There is no better way to celebrate such a festive occasion but with the girls of Touhou! So, have a Lunar New Year everyone! Gong Xi Fai Cai!

Forward to the present, we finally have a 3D representation of the 2D Black Rock Shooter (does she have a name?) which I received at my doorstep almost a year back. Perhaps the 3D form isn’t as grand as it’s 2D counterpart, but I believe Sculpter Akeji did an awesome job. Many would have noticed that Black Rock Shooter isn’t just about it’s figure itself, with the massive rock cannon and chess-like base having more visual mass.

Black Rock Shooter has a sad expression on her face, indicating much of her loneliness. Two battle scars, one on her torso while the other under her left breast. Her most distinctive physical feature, however, is her right eye which burns with a bright blue flame.The coat she wears is really shiny though.

And below’s the original illustration by Huke

The whole journey was indeed tiring but I’ve learnt much by observing how an organization functions from an employee’s point of view (Technically a soldier’s POV, employer = Army, employees = Soldiers). How major mistakes are actually an accumulation of minor mistakes and seemingly harmless assumptions, how bootlicking works at any level and ranks supersede skills. Being cynical helps keeping me sane at times.

In a sort of unexplainable way, I felt that I have matured and have the ability to understand people’s views, opinions and ideas in a much deeper level. On a physical level, I am much more buff now, with muscle here and there, though as of time of writing, I’m getting lazier ^^;

Now that I’m out of the Army, I’m pretty much free to do whatever I can. Getting this blog back on active this on the checklist, but it would definitely take some time given the amount of time I have not been blogging and also being out of touch with anime.

In short, I’m loving my new found freedom. And to those enlisting soon, ORD LOH!

Have you had your dose yet?

A simple Merry berry chocolately fruity strawberry moe chirstmas to everyone! Happy Holidays!

Enjoy the festive season you guys :)

Due to the real-life commitments (Army) and many other factors involved (procrastination is one), it has been a long time since I have updated this blog. Anyway, back to the topic at hand, Anime Festival Asia 2009 or more commonly known as AFA 09.

Since many other blogs have already covered this topic, I shall do a summary instead to not bore you guys with all the nifty gritty details.

Performers

• May’n
• Shoko Nakagawa – Japanese Idol and talent
• Ichirou Mizuki – Aniki of Anime music genre
• Yoshiki Fukuyama – JAM Project
• Live dubbing and Q & A session by K-ON! seiyuus – The cast will be doing a live dubbing of an scene from the anime itself plus Q & A session.
• ‘Live’ Performance by Hatsune Miku – Hopefully it looks some what like this.

Others

• Regional Cosplay Championship – The top cosplay team from each South East Asian country will compete in AFA 09. which would be judged by a panel of distinguished guest from Japan including renowed cosplayer Kaname ☆.
• Danny Choo – Showcasing of ‘Mirai-chan’ related merchandise and speak at Animation Asia Conference (AAC) on Consumer Generated Media (CGM).
• Bandai World Gunpla Competition (30th Anniversary of Gundam)
• Moe Moe Kyun Maid Cafe -  Maid cafe with moe moe maids.
• COSPA retail presence
• Showcaese by Tatsunoko Productions and MADOUSE studio
• Weiβ Schwarz Grand Prix (Anime Trading Card Game)

The Anime song performances will be split between the two days of the event. Ichirou Mizuki, Shoko Nakagawa and Hatsune Miku on day one while Yoshiki Fukuyama and May’n on day two. Concert tickets are priced at S$188 for two days and S$108 for one day, with the entry fee included. You can also purchase regular entry tickets to the event at S$25 for both days or S$15 for one.

It definitely looks like the event is growing, specially with the amount of performers and also industry items that will be bought in. Also, with the industry networking side that has expanded to a day of it’s own. I am actually rather excited at how this year’s event would turn out, but unfortunately have to give this year’s event a miss as I’d be overseas during the majority of November for an overseas exercise.

It is also  appears inevitable that this blog will eventually turn into a lost memory in the dark internet sooner or later. Also, I will be selling away my doujins as an effort to save up for my university funds. Many of you guys have received my text message 2 weeks back regarding that matter and I’ll be posting them up as soon as I can.

Was looking through a couple of photos stored on my Macbook pro just a couple of days ago when I chanced upon some from my Japan trip last year August. A first hand experience at a stand-up sushi bar.

Do remember eating sushi when I was a wee lad but didn’t really enjoy it back then. Perhaps it’s the lack of love for Japanese food when I was smaller, or the inability to comprehend how could anyone enjoy eating rice wrapped with multicellular algae.

