i miss you like crazy

you know how important this means when your sis comes back from dinner and proclaims this...

"I ate LuNCHeON MeAT today!!"

and to all those that don't think that it is a big deal, well,

IT IS A BIG DEAL!!!

the other alternatives in the market does not even COMPARE to previously.

*sighs*

i miss Ma Ling.

サンジ 燃える

from episode 355



there can only be one thing that gets him burning...

actual scene here.

more thoughts on Spring 2008

finally, the continuation on my previous previous post on Spring 2008...

it seems that now, everyone wants to redefine the job of a shinigami, including soul eater. isn't it not too long ago that the only job a shinigami does is to lead people's spirits to the other world or something like that? now, they're in-charge of fighting all sorts of creatures and capturing evil souls to level-up their deathscythes.

the first 3 episodes were used to introduce the 3 pairs of shinigamis-deathscythes. we shall see how the story officially starts from ep4 onwards. if they continue all the action, plus the comedy side, it'll definitely hook me 'til the end.

if anyone is looking for another ninja anime to pick up, beside naruto, nabari no ou is for you. more drama, more ninja history, and definitely more "ewwww" factor. ep3 already had limbs twisted and blood gushing scenes. aside from the male lead being voiced by Kugimiya Rie, which i'm not used to since she has quite a very childish voice, everything else seemed good enough for me to continue watching.

toshokan sensou came from the same people that gave us Honey and Clover, so you can expect fantastic production quality. the story plot is alittle hard to take in, since it's set in a (futuristic?) japan where the government is controlling the media and there's an library army that is opposing them. somehow, the male lead, Doujo, reminds me of Sousuke from FMP. hmm...

if you like to watch some boy-love anime this season, junjou romantica is just for you. similar to soul eater, it has 3 couples, all interlinked, and the story will be each couple taking 1-2 episodes each before changing to the next. as it is, ep3 has introduced the 2nd couple, which is my favorite among the 3.

i've read the manga. it is explicit, but if you can push that aside, the story is actually very good. of course, as much as they're showing this after midnight, they had to downplay most of the BL scenes. which is fine, since i'm more interested in the story plot. it's a long show, 26 episodes, so i'm think they'll probably stop very near to where the manga is still serializing in the magazine.

monochrome factor, crystal blaze, druaga are the last 3 on my list. which also means they don't take much priority within the week as i'll prefer to just watch a few episodes in a single sitting. and the probability of dropping them half-way through the season is pretty high too.

well, i'll see as it goes.

and please allow me rave again about Geass.

AGAIN.

it is really, truly a fantastic show. every week just leaves you suspended with so much excitement. Sunrise really outdid themselves and hopefully they'll continue to entertain us throughout the entire series.

i need to emphasis again on the wonderful drawings in the ED. yes, i know i already did, but seriously, if there's a CLAMP-only Geass artbook, i'll definitely buy it! it's just too pretty!!!

Fukuyama Jun and Sakurai Takahiro are THE most sought-after seiyuus for Spring 2008. Both of them have 3 or more main lead roles (FJ as Code Geass' Lelouch, xxxHOLIC's Watanuki, S.A.'s Kei, Amatsuki's Rikugo Tokidoki; ST as Code Geass' Suzaku, Maoh's Yuuri, Junjou's Misaki) in the new series.

and that's not even counting them as supporting cast in the new shows and those that are still on-going currently.

did anyone try to count the number of times i used the word "fantastic" for Spring 2008. i bet it's way past its usage limit.

so sue me. =p

Saiunkoku Monogatari withdrawal

you know that you're suffering from SaiMon withdrawal when you:

10) constantly look up "saiunkoku" on search engines and Wikipedia, hoping to find more pictures and latest news on SaiMon.

09) check out the SaiMon LJ every other day for more news and updates, at the same time reading fandom and checking out the drama/character CDs.

08) have a SaiMon wallpaper on your laptop/desktop, your mobile phone theme is SaiMon related, and you even bought a SaiMon mobile strap.

07) watched S1 &/or S2 at least twice over, and random favorite episodes at least 3-4 times.

06) managed to get your friends addicted to SaiMon, causing them to suffer from slight withdrawal too.

05) know all the character names off the top of your head, even the bad guys and super minor characters.

04) swoon everytime you find new pictures of the guys in SaiMon, and share it with your SaiMon friends.

03) are reading EVERYTHING (the light novels and manga, even though they essentially are the same), and ANYTHING (you buy all magazines that contains more pictures of SaiMon) SaiMon-related.

02) want Shuurei to end up with, and ONLY with Ryuuki, regardless of the fact that there are many other prospective suitors like Ryuuren, Ensei, Seiran and Kouyuu.

01) have finished S2 and the latest book, is suffering from withdrawal symptoms cos you're dying for the next book to come out, AND though you should be asleep at 1am, you're still wide awake typing a SaiMon withdrawal list.

arrrgghhh..........

SaiMon withdrawal!!!!!!!!!!

RYUUKIIIIII!!!!!!!!!

thoughts on Spring 2008

oh my gosh...

the new season is just fantastic, and it had only just started. let's really hope it will continue on for the entire season.

so here's my personal, and somewhat biased (of course!) commentaries on some of the shows i'm definitely watching.

Geass was great. season 1 ended with a dramatic cliffhanger and yet, when R2 started, there was no overtly long recap session while they introduced new story plots and twists. of course, i still wanna find out what happened to that cliffhanger since it's still unresolved. but, that's what makes R2 so exciting.

the artwork is still fantastic, as our lovely CLAMP ladies are still working on them. loved the picture of lelouch in the ED, which reminds me of Kamui from X.

now, here's something i never expect.

Macross Frontier.

this is the 1st time i'm watching any macross series, even though it's been around for almost as long as gundam. and i only picked it up cos random curiosity (my fav anime blog site) gave great reviews for it. well, it's really fantastic. THE mecha series for Spring 2008! two-thumbs up!

as usual, xxxHOLIC is something i really shouldn't watch at night if i can help it. apart from the fact that i'm frightened at anything remotely ghostly/horror, this show really gets to me at night cos it's so spooky sometimes. other than that, it's still great to see a CLAMP show.

Maoh S3 is off to a slow start. i almost wished i didn't know about it until it is nearly over. i'd forgotten how slow the show can be, since i chanced upon S1 and S2 last year and basically finished all 78 episodes in a span of a few weeks. oh well, it's not off to a bad start, and i get to see more of Conrad for another 39 episodes.

for the period drama fan in me, Amatsuki is as Seirei no Moribito was to me last year. it also helps that it's set in the whole Edo-era cos i love all the olden days clothings. many mixed reviews about this show, but i'm still hopeful. since it's only gonna be 13-episode long, i'll probably be watching til the end.

Wagaya no Oinarisama seemed ok enough to continue watching. i may not like ghostly/horror shows, but throw in some spirits and demons and i'll be hooked. maybe cos i'm more into folklore and mythology. the tenko can give Ranma a run for his money, considering it can change gender as and when it likes.

and i know i probably shouldn't watch this, but Neo Angelique Abyss always have the "bishonen-galore" that can rival even Saiunkoku. looking back, i never did finish Koi suru Tenshi Angelique cos as usual, the story got really boring towards the middle. but this one caught me cos there were much more fighting scenes in the 1st episode.

though i did squirm when they did the ultra cliché female-lead-saves-everyone-with-magical-power routine. anyway, did i mention the ED is fantastic? would never have expected such a nice song on Angelique. if all else fails, meaning if the story gets way boring, at least the ED was great.

almost immediately after watching ep1 of Vampire Knight, i was searching through online manga sites for online scans. after BLOOD+, it's been quite some time since i've picked up a vampire show, so i'm looking forward to enjoying it. now i just have to decide if i should pick up the manga from kinokuniya.

i wouldn't say i was too disappointed by Special A, but neither was i particularly impressed. i thought it tried too much to follow the style of Ouran anime and failed to bring out its own flavor. but then again, when i first started reading the manga, i didn't really started liking it until 3-4 books down too. so there might still be hope yet for the anime.

...TBC...

no more ARIA

just finished watching the last episode of ARIA The Origination.

and sadly, unless they're going to slot in another OVA, there's little chance there will be a fourth and final season. which i was hoping so much for.



they pretty much wrapped up everyone's lives, giving a short epilogue of such at the last 3-5mins of the show.

but of course, if they really really wanted to continue *super cross fingers*, i'm sure they could do something about it.

i guess nobody ever expected the runaway success of ARIA. and yet, it had entertained many others like me who haven't read the manga, with 3 successful seasons and an OVA.

watch ARIA minna!! you wouldn't regret it!

