Sweet Cantarella • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

So the SPJA just announced their annual industry awards after AX. Fan favorites like Death Note and Gurren Lagann made out like bandits, but I don’t know if the winners were always the most deserving (in fact, I daresay NOT!). So, here are SPJA’s picks and mine side-by-side… just for fun. :)

Category 01: Best Voice Actor (Japanese)

SPJA Pick: Kappei Yamaguchi - DEATH NOTE - L
My Pick: Fukuyama Jun - CODE GEASS – Lelouch

Lulu is a really tough character to play (a very wide range of emotions, plus a great deal of attention has to be paid to nuance for this extremely duplicitous character~). But really also b/c he’s got such a range of talents; if you’ve heard him in Okane ga Nai, you wouldn’t believe it’s the same person who plays that scoffing, deep-voiced Lelouch!

Category 02: Best Voice Actor (English)

SPJA Pick: Kyle Hebert - GURREN LAGANN - Kamina
My Pick: Johnny Yong Bosch - CODE GEASS – Lelouch

He truly beautifully navigates the many faces of Lelouch through the whole series and then REALLY lets it out for the exhilaratingly dramatic final few eps.

Category 03: Best Voice Actress (Japanese)

SPJA Pick: Junko Takeuchi - NARUTO - Naruto Uzumaki
My Pick: Junko Takeuchi - NARUTO - Naruto Uzumaki

Sure, why not? Always great in this role that demands both comedic and dramatic extremes. Her efforts to make her voice deeper to portray a 5-year-old Naruto are pretty impressive too!

Category 04: Best Voice Actress (English)

SPJA Pick: Michelle Ruff  - BLEACH THE MOVIE: MoN - Rukia Kuchiki
My Pick: Laura Bailey -  KODOCHA – Sana

This woman has deserved an award for YEARS. Her comic role as Sana is just unbelievable. She completely commits to this crazy role and is a major reason why this series is as funny as it is!

Category 05: Best Casting Director

SPJA Pick: Jaime Simone - BLEACH
My Pick: Kevin Seymour – CODE GEASS

Again, I’ve gotta go with Code Geass. Johnny Yong Bosch as Lelouch alone is worth the award’s weight in gold, but toss Yuri Lowenthal in there as the serious and sweet shounen hero Suzaku, velvety-voiced Mary Elizabeth McGlynn as Cornelia and Liam O’Brien as the amicably insane Professor Lloyd (boldest break from the Japanese voice cast, and it REALLY worked!) and you’ve got some really smart casting decisions that made this dub shine!!


Category 06: Best Character Design

SPJA Pick: Masaru Kitao of Madhouse - DEATH NOTE
My Pick: Masaru Kitao of Madhouse - DEATH NOTE

Yeah, very good adaptation of Obata Takeshi’s gorgeous manga art, especially with the Shinigamis. But adapting Code Geass’s huge and varied cast and intricate CLAMP clothing designs is pretty admirable too—they deserve an honorable mention at least.

Category 07: Best Mechanical Design

SPJA Pick: Yoh Yoshirari - GURREN LAGANN
My Pick: Sunrise - CODE GEASS 

Oh, come ON! You can’t not give this award to Sunrise, the masters of mecha! The gorgeous Knights of the Round mechas are varied/easily identifiable and beautiful without excessive embellishment or tacky add-ons like colored sunglasses (sorry, Gurren Lagann :P).

Category 08: Best Male Character

SJPA Pick: L – DEATH NOTE
My Pick: Lelouch - CODE GEASS

L’s a great, quirky character, but his personality is fairly 1-dimensional and his actions are not driven by any particularly admirable or powerful motive. Lelouch is often compared to Light (both being extremely Machiavellian), but what distinguishes him above Light is that despite his increasing corruption like Light, he doesn’t become all-bad—there is still sincere tenderness in his heart for his loved ones but without the excessive sentimentality that has made past Gundam, etc, heroes a little unbelievable. Lelouch is a very intelligent and manipulative young man who’s done both extremely horrible and extremely noble things—truly multi-faceted and much more realistic, fascinating and original than most every other anime character in existence. The fact that he still manages to maintain mass appeal as the lead of a Sunrise series is a testament to how round and well-crafted a character he is.

Category 09: Best Female Character

SPJA Pick: Rukia Kuchiki - BLEACH THE MOVIE: MEMORIES OF NOBODY
My Pick: Rukia Kuchiki - BLEACH THE MOVIE: MEMORIES OF NOBODY

Sure, why not? I haven’t seen this movie or much of Bleach, but I won’t argue; no major series portrays women in a more positive, empowering and respectful light than Bleach, and Rukia is Bleach’s leading lady, so it seems fair. I do think Code Geass had some pretty impressive women too, though—most notably C.C and Kallen (who actually BEATS our precious male superhero Suzaku in the final showdown! How’s that for woman power? ^^)

Category 10: Best Mascot Character

SPJA Pick: Mokona - xxxHOLIC
My Pick: Mokona - TSUBASA

Can’t argue with Mokona! :D The non-speaking Mokona that first appeared back in Magic Knight Rayearth was already so friggin’ cute he caused instantaneous fits of fangirl squee, but the new cuter-and-smaller, speech-enabled Mokonas that grace xxHOLIC and Tsubasa are even cuter! SPJA chose the black Mokona from xxxHOLIC but I personally think the white one from Tsubasa shows a lot more humor and personality (perhaps just because he interacts more with the main characters). However, White Mokona shows an added layer of depth beyond cutesy mindlessness when we see him face the really difficult events that split the TRC party up in the latter half of the series. Also, Tsubasa’s Mokona is the genius originator of the “Mokona Impersonation Technique” which has allowed him to do hilarious things like refer to Fai as “wife” in Kurogane’s voice. That alone makes him more deserving. :P

Category 11: Best Backround Design

SPJA Pick: Minoru Nakamura of Studio Pierrot - BLEACH
My Pick: Production I.G. – Seirei no Moribito

Seriously, we’re talking Studio Ghibli-level gorgeous natural landscapes of pre-modern Japan—in a TV SERIES!! How could Moribito not win??

Category 12: Best Original Video Animation

SPJA Pick: LUCKY STAR OVA - Bandai Entertainment
My Pick: Saint Seiya Hades-Sanctuary Arc - not licensed

All StS fans agree, the incredible new animation/CG in this OVA really brings the epic glamour of the legendary old manga to true life. The new seiyuu and animators’ reverent treatment of this classic both brings it up-to-date with modern sensibilities while respecting the hallmarks that made it a classic back in the early 90’s.

