Several months ago, I decided to finally, after years of contemplation, create an eBay account to get some Anime swag. I didn’t think it was necessary to get an account with eBay, but after seeing an awesome Akira shirt that my brother was looking for for years, I just had to have it.

Along with the shirt, I found to my amazement, a Death Note Shitajiki that was made of epic win (from a fangirl’s point of view, anyways). The pencil board came from a different seller, however…

After a couple of weeks, the Akira shirt finally came with no problems. My first successful transaction with a seller on eBay at all. But the Shitajiki still had yet to arrive. I waited another week for it to arrive… nothing.

I decided to contact the seller about it. The seller, whose part of the store name contained a shortened version of the word “Bishounen”, claimed that it was shipped it; I did get an email when it was “shipped”, but it doesn’t mean anything, especially since it was from eBay of all places. So I waited another week. Still no package. The seller agreed to refund the money ($15) if there was no delivery.

After waiting nearly a month waiting for my Death Note Shitajiki to arrive, I had to file a claim with PayPal to get a refund: I could have contacted them through eBay again, but I had to do it as soon as possible as the seller’s page was suspended due to a missed payment from them, being a seller…

I did get a full refund from them through PayPal. Even after all the time waiting for it arrive. A month passed and I get an automated reminder from eBay for rating sellers-one of them from the “Bishounen” seller.

I knew from the beginning that it was useless to leave feedback when I didn’t get it at all. But I could still leave Neutral feedback. I simply left feedback saying: “The item never arrived. The seller cooperated and was nice to offer a refund.”

A few hours passed since leaving the feedback. Before I checked my email, I had a bad feeling in my stomach that the seller did not accept the feedback. I was right.

Basically, the seller asked for me to retract the feedback to a positive one. Then they go on to say that “we both lost the item”. They also said that neutral feedback counts as negative feedback… The rest of the message was tl;dr. I agreed to revise the review, but I couldn’t help but feel ripped off in the end.

Prior to ordering the Shitajiki, I took a look at their feedback history. There were a few feedback messages that were similar to what I originally said, but they weren’t revised. Possibly because the buyers refused.

The fact that I was asked to change the feedback was really odd. Has anyone had a problem like this with a seller? If the feedback was neutral, it’s neutral… right? And I couldn’t leave them negative feedback since I did get my money back and they communicated clearly, and I didn’t want to lie with a positive feedback-which I ended up doing anyway.

No worries. I found it in Atlanta for $4. ^^

The first entry in the Gundam 00 universe was released not too long ago. It did occur to me many months ago that it was going to be released, it wasn’t until ProdigalNick showed off new Manga releases at BBAMAJAM (and I call myself a Gundam fan). I now have a personal copy of Gundam 00F. It’s a side-story (yay!) to the Gundam 00 series, following the story of “the other Gundam Meister”, Fon Spaak.

Gundam 00F takes place during the events of the main Gundam 00 series. It follows Fon, who appears to have been punished for just another Gundam pilot, or for simply being another crazy, angsty kid, as he is seen in restraints. But this is likely the answer throughout the story.

Fon Spaak is a member of the organization, Fereshte. The characters involved with Fereshte are Chall Acustica, who founded the organization after being a part of a Gundam development team, whose members were killed in an accident, leaving Chall as the surviving member. There’s also Eco Calore (what’s with the names?). All he does is make snarky remarks about Celestial Being and Fon. But Fon wins most of the time. Although it seems he has a past with another organization…

As the story takes place along the main story of the series, there are familiar faces: from the first appearance of Ali Al-Saachez, to the kidnapping of Massoud Rachmadi. That said, the original Gundam meisters, Setsuna, Tieria, Lockon, and Allelujah appear as well, including Wang Liu Mei, and others that appear throughout the entire series.

Bonus: Neko Haro (Mild Spoilers)

Reading through the synopsis of Gundam 00F, a few friends noticed that a catgirl graces the back of the cover. Unusual for a Gundam series… that’s not a doujinshi. The name of the “catgirl” is Hanayo, who is actually a Haro-who’s antennae (if that’s what they are) are shaped like ねこみみ (Neko Mimi / Cat Ears), and stay like that upon transformation. Hanayo is a hologram that was programmed from Chall’s past, who looks a lot like a crew member of the development team…

Thoughts

Just about every Gundam series gets a side-story (except for G Gundam). Every Gundam side-story I’ve read is just as good as the original story, if not better. Adding to my collection with Wing era The Last Outpost, Episode Zero, and Target Zero, Gundam 00F may just be the next best spin-off of a spin-off of a spin-off.

Many Gundam side-stories take place before, after, or during the original series. But the first volume of Gundam 00F takes place during the first season of Gundam 00, which is a relieve for those who have yet to finish the second season (unlike a certain someone).

It seems that the second volume hold more key to the story. Does it give Fon an extended story leaving the original cast in the dust, or will it be a spoiler fest for the confused? I’ll get back to you on that.

Rating:

Not an actual Unicorn… but the eagerly awaited Gundam OVA series, Gundam Unicorn will be released in March. It is the first instance of Gundam in the new decade, and the first Universal Century series in 15 years.

This is not only limited to Gundam Unicorn, but there’s more. Anime News Network announced two weeks ago that Bandai is making a move on their “Bandai Channel” service for viewers outside of Japan. If you remember a post I made before the end of 2009 of how 2010 would be the year of Gundam? I was about right in my revelations!

Starting in March, not only will Gundam Unicorn will be released Worldwide on Blu-ray, but the original Universal Gundam series will, finally… finally be streamed on YouTube, Crunchyroll, and in Anime News Network’s video section of their website. If you have been following me on Twitter, this is what I have been wishing for for a while. I was also quite excited about it when the news came out. ^_^

Back to Unicorn: the first episode of the OVA will premier in Hong Kong on February 6th. It will also run in Osaka, Nagoya, and Fukuoka Japan for two weeks starting Feburary 20th, coinciding with the release of Unicorn on the Playstation Network (in Japan).

The Blu-ray of Unicorn will be released on March 12th in the US only on Amazon for two months. It is also available for pre-order on CDJapan, and Play-Asia. If you can find the First Print edition, it comes with a slip-case, which is already sold out in many online retailers.

It’s not just the original Gundam series from 1979 that will be streaming online, but several others as well. More Gundam series will be added in the future after the initial series premiers on February 1st.

• Mobile Suit Gundam
• Mobile Suit Z Gundam
• Mobile Suit Gundam Wing
• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED
• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny
• Mobile Suit Gundam 00

This is also a great opportunity to check out how it all began. For those who have no idea where to start watching, check out my “Gundam 101″ (Parts 1, 2, and 3) series to get started. ^_^

I know this post is totally overdue to the fact that I intended to publish this after it happened, but many things occurred that prevented me from posting this. But think of it as a “warm-up” for the 2010 convention season!

Held in September, the week before Anime Weekend Atlanta, Boogie BAM Anime Jam once again put on their second Cosplay Contest. Being close to AWA, it was also a AWA Cosplay Showcase for participants to show off their costumes for the biggest weekend for Southern Otaku.

There were more people this time around, being hyped for AWA and an excuse to cosplay in public… again. I participated in the contest for the second time, cosplaying as Toushiro Hitsugaya from Bleach, wearing a School Uniform/Gigai (worn Friday and Sunday at AWA).

The previous cosplay contest featured cosplays from diverse series in Anime and Video Games: from Sgt. Frog, Resident Evil / Biohazard, Naruto, and Bleach, but this time there was an sudden explosion of one series: Final Fantasy.

There were at least 5 Final Fantasy cosplayers (Noctis (from Versus XIII), Sepiroth, Selphie, and Yuna) in the contest, including an awesome cosplayer who switched between Vincent, Reno, Tseng, Tifa, and Rinoa. For the Bleach crowd, there were 2 Urahara cosplayers besides our very own Toushiro.