Spring 2008

i love spring season. the good shows always comes out during spring seasons. here's the list of what i'll be watching for the next 3-6 months.

the "definite-will-watch-til-the-end" shows:
1) Special A
2) Junjou Romantica
3) Kyou Kara Maoh: Season 3
4) Code Geass: Season 2
5) xxxHOLIC: Season 2

the "have-to-watch-a-few-episodes-before-deciding" shows:
1) Vampire Knights
2) Nabari no Ou
3) Monochrome Factor
4) Soul Eater
5) Toshokan Sensou
6) Crystal Blaze
7) Wagaya no Oinarisama
8) Allison & Lilia
9) Tower of Druaga
10) Blassreiter
11) Amatsuki
12) Neo Angelique Abyss
13) Kyouran Kazoku Nikki

the start of Spring also marked the end of Gundam 00, Aria the Origination, Dragonaut, Spice and Wolf, and Hatenkou Yuugi.

personally, i only wished for Aria to have a longer season, since G00 is gonna come back for its 2nd season in fall 2008 anyway. my fingers are still crossed, hoping they'll have a final season to wrap up the manga serialization that just ended in feb.

with last week's MC, i've finally caught up with the anime for D.Gray-Man and Katekyoshi Hitman Reborn, both of which are at exciting parts now.

especially Reborn, since they've just started the Future Arc and we get to see the grown-up versions of Hayato and Yamamoto, amongst other characters. i should really continue to buy the manga for both series.

remember how i was commenting on Gurren Lagann a few months back?
well, it is really truly the best anime series of 2007.

the adrenaline rush was throughout the entire 27 episodes. i haven't seen an anime so intense before. the story pace was fast, yet it still managed to capture even the smallest emotional scenes well.

and guess what?
there's gonna be a movie in fall 2008!
WOHOO!!


wisdom tooth: the aftermath

went to take out my stitches today. bloody hell, the dentist was super rough. it took him 2-3 tries before he could remove the stitches. i'm never going back to him again!


super random quirks:
read this somewhere yesterday, and in case u're asked not to curse, eg. "what the hell??!!"

"hell" is not a curse word. it’s a place.

heehee. thought it was a rather creative answer.

wisdom tooth: the end

the minute i sat on the dentist chair, the jolt of fear clung on to me.
my hands started trembling slightly.

and it didn't help that 3 LA needles were sitting on the tray beside me.

thankfully, aside from the initial LA, my mouth was already numb as the dentist cut opened my gum and started yanking my tooth out.

although, he had to give me another LA cos i could still feel pain after the first few yanks. but all in all, it was a rather short procedure. and he didn't even have to use the drill to split my tooth.

anyway, i left the clinic heavily-laden with antibiotics and painkillers, with a numb half hamster-liked face (only the right side was swelling), and the inability to speak properly.

it's been 2 hrs since the operation. the LA is wearing off and the pain is coming back to me. intensely.

and i'm still waiting for the area to stop bleeding.

ughh....

wisdom tooth

3 years ago, on 8 Mar 2005, i went for an extraction for my lower left wisdom tooth.

horror of all horrors, it is happening to me again.

3 years later, on 24 Mar 2008, i'm going for another extraction.
this time, for my lower right tooth.

incidentally, it was also in the same month.
why is it that everytime i start a new job, i have to christen it with an extraction. (i had just started work in jan 2008)

3 years...

short enough for me to remember the extraction procedure.
yet long enough for me to forget the pain, sensation-wise.

albeit, i think my 1st time was much much worse cos my gum infection was really very bad.
(i had waited quite long before i convinced myself i needed to see the dentist den.)

ughhh.....

hope this time will not be as painful...
*cross fingers*

crap...

as usual, this morning as i was hitching a ride from my dad to work, the radio was tuned to FM93.8.

and like any other mornings, i endured it more for dad's sake cos he wants to hear the traffic updates. i mentioned it all the time, but he doesn't believe that other radio stations actually do update more frequently than FM93.8.

anyway, today's Talk Back session was about motorists and the latest news about them being all over the place in the CBD, on the pedestrian walk-ways, how they're being a general pain-in-the-ass on the road, blah blah blah.

general bashing from the callers of how sg authorties should deal with them and the likes, many other complaints, and some suggestions to curb the problems etc etc.

while i don't fancy motorists any more than the average driver, sometimes i just can't help feel that singaporeans really don't make sense at all.

hello, if the motorists are on their motorcycles, what makes you think they're even listening to the radio in the 1st place?

i doubt you can even hear yourself through a helmet talking to the pillar driver, much-less stick an earphone into your ear under the helmet (which seems rather uncomfortable to me) and listen to Talk Back while dodging the nearest car on the expressway.

i refuse to believe that anyone would wanna listen to FM93.8 if it weren't for the news coverage, and somewhat lacking traffic reports.

in reality, the Talk Back sessions only serve its purpose to allow (mostly) ignorant singaporeans to call in, majority of which just sprout nonsense from their mouths, completely with no helpful comments at all.

what crap is that?!

my mission: to make my dad see that he's wasting time on FM93.8 every morning. they don't even give that much traffic reports compared to class95, where they do it every 15min intervals.

or maybe, just maybe, dad gets a kick out of listening in to what other crap singaporeans can come up with.

ughh...

crap.......

Oscars 2008

the one thing i got out of watching the Academy Awards every year.

the want to watch all the nominated films for Best Picture.

this year, No Country for Old Men won.

after seeing the trailer, i can see why.
and that's just from the trailer.

gosh, the movie is gonna be good.

i've already listed down a long list of films which i'm gonna try to rent and watch. all of which, were taken down while watching them recap all Best Picture films for the past 79 years.

past Best Picture Films to try to watch. (eventually)
1) Gone with the Wind
2) Casablanca
3) Ben-Hur
4) Lawrence of Arabia
5) My Fair Lady
6) The Godfather Trilogy
7) One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
8) Kramer vs. Kramer
9) Chariots of Fire
10) Driving Miss Daisy
11) Dances with Wolves
12) Unforgiven
13) Schindler's List
14) The English Patient
15) American Beauty
16) Crash

add the 5 films from this year, and a whole lot of other films, let's see what i can accomplish this year.

=/

a month after...

Winter 2007

after a very disappointing Fall 2007, i'm very glad the winter series had much more better series.

ARIA the Origination

ARIA is back!! as with Taiho in the previous season, i am ecstatic with joy. really really happy for the new season of ARIA though there are also rumors that they might end with this season since the manga serialization is ending soon.

but in any case, i'm still happy there's more akari-chan and friends to look forward to every week. this anime is also the reason why i'm dying to go venice.

lucky meow meow, she gets to go there for work. >_<.``

Persona -trinity soul-

would it be biased to say i'm watching this cos koyasu-sama is voicing one of the main leads?

yeah?
*shrugs*
oh well...
*deep breaths*

KOYASU-SAMA IS VOICING ONE OF THE MAIN LEADS!!
WOHOO!!!

*coughs*

not that i dun appreciate him currently in Bleach, but hello, he's like the ant-like hollow thing in Bleach. he is so much cooler in Persona as the police chief who also has his own persona.

this series reminds me of RahXephon, in terms of how the mechanics is connected to the user. unlike Rah, at least separation of the persona from the user doesn't kill him/her, even if they do end up in a comatose-like state.

Hatenkou Yuugi & Spice and Wolf

i'm pairing them up cos i haven't really much to say about them except that their storylines are interesting enough for me to stay on them.

Hatenkou has the guys and magic, while Spice has the wolf-god. remembered me saying i like shows with magic and mythology? well, these 2 has exactly that.

so there you have the 4 new anime series that i've picked up in winter. and i picked up another two along the way.
Dragonaut, which is still showing, and Gurren Lagann which i am watching to see what the big deal is with this series and why everyone loves it.

Dragonaut is another mechanic series. but unlike persona, it's the whole plot that reminds me alot of Rah. i think it's the whole fighting against alien-beings thingn that is similar in Dragonauts and Rah.

Gurren Lagann on the other hand, juz made me think of SD Gundam. at least, that's what the impression the 1st episode gave me. i haven't gotten past the 3rd episode, so i'm still reserving comments. thank goodness the series is finished anyway, so i could watch alot all at one go. *thinks CNY period*

and finally, in between everything else, between every other months, there is the occasional OVA that is definitely worth waiting for.

so for those that are so lost and out of touch, please go and watch:
1) the 2 episodes of Tsubasa Tokyo Revelations (ep3 will air on 17/3), the artwork is bee-you-ti-ful;
2) the 3 episodes of Kyou Kara Maoh R (ep4 airing on 29/2), with the usual bishonen galore.

if you see me on the bus or train reading a chinese novel, please do not be afraid.
that just meant i'm over-obsessing over Saiunkoku Monogatari. season 2 is coming to an end in in mar, i am so not prepared for it. ~_~.``

another actor...