Category 13: Best Feature Film

SPJA Pick: The Girl Who Leapt Through Time – Bandai Entertainment
My Pick: Sword of the Stranger - Bandai Entertainment

From all I’ve heard of it, GWLTT is probably the rightful winner of this category, but I haven’t seen it so I can’t say. ^^; What I have seen that has really, REALLY impressed me is this little known gem called “Sword of the Stranger.” It’s a samurai period piece with truly the most breathtaking and realistic-looking animated sword fight I’ve ever seen. Those animators are GODS, I tell you!! Though the story doesn’t break any new ground, the execution of every last moment is flawless and even if there’s nothing particularly amazing about the story, something about it lingers like you wouldn’t believe. There are moments that replayed in my head again and again for the two weeks after I first saw this film and though you barely get enough time with the very appealing characters in this 1.5 hour movie, they’re so round and believable that you could imagine what the rest of their lives have been like and would really like to see them more. It’s really a shame this is just a one-shot movie rather than a series. The nameless samurai hero really has the potential to become a timeless and widely beloved character.

Category 14: Best Television Series

SPJA Pick: GURREN LAGANN - Bandai Entertainment
My Pick: DEATH NOTE – FUNimation

You thought I was going to choose Code Geass, didn’t you? :) I was sorely tempted, but Death Note is such an achievement not only in direction, storytelling, style and artwork, but such a breath of fresh air in the often trope and fan service-filled anime world that it really deserves the honor. CG is incredible, don’t get me wrong, and the absolute epitome of the Sunrise/Gundam epic genre, but Death Note is something we haven’t seen before, and the fact that it achieved mass appeal despite its darker, completely un-cutesy tone and story is a true marvel.

Category 15: Best Original Score

SPJA Pick: DEATH NOTE - Yoshihisa Hirano and Hideki Taniuchi
My Pick: TSUBASA – Yuki Kajiura

A true legend in the anime industry, her reputation is well-deserved. When she first started out in the .hack era, people were struck by her striking use of vibrant tribal chants over catchy electronic beats. For a time, it seemed her style was very stuck in that mold, but over the years, she’s really broken out to show her mastery over a huge range of genres, including the classical orchestral scores and pop ballads that are more commonly found in anime OSTs—all with her own twist. In Tsubasa, she showcases her amazing range while keeping every piece fresh and soaked in her own striking Yuki Kajiura flavor. I have to give an honorable mention to Code Geass, though—Hitomi Kuroishi’s gorgeous new age vocals really added a different flavor and solemnity (or refreshing feel) to the soundtrack.

I do like that unbelievably bombastic “next episode preview” theme from Death Note though. Talk about drama! :D


Category 16: Best Original Song

SPJA Pick: "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight" - Bleach - Beat Crusaders
My Pick: “Monochrome Kiss” – Kuroshitsuji - SID

I haven’t seen the Bleach OP here, but really, what more could you want from the riveting Kuroshitsuji OP “Monochrome Kiss?” It’s a great song with wonderfully mysterious, mood-setting lyrics and the accompanying animation just immediately throws you into that Victorian gothic/elegant atmosphere that is so characteristic of an essential to this series. You get many beautiful images from this OP, both from the visually and lyrically, and I love that the production people have taken the opportunity to integrate small, intriguingly mysterious “clues” of how the series will end in this opening.

Randomly, if this were the “greatest opening song of all time,” I’d have to go with Soukyuu no Fafner’s “Shangri-La,” hands down. :)


Category 17: Best Director (Japanese)

SPJA Pick: Tetsuro Araki - DEATH NOTE
My Pick: Tetsuro Araki - DEATH NOTE

Hmm, tough one to argue with. Death Note really was beautiful executed throughout (honestly, who thought an anime about a guy writing down names in a notebook could look as action-packed as it does in the anime series?). The few liberties the director took that broke away from the manga’s portrayals were all really excellent additions that enhanced the mood and story. So yeah, Araki-san gets my vote too. :)

Category 18: Best Director (American)

SPJA Pick: Karl Willems - DEATH NOTE
My Pick: Kevin Seymour – CODE GEASS

Hmm, not sure what the English adaptation director does besides voice direction. In that case, I actually think Code Geass’s director deserves this award because the CG characters are much harder to understand for a foreign audience and the subtleties of the unspoken relationships, etc, that the Japanese version puts in for fans’ enjoyment are pretty well preserved in the English version. Or maybe it’s just that Johnny Yong Bosch is such a good actor he hits those nuances w/o any direction. I dunno.

Category 19: Best Manga – Action

SPJA Pick: TSUBASA: RESERVOIR CHRONICLE - Del Rey Manga - CLAMP
My Pick: TSUBASA: RESERVOIR CHRONICLE - Del Rey Manga - CLAMP

I heartily agree with this one. No one does action + dramatic story AND comedy all balanced together like CLAMP. Plus, in what other action manga do you get samurai swordplay, martial arts, hover craft races, fights with giant beasts and magical duels all in the same series? Go, Tsubasa, go! 

Category 20: Best Manga - Comedy

SPJA Pick: FAIRY TAIL - Del Rey Manga - Hiro Mashima
My Pick: OURAN HIGH SCHOOL HOST CLUB – Viz – Bisco Hatori

Haven’t read FAIRY TAIL but I doubt any manga in this world is funnier than Ouran High School Host Club (with the possible exception of Slam Dunk, but it’s too close to call and SD is too old to qualify for these awards anyway). I didn’t think it possible, but the manga is actually funnier than the anime. And it’s so hilarious that it apparently has successfully crossed over to the male market too! (yes, despite how heavily girl-catered it is, I’ve seen fanboys purchase and read Host Club too! That’s a testimonial if ever I heard one!)

Category 21: Best Manga - Drama

SPJA Pick: MONSTER - Viz Media - Naoki Urasawa
My Pick: ?

Haven’t read MONSTER but I hear only good things about it, and since I don’t have a strong candidate in mind anyway, I’ll leave it be.

Category 22: Best Publication

SPJA Pick: Shonen Jump - Viz Media
My Pick: ?

Again, I don’t read any anime-related mags so I have no other candidate in mind. SJ it is.

Category 23: Best Full Motion Video in Video Game

SPJA PICK: FINAL FANTASY IV - Square Enix
My Pick: FINAL FANTASY VII: CRISS CORE – Square-Enix

Well, duh—of course something Square-Enix! Oh, but why did they pick FFIV?? Well done, Cecil, but does IV’s new CG really trump something like FFXII or Crisis Core??? Have you SEEN that final scene of Zack’s death? Even the mean, anti-bishounen male gamers cried!


And that's the last of them. What would you guys pick for this year's best of the industry?

Kyaaannn~~~ still on a high from yesterday’s So You Think You Can Dance taping~~~~

It was a great show—almost all the performances were stand-out quality, and my darling Caitlin got a truly epic paso doble to “Duel of the Fates”—w00t!!

