Dark Angels


More kick-ass girlpower manga from the Angel Ace guy.

I’m not just into Angel Ace. I’m thinking of doing this series someday. Perhaps sooner than anyone may think. It’s still in the design stage though. I may post designs and sketches soon. What do you think, guys?

Ninjinn
Genre: Fantasy/Action

The Concept: In an arid, Arabian fantasy world, the Ninjinn are powerful female spirits whose life forces are bound to magical rings. Whomever holds one of these rare mystical artifacts gains the services of these magical assassins without peer. Be careful of what you wish of the Ninjinn… for all they can grant is a lingering, tortuous death.
The Ninjinn series will be an anthology of different stories of Ninjinn serving various masters; from helping an young slavegirl free her tribe to carrying out a vile warlord’s bloody purges. The only thing that is constant are the Ninjinn’s beauty and lethal prowess. In the course of the various stories, we learn the origins of the mist-cloaked assassins and their own super-secret, hidden agenda.

This series should be close to my heart since it's all about sexy kick-butt girls, cloak and dagger stuff, secret plans and long-term plots, fancy magic and swordplay. It's also a LOT darker than Angel Ace or anything I've done so far, so it should be a challenge. We'll see about getting deeper into this idea soon; at least after I get the next Angel Ace issue behind me.

Fantasy Film Ranting

I love Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies. Love them to death. For the first time ever, a filmmaker was actually able to pluck the images of epic, high fantasy right from the synapses of my brain and onto celluloid. DAMN that prologue battle scene between Gil-Galad, Elrond, Isildur and company and Freaking Sauron was awesome. I remember when I first saw it, my mind was screaming COOLNESS. I yelped with each swing of that elf-hurling mace. A chill went up my spine seeing that line of elite Elf footmen with those double-headed polearms blunt that orcish mob. DAMN.
And to think that just a scant couple of years ago, the high fantasy epic film was basically non-existent. Dragonslayer was great with wonderful effects (for the time) and atmosphere, but it was about a waning world with one last dragon (reflected many years later by that dodgy Dragonheart farce with Sean Connery). We wanted a fantasy world in its prime. There was Willow, but while I love that film (I know a lot of people don’t, some of my friends included) I recognize that it is far from being an epic fantasy. It was more action fantasy, a buddy-movie that could have been titled Two Men and a Baby and the Evil Empire. Heh.
Remember Wizards and Warriors? It was a somewhat short TV series which was based on the Dungeons and Dragons game (though apparently the producers weren’t able to afford the license, so they just made their own generic world). I can’t recall all the cast members, but I do remember that Duncan Regehr was there as the charismatic but evil Prince Dirk Blackpoole. Strong-jawed TV series actress Randi Brooks (she appeared in Last Precinct; Police Academy on TV) played the evil sorceress Bethel. Other characters include the good guys Prince Eric Greystone, his portly but mighty sidekick Marco (heh), the evil wizard Vector and a Dumbledore-ish mentor wizard.
Wizards and Warriors was pretty strong and ambitious in the action part of the fantasy genre, with swordfights and deathtraps, monsters and spells. Reportedly each episode cost about a million dollars to produce, but still the limitations showed. Well, it was done before the time of the Herculeses and Xenases of the world, so that made it a pioneer. It didn’t last long, but you have to love it at least for having chapter breaks similar to The Wild Wild West.
And then there’s the much abhorred, infamous and totally horrible Dungeons and Dragons movie. Let me say that an episode of Wizards and Warriors is preferable to this turdpile. It has the distinction of having an infinite well of heroes, settings, mythologies, storylines and other treasures to dip into… but ignoring all that in favor of a script that an orc with an intelligence of 4 could have written better.
DRAGONLANCE would have been better. Anything in the Forgotten Realms would have been better. Or Greyhawk. Or Athas (but did anyone ever really PLAY Dark Sun?). But noooo... the producer/director has this story he thought up while in the crapper...
The wonders of this film experience include a party of ‘heroes’ which include a Wesley Crusher lookalike, a Wayans brother (whose death in the film was one of the few joys), an elf whose natural skills are limited to spouting out cryptic lines and looking prissy, a dwarf whom Ghimli (in LOTR) would not mourn if he got skewered by an orc, and a magic user who can’t cast a single spell without a bag of ‘magic powder’.
Ranged against them… a ranting Jeremy Irons as the evil archmage who is lacking a curled moustache to complete his image and a bald, BLUE-lipsticked warlord (played by the same guy who played the villain in the Wesley Snipes’s thriller Passenger 57) who speaks at the rate of one word per second (That is painfully slow, mind you).