Heath Ledger is dead.

which i'm sure lots of people in sg will go, "Heath who?"
cos that was basically the type of reaction i got when i told people on msn 2 days ago.

and this is how people will remember him:
Me: OMG! Heath Ledger is dead!
Somebody: Heath who?
Me: did u watch brokeback mountain... gay cowboy... the blond one...
Somebody: ohhhh... brokeback... yeah i know him...

it's quite a sad thing that people only remembers him cos of brokeback. but then again, every other movie he starred in wasn't quite that big a success either. a knight's tale, cassanova, teen flick 10 things i hate about you.

it was either brokeback, or the patriot. but who will remember him in the patriot when everyone juz associates that with mel gibson.

basically the only person i got a significant amount of response from was my sis. and i didn't even need to mention brokeback.

but then again, my sis reads yahoonews.

and she's concerned with how britney spears is going with her life.

oh well...

she also reminded me that he is the new Joker in the upcoming Batman movie. how freaky is that gonna be.

grown-up christmas list

my best friend just had to give me the best christmas present this year...

check this out!!!

OMG!! it's the FRIENDS ten-years series!! seriously, i've never even seen this book before in sg...

and though it has been 3yrs since the season finale, it still remains as the best comedy sitcom ever... well, at least for me...

i mean, i can still quote lots of things from Friends. things, only someone like my sis would be able to get cos we were always sitting down at 7.30pm everyday watching Friends reruns on Starworld...

i actually teared as i was reading the last part of the book about how they did the last season, and especially, the last episode...

shit... it gets to me all the time...

i love FRIENDS!!!

odex hacked!

just when you think the whole odex situation is starting to cool off, in comes news about the odex website being hacked.

you can probably guessed the reaction of most netizens. (i.e. ultimate glee and celebration)

either it's in response to how BayTSP accidentally sent warning letters to other foreign country users, or the person had already been planning it for ages.

those interested can visit darkmirage's blog for further details here and here.

but i wonder how the hacker thinks he/she is gonna get away with this, since odex has filed a police case to track him/her down.

or, maybe, just maybe, hacker-san is already prepared to go for jail for this. another wait-and-see situation.

man, this whole odex saga is getting uglier and uglier.

onto other happier topics,

i just found a chinese website, similar to youtube and veoh tv, BUT has its anime episodes in chinese subs and is very up-to-date.

HOORAY!!

the quality is not very good, but at least i'm still getting chinse subs!!

HOORAY!!!!!!

first week @ IMB...

... and i'm already doing nothing...

i seemed to have started work on the same week in which they're starting to pack to move the labs over to the next building. according to the given schedule, we're doing very minimal packing per day.

since everyone stopped doing any new experimental work, i'm basically stuck doing not alot everyday too. except for helping to pack, there's really nothing much for me to work on.

which is killing me with boredom really.

i can't stand not doing anything when i'm at work...

other than that, i've met some of other people working around me. maybe it's the new environment, which will change again once we move to the new building, with still-not-very-familiar people, but i'm feeling quite lonely without my usual kakis... >_<.``

oh well, that's to be expected in a new working environment. i'll need plenty more time to loosen up with the people there. plenty more time.

my "lady boss" AKA the scientist i'm working under, seems like a very nice woman. and collegues says it's good to work under her cos you can really learn alot.

so, i'll juz take this as "honeymoon period", or so waisum says. when i start work in the new lab, there's probably so much to learn i might even need to stay late.

and though it's nothing to be proud of, i'm so happy to finally have my own workspace. with my own desktop PC, drawers, telephone, and shelves to put my own things.

after working in the hospital lab for so long, where everything are all common-use between everyone, it feels so new and exciting to get your own workspace.

and, i'll have my own work bench with my own set of pipettes, instruments and equipment. not bad right...

heehee...

i know... cheap thrill...

indulge me...

=P

-----------------------------------------------

currently watching Proposal Daisakusen which i borrowed from joreen. not a bad series, cos it's quite comical. too bad i'm not on break, or i would've liked to finish it within a day or two...

heehee...

random gundam musings...

it's been 12 years since Gundam Wing aired on Japan TV in 1995.

gosh, it didn't seemed that long ago... has it really been 12 years??

and maybe because it was my first Gundam series, but i still think comparing to the other series that was released after that, Wing still has the coolest gundams.

especially Wing Zero.

12 years.

wow, i suddenly feel very old...

bleh...

new job

it really feels very good to accomplish one of the resolutions i've made for 2007.

though it came very late seeing that it's already the last quarter of the year, and not to mention that my year-end bonus will be forfeited, i still made to decision to accept the new job.

so starting from 5 Nov 2007, i'll be at my new workplace at biopolis, where i'll be starting an entirely new chapter of work life as a research officer at one of the institutes of A-STAR.

no more shift hours, i'm going to have a normal 5-day work week like regular people, sleep in more on sat, and most importantly, where my weekends wouldn't be affected cos of work.

it is definitely worth giving up my bonus for. not that i wouldn't be feeling the pinch. having bonus at the end of the year is always good, since i always use the money to do a little shopping indulgence. but if i were to reject the new job just so i could get the bonus, i would definitely have regretted it.

and though i feel slightly guilty for leaving at a time where our headcount is very low and almost everyone is overwork, i can't always be thinking about that or i'll never be able to leave cos there'll always be not enough people working.

anyway, things in the lab is not looking very bright too. i'm already anticipating at least another 3 people to leave next year. i'm just the first one to go.

let's see...

*counts calendar days*

2 more weeks to my last day... ^_^.``

MOO MOO...

おたんじょうび　おめでと！！！
(happy birthday)

もしもし．．．きこえましか？
(hello... can you hear me?)



heehee... well, juz a little greeting to moo moo who is still enjoying herself in japan right now...

happy birthday moo moo... from all of the envious souls in sg...

Fall Anime 2007

well, the past week had been the start of Fall 2007... as usual, fall season usually has lots of new series but somehow, looking at the preview list from randam curiosity, there's only 2 that caught my attention immediately.

No.1 Taiho Shichauzo Full Throttle
(aka You're Under Arrest Season 3)
i was jumping for joy when i heard the announcement for season 3 about 2 months back. my favourite police duo is back for more action and laughter after a very very long 5-year break. and yet, they still managed to get all the voice seiyuu back which means i don't have to listen to natsumi or miyuki sounding like totally different people.

No.2 Gundam 00
this marks my 4th gundam series after GWing, GSeed and GS Destiny… i am still hoping for Koyasu Takehito to voice someone in this series knowing he’s such a gundam vetern, but he doesn't seemed to be in the cast list...

mixed reactions to the 1st episode, judging from the different blogs i've been to, but since i've yet to watch it myself, i shall keep my own opinion open... as all gundam series, there's definitely relation to the story and current world politics... which is good, seeing this is how we can use anime to relate to current world affairs...

and finally... juz wat the other 3 animals need... a maple story anime in fall 2007.

http://www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/anime/maplestory/

i'm not too sure how this is going about, but thought i should just informed the rest about it...

in the meantime, i'm waiting (very slowly) for the end of all my spring anime series... or rather, i'm waiting for the episodes to be available on veoh and/or crunchyroll...

this is a test of my patience... which, i gotta admit, has gotten slightly better since i can't download anymore... well, not that i have a choice either...

*shrugs*

Toy Protest

This is seriously cute. I'm tempted to stage one with my toys.. hahhahhah...

Figurine protests

Its in Reuters, dun play play

no more backlogged letters

according to darkmirage's post today, no more backlogged odex letters will be sent out.

Mr. SS wrote in the odex forum that they would not be sending any letters to anyone that stops downloading from 3 Sep onwards. so unless someone continues to do so, they will use the evidence collected before and after said-mentioned date and use it to question and take legal action.

RR's interpretation:

possibly, there is something very wrong with the "evidence" they've collected from 5-6mths ago (probably unable to equate the money amt they're extorting pple for) and they can't use that in their letters now, especially with the PacNet case still not won yet. (which i hope they don't.)

or,

odex finally falls under netizen's peer pressure and is doing as much as possible to try and salvage their business. moreover, they juz revamped their bloody website and they need more than just their employees in the forum boards.


when i went in to check wat SS wrote on the forum board, i'm surprised he didn't get worser backlash. BUT, he did lock the forum thread (abt the backlogged letters) after only 5hrs?? makes u wonder why he need to do that.

not sure what is gonna happen to the people that had already gotten the letter. moo moo, think u have to get ur bro to call odex or something. see if they still wan money.

and i guess this also means i probably will not get the said-mentioned letter.
thank God.

Anime News:
oh my gosh! random curiosity juz posted on ARIA the OVA - ARIETTA, a one episode OVA which they will be releasing on 21 Sep on DVD. i'm planning to get a hold of the DVD once the taiwan version is out.

and, 3rd season of ARIA is airing next yr too! which is juz great cos i love the series. more akira and co..

^_^.``

Pote-tan once again

OH MY GOSH!! i can't stop myself from looking her up all the time on youtube.com and veoh.com.

this is the episode half-way mark insert.

*swoons*

Guchiko

heehee...

for moo moo...

from ep5.

Potemayo Dance

ok, for those not interested, pls juz ignore this post...

i couldn't comprehend why i think it's cute and hilarious either...

but, i juz need to get this out of my system,

"OMG!!! she's so cute!!!"

will odex get it?

super backdated news, since i had no chance to blog since friday.