But anyway, back to business. One of my objectives during that trip was to enjoy the authentic Japanese cuisine as how it should be. Eating at a stand-up sushi bar is seriously a strange, exciting and memorable experience and definitely a “must-try-before-you-die” thing.

I met up with Adun, the mysterious blogger of Moe moe rabu, together with KiKi of Akibanana and a friend who’s currently residing in Tokyo. We were pretty much shopping around in Akiba while Adun spent his monies on goods and I was picking out souvenirs in the adult shops for my friends back at home. One of my friends who knew I was heading to Tokyo handed me 10,000yen, wanting stuff from Akiba. I hand-picked out a tenga flip-hole, eroge and a ero-manga which surprisingly was just within the budget. After the tiresome trip of visiting the various shops, we decided to pop by at a small stand-up sushi bar just a 5 minutes walk away from Akihabara station which KiKi frequents.

You know you want some

We ordered a la carte style, where you shout your order to the sushi chef who is also known as tenchou [店長] in Japanese. I actually prefer this to the now de-facto ordering method where you sit down and choose the sushi that being served via a conveyer belt.

It’s probably this relationship that you create with the tenchou that makes it so special. A space where you get to observe the fine culinary skills displayed by the tenchou while he is preparing the sushi, instead of the conveyer belt system where the chef seems to be churning out sushi after sushi like a robot, though I suspect you feel much at ease knowing there isn’t any ‘additional’ stuff that is thrown into your sushi ^^;

Surveying the food (The waitresses in the background is actually pretty cute!)

One thing I really like about picture menus is that the fact you do not have give your mind a lil run of imagination on what the actual food is. Given that I don’t know my sushis that well, the pictures come in really handy  and help prevent me from ordering some really exotic options of sushi and pay a huge amount for it. Alternatively, you can get a friend well-versed in Japanese to help you out.

There are various types of sushi, though they have a common ingredient, sushi rice. The ones above are known as Nigirizushi [握り寿司] or hand-formed sushi consisting of a mound of sushi rice with a dab of wasabi followed by a topping. The variant with the seaweed wrapped around sushi rice like a cylinder is known as Makizuki [巻き寿司] or rolled sushi. Don’t expect to find California Rolls or any of the Western variants being sold here.

Ama Ebi (Sweet Shrimp) Sushi

My favorite is actually fried Nama-geso [生ゲソ] or fried squid arm sushi. The one I had at the sushi bar was prepared by ‘frying’ the squid topped with some mayonnaise using a gas blower, giving a cackling sound like burnt firewood, while we watch in awe or horror from behind our counter. The result would be fried squid sushi that gives a strange burned mayonnaise aftertaste that leaves me wanting for more.

My weapon of choice if fighting zombies

And that pretty much sums up my first experience eating in a stand-up sushi bar. Do try it out if you get the chance to and you’ll find that experience vastly different from that of the conveyer system. Too bad we had all forgotten to get a group photo with the tencho and that cute waitresses :/ Oh! Caption the last image ^^

Caption this image!

I was looking through pixiv the other day when I found this very hot looking 3D Yoko from the anime series, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, modeled using maya from pixiv illustrator Kanzeon 「カンゼオン」.

He has also created a very cute looking Nia, though she looks slightly older compared to the 2D animated version.

More images over at his pixiv and site.

I believe many would have seen quite a bit of the lovely oppai mousepads with images of our favorite 2D girls on it, but this is actually the first time I am seeing a oppai mousepad with 2 lovely girls in docking mode.

The featured girls are Airi [アイリ] and Melona [メローナ]  from the anime Queens Blade. Those interested in getting this oppai pad can reserve a copy for themselves over at Hobby Search. Item costs 3,600 yen and will be released in late August. Although I suspect you can place something else besides your wrists on those oppai… ^^;

Some Queens Blade girls in revealing swimsuits below.

Click for uber high res image

Do wish there will be a butt mousepad or something based on the picture below. This is just amazingly cute and funny!

By Pixiv Illustrator mtnonikam

I have yet to catch the anime but am trying to resist from doing so as there’s just too much docking and eye revealing scenes! Any recommendations?

Source: Via Akibablog

A really cool but somewhat dated video featuring some amazing bicycle drifts performed by a Japanese man. Those who frequent the land of the moe, ero and more ero moe would probably have seen the sheer amount of human powered transportation known as the bicycle.

Generally there are two kinds of annoying cyclists. The first type who is too shy to ring the bell and follows you behind like a stalker.

And the other type who is also too shy to ring the bell but instead screeches the brakes right behind you. I am a cyclist myself but more often than not I ring the bell to let the people in front know that there’s a bicycle behind. Rather dangerous to cycle on the public roads here.