It’s time for photos! While I took more pictures (with my basic Sanyo E780) than I did before, and with help from Bluesphx and Zippy, there are still a few pictures that I have yet to upload due to lack of quality/needs to be edited. More can be seen in the gallery.

Sanosuke (Rurouni Kenshin) vs. Sephiroth (FFVIII: KH Version)

Sephiroth warming up for the crowd

OMG! It's a giant Domo-kun!!

White Haired Characters: Toshiro (Bleach), Sephy, and Miku (Vocaloid)

Ban Mido from GetBackers

Vincent from Final Fantasy VII

After the photo-ops, insanity, and judging were over, it was time to announce the winners. The prizes were donated by the former host of the Sushi Bar Radio, Johnny Otaku.

The Winners: Yuna, Domo, and Miku

1. Yuna* (Final Fantasy X)
2. Domo-kun
3. Miku Hatsune (Vocaloid)

*The Yuna cosplayer also won the Youth Division at the AWA Costume Contest! Congrats!

After the grand prize winners were chosen, select runner-ups received honorable mentions, as well as a D. Gray Man bookmark straight from Japan donated by a fellow BBAMAJAM member who went to the country a few weeks prior to the contest.

The Notable Mentions

Many congratulations are in order for the winners! So many costumes, only 2 hours! I didn’t come home with anything this time, but I still had fun! I’m undecided for the next contest, but I’m working on something new before MTAC and/or JAMPcon next year. Who knows?

To add to the growing line of Anime apps for the iPhone (and iPod Touch) is the Fullmetal Alchemist State Alchemy Exam. It’s the first Fullmetal Alchemist app for the iPhone from Appliya in conjunction with FUNimation.

As the app’s name is implied, the State Alchemy Exam is filled with exam questions inspired from the series. Not just from the series, but with [educational] questions like the symbol for Aluminum and the three states of matter. The exam host is Edward Elric himself, who gives you a thumbs up if you answer a question correctly or gets irritated when it’s incorrect. But get three questions wrong, you lose.

Answering all the questions correctly unlocks additional modes. Completing the exam in either Easy, Medium, and Hard modes rewards you exam certificates along with wallpapers from the series. As in just about every iPhone game, you can also post your high score online via OpenFeint.

As a Fullmetal Alchemist fan, I am excited that a FMA-centric app is (finally) on the App Store. There are, however, a few problems. It has the tendency to crash at random time. It’s not a huge deal as it can be fixed via updates. But improvements could have been made to the selection of wallpapers.

Rating:

Price: $1.99
Tested on iPod Touch (2nd Generation) / iPhone OS 3.0
Buy on iTunes

It looks like an iPhone, but it’s not. I am now the owner of an iPod Touch; a device in line of interactive devices from Apple Computers.

It took me a year to decide on whether to get an iTouch or an iPhone*. In September, Apple revealed the new 3G iPod Touch models, 32 GB and 64 GB–with an improved CPU and a lower price between the 8 and 64 Gigs. This was after a lot of speculation that the iPod Touch was going to get a camera, ala the iPhone. Disappointed, I settled with a 8GB model… for now.

While the iPod Touch is just another iPod product, it does everything the iPhone does (except for making phone calls, of course) when it comes to third-party applications, or “apps”. I am also a step closer to liveblogging like Danny Choo with his iPhone. But in my case, I would need a Wi-fi hot spot do post updates.

I am using a few too many apps. Including the official WordPress app for managing posts and comments as you would on a PC. (I started writing this post on the Touch via Local Drafts).

There’s the Kisscomi apps from Tachyon Works that’s popular in the Idol worship community. (Can you get to my score of 100?) Finally, it’s the popular Evangelion Clock app from Appliya.

Speaking of WordPress, this is what CEN.TAKU.ME looks like on the Safari browser.

Here are some other apps that I’ve been using, in no particular order:

• Metal Gear Solid Touch
• HootSuite
• KBS World
• Facebook
• VLC Remote (The best remote app for watching Anime away from the computer!)