We also had our first Mia Michaels couple dance of the season (she’s already choreographed one group dance)—it went to Randi and Evan, and it was FREAKING CUTE despite using Randi’s butt as its centerpiece (no joke!).

So here’s the performance list:


Aside from the wonderful performances, the highlights of the experience for me were:

1) Getting to see the judges and Cat-chan live (so cuuuute! When Correy, our warm-up guy (same one for American Idol) started handing out candy to the audience, he held out a lollipop for Cat, who came scampering over immediately (tottering in her high, high heels, lol~~) and eagerly lighted on the lollipop. So cuuuuute!!!! And as sweet as she seems on TV! :D)

2) Seeing Caitlin live (she totally smiled and blew kisses at my sister and me b/c we were the only idiots grinning and waving up at her instead of watching the judging of the previous couple when she and Jason were posing on the catwalk for the pre-commercial boogey—she’s so cool!!!)

3) GETTING TO SHAKE MIA MICHAELS’S HAND!!! I ran up to her (she was luckily sitting in the front row of the choreographers’ box) when everyone was getting up to leave at the end of the performances, so I rushed through the crowd, scurried past various staff ppl who were likely there to serve as security of sorts (luckily, they left me alone), and shouted, “MIA!” as she was turning to walk toward the aisle. Thankfully, she turned back and listened to my incoherent and overly enthusiastic fan greeting which went something like: “Oh my god, I love your work so much, you’re so amazing! Your dances are so moving—the most beautiful choreography I’ve ever seen! (proffering cute mini clear file w/ Komu-as-Lucifer’s picture in the front and a DVD mooglechan made featuring our favorite dances from Takarazuka in the back) Here’s a gift for you! It’s something we think you’ll really like!” At which point, in her infinite kindness and generosity, Mia reached down and took the gift—and then shook my hand!!! What?! I totally wasn’t expecting that—she was so nice~~~ XDDDD Mia, you’re so awesome!!!!

*ahem* And here I was trying to keep from squee-ing and getting too detailed. In any case, last highlight:

4) We got a bonus musical performance! The Veronicas (a band from Australia with a dual-singer setup and an awesomely cool female drummer) was performing as Thursday’s musical guests, but they were taping the performance early for some reason. So we not only got the full performance show—we got Thursday’s results show’s musical performance too! W00t! :D Nigel actually came back out and watched the run-through with his neck brace on, poor guy (just coming out of surgery). None of the other judges or special guests stayed (oh yeah, we had the cast of “Glee” in the audience), but Nigel, like a gentleman, came back out and watched them. :) The band was actually pretty good—they put on an exciting show and even had their own backup dancers with them. The two leads, Lisa and Jessica, were really cute and had a killer cool fashion sense (very Tokyo rock); they stole Correy’s mike briefly to say hi to us and answer some questions from the audience. Turns out they were going to do a concert directly afterward at the Musicbox, and then are going on tour throughout the US. I ended up liking their song “Take Me on the Floor” quite a bit—it’s very catchy! …In fact, it’s still stuck in my head, come to think of it… @_@

So that’s my super, super brief behind-the-scenes recap~ Watch the show tonight at 8PM on FOX! :D

Found the link from chibiyuuto and thought I'd romanize the list for those who are interested. Oricon compiled the top 50 best-selling tankoban between Novemer 2008 and May 2009. It's cool to see what's popular in Japan these days~

( The Top 50 Best-selling Manga (Nov/08 - May/09) )

It's surprising how popular the really, REALLY long-running series like ONE PIECE, Glass Mask and MAJOR still are! Also, hadn't realized Ohba Tsugumi and Obata Takeshi were still working together on a new series! :D Will definitely have to check that out, along with maybe Mei-chan's Butler. Omoshirosou~

This past week was pretty eventful—

Tuesday – So You Think You Can Dance Live Taping

= EPIC FAIL. @_@ A few wrong turns through the winding annals of Los Angeles and we arrive at the Genesee Gate of CBS Studios 40 minutes before call time (3pm), which resulted in us being in the last fifth of a HUGE line of attendees. They way, WAY overbooked the audience (granted, it was the first show of the season so they apparently weren’t sure how many would fit inside/show up), so they stopped letting people in SIX people before us. @_@ About 120-ish people got turned away in total, but to soften the blow (of having driven out to LA, taken a half-day and using up all my remaining paid time-off >.<), they gave us a number to call on Friday for “Priority Tickets” (aka guaranteed entry) to another taping. I called and got tix for the June 23rd show, though now that I think about it, I should’ve sprung for June 30th, since that’ll be AFTER my next translation deadline (Maid-sama vol 4, June 29th @_@). Sometimes, I’m so clever I hurt myself… =__=;; I must just subconsciously love being stressed and sleep-deprived…

The upside to all this is that the famous Grove shopping center that you hear so much about is on the same block as CBS Studios (in fact, that’s where we were told to park), and it was a surprisingly nice place. They’d basically carved out (a very Orange County-esque) shopping plaza in the middle of LA filled with cute, old-world architecture, a huge water fountain and charming outdoor seating areas. It’s also home to the huge American Girl Theater (kind of a misnomer, since the theater inside is tiny and only plays pre-recorded AG films instead of live theater), which really, REALLY reminded me of the Takarazuka Grand Theater. The same sort of idea: a big, posh building with faux turn-of-the-century-elegance décor housing shops, museums/showrooms and a café all centered on one theme (Takarazuka and American Girls, respectively). The AGT even had red carpeting and escalators heading up to the second floor—SO Zuka!! I swear, the building is just begging to be bought and reappropriated as the Los Angeles Takarazuka Theater. The cute little cobblestoned curb outside is also just begging for lines of fans to irimachi on…!

Well, that’s all just a fantasy, but the atmosphere of the place really did feel Zuka-esque somehow and that was lovely (even though the median age of the clientele was understandably younger.. a lot younger… =__=; ). Also briefly visited the HUMONGOUS 4-story Barnes & Noble (mooglechan inquired about the much-anticipated Adam Lambert edition of Rolling Stone that was supposed to have been out that day, but were told it was back-ordered or something. Never underestimate the power of Lambertian hotness. Observe.). Then, to avoid rush hour traffic, we stayed and watched a movie (Battle of the Smithsonian, which was surprisingly funny/engaging) in the gorgeous, posh movie theater @ the Grove. Admission is just about what you pay in a nice OC movie house too, so no biggie. The lobby’s grand, red-upholstered décor really made it look more like a real (stage) theater, as did the dim/cozy lighting and gorgeous framed paintings on the wall. Very nice, atmospheric place to watch a movie—I think we’ll come see Harry Potter 6 here.

