Hello Kitty Contacts

Hello Kitty Contacts - Hello Kitty Hell via kwout

How Much Do I Love This?

Bandai is producing working Tachikoma tanks.
They're due out this coming February.
And they will cost US$199!

Is it too late to draw up a new Christmas list?

The Evolution of Mario

The Evolution of Mario - Gaming - Geekstir - News, videos & pictures in the World of Geekcraft via kwout

UFO Catcher: A Guide To Winning

Via Nihonhacks.com:
Japanese Culture blog Tofugu recently posted up a cool guide to winning stuffed animals from UFO Catcher. Apparently the trick is to use the claw to push down and roll the toys near the exit rather than trying to pick them up. They made a little video showing how to do it (the meat it about halfway through). Have a watch:

Hello Kitty USB Aquarium

Hello Kitty USB Aquarium
Uploaded by AkihabaraNews

Best Anime of 2007

Best anime of 2007 via kwout

Ready....Set.....

GO! AND RUN THROUGH LIFE!

Zatch Bell Manga Draws to Close

As Anime News Network reports, "after seven years, 31 volumes, and 323 installments," the (obviously) long-running, famed manga about the tribulations of the battling "mamodos" in their effort to become king of their world, the manga, Zatch Bell! (Konjiki no Gasshu Beru!!), has concluded.

The English dub of the series, which continues to air in several markets, is continuing to be broadcasted. The Japanese dub ended early last year.

Zatch Bell! was author Makoto Raiku's first weekly serialization. The manga ran in Shogakukan's Weekly Shonen Sunday.

L☆S: No Nice Boats to be Seen...

In one of the most bizarre anime meets real-life moments of 2007 (aside from the collective number of Haruhi, street dances) was a the heavy tourist bombardment one Japanese shrine received, simply because it was featured in an episode of Lucky☆Star. This month even, a brunch was planned for fans of the show to visit and tour the shrine, with lots of events lined-up to accompany the scheduled tour, and plenty of goodies to give away, including mobile phone charms shaped like shrine plaques with the anime's characters on them.

Meanwhile, one of my favorite anime bloggers, DarkMirage, is in Japan right now and has been taking pictures of some of the other real locations featured in the series. I have to imagine he took some reference photos before the shoot, because some of these match the comparison photos quite well. More pics of his travles, including others of L☆S scenery are available at his blog.

LOL, the former Animate studio

moved and now it's... Studio 404.

Ah, the humor is not lost on me.

Bathtime for Buddha

For the fifth straight year a team of cleaners from various shrines throughout Japan converged on Fukuoka to clean the local giant Buddha statue, one of the largest of Shaka Nehan -the Japanese term for Buddha- in the world.

The cleaners, which numbered over 200 people, assembled with bamboo poles with leaves on them to give the Buddha a dusting, then proceeded to wipe the statue down by climbing the eleven meeter tall and forty-one meeter long statue, which depicts Buddha laying along the ground in a resting position.

As Mainichi news reports, "After the [cleaning] ceremony, visitors clasped their hands together in prayer in front of the cleaned statue, praying for good health in the new year."

Thanks for the news, Kami.

NICE BOAT! NICE BOAT! NICE BOAT!

What's new, what's getting renewed, what's coming up for 2008?

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, will be renewed for a third season. No word on whether nice boats will preempt this season.

Afro Samurai will be renewed for a second season. It is not certain what the status is of the live-action Afro movie, starring Samuel L. Jackson, that had been planned.

Golgo 13 will get a first season. The series will follow the long-running manga of an expert assassin. Golgo has been made into several movies, but this will be the first series.

Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu seems to be moving closer to premiering its highly anticipated second season. The official Haruhi.tv website has brought some concrete evidence forward that Kyoto Animation will produce a second season, titled Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu, AKA: The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya. Find out more at DarkMirage's blog.

The second annual American Anime Awards are expected to air in April at the New York Comic Con. As per the last AmAnAwd, Ani-Pock will keep you updated on where you can see the filming, whether online or broadcasted, and who the winners were. The award show is expected to be presented during the con, April 18-20 2008.

Emperor's Birthday

Today is the Emperor of Japan's birthday everyone. Conicidentally it is also a certain certain Ani-Pocker's birthday as well. *cough cough*
Akihito (明仁) born December 23, 1933. He is going to be 75, and is the current emperor of Japan, and the 125th emperor according to Japan's traditional order of succession. He is the world's only reigning monarch with the title of emperor. The date is determined by the present Emperor's birth date. Which, when switching emperors, they have to change it before hand so that they don't miss it if it is before when the change should be made.

