Japanese Food Review

Decided to get some snacks from Tate's this week. I had some last weekend, but sent them up to my family. I decided to get some chips, Pocky and some other snacks.

First up are some fish snacks by Meito called Air in Choco. It is similar in shape to Taiyaki, but filled with airy fruit filling. The outside is a wafer shaped fish with an filling that tastes depend on your fish. I got one that was strawberry and one that was banana.


Here is a cutaway view of the inside. The outside wafer easily comes off on one side. It has the taste and consistency of a sugar wafer you would eat here in the US. The slight different is the airy center.

Each did taste like the fruit that was pictured and were not bad. I am sure my son enjoyed them as well.

Next up is Pocky chocolate Dessert > Tiramisu flavored. Now these are not the ordinary Pocky you would get, but a little more fancy. These boxes only have 4 packages of 3 Pocky each - so you do not get as many.


There is however more chocolate and the wafer stick is a little larger than normal. If you have a "fancy" party, these may be something cool for your friends to try.


These were okay - you can definitely taste the extra chocolate on the outside of the wafer stick. I have also tasted this brand in Orange and was blown away by the Orange taste. I think the Orange was better.

Last, but not least - my most anticipated part of the tasting. These are by Yanazaki-Nabisco and are potato chips with nori and wasabi flavoring.


Now for those of you that eat a whole bag of chips in one sitting - these are not for you. It is a small bag, but filled with a flavor wallop. You will get the glorious sting of wasabi on your poor little tongue (can you tell I like these). They look normal - but do not be taken back by their innocence - LOL. Too bad the nori is more for show than flavor.


If these catch your interest, then drop over at Tate's for some of your own stuff. They have plenty of other stuff as well if you want something different. If not in South Florida, then try your local comic / anime shop or J-List is another great place to pick some of these up.

Have you had the fun of eating some Japanese snacks?

Gundam 00: Revive Revival

The genetic twin of Anew Returner, Revive is an innovator who pilots the Gadessa. He joins the A-Laws and agrees to follow Kati Mannequin's battle strategies even though he was a special licence that allows him to act independently. He and Anew were suppose to steal the 00 Gundam and the 0 Raiser, but failed as Anew was in love with one of the Gundam Pilots, Lyle Dylandy.

Beautiful cosplay! The photgrapher behind this is Shiro Ang, and the model is Jingggg from Deviant Art! Thanks for sharing this!

Technorati tags: cosplay, holic, cosplayer, costume, role, play, roleplay, gundam, 00, revive, revival, genetic, twin, anew, returner, innovator, pilot, gadessa, a-laws, kati, mannequin, battle, strategy, special, licence, independent, 0, raiser, love, lyle, dylandy, shiro, ang, jingggg, deviant, art, gnz-003, コスプレ, コスプレイ, 機動戦士ガンダム00, ダブルオー, リヴァイブ, リバイバル, アニュー, リターナー, ライル, ディランディ

Anime Releases for 09/29

Here are the releases for today (09/29) at your local Video, Book Stores or the infamous Amazon website in the US. I only review Movies and Box Sets that are coming out as this will get the most bang for your buck. I did "borrow" the summaries from various sites so you can get a brief review of the story.

I got to say this is another month that could break someone's bank account. My personal recommendations are Burst Angel, Black Lagoon,Heat Guy J and One Piece. For this baseball fans, Big Windup! Oofuri is a great series as well.

Anime

Burst Angel TV/OVA BlueRay set
A new law and a dark underground syndicate have delivered devastating chaos to Tokyo. The city's only chance for survival is a fearless mercenary, her dangerously beautiful comrades, and a massively armed and armored mech. In this land where war has spread like a disease, they will have to put their very existence on the line and fight to be the cure.


Sola - Anime Legends Edition
Yorito Morimiya is a high school student who loves to take photos of the sky. One night, he goes out to the park to take a photo of the sky as it turns from night to day, when he meets a mysterious girl named Matsuri Shihou who longs to see the blue sky. However, she is actually an immortal ageless existence called Yaka, the Calamity of the Night, and has lived hundreds of years alone in the darkness of night.

