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Sunday, February 27, 2005

12:46 AM - Elsewhere on the web

Tomy's GB-001 Biomegaraptor.
An intimidating design from the Zoids Genesis series.

Bootlegger totally screws copyright holder.
"Legitimate Crayon Shin-chan products removed From Chinese market due to bootleg trademark"

Toho Kingdom.
Everything you wanted to know about the famous studio, its creators and creations.

Saturday Night Live's geek phone sex skit. [via]
"What's that baby? You're a Level 5 Chaotic Evil Half-Orc? Oh, that makes me so hot. I'm a Lawful Neutral Druidic Monk with +5 melee range, Boots of Levitation, and a big, sharp Vorpal Sword. I want you to cast a saving throw, baby! Roll your twelve-sided die and cast it! Cast it!"

Link  | 

Saturday, February 26, 2005

3:04 AM - Elsewhere on the web

The collector. [via]
I'd pay money just to tour his house and listen to his anecdotes about his collections. It would be way cooler than any museum tour.

Firefox 1.0.1 released. [via]

The next Rider on Kamen Rider Hibiki: Ibuki.
He blows. In a literal sense.

Buddhism Force Buddhaman.
"Space Christians have come to destroy humanity! Their Bible Beast is running amok, and it's up to the buddhist champions of Japan to stop them. Don't give up, Buddhism Force BuddhaMan!!"

Link  | 

Friday, February 25, 2005

12:31 AM - Your moment of Zen

Stephen Colbert on the difference between Old Europe and New Europe:

Rule of thumb is if you're there to visit a museum, you're in Old Europe. If you're shooting "Rocco's All Girl All Anal Adventure # 8," you're in New Europe.

By the way, number 8 answers a lot of the questions left unresolved by Anal Adventures 1 through 7.

Link  | 

Wednesday, February 23, 2005

11:09 PM - Hmm ...

From the BBC:

Wenger dejected

From the Guardian:

Wenger upbeat

Link  | 

Tuesday, February 22, 2005

11:45 PM - The pee in PSA

Robot Chicken

From Robot Chicken's hilarious first episode:

Hi, I'm Optimus Prime. What you've just seen was a dramatisation of what you, your friends and your family go through if you don't get regular prostate exams. Now, we Transformers don't have organic internal organs and can't get cancer. But you do and you can.

Now I know and knowing is ... no, wait.

(Torrent.)

Link  | 

11:43 PM - Elsewhere on the web

"Young Americans revel in Japanese pop culture"
What a scoop.

A Toyfare Xevoz article from April 2004.
They should've ditched the "patented gaming system" and just aimed for the traditional action figure market.

"Mobile communication" misinterpreted.
Weird ...

Keitai collectibles.
Weirder ...

''... very squeezable."
Weirdest!

Liberated games: Free, legal games for download. [via]

Link  | 

Monday, February 21, 2005

4:39 AM - Elsewhere on the web

3G Micro Action Series. [via]
Nice, but I'm fervently hoping Takara eventually produces King of the Braves ver. 2.0.

Galaxy Force Exillion cosplays Hot Rodimus.
Another fan-mod improving on the official release.

Drag 'n' drop .torrent file creation. [via]

Kamen Rider suits for auction.

Newcastle 1, Chelsea 0.
An injury 2 minutes after using up all your substitutions and a red card for your 'keeper ... I thought these things only happened in Football Manager.

Link  | 

Sunday, February 20, 2005

8:47 PM - Elsewhere on the web

Microman Magneforce.
Interchangeability options include 3mm peg/ports and Magnemo parts.

Micronauts Evolution. [via]
These aren't especially Micro-like but they look like fine action figures.

Trigun creator Yasuhiro Nightow's blog. [via]
He's a fan of Microman among other action figures.

Kamen Rider Hibiki background translated.

UK tops BitTorrent TV list.

Just your daily dose of BBS-sourced weirdness.
I would love to see the full advertisement.

Link  | 

Friday, February 18, 2005

11:29 PM - Your moment of Zen

Competitive Enterprise Institute director Myron Ebell explains why it makes no sense for America to commit to the Kyoto Protocol:

Energy is just part of our lifestyle so if we have to put ourselves on an energy diet, we're going to become poorer, we're going to lose jobs ...

Jon Stewart:

We're going to need those jobs as we evolve into a black-lunged race of sun-blistered ocean-dwellers.

