris.
Last we have Heihachi. I admit if there is an enigma on this team, it's this guy. And yes he looks like he should be in Last Exile piloting a vanship. He's the techie, and good with machines. This guy has the constant niko niko face, his eyes don't open. (Wait once they did). He has also never killed anyone before, but he is very good at chopping wood. ONCE HE HITS COMBAT, he comes across as surprisingly good...though it's hard to tell if he still hasn't killed anyone. (The things he chops apart so far are small nobuseris, i.e. men riding these little tin can mech type deals...he splits those without killing the guy inside.) Anyway I say he's an enigma because while he does have a sense of humor and almost always smile, there's one episode where they find out a woman has passed information on them to the nobuseris. Heihachi INSTANTLY reaches for his sword and asks...so what do we do about the woman. He also OPENS HIS EYES at this time...and he's not smiling here. This was rather frightening and out of character, cause I mean it's a woodcutter who hasn't killed anyone suddenly saying that we need to remove the spy, even if she was forced into it. Anyway Kanbei says "It is not a samurai's role to judge." which stops him pretty quickly. I sort of wonder how this guy will turn out...
Kirara is a dowser who went to look for samurai on the village elder's request. A bit of research confirms she was not in the original seven samurai movie. She's strong, but yeah she's a pretty normal woman (i.e. she doesn't fight, she got saved only once so far so she's not tooo helpless, she takes care of them if they're hurt, etc.)
Komachi is Kirara's sister. Little cute brat. She and Kikuchiyo (Kiku man, as she calls him) really hit it off. Both enjoy teasing the crap out of Katsushiro.
Rikichi is the guy who went along with Kirara to help find samurai. He DID exist in the old movie it seems, and his wife was taken by the nobuseri to ensure peace. When he seems them he gets very irrational and angry, because he feels helpless that he let his wife be taken away. You feel rather sorry for this guy.
Now it bears mentioning about the mecha, which for some reason has immediately pissed off the losers in the anime club. The series really isn't mecha based, just the no-buseri are fucking beautifully rendered mechs. More like steampunk? but not quite is the technology level. Guns are indeed shown, and they seem to be prevalent as ever, as the lead samurai says "We can not win against guns." (Swords vs guns debate!) But the cg is really nicely done, the mechs are really cool looking (even if they are made of tin foil)
So, after watching 11 episodes, I say two thumbs up! Only time will tell if Gonzo screws up yet another one!
Second anime review is Samurai 7. This is an adaptation? of Akira Kurosawa's original film The Seven Samurai. I googled this film, turned up its IMDB page, and along with it, A GIGANTIC FUCKING SPOILER. Curse you IMDB for having that right on the movie's fucking front page. Now I'm not sure how closely the anime will follow the film (40 bandits has become 40 no-buseri, these gigantic mecha things which are simply outrageously cool), but all the names are already completely identical. Plus according to those who have seen the original film, the characters are falling into their movie roles as they mature.
Ok, to me, who has never seen the original, this series is good. It's done by Gonzo, home of the big disappointment yes, but hopefully they won't screw it up knock on wood. The series really is good at depicting each samurai's character, and the peasants of the village they are defending aren't just "save me jebus peasants." Rather they're human, and scared, and well...rather pathetic at this point. (Let's go hire samurais and kills nobuseri...oh noes the nobuseris knows! Let's hope the samurais dont come! Oh noes they came!) But I really like how the character designs (borrowed as they were, even for the shifty peasants), are turning out. One slightly bad thing though, all the names are exactly the same, meaning there's no easy to remember shinji ikari crap here. You got seven main guys, plus kirara/rikichi/komachi, and it's sortta hard remembering their names. From left to right in the main smoke picture:
Katsushiro is the newbie. He's a samurai by birth, but he's never been on a battlefield (Kirara passes over him initially because she doesn't smell blood on him even though he saved them in the city.) He's a ladies man...but it's sort of obvious who he likes (Kirara). He also views Kanbei as his master and looks up to him. He hasn't killed anyone yet. (Bwahaha that's changeeeed) I have to say him and Kikuchiyo really play well off each other, cause you got a guy who's pretty bad/useless with the sword and someone who's ok with it...but completely careless. The odd couple, for sure.