SEE! A Beholder appear (Audience squeals in delight) and then be distracted by a thrown rock (so I guess all those eyestalks can’t actually see) to disappear forever despite the alarm being rung some minutes later (Audience groans).
SEE! A whole sequence that would have explained a lot of the hole-ridden plot and drive the heroes’ quest be totally passed over as an unseen event.
SEE! A funny sequence where an army of armoured soldiers in flaming red stand right outside a bar and NOT be noticed at all.
SEE! Two professional thieves sneak after someone like they are sneaking after someone.
SEE! A perilous, unending, legendary labyrinth (overseen by Crystal Maze’s Richard O’Brien no less) that consists of a couple of rooms in a straight line.
SEE! Our low-level thief hero defeat an obviously high-level fighter despite not having levelled-up any (maybe his sword was +20).
HEAR! D&D terms being forcefit into regular conversation. ("You're so dumb, you must have had a feeblemind spell on you!").
SEE! A crappy CG dragon finale battle with Thora Birch (who is playing a childlike Empress… maybe she wandered off from Neverending Story).
REALIZE! That if the heroes didn’t go on their stupid quest in the first place, everything would be a whole lot better.
Ah. There is so much more to appreciate in the horrors of the Dungeons and Dragons movie, but suffice to say that you have to see it for yourself to get the whole experience. Seek it out, and then bask in the glory of LOTR after.

Ah, the Lord of the Rings films. Bliss. Thanks be. Thanks be.

Thus enduth the rant. Heh.

Train of Thought


Advertising on tracks.

Advertising is getting everywhere. I arrived at the Cubao MRT station train platform to suddenly find myself staring at a very green MRT car. I blinked once, twice... the green color didn't come off. Several cars of the train had been painted over to look like a big, moving billboard. I've seen advertising all over the MRT station but never before on the actual trains; Buses have been used in this way, and now I guess even the MRT is now fair game for media spending. I guess it makes sense; the trains are seen by thousands of people everyday, and by a definite market/kind of consumer. Pretty smooth marketing. Not that I am outraged or anything; actually it might be pretty neat to see what the art directors can think of to best use the space.

After work I went to Comic Quest and showed the latest pages of Angel Ace to Vinnie and Carl. For dinner I tried out a new pizza stand called Papa Heinz's. Now, it labelled itself as 'The German Pizza'. How did it taste? Well, the pizza crust was bread-like, soft and spongy; the cheese was plentiful but there was only ONE slice of pepperoni on each slice. Sorry to say, it didn't have the pizza taste that I crave. I guess there's a reason why the best pizzas come from Italy...
Anyway, as Cams, Carl and I were headed home, Vinnie pulled a fast one and drew blood from me a day before the traditional bloodletting day. He sold the latest issue of New X-men to Carl. I scanned through the pages and was immediately hooked. DAMN! Now I have to buy the rest of this 5-issue arc. Oh well.

Gotta finish the latest Angel issue. Gotta find the money to fund it. Gotta release soon. Lots of stuff to do. Gotta do it! Heh.

Death By Chocolate

I was finally able to try out recently the sweet, guilty pleasures of Bizzu, a fancy coffee/dessert place at the new Greenbelt mall in Makati.
I entered it one afternoon upon the recommendation of a friend that the place served the absolute BEST hot chocolate ever. I went alone, ready to spend a bit since the ambience boded a pricey stay. Readily, I ordered the regular cup of hot chocolate. Though that was the only thing I actually wanted at first, I eventually decided to try one of the simply gorgeous-looking cakes. After troubling over the things (each of which looked like a mini sculpture) a couple of minutes, I finally decided on the Samba, a mousse made with a variety of chocolates.
The hot chocolate passed through my lips and down my throat like liquid love (which chocolate is, supposedly). DAMN. Literally like a melted chocolate bar. DAAAAAMMMN. As for the cake, it was cool and creamy and the milk chocolate blended with the dark perfectly. My Gosh. I ate bites of Samba between gulps of hot chocolate. Wow. After a while, the richness got to me, and I was having difficulty finishing the cup. The cake eventually went down, but I ultimately surrendered and left a drop or two of liquid love in the cup. Too... much... sweetness... Aaaah...