Big Windup! Oofuri Season 1 Part 2
Spring training is over, and it's time for the real fun to start. Mihashi's confidence got a huge boost from beating his old school, and now he's more determined than ever to become his team's ace. With Abe calling the pitches, the once shell-shocked hurler feels like he can strike out the world.




Heat Guy J Complete Collection - 2009
Super criminals and mafia families have become more powerful than any police force in the oceanic city-nation of Judoh. That's why the government built Android J, a cybernetic crime-fighting machine destined to rid Judoh of the criminal element. Together with his partner, Daisuke Aurora, the most dangerous criminals will soon find themselves on the run.



Negima Complete Series -Viridian Collection
Vampires, robots, sorcery... and that's all before Gym Class! Welcome to Mahora Academy, an all-girls school where the impossible and the enchanting are a part of the curriculum. It's the start of the new school year and emotions run rampant as the girls of Class 2-A meet the newest staff addition: Negi Springfield. A ten-year-old Welsh-born prodigy, Negi has more problems than he has students.

One Piece Season 2 Part 3
With Nami on the verge of death, Luffy's crew abandons its voyage to Alabasta and goes looking for help. Their search leads them to frosty Drum Island, where the locals don't roll out the red carpet for pirates, and the only doctor in town lives atop a treacherous, snow-covered mountain.



Black Lagoon Season 1 & 2 Collection
Rokuro Okajima is meek, mundane, and metropolitan. His business trip to South East Asia turns from pleasure cruise to festival of pain when modern-day pirates board the ship and take him hostage. Revy, Dutch and Benny are merciless, maniacal, and mean. Together, they make up the crew of the Black Lagoon.



Green Green Complete Collection - Litebox
In ages past, a man and a woman tasted forbidden love. Even though they could not be together, they made a vow that would transcend time. When next they meet, their fire will rekindle. In modern day, there is a boy's academy located high in the mountains called Kanenone. Yuusuke is one of the reincarnated lovers, and a student at Kanenone.




Ergo Proxy Complete Series - 2009
The domed city of Romdo is an impenetrable would-be utopia where humans and robots coexist, and everything is under complete government control - or so it appears. While working on a mysterious murder case, Re-l Mayer, a female detective from the Civilian Intelligence Office, receives a foreboding message that something is going to "awaken." That night, she's attacked by a deformed super-being...


Source: Mania

Hobby Link Japan - free shipping ending

For those of you keeping tabs on the time - you have until 10:59am est TODAY before the free shipping ends for those paying by PayPal. I am still debating jumping in on this before the time expires myself. I have been looking for a couple of Queen's Blade items that I want to get along with some art books.

I did pretty good on my eBay sales this weekend and have a few extra bucks to play with. Here is what I am looking to get:

• Groundwork Gurren Lagann #1 > $32.56

• Excellent Model Ltd Queen's Blade Rebellion Yuit & Vante w/Yuit Figure > $62.02

I know it is not much, but I may pick up some of the Queen's Blade cards too. I figure since the shipping will be refunded, it may be a good buy.

Have you got an order in as yet - if so, what did you buy?

UPDATE: Got permission from my wife to go ahead and make the purchase :)

Blog Highlight: Anime MMORPG

I am not a gamer by any standards, but I know that there are many people that are. I wanted to have a good selection on my Blog Roll that included something for everyone. I still visit these sites as my son and wife are avid Wii players (especially Mario Cart).

With that said, I do like how this was setup. It is clean and precise gaming review site. It has a small pic of the game, a brief description, site links for the game and sometimes a video ad for it as well. The ads are not intrusive either as more of a recommendation for things you may like. There is also a link under Games List that gives you some freebie anime MMORPG games you can play online.

If you have a few minutes to burn, the drop over and check the Games.

Sexy Saturday: Akane Suzuki

Who: Akane Suzuki
Birthday: 1984-April-0
Blood Type: B
Measurements: B88 / W58 / H82 cm
Info: Chakuero Gravure Idol and Actress
Blog: ameblo (in Japanese)

She has done several photo books and DVD's. She has recently crossed over to movies by being in Sundome, Sundome 2 and Sundome 3 (live action adaption of the Manga). She is playing the role of Kurumi Sahana, a new student who brings a change in the life of Hideo Aiba played by Atsuji Ninomiya.