Link  | 

11:28 PM - Elsewhere on the web

Kick-O-Mania: football action figures.
Finally, a means to resolve that eternal question: Who would win in a fight between Roy Keane and Devastator?

Mugenbine valentine.
Also known as "the Instant Break-up Kit."

Lesson: Never pull a funny face on TV.
It will become an embarrassing Japanese BBS meme.

WordPress 1.5 released.
The best just got better. But I'm still waiting a few more days before upgrading.

Link  | 

Thursday, February 17, 2005

12:05 AM - Ultra-sensei

Gokusen

More on Gokusen.

Each episode in the series comprises of two distinct halves. The first half tends to be comedy-heavy and this is when Gokusen is at its best. In Nakayama Yukie, the series has a wonderful comedienne and she's the main reason I love the show.

Things do tend to get bogged down in the second half which is almost entirely drama. The problem is it's pretty much drama by the numbers where plot lines are resolved in a very predictable fashion.

Nevertheless, this series is consistently an enjoyable watch.

Link  | 

Monday, February 14, 2005

9:11 PM - Elsewhere on the web

Midgets meet Mugenbine.

Godzilla valentines.
"The person I bought these for is sleeping with me, so I'd say score one for effectiveness."

We're number 1! We're number 1! [via]
"Malaysian operations remain the top producers of pirated discs. Malaysian factory-made game and software dubs have been seized in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, the US, and South America."

"Electric brain police rhinoceros bar glass."
Google does many things well. Translation is not one of those things.

Pre-match prediction: "Fergie lot will be Dunne for"
Match outcome: Dunne's two own-goals won the match for United. Whoopsie.

Football Headline of the Week.

Torrents for the latest episodes of Justice League Unlimited.

Kamen Rider Hibiki episode 3 torrent.
Unsubbed.

Link  | 

Sunday, February 13, 2005

12:49 AM - Elsewhere on the web

Not your average Gundam model. [via]

Tmsuk's security robot. [via]
5 feet tall, 285 pounds, GPS, motion sensors, object and image recognition ... but no frickin' lasers.

Star Wars- and sci-fi-inspired music and soundbites.
Listening to Meco's disco themes is more torturous than watching the Prequels.

Mitchell Hurwitz on Arrested Development.

Link  | 

Saturday, February 12, 2005

1:14 AM - Elsewhere on the web

Transformers cosplay.
I shudder to think what the Super Link version would look like.

Takara USA powers-up its Microman site. [via]
The translated stories and bios are welcome but is it too much to ask for translated interviews as well?

Barry Glendenning: wicked football commentary.
" ... why does Sven get paid £3m+ pa for this kind of caution and cowardice? It wouldn't take him this long to spring into action if there was an FA secretary kicking her heels nearby."

The Cyborg Name Generator. [via]
First seen in 2000, it's been updated with graphics and offers to relieve you of your money.

Torrent tracker site succumbs/sells out.

The perils of keeping monkeys. [via]
"It's sad to watch the depression they go through if they're not getting enough one-on-one attention." Bear in mind, however, "some primates harbor deadly diseases, like herpes B, that they can pass on to human primates via bites and scratches."

Link  | 

Wednesday, February 09, 2005

11:36 PM - Pornograffiti

There's an unusual discussion on a Microman/Micronauts forum involving an exclusive Microman figure called Dark Army.

It's a fairly unremarkable figure -- I'd go so far as to say it's a poor attempt at a repaint -- but for the graffiti tampographed all over it. The standout message (and the reason for the thread) was "Fuck Bush."

This led to a thread on the aforementioned forum invoking Pearl Harbour, unwarranted accusations that the Japanese designer(s) were being anti-American, bizarre hypothetical suggestions about fucking tsunami victims and naivety about who the figure was marketed to among other things. As is typical in this type of discussions, Hitler got a mention as well.

It was, in short, a microstorm in a micro-teacup.

Perhaps the designer didn't have enough space to fit in his entire message on such a limited canvas and had to resort to a more succinct (but ambiguous) message. By "Fuck Bush," perhaps the designer was suggesting something innocuous. Perhaps his original message was "Let's Anal Sex George W. Bush!" Or "That Jenna, so hot, wanna touch the heinie."

You people, so quick to jump.