Anyway, the cake cost about P90, and the hot chocolate P75. Pricey, but the richness was worth it. Hard to finish by any measure for one person; perfect for couples. Caution... Death by Chocolate is a very real possibility. Heh. Visit Bizzu at the new Greenbelt Mall, on the side fronting Coronado Lanes. Bring a friend.

Throttling Angels

The first Charlie's Angels movie was fun. Yes, it ripped off Matrix fight scenes and had lots of embarrasing wirework, but it was fun. The girls' characters were engaging and the action was pretty fast and furious. Yeah, US films still have a ways to go before they really do decent martial arts movies, but this was just too energetic and bubbly to feel bad about. So it was that I am looking forward to the sequel, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, this summer. Hey, I really like kick-butt girl movies.
Once again, the new Angels get together: Rebellious wildchild Dylan (Drew Barrymore), ultracompetent Alex (Lucy Liu) and ditzy but superbrain and superbod Natalie (Cameron Diaz). They are joined by a new Bosley (played by comedian Bernie Mac, who replaced Bill Murray from the first film).
The plot this time around seems to concern some ultrasecret weapons system that is in danger of falling into the wrong hands (again), and only the invincible trio can stop the baddies. This time around, hot momma Demi Moore plays the Big Bad, apparently a former Charlie's Angel herself. Returning from the first film is Crispin Glover AKA The Creepy Thin Man whom I didn't see in the trailer but will probably be aching to get back at the Angels for kicking his scrawny butt the last time.
You can check out the hot, bikini girl surfing, extreme sports riding, martial arts kicking, fiery explosion blasting action in the trailer here.

Emerging into Easter

Ah! It's nice to emerge from the Biosphere Sanctum. I've been cooped up inside since Thursday. Food supplies were running low, though I learned that cable power pretty much ran the place without need to resorting to anime or dvd supplies. I actually wasn't able to reduce my vcd and dvd backlog too much; I did have a marathon of sorts of the adventure/comedy series Groove Adventure Rave, and finally watched the Cowboy Bebop movie.
For the most part though, I was able to draw a lot of pages for my comic. As of this writing I have pencilled about fifteen pages for the new issue. It takes place right after the first story arc, and comes back to our heroes in Newhaven City. Angel has decided to stay with Mike and Rip for a while, but not all is well with the world as a certain masked psychopathic villain returns for a little retribution. Yep, Sorcerer's back and he's got himself some new toys to even the odds with Angel...
This short story may run for about 30 or so pages, and I hope to ink, render and finish it in the next few weeks. Then it's off to the harder part... publishing it. I am still in a deadlock on whether I should actually treat it as a real issue, publishing house and all, or as a smaller 'ashcan' book? If it's the former, I have to start bringing together funds immediately. Well, it looks great... not the Anthology I was hoping for, but if I put together some pinups and art along with the main story and add a nice fan-made comic with it, this should be a nice one-shot issue. It's been awhile since the last Angel Ace, so this should be special.
Well, that's that. Easter Sunday's here. Gotta enjoy it while it lasts... back to the salt mines tomorrow. Oh well.

YES!!!!


Out in September.

If I told you anymore about this DVD set, I'd have to kill you.

Virtual Luminol


Grissom decides what color toe tag will match the victim's pedicure.

I finally got to play the CSI: Crime Scene Investigations PC game. I'm a big fan of the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced series about forensic experts. Now, you too can join Grissom, Catherine, Sarah and the rest of the CSI team as they investigate several cases of murder whose secrets are just aching to be uncovered.
The game is divided into cases; like mini-episodes in the show. Each case starts with the familiar panning shot of nighttime Las Vegas (like the TV series), and then you go into Chief Grissom's office. You're the newbie, a rookie dropped into the middle of the action thanks to some manpower shortage. Soon enough you're poking at dead bodies, examining virtual crime scenes for clues and evidence and consulting with the other CSI crewmembers for likely suspects. Of course, the TV cast lend their voices to the game for added authenticity.
As a game, CSI isn't all that. It's pretty much a matter of finding clues and fitting them into the appropriate lab machine, expert or option. Correct choices will unlock more locations, suspects and evidence. Get enough to incriminate a suspect, you'll be able to call on Captain Brass to pick up the perps and close the case. It all depends on how sharp-eyed, precise or just plain meticulous you are with looking through the crime scenes.
Unfortunately, the 3-D crime scenes where you are supposed to be able to range through and search aren't as deep or as detailed as I expected. It's all pretty shallow, and not too interactive. And as a result, once you finish the game perfect once, it's over. Done. End. Finished.
On the good side, the game DOES have the real actors voicing their virtual counterparts; Grissom's penchant for mouthing out obscure facts is spot on; some voices just sound pretty funny, particularly Greg Sanders in the lab ("You can't put THAT in the microscope.").
The game looks great, though the CG models and scenes are pretty stiff but adequate. Of course, the game comes complete with the zippy zooms into the dead bodies demonstrating particularly chunky revelations like breaking vertebrae caused by strangulation, and misty re-enactments of the crimes. Too bad though that the game just isn't as deep or as playable as it could have been.
Still, it's a cool little activity for fans of the game. Try it out if you want to carry out your forensic fantasies for a couple of short but sweet cases.