Kikuchiyo is the clown. He's NOT a samurai by birth (which means he technically can't be one), he has a stolen lineage scroll and can't read his own name on it (If that's you, you're a girl. or if that's you, you're 10 years old!), carries a gigantic sword, but he can fight. He's also a machine-samurai, another thing that sets him apart. Kanbei has not acknowledged him yet as a samurai, because he really isn't. He often gets into trouble and is a little dull in the head, but he's hilarious. Plus he has this exhaust pipe nears where his neck/mouth would be and when he's mad it whistles. He and Komachi get along really well.
Kyuuzou is the perfectionist. He is BETTER than Kanbei, he dual weilds swords, and he was pitted against the group at first. Having fought Kanbei, and wanting him alive (To kill), he went against his masters and is no longer welcome with them...so he joins. This guy is GOOD.
Kanbei is the man, the general, the leader. He was a general in a war that was lost (evidentally he failed or something), and is now commanding six samurai to defend a village. He views it as a war with little reward and no glory, but he is the leader nonetheless. Respected by everyone, even Kikuchiyo, even though he hides it.
Gorobei is the entertainer. He became one after the last war ended and samurais had no way to eat. He is lively, and constantly making wagers. (I bet if I can catch that arrow before it hits me, you'll treat me to dinner.) He also has a freaky side...he seems to get off on dangerous things (arrows being shot at him, getting cut, etc.) But he has a sense of humor, and this pair of zoom binocs!
Shichiroji was once Kanbei's right hand man (He's the pilot you see in the opening sequence of the first episode), but after the war (Another failed general?) he settled down as...a dancer inside a pleasure quarters house...or something like that. He is the ONLY one who does not fight with a sword, rather he uses this weird polearm type deal. He also has a woman who saved him from death...and they were almost going to be an item...but she knows he wants one last war. So he leaves his settled-down comfortable life to join his former comrade and fight some nobuseris.
Last we have Heihachi. I admit if there is an enigma on this team, it's this guy. And yes he looks like he should be in Last Exile piloting a vanship. He's the techie, and good with machines. This guy has the constant niko niko face, his eyes don't open. (Wait once they did). He has also never killed anyone before, but he is very good at chopping wood. ONCE HE HITS COMBAT, he comes across as surprisingly good...though it's hard to tell if he still hasn't killed anyone. (The things he chops apart so far are small nobuseris, i.e. men riding these little tin can mech type deals...he splits those without killing the guy inside.) Anyway I say he's an enigma because while he does have a sense of humor and almost always smile, there's one episode where they find out a woman has passed information on them to the nobuseris. Heihachi INSTANTLY reaches for his sword and asks...so what do we do about the woman. He also OPENS HIS EYES at this time...and he's not smiling here. This was rather frightening and out of character, cause I mean it's a woodcutter who hasn't killed anyone suddenly saying that we need to remove the spy, even if she was forced into it. Anyway Kanbei says "It is not a samurai's role to judge." which stops him pretty quickly. I sort of wonder how this guy will turn out...
Kirara is a dowser who went to look for samurai on the village elder's request. A bit of research confirms she was not in the original seven samurai movie. She's strong, but yeah she's a pretty normal woman (i.e. she doesn't fight, she got saved only once so far so she's not tooo helpless, she takes care of them if they're hurt, etc.)
Komachi is Kirara's sister. Little cute brat. She and Kikuchiyo (Kiku man, as she calls him) really hit it off. Both enjoy teasing the crap out of Katsushiro.
Rikichi is the guy who went along with Kirara to help find samurai. He DID exist in the old movie it seems, and his wife was taken by the nobuseri to ensure peace. When he seems them he gets very irrational and angry, because he feels helpless that he let his wife be taken away. You feel rather sorry for this guy.