Wednesday - Burma VJ

Have you heard of Aung San Suu Kyi? Nobel Peace Prize Winner in 1991, rightful ruler by popular election of Burma, been locked up under house arrest by the military dictatorship currently ruling Burma for like the last 2 decades? Remember the Saffron Revolution of 2007 when the peaceful, normally non-partisan Buddhist monks of Burma began marching peacefully through the streets of Rangoon in masses of tens of thousands to try to persuade the dictators to free Aung San Suu Kyi and stop starving their people? We never would've known about any of this if not for the amazing and horrific news footage that came out of Burma during that time, when no foreign press were allowed into the country. So how did the footage get out? A small network of dedicated and unbelievably brave Burmese reporters (being caught as a non-government reporter means prison and torture in Burma) called the Democratic Voice of Burma are the ones responsible for everything, and this movie is a documentary of both the events of the Saffron Revolution and the incredible reporters who tried desperately to capture everything and tell the world about it.

The footage is so striking--in Burma, ppl live under constant fear, but to see those Rangoon streets filled with people cheering and calling for freedom--wow. Having lived under this regime for over 2 decades now, a lot of those youngsters in the crowd have undoubtedly never experienced anything like that before. And I'm so thankful the DVB reporters were able to capture those images and get them out to us, chronicle the brief moments when those poor, cowed people were able to breathe freely, shout loudly, speak without restraint. Makes you really appreciate the right to free speech we have here, huh? The movie is really good at conveying the sort of veil of fear and silence that hangs over Burma normally (the reporters always try to ask ppl what they think, how their condition is, etc, but before the brief revolution, no one would even look at the cameras for fear that it would fall into gov hands and bring retribution on them and their families; going from that state to being able to shout openly in the street that they want to be free, they want to have Aung San Suu Kyi as their leader is a remarkable transformation and wonderful to watch). There's a point in the middle of the film where the monks' march takes them right up to the guarded gates of Aung San Suu Kyi's home, and when she comes out of her house and walks up to the gate to bow/pay homage to the monks, the people's reaction of nearly tearful happiness to get to see her again is unbelivably moving. I cried b/c I was so happy for them. The Burmese of today are a dull, dispirited-looking lot on the outside, but that moment makes you realize that in their hearts, they're still vibrant, still full of hopes and wishes and respect for their revered rightful leader.

A sad (as expected) but powerful film with moments that really, unexpectedly make your heart soar. The film editors strike a wonderful balance between telling the reporters' story and the greater events of Burma beyond them. You connect to the people on multiple levels. I think it'll be a long time before I forget the sight of all those people packed in that Rangoon street cheering for real for the first time in 20 years (even up on the roofs of the buildings, it's packed full of people!). And the way the fuzzy, handicam footage of the Burmese streets suddenly gets obscured by a paper bag or zipped up inside a duffel bag... those reporters are really doing this at the risk of their lives. Incredible people living in the same world as me, the cubicle-dweller. It's amazing.


Saturday - Sherlock Holmes & the Scandal in Bohemia

Not the most amazing mystery in the Holmsian catalogue, but unique in that it introduced the one woman who ever caught the eye (or at least, the respect) of the misogynistic Sherlock Holmes, "Scandal in Bohemia" is the story of Holmes and Watson's attempts to retrieve a scandalous photograph from a beautiful singer named Irene Adler, who intends to use said photo to ruin the King of Bohemia's political marriage. The King and Irene were lovers in the past but split (on the King's insistence) because Irene, a common-born American singer, is not of an appropriate social station to marry him. Irene still apparently loves him and threatens to expose a romantic photo of the 2 of them to the public if he dares to announce he is marrying anyone else. This is just what is about to happen (politically significant marriage with a second princess of Scandinavia), so the King comes to Holmes (in a mask, no less! :P) to ask him to retrieve the photo for him. His own men have tried to steal it multiple times and failed because Irene has it hidden in a secret place that only someone with Sherlock's powers of deduction could hope to divine. He takes the case (for a hefty sum!) and is summarily outsmarted. However, luckily for all involved, Irene has fallen in love with another man and married him, so she will keep the photo secret for the sake of her own marriage as well. The relieved King offers Sherlock anything in his vast riches as reward but all Sherlock asks for is the photograph of Irene that she had left behind for the King's remembrance. According to Watson, after this little incident, Sherlock's snide remarks about women's idiocy seemed to have died down a bit and ever after, he refers to Irene as "the Woman, as though she encompassed the whole of her sex."

Nice place, good acting from Sherlock, but you can see his Shakespearean roots pretty apparently (it was the Long Beach Shakespeare Company that put this original adaptation on, btw--in the teeny, tiny Richard Goad Theater). The play's transitions were a little clunky (took a good 10 minutes of the hour-long play total, I'd guess) and Irene's musical interludes were consistently flat (and there was one sorely wrong note she hit every time she came to it in her second song), but the overall atmosphere of Victorian intrigue and romance was nice, and the sets and costumes well done. The King's German accent was a little too forced (distracting) and the 2 brief dance numbers the production tried to include were really stiff and awkward in the tiny space they had. Not worth the $20 full price admission (luckily got in for Goldstar Events's discounted price), but fun and creative enough to warrant the drive out to Long Beach.

INTERLUDE: Treasure Island the play

Speaking of plays, I need to do a really, really quick mention of an EXCELLENT small-theater production I went to last weekend-- "Treasure Island" at the Maverick Theater in Fullerton. Beautiful, little theater with even better "mysterious theater" ambience. Great acting from the whole cast, especially Jim (SO CUTE) and Long John Silver. Very clever script adaptation too--they really built up the bond and sympathetic understanding between our 2 male leads so you really get why Jim releases Silver at story's end and thinks wistfully of him long after, despite all the despicable things Silver has done. Really good sword/fight choreography, a really solid, good cast across the board (hilarious at some points--you should've heard some of the ridiculous nautical things coming out of the pirate crew's mouths during set changes (another clever touch that kept the set changes from dragging--the pirates went about doing the hauling and jabbering and hollering amongst themselves as you'd hear any squabbly crew jabbering while doing the various things sailors do. It really kept you in the spirit of the play throughout!). Also some really impressive puppetry used on the terrifying Blind Pew to make him and the delivery of the initial Black Spot as terrifying as it was through young Jim's eyes (a MAMMOTH devilsh creature--I was sitting in the back row and was terrified!), and the shriveled Ben Gunn--unexpected, but great touches that add color to the production (though the acting and action really wasn't dry anyway). They kept everything "above-board" for a general audience, but there were nuances to the scenes between Jim and Israel Hands (creepy pedophile! Just check that name...) that make you understand why Jim is so uneasy around him and why he was despicable enough to deserve being killed by Jim later in the book. Overall, a FANTASTIC production in a really lovely, little theater. <3