Lackluster Trailers

Speaking of trailers that don't get my blood moving, there's Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. Now, a couple of years ago this would have been something; female terminator T-X (Terminatrix?) locking horns with the once-virile but now only venerable T-800 (Ah-nuld Schwarzenegger for those who've been in stasis all this time). However, it just doesn't look great. The T-X is a blonde model in tight brown leather who sports that same shark-like expression Robert Patrick used well in T2... but it just comes off as weak. The action doesn't look particularly cool or groundbreaking, and really... it all just sounds like a bad idea. Now, maybe T3 will at least be a good ending or at least have enough action to satisfy me eventually but... the trailer, like Tomb Raider 2's... isn't helping convince me.
Ah, I remember that old Cliffhanger trailer (Sylvester Stallone movie) which was SOOOOO great, it was tons better to watch that looping than the actual film. They don't really make trailers like that anymore. Is it a vanishing art? Maybe. Sigh. Well, I'm saying that now. Perhaps I'll change my tune when the next LOTR trailer appears.

Anyway, the X2 trailer has got me pumped for the next Mutant movie, as well as the Matrix Reloaded spot, which just kicks butt. May is looking to be the great Summer movie roundup. Then it's all downhill to the second half of 2003.

Dusty Tombs

Ah, love the vacation. I am still debating on whether I should venture out or just remain indoors. I've already started pencilling new pages for Angel Ace, for an ashcan-segue issue I want to release before Angel Ace Next. I should strike while the iron's hot, so to speak. But then again, I should also try to pass by Comic Quest for the weekly bloodletting before everything really closes down by Good Friday.
Anyway, the TV's on HBO showing Tomb Raider while I am writing this. Now, while I love the character and the games, the movie is just... boring as hell. The action's good when it happens, but that's like only a few points scattered throughout a whole lot of lethargic sequences where nothing exciting or compelling happens. Really, the only reason I like it is just because of Angelina Jolie. Heh.
Sad to say, the Tomb Raider sequel, Cradle of Life, doesn't seem to up the ante any bit. I've seen the trailer, and was NOT impressed at all. I just hope that this has a reverse effect of meaning that the 2nd TR movie is actually pretty good... otherwise, it's strike two. I'd like to see Angelina continue to wield those twin guns though... Sigh.

Holy Week Agenda

Everyone and their next-door neighbor is headed for beaches and resorts this long Holy Week break, but of course I will be staying in the Sanctum for the duration. Which I feel is the best, after all.
No long, carsickness-inducing trips. No nightmarish luggage mishaps. No sparsely-furnished rooms or accomodations to worry about. No need to spend on mundane stuff blown overpriced by ambience. No danger of SARS from foreigners. Heh.
Nope. For the Holy Week I will be enjoying the Sanctum's cold, climate-controlled snugness. With the opportunity to sink into the Bean Throne and finally finish Suikoden III. Or play more DOAX. Or play Soul Calibur 2. Or any of the dozen or so PS2 and Xbox games I have accumulated and have not even broken the surfaces of.
Or I can finally get to view the pile of VCDs and DVDs of both anime and live-action films that have gathered on my tukador; Full Metal Panic, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Earth Girl Arjuna, FLCL, Hellsing, Zhang Yimou's Hero, So Close, Shaolin Soccer and more... lots more.
Darn. How did I get all those things together? Well, it's not like there won't be anything to watch thanks to cable... At the very least I can watch Kim Possible...
Or, I can also get down to finally starting and hopefully finishing the next Angel Ace comic... need to do more pages and art. Hmm. This may be the crucial time for my manga-baby. Gotta decide now.