PacNet wins court case against odex to NOT reveal names!!

all hell breaks lose...

again...

forums and local bloggers are going crazy... reading only a few forum threads and already, pple are thinking of ways to counter-sue odex...

however, odex still has its 2 weeks to appeal against it, which it intends to do so. so we will only know the final outcome in 2 weeks time...

will the odex case be another durai case? will they get it from the anime fans?

we'll have to wait and see. my fingers are crossed...

*cross fingers*

>_<.``

Down with odex

i think all sg anime fans should read DarkMirage's blog post on odex, posted 19th Aug.

not that we should agree with everything he's written and juz throw away any letter sent by odex, but at least it cleared up alot of things i've been puzzled with myself.

personally, i'm waiting to see if i get any letter since starhub had been given the court order last week.

somehow, i'm exceptionally calm about the whole matter. many thanks to non-anime friends who've been concerned with whether i've been hit by the bomb.

but as i've said,
"if i get it, i get it... there's nothing i can do now to stop them anyway..."

i mean, they're using backlogged 'evidence' gathered from a few months back (eg. downloaded code geass from mar??!), when i haven't even heard a hoot of what they were intending to do.

and that's about implies how much people know/heard of odex anyway.

if (positive thinking), or when (negative) i eventually get the letter, i intend on asking them to break down every single dollar i 'compensate' them.

why should they be making any profit out of us?

licenced or not, the fact is odex can't even produce the same good quality as fansubs, not to mention how unmeasurably SLOW they are in getting to the stores.

so what's the use of buying their products if they can't measure up to fansubs?

anime fans wants their episodes fast. like within the week after its broadcast in japan, which can be given to them by fansub groups.

and for otakus like me, who watches all sorts of anime, we also want variety, not juz popular series like bleach or naruto.

so how about those less popular anime airing now?

are, or the question should be will, they ever licence series such as Potemayo or Over Drive? or even Katekyoshi Hitman Reborn?

eventually?

it doesn't help that the odex website is virtually non-existence.

1st time i went in, it was an "under construction" page, blue page with odex logo swinging around, + an email address for enquiry.

2nd time i went in, it was an empty page with the "under construction" words at top left corner.

now, it became this...

clarification?

yeah rigghhtttt.... (<- all sarcasm included)

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(back after blogger.com lost connection for the last 2 hrs)

anyway, i've juz read thru all the comments on DM's post, including all the links and stuff. apparently, someone managed to meet the most-hated-man-on-sg-cyberspace, odex president Stephen Sing.

http://forums.vr-zone.com/showthread.php?t=179331#Scene_1

quote from the last part of the post,

"Currently, Odex is holding on to all letters until a better solution can be implemented. But please be informed that these letters ARE ready as and when it is required. I have suggested to Stephen Sing that a nominal fee be implemented rather then a huge amount of S$3000~5000. Probably for students and working adults. Stephen Sing has given me a positive feedback on this as the intention is not to anger the people but to sound out a strict warning."

hmm...

seems like i might have to wait a while for the letter...

*cross fingers*

well... thank goodness there's still crunchyroll and veoh videos...



P.S. rr is currently watching all anime from above 2 websites, in addition to looking into parallel imports from HK, taiwan (for the chinese subs) and/or USA.

P.P.S. she will never buy from odex ever again. but she will still keep the few she has cos she can't bear to lose her RahXephon and Kiddy Grade.

Potemayo

i love cute things...

and juz like how the rest of us don't understand moo moo's infatuation with Bottle Fairy, they're probably gonna say the same about my infatuation with Potemayo...

but... "oh-my-gosh!-she's-so-cute!!!"


(taken from official website)

and all she ever says is "ho-ni", or a cutsy version of "su-na-o" (her owner's name)... no other vocab, watsoever...

but still... very cute...

anyone interested in potemayo, go to crunchyroll website and check her out...

surprisingly, crunchyroll is up to date with all her episodes (latest being ep6) and almost up to date with the rest of the anime i'm following...

meow meow, i tried checking for yamato nadeshiko, but cos it juz got licenced, they've taken it down from the website... i'll lend you mind as soon as i get it back from my friend...

881 (摇啊摇啊摇...)

oh gosh... totally did not expect how good this movie is...

the trailer for 881 got me so excited about the movie, and i was thinking it was more towards a no-brainer type of show.

the glitz and glamour of a getai... the flamboyant costumes which looks like those worn by some "guys" in thailand... and hokkien... lots and lots of funny hokkien...

but yet, beneath it all, there's still much more to the story... i want to say more, but it'll juz be spoiling it... so everyone, u have to watch it yourself...

anyway moo moo, i was juz very very red-eyed after the movie... i even stopped crying before the movie ended... that wasn't me being an emotional wreak yet...

the last time i was an emotional wreak, i fell sick and had that eye ulcer...

that, is how bad i can be if i was an emotional wreak...

this movie?
its's juz normal waterworks...
=p

fever

remember when i was complaining about having sore throat and i said i'll rather have a fever instead...

well... i take back my words...

having a fever sucked the whole life out of me...

the fever is still running on and off... i'm cold inside, yet hot on the outside... my head hurts...

add that on to, i'm still having a sore throat (which was what i initially had) and a runny nose...

i'm basically so weak that i can't even walk properly...

once again... i take my words back...

having a fever sucks...

~_~.``

Mayday concert...

2 words to describe...

SUPER HIGH!!!!

but of course, that is what you would expect from any Mayday concert...

by the end of the night, our ear drums were ringing (cos max pavillion's sound system sucks), throats were hoarse (we were singing way too loudly to even be in tune), but we were all still very very high...

never brought any camera... cos i know moo moo will definitely bring her "dua ling long" along, so i could just get the photos from her... and true enough, her 12x zoom dua ling long really proves to be worth the price it was paid...

mwahaha... pls go to her blog if you wanna view some of the photos...

next time, i hope they can get the licence for an open air concert (like Linkin' Park @ the Padang) just like those they hold in taiwan... max pavillion does not hold enough people to justify a Mayday concert...

^_^.``


PS. moo moo, the dolphin came out in the opening MV, where 阿信 gave the dolphin pendant to the little girl... my fren supposed to have something to do with the 为爱而生 song... not that i know the meaning myself... *shrugs*

movie month

starting from POC: At World's End, the whole troop of summer movies are officially here...

here's the blockbuster movie of each week in may-june...

24/05 Pirates of the Carribean: At World's End
31/05 Shrek 3
07/06 Ocean's 13
14/06 Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer
21/06 (nothing interesting this week)
28/06 Transformers

and to add to it, it seemed that NANA2 is coming to sg too!! (release date: 14/06)

moo moo, HOORAY!!

we can get to see NANA2 on the big screen... (though reviews aren't very good)
but still! it's NANA...

and amazingly enough, i have someone who dun mind watching Shrek 3 with me at the cinemas... thank you dear lydia...

review on POC 3,
well, it's not that bad. and they did try as much as possible to wrap up the story.

i juz dun like how they promote the "welcome to sg" when chow yun-fat had only less than 30min of screen-time. he's not even that big a role in the movie.
BLEH!

Prince Charming to the Rescue

so this is from shrek 2, but nontheless, my most favorite 5-10secs in the entire movie is in the later half of the clip...

prince charming can give all the pantene ladies a run for their money... all that wishy hair...

mwahahaha....

Spring Anime 2007

i know i know.. i'm very very late... i'm also very very lazy... =P

well, much thoughts (in italics) put into summaries...

disclaimers: wat i feel is wat i feel. do not flame me for criticizing any series u may or may not like. most summaries are based on wat i know from the 1st few episodes, any wrongs is entirely my fault for not watching til the end.

Hayate no Gotoku (sun)

boy, in order to pay off a massive debt incurred by his parents, becomes butler of a super rich girl after he saves her from hooligans. story shows his (weird) adventures as he learns to become a good butler.

well, not bad for a harem-based anime. funny, with lots of references to other animes such as Kamisama Kazoku, and even One Piece. and i like how they always use a cute face to cover up the "bloody" scenes.

Seto no Hanayome (sun)

boy nearly drowns in sea and is saved by a mermaid. as is the custom of the yakuza (japanese 101: japanese mafia) merpeople, he has to either marry her or face the death penalty (family included).

obvious answer is definitely to marry her. but not that it matters anyway, since the girl's father literally hates boy for "stealing his girl" away from him and has made many attempts to kill/chase away boy.

this show is very comical, and u really laugh out loud at many parts. male lead's (indirect) first kiss was from right-hand man of yakuza father (when he was performing CPR on him), and there's a shojo-manga scene everytime they meet. very very funny.

El Cazador de la Bruja (mon)

about a female bounty hunter protecting mysterious girl who is on the run from other hunters. lots of unrevealed secrets, from why is the hunter protecting her, why mysterious girl is on the wanted list, what is the past she had forgotten blah blah blah...

ok, i'm only watching this cos it reminds me of Cowboy Bebop and Coyote Ragtime Show. and the texas-western style theme helps too. story is slow though, as they only reveal very little every episode. hopefully, the plot will be interesting enough for me to stay on.