Seriously, though, the figure was aimed primarily at the Japanese market and while it has been described as "politically incorrect" by some American collectors, it would be more accurate to say it's merely rude. The political sentiment espoused was certainly in line with that of the majority of Japanese though I expect most would be a lot more polite about it. Furthermore, as the wiser folk in that thread pointed out, being anti-Bush is not the same as being anti-American.

However, I'm of the opinion this wasn't so much an attempt at spreading a political message as a juvenile and creatively bankrupt attempt to gain attention. See, for instance, the other messages on the same figure: "Fuck off," "Hate," "Maney is fake," and "RIP the system."

Link  | 

11:33 PM - Super Mode

Galaxy Convoy Super Mode

Another photo of Galaxy Convoy. (Click to see the full-sized photo.)

I hope to slap together a review soon but in the meantime, here are some brief thoughts.

Galaxy Convoy has a lacklustre vehicle mode evoking the blander future-tech designs of the late G1 era, a laughable flight mode and a simple transformation revealing a posable but uninspiring robot mode.

But the last mode sells the figure. Galaxy Convoy ver. Super Mode is Super Ginrai updated and done right. It's powerful and imposing while still retaining traditional Convoy elements.

The bonus is Galaxy Convoy will have additional modes available via upcoming figures. The first attempt looks embarrassing but I'm wagering there is a God Ginrai equivalent in the offing.

For fans of the design, the quandary is this: do you get GC-01 Galaxy Convoy, wait for the Hasbro equivalent or gamble that Takara pulls off the ambitious HBS-01 Galaxy Convoy?

Link  | 

11:32 PM - Elsewhere on the web

Action Emotion figures.

Saint Seiya gold saints cosplay.
Amazing work on the armour.

Gabriel Heinze bio.
Manchester United's ruthless leftback has a German father, an Italian mother, has an Italian passport, represents Argentina, has worked in Spain, Portugal, France, and last but not least, speaks Welsh.

Life in Cali: cheap, short and violent. [via]
A must-read despite being horrific.

Link  | 

Tuesday, February 08, 2005

1:59 AM - Hibiki episode 2

Kamen Rider Hibiki episode 2 synopsis: Hibiki goes house-hunting but is put off by a minor bug infestation in the form of a house spider. He's out of insecticide but he eventually manages despatch the arachnid in his own inimitable manner. He certainly marches to the beat of his own drum but he has yet to show he's worthy of the Kamen Rider tag. Here's hoping he fares better as a Rider than as a driver.

(Anarion and Mishicorp have unsubbed episode torrents while Japan Hero has narrowband-friendly clips. Check out my other site for a few screencaps.)

Link  | 

Sunday, February 06, 2005

10:16 PM - Elsewhere on the web

"Afro hair Bine Parts not included."
'Tis a pity for the world needs more robots with Afros.

Barbie's knees helps amputees.
"... the doll's knee joint is ideal for use as an artificial knuckle."

Custom Vector Prime paint job. [via]
A simple mod but highly effective. Take note, Takara and Hasbro.

Maoist game reviews. [via]
On Knights of the Old Republic: "The game is far easier if you 'go capitalistic,' which clearly points to early indoctrination conspiracy by the fascists."

Paean to Roy Keane.
"It would be easier to hide and to coast downhill into retirement, but Keane takes an almost religious reassurance from doing things the hard way."

Torrent for Kamen Rider Hibiki episode 2.
Unsubbed.

Link  | 

Saturday, February 05, 2005

10:32 PM - Elsewhere on the web

Wild Machine Robo Mugenbine fan-combos.
Get your gattai on.

Technorati's Toys tag
Despite aggregating summaries from blogs, photos from Flickr and links from Furl and del.icio.us, it still somehow manages to be uninteresting.

Torrent for the Arsenal-United pre-match tunnel incident.
Handbags at ten paces it may have been but Vieira unwittingly inspires United to a stirring and well-deserved win at Highbury.

My favourite picture of the moment.
Vieira faking an injury in an unsuccessful attempt to get Rooney sent off. Giggs' quizzical expression cracks me up.

Link  | 

Friday, February 04, 2005

11:16 PM - Elsewhere on the web

Flint Dille on Visionaries.
The wittiest toy-advertising toon of that era.

What to do if you think your child or friend may be collecting Transformers.
"If you suspect that your child is collecting Transformers, you should voice your suspicions openly — avoiding direct accusations — when he or she is sober or straight and you're calm."

