There's a new Taiko No Tatsujin game out for DS! My copy is in the post, it hasn't arrived yet. There's a list of songs on Wikipedia here, though it says it's incomplete and I don't know how accurate it is.
Oh no! Not "Linda Linda", that's an annoying song... (though the cover versions seem to be better than the original song!)
Some of the songs seem to be repeats of tracks from other Taiko no Tatsujin games.
The official Japanese site is here.
It took a very long time to load for me, as it's in flash, but at least it sings to you. ^_^ I only watched one trailer because my internet connection is being quite slow. It seems to have a big story mode and some extra instruments... I hope it's not too distracting with the visual effects and things while I'm trying to play. I find these games hard enough as it is!
Tuesday, 29 April 2008
Spectral Souls - Resurrection of the Ethereal Empires
This game is for the PSP, and I bought the American version released by NIS America. Official site. It's a strategy RPG developed by Idea Factory, and the Spectral Souls series is a long-running series of theirs. This is the only one of the series released in English though.
When I started this up, it struck me that the "Disc Access" and "restoring data - please wait" messages looked very bad - as though this was an 8-bit console rather than PSP. Then it struck me that I was seeing those "Disc Access" messages an awful lot. Then it struck me that the dialogue is hilariously badly written. And again, that it needed to load everything. It needs to load about every line of dialogue, every move in battle, and the save game screen asks you if you want to delete any save for any game off your memory stick as default (even though there's tons of free space), and made me enter the name for the file with the stupid PSP browser txt msg text-entry system every time I wanted to save. It's a terribly badly made game!
Which is a shame because I got the feeling that it might be decent as a game, and I like the idea that I can orchestrate what order each army moves in the war, with different stories unfolding depending on what I choose to do.
If only it wasn't wasting my time making me wait every few seconds! It's really irritating!
When I started this up, it struck me that the "Disc Access" and "restoring data - please wait" messages looked very bad - as though this was an 8-bit console rather than PSP. Then it struck me that I was seeing those "Disc Access" messages an awful lot. Then it struck me that the dialogue is hilariously badly written. And again, that it needed to load everything. It needs to load about every line of dialogue, every move in battle, and the save game screen asks you if you want to delete any save for any game off your memory stick as default (even though there's tons of free space), and made me enter the name for the file with the stupid PSP browser txt msg text-entry system every time I wanted to save. It's a terribly badly made game!
Which is a shame because I got the feeling that it might be decent as a game, and I like the idea that I can orchestrate what order each army moves in the war, with different stories unfolding depending on what I choose to do.
If only it wasn't wasting my time making me wait every few seconds! It's really irritating!
Monster Hunter Freedom
Another game I played recently is Monster Hunter Freedom, the European version for PSP.
It's an MMORPG that you play offline. The loading times are annoying, as they seem to appear too frequently, and it's quite slow-moving, sometimes quite frustratingly. I often feel that my character is being hurt because they were too slow to break out of their current action, posing after they drink healing potions, etc. However, I found it quite addictive for the first few days that I played. I like the fight-to-the-death aspect. I like stabbing beasts to death, hacking bits off them, and cooking and eating them there and then (watch the spit turn 4 and a half times for perfect food, while excessively jolly music plays). I'd rate this game "Not suitable for vegetarians"! I like the over-exaggerated animations for eating and sleeping too, hehe. The pace got increasingly frustrating as the missions got harder, so I decided to play something else (as in, another videogame) somewhere during the two-star missions from the village chief. I get the feeling it would be much much better multiplayer, you could get some proper battle tactics in.
It's an MMORPG that you play offline. The loading times are annoying, as they seem to appear too frequently, and it's quite slow-moving, sometimes quite frustratingly. I often feel that my character is being hurt because they were too slow to break out of their current action, posing after they drink healing potions, etc. However, I found it quite addictive for the first few days that I played. I like the fight-to-the-death aspect. I like stabbing beasts to death, hacking bits off them, and cooking and eating them there and then (watch the spit turn 4 and a half times for perfect food, while excessively jolly music plays). I'd rate this game "Not suitable for vegetarians"! I like the over-exaggerated animations for eating and sleeping too, hehe. The pace got increasingly frustrating as the missions got harder, so I decided to play something else (as in, another videogame) somewhere during the two-star missions from the village chief. I get the feeling it would be much much better multiplayer, you could get some proper battle tactics in.