Claymore (tue)

youma rampaging throughout the world (sounds like saiyuki already), and the only soldiers capable of defeating them are the Claymores. genetically engineered, they are half-human and half-youma, and wield a huge sword with which they are named after. much blood and violence galore.

i only picked this up after meow meow said it's good. 1st episode was good, but subsequently, each episode gets pretty repetitive and seemed like the same old fare all the time. only good for a one-off watching. not really for keeps.

Overdrive (tue)

sports anime about boy joining the cycling club because of the girl he likes. of course, like all shonen manga plot, he finds that he really likes cycling and proves to be the rookie star of the team.

first thoughts was that the guy is a total wimp. he hangs around with the school delinquents who just treats him as their personal slave and ATM machine, and tries to be fashionable but instead is a total fashion disaster. the other characters, his team mates and other school competitors, are the ones i'm more interested in watching for.

Saint Beast ~Kouin Jojishi Tenshi Tan~ (tue)

prelude to the previous 6-episode Saint Beast that aired 4yrs ago, this tells the story of 8 angels, and why 2 of them rebelled against the gods.

filled with loads of shonen-ai moments, i'm watching only for the bishonen eye candy. plus, i did watch the 1st part, so just to complete the story...

Romeo X Juliet (wed)

Romeo is the son of the terrible dictator. Juliet is the last surviving member of the Capulet family that was massacred by romeo's father. story goes about showing how Juliet (or rather her faithful knights) seeks revenge against the Montague family, yet at the same time, falls in love with the very person she shouldn't be with.

in which they basically keep the star-crossed lovers part, but totally changed everything else in the story. they still kept the 16th-century feel about it, but set the story in a aerial city called Neo Verona. it strangely reminds me of Laputa (Studio Ghibli), though they have flying horses instead of airplanes.

i love this series! GONZO is gonna out-do itself with this alone, nevermind the other current series like Seto no Hanayome, or even previous ones like Trinity Blood (my personal fav). hopefully, it lives up to expectations. not that i expect a happy ending. in fact, it better not have a happy ending if they're gonna follow the story like wat Shakespeare intended.

Darker than BLACK (thurs)

guy with psychic/telephatic powers and girl whose power streams from water, works for organization that is trying to uncover the secret behind Hell's Gate, which is some kind of force-field that landed in Tokyo. other psychics also around to interfere, but male lead seems to be the one of the stronger ones.

not bad. the character designs are good, and episodes are fairly paced. but they're also not into revealing alot of information per episode. well, this is the show that is replacing Geass, so i'll be expecting more from it. at least much more interesting than Kaze no Stigma (reviewed below).

Saiunkoku Monogatari (sat)

2nd season already, so not much to give an introduction to. continuation from where the 1st season left us, Shuurei continues on her journey as she learns that being an official is not as easy as it seems.

hopefully, more ryuuki-shuurei moments... aahh, i can't help it. i really like ryuuki, and he's not getting alot of screen-time. the story is getting more and more complex, and more characters are being introduced. i wonder how they would end this...

Lovely Complex (sat)

a too tall girl and a too short boy. can love blossom between them? that'll have to come after they stop biting each other's heads off and end the competition of "who will get a boyfriend/girlfriend first".

main draw in watching this: the kansai-ben. the seiyuu for One Piece's Nami is voicing the female lead and i really love her kansai-ben. the exaggerations reminds me of Nodame, with the arrows, ship sinking and all...

Seirei no Moribito (sat)

another bounty hunter becoming protector series. this time, it's set in olden japan, where a young prince is on the run. apparently, he has some kind of evil spirit in him that will cause his father's (the king) downfall.

like el cazador, it's another female hunter turned protector. however, it's not as interesting compared to the earlier. i actually wanted to drop it at ep3, but something happened that made me want to watch ep4, so i'm still gonna keep watching. let's see if i'll drop it after another few episodes.

--------------------------------------------

well, that sums up the 11 new spring anime i'm gonna be watching for the next few months...

and now, for my rejects...

once again, my above disclaimers applies...

Nagasarete Airantou

only because moo moo say i'll do the summary...

guy run away from home and gets stranded onto an unknown island that is over-populated with girls. mayhem guaranteed with all the girls fighting over him like they've never seen a guy before. nose-bleeding scenes that can rival that of yamato nadeshiko.

duh... i mean, how is it that the girls are always the ones being flipped over ships... i can only take this much female harem series in one season. too ecchi for my liking...

Heroic Age

1st mecha series (i watched) of this season, and very disappointed with it. character designs by same guy who gave us Fafner and Gundam Seed, which should really give a hint of how the story will go. i.e. not very good. well, at least for the previous 2 series, i finished them, but the current one is much lacking in good solid plot.

Kaze no Stigma

guy from family of fire arts was chased out by his dad cos he's not gifted. returns a few years later as a wind arts master by signing as a contractor. and now, he's framed for murders in the fire arts family.

this is wat i say about Gonzo producing not-so-good works. story not strong enough to last more than 2 episodes. can't say wat else, but juz not appealing in general...

Touka Gettan

terrible... dun even wanna give a plot summary... in fact, no plot watsoever... i was so blinded by the beautiful character designs... this show sucks...

Kiss Dum -ENGAGE planet-

aliens, some in the form of huge mosquitoes, are attacking the people. enters mecha pilot that had to be broken out from detention barracks to save his girlfriend who is framed for abandoning the organization they work in.

2nd mecha series i picked up, hoping would be good, but another disappointment. i dun like unknown alien-like creatures. too much of the story would be based on discovering the reason for the existence of said unknown aliens and why they wanna invade earth blah blah blah... boring...

--------------------------------------------

finally, as a closing to this super duper long post, here's not forgetting the anime series that are still carrying on strong...

One Piece, D.Gray-Man, Bleach, Nodame Cantabile, Katenkyoshi Hitman Reborn...

and as u can see, i've officially given up on Death Note... it's super super boring... too much crap...

so, how many of the new spring series have u already picked up?

vizards

as i was watching this week's bleach episode, as with the daddys a couple of months back, i'm like,

"WOW!! the vizards are so cool!!"

the last part with hiyori summoning her hollow mask was the only good, and cool, part...

the rest of the episode was quite melodrama really...

a brooding ichigo is so not fitting of him...

phantom of the opera

OH MY GOSH!!!

i only have that to describe my whole phantom experience... it was really really fantastic...

watever i've spent on my ticket, i think half of it was used to manage the set and the props... but it was really worth watching... not to mention that i've got very very good seats! (right foyer, very close to stage)

and not those that u can only barely see the faces too... just too bad i wasn't seating at the stalls or the chandelier dropping would have been right above me... but it was still good seats...

music-wise, while it can't compare to the michael crawford and sarah brightman originial phantom cast, it was still quite good... i actually quite like the Carlotta in this cast compared to the OST one (which was the one i had been listening to since sec sch) as her voice wasn't the overtly screeching type...

of course, my favorite scene has got to be the masquerade scene... fantastic music, and quite the highlight of the whole musical... though the phantom disappearing part at the end was quite cool too...

all in all, i am so glad that i managed to catch it...

after 11yrs of waiting that is...


next entry... my take on spring anime 2007... once i've watched ep.1 of most of the anime i've wanted to...

^_^.``

hugh grant

truthfully speaking, i'm actually not that much of a hugh grant fan in the first place...

the guys he portray are almost always the classic British snob. the i-know-all-the-ladies-love-me, and yes i know i'm-the-guy-at-the-top type of guys...

think two week's notice and bridget jones and you'll probably get my drift...

the main attributes (as mentioned above) to why i'm not a hugh grant fan, and yet, the female population still loves him...

as for me, i went to count, and from the first romantic movie that made him famous (four weddings and a funeral), i've watched 10 of the 17 movies he'd acted in since then... that's more than half of them!!

given, I’m also a huge sap and loves romantic comedies, and he is without a doubt, the king of that genre...

so u can understand why i watch so many of his movies... nevermind that i dun like love actually as do most pple who watch it and say it's one of his best movies (¬_¬)...

but i stress... regardless of my ranting here...

i am NOT a hugh grant fan...

truthfully!!



ps. music and lyrics (his latest with drew barrymore) is still fantastic by the way... i love the music!!! ^_^.``

300

no, i'm not talking abt the spartan movie 300.

rather, i'm talking abt One Piece passing the landmark episode 300 last week!!

wow... i can't believe i've watched 300 episodes of One Piece already... was it really that long ago since i started watching it??

well, it has now joined the ranks of other long-standing anime, most famously of course is Detective Conan... who knows how many episodes that is...

anyway... in other anime news...

many of the fall 2006 anime should be finishing up within this few weeks, in which the start of april will be the new spring 2007 season...

can't wait... hopefully, there'll be many new anime series to look forward to... especially since saiunkoku monogatari is starting season 2 in april too... heehee...

will be posting up summaries soon of potential anime-to-keep...

oh! and the chinese subs for the new HaruToki movie that was released last year is finally out!!! can't wait to finish downloading it soon... ^_^.``

chinese new year and stephen chow

just as christmas isn't without the Home Alone series, so is chinese new year (CNY) incomplete without a movie or two of Stephen Chow.

i dun think i've ever passed any CNY without watching at least one of his movies.

this year, i managed to catch (once again) Kung Fu Hustle, and one-third portion of Lucky Star, also starring Sammi Cheng.

and it's alittle late to strike me, but i found an uncanny similarity between the landlady from kung fu and sanji!!

the way they always have a cigarette at the side of their lips.

the lighting up of one after a fight.

all so so similar!

here's the comparison to show how even their poses can be similar.
(photo of landlady taken from kung fu hustle official website)


ahahahahaha.

it had me quite amused by the whole thing. i mean, it's not a bad thing since i like the landlady and all, but i never really thought of putting them together until now.

this goes to show how watching a movie many times over can get into your head. =P

PS. oh! i'm going for my long awaited cruise trip this sunday!! WOHOO!!!! 6 meals a day!!!