On December 23, a public ceremony takes place at the Imperial Palace which, usually off limits to the public, opens its gates. The Emperor, accompanied by Empress Michiko and several other members of the imperial family, appears on a palace balcony to acknowledge the birthday congratulations of crowds of festive well-wishers, who are waving tiny Japanese flags. Only on this occasion, and on January 2nd, may the general public enter the inner grounds of the Imperial Palace.

To enter the inner grounds of the palace on December 23, visitors have to stand in line at designated areas across the street from the palace. The large, graveled plaza where the visitors can see Nijubashi Bridge is closed off by the police. At the designated time, visitors' bags are checked and they are escorted to the palace grounds. Admission is free, and visitors are given a free paper Japanese flag. Also, no food and drinks may be taken into the palace.

Visitors then stand in line near the famous Nijubashi Bridge, the symbol of the palace. At 9:30 am, they allow the first group of people to cross Nijubashi Bridge and enter the plaza in front of the balcony where the Emperor will appear. At 10:20 am, the Emperor, Empress, Crown Prince and Crown Princess, Prince Akishino, Princess Akishino, and others appear on the balcony and wave to the crowd who wave paper Japanese flags and shout "banzai!"

If the Emperor speaks, then the crowd falls silent. When the Emperor ceases his oratory greeting (however brief), the crowd starts waving the flags again and the Imperial Family wave back. They appear for three minutes. The crowd is then directed to the exit. Most of them go and take a walk around the East Garden of the palace which includes the remains of the castle donjon. Meanwhile, the next group is led into the palace.

The visiting crowds are usually made up of significantly older portions of the Japanese population, as national interest in the Emperor has been on the wane since the end of World War II. Quite a few foreigners also attend.


((OMG sorry it's so bad, I have ONE bar of connection, and like I got this from Wikipedia... >w< And it's 1:50 AM. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Emperor%27s_Birthday Thank you for reading everyone, Muddy out...))

Tanjoubi omedetou! Again!

Today is a very important day in Japan.
It is in fact one of the most important of days!

That day would be Kami's birthday the Emperor's birthday! Well, it's Kami's big day too, but this one is pretty important as well.

Emperor Akihito, Japan's current Emperor (and the world's only reigning monarch with the title), turns 74.

Interestingly enough, the Emperor shares a birthday with one of the predeceasing Emperors of the Chrysanthemum throne, Emperor Antoku, born in 1185.

Read more about the Chrysanthemum family here in the Japan blog. Here's one about the youngest of the clan's first birthday.

Coming to Theatres: The Machine Girl

I'm am now accepting comments as to why this is an awesome movie.

Oh, there are trailers out there. But they're so gratuitously gory (and awesome), that I just don't think we should put them up here.

Here's a link to one at least.

Don't say I didn't warn you (about the awesomeness).

Apparently we have a movie about a girl whose family and boyfriend is killed by the Yakuza. They take her arm as well, upon which she places the implement of her revenge, a machine gun.

Yep, it certainly sounds Robert Rodriguez-esque, but this film goes deeper in the world of strange weaponry and (awesome) bloody violence. Think live-action anime, with plenty of cheezy effects.

The lead actress is the beautiful Minase Yashiro. Prior to this, her claim to fame was, well, dirty films, so... this is a step up?

I'm willing to bet it will be a terrible and formulaic movie, but I think it will do well at the box office. I mean, look at the film poster!

The movie is due out next year.

Visit DannyChoo.com for more info. Yes, they have the trailer too.

Japanese Pig Toy Returns to Original Shape When Squashed

Here's a nifty Japanese toy which you can buy for just $2.50 shipped to world wide! (Free shipping)
Basically the toy returns to the same shape after being squashed or flattened.

Giant Sticky Man Messes Windows, Falls to Death Twice

Take a look at this!
Japan has way cooler sticky vending machine men than the rest of the world does.

That aside, a team from the Japanese TV show, Hey! Spring of Trivia, recently decided to let loose a giant version of the toy on a skyscraper in Akita.

Watch the hilarious results from the first trial:

And here we have supposedly a better "body to sticky stuff ratio" in this run:

Thanks, Pocky!
He finds 'em, I posts 'em. XP

Japanese TV: Haneru no Tobira

In this one the contestants must pop the red balloon with their white foot attachments (it’s something that pop that balloon but not damage the obstacles in their way):

Norabbits' Minutes

Via fpsmagazine.com:
Norabbits' Minutes features two young rabbit brothers who live together in the forest and have endearing adventures together... though not without some absurd twists. As a bonus, we are also presenting the first episode of Norabbits' Minutes in its entirety.