Neon Genesis Evangelion Battle Orchestra
I thought I'd make a few posts about games I've played recently.
Neon Genesis Evangelion Battle Orchestra is a multiplayer 2D fighter (with 3D models), like Smash Bros but Evangelion branded. It's for the Playstation 2 and has been released in Japan. It's by BROCCOLI, so you can hear Gendo say "Broccoli" every time it starts. :D The cast from the original TV series seems to be intact, though Ogata Megumi's performance as Shinji... sounds more like when she played Kyuu from Tantei Gakuen Q. -_-;
The graphics are redrawn and I don't really like the new designs - Shinji and his father have huge foreheads like they were the main guy in FLCL, they could fit a mecha in there. Rei is fluffy and moé and cute. Asuka is a werewolf. Only the yellow version of Eva Unit 00 is available. The music has been replaced, the only recognisable piece in the game is a new recording of "Tamashii no Rufuran" used as the opening theme. The moves seem limited. The Angels look and act so funny, it's great. They look even more like sock puppets and inflatable toys than they did in the series, and the black-and-white stripey floating ball Angel goes around punching everyone. Everything can be defeated with the tactic of "kick and punch and shoot it", none of your messy impenetrable shield / AT-Field business. More than ever it feels as though Eva was a tokusatsu show, man-in-a-cheesy-hero-costume fighting man-in-a-cheesy-monster-costume, as giants battling in the city, in 2, 3 or 4 player battles.
I like Eva games for that reason. They're light-hearted fun. ^_^
I played through Shinji's story mode that ends with him fighting Kaworu in an Eva (!) and Asuka's story mode which ends after she beats 9 mass-produced angels.
Oh and Gainax are sooooo interested in reinforcing the idea that Eva fans must spend more and more money to get new Eva stuff... you don't directly unlock new things to play with when you (for example) complate story mode. No, there's an in-game shop, and when you play, you win some money to spend in that shop, and when you complete something you may unlock new items in the shop. (e.g. characters to use in VS mode or BGM or whatever) -_-;
We saw Kensuke piloting an Eva in the demos but haven't unlocked him yet. The Gunbuster is also in there (another reason to want this game!), but we haven't unlocked that either. :(
Neon Genesis Evangelion Battle Orchestra is a multiplayer 2D fighter (with 3D models), like Smash Bros but Evangelion branded. It's for the Playstation 2 and has been released in Japan. It's by BROCCOLI, so you can hear Gendo say "Broccoli" every time it starts. :D The cast from the original TV series seems to be intact, though Ogata Megumi's performance as Shinji... sounds more like when she played Kyuu from Tantei Gakuen Q. -_-;
The graphics are redrawn and I don't really like the new designs - Shinji and his father have huge foreheads like they were the main guy in FLCL, they could fit a mecha in there. Rei is fluffy and moé and cute. Asuka is a werewolf. Only the yellow version of Eva Unit 00 is available. The music has been replaced, the only recognisable piece in the game is a new recording of "Tamashii no Rufuran" used as the opening theme. The moves seem limited. The Angels look and act so funny, it's great. They look even more like sock puppets and inflatable toys than they did in the series, and the black-and-white stripey floating ball Angel goes around punching everyone. Everything can be defeated with the tactic of "kick and punch and shoot it", none of your messy impenetrable shield / AT-Field business. More than ever it feels as though Eva was a tokusatsu show, man-in-a-cheesy-hero-costume fighting man-in-a-cheesy-monster-costume, as giants battling in the city, in 2, 3 or 4 player battles.
I like Eva games for that reason. They're light-hearted fun. ^_^
I played through Shinji's story mode that ends with him fighting Kaworu in an Eva (!) and Asuka's story mode which ends after she beats 9 mass-produced angels.
Oh and Gainax are sooooo interested in reinforcing the idea that Eva fans must spend more and more money to get new Eva stuff... you don't directly unlock new things to play with when you (for example) complate story mode. No, there's an in-game shop, and when you play, you win some money to spend in that shop, and when you complete something you may unlock new items in the shop. (e.g. characters to use in VS mode or BGM or whatever) -_-;
We saw Kensuke piloting an Eva in the demos but haven't unlocked him yet. The Gunbuster is also in there (another reason to want this game!), but we haven't unlocked that either. :(
Grand Theft Auto 4 - boring controversy
GTA 4 is released today. It's not a title I've been anticipating, in fact, quite the opposite.
My history concerning GTA games is... well, I never played one until the third game for PS2, which I bought because it was going cheap at the time. Before that, I had never played one.
About 9 years ago, I went for a job interview in Dundee, Scotland for the company that did the Playstation (one) version of GTA - I think it was DMA Design? I forget who's who, I remember they told me that there was a company who made Lemmings, therre was some friction between staff so it split into two companies that were physically next door to each other but there was a rivalry. One of them was the one who made GTA, and became Rockstar North, the other ported it to PS1 and I went for a job interview there. Maybe they merged together again? I knew C++ and they wanted a C programmer, so I don't know why they even asked me along, I didn't have a chance of being employed.
So yeah, when I went for an interview with them I hadn't actually played GTA yet!
Anyway. The third game, for PS2, was quite fun. I never really bothered with the missions or actual storyline, they didn't seem fun. I just liked doing what I liked around the city. The game was pretty funny at times, that's why I liked it. That had more of an impact on me than anything. I really liked the 1980s radio station as well, and ended up buying the soundtrack to the film "Scarface" as that's what they'd used in the game. I haven't seen that film either.
The subsequent games... I own a copy of each of them pn PS2 as they're so popular you can find a 2nd hand copy ridiculously cheaply. I even have two copies of "GTA San Andreas" as I bought a 2nd hand PS2 using a special offer where if you bought a PS2 it would cost £XX and if you bought it bundled with GTA:SA it cost £20 less or something. So I inadvertantly bought a copy for minus £20 (or however much it was). I don't like the later games though, as they're really buggy and that wounds me as a proud developer (see, this is how they pay for not hiring me).
So I don't care about GTA 4 being released.
But, yeah, that's what's going on today. Huge adverts everywhere, and it managed to score 10 out of 10 in the review on Gamespot. The two things - advertising and top review marks - may not be co-incidental. There are a bunch of rumours floating around.
And in the news.... oh dear. T_T
--
Grand Theft Auto IV: Violence flares after launch
A stabbing and a violent mugging today marked the long-awaited release of the violent computer game Grand Theft Auto IV (GTA).
A 23-year-old was repeatedly stabbed in Croydon, south London as he walked past 100 people queuing to buy the controversial game, in which players rob and murder their way through the criminal underworld.
A hooded man with a knife - who is thought to have known the victim - jumped out of the line outside Gamestation and stabbed him several times before running away.
Meanwhile in Manchester two young men broke a teenager’s jaw and nose as they snatched the game from his hands.
The 18-year-old and his friend were followed from a store and attacked 30 minutes after buying the £40 video game, which was released at midnight.
Source
--
and the article goes on... :(
I guess it ought to be noted that violent crime and muggings happen every day, and neither of the attackers had actually played a copy of the game yet.
The thing I am most shocked by with that news article is that... and it really is shocking... the Daily Telegraph appear to have a video advertisement for GTA 4 embedded in that news story about the stabbing and mugging! :O I would never have expected that!
My history concerning GTA games is... well, I never played one until the third game for PS2, which I bought because it was going cheap at the time. Before that, I had never played one.
About 9 years ago, I went for a job interview in Dundee, Scotland for the company that did the Playstation (one) version of GTA - I think it was DMA Design? I forget who's who, I remember they told me that there was a company who made Lemmings, therre was some friction between staff so it split into two companies that were physically next door to each other but there was a rivalry. One of them was the one who made GTA, and became Rockstar North, the other ported it to PS1 and I went for a job interview there. Maybe they merged together again? I knew C++ and they wanted a C programmer, so I don't know why they even asked me along, I didn't have a chance of being employed.
So yeah, when I went for an interview with them I hadn't actually played GTA yet!
Anyway. The third game, for PS2, was quite fun. I never really bothered with the missions or actual storyline, they didn't seem fun. I just liked doing what I liked around the city. The game was pretty funny at times, that's why I liked it. That had more of an impact on me than anything. I really liked the 1980s radio station as well, and ended up buying the soundtrack to the film "Scarface" as that's what they'd used in the game. I haven't seen that film either.
The subsequent games... I own a copy of each of them pn PS2 as they're so popular you can find a 2nd hand copy ridiculously cheaply. I even have two copies of "GTA San Andreas" as I bought a 2nd hand PS2 using a special offer where if you bought a PS2 it would cost £XX and if you bought it bundled with GTA:SA it cost £20 less or something. So I inadvertantly bought a copy for minus £20 (or however much it was). I don't like the later games though, as they're really buggy and that wounds me as a proud developer (see, this is how they pay for not hiring me).
So I don't care about GTA 4 being released.
But, yeah, that's what's going on today. Huge adverts everywhere, and it managed to score 10 out of 10 in the review on Gamespot. The two things - advertising and top review marks - may not be co-incidental. There are a bunch of rumours floating around.
And in the news.... oh dear. T_T
--
Grand Theft Auto IV: Violence flares after launch
A stabbing and a violent mugging today marked the long-awaited release of the violent computer game Grand Theft Auto IV (GTA).
A 23-year-old was repeatedly stabbed in Croydon, south London as he walked past 100 people queuing to buy the controversial game, in which players rob and murder their way through the criminal underworld.
A hooded man with a knife - who is thought to have known the victim - jumped out of the line outside Gamestation and stabbed him several times before running away.
Meanwhile in Manchester two young men broke a teenager’s jaw and nose as they snatched the game from his hands.
The 18-year-old and his friend were followed from a store and attacked 30 minutes after buying the £40 video game, which was released at midnight.
Source
--
and the article goes on... :(
I guess it ought to be noted that violent crime and muggings happen every day, and neither of the attackers had actually played a copy of the game yet.
The thing I am most shocked by with that news article is that... and it really is shocking... the Daily Telegraph appear to have a video advertisement for GTA 4 embedded in that news story about the stabbing and mugging! :O I would never have expected that!
Friday, 11 April 2008
Uniqlo Weekly Shonen manga t-shirts
I saw this in a feature in the newspaper (Metro) yesterday morning, though it seems it started a few weeks ago.
The fashion brand / retailer Uniqlo have teamed up with Kodansha and Shogakukan for the 50th anniversary of both Weekly Shonen Magazine and Weekly Shonen Sunday to produce a range of commemorative t-shirts.
The Japanese manga-oriented site: http://ut.uniqlo.com/sunmaga50th/
The newspaper advertised the UK site though, and on there, they're under the UT T-Shirts section, from about page 4 onwards, but there's a smaller range.
There were already some works by Shotaro Ishinomori - I can see Skullman and Cyborg 009, Osamu Tezuka - Tetsuwan Atom (Astroboy) and Black Jack, and I can also see from the new range Ashita no Joe, a few pages on. There are some others too, but I don't recognise them straight off.
EDIT 2008-04-16: I went shopping for some of the older designs:
The fashion brand / retailer Uniqlo have teamed up with Kodansha and Shogakukan for the 50th anniversary of both Weekly Shonen Magazine and Weekly Shonen Sunday to produce a range of commemorative t-shirts.
The Japanese manga-oriented site: http://ut.uniqlo.com/sunmaga50th/
The newspaper advertised the UK site though, and on there, they're under the UT T-Shirts section, from about page 4 onwards, but there's a smaller range.
There were already some works by Shotaro Ishinomori - I can see Skullman and Cyborg 009, Osamu Tezuka - Tetsuwan Atom (Astroboy) and Black Jack, and I can also see from the new range Ashita no Joe, a few pages on. There are some others too, but I don't recognise them straight off.
EDIT 2008-04-16: I went shopping for some of the older designs:
Tuesday, 8 April 2008
Tower of Druaga - free 1st episode
Following the announcement that the Japanese animation studio Gonzo will officially be streaming their brand new anime episodes with english subtitles, and the announcement that viewers are free to pay what they think the anime is worth, the first episode of The Tower Of Druaga - The Aegis of Uruk is available for free, and can be viewed on youtube here.
Normally I wouldn't bother going out of my way to watch an anime from Gonzo, but since it's linked to a Namco game, and is apparently rather funny, I might watch it. (however, not right now, since I'm busy...)
Normally I wouldn't bother going out of my way to watch an anime from Gonzo, but since it's linked to a Namco game, and is apparently rather funny, I might watch it. (however, not right now, since I'm busy...)
Beatmania / Anime Fever!! anime song remixes
A lot of Beatmania CDs were released over a decade ago, featuring music that was never in any of the games (as far as I am aware). I own some of the CDs - the ANI-SONGS remix CDs. Some of the tracks are pretty bad, barely paying any resemblance to the original song and often featuring ill-fitting rap segments or whatever. Some of the tracks aren't at all bad, though. It varies from track to track, CD to CD. Overall, I'm glad that I own these remix CDs. ^_^
Most of the tracks are covered by artists whose names I don't recognise, but they also got Mizuki Ichirou to cover "Cobra" (as in, the TV theme to Space Adventure Cobra), Lupin III Ai no Theme (Lupin III '78 ending theme), Mazinger Z, Soratobu Mazinger Z, and Getta Robo. (If you're interested in finding them, search for the CDs with the catlaogue #s KMCA-42 and KMCA-30).
Away from that, separately, in 1993 there was an arcade game by Konami called 究極戦隊ダダンダーン - Kyukyoku Sentai Dadandarn (or "Monster Maulers" outside of Japan). The theme song in the Japanese version "Tatakae! Dadandarn" and is one of the last recorded songs that Masato Shimon ever sung, and is fun to listen to. ^_^ The version in the game is different from the version on CD! If you are looking for the Dadadarn CD, look for the catalogue number KICA-7627 and good luck because I can't find a copy - I found the song "Tatakae! Dadandarn" on a Konami game songs compilation album.
I also read that there was a remix version, like the beatmania remixes. I couldn't find which CD it was on! .... until now!
Anime Fever!! Vol. 2 contains the elusive remix of "Tatakae! Dadandarn" (闘え!ダダンダーン/ Ventura & Fastforward feat Masato Shimon), and I'm so happy about it I thought I'd tell the world. ^_^ The CD catalogue number is KOLA-32 and you can buy it by following the link above. A lot of the other tracks are present on the beatmania CDs I own, but I don't mind... much. -_-;
I think I might get a copy of this beatmania ANI-SONGS CD as well. It contains some classic shoujo themes, and I think it's the only one readily available that I don't own... beatmania ANI-SONGS MIX "Meisaku Douga REMIX"
Most of the tracks are covered by artists whose names I don't recognise, but they also got Mizuki Ichirou to cover "Cobra" (as in, the TV theme to Space Adventure Cobra), Lupin III Ai no Theme (Lupin III '78 ending theme), Mazinger Z, Soratobu Mazinger Z, and Getta Robo. (If you're interested in finding them, search for the CDs with the catlaogue #s KMCA-42 and KMCA-30).
Away from that, separately, in 1993 there was an arcade game by Konami called 究極戦隊ダダンダーン - Kyukyoku Sentai Dadandarn (or "Monster Maulers" outside of Japan). The theme song in the Japanese version "Tatakae! Dadandarn" and is one of the last recorded songs that Masato Shimon ever sung, and is fun to listen to. ^_^ The version in the game is different from the version on CD! If you are looking for the Dadadarn CD, look for the catalogue number KICA-7627 and good luck because I can't find a copy - I found the song "Tatakae! Dadandarn" on a Konami game songs compilation album.
I also read that there was a remix version, like the beatmania remixes. I couldn't find which CD it was on! .... until now!
Anime Fever!! Vol. 2 contains the elusive remix of "Tatakae! Dadandarn" (闘え!ダダンダーン/ Ventura & Fastforward feat Masato Shimon), and I'm so happy about it I thought I'd tell the world. ^_^ The CD catalogue number is KOLA-32 and you can buy it by following the link above. A lot of the other tracks are present on the beatmania CDs I own, but I don't mind... much. -_-;
I think I might get a copy of this beatmania ANI-SONGS CD as well. It contains some classic shoujo themes, and I think it's the only one readily available that I don't own... beatmania ANI-SONGS MIX "Meisaku Douga REMIX"
Sunday, 6 April 2008
Tekkaman The Space Knight
Today I watched a videotape (American, dubbed) of Tekkaman The Space Knight. Not Tekkaman Blade, but the old Tatsunoko Pro series!
My previous exposure to the original Uchuu no Kishi Tekkaman series was that I've seen the opening and ending before, and know the theme songs well. I have a copy of the "Tatsunoko Fighter" game for PS1 which is a 2D fighter, in which you pit characters from Gatchaman, Tekkaman, Shinzo Ningen Casshan, and Hurricane Polymer against each other (and there's a new character created for the game). So I had seen some of the main characters before as well. From that, I knew that Tekkaman is cool, his girlfriend isn't good at fighting, and the guy with the big blond afro is really cool! :D
It was labelled "episode one", and was 86 minutes long. I think it was a load of episodes of the original series mashed together. Some of the later parts seemed a little incohesive, as if bits had been missed out of the story. I don't know if that's the case, but that's how it seemed. It might have been written like that originally!
The dub is really bad. So bad it's funny (though not hilariously bad, just smirksome, occasional wincing).
The original soundtrack is intact - I recognise the instrumental of the orginal opening theme used as the opening theme, and another arrangement of it used as the battle theme, and the other pieces of music fit as well, so I assume it's the orignal soundtrack. The end theme is an instrumental of a song that's not the original ending theme, I don't know whether I've heard the song before. I have that feeling but don't know for sure as the end credits did not give much information at all. I feel that the instrumental of the opening theme doesn't have enough impact. My brain fills in the gaps: "Uchuu no Kishi, Uchuu no Kishi, TekkaMa~~~~n!", but without the vocal, the music just builds up without leading to anything.
The artwork is obviously originally character designed by Yoshitaka Amano - now famous for his Final Fantasy artwork and as an artist in his own right, but in the past the character designer for Tatsunoko Pro - all the series I mentioned earlier in Tatsunoko Fighter and things like Gowappa 5 Godam too. The characters keep posing in great action stances, I love it! I love the pose that Tekkaman strikes as he emerges from Pegas, and the teleportation pose that Andro uses (the alien with the big blond afro!). The action throughout hand-to-hand fight scenes is good and fluid, the action scenes in space didn't seem as good, strangely enough.
Oh and the small alien creature "Mutan"... I think it's supposed to be a cute character design? IT ISN'T!
Oh and in this version "Robert Gallagher" went into space, and his nephew "Barry Gallagher" was chosen to become Tekkaman to fight against the "Waldaarians". (Though it sounded to me like RoaldDahlians, so I had images of Oompa-Loompas in my head). He never says "Tek-Setter!" to transform, for some reason. The says "Interlock!" and then the narrator takes over. Apart from the names, it's probably accurate to the original? I can't be sure.
Just like in Tekkaman Blade, my favourite character is probably Pegas. :D
I had a lot of fun watching this, it's one of the best 1970s shonen action series I've seen. I will seek out the fansubs of the first three episodes of the series, and am hoping that the original version is just as much fun. ^_^
My previous exposure to the original Uchuu no Kishi Tekkaman series was that I've seen the opening and ending before, and know the theme songs well. I have a copy of the "Tatsunoko Fighter" game for PS1 which is a 2D fighter, in which you pit characters from Gatchaman, Tekkaman, Shinzo Ningen Casshan, and Hurricane Polymer against each other (and there's a new character created for the game). So I had seen some of the main characters before as well. From that, I knew that Tekkaman is cool, his girlfriend isn't good at fighting, and the guy with the big blond afro is really cool! :D
It was labelled "episode one", and was 86 minutes long. I think it was a load of episodes of the original series mashed together. Some of the later parts seemed a little incohesive, as if bits had been missed out of the story. I don't know if that's the case, but that's how it seemed. It might have been written like that originally!
