I finally completed my second set of the Star Wars Bearbricks, so I could justify opening them up and scanning them. Without further ado, here are BearBricks of the Lucas-verse:
Darths Maul & Vader
Clone Troopers (Ep. 2 & 3)
Tie Fighter Pilot & Stormtrooper
Logos Imperial & Rebel Alliance
Fetts Boba & Jango
Wicket & Jawa
Droids C-3PO & R2-D2 (though an armed R2 is rather odd.)
And the most adorable, Chewbacca & Yoda!
As soon as I get an EBAY account set up, I'll have a few of these sets up for auction...
A few days ago, I started a post on Alice in Wonderland and showed you half of the tale. I'm not going to complete it here (I'm sure you get the idea, you can always buy the book yourself) but I do want to show you a picture of the Cheshire Cat.
Sorry about that, that was a picture of a Cheshire Dog. Here is the Cat.
I have several Alice characters that came with Furuta chocolate eggs a while back that you may like to take a peek at.
While researching my winsome waspy witticism a few minutes ago, I discovered that when Alice went Through the Looking Glass, she came across several insects.
Check out this link to a dissection of かがみの国のアリス (Kagami no Kuni no Arisu, literally Alice's Mirror Country) with several of the original illustrations by Tenniel. But like most famous stories, it was adapted into both a manga and an anime.
Sharing a coach with a ヤギ (yagi = goat) and a かぶと虫 (kabuto-mushi = beetle).
Later while sitting under a tree, Alice is bugged by a bug. Nice proboscis!
I can't figure out what they are from the text, but they appear to be a horsefly, a sushi bee and flaming flying feces!
Here is a pretty cool mashup of several Alice incarnations with a really lovely tune. Can anyone identify the singer for me?
Back when Killer Bees were more threatening to North America than terrorists or commies, Marvel comics created a character named Swarm, a composite being of hundreds of thousands of bees driven by a human intelligence!
One of the dumbest movies ever made on this same subject was Irwin Allen's "The Swarm", a honey of a flick with Katherine Ross and Michael Caine based on a book by Arthur Herzog that I remember reading in high school. (A far better movie was 1959's The Wasp Woman that you can download for yourself here!)
But now please enjoy the sweet, sweet Swarm:
Well now the Swarm has reached New Brunswick when a truckful of bees overturned spilling millions of bees into the streets!
Japan has its own nasty little killer bee, the すずめばち (suzume no bachi) known in Latin as Vespinae. These voracious beasties stroll into another bee's nest and systematically devour all its inhabitants. These much smaller bees have only countered with one possible defense. They surround the predator with hundreds of drones and whir their wings at such a high rate that the temperature rises and the visitor suffocates. Pretty ingenious!
While Alex was off on a mountain trip with his students, one of them discovered a jar of these wasps ready for human consumption. At only 5000￥, it's a bargain!
Now he is striking back with ギララの逆襲 or Girara Strikes Back. In what appears to be more spoof than sequel it will also be taking jabs at the G8 Summit taking place in Toyako next week to swarms of protesters. It opens in Japan on July 26th and I may give it a look if it makes its way to Sendai though that doesn't seem too likely.
Check this trailer and tell me if you think it's worth seeking out:
Since my demise at the High School, I've been struggling to make ends meet. But now, an opening has transpired at the Carl School in Shiogama and I'll be joining the fine folks who work there next Monday.
My new supervisor asked me to snap a photo for their newsletter and the young lass behind the counter at a manga shop, did me the honours.
So to prepare myself with a more youthful appearance, I went out and had pal Kyo do a new do. What do you think?
Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in. A limited edition of special Tanabata cell phone cleaners was released today with Kirin tea. Fortunately for my pocketbook, there were only two to collect.
In 3 short weeks, カンフーパンダ (Kung Fu Panda) opens. It's opened stateside to so-so reviews, but it might be good for a giggle. Unfortunately for my pocket book, my friendly neighbourhood UFO Catcher Center had a foursome of the characters on hand. But due to my dexterous skill at the claw, I got them all for under a 1000￥!
Since Japan loves to embrace all things Panda, a Pan-documentary パンダフルライフ (Panda-ful Life) will premiere on August 30th. I'll probably wait for this one rather than overdose on cuteness.
The fine folks at 世界名作アニメ絵本 (Worldwide Picture Books) made a lovely little manga out of it. And I will now present the first half of it to you uninterrupted by my gibberish (but keep it between us won't you, I don't want to get into trouble.)
Be sure to "Eat me" by clicking on any picture to make a giantess out of Alice.
Ooooh! Pepsi Zero has just come up with a new premium. I walked into a Sunkus to pay a bill and Lo & Behold...Star Wars Bearbricks. After I peed myself with delight, I picked up about a dozen. Now I'll be peeing Pepsi for the next little while.
This little foray into the Star Wars universe is part of CelebrationJapan, a major promo for the new Star Wars Clone Wars Animation coming to a theater near you in August. I've seen the trailer and all I can say is, "Meh." But even better than this is a Star WarsNerdfest in Tokyo in 2 weeks. I think I'll make my way there and check out its Otaku-appeal.
As soon as I get the full set, I'll treat you to some individual photos...
Echophonyk's resident lighting expert, Adam (A.A.A.JP) compiled a video from our last event. What an amazing party, was it the same one I was at? It seems a helluva lot more interesting than the one I attended!
Check it out for yourself and see what you've been missing.
FYI: the next event will be July 25th, just a few short weeks away. Put on your dancing shoes and let's boogie on down there...
Though it is no longer called Dominion Day, July 1st is considered to be Canada's birthday. Weigh in on your opinion of Canada, why don't you. (I think Canada is pretty nifty!)
For no other reason than I think it's a funny cartoon, I present this strip by The Argyle Sweater.
The other night I popped into 305 to see some pals and they were watching The World of Golden Eggs. I've seen this show in the video shop and pooh-poohed the crapanimation, but that is not to say that crapimation doesn't have its place (South Park, Homestar Running, Happy Tree Friends, Home Movies, etc.) The humour is pretty low-brow and I certainly don't get it, yet I think this is due to a cross-cultural lost in the translation syndrome. The gang in the bar were in stitches watching the inane antics of the protagonists. I could read the subtitles and presumably it translated fairly well, but I just didn't find it funny. Akari said it's because they talk like young people do today. I'm still not convinced.
Here's a clip for you, please listen and judge for yourself. I'd appreciate some feedback. Is it funny? Am I losing my sense of humour? Am I that old?
Good old CC LEMON has managed to capture 6 of their characters in tiny phone straps. Much to my chagrin, I missed the Turkey somehow. Now I'll have to go get it tomorrow. (I'm such a completist!)
I finally completed my second set of the Star Wars Bearbricks, so I could justify opening them up and scanning them. Without further ado, here are BearBricks of the Lucas-verse:
Clone Troopers (Ep. 2 & 3)
Tie Fighter Pilot & Stormtrooper
Logos Imperial & Rebel Alliance
Fetts Boba & Jango
Wicket & Jawa
Droids C-3PO & R2-D2 (though an armed R2 is rather odd.)
And the most adorable, Chewbacca & Yoda!