Now it bears mentioning about the mecha, which for some reason has immediately pissed off the losers in the anime club. The series really isn't mecha based, just the no-buseri are fucking beautifully rendered mechs. More like steampunk? but not quite is the technology level. Guns are indeed shown, and they seem to be prevalent as ever, as the lead samurai says "We can not win against guns." (Swords vs guns debate!) But the cg is really nicely done, the mechs are really cool looking (even if they are made of tin foil)
So, after watching 11 episodes, I say two thumbs up! Only time will tell if Gonzo screws up yet another one!
When a bird dies there is grief, when a fish dies there is none.
I just finished watching an incredibly blurry (read handcam) version of Ghost in the Shell 2. Let's see...well first off I'm getting ever more confused about the canon-worthiness of the animated material based on the manga Shirow wrote. I mean I have not seen the second half of the tv series (licensing issues), I have only seen bits and pieces of the original movie, but the second movie is...almost taken straight out of a story from the FIRST manga compilation by Dark Horse. Granted, there are a bazillion differences, such as Motoko is already just a ghost without a body (fused with the puppeteer already), but I mean the underlying case is the same, love dolls with dubbed ghosts going berserk (Girls ask one of the inspectors to sabatoge the robots to get a message out.) Some other changes is that the factory lies in a gigantic submarine and the process of hunting it down takes quite a few side roads, including going through the mansion of an old hacker who starts looping Batou and Togusa's memories.
Also..one of the last lines Batou said...in the manga is "Did you think noone would get hurt?" which refers to the human victims (who admittedly were using slave dolls from shady sources.) However, in the movie, Batou's line changes to "Did you think of the victims, not the humans who were killed, but the robots who did not want ghosts?" This is what my topic refers to...as it means those without voices get sympathy, those without can not.
It's hard thinking of this movie as a continuation, just because so many story elements are the same as the story in the FIRST ghost in the shell manga volume. I guess I have to see the actual first movie and maybe the rest of the animated series. AND I have to start attempting to translate my Manmachine Interface or wait for others to do it.
On the issue of robot and human...there's quite a bit of talking about it, and I guess this case is as good as any to start examining the differences. But geez even the tv show had their version of this story (ghost dubbing), except it was a Che Guevara guerilla type figure who was being copied.
I guess I found it hard to really enjoy the deepness of this movie, precisely because of the rehashing of the main plot, and also because the definite lack of Motoko. Ghost in the Shell Manga 2 Manmachine interface is almost completely about her and her new form, and I really want to read and understand it. (Unfortunately the Japanese is ridiculous.)
It is pretty though, and for people who haven't read the original manga back to front over and over (it's like one of my oldest ones) it's a good plot.
Also..one of the last lines Batou said...in the manga is "Did you think noone would get hurt?" which refers to the human victims (who admittedly were using slave dolls from shady sources.) However, in the movie, Batou's line changes to "Did you think of the victims, not the humans who were killed, but the robots who did not want ghosts?" This is what my topic refers to...as it means those without voices get sympathy, those without can not.
It's hard thinking of this movie as a continuation, just because so many story elements are the same as the story in the FIRST ghost in the shell manga volume. I guess I have to see the actual first movie and maybe the rest of the animated series. AND I have to start attempting to translate my Manmachine Interface or wait for others to do it.
On the issue of robot and human...there's quite a bit of talking about it, and I guess this case is as good as any to start examining the differences. But geez even the tv show had their version of this story (ghost dubbing), except it was a Che Guevara guerilla type figure who was being copied.
I guess I found it hard to really enjoy the deepness of this movie, precisely because of the rehashing of the main plot, and also because the definite lack of Motoko. Ghost in the Shell Manga 2 Manmachine interface is almost completely about her and her new form, and I really want to read and understand it. (Unfortunately the Japanese is ridiculous.)
It is pretty though, and for people who haven't read the original manga back to front over and over (it's like one of my oldest ones) it's a good plot.
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