Honda ASIMO gets new features

From FarEastGizmos.com:

Honda developed an intelligence technology that enhances smooth movement by enabling ASIMO to choose between stepping back and yielding the right-of-way or continuing to walk based on the predicted movement of oncoming people. Honda also developed a new intelligence technology related to ASIMO’s ability to perform tasks such as carrying a tray and pushing a cart.

Furthermore, a new comprehensive system was developed so that multiple ASIMOs can share tasks by adjusting to the situation and work together in coordination to provide uninterrupted service. For example, if one ASIMO is idled while recharging, other ASIMO robots will step in and perform assigned tasks.ASIMO identifies oncoming people through its eye camera, calculates traveling direction and speed, predicts forthcoming movements of oncoming people, and chooses the most appropriate path so that it will not block the movement of others. When there is not enough space, ASIMO will step back and yield the right-of-way.

In addition, a new battery charging station was developed for ASIMO’s autonomous recharging. When the remaining battery level falls below a certain level, ASIMO will automatically identify and walk to the closest available battery charging station and re-charge while standing.

New York City's First Anime Fair Starts This Weekend

Via TokyoMango.com:
The Javits Center is holding NYC's first annual Anime Festival this weekend. It's gonna be chock full of excitement for anime fans—free screenings, pop music, speaker panels, even an on-the-spot voice acting contest. Be there.

Drive-by coffee spitter arrested

Via BoingBoing.net:

Speed Racer Through the Years

Some of you have likely seen the Speed Racer trailer that has been posted recently. But it seems that I am always simply posting the trailers to the next big movie here. Let's go deeper into the saga of Speed and the Mach 5.

Here we have the original, the classic 60s (English) theme:

The opening from the early 90s series, The New Adventures of Speed Racer, which has little to do with racing:

Now we have the late 90s series, Speed Racer Y2K or Speed Racer X as it's commonly known (look at how long that mid-air kick lasts!):

And the trailer from the 2008, upcoming, live-action movie which looks like Spy Kids 3 and crazy rolling around in the powder you found on some magical, psychedelic, wonderbus trip:

I hope you enjoyed that very quick run through the Speed Racer history. I'll leave it up to you guys to decide whether the movie is going to be any good. Based on the trailer, your either love it or hate it.

Math Note: A Parody: A Review

If you like Death Note at all...
If you greatly disdain Death Note...
If you have no affiliation with Death Note...

...You will enjoy this parody. Now, I know what you're thinking. Right off the bat. Parodies aren't funny.
I think most aren't either. Though I watched a Fruits Basket parody once before, and almost broke a rib laughing. But I digress.

"School Note", or "Math Note" as it is more commonly referred, is a hilarious retelling of Death Note as a story of a student who struggles with math, until the Math Note falls from the sky. Most of the time while watching, you are assured to be confused, stupefied, and laughing. The parody includes many gratuitous pop culture references, including "The Price is Wrong" music and spot-on dubbing from The Godfather.

All I have to say is, "Salty, Ryuk."

When I showed THC this parody, he would, consecutively after finishing an episode, run to my room, open the door, quote lines, shut the door, and run away, even before I had a chance to say anything.

Go on, give it a shot:

520 Pock₧ to whomever can name where the opening dialog comes from.

And part two:

"Every time Light-o studies math, God kills some random guy."

Newsflash: Dateline- Ani-Pock

ADV entertainment boxes OVAs Dragon Half and PuniPuni Poemy together (US$20.00).
Everyone's head explodes.And here's why:

PPP Scene-

(^BTW, this scene is not as dirty as the preview makes it look.)

D1/2 Trailer-

Happy St. Nicholas Eve! But wait, there's more!

Today is St. Nicholas eve, AKA...

Talk Like a Ninja-Pirate day!


But since we all spoke like pirates early this year, let's just say:

It's Talk Like a Ninja day.

Fair enough.

The holiday received its origin when Santa Claus was no longer invited to come to homes to leave candy in children's shoes, as St. Nicholas day tradition. Without Santa around, his enemy, the evil Krampus, took over as ruler of the holiday and promised children that they only had harsh punishment to look forward to on this day if they were bad at all this year. This prompted Santa to take action. For five years he sequestered himself at his fortress in the icy north to study the ways of the ninja. That following December 5th, Santa gave Krampus a glorious whipping, and, as a bonus, used his ninja skills to sneak into homes to leave presents for good children again, instead of poisons and shuriken like the actual silent-killers.

So be good, for goodness sake, or he'll come and get you!

Japanese TV: Big Bird in Japan

From the 1989 TV Special! "We're off to Kyoto"
Ps, did you know the cookie monster is now the celerey monster?? He's a veggie monster D:

Japanese TV: Giant Vortex Box

A vortex box blows smoke rings! Usually used in children science classes. They went on to make a giant one!!
The making:
Trial's: