Real life Pikachu animal?

Did Nintendo base their Pikachu after this real animal (a cousin of the rabbit) called a "Pika"??

Well the 'chu' in PikaChu means the squeak made by a mouse in Japanese terms. So maybe it is! In any case these littles guys are pretty darn cute, if you can get use to their little calls! XD

Click the thumbnail to watch the video, or this link!

Ani-Pock Podcast Episode 003

Ep 003: "Demon Sounds o.O"



Episode 3 is here! Today we are joined by Chikyuu and Ash! This is an introduction podcast about Chikyuu and Ash, so you are warned of our randomness! Well what are you waiting for, click the pink play button to listen, or right click here and choose save as)

Listen to all the previous shows here !

Death Note 2 Trailer now online

The trailer for Death Note 2 (The second and final part of the live action version of Death Note Manga) can now be viewed on Warner Brothers Japan site.

Click the thumbnail or this link to view the trailer!

787 pound Pumpkin from Japan

From TokyoTimes.org:

"Weighing in at 357.8 kilogrammes (787 pounds), the phenomenally-sized fruit – along with its owner presumably – will head off to Oregon next month to represent Japan in the world pumpkin championship"

Link. (Note, translated from Japanese)

Mini Japanese robot rides a bike!

Check out this nifty new robot from Japan! This little guy is called "Murata Boy" after Murata Manufacturing. Though according to the awesome PlasticBamboo blog, the robot is actually part of the bike.

Click the thumbnail or this link to watch a video of this guy!

Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi steps down

"Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi (R) receives a bouquet of flowers from a staff member of his official residence as he leaves his office in Tokyo September 26, 2006". (Mainichi)

Shinzo Abe has been elected to replace Koizumi.

More on the departing prime minister here!

Watch Powerpuff Girls Z Online!

(Via PlasticBamboo): Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z is the Japanese version of Powerpuff Girls show in the United States on Cartoon Network. Powerpuff Girls Z is produced in Japan by Toei Animation and Aniplex.


Click the thumbnail to watch Episode 1 or this link!

Some new minor site features!

• The background color will change based on the time of day. So if its early morning, it will be a light blue. When its noon it will be the normal blue, and as it gets closer to night, it gets to dark blue, then eventually to black! As MoonLight Neko calls it... Emo hour! XD

• Ani-Pock Arcade is back! Added Ping-Pong game and updated DuckHunt.

Okay ! If you have any other suggestions besides bring back anime and flash (I don't have a hosting provider that can support it) the leave a comment please!

Ani-Pock Members Now Functional!

The Members page, which contains a monthly updated list of Ani-Pock users, is now fully functional!

Please go to the members page and add a quote for September If you are not yet on the list, there are instructions on the page for how to be added.

To access the members page, click "Members" in the Ani-Pock Network Browser at the top of your screen.

New Tickle Me Elmo Extreme Video

Okay so this has nothing to do with Japan or Anime, but its amusing to watch! Mattell Toy company released the new Tickle Me Elmo version called TMX. It means Tickle me Elmo Extreme or Tickle Me Elmo 10 (Yes the laughing toy has been around a decade now!)

Okay enough said. Click on the thumbnail to watch or this link.

Toys are amazing these days!

Ani-Pock Weblog now in 8 languages!

To all our international members and visitors, rejoice! The Ani-Pock Weblog can now be viewed in the following languages at a simple click!: Chinese, German, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, Italian and Portuguese!

Just look for the following icons on the side bar of the weblog:

Try it out now!

Awesome Japanese Papercraft!

Check out these cool little figurines! All made of simply paper. The papercraft artist's name is Shin Tanaka. Unfortunately you can't download them (I think they are too difficult to fold), but if you scroll down on the link, you can see a whole bunch of his cool stuff!



Click thumbnail to open or this link!

Vote for Ani-Pock Please!

Hey guys, it's time to Vote for Ani-Pock again! Were trying to move up on the "Top 50 Anime links" list. Help make us number 1! All you have to do is click the button below and click on vote! This will help grow the Ani-Pock community! I will be adding aditional chat rooms and drawing boards if the demand becomes that high.

Thanks everyone!
Vote Here:

Happy Birthday Cup Noodle!

From the awesome PlasticBamboo blog again:

The world’s first instant noodles were invented on this very day [yesterday] in 1971. To celebrate its 35th birthday, the original creators of Cup Noodle, Nissin, are holding a sampling party in Tokyo. Free noodles for all! Nissin has sold 25 billion ‘meals’ to date. That’s a lot of noodles.

Click the thumbnail or this link to jump to Nissin's website!

Note: Click on the CM section on their page to watch some commercials. They also have a CupPlant game where you grow your own cup of noodle... very strange o.o

"The Race" - Great Anime Mashup!

Awesome Anime Mashup Video!

This anime mashup containing over 100 clips is called "The Race". The artist has taken characters from a bunch of different anime, cut down out and put them in scenes together. Plus, the music is pretty cool! I think he said it took him a year to edit o.O From Naruto, to Cowboy Bebop to Inu Yasha, its all in here! Click the thumbnail to play or this link!

Black Cat Manga Volume 4 Now Online [194 pages]

Volume 4 of the Black Cat Manga has now been uploaded, and will remain online until September 30th. Please finish reading volume 4 before then, since it may be removed after that date to save bandwidth.

The link for Ani-Pock's Manga section can be found in the Ani-Pock Network browser at the top of your screen (see pic).

Ninja Text Generator thingy!!

Look what I found!! It lets you make thingies like this!!



Yesh, go fourth and command that little ninja to write you something! Click here to open.

New Beta Feature! "Role Playing Chatroom"

Hello Ani-Pockers! Testing a new fearture for the next couple of days. Basicly you should see a new Chat Mode bar above the gabbly chat.

You will be able to switch from General chat to Role Playing chat. The RP room will be for long role play sessions. You can still do RP in the General room though!

Note: If you cannot see this new feature, click here.

Ani-Pock Public Announcement

Lucy, a member of Ani-Pock, says...

I love Asian people!!!

This has been an Ani-Pock Public Announcement. XD

Death Note Movie Trailer

Just in case you missed it (Yes I know it has been online for quite some time now), here is the Death Note trailer on Apple's Japan site. Death Note is of course the awesome murder/mystery manga that has sold 18 million copies so far. Part 1 of the live action movie was relased on June 17, 2006 and part 2 is scheduled for November 2006.

Click the thumbnail to view or this link!

Evil Neko's Muffin Joke...

Evil Neko, a member from Ani-Pock, says...

Okay, so there was these 2 muffins...one was blueberry and the other was plain...
I think xD
no no wait!!! they were both plain regular muffins.
So one muffin was like, "uhhhhhhhh it's so hot in here ><" and the other muffin was like, "HOLY SHIT ITS A TALKING MUFFIN!!!" lmao xD me, my sister, and my best friend dynasty are the only people that laughed at that

Ninja Consultant Radio Show Ep 29 Posted

Ninja Consultant episode #29 is now online. Just click on the pink play button right above the Gabbly chat. You'll hear the latest episode of Ninja Consultant- a podcast about anime, manga and ninjas. It'll stream right in the window, so you can chat and enjoy the show.

In this episode: "Anime Dating Advice"

Pocky's Note: Sorry for the late post!

Ani-Pock Podcast Episode 002

Ep 002: "Pokemon Stuff"



Episode 2 is here! Today we are joined by Lucy and her brother, from the United Kingdom! You probably remember Lucy from those calls she made to Japan. Well what are you waiting for, click the pink play button to listen, or right click here and choose save as)

Feel free to leave a comment/suggestion!

Pokemon 10th anniversary concert Soon!

From the sugoi PlasticBamboo Blog again!!:

It’s the 10th anniversary of Pokemon this year, and what better way to celebrate it than a concert featuring music from the series of games. Club Nintendo will distribute tickets for the concert by lottery to members who register any Pokemon game by 25th September.

Perhaps some of our Japan visitors/members can catch a recording for us? You have until the 25th of September! I'm personally dying to hear the Pokemon opening song played by a full orchestra xD Click the thumbnail to read more (note Japanese text) or this link.