The iPod Touch can also display wallpapers while in locked mode or when there is no album art available. Wallpapers can be found online from sites like OTAKUPHONE. I got my wallpaper from Metal Gear Solid Touch using Drebin Points from the missions.

It’s been a couple of months since getting the iPod Touch, along with getting a $50 iTunes Gift Card (Black Friday Deals FTW). Buying the iPod Touch replaces my 5 year old 6GB iPod mini that was losing its charge despite getting a replacement battery (with me preforming the operation) earlier in the year. I have a feeling that I’m going to run the battery down fast by staring at my wallpapers…

While my music collection is much bigger than when I brought the mini, the 8GB is enough for me for the essential J-Pop, K-Pop, Podcasts, and Apps. Speaking of apps, I am already working on an iPhone app review that will be published very soon.

(*For the curious: you do not need to pay a monthly fee for a touch. Indeed it looks like an iPhone, note that the receiver is missing. It is also smaller than the iPhone. The touch is nice for those who have contract commitments with other providers, or just simply can’t afford one.)

An addendum to 2009 in Review: There is one moment from 2009 I totally forgot (very sorry!): it is my interview on Planet Asia (now known as American Otaku) hosted by Neo of Otakast Radio. The interview was originally recorded back in late-April.

It was a pleasure to chat with Neo and to share my Aniblogging adventures with the listeners. I hope the interview inspires others to create their own blog and follow the path of becoming the next Sanjo-chan, the folks of Otaku USA magazine (i.e.: Patrick Macias), or Danny Choo. ^^

If you haven’t listened to it, the episode is still available on the BlogTalkRadio page.

It’s been several years since playing and finishing Final Fantasy X. While it’s not the first Final Fantasy game I’ve played, but the first in the series to play all the way through. The reason I went through the entire story in a few months is because of one character. Auron has changed my life… and the way I play RPGs.

Auron’s influence is not the same you would find in characters of other RPGs or in Final Fantasy. While everyone loves Reno, Cloud, Squall, Zidane, and Aeris, Auron stands out from everyone else for obvious reasons.

He respects others and even offers advice to those in need. From the looks of things, he’s been through so much that he’s come a long way from the personality of a spoiled Warrior Monk to an awesome, wise (and handsome) old man-even for someone still young…

As expected, his influence turned on my Otaku switch; collecting fanart, reading fanfiction-anything with him on it, even claiming him as a boyfriend a figure I recently purchased.

After Final Fantasy X was over and gone, I was very sad-and not just because of the game itself (involving spoilers). A few years passed since the release of Final Fantasy X-2… and Kingdom Hearts II: with Auron who makes a cameo appearance. When I heard the announcement, I was very lucky to have taken up the Kingdom Hearts series after refusing to see Disney and Square-Enix characters together.

Playing Kingdom Hearts after despising the fact that characters from two different franchises are joined together is a miracle in itself. You could say it was inspired by Auron. Very mild spoilers: Not because he appears in the game, but in Final Fantasy X, he was not very fond of Jecht, but he grew to accept him…

Another example of his kindness: One of my favorite scenes from the game involving Auron and Tidus after the Blitzball game incident. May contain spoilers.

That’s why I think Auron is the character of the decade. If it wasn’t for him, my world would be pretty empty right about now-or having eventually to accept Cloud as the hero of the decade for the second time in the 2000s… I could always fangirl over Vegeta, Maes Hughes, L, or Byakuya, but still…

This post has been especially written for the Japan Blog Matsuri, hosted by Reesan of Lonelee Planet (Thanks!). The theme for January 2010 is “Famous Japanese People”.

Another end to a great year. 2009 flew by sooner than expected and with a few promises I made to myself and the blog that were fulfilled for the year in 2008.

Otaku Habits

I don’t think I’ve watched enough Anime this year, even after getting hyped for the new Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood series, Valkyria Chronicles, K-ON!, and the remake of Dragonball Z, Dragonball Kai.

The best Anime series I’ve seen this year (but not made in 2009) was ZZ Gundam. However, as of writing, I have yet to finish it (it’s on my ‘09-’10 to-watch list). Watching this for the first time inspired me teach the ways of Gundam to other Anime fans of Boogie BAM Anime Jam.

My problem with Anime goes the same for Manga. Looking at my bookshelf, I realized that I’ve only brought a few volumes of Fullmetal Alchemist, while the cash that could have went towards catching up went to AWA. I don’t feel too bad about missing out about it-as reading too much of the stuff often leads me to withdrawal.

Anime Club

I’ve been attending the meetings of Chattanooga’s first Anime club that is held every week at Books-a-Million, which has been an interesting experience after finding clubs living in Illinois that seemed to be close-knit, so to speak…

While an Anime club watches Anime at a meeting or two, Boogie BAM Anime Jam, whose awesome name was voted on unanimously by the members in the second meeting, is located in the manga section of the store. (Reading is fine as long as you buy something!)

Thanks to the Chattanooga Bicentennial Library’s monthly Anime @ The Library screenings, we get the chance to see new and fan favorite Anime series as a group, as well as a way to recruit new members. ^^

Boogie BAM Anime Jam is a pretty laid back group, and attracts members from all demographics: as in hardcore cosplayers, artists, J-Pop radio hosts, K-Pop fans, learners of Japanese, and bloggers.

Conventions

For 2009, I’ve managed to attend the biggest Anime convention in the South: Anime Weekend Atlanta. I had a blast, despite the lack of sleep and catching a cold after the trip home. I was to attend JAMPcon this year, but it was postponed due to economic difficulties… which was a good idea.

Top 10 Popular Posts of 2009

Anime Girl Character Generator
Spring 2009 Anime Lineup
Starcraft Gundam Century Mod
Blue Dragon Plus [Review]
Interesting Find: Homemade Sushi
Anime Blog Awards 2009
The 2009 Anime Convention Guide
Interesting Find: Best Buy Anime Liquidation
Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam II: Lovers (Movie) [Review]
Evangelion iPhone Picture Stamp App

For 2010…

My plans for 2010 remains pretty much the same as 2009, with the exception of (finally) landing a job as a [part-time] freelancer. The good thing about freelancing is that I would still have the time to post when the time comes (and gives me a piece of mind with my creativity). ^_^

The biggest thing for me in 2010 is the launch of AniBroad, which is just about done and ready for private testing before it’s open to the public. 2010 also marks the beginning of a career in the Anime convention industry as I will be on staff to run a panel at JAMPcon in May.

In ending: I hope everybody had a great 2009, and I look forward to hearing about their plans for the New Year! Thank you for reading and supporting CEN.TAKU.ME! ^_^

I hope everyone is having a great holiday season! 2009 has been amazing, and 2010 will be even better as a lot is planned for the blog in the coming months, along with a look back at ‘09.

I should also note that 2010 will be the year of Final Fantasy (above pic, via Gelbooru, intended), but who knows what the New Year as to offer. Have a safe happy and safe New Year!

A few weeks ago, I mentioned that I did not see the need to own figures the way other love them on Figure.fm, with the exception of Snow Villers. For me, it’s likely due to the fact that most of the figures I see are of female characters… Where’s are all the male figures?

The closest thing to figures I collect are Gunpla, or Gundam Models… Though it’s been eons since I last built one. Along with my 9 Limited Edition Death Note figures and my still boxed Final Fantasy X-2 Play Arts Paine figure (if I hadn’t mentioned it before… now you know), I present to you the first figure (and review) in my collection that would set the road of becoming a figurine collector: Auron from Final Fantasy X.

Auron is a part of Square-Enix’s Final Fantasy X Play Arts Collection, 3rd in the series, with #1 being Tidus and #2 Yuna. I couldn’t find any figures of Auron until a few years ago when I found an ad in an Anime magazine for the figures. And the reason I didn’t get one right away was because I didn’t think I would keep up with it, being younger-and the fact that it would be have cost more than my allowance…

Assembling the figure was a little difficult; while it was a piece of cake sitting him on the stand, changing his untucked arm wasn’t easy. Reading other reviews of the figure, Auron’s arm can snap off easily if not handled carefully. (Hmm… aren’t all figures like that?)

Making sure not to hurt him, I took my time removing the sleeve piece from his stomach and back. I was careful to make sure the extended arm didn’t snap; I originally pushed in the joint into the figure, but I ended up twisting it in, carefully, firmly, and slowly. This also works wonders by twisting it out when changing the arm back into his Kimono.

Putting him on the stand in his battle stance should be handled with care as his sleeve can get in the way with the supports that go around the waist, but the stand can be adjusted to meet his height. (I just didn’t want to hurt him!)

The tassels on the back of his kimono and the “Nog” bottle should be done the same as they could be pulled loose if handled recklessly. There is some bad news: after a day of playing around with Auron’s poses, the katana broke at the hilt. After gluing it back on, it was as good as new. But I’m already in love with the figure. Since it’s a Christmas gift, I can say that “I want got Auron for Christmas!”.

There are a few things I’m a little annoyed about: his eye is painted blue, and not brown as in the game. They also could have included his pony tail and painted around his upper lip for a five o’clock shadow. But Square is forgiven as long as I have my Auron. ^_^

After months of careful planning and kept secrets, it’s time to reveal the secret of the “wave” project (with has nothing to this with this Wave, FYI). As of now, “Operation: Wave” is now known as AniBroad. AniBroad is a(other) website for Anibloggers to get their blog across the blogosphere.

The concept of AniBroad is simple: it’s a blog directory for Anibloggers, new or vets, to find new blogs to read or just to network with via blogroll exchanges. It is also a way to get extra traffic in addition to search engines and other methods of internet traffic.

With respect for my favorite sites: Otaku.fm, JapanSoc, OtakuStuff, and anime shrine directory sites like the Anime Web Turnpike, and other blog aggregators, AniBroad does not intend on competing, but rather help out others who are unable to reach additional audiences due to unusual circumstances. In other words: there are not enough websites for promoting blogs on Otaku-related content directly…

The project came to life a year and a half ago, a little after the launch of CEN.TAKU.ME. I originally wanted it to be a site like Digg or Reddit (using Pligg)—with a little “community inspiration” from Entrecard. But seeing a few other sites like this already (JapanSoc and OtakuStuff), I didn’t think another was necessary at the time.

Instead of an article voting site, I decided to start from scratch. But knowing very little about PHP and MySQL and refusing to use clunky directory software with lack of customization, I put the project aside. After coding the “Sherbet News” WordPress theme, learning about PHP in the process, I decided to give the project another try.

The reason it took so long to announce AniBroad up until now was not only because of procrastinations (AWA, catching a cold, gaming, getting a job, etc), but because I didn’t think it would be ready after just a few months, and the fact that I was limited in coding abilities. The procrastination paid off, however.

The project is about 70% 75% complete. When AniBroad is live, it will be a beta launch, but limited to about a dozen users as there are a few features that may not make it at launch, but users should get a little boost in exposure in the meantime. ^^

The launch window? Late January or early February, if everything goes well. Screenshots may be posted later.

The 15th year of Anime Weekend Atlanta has come and gone, but with less than 365 remaining until AWA 16, there are a lot of events and panels I was looking forward to a couple of months (or years..?) before attending.

Sure, I went to as many panels as I could (even the late night ones..*ahem*), but I can’t help but feel like I was missing out on other things…

(Photo Credit: millermz)

The Maid Cafe

Even though I had a blast overall at Anime Weekend Atlanta, I’d bang my head on the table for missing out on the *only* (reachable from Chattanooga) maid cafe 100 miles away from home. Maid cafes at conventions are not the same as the actual maid cafes in Akihabara… But when you have just enough money to go to Japan-but choose AWA instead, this will have to do.