BT Bot: torrent search engine. [via]

Off By One ver. 3.5. [via]
Updated with a tabbed browsing interface yet still very much a niche browser post-Firefox.

A 1,000-year-old lost city in Malaysia?
"If the city is what we suspect it to be, then the Malacca Sultanate can no longer be considered as the start of modern Malay history."

K-1: "... from a strictly sporting point of view the best thing ever to come our way from Japan." [via]
"... current world champion, Remy Bojanski of Holland, used to be a merchant banker."

Link  | 

Thursday, February 03, 2005

11:37 PM - Your moment of Zen

The Daily Show on the hapless action figure taken hostage by ruthless Iraqi insurgents:

My God, they took it out of the box. It's no longer in mint condition. You maniacs!

Incidentally, the Cave Troll which appeared as an insurgent in the Stephen Colbert segment happens to be a key component in the Daily Show's comedy creation process. From a New York Times article:

"I have the luxury of not being a real reporter, and in fact, I'm not even a pundit," admits Mr. Colbert, whose actual dressing room/ office is a shrine to all things "Lord of the Rings," including a Gandalf for President button and an animated cave troll that serves as arbiter of his writing sessions with fellow "Daily Show" parodists.

If an idea is funny, the troll raises a trident. If a gag falls flat, it lowers a mace and grunts. Mr. Colbert doesn't trust his own judgment. "I always love all of the ideas," he says, giving the troll a peck on its ugly cheek.

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11:36 PM - Gee Cee Zero One

Galaxy Convoy

Another photo of GC-01 Galaxy Convoy.

His crotch armour hinges up to reveal his large feet aren't an accurate indicator of prodigious dimensions in other areas. Indeed, it's readily apparent why he has a penchant for large guns.

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11:36 PM - Elsewhere on the web

Takara's Cyber Labryinth Megalith (review)
The mystery of this pyramid involves a pachinko ball.

"What sort of martial arts do pirates practice?"
Heh.

Baghdad blast wall art.

Link  | 

12:45 AM - Takara tidbits

Mainichi's web site has additional details about Takara's situation. Some brief notes (based on a machine translation):

  • Domestic sales between October and December 2004 were 80 per cent lower than the corresponding period the previous year.
  • The company plans to restructure itself before the end of February and will trim its workforce by 580 employees through a voluntary retirement scheme.
  • There are some interesting notes about Konami's role in this. Konami owns 22 per cent of Takara but awkwardly, the two companies compete in the videogame arena. (The article neglects to mention the fact Konami has also begun competing with Takara in the action figure field over the past few years.) Ominously, Mainichi also raises the prospect of Konami taking control of Takara if the Murakami fund (which acquired 11 per cent of Takara) sides with the videogame maker.

Toy-wise, Takara clearly needs to deliver some best-sellers. Products like the upcoming Microman Magneforce and Hybrid Style Galaxy Convoy sound amazing but shareholders are expecting the toy company to come up with major hits like Beyblade circa 2001. Time for Takara's creative designers to step up and be counted.

Link  | 

12:45 AM - Elsewhere on the web

16bit.com shifts into overdrive.
Three words: daily toy reviews.

"This isn't the right robot!"
2940 yen for that? Intoxicant-inspired marketing at its best.

Tokusatsu audience ratings. [via]
Kamen Rider debut ratings: Hibiki - 8.6%, Blade - 10%, 555 - 10.5%, Ryuki - 11.5%.

Fun With Words.
Have a butchers.

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Tuesday, February 01, 2005

11:15 PM - "Grateful Dead Thunder!"

From beyond the grave, he strikes.

Behold the power of Jerry Garcia!

(From Dekaranger episode 23.)

Link  | 

11:14 PM - Elsewhere on the web

Bryan Wilkinson's LiveJournal.
Microman/Micronauts-related news, pix and links.

Fashion action figures.
For men who miss playing with their sisters' Barbies?

Clips from Kamen Rider Hibiki episode 1.
Narrowband-friendly sizes.

Ultraman FAQ v. 3.0.
Unexplained: Why do Ultra-heroes place a warning light that indicates they're in trouble right where their opponents can see it?

BXing: leaving books for strangers.
It's done locally as well though I wonder how many books end up being immediately sold at second-hand bookstores.

Link  | 

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