Wednesday, August 08, 2012

1987 Looks at 2012

Twenty five years ago a group of science fiction authors were asked to predict where the world would be in 2012. Most of them were off and not by a little. Orson Scott Card got the closest, with Roger Zelazny next best. Isaac Asimov and Tim Powers were so far off as to be laughable.  Still, it is a fascinating glimpse at the difficulties of prognostication even from the most imaginative of us.

Bleach Ep. 17: Ichigo Dies!

Despair dominates the story when Ichigo finds out just how powerful Soul Reapers really are during a bloody battle over Rukia. Action filled, this episode marks a turning point in the storyline and sets up the next big arc.

Bleach1 Main TitleBleach 17 Title

In the previous episode, Ichigo found out that the zanpakutos are more than magic swords that can cut up spirits. They have names and special powers which the villainous Renji demonstrated in easily overpowering the substitute Soul Reaper during the opening recap. Brought to his knees trying to rescue Rukia, things look very bad indeed.

Bleach 17 Ichigo in ShockBleach 17 Rukia Restrains Renji

Clearly shocked, and in shock, the high school student is helpless as Renji prepares to finish him off. He is not the only one shaken, for Rukia is horrified to see him so badly injured. Desperate to provide him a chance to escape, she attacks the tattooed Soul Reaper and tries to restrain him despite her weak body.

Tuesday, August 07, 2012

Yes, Idiots Mistake Sikhs for Muslims

Something that irked me about commenters on some right wing blogs (not owners or official posters) has been the immediate rejection of the idea that the temple shooter in Wisconsin might have confused the Sikhs with Muslims. While I despise the use of the word “reactionary,” this seems to fit the situation. It is not an illogical motive for the murders and certainly not out of the realm of speculation.

Depending on whether the neo-Nazi left any letters behind, we will possibly find out what his real motivation. It probably was pure racism, rather than against a specific religion, but I have found white supremacist types to be ignorant middle grade morons so getting two very different beliefs confused would be easy. Time may tell.

Actually, many educated people have no clue who the Sikhs are for that matter. About the only portrayal in mass media I can remember would have been Bend It Like Beckham ten years ago. With the growth in immigrants from India in the past twenty years or so, people would be wise to get a little more familiar with the various cultures and religion from that large nation.

My father just returned from a two week stay with my sister and on the way down on Amtrak he had a conversation with a Sikh gentleman. The topic of being mistaken for being a Muslim came up and the man said that he had experienced that kind of hostility. He also said the people responsible for that reaction were idiots. The conversation took place well before the shootings.

Monday, August 06, 2012

Parking Lot Conversations

Over the past few years, I have noticed a strange pattern of having extended conversations in parking lots with friends and acquaintances. Parking lots are not the best locations in the world for talking, but it keeps happening. It does not matter what time of the year it is or what temperature it is out there, though precipitation will drive us indoors or into our cars to finally head home.

Did I mention this happens when we are supposed to be going home? It never happens on the way into a building or to meet up. There appears to be an unwritten (and unsaid at that) rule that the later it is at night the longer the conversations will be.

But most alarming is the development of talking where cars should be during the daytime. Why is that alarming? When I got up this morning, my nose and forehead looked like a boiled lobster, that is why. I could not understand how it had happened until I remembered what happened after church yesterday.

Yes, you guessed it: a parking lot conversation. Actually it was closer to three rather than a single event, which would explain why I was out there too long in the sun. Obviously, we need to outlaw parking lots to prevent this kind of thing happening to the unwary.

Friday, August 03, 2012

A Prelude to Hate

After reading the news this past week, it has struck me that there is a pattern that groups of people exhibit that show a steady decline  towards hostility of the armed and unarmed kind. While I have long understood some of the mechanisms involved, one that had escaped me until recently was how false labels of hatred and bigotry (or oppression back in the day) can be used to foster the very things they claim to be combating. This has become the main weapon of choice on the political left in the United States over the past few years.

It is all very basic “us vs. them” behavior, but as I dwelt on it, I realized this is how societies crumble. Breaking down people into special interest groups is the same as forming tribes or, in a more modern urban variation, street gangs and mafia. This segregation leads to growing feelings of distance toward any group that is not your group. It then becomes easy to attribute falsehoods to the “others” because the are obviously bad – if they were good, they would be part of the group.

More Renovations

Looking back at my early review posts recently, I realized I need to do some serious rewriting of a good number of them. Some will required a new DVD purchase, but most need better screencaps and text refinements to cover the technical merits of the release.

A good example of what I am up to is the first renovated review, The Black Hole. It required a new DVD because of the HDTV and so it was an excuse to rewrite an early review. What I did not expect is how much of the text needed to be rewritten! One bonus from all this is that the structure for reviews is finally standardized.

Reviews to be reworked:
  • Godzilla: Tokyo SOS – DVD in hand so better screencaps DONE
  • Gammera – DVDs on the way and will be both versions DONE
  • Stargate: Continuum – full rewrite DONE
  • Forbidden Planet – full rewrite, maybe Blu-ray upgrade? DONE
  • Howl’s Moving Castle – minor tweaks plus better screencaps DONE
  • Something Wicked This Way Comes – full rewrite DONE
  • The Watcher in the Woods – Full Rewrite DONE
  • Smallville: Absolute Justice 1 and 2 – Full rewrite
  • Godzilla: King of Monsters – Better screencaps, tweaking DONE
  • Gojira – Better screencaps, tweaking DONE
  • Zulu – better screencaps, tweaking for Blu-ray release DONE
  • Battle of Britain -- HD screencaps, rewrite DONE
  • Only Yesterday -- Better screencaps, technical details
The reworks will be alternated with new reviews, despite the temptation to get them done and over with.

New reviews planned, in no particular order:
  • Godzilla Raids Again/Gigantus, The Fire Monster – DVD, Japanese Original and US DONE
  • Whisper of the Heart – Blu-ray and DVD DONE
  • Animal Crackers – DVD DONE
  • Troll Hunter – Blu-ray DONE
  • TRON – DVD DONE
  • Love and Honor – DVD DONE
  • The African Queen – Blu-ray DONE
  • Tora, Tora, Tora – Blu-ray
  • The Last Dinosaur – DVD DONE
  • The Bobo – DVD DONE
  • Ikiru – DVD
  • The Burbs – DVD DONE
  • Beowulf – DVD DONE
With a personal library of hundreds of movies on DVD and Blu-ray, I am not lacking for material. If I were to give up all new shows and movies, I would still be set for a very long time.

Thursday, August 02, 2012

Squid Girl Episode 11

UPDATE September 4, 2018

More DMCA take downs have hit the blog despite screen captures long being considered fair use. Due to my not being able to afford a lawyer, I have no choice but to remove them or have the blog suspended. Only the words will be left.

TVTokyo is proving to be foolishly draconian in targeting posts meant to get people interested in seeing the Squid Girl anime and perhaps even purchasing it on DVD or Blu-ray. Being anti-piracy myself this is infuriating that they are targeting posts I wrote hoping to encourage people to try out a delightful show.

The anime series proves it can do horror when a creepy doll is found, science fiction when Cindy turns her sights onto a new target, and nature documentary when a mountain hike goes terribly wrong. Laughter keeps on coming no matter what the genre is when Ika Musame invades it!

Proving the quality of the early episodes was no fluke, Squid Girl stays strong in its penultimate installment of the first season. In fact, it is one of the most solid episodes of the entire series.

Why Is This Doll So Fishy?

There are few things creepier than a doll designed to be cute, but that looks disturbing instead. Clowns may be one of those things, but even an evil clown would have trouble competing with the doll that stars in this tale.  Depp is an old toy of Eiko’s that she finds in a storage box in the Aizawa residence. Right away, the thing is unnerving to Squid Girl and most likely anyone watching the show. The animation also takes an unsettling air of a horror movie, which is something the Japanese excel at.

As darkness falls, the atmosphere grows more sinister in Eiko and Ika’s bedroom. Unable to sleep due to the doll looking at her, Ika Musame turns it around so she can get some sleep. It works, but when she awakens the doll has turned back to stare at her with those unfeeling blue eyes.

A mystery has begun, one that digs into Eiko’s forgotten past. Who is Johnny? And what does Johnny have to do with Depp? Only with the help of Sannae will the answer be found and it is not one they want…

Why So Susfishous?

Cindy Campbell is back to investigate a suspected alien, as we find out thanks to hearing her thoughts. After witnessing too many inhuman feats by Chizuru, it has dawned on her and the Three Idiots from MIT that data is needed. Data provided by DNA extracted from her blood!

Harris is the first to try to retrieve a sample, but his invisibility suit causes more problems than it assists him. With the restaurant in an uproar thanks to him, another plan must be enacted. A drone of brilliant design is then employed by Clark with disastrous consequences.

Things quickly spiral out of the control of the mad scientists and a frightened Nagisa can only watch helplessly. The true meaning of fear will be learned.

Want to Gill Up the Mountain?

Nature is a wonderful thing filled with beauty, fresh air, and exercise. Sadly for Squid Girl, she does not appreciate any of those. So when the Aizawa clan go for a mountain hike, Ika is not happy to find out how difficult going up a mountain is. Unable to escape the terrible tag team of Chizuru and Eiko, the miserable fish out of water grits her teeth and endures locomotion using only her legs.

There is another thing about nature that is very appealing and that is observing wildlife in their natural habitat. Here Ika learns about squirrels, monkeys, and other animals on the mountain. It is an up close kind of education; the kind kids enjoy the most. After all, survival skills television shows have been very popular lately.

Greater challenges await the young squid along the way to the summit. Once there she may find the most frightening creature of the them all…

Thoughts

Silly is becoming an inadequate word to describe this series. It takes silly to an exponential degree, then multiplies it by comic madness to achieve its sweet, but warped goals.  For a slice of life show, it is amazing how it spoofed three different genres so effortlessly.

The Three Idiots are particularly amusing in the second segment and a brief cameo in the third. Actually, the supporting cast carries a lot of episode eleven. It is not something you notice right away, but repeated viewings made it stand out to me. That is a good testimony of how well developed they have become by late in the season. No setups are needed, the writers just wind them up and let them go.

Speaking of writing, the stories bounce around from different time periods in the manga, but it all works seamlessly in the adaptation. A lot of credit needs to go to the production crew for I think this is a rare case of an anime being better than the manga it was based on.  I do not think there are any Ika Musame purists out there to complain, so I should be safe in making that statement.

The first story has a rare reference to the missing Aizawa parents who have never been seen. Their absence is something of a mystery.

All in all, this was a great episode and now I am saddened that the season is coming to an end. Only one full episode and two mini Squid Girl videos left to review.


BEWARE! HERE BE SPOILERS!!!




The reveal of Johnny is deftly handled and I loved how the one hand poked out of the packing like a zombie hand from a grave. I admire how they built up the suspense and still managed to be silly at the same time. It was great fun.

The second segment’s best part was Chizuru. I would take her up against any shounen fighting character and bet on her winning. Oh and that innocent face she made at the end, it was even more scary than her opening her eyes.

When the cobra showed up to torment Ika further, I was laughing a little. When she lost to it, I was laughing out loud. The duel with the echo is pure early invasion and still amusing. Sannae’s Marilyn Monroe like summer dress and entrance was kind of strange if not alarming. When it turned out to be an innocent scene, I was relieved.