Photoshoots

I got a decent batch of photos from the Dragonball/Z/GT, Bleach (featuring yours truly), and Kingdom Hearts shoots, but it would have been nice to have a few Gundam, Fullmetal Alchemist, and Final Fantasy photos in my collection.

On a related note: bluesphx took a whole weekend’s worth of photos.

The Concert

After failed attempts of attending MTAC and previous years of Anime Weekend Atlanta, this would have been the opportunity to see Peelander Z for the first time (although I was hoping for The Captains, if it weren’t for the H1N1, perhaps).

When the schedule was released a few days before the con, I was already debating on what was more important: Yaoi After Dark or Peelander Z/Omodaka. I chose the ladder at the last minute: though I checked last 45 minutes of the “H” panel on Friday night, YAD was my first last night panel since “claiming legality” two years ago… Or: “6 months (from September ‘09) to go ’til the drinking age!”.

I had fun at the YAD panel. But I promised myself that, in the event of the panel ending earlier as promised (at 1 AM instead of 2:30 AM), I would have checked out whoever was on stage at the time… Omodaka. (Even the concert had scheduling problems). But I was very tired…

Vic’s Panels

You can’t go to AWA without checking out Vic Mignogna’s panels-unless you’re a Sub fan. I was hoping to go to his Friday afternoon panel, but with it taking place a little after the Opening Ceremonies and me getting there after 3 PM, the only time I would get to see him again was Saturday night at 6 PM.

Vic also does his popular Sunday Reflections panel. I really wanted to check it out, but for some reason I thought the Bleach photoshoot was more important… In the end, I didn’t make it to the Bleach shoot. But I met Vic again (since ACen ‘05) at the autograph session! ^_^

Sleep

Not much of a panel, but any experienced con-goer will tell you that this is just as important as eating filling meals. I ate what I could find around Atlanta (Burger King and McD’s, FTW), but leaving Chattanooga without sleeping (I was too excited!), spending the rest of Day 1, sleeping 4 hours in the morning, waking at 6 AM for breakfast at McDonalds, getting in cosplay for the Bleach photoshoot, almost falling asleep at the Classic Mecha panel, arriving back at the Sheraton after YAD a quarter before 3 AM, packing for the trip home, sleeping at 5 AM and waking at 8, searching for Vic and Bleachers, sleeping on the trip home, and sleeping immediately after getting home? Orz…

Other Thoughts

While it seems I missed out on a lot of events at AWA, I still had tons of fun! I met a few people I added on MySpace and Facebook prior to the con, as well as meeting old people I met at conventions past. Fortunately, many of the events, such as the maid cafe, will be back next year (’09 was the cafe’s second year, and with extended hours and an extra day).

While conventions as a whole are a lot of fun, this goes to show you that there are downsides to attending *every* event the con offers. This would be a piece of cake at smaller conventions, but with cons like Anime Weekend Atlanta and Anime Expo… it’s not easy.

Review

While it appears as just an hour long animated music video from people who may not be interested, Interstella 5555: 5ecret of the 5ive 5tar 5ystem is actually a feature length Anime film made by the legendary Leiji Matsumoto of Galaxy Express 999 and Captain Harlock fame. An added bonus to an Leiji produced film is the music of the French house duo, Daft Punk (who happen to be big fans of Harlock). The soundtrack of Interstella 5555 is based from Daft Punk’s 2001 album, Discovery.

And if it all looks familiar to those who were religiously attached to Toonami, the “music videos” for the songs “One More Time”, “Aerodynamic”, “Digital Love”, and “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger” (which Kanye West covered with the duo in 2008 featuring Akira) were played along with the Gorillaz‘ “Clint Eastwood” on Midnight Run.

The story of Interstella 5555 involves blue humanoid aliens from space who enjoy preforming music for the people of the planet. (Even their spaceship is shaped like a Guitar.) The first “song” the group preforms is One More Time (from Daft Punk, of course). While everyone is having a good time, their planet is suddenly under attack by intruders in Aerodynamic. Later in Digital Love, a space patrolman, who is a big fan of the band and their female member finds that the group is in danger.

In Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger the intruders arrive safely with the group… on Earth. The blue aliens undergo a major makeover to their Earthly characteristics. Being repackaged as ordinary human beings, Earl de Darkwood, the plotter behind the capturing of the band, pitches them to a record producer earning them the name to the public as “The Crecendolls” (which is also a track on Discovery-and a very, very catchy track, at that). Under hypnosis, The Crecendolls become uber famous on Earth, but eventually the spell will be broken, only to find answers of why they were kidnapped and to find a way back to their home planet.

Note that Interstella 5555 does not contain any dialogue; the entire album is played throughout the movie, from “One More Time” to the final track, “Too Long”, perfectly matching the moods of the story as The Crecendolls face hardships on Earth, finding their way back home. Not hearing voice acting and just Electronica music might be a disappointment to people that may not enjoy such a genre with their anime…

I do recommend at least hearing/watching the music videos of the first 4 songs from Discovery. Heck, just go out and buy it, if you’re feeling adventurous. I must say though that if it weren’t for Toonami, Interstella 5555 or Discovery would have never happened. It’s also a good primer for those interested in “Rave” music to dance to at your Anime con on a Saturday night.

Rating:

So… 2009 is coming to an end. That was fast, huh? Christmas is less than two weeks away. After that, it will be my queue to close the lid on everything happened in the year that was taken the wrong way, no matter who was right.

So I thought: there’s not a lot of controversy on this blog. The last time I said something that upset anyone was a post about a spammer or two bragging about a cell phone that was made by the company that starts with an “M” (I’ll leave it at that). They “loved” this phone so much, they included the URL to the phone on the company’s site.

When I confronted the spammer in the post, they didn’t come back-and I think *they* took it seriously… when a semi-regular reader on CEN.TAKU.ME, who was a very popular user from this (once strong, now troubled) community, never returned…

But that was in 2008. It seemed to be the only setback of the year, which was thankfully towards year’s end. This is now: what has happened in 2009 that I found annoying: online and offline? I will not explain them in full detail to keep from giving the offenders credit protect the innocent. I apologize in advance for any misunderstandings.. but I really shouldn’t be if it annoyed me that much.

• Giving a fan a dirty look after them “squee” when their favorite character or celebrity (Vic, anyone?) is mentioned is nothing to get upset about. (After all, This. Is. Otakudom!)
• Spamming on the blog about cell phones without the company’s permission will not get gain anything (but the company’s ruined reputation). Oh wait… that was mentioned already.
• Suggesting someone to avoid using the Internet all because of a simple rant about fanboys think they’re better than everyone else will not solve the problem.
• If you find something wrong with the content of a blog (Games don’t belong on an Otaku blog, it seems), it doesn’t hurt to tell them in detail (longer than 5 words) why you rejected it.
• There is no point in telling someone to “try harder” and calling people names on something that was done at all, regardless of how bad it was.
• Unfollowing someone on Twitter because they Tweeted about how they don’t like receiving Direct Messages (from the unfollower) begging them to visit their blog when their bio reads “Make Money Online Guru” is lulzable.
• If you’re looking for a convention center landmark that an Anime convention uses for an event, and you ask a on-site security guard (not con-specific security) where it is, only to get a “talk to the Ani-con people” response… shouldn’t they at least know their way around the place (e.g.: in case of a stolen vehicle), especially if they’ve been working there for a while?
• Who’s the weirdo when you’re the drunk football player, half naked with team colors painted on all over, making fun of cosplayers?
• You will see someone (an older, non-Otaku (of course) normie) who does not like Anime culture as a whole when they do not like the way Lum dresses.

While the mentioned annoyances are unique it seems, I will admit the last one will go on as long as the blog is existence…

• For the last time: I will not link back to sites that are about shoes or motorcycles!