Nodame Cantabile

since this will probably be the only winter 2006 anime i'm picking up, i'll give a more detailed write-up...

Nodame Cantabile is a story about a guy, chiaki shinichi, who inspires to be a orchestra conductor. though he's talented in both the piano and violin, he is also very arrogant and offended the piano lecturer in the music university that he's studying in...

as revenge, the lecturer transferred him to the rejects class where he meets the female lead, noda megumi (who insist everyone calls her nodame), a pianist who prides herself on her ears, more than the music score, for her good piano skills...

slowly, indirectly due by nodame, he starts to gather people around him which i'm guessing will start to form his little orchestra... nodame herself, is smitten with him, and almost always hangs around his apartment after school... especially when she only lives next door to him...

i really love all the music that they're playing, though i'm not a classical music person myself... very interesting and funny... in the 1st episode, chiaki had to clean up nodame's super messy and stinking room when the odour actually drifted over to his apartment... and the part where he starts washing her hair because she hasn't washed it in 4 days was hilarious...

all in all, i think this will be a great anime to keep... pity non of the other winter anime seemed to interest me much... oh well...

in other anime news,

saiunkoku monogatari will be ending in 5 week's time... however, the 2nd season will start in the coming spring, so i would still be able to get my saiunkoku fix... i hope the focus will be more on the relationship between ryuuki and shurei in the 2nd season though...

the latest PoT OVA episode 10 & 11 will be coming out this friday... more fuji and gang to look forward to...

Bleach 110

finally finally FINALLY!!!

the stupid bounto filler arc is finished...

as i was watching last week's episode, i finally had the excitement of catching bleach every week all over again...

my 1st thoughts after the episode was,

"shit! all the daddys (ichigo's and ishida's) are coming out!"

and it hit me more than when i was reading the manga...

not to say that i was all surprised and shocked when both dads came out in the manga as shinigami-in-hiding (ichigo's) and quincy extrodinare (ishida's)...

anyway, looking forward to every new episode now...

hohoho... today (wed nite) is episode 111, i'm all excited to see if kurosaki isshin is gonna come out in his shinigami garb...

^_^.``

death note 2 movie

if i thought the 1st movie was terrible, the 2nd one was worse!

omg, thank goodness we din watch it during the weekends or i would have cried for my $9.50...

halfway through the show and i had already rolled my eyes countless times, and wishing for it to end asap... it was much more draggy compared to the 1st movie that i nearly fell asleep towards the end... at least, i knew i was yawning so much i think pple might be irritated with me...

yes, brilliant as Light is with his clever ploy up to the end of the show, i wasn't all that impressed really... i think i was too disgusted by the end of the show to care...

and sorry to sound really singaporean here, but...
"wah lau, wat is his (Light) problem? die also take so long...
要死就快点死，讲这么多话干吗?!"

the only thing commendable about the movie is that both L's and Misa's characters were quite well portrayed... kenichi did a good job as L... i can't say much abt misa, since she juz came out in the anime, but she had the "whinny-ness" of the character right...

anyway, after the movie, i've decided i'm not gonna read the manga... i'll still finish the anime, since i'm quite sure they'll follow through the manga storyline and that'll be the end of death note for me... i might juz die of boredom if i read the whole thing again...

*sighs*

1st post of 2007 and i'm already ranting abt a bloody lousy movie...

Christmas

(back-dated due to the fact that i couldn't get into the blog at all during the entire christmas.)

got this paragraph from the bulletin cover page for Christmas service last sunday during church.

Christmas is not about all the things
we bring to the celebration.
Christmas is about what He brings.
Christmas is about a God in Heaven
who loved us enough to send His Son
to die for us
- Randy Vader-

while we kept saying things like, "i don't feel like it's Christmas," or "there's no Christmas mood," etc etc, maybe like what is written above, we've already forgotten why we've been 'celebrating' Christmas.

it's the Christ of Christmas we celebrate, not Christmas itself. Ponder Him!
- 20th Dec, Our Daily Bread, Christmas Edition-

how long has it been since we've really celebrated the birth of our Saviour?

Blog Migration..

*Blog invasion*

Hmm...

Roar Roar.. did u get a message on ur dashboard abt wat this blog is on the old blogger or something like dat?

Anyway I've migrated the blog to the new one. Accessible via beta.blogger.com.. Apparently a collaberation/collusion (hahha) to get more market share.

So.. have to sign up a gmail account if u do not already have 1.

If u have 1 already, better still, log in using ur gmail address.

hmmm.... dunno how to transfer ownership of the blog leh..

mid-Fall season ramblings...

well... it's about time i gave some mid-Fall season reviews...

in case you're wondering whether it's possible to watch 19 different anime in one week, the answer is YES!

it's not that difficult really, considering that many subs dun come out immediately the next day, and you still need time to actually download the subs too. they are also a few series which i watch by batch instead of a per episode basis.

hmm... let's see, my week starts from...

SUNDAY

One Piece - definite must watch once the subs are out. we're now into the main StrawHat VS CP9 part in Water7, so things are getting more exciting. my take is that filler episodes are probably underway once the Water7 arc finishes for the anime before they start the next story arc.

Kin-iro no Corda - story's pretty evenly paced, not very slow nor draggy. set to be 25-epsiodes long, who knows, they might end up following the manga story plot to the end.

Marginal Prince - sad to say, i'm quite disappointed with the way the story is turning out. though this is supposed to be story by story, there's not much substance in the plot. the songs which the characters sings halfway between each epsiodes are way too cliché. but since it's gonna end soon, i'll stick around to finish up the series.

MONDAY

Pumpkin Scissors - not bad, i like the way the plot is going, even though it's still on a 1-story per episode thing. there's still lots of things to uncover from the characters, like more on Orlando's past, Alice's engagment etc etc. my guess is they'll be going into a major story arc soon.

Tokimeki Memorial - yup, still hanging on to this female harem series. somehow, still enjoying the story so far.

TUESDAY

D-Gray.man - 2nd most favorite in this season, not counting the long anime like One Piece or Bleach. would loved if the pace was slightly faster, but still, always a definite must watch once the subs are out.

Death Note - one of the least favorite, usually watching by batch. i dunno why, but it just doesn't seem to get me piped up enough to swoon over it. maybe it was the very slow pacing in the beginning. ep10 seemed to have picked up a little more speed, but who knows, it might slow down again towards the middle.

Yamato Nadeshiko - No.1 brainless anime this season. the chibi versions of all the characters are getting way too cute. and the way Sunako swoons over blood and gore, yet fears all things bright and sparkly is just too funny to resist.

Shonen Onmyoji - No.1 favorite! i love this anime!! i'm thinking whether it has anything to do with my interest in mythology, since there's lots of japanese and some chinese mythology involved with all the onmyoji and their shikigamis. either that or it's just the historical japanese setting.

WEDNESDAY

Bleach - way boring now with the Bounto Arc fillers. hoping for it to end asap. end, END, PLEASE END!!

NANA - slow-paced, as usual. but still watching it nontheless. the OP and ED are fantastic though. loved the latest ED, kuroi namida by ANNA.

Yoake Mae - 1st of the 2 anime that are on a 12-episodes run. what i can say is, thank goodness it's only 12 episodes. the plot is just not solid enough for it to last any longer.

Busou Renkin - as i've said, it has gotten to the draggy and really ridiculous part of the story. i'm going through this series as i am going through Bleach now. fast forwarding to the few major parts in the episode, while the rest i totally skip. record time for finishing one episode: 5min. awaiting more promising ending.

Code Geass - another one which i would prefer a much faster paced storyline, but still good enough for me to continue watching. usually batched up to watch a few episodes at a time.

Sumomomo - somehow, this loses to Yamato in its brainless-ness. it started out alright, but seemed to lose some of the funnyness towards the middle. but still looking forward to more laughter in the latter episodes.

Asatte no Houkou - 2nd of the two 12-episodes anime that is ending in 2-wks' time. halfway through the series, i seriously thought about dropping it. but perserverance proves fruitful. this is one series that you have to stay on to like it. and yup, i like it.