Sundome Movie Poster
Shot from Movie

J-Idol Photos

YouTube Movie

Fate/Hollow Ataraxia: Caren Ortensia

A member of the Church and Burial Agency, Caren is a kind-hearted priestess who believes her only purpose in life is to help others. When she is hurt, she does not blame the individual who hurt her, but places the blame on demons. When she is at fault, she apologizes to God and not to the person she was wronged.

Strangely enough, despite her projected kindness, she loves exploiting other people’s weaknesses, antagonizing them to the point of humiliating them. She also deliberately wears her priestess robes without the skirt to seduce men.

That is one scary priestess. And yes, I know she’s suppose to have white hair, but that has never stopped me from featuring cosplayers like her. Awesome job!

Technorati Tags: cosplay, holic, cosplayer, role, play, roleplay, costume, fate, hollow, ataraxia, caren, ortensia, church, burial, agency, kind, heart, priestess, sole, purpose, life, help, demon, hurt, god, wrong, strange, projected, exploit, weakness, humiliation, robe, skirt, seduce, men, scary, white, hair, wig, コスプレ, コスプレイ, フェイト/ホロウアタラクシア, フェイト, ホロウ, アタラクシア カレン, オルテンシア

Anime Review: Guin Saga

What does a Leopard headed warrior have to do with Guin Saga - well if you must know EVERYTHING.

The show starts of with Rinda in bed with a premonition that something is about to happen. She gets Remus out of bed just as the attack begins . . . by the Mongauls. The are the prince and princess of Parros and they are gathered up by the family and teleported to their Aunt (Lady Evar). However the machine malfunctions and they get dumped in Roodwoods. Not the best place to be with and right in the middle of Mongaul territory.

They are about to be captured when they catch the attention of Guin (who was passed out in the grass). He comes to their rescue and lays waste the Mongaul group with super human strength. Here begins their companionship and travel together to find their way out of the woods an to a safe haven. They meet up with some other great people like Istavan of Valachia (Crimson Mercenary) and Suni ( a monkey-like creature from the Sem barbarian tribe).

Guin is a tall heavily muscular human with a leopard head. Is it a mask or real - it is anyones guess. He is a skilled fighter and an excellent swordsman. He however does not remember anything except his name and the work "Aurra". Is he cursed or blessed with the leopard head?

I am sad to note that with the death of the writer Kaoru Kurimoto on May 26th of this year. We will never know how far this would of continued. There are 126 volumes out and she was still writing the 130th volume up till May 23rd. Per Wikipedia: "Guin Saga is the longest continuing single-writer's work in the world with total circulation exceeding 28 million worldwide".

My Comments:

I have watched the first 5 episodes and will continue with this series. Music is not the best as others however. The opening theme music is sort of a battle hymn while the ending song is like a church chorus hymnal.

It has your normal D & D saga feel to it. Where each of the individuals must overcome their problems to find the answers they seek. You have Guin who does not remember anything and is on a mission to find who he is. You have the Parros Twins that are trying to make it to Argos so they can be safe.

There are several others that they bump into that help or hinder them on their journey. You have Orro of Turos that gives Guin a sword in a battle with a grey ape. You have the Merc Istavan that seems to be on his own mission (though he does not have a clear view of it). You have Suni, a monkey-like creature that wants to go home.

Lets not forget the villains in the show, the Mongauli Empire that over ran Parros and is trying to hunt down the twins. The Black Count of Vanon's places Guin in a death match with a Grey Ape and then you have Lady Amnelis that is hunting them down after they escape Stafolos Keep.

I am enjoying the interesting twists and turns the characters are having. I enjoy this type of adventure into who we are and where we are going with the trials and tribulations that happen along the way. This is a keeper!

Overall Rating: B

Guin

The Parros Twins: Remus & Rinda

Istavan Spellsword

The Black Count

Next Weeks Review: You give me something to review
???

Bleach: Kusajishi Yachiru

A young infant Zaraki Kenpachi found in the 79th District of Rukongai’s North Alley, “Kusajishi”, Yachiru is a cheerful, carefree girl who often clings to Kenpachi’s back for transport. She is child-like in both appearance and action, but is also very strong, earning the right to be the lieutenant of the 11th Division. Her name is said to be in memory of the only person Kenpachi ever admired.

Cute cosplay! She’s so adorable, just like Yachiru. I sometimes wonder which one is cuter, her or Nell? Anyway, great cosplaying!

Technorati Tags: nanao, cosplay, research, bleach, kusajishi, yachiru, infant, baby, zaraki, kenpachi, 79th, district, rukongai, north, alley, cheerful, carefree, girl, cling, back, transport, child, like, childlike, appearance, action, strong, earn, right, lieutenant, 11th, division, memory, name, person, admire, cute, adorable, nell

What grabs you when purchasing a figure?

When I was collecting early on, it was any Mecha figure I could find that would combine or transform. It was hard in the early days to get anything from Japan. I remember getting a DanCougar unit from K B Toys (toy discounter) in the early days. They actually had some of the early transforming robots directly from Japan. Never knew why they did and not Toys R Us.

Later, I got caught up in the Neon Genesis Evangelion addiction and again had most of the earlier figures. All of which I eventually sold many years ago. Then it was the Gundam MS in Pocket series and other Gundam model kits. Most of which were lost in a fire 9 years ago at our apartment.

It has only been recently that I have been trying to narrow down my likes to certain series (i.e. Queen's Blade & Yoko from Gurren Lagann). But there are so many damn nice figures that it makes it hard to keep it to one series. I have managed to keep all my Twin Tandum figures - for now. But now my eyes has caught the attention of the Ikki Tousen Dragon Destiny figures. They are nicely detailed and are available in different versions. ARGH - when will the madness stop!

Ikkitousen GG - 1/8 Sonsaku Hakufu

What grabs you when purchasing a figure? - Would it be the series or the figure itself?

Inuyasha: Sesshoumaru... 5.5?

I know what you’re thinking, and no, I’m not kidding.

You have to admit, this is a pretty accurate cosplay of Sesshoumaru. Maybe he looks a bit friendlier than the real Sesshoumaru, but hey, he had to be trained somehow.

It makes me wish Rin was around to see this. Thanks to Godly for sharing this photo!

Technorati Tags: nanao, cosplay, research, cosplayer, dog, puppy, inuyasha, sesshoumaru, friendly, trained, house, rin, godly, fur, dye, photo

BAH Humbug...on the proper blog!

Starting trailer over again. I didn't like the story board I had in the first place for it, it annoyed me because it wasn't properly fluent or anything. And...
The USB with the trailer failed anyway -_-. Both of the same type USB's I've had for the same amount of time failed on me within two days of each other. Coincidence? I think not.
*swears at USB companies*
Aside from that I finished Ruby's front walk and side stand poses. I need to play FF9 again, it's been a while and it takes a bit to get me working on related stuff. For FF7, 8 and 10 I have the games available so it's a different story for them =/.
I also finished a couple of sprites that will appear in the extended version of the airport. Since I figured customs isn't going to let a 19-year-old waltz in with a .45 Magnum in his jacket (well done Levi -_-).
From this scene, the proof that Cosplay Crisis isn't just Final Fantasy will come through as he gets his ass saved by Leonard Shawn Kendal, or Leon S. Kendall for short.
Sound familiar?
Played RE2 or RE4 lately? Nehehe.

Also, I extended the Alleys by LOADS. In fact, it even has its own boss fight in order to get through the gate to get to the Subway and an extra branching map. Thanks InFeCtioN for this suggestion, now I don't have to edit the boss in the Battle Circle.
I'm also in the process of extending the Battle Circle to resemble its FF7 counter part better. This means more fights before you fight he boss, which I will one day get around to changing from a Rangarok Online monster to Elvoret/Enoyle from FF8.

In the meantime enjoy the Kumo picture. I remembered his ear ring!!

(I bet there's tons of Engrish in this post, I typed it up at 3am after crashing from energy drinks =D. I'm not thinking straight, believe me)

Lol, this proves I'm tired. I posted this on the Burnt Toast Memorial blog first instead of here =D.

Wacky Stuff from Japan, Vol 8

Here is another installment of my Wacky and Fun Stuff from Japan. I know these may not all be "wacky", but what the heck, not something you will see here in the US.

I have seen blue liquor, but never blue beer. It was created by Abashiri Brewerly and called Okhotsk Blue. From the text, the wanted to try to imitate the " Sea of Okhotsk in winter romantic". It is a Malt beer with 5% alcohol and is selling at $27.63 for a 6 pack. I have to admit that I would like to give this one a shot.


They also offer a Green and Red Beer at their site (in Japanese).

We all know how crowded city;s can be. Sometimes this makes it hard to get everyone from point A to point B. I have seen building knocked down for new roads to new buildings. However, I can say that I have never seen anything like this in our city. This is a shot where the office building gives way to the highway in Osaka.


Anyone have something like this in their city? Source

Tate's got some new Japanese food in and I will be giving some feedback later in the week on what I got. But I did want to post something about something I got. I will be reviewing Green Tea Coke. They also had the Pepsi brand of Green Tea soda, but me no like PissPee - so me no get.

So my first impression was it had a nice designed label. The coloring was your normal soda color and I was glad it was not green. The taste however did leave me flat. It was like drinking Coke Zero which really has no taste. But then after a few seconds, you got the green tea flavor. Kind of weird and not something I plan to get again.

Have you tried this and what did you think?

Shugo Chara!: Hinamori Amu

A cool and spicy student of Seiyo Elementary and secretly the Guardian Joker, Amu is a shy and timid girl who made a wish to have the courage to show her true self. Her wish is granted in the form of three colorful eggs which hatched into Guardian Characters, Ran, Miki, and Su. These Guardians transform with Amu when she needs to purify X Eggs and X Characters; much to Amu’s embarrassment as they make her speak “totally out of character”.

I guess everyone has an image they want to keep up with. Although I also think it’s natural to act differently depending on the crowd you’re with. Too bad this picture is a little blurry, but I wanted to share it anyway. Awesome cosplay!

Technorati Tags: nanao, cosplay, research, costume, cosplayer, shugo, chara, hinamori, amu, cool, spicy, student, seiyo, elementary, guardian, joker, shy, timid, girl, courage, true, wish, granted, color,egg, character, ran, miki, su, purify, x, embarrassment, image, natural, act, different, crowd, blur

Anime & Movie Releases for 09/22

Here are the releases for today (09/22) at your local Video, Book Stores or the infamous Amazon website in the US. I only review Movies and Box Sets that are coming out as this will get the most bang for your buck. I did "borrow" the summaries from various sites so you can get a brief review of the story.

Anime

Honey & Clover: Complete Collection Part 1
Honey and Clover follows the lives of five college students and their love triangles






Knight Hunters, Weiss Kreuz Seasons 1-2 (Litebox)
When the moon rises, the four young men of Weiss become the most vicious assassins the world has seen. Led by the somber and silent Aya, the team consists of Ken, a wide-eyed former athlete, Omi, a young computer specialist, and Yoji, a suave ladies man. Contains episodes 1-25 of Knight Hunters and 1-13 of Knight Hunters Eternity.



Naruto Uncut Set 16 Special Edition
The following content was provided by the publisher. Naruto and his teammates return to the Leaf Village with the injured Kurenai and Yakumo, only to find the village in ruins! Has the Village Hidden in the Leaves really been destroyed?




Nabari no Ou Complete Series Part 1
In the shadows of this modern world, ninjas fight for control of an ancient technique which holds untold strength. This coveted power dwells within apathetic Miharu, a fact the guy really couldn't care less about - until the clashing rival clans bring their battle to him.




Pokémon: Diamond & Pearl - Battle Dimension Boxset 3
Ash, Dawn, and Brock continue their journey through the Sinnoh region, with Ash working on his next two Gym badges and Dawn striving to break her recent string of defeats. Some new Pokemon have joined the team-including Paul's traumatized Chimchar-challenging the depths of our heroes' Pokemon knowledge.



Sgt. Frog DVD Season 1 Part 1
Keroro is Sgt. Frog - the leader of a platoon of warriors sent to conquer planet Earth. But when the Amphibious invaders discovered how much humans enjoy dissecting their comrades, the troops were scattered, the mission was aborted, and Keroro was abandoned. Now, this once proud soldier spends more time wielding a vacuum than he does the weapons of war.


Source: Mania

Tsubasa – Reservoir Chronicle: Syaoran and Sakura 02

When Sakura had a vision of a mysterious symbol Syaoran found in the ruins, she visits Syaoran the following day, unknowingly sealing her fate. The symbol in her visions pull her into a secret room, turning her soul into a pair of ghostly wings. Syaoran was able to rescue her at the cost of her wings and soon finds out from High Priest Yukito that they had to find a way to retrieve the feathers scattered through dimensions or Sakura will die.

Beautiful cosplay! I especially like the feather Sakura is holding. I wonder if she made it from scratch or cut and painted a real feather? Nice job though!

Technorati Tags: nanao, cosplay, research, cosplayer, costume, tsubasa, reservoir, chronicle, syaoran, sakura, vision, symbol, secret, ghost, wings, soul, high, priest, yukito, feather, dimension, scratch, paint, photobucket

Crayon Shin-chan author Yoshito Usui found dead

I noted in a blog last week that Yoshito Usui was reported missing by his family. He had told his family he was going for a hike and would be back in the evening. He however never returned.

It has been a week since his disappearance. It has now been reported that his body was found by a hiker under the Tomoiwa cliff. The body was identified by dental records. It looks to be an accident as police do not believe this was intentional nor was there anyone else supposedly with him.

I wish his family my condolences to his family.

1958 - 2009

Source: Sankaku Complex and Anime Network

Evils of eBay

Got in a bidding war the other night for some artwork. I got 2 out of 4 pieces done for the yearly seasons (picked up Spring & Summer). These were dome by Delphine L Demers whom I like a lot and have several of her pieces already. I just got stupid since I lost the first two (Autumn & Winter), so I decided to take the other 2 no matter the cost. It was very spiteful of me that I didn't want them to have all of them without a fight.

In the end, I spent what I was planning to on 2 painting instead of 4. I am a fool and a dumb-shit, but that is the evils of eBay. Here is a pic with all 4 pieces, I got the bottom 2.


So have you done anything like this and got caught up in the momentum of the auction?

The reason for this is because I hope that some people do the same thing I did on my auctions that I will be hosting Monday night. I have a bunch of stuff to sell from Trading Cards to Anime DVD's to Figures to Electronics to Jewelry. Pretty much, you can call it a Yard Sale of sorts of all my stuff that I no longer need or want. Besides, I have to pay for the damn things I won the other night - SHIT!.

Naruto: Haruno Sakura 04

Known to have deep feelings for Uchiha Sasuke, Sakura kept he hair long at the beginning of the series mainly because she heard Sasuke preferred girls with long hair. As she began to spend more time with him as a teammate, Sakura became concerened that Sasuke would abandon her and the rest of Konohagakure because of his lust for power. When her fears prove to be correct, she does everything she could to stop him from leaving, even confessing her love for him and offering to join him, to no avail.

Cute Sakura cosplayer! I do prefer her with long hair too. I'm not sure why she chopped her hair off, but I think it was because of one of their tests in becoming a ninja? Anyway, great cosplaying!

Technorati tags: cosplay, cosplayer, holic, role, play, roleplay, costume, naruto, haruno, sakura, uchiha, sasuke, hair, long, series, anime, manga, girl, teammate, concern, abandon, konohagakure, lust, power, fear, prove, correct, stop, confess, love, offer, avail, test, ninja, コスプレ, コスプレイ, ナルト, 春野, サクラ, うちは, サスケ, 木ノ葉隠れの里