The dub is really bad. So bad it's funny (though not hilariously bad, just smirksome, occasional wincing).
The original soundtrack is intact - I recognise the instrumental of the orginal opening theme used as the opening theme, and another arrangement of it used as the battle theme, and the other pieces of music fit as well, so I assume it's the orignal soundtrack. The end theme is an instrumental of a song that's not the original ending theme, I don't know whether I've heard the song before. I have that feeling but don't know for sure as the end credits did not give much information at all. I feel that the instrumental of the opening theme doesn't have enough impact. My brain fills in the gaps: "Uchuu no Kishi, Uchuu no Kishi, TekkaMa~~~~n!", but without the vocal, the music just builds up without leading to anything.
The artwork is obviously originally character designed by Yoshitaka Amano - now famous for his Final Fantasy artwork and as an artist in his own right, but in the past the character designer for Tatsunoko Pro - all the series I mentioned earlier in Tatsunoko Fighter and things like Gowappa 5 Godam too. The characters keep posing in great action stances, I love it! I love the pose that Tekkaman strikes as he emerges from Pegas, and the teleportation pose that Andro uses (the alien with the big blond afro!). The action throughout hand-to-hand fight scenes is good and fluid, the action scenes in space didn't seem as good, strangely enough.
Oh and the small alien creature "Mutan"... I think it's supposed to be a cute character design? IT ISN'T!
Oh and in this version "Robert Gallagher" went into space, and his nephew "Barry Gallagher" was chosen to become Tekkaman to fight against the "Waldaarians". (Though it sounded to me like RoaldDahlians, so I had images of Oompa-Loompas in my head). He never says "Tek-Setter!" to transform, for some reason. The says "Interlock!" and then the narrator takes over. Apart from the names, it's probably accurate to the original? I can't be sure.
Just like in Tekkaman Blade, my favourite character is probably Pegas. :D
I had a lot of fun watching this, it's one of the best 1970s shonen action series I've seen. I will seek out the fansubs of the first three episodes of the series, and am hoping that the original version is just as much fun. ^_^
Thursday, 3 April 2008
Samurai swords are banned in the UK
I just stumbled on this information on ebay:
http://www2.ebay.com/aw/uk/200804.shtml#2008-04-02124958
***Policy on sale of samurai swords***
02 April, 2008 | 12:52PM BST
The UK Government recently decided to ban the sale, manufacture, hire and import of samurai swords. While there are some exceptions to this general ban, we don't think it's practical to enforce a policy based on these.
The sale of samurai swords on eBay.co.uk will therefore be completely prohibited when the new law comes into effect on 6th April.
Regards,
The eBay Team
==
So if you want to buy or sell any samurai swords, do it before the 6th of April!
http://www2.ebay.com/aw/uk/200804.shtml#2008-04-02124958
***Policy on sale of samurai swords***
02 April, 2008 | 12:52PM BST
The UK Government recently decided to ban the sale, manufacture, hire and import of samurai swords. While there are some exceptions to this general ban, we don't think it's practical to enforce a policy based on these.
The sale of samurai swords on eBay.co.uk will therefore be completely prohibited when the new law comes into effect on 6th April.
Regards,
The eBay Team
==
So if you want to buy or sell any samurai swords, do it before the 6th of April!
Wednesday, 2 April 2008
90 year old anime discovered
Ancient Japanese anime lost, now found
By Gavin J. Blair
TOKYO (Hollywood Reporter) - Copies of two of Japan's oldest animated films, thought to have been lost forever, were found in Osaka and have been digitally restored at the National Film Center of Modern Art in Tokyo.
The two films, "Namakura Katana" (The Fine Sword) and "Urashima Taro," will be shown alongside 94 other old and rediscovered movies at a film festival titled "Hakutsu sareta Eiga tachi (Unearthed Films) -- 2008," scheduled to run at the film center in April.
"Namakura Katana," the story of a samurai duped into buying a blunt sword, was drawn by Junichi Kouchi and released in June 1917 by the Kobayashi Shokai production company.
"Urashima Taro," a version of a classic Japanese fairy tale, was illustrated by Seitaro Kitayama, first seen in February 1918 and produced by Nikkatsu.