FRIDAY

Bakumatsu - oooh!! the one anime i didn't get a chance to give a proper summary. as the title given, story is set in the Bakumatsu era, with a ronin in search of something called hasha no kubi that is the main key in the war.

like kenshin, there's lots of interlinking between historical events and also familiar names like the shinsengumi, sakamoto ryoma, katsu kaishu etc. unlike kenshin, there's lots more supernatural involvement, like the mysterious hasha no kubi, which is the centre of the whole story.

i LIKE!! i like war-epics, and this is set right in the middle of the only era i'm familiar with in japan history (thanks to kenshin). and i love the artwork since it came from the same people who did Witch Hunter Robin.

SATURDAY

Saiunkoku - story is progressing slowly, and even had a month in which there were no episodes aired at all. hopeful that ryuuki would have more airtime even if it is wishful thinking. the one good thing is that Koyasu-sama has joined the seiyuu team, though he's voicing the baddie in this story arc. *sighs* oh well, you can't get the best of both worlds.

Ayakashi - usually the last one to be watched and which is usually batched. story is quite confusing, which is why i usually batch up to watch so that i can get the story straight. i'm hanging onto it.

Katekyoshi Hitman Reborn - latest anime i picked up just a week ago. just one of those random ones which i read the reviews and decided to try watching.

male lead Tsuna is told that he's the next heir to a large mafia organization by his home tutor. the tutor is really a baby called Reborn, sent by the mafia boss to train Tsuna.

it's really not that bad. and the story seemed funny enough to stick around to. too bad the subs are very slow, up until now, only 4 episodes have been released so far.

--------------------------------------

right, that pretty much sums up all i have to say about the current fall animes.

the only anime i've dropped so far is of course, kanon 2006. i'm sorry to all the kanon fans out there, but isn't it just way boring the way the story is turning out... =P

more on my eye ulcer...

this is what, my 3rd visit to the eye doctor. mind you, all 3 times i went, it was 3 different doctors who did the respective check-up.

however, i'm quite impressed with the way they did the follow-up. either their case sheets are written well, or they just get by with whatever they can.

eye ulcer is healing well, and up to this point, my vision is almost completely back in the right eye. i would gauge it at 90%. now, it's just slightly blur compared to the last few days when i almost couldn't see much past my right eye.

thank God for that.

though i'm still quite sensitive to the sun (eyes gets painful under sunlight), hoping that with another day's rest, i would be well enough to join the church camp tomorrow, or monday. my group is very weak! they need help!!

another check-up due on monday morning...

eye ulcer...

just the word itself already makes my hair stand... but that's what exactly i have right now on my right eye...

initially, when i went to see my GP yesterday afternoon, she discovered that somehow or another, i managed to scratch my eye ball (the brown part), and there was a minute abrasion on it... probably got the abrasion when i was trying to dry the tears that kept flowing out... that was the reason why i kept having the eyelash-in-my-eye feeling... sent me off with antibiotic eye drops and for me to see an eye doctor if it doesn't get any better by today...

today, though it wasn't so painful, the vision in my right eye is totally blurred... so, to be on the safe side, went to see the eye doctor at Jurong Medical Centre (opposite JP)...

imagine my surprised when after the check-up the doctor concluded that there is an ulcer on my eyeball!!

ewww... i know... sounds scary right...

she even did a scrapping of the ulcer to be sent off for bacterial culture... (which hurts very badly!)

she gave me stronger antibiotic eye drops, to be instilled once every hour, and for me to go back for check-up the next day... am supposed to bring my contacts, and lens solution for her to be sent to the lab, cos she suspects it's due to my contact lens that might have caused the problem.

hopefully by tomorrow my eye will be better, and i'm praying at least for my vision to be restored alittle... now looking through both eyes, everything on my right side is still a blurry vision... like as if there's a translucent thing covering over my right eye...

but, i am thankful that at least i'm not working from tomorrow until monday... at least, there's time for me to rest...

i want my vision back...

*sighs*

the next few weeks anyone see me, i'll probably still be wearing my specs... i need to fit a nicer pair of specs...

ultimate bimbo collection...

heehee...

bought the latest Sony VAIO C-series together with joreen...

model VGN-C13G... in blush PINK!

**this position saved to insert proper photo of it soon.**
in the meantime, check out the website...
http://vaio-online.sony.com/prod_info/vgn-c13g_w/

although it's not as pink as the VGN-FJ78GP, and of course, specifications-wise, still loses to it, but still! for $1,999, it's already a very good buy...

wahahaha... i'm so proud of my new laptop...

wished i still had my pink panasonic mobile... they would've totally complement each other...

*sighs*

oh well...

furuba ending and nonsense...

finally... really really finally... Takaya sensei finally ended Fruits Basket last week in the latest issue of Hana to Yume... i'm sure many are very glad that it's finally over. and compared to other manga endings, furuba didn't have an anti-climax feeling, though they are other people who feels it's too perfect an ending.

but hey! it's manga... u should have the perfect ending... make the readers happy and all...

-------------------------------------------------

in other nonsensical matters...

had my block leave 2 weeks ago... family had the whole house repainted...

and now, with the school holidays in full force, many staff are on leave and we're starting our much dreaded last month of 2006 at work... lots of things to do, and many things to cover for those that are away on long leave...

i'm more dreading when my colleague goes on ML (maternity leave) after december cos den i would have to cover her work until she comes back 4 months later... 4 MONTHS!! i hope my machine doesn't break down that often during those 4 months...

i'm already dreaming abt the 1 week leave i'm having at the end of jan next year...

of course, with the start of december also comes all preparations for christmas celebrations... with church, the many events all start piling up from the 2nd week all through until new year's...

thank God i managed to give away my Christmas Day duty at work... i'll be very sad if i had to work on one of the most important days of the year...

live-action Death Note

one big resentment about the movie... and i attribute it to the movie makers wanting to appeal more to the general population...

they didn't tell us the real reason why Light wanted to use the death note... AKA complete world domination... to become "god" of a new world order...

they made it seems as if he was doing it for the good of everyone by killing off those that weren't brought to justice or served enough punishment for their crimes...

but i think many would agree that part of the reason Death Note appeals to people is that instead of the "hero" character that most stories have, this one has an "anti-hero"; one that instead of wanting to do good everywhere he goes, is more interested in himself and him the "all-mighty"...

i should say i'm glad i haven't started reading the manga yet... or i might be hating the way the movie differs from the manga... i've only watched 3 episodes of the anime and already i have much to say about how different the movie is from what i've watched...

*shrugs*

at least the movie got me more interested in the anime... especially with the anime being in such a slow pace... i haven't even see the whole face of L yet!

in any case...

a little trivia for those that have watched both the live-action movie and anime of Death Note...

did u realized that the same seiyuu voiced for the shinigami Ryuk in both??

heehee...

thot that was a nice touch...

Fall Anime 2006 Part 2

i'm late, but anyway...

here's part 2 of Fall 2006...

more KIV (keep-in-view) series here than part 1 which contains mostly my sure-watch series...

Pumpkin Scissors
latest GONZO series, set in post-war time, where military group "Pumpkin Scissors" is assigned to gather information and clear up all the left-over damage caused during the war. although they seems to be doing much more than their assigned duties, since their female captain juz happens to be an adrenaline-fueled justice avenger. add in mysterious male lead and it's all set to be a decent series.

hmm, others have said that it has a FMA feeling to it, but since i haven't watched FMA myself, i can't comment on that. but i do like war-time story plots, attributed to my gundam (Wing & Seed), rahxephon and zegapain obsession.

the plot itself looks decent enough, art and animation is very good, especially the fighting scenes. so all in all, probably nothing to stop me from finishing til the end.

Code Geass - Lelouch of the Rebellion
futuristic japan is taken over by the Britannia empire, and is known as Area 11. angst main lead is bent on fighting against the empire and obtains power from a mysterious girl, which he uses in the ep1 to order the empire troop that was chasing him to shoot themselves. (eewww!)

not forgetting to mention the best friend that for some reason, surprise surprise, seems to be with the Britannia empire military. how will the two friends fight it out? what is the ulterior motives of the best friend in being with the enemy military?

did i mention that CLAMP did the character designs?!!! straight from the heart, that's really my main reason why i'm watching this. thank goodness the plot isn't half as bad and the mechanics looks pretty promising too.

Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto
no summary cos i haven't seen it yet. but from the trailers i've seen, it looks pretty good.

i can't believe no one is subbing this yet. this has gotta be the only one out of all the rest that i haven't seen yet i'm dying to take a look.

because of rurouni kenshin, i'm really interested in the whole bakumatsu era. youtube.com already has the raws, but my japanese lang is not good enough to pick up most of the terms.

argghhh!!! someone please sub this!!