Make your own Domo Kun!!!

Yes its true! You don't need to pay $20 for a tiny little domo kun plush. You can have one for free! Just print this picture out, cut and fold! I'm going to make one soon! Report in with your success. Click on thumbnail to open or this link

Soup for 30,000

The Awesome PlasticBamboo Blog writes:

"At Mamigasaki River in Yamagata prefecture, 100 chefs cooked for 30,000 guests at the Yamagata Imoni Festival last weekend. The exercise was part of a PR campaign for local agriculture, and therefore only local ingredients were used. The gigantic cooking cauldron was 6 metres in diameter, and the potato soup took 4 hours to boil."

I just hope they cleaned those machines really well first!!! (And hopefully nobody fell in)

Ani-Pock Podcast Episode 001

Ep 001: "First in a series"




Hey guys! I just got off of Skype with Asuka (a member of Ani-Pock). We decided to do a podcast. Bascily its five minutes of us talking about the blog stories on Ani-Pock. Hope you enjoy! More episodes in the future... (Click the pink play button to listen, or right click here and choose save as)

Feel free to leave a comment/suggestion!

Baby boy for Japan princess

From CNN.com:

Japan's Princess Kiko has given birth to a son, likely postponing a long-running debate over whether Japanese law should be changed to allow women to succeed to the throne, the imperial palace announced today. The baby is the royal family's first male heir to the throne in more than 40 years.

Link

Black Cat Manga Volume 3 Now Online

Volume 3 of the Black Cat Manga has now been uploaded, and will remain online until September 16th. Please finish reading volume 3 before then, since it may be removed after that date to save bandwidth.

The link for Ani-Pock's Manga section can be found in the Ani-Pock Network browser at the top of your screen (see pic).

Testers wanted for Future Site Feature!

Hey guys! I'm working on a potentially future part of the site. It's called PockySpace. Its kinda like MySpace, but way simpler, way fun-er and NO Tom! XD Anyways, I need 6 people for this stage of the test.

If you want to help you must meet the following:

- Enjoy Blogging
- Be able to blog at least 4 days out of the week

Pretty simple eh? Well if you meet the requirements and want to help, leave a comment at the end of this post. Just click the Anonymous button if you don't have a Blogger username to post.

::Read this in Honor of Steve Irwin::

Syn, an Ani-Pock member, wrote a nice piece about the passing of Steve Irwin "Crocodile Hunter":

Up to 100 species become extinct every day. Scientists estimate that the total number of species lost each year may climb to 40,000 by the year 2000, a rate far exceeding any in the last 65 million years. More than 1,000 animal species are endangered worldwide...

[Continue reading Syn's piece]
[CNN Story]

New Ikea store opening in Yokohama

"Offering 10,000 furniture and home furnishing items, Yokohama’s new four-story store has a floor space of 40,000 square metres. At a shopping mall in Yokohama they’ve started promotion for the store already. A small boy stares in amazement at a Mammut chair, 9 times the size of the ones going on sale."

Yes that is a giant chair and that is a real boy!!! Wish I had one of those... (Via PlasticBamboo)

Japanese TV: "Boulder Dash"

Okay you guys. I've posted some funny Japanese excerpts from time to time, but this has to be one of the BEST out there. This is from a show called "Takeshi's Castle", where contestants basicly have to survive hillarious physical challenges. Well this clip is from the American dub, aired on Spike TV as "MXC (Most Extreme Challenge). So don't freak out when you hear the English audio. Okay I don't want to keep you any longer. Click the thumbnail to view or here.

National Disaster Prevention Day in Japan

"September 1st is national Disaster Prevention Day in Japan....As normal, stores sell kits to people providing everything they would need to survive if cut off from the outside world for a few days. “But what about my tiddles?!” I hear you ask. Well, assuming ‘tiddles’ is a cat or a dog then the Shinjuku branch of pet loving store Mitsukoshi have just the thing - pet evacuation sets!" And they go for about $125 US a piece! =o (via PlasticBamboo)