Sunday - Burmese Food Fair

It's an annual tradition for my family to participate in the Azusa Buddhist Temple's fundraiser Burmese Food Fair event @ the Whittier Narrows Park in South El Monte. We sold my mom's famous Burmese Milk Tea (lapeht yay) w/ malai (curdled milk solids--takes about 8 hours over a steaming vat of milk to make a pint) and my uncle's homemade chicken kima paratha. Last year, the kima paratha sold like hotcakes, so my uncle worked extra hard and made about 200 of them this year. At $4 a pop, we were hoping to raise $800 for the temple with the parathas, plus maybe another $200 from the tea. Our total was about half that. @_@ Barely anyone came out to the food fair this year. ;__; I'm sure swine flu concerns and the still-sputtering economy are a lot to blame, but it was a bit depressing, especially after how hard my mom and uncle worked to prepare the food. Still, it was a beautiful, sunny and mind day and little Timmy (my baby cousin) had a wild day of fun running around in the grass. So it was nice overall~

So that was my week. That plus a sudden wild burst of writing inspiration that's led me to write about 4 pages of "Tales of Dissidia" daily. @_@ Hope it'll keep up this week, but I doubt it since I'm not entering crunch time for my next translation deadline. It's a doozy this time--Fujiwara-sensei did NOT hold back at all with the dialogue (average of 8 panels a page with 6 bits of dialogue in each one... @_@ Gawds, they should pay me DOUBLE for any Maid-sama translation... @_@). Overachievers should not draw manga... @_@;;;; Wish me luck...

Wow. I finished watching the last episode of Code Geass season 2 about an hour ago and I am still reeling...

How long has it been since an anime--since ANY creative work or fiction--has had such an effect on me? How long has it been since we've had something so utterly mind-blowing? This show just runs you through an emotional gamut a mile long, keeps you guessing the whole time, throws twists like Agatha Christie and JJ Abrahams never dreamed but ALWAYS makes sense in the end and ties back together as cleanly as a Dickens novel. Wow.

My hat is off to the folks at Sunrise. After decades of blundering through Gundam series that morphed and contradicted themselves so badly nothing made any sense at all by the end, they've finally perfected the Epic Form. This is truly an epic of world-spanning, revolutionizing scope--not just in its "physical" reach, but in the extreme stretches of emotion, the themes that it explores, the way it dares to push and often break the envelope of what we've come to think of as anime's laws and caveats.

( Continue the review (semi-spoilerish) )

Thank you, Code Geass, for being the first anime in YEARS to truly make my heart and imagination race like it did when I was a kid. You are incredible.

Okay, video game fans, before the Square-Enix E3 conference begins (in a mere 20 minutes~) and undoubtedly showers us all with so much joyous FFXIII/VersusXIII, NA Dissidia and Kingdom Hearts news that we walk around like grinning idiots for the rest of the day, let's note this little bomb Sony dropped on us last night @ their conference:

FINAL FANTASY XIV IS ALREADY IN DEVELOPMENT AND IS A PS3 EXCLUSIVE!!!!

THERE ARE ALREADY SCREENSHOTS. OH. EM. GEE.

Talk about blindsided!! Haha, you know the Sony folks were smirking like Cheshire Cats after that (MS must've been pretty pissed :P), but I guess that's comeuppance for last year when MS made a big fuss about getting FFXIII on Xbox/rented out the booth right next to Square-Enix on the showroom floor to show how cozy they were (oh, that was at TGS, actually).

The thing is, it's an MMO... :( Looks like it'll be a massive improvement over FFXI, but to me, the MMOs aren't *real* Final Fantasies. :P (this from someone who's never played an MMO ^^;; ). But that explains the job postings on Square-Enix NA for an MMO community moderator. So would've applied if I'd ever played an MMO. Oh well~

No release schedule on FFXIV yet, of course (better not be since all we know about FFXIII's release so far is "around April 2010"), but it's so exciting to see the next step already in production~ ^____^

Am also wetting myself over the hawtness of the FFXIII 40-minute demo that comes with the newly released (as in, yesterday) FFVII:Advent Children Complete Blu-ray movie release (which features 26 minutes of NEW FOOTAGE, btw, including this ultimately awesome and surprisingly brutal extended fight scene between Cloud and Sephiroth--guess Sephi wasn't taking it easy on Cloud after all! 0__0;; ). This awesome guy who runs a Sephiroth Memorial Shrine "JENOVA" put the new fight scene up on his site for download--don't miss it, cuz it's friggin' AWESOME. *___*

Randomly, I saw an interesting-looking title on Square-Enix's lineup of games to discuss at E3: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life As a Darklord. @_@ It's for WiiWare (of course, since it's Crystal Chronicles), but the premise sounds really cute. You are a darklord and you have to boobytrap your tower home b/c a bunch of annoying, do-gooding adventurers have infiltrated it to slay you. Fun to take a ride with the other side, huh?

Hey, that should be good inspiration for "Tales of Dissidia" (which I am working on again, now that I got the Aldebaran bug quelled for a minute ^^; )--the ending (which is already writting ^^; ) basically touches on the same theme of villains being just another side rather than The Enemy. Well, they are enemies, but you know~ :P I just don't know how to start chatper 4... =__=

Ah! One last bit of Square-Enix related news: SEPHIROTH IS COMING TO ANIME EXPO 2009!! And I don't just mean the usual flurry of Sephiroth cosplayers--his esteemed voice actor, Toshiyuki Morikawa, is one of AX09's Guests of Honor!! Seriously, Sephiroth would not be half as gawd-smackingly awesome without that smooth-as-silk, sexy-beyond-all-reason voice of his!! ...Drats, does this mean I have to go to that trainwreck of an anime con again?? @_@ I thought I could finally escape it after 10 unbroken years of suffering through it... @_@

--Cy

At some point in every otaku's life, you get this urge to make a list of all the anime you've watched and see just how much of the gigantic whole you've managed to take a nip out of. I know my list doesn't compare to a lot of folks' (I'm even missing big ones like "Vampire Knight," "Fate Stay/Night" and "Rozen Maiden"), but after about... 14 years of being a fan, and sort of feeling the flames of my passion cooling off, I thought this would be a good time to take stock.