Shonen Onmyouji
young onmyouji-in-training can't see the spirits which he's supposed to be fighting against, making him quite embarassed considering that his grandfather is the famous Abe no Seimei. one day, he meets the shikigami that used to belongs to his grandfather. with the shikigami's help, he began to see the spirits again, and from then on, start his official training.

i like this one, maybe cos of it's set in olden day japan, which i like very much. once again, i'll credit that to too much rurouni kenshin. i watched and read RK at least 2 times.

it also has another similiarity with D.Gray-man in that it's sort of an "exorcist"-type of show. in any case, this is definitely a keeper for me.

Sumomomo Momomo
ahaha... another brainless show. but this one is really funny, and even better than Yamato Nadeshiko. slightly more ecchi than others, but still, that's where all the funny parts come in.

fighting girl bent on getting a guy to make babies with him so that they can produce the strongest kids to carry their bloodline and their fighting style. guy is not only uninterested, but is terrified of fighting, and instead, aspires to be a policeman.

did i mention that this show is hilarious? it really really is. so please do check it out.

-----------------------------------------

KIV series...
KIV meaning, the possibility of dropping them a half-way, or even after a few episodes are high...

Kanon
1st KIV anime is this remake of the highly popular 2002 version of the original Kanon. after 7yrs, guy returns to a city where he spent his childhood. enters girls whom he seemed to have met in the past. and of course, he gotta have partial amnesia and forgotten some childhood memories that connects him and the girls he meet.

well, like i said, i'm getting slightly tired of the whole female harem routine. and kanon just fit nicely into this genre. however, because of all the big fuss it's making in the anime world, i'll probably watch a few more episodes to see how it goes.

probability of dropping series: high

Asatte no Houkou
2 female leads, one a young woman, the other a young girl, exchange their ages when they pray to the same rock shrine. the link between the 2 leads is the guy who is the young girl's brother, and used to date the young woman before leaving her to take care of his sister.

another ep1 where all the main characters were introduced and a brief background was given on why the male lead left the young woman. bordered on slow and almost boring. however, i'm slightly interested to know the developments of the 2 female leads since the end of ep 1 was when the two just exchanged their ages.

probability of dropping series: medium

Busou Renkin
male and female leads fighting against enemies called Homunculus (made from alchemy) with their own alchemy, the Kakugane. male lead he tried to save female lead from being attacked by a Homunculus but was killed instead. in replace of his heart, he was given his own kakugane by female lead.

from viewpoint of the manga, it was quite a disappointment, given that the mangaka is Watsuki Nobuhiro who gave us Rurouni Kenshin. but i watched ep 1, and it wasn't half as bad. but also because they haven't gotten to the draggy and really ridiculous middle part of the story.

still, i might keep going on this series if the jokes and funny parts are still acceptable.

probability of dropping series: medium

Ayakashi Ayashi
lots of supernatural fighting happening in japan during the Tenpou era (1830-1844). special group of people, which includes the male lead, having the ability to fight against spirits coming from the spirit world. male lead also seems to be part of a group of people that are discriminated by the higher-end society in the show. *shrugs* typical.

not that good for a first episode, mainly cos it was quite draggy. another introduction episode is how i would round this.

but since it's taking a much coveted timeslot on sat, it is rumored to be quite a lengthy one too (maybe a year or so), and there are high expectations for it to do well. at least the art animation is good. something to look forward to when all else fails.

probability of dropping series: low

Yoake Mae Yori Ruri Iro Na -Crescent Love-
moon princess comes down to earth for exchange program and lives in same house as male lead as his sister is the ambassador assistant. the two may have met when they were kids, though the guy doesn't seem to remember.

another female harem show, though this one doesn't repulse me as much as Kanon did. both leads don't look like the angsty types, so there might be hope left for this.

probability of dropping series: low

-----------------------------------------

well, this sums up most of the Fall anime i'll be watching for the next 3-6mths. might pick up a few others along the way, but as it is, i'm quite loaded with what i have now, plus the long-running ones like One Piece, Nana, Bleach, etc.

with such a packed Fall season, i'm expecting Winter 2006 to release lesser series, especially since most of the fall series are 26-episodes long. we'll have to see when the time comes...

Fall Anime 2006 Part 1

ok, part one of a very long list...

it'll be too draggy to put all in one entry... plus, i'm not fast enough to come up with a complete list at one go...

Kin-iro no Cordo ~primo passo~
based on a popular RPG game, the story revolves a school music competition. while the female lead is not musically inclined, she is given a magical violin (by a little fairy no less) that allows the user to play it beautifully, and forced to join the competition.

bishonen-galore, the art and character designs are up to standards. lots of shojo moments, and since it's based off a love-stimulation game, focus is not only on the female lead and one male lead since there are a few others to choose from. i am also reading the manga which is currently serializing in LaLa. will definitely be a keeper.

Marginal Prince
another bishonen-filled anime. this time, based off some cell phone dating-simulation game for women. story revolves male lead that is sent overseas to study art in a all-guys' school that is virtually hidden from the world in a small island. enters stories of all the beeyoootiful guys in his school.

not much happened in the 1st episode except for all the character introductions, and plot is still unknown to me. will haf to review more episodes. but given the amount of cute guys, it'll definitely be a keeper for me.

Tokimeki Memorial ~Only Love~
as all female harem anime, male lead transfers to new school, where he interacts with the girls he meet and of course, falling for the most unreachable one that, of course, every guy already has their eyes on.

ok, this is probably the surprise one in the list. i never expect that i'll like this. given i'm actually getting tired of the female harem routine. not that i dun still watch them, but i'm more into male harem now.

mwahaha, looking at my choices of anime now. my first 2 shows are already male-harem oriented. but this is actually good... will be sticking by this for awhile to see how it turns out.

D.Gray-man
young exorcist male, together with his fellow exorcists, goes around fighting against the Millennium Earl and his akumas, created from human spirits he captures.

OMG! i'm regretting not read the manga yet, cos this is really good! the 1st episode already had me hooked through and through. although i might be biased since i've juz finished Trinity Blood which has a similiar plot. in fact, i much preferred this to...

Death Note
yes, as much as i prefer D.Gray-man, Death Note still has its draws.
ambitious guy, who wants to be the new "god", sets to bring a new world order as he pens names in a shinigami notebook that can kill anyone whose name is written on it.

what is it with people and complete world domination??

not much to say, cos it's probably one, if not the most, anticipated anime to come out during fall 2006. the 1st episode wasn't as fantastic as i imagined though. well, it's still only episode 1, so things much pick up after that. looking forward to yamaguchi kappei's L character to appear.

fyi, the movie version is due out in sg next week. WOHOO!

Yamato Nadeshiko Shichihenge
4 beautiful bishonens, in order to get free rental on the mansion they live in, takes on the ultimate task, to transform the landlady's niece from ugly hag to beautiful lady. well, technically, the female lead is not ugly, she juz needs alot alot ALOT of work to be done on her. which is where the bishonens comes in.

every season, there is bound to be a few brainless anime that will appeal to closet bimbos like me. this season, the 1st one up is yamato nadeshiko. quite entertaining, and i love all the SD scenes. i'm expecting more laughter as they continue to transform her into a lady.

----------------------------------

now for some that i've watched which i think is not worth watching after the 1st episode, and definitely not for keeping... yes, it's just me, so if you like it, that's really just you...

Lovely Idol
this, is a total waste of time. girls trying, struggling to break into the idol world. not much plot. the songs are not as good, and most of the girls are juz plain too weepy. uuggghhh....

it could be also factored to the idol thingy. reminds me too much of the many stupid idol contests. american idol, sg idol, project superstar, star idol, etc. eewww...

Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru
guy dress up as a girl to attend a girl school. enters lots of other girls literally flinging themselves on him, not knowing that he's in drag.

ok, so this is not Strawberry Panic. but judging from the character designs, it already looks like as a strawberry panic in disguise. even the characters looks similar. i'm not into shojo-ai, so that's probably why i dun like it. even if it is not real shojo-ai to begin with since the lead is in fact a male.

clear skys

well...

change in wind direction (FINALLY!) has brought clear clear skys to singapore... i'm sure everyone is glad that we can finally see our high-rises clearly even at night...


*shrugs*


so much for my multi-billionaire suing proposal yesterday...

------------------------------

anyway, 1st week of fall anime just ended... i've d/l at least 10-13 of the new anime series that have juz started... will go thru them and see which ones are worth the watch...

summary will be up later...

if i were a multi-billionaire...

if i were a multi-billionaire...

i would start suing our neighbouring country...

i will sue them so much, they wouldn't even have the money to buy matchsticks to burn their land...

i will sue them so much, that the only way they can even light a fire is by using the most ancient methods....

so they pretty much have 2 choices; either by rubbing wood against wood, or striking 2 rocks against each other...

if i were a multi-billionaire, i would so so SO sue them...

FYI, the PSI as of 2pm, is 91...

at 10am, it was at a freaking 130... ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY!!!

i've been experiencing headache, eye irritation, throat irritation and juz plain displeasure at the whole haze thing... i can't go outdoors without complaining to everyone i meet how bad the haze is... and repeating it over and over again...

things had better start improving soon...