Ah. Time. Time is all we have.

Ninja Napkin Girl


A ninja girl of the Kotex Newtex clan girds for a mission.

By now my latest TV commercial, a spot for Kotex Newtex feminine napkins, has been shown (and is showing) on Philippine TV. The ad starts with a pretty but sad and slow-moving lass dressed in vaguely oriental themed attire inching her way across a college walkway to her waiting friends. When her friends ask her why she's so slow, she says it's because of her period. Of course, her pals give her the new Kotex Newtex napkin and in no time, she's zipping like a ninja all over the place.
The ad features a very pretty model named Nicole Hernandez. Not only does Nicole bear a striking resemblance to HK actress Zhang Zi Yi (in some angles she brings to mind local star Claudine Barretto), she can also move quite gracefully. She actually wasn't our first choice; we already had set our sights on another girl when we were given a tape showing the models in action, doing runs and jumps. Nicole struck us with her natural grace and athleticism, and she was our girl right there and then.
Later, she did excellently especially during the running sequences, where she really gave the impression that she could give ninja (or at least Jennifer Garner in Alias) a good chase. Heh. Anyway, we shot for two days at the campus of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, using every bit of sunlight and most of the night. In the end we came out with a fun, cool ad, which I really love seeing. I just hope it makes the sales for our client go up. That will make them do even cooler ads in the future.

Well, that's that. On to the next job...

Matrix Stuff

If you guys haven't already seen it, head on over to The Matrix website to download the exciting final trailer for The Matrix Reloaded. For those who haven't been on the Net religiously monitoring this series, Reloaded continues the adventures of Neo, Trinity and Morpheus (Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss and Laurence Fishburne respectively) and the few free humans battling the machines both in the blasted future world and in the imaginary/virtual world of the Matrix. Despite finally discovering he is The One and gaining superhuman abilities within the Matrix, Neo still has to fight some dangerous foes, including more Agents and evil programs (like the mysterious albino twins who seem to have some teleporting/phantom abilities) including a returning Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving; whom we expect now to greet Neo with "Welcome to Rivendell, Frodo Baggins...") who has gained the ability to 'clone' himself, and more.
As chronicled in the Animatrix episode Final Flight of the Osiris, the machines have discovered where the humans' city of Zion is, and are laying siege to the stronghold. The only hope lies in Neo... but can even his powers defeat the seemingly unstoppable machines?
New to the Matrix movie are of course the characters of Niobe (Jada Pinkett-Smith) and Ghost (Russell Wong), who will be making their debut in the Enter the Matrix videogames.
It all happens this May!
And of course, Matrix fans will probably want to download and watch the latest Animatrix episode, Detective Story, from the Matrix site as well. Yet another excellently-animated short, this one has the extra bonus of having Trinity play a role in the story. See it now!

Rice Burger not too nice

Yesterday I had to go to WORK yet again, doing some revisions on a rush-rush radio commercial. Luckily I was able to take a break and walk around the mall at Makati Cinema Square. While there, I decided to go into the nearby McDonalds and taste their latest schtick food offering; The Rice Burger. Yep! A patty of meat and barbecue sauce in between two rice cakes.
Well, it sucks. I'll tell you why.
First of all... it's HOT! As I held it in my hands, I felt like Otto from Raiders of the Lost Ark when he grabbed a red-hot amulet. AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!! I guess it needs to be hot since the rice buns have to be kept soft (if they grow cold, they become hard and not presentable). Need to wrap another layer around it when you hold it, like a napkin.
Second, it's messy. There's sauce traces all around the wrapper insides, and it doesn't look anything like the neat, perfect product shots in the TV commercial or print ads. It looks like a dirty sushi. A big dirty sushi. And unlike bread, which you can touch without effect, the rice leaves a sticky mess on your fingers.
Third. The meat isn't too tasty. At least not enough to offset the slightly burnt flavor of the rice.
Overall, the rice just doesn't feel or taste too well. It IS like having puto (rice cakes) with meat, and it's not too delicious or pleasing. There's a reason why we use bread for sandwiches, and rice for meals. This little gimmick just doesn't work.

Well, the rice burger came with a combo, so at least I had a softdