There’s a big sale at Toys R Us this week. I took it this opportunity to pick up a Transformer that I’d been eyeing for a long time, but had yet to buy due to the price. But the price was knocked down almost in half, so I finally decided that the time was right to get the exclusive Air Attack Optimus Primal. He was a toy originally set for release under the Beast Machines line, but was cancelled and actually saw the light of day due to fan demand under Robots in Disguise packaging. He’s mostly accurate to his animated appearance (and I know all about that), very possable, massive in size, and actually has the voice of Gary Chalk. He says “The Seeds of the Future Lie Buried in the Past!“, but he says it in such a way as if he’s very frustrated that I didn’t learn this in school. He also makes several other sound effects, and is probably the noisiest Transformer they’ve ever made. The best part, though, is that the box says that he transforms into a “Supreme Gorilla“. Not just any gorilla, but a Supreme one! That’s freakin’ awesome. He’s a big bad monkey. Don’t mess with him.

Recent anime that I’ve been watching includes the following:

Shin Getter Robo 2004: Whoa, this came out of nowhere! I’m a big fan of Getter Robo and I had no idea that a new Getter show was on the way, but there it is. This series is unrelated to both the original 70’s Getter Robo and the 90’s Shin Getter Robo, but rather seems to be a new version of the story using the original Getter design as the prototype robot and the Shin Getter as the finished product. It has great animation, it’s very dark and a bit mysterious, and best of all, it’s violent as sin. The blood just flows like water in this show.

Tetsujin 28 Gou: WOW. Another remake of a classic anime, this one being a new version of the show known in English as Gigantor. Much like the new Astro Boy series, this show has some incredible high tech animation, but it’s still very grounded in the tradition of the original. The look and feel of the characters is very retro. Even the theme song is the same. It seems to be quite epic and has several World War II references. It’s a surprisingly refreshing show. The really unfortunate thing is that the original creator of Tetsujin 28 just recently passed away in a fire just as his creation was being revitalized.

Sensei no Ojikan: Very strange show about a class of weird students taught by a woman who looks like a 10 year old girl. The style of this show uses a lot of visual sound effects and random Japanese writings that appear out of nowhere. I’m not quite sure why I’ve been watching it, but it’s an interesting, albeit bizarre take on Japanese school life.

Megas XLR: Ok, this isn’t really an anime, it’s actually a Cartoon Network original series, but it has a lot in common with anime. It’s about this guy who finds a robot from the future in a junk yard and customizes it in crazy ways, similar to how some people have tricked-out cars. Then aliens go back in time to get it back and the chaos ensues. It’s a very funny, crazy, but clever show that parodies things like anime, Transformers, and video games, so people who are into this stuff are going to get a big kick out of it. It has yet to air in Canada, but I’m sure it will eventually.

That is all. Time to play with my monkey.

Sayonara.

You know, sometimes I just don’t understand people. In fact, make that most of the time.

Case in point: Recent troublemakers on the message board. Somebody, for some reason that I am not privy to, has a problem with a member of the message board. So this person has decided to join the board in an effort to spread some of his idiotic brand of havoc.

Attempts have been made to treat this itchy Internet inflammation. But whenever I put a stop to it, a new account is made and I have to do it again. I have locked no less than 3 separate accounts in the past few days. In fact, I doubt that many of the board users realize that there’s a problem, because I’ve been able to take care of it before it really gets off the ground. And yet the stream of stupidity just keeps roaring along.

I don’t have time for this. It needs to stop. Now.

Look here, son, if you happen to be reading this. I don’t know who you are, nor do I care. I don’t know you, I’ve never met you, and I don’t care about you. I don’t know what the issue is that you have with a member of my board, and I don’t care about that either. Just keep it the hell off of my website. I’m not a part of this ridiculous feud of yours, and so there is no reason at all to bring it to my message board. I have warned you about this via e-mail, and I made myself very clear. But you keep signing up for new accounts, and I keep locking them. You WILL stop now.

Can’t this jackass take a hint? Is he really that stupid? Hey, moron, let me spell it out for you one more time: DON’T COME BACK! YOU’RE NOT WELCOME HERE!

I don’t know what do with this punk. Challenge him to a final showdown or something? I don’t want to deal with this anymore. It’s an inane waste of my time. This is just a never ending loop of incompetence, and I’m going to end it though any means necessary.

New members are always welcomed! New posts and topics are always welcomed! Idiots are not! You all can help make the message board a better place simply by posting, be it something new or a reply to an existing topic. It would make it all worthwhile for me if the board were to flourish like that.

But stupid people signing up to board just to bother someone else, and then constantly returning even though it’s been made painfully clear that they’re not wanted… that, I don’t need. And anyone who acts like that anyway WILL be punished in a completely ruthless, unfair, and bias manner.

Sayonara.

The new season of anime has started in Japan, and thanks to the advent of technology I’ve actually been able to see the new stuff pretty soon after they come out via download. That is pretty cool. However, I’ve got to admit that there isn’t really a whole lot of good stuff out there right now. And I mean really, really good stuff, the kind that worth watching with each new episode. There were a few that I though were pretty good, and one or two that are mildly amusing, but nothing I’ve seen has really blown me away yet.

But that’s not what I’m here to talk about. Even though there’s all of this new anime coming out, with fansub groups scrambling to be the first out the gate, I’ve noticed recently that there has been more attention paid to older, classic anime titles. I’ve often thought (and ranted about) how the anime fandom in North America does not appreciate the classic anime series that defined the industry all those years ago. And, when you think about it, why should they? There’s hardly been any attempt to expose shows like that over here! Now I’m very glad that the older stuff is not being ignored as it once seemed to be. I’ve recently seen shows like Devilman, Getter Robo, and God Mars, great shows that, despite their dated styles and lack of flash, still entertain nonetheless. I hope that this trend continues so that English-speaking anime fans can have the chance to see more of the important classic anime series that we never had the chance to see before.

As anime fans, the classic shows are our history. Shows from the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s are where so many of the conventions of anime started that influenced everything that has come since. And besides that, so much of the new junk out there just doesn’t compare to the classics! So all you other anime fans out there, now you have no excuses. Give the old stuff a chance. You just might learn something.

Sayonara.

Yep, that’s right. Today in my e-mail I had the honor of receiving spam from Japan. I’ve gotten Korean, Russian, and Spanish spam, but only now have I gotten Japanese spam. Of course, it’s in Japanese, so I can’t read it. So let’s just see what Altavista Bablefish has to say about it.

**************
Sale person net business representative Suzuki sand world address Kyoto city Saikyo Ku Shimotsu forest turn provision 100? 1 telephone 0774-55-7505 not yet acceptance announcement & this mail please transmit reception denial gomennasai79@yahoo.co.jp today they are age of information in the next mail address as a reception denial. Price is super low price with bulk sale! It does above current price 15 ten thousand Yen! Don’t you try leaping large? If it becomes that air, the money has fallen to the foot!
**************

You know, you just hope and you hope that something like this is going to translate into something crazy, and in the end it just exceeds even your wildest expectations.

“Don’t you try leaping large?” Well, I never really thought about it! What benefits does leaping large have?

“If it becomes that air, the money has fallen to the foot!” THE foot? As in, The Foot Clan? Oh no! The money! What will the Ninja Turtles do if it becomes that air!

Priceless. I hate spam so much, but as far as I’m concerned, Japanese spam like this gets a free pass. Please transmit reception denial? No way! Price is super low price! Bring it on!

Sayonara.

Early this week I had another appointment with my doctor regarding my wrist. His recommendation at this point was to get a brace. I picked one out the next day and have been wearing it pretty much ever since in order to get comfortable with it. It keeps my wrist straight and has a lot of padding to protect the area that hurts the most. Hopefully, once I get used to it, I’ll be able to get back in the swing of things and start drawing again, or colouring at the very least. It’s a bit cumbersome but we’ll see how it works out. All in all it seems to be doing better after taking it easy for awhile.

Sayonara.