The films were discovered in a second-hand shop in July by Natsuki Matsumoto, a lecturer at Musashino Art University. The animated Japanese film previously thought to be the oldest in existence was released in August 1918.
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/filmNews/idUSN2728807920080328
Japan finds films by early "anime" pioneers
TOKYO (Reuters) - Two early 20th century Japanese animated movies, crafted by pioneers of the "anime" that has since swept the world, have been found in good condition, a researcher at Tokyo's National Film Center said on Thursday.
U.S. and European animated cartoons were introduced in Japan around 1914 and soon inspired works by Japanese cartoonists and artists, including Junichi Kouchi and Seitaro Kitayama, two of whose works were found in an Osaka antique store.
"Nakamura Katana," Kouichi's two-minute silent movie that tells the story of a samurai tricked into buying a dull-edged sword, was first released in 1917.
Kitayama's "Urashima Taro," based on a folk tale in which a fisherman is transported to a fantastic underwater world on the back of a turtle, came out the following year.
Together with Oten Shimokawa, whose 1917 "Imokawa Mukuzo, The Janitor" is thought to be the first commercial Japanese animated film, Kouichi and Kitayama are considered "fathers of Japanese anime," said National Film Center researcher Yoshiro Irie.
"Now everything is digitalized, but these early animated films were made on the same principles used now," Irie said.
But while modern anime is often used to tell complex, dark stories, the brief early Japanese animated films mainly surprised viewers with the simple fact the pictures moved, Irie said.
They also made people laugh.
"It was an era when people were surprised just to see that the pictures moved," he said. "The films are also full of gags."
(Reporting by Linda Sieg)
Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/filmNews/idUST23069120080328
By Gavin J. Blair
TOKYO (Hollywood Reporter) - Copies of two of Japan's oldest animated films, thought to have been lost forever, were found in Osaka and have been digitally restored at the National Film Center of Modern Art in Tokyo.
The two films, "Namakura Katana" (The Fine Sword) and "Urashima Taro," will be shown alongside 94 other old and rediscovered movies at a film festival titled "Hakutsu sareta Eiga tachi (Unearthed Films) -- 2008," scheduled to run at the film center in April.
"Namakura Katana," the story of a samurai duped into buying a blunt sword, was drawn by Junichi Kouchi and released in June 1917 by the Kobayashi Shokai production company.
"Urashima Taro," a version of a classic Japanese fairy tale, was illustrated by Seitaro Kitayama, first seen in February 1918 and produced by Nikkatsu.
The films were discovered in a second-hand shop in July by Natsuki Matsumoto, a lecturer at Musashino Art University. The animated Japanese film previously thought to be the oldest in existence was released in August 1918.
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/filmNews/idUSN2728807920080328
Japan finds films by early "anime" pioneers
TOKYO (Reuters) - Two early 20th century Japanese animated movies, crafted by pioneers of the "anime" that has since swept the world, have been found in good condition, a researcher at Tokyo's National Film Center said on Thursday.
U.S. and European animated cartoons were introduced in Japan around 1914 and soon inspired works by Japanese cartoonists and artists, including Junichi Kouchi and Seitaro Kitayama, two of whose works were found in an Osaka antique store.
"Nakamura Katana," Kouichi's two-minute silent movie that tells the story of a samurai tricked into buying a dull-edged sword, was first released in 1917.
Kitayama's "Urashima Taro," based on a folk tale in which a fisherman is transported to a fantastic underwater world on the back of a turtle, came out the following year.
Together with Oten Shimokawa, whose 1917 "Imokawa Mukuzo, The Janitor" is thought to be the first commercial Japanese animated film, Kouichi and Kitayama are considered "fathers of Japanese anime," said National Film Center researcher Yoshiro Irie.
"Now everything is digitalized, but these early animated films were made on the same principles used now," Irie said.
But while modern anime is often used to tell complex, dark stories, the brief early Japanese animated films mainly surprised viewers with the simple fact the pictures moved, Irie said.
They also made people laugh.
"It was an era when people were surprised just to see that the pictures moved," he said. "The films are also full of gags."
(Reporting by Linda Sieg)
Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/filmNews/idUST23069120080328
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