( The List!! )


Over 200 entries (203 to be exact)... crazy, huh? And I can remember names and faces and poignant moments from every single one of those... no wonder my brain has no room left for useful information! @_@ The major ones that I loved with a passion were just a handful, but those plus my other raging loves in books, bands and video games have made the last 14 years of my life a very full and squee-ful time bursting with enthusiasm and creativity. Ahh, anime, how can I ever repay thee...? <3

P.S. Anyone else find it funny that I was reading stuff like X, Angel Sanctuary and Yami no Matsuei as a tween? No wonder I'm so messed up... :P

Prop 8 Upheld

I don't have much to say. I figured it would happen, and these days, the conservatives are feeling more insecure than ever (what with the majority of America embracing a *gasp* gay American Idol contender), so rah for them. As wrong as I know this is, people are dumb, timid creatures who are slow at accepting change. Little by little, public opinion is swaying toward equal rights for gays, so I want to tell the LGBT community and their fervent straight supporters (like me) not to lose hope--legal gay marriage will come permanently to Cali someday soon. The tide is already turning--as many ppl on Twitter are noting, even Iowa (random?!) has legalized gay marriage, so Cali is a fool to fall too far behind.

Though, you know... the fears I was expressing last November about the horrific day when the gigantic Golden State turns red on the voting map are kind of resurfacing... When it happens, that huge earthquake will hit--I have a theory that a natural disaster of that magnitude only happens in places where enough bad karma builds up. And Californians, unlike southerners/midwesterners/etc, are sufficiently free of traditionally tight-knit, claustrophobic small town societies to be able to do the right thing/be tolerant to those who are different. The fact that they don't is simple mean-spiritedness. Thus, bad karma build-up. We're getting to that Big One level slowly but surely--that's for sure.

Yappari, it's time to move up to Washington.

Cy=Life Update

Speaking of which, that's just what I'm planning to do! <3 Well, at least temporarily--am now studying for the GREs so that I can apply for U of Washington's MFA program in Creative Writing come January. The 2 year program sounds perfect, the setting/campus is gorgeous and they have a really excellent TA program that waives all tuition and gives you a $12K/year stipend to live off of per year. In exchange, you head one undergrad Intro to Writing section in your 1st year and teach your own undergrad intro course in your second year. On top of not being a bad deal for having tuition, etc, waived, it's great teaching experience which will help if I decided to go the teaching route afterwards.

Now all I've gotta do is get in... ^^;;; Meaning, I have to start writing literary fiction as opposed to genre fiction (or my guilty pleasure, fan fiction :P).

Y’know, I said I wouldn’t mind either way, but you really don’t know until it’s happened, do you? I feel awful. Adam was robbed.

Not to detract from Kris, who is truly an excellent musician. But especially after the way Adam tore up the stage last night (as Lisa said perfectly, “this is Adam’s world—Kris is just visiting”), can anyone with eyes and ears deny that this boy is bursting with star quality and deserves to be the winner of this huge, murky, confetti-sprinkled Idol machine??

And I feel for Kris too. His expression said it all—Adam deserved to win. And what he said beforehand about how he hoped it wouldn’t be about religion, homophobia, etc—he knew that if he won, it would be at least in part because people were voting “not Adam” rather than “for Kris.” I know there are lots of real, bonafide Kris fans out there who believe the sun rises and sets with Kris (and they’re justified—he has a beautiful voice, great music composition sense and is adorable, to boot), but I’m fairly positive that a good chunk of those 100 million votes were from disgruntled Gokesters and homophobes who just didn’t want Adam to win. And it’s a sad thing that Kris knows it too, which must really sour the victory for him. I feel sorry for both of them.

My only consolation is that 1) at least Adam won’t be forced to release that horrendous “No Boundaries” as his first single—Kris, at least, can *sort* of pull off the cheese, but it’s totally at odds with Adam’s coolness; and 2) now that the Gokesters and homophobes have had their revenge, at least we don’t have to worry about some rabid neo-Nazi psycho trying to attack Adam while they’re touring in the less-tolerant parts of the country.

So, even though last night will never sit right for either Kris or Adam (and Simon is all but guaranteed to refuse to renew his Idol contract after this), I guess I can live with it. Congrats to Kris—he’s definitely more worthy than a lot of folks who have won the title, but I wish he could have won another season when he’d KNOW he deserved to win.

Just had to share an excellent (though not too long) interview with Nightwish band leader/keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen. This man has earned having a country in the world of GADIA named after him b/c his music is just UNBELIEVABLE. I like to say I'll never feel the need to become a recording artist or write songs because this man already writes the music of my soul~

*ahem* But I digress. Here's the interview.

I wanted to really point out what he says in the last question--the enormous power over a fan a celeb has and what responsibilities you gain by becoming "someone." I'm really pleasantly surprised by Tuomas's insight and viewpoint on this matter--wish a lot more celebrities would think like this. At the same time, I understand how embarrassing and difficult it must be on someone so introverted. I'm so glad he's been able to preserve a lot of his naivete despite being at the center of an internationally renowned band.

Oh, but the excerpt:
I guess that explains why he came out of the tour bus after the San Diego concert--he must've been exhausted but came back out b/c there was this huge crowd of fans standing outside waiting to "demachi" the rest of the band. Poor guy, he could've rested--but I do appreciate his coming back out for 2 reasons: 1) an excellent, up-close photo of his lovely profile, and 2) I got to see first-hand how incredibly tall he is...! Standing next to him, I only go up to his shoulder! @_@

In a totally non-squeeing-fangirl way, I really love and respect this man...!

Updated at last!

Title: “A Taurus Birthday” Chapter 2
Author: darkcyradis  
Rating: PG-13
Status: WIP (ch 2/3)
Pairings: All sorts! But AldexShaka and AioliaxShaka mainly in this chapter.
Notes: Inspired by strausser's DMxAphro fanfics. :)
Summary: This time, Aphrodite’s proposed “Operation Virgin Blitz” is set in motion! Will Alde be able to woo the infamously chaste Virgo Shaka? Will Aiolia finally get up the nerve to confess to Shaka and beat Alde to the punch? Will Shaka just fry everyone for peeping on him while he’s trying to have a nice bath? Find out in Chapter 2 of “A Taurus Birthday”—Operation Virgin Blitz!

Sneak peek:

"I tried to stop him..." the Sagittarius Saint intoned sadly. "I told him Shaka would raze his Sala trees to the ground before he'd ever fall for him, but he wouldn't listen to me, the lovesick fool. Now all I can do is gather his charred remains and give them an honorable burial..."

Click here to read Chapter 2. Or, here’s Chapter 1.

Please R&R!

Cross-posted on

saintseiyayaoi  .

 

Very nice finale night on Idol. Both boys did well, though only Kris's encore performance of "Ain't No Sunshine" REALLY floored me. Adam was impressive as ever on his second song "A Change is Comin'" but that's not the style I prefer from him. I was SO HAPPY he chose "Mad World" for his encore round, though--staging was fantastic! (It could've been a Zuka performance, complete with gorgeous trenchcoat and boots ensemble on Adam, dry ice rolling sheets of fog along the blue-wash-lit stage and Adam rising to the top of Chuucrest's lighted stairway like Wao popping out of the floor as the Phantom of the Opera~). <3 Vocally, though, Adam still didn't give as flawless a performance of "Mad World" as I would have liked (as you can hear on his studio recorded version). Better in-tuneness than the first time but it somehow lost a little of its gripping, transporting magic somehow.

The thing that kind of ruined the whole night for me, though, was the horibble "Treacle Tune of Doom" that both boys were forced to sing as their last round. It's the song that will be released as the first single of the one who wins (like "A Moment Like This" for Kelly Clarkson and "Time of My Life" for David Cook) and it was HORRENDOUS. @_@ Musically, it was as sappy as all the Idol Treacle Tunes have been, but it didn't even have the benefit of allowing the Idolette to let loose on a glory note or two. But what really killed it for me... were the lyrics. @_@

Now, you'll remember the horrifying lines in some of the past Treacle Tunes like last year's "magic rainbow" line in Cookie's "Time of My Life," but this year's monster takes the cake. It's called "No Boundaries," written by the supposedly accomplished songwriter Kara DioGuardi (the useless 4th judge introduced to the show this season). I'd gone into it a little hopeful, thinking that b/c it was being written by professionals this year instead of sparkly eyed 13-year-olds, at the very least, the lyrics should be better right? (and the music??) Well. How very wrong I was... Any shred of credibility Kara the Songwriter had before has just been chucked out the window. All I can say is WTF????

Plus, musically, the song didn't let Adam shine/show off his glorious range at all. I figured at first that the 5-note range of the chorus must've been there for Kris's sake (the melody did sound like something he'd sing), but then when Kris performed it, I realized it totally wasn't suite to him either b/c it's too high for him. @_@

Well, he still put a valiant effort. This was the first time we heard Kris open up his voice and let it wail diva-style this season, and all things taken into account, he didn't sound that bad. Just needs a little practice. And speaking of practice, it kind of sounded like both finalists were pretty uncomfortable with the song--not just b/c it didn't suit either of them musically, but like they'd only had half a day to learn the whole song or something (which, come to think of it, is probably exactly what happened). I wasn't horribly impressed by either performance. Hopefully, whoever wins tonight will sing it better, mountains, hurricanes and all... @_@;;;;;;

As for who should win... well, Kris's first round was awesome and he has displayed a level of music arranging talent that I've never seen from any contestant in the history of Idol, so I think he's the most likely to produce a non-generic, Breakaway-level good record. But Adam's outrageous talent and onstage dynamism (is that a word?) really does make him the perfect winner of a TV talent show. I won't be devastated if he doesn't win, but he really, really deserves it.

OMG, I think I'm in love...!! Have you guys heard of Cinema Bizarre? They're this German rock band of five GORGEOUS, very obviously VISUAL KEI-influenced guys~~ 

http://cinemabizarreusa.com/

Look particularly at their individual profiles on there--there are mini-galleries featuring their gorgeous, gorgeous photos. *__*

If you don't believe me about the J-rock thing, their names are:

strify (vocals) -- as in Cloud Strife?? :D
Yu (guitar) -- this guy lists Miyavi, D'espairs Ray and X Japan amongst his fave bands and Tokyo as his fave place in the world
Kiro (bass) -- he likes Nightwish!!! <3 <3 <3 (and Within Temptation! :D) He says his greatest wish is to go to Japan ^^
Shin (drummer) -- one of fave bands is Dir en Grey and also lists Tokyo as his fave place
Romeo (keyboardist) -- no JP influence, it seems--just a gothy guy. LoL~

Yes, and despite the names, they are all German (i.e. not Japanese) guys. I am so floored by this!! J-rock is finally spreading its influence, and now we're starting to gain beautiful visual kei guys in the West too~~ At last, we're starting to see the products of the anime generation~ ^____^ <3 <3 <3 Kyaaan!! O Progress, thy forward march reassures me~~

I can't wait to get home and listen to their music (yep, bein' naughty @ work). I've always loved the visual kei look but could never get into it b/c I wasn't a fan of that type of music. If we could have a symphonic metal band who looked like the hotties in Versailles or something--dude, my life would be perfect. :D Let's hope these guys are the ones...!

Just had to share this AWESOME recap article from EW.com.

They've got a whole team of Idol-obsessed bloggers cranking out tons of Idol articles to help fill that Thursday-Monday gap, but what really caught my attention about this particular article was this hilarious Idol parody to the Eagles' "Hotel California:" (concerning Allison's elimination last week)

There she stood on the big stage, her voice clear as a bell
But my brain found it hard to shake, Danny's maniacal Tuesday-night yell
Then her ''Cry Baby'' cover, put my poor mind at ease
I just wish that Kara would sit down, her dancing makes me sieze

Welcome to results-night hell on Idol
Such a heinous night
(Such a heinous night)
This result's not right
Come rant against this results-night hell on Idol
Simon's surly mug
(Simon's surly mug)
Begging to get slugged

LoL!! Too hilarious~~ And yes, poor Allison... I hope she knows how much she'll be missed. ;__; I'll definitely buy her CD when it comes out--I love the way she sings!

Btw, have you seen the sizzling cover of the latest Entertainment Weekly featuring none other than the fabulous Adam Lambert? :D Sizzling hot, that boy--and I'm so thankful for this cover b/c the more "official channels" embrace Adam before the finale, the likelier that the conservatives will finally get over themselves and just vote for Adam. I know Idol tends to turn their winners into cookie-cutter pop zombies, but 1) I have faith that Adam can Glambert-ify anything Idol forces him to sing, and 2) how cool would it be to crown our first gay Idol?? It'd be a huge step forward for the gay community, so I'll be voting my fingers off for Adam~~ I just wish the final could be Adam vs. Kris (so adorable together~) instead of Adam vs Gokey-buri. 

OMG!! I just found out Anette finally performed  "Ghost Love Score!!!" And not only GLS--Nightwish performed "Escapist" live too!!! My two favorite NW songs of all time that I went to 2 separate concerts on this Dark Passion Play Tour to go see (and they never performed either... =__=), all in one night?!?! Those fans in Mantova, Italy are insanely lucky!!

Here are the vids (also through in "Dead Boy's Poem"--another one Anette had never performed before):

Escapist
Ghost Love Score
Dead Boy's Poem

"Escapist" sounded incredible, as expected (my fave of the Anette-original songs, definitely! Though "Amaranth" is a close second); "GLS" was a bit high for Anette during a lot of it, but I thought her take on the ending ("Redeem me..." onward) was interesting. Tarja still owns that one though. But I think I actually like Anette's "Dead Boy's Poem" more than Tarja's... something about the clarity/purity of Anette's voice makes the opening verses of the song more plaintive and childlike, which suits the words, IMO.

Btw, here's the setlist of this amazing concert, which I got from flareoon's lj (lucky her--she was at the concert!! Here's her concert report.)

Such an amazing concert...!! Those Italian fans are so lucky~!! I don't know what they did to deserve this amazing concert (well, you can hear them all singing along in the vids--guess they are truly enthusiastic fans and they seemed to give Anette a warm welcome, which she deserves after all the crap those Brazilian fans gave her >.<). In any case, next tour, I'm going to plan a vacation to Italy during NW's concert there--gotta see a NW concert in style! These US concerts are so tiny we don't get any of the cool pyrotechnics or confetti. So I'll definitely head to Italy or maybe France (there's a huge fanbase there, I hear) for a NW concert someday!

I love Nightwish. :)

A great job opening at Tokyopop for a Manga Editor made me wonder how exactly the US Anime/Manga industry is doing right now, so I went on a little article hunt. Here's a fantastic 2-parter from IVC2:

Part 1 - focusing on the US manga industry
Part 2 - focusing on the US anime industry

Unsurprisingly, sales are down in the midst of the recession, but it seems that they'd been declining even prior to the downturn's onset. Maybe that Tokyopop job isn't such a good idea, huh? (especially since Newegg's still doing pretty darn well, all things considered). Still, I know I'd be good at the job and I've always wanted to work in the anime industry. If I were hired, the first title I'd ask to license would be Saint Seiya: Lost Canvas, for sure! :D Such an easy way to steal a slice of shounen manga audience back from Viz~ Silly TP for not jumping on it. :D

Speaking of TP, we heard last year that Tokyopop had a major restructuring/streamlining last year (something to the tune of cutting 35 jobs = 40% of US workforce). The Anime Blog has the details--TP is now 2 companies:

http://theanimeblog.com/manga/manga-news/tokyopop-splits-in-two/

On a lighter note, Tokyopop and Pocky have teamed up to run a Pocky-drawing contest for Comic-con (coming up next month):

http://theanimeblog.com/the-anime-blog-contests/tokyopop-pocky-art-win-1000/

Okay, that's it for my anime/manga news of the day. Guess I may as well give the TP job a shot and let them know up front I need job security assurances if they decide to hire me. But first, must finish chapter 2 of "A Taurus Birthday"--happy birthday, Alde!!

City of Thieves by David Benioff

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow...this is like a perfect first novel. Well, except it Benioff's second, but still--the plot is so tight, the threads and motifs closed roundly but without seeming at all contrived, the characters few and familiar but utterly endearing and believable... You can't not love this book. It's simply perfect. And the charm of the writing and the unusual setting/situation that this coming-of-age tale is set against really make it an enjoyable and enriching read.

Sure you know from the start how certain things are going to end (it's that kind of story, after all), but Benioff is aware of all that and manages to keep you engrossed and refreshed with little idiosyncratic touches here and there anyway.

In fact, what I really love about the ending is that Benioff DID go with the story the way you know it's going to go, but he did the execution of it very well--very readable even for a very literary audience. So we literature fiends are able to enjoy that bit of unfashionably "feel-good" closure you get from a young adult novel or an old-school genre fiction novel, but without any type of gag reflex kicking in as it would have in the hands of a less capable author. Great book--buddy narratives are always tons of fun (especially in a life-or-death adventure like this, and with the occasional company of a truly kickass, non-slut female character :D).

Highly recommended to everyone, whether you're a fan of literary fiction, war stories or neither. :)

View all my reviews.

Hey guys~

This is a little something I started about 2 years ago--finally got off my lazy butt enough to connect all the pieces and got chapter 1 publishable just in time of Aldebaran's birthday! (May 8th)

I know what you're thinking--"Why Aldebaran??" I agree that he's not the most charismatic or handsome (not even close) Saint, and it's true the cast of Saint Seiya is just bursting with luscious, enticingly angst-ridden bishies galore and Alde is about as un-luscious and angst-free as they come but... y'know, after I started this, I found his character really interesting. He's fun to write--very sympathetic--and if simple, he's a great "straight man" to contrast with the wackiness of Deathmask and Aphrodite (this is a humorous fic, btw--thus, wacky DM & Aphro :D).

In short, writing wise, I'm pretty happy with this fic, so I hope you guys will give it a chance, even if Aldebaran (or Saint Seiya) isn't amongst your favorite things. <3

Title: "A Taurus Birthday"
Rating: PG
Status: WIP (chapter 2 by May 8 or bust!!)
Pairings: All sorts! DMxAphrodite, AldexShaka, AioliaxShaka, AldexMu + the usual others in the background
Notes: Inspired by strausser's DMxAphro fanfics. :) Some conceits (DM's nickname for Aphro, DM's birthday dinner-cooking) stolen from her fabulous fics too--go read them!
Summary: Love is in the air at Sanctuary, but it seems there’s none for Aldebaran. When the Zodiac’s former black sheep, Aphrodite and Deathmask, find him moping about lonesomely on his birthday, they decide it’s high time they take matters into their own hands and find him love!

“Birthday feast?” Aldebaran echoed.

“Yeah, birthday feast—would ya stop repeating everything I say?” Deathmask ran a hand through his shock of blue hair and sighed exaggeratedly. “I know I used to make all those stupid cow jokes about you, but let me tell ya—you make it kinda easy sometimes!”

Here's an interesting article about Love in the Time of Recession from Yahoo! News.

One fun quote from the article reads:


LoL! So traffic on eHarmony is inversely related to the strength of the stock market? I guess it makes sense--it's in times like these that we remember we're all just tiny, fragile, little human beings in the end and we do need to band together. Kind of depressing, but kind of healthy for our egocentric society ka na?

Ah, apparently, sales of romance novels are way up, too--the biggest romance novel publisher had a 32% YOY growth in Q4 last year!

Hmm, so maybe it's a good time to get into the romance novel industry... or any type of escapist fiction in general? Omoshiroi...

Mooglechan, it's time for TPT to come out and sweep people away from the mundane, ne? :D Ganbatte!!

P.S. Am feeling a little sick. It's probably just fatigue from this hellish month of double-translation duty and no sleep, but marathoning House and watching ppl get drastically sick on a nearly daily basis, plus all this talk of swine flu, are kind of putting me on edge. Can't wait till I'm done with these translations and can get a proper night's rest again... @__@

Thank goodness, Gale Harold (aka Brian Kinney aka The Sexiest Man Alive) has completely recovered from that horrible motorcycle accident from last fall and is even well enough to get back onto Desperate Housewives! Ankaree's post below has his full come-back interview from TV Guide plus some more video reveiws and photos--he still looks perfect. :) Good news on this freakishly hot "Spring" morning in Cali... @_@ (high of 98 degrees today... good god... @_@)

Click here to see all the Gale Goodness on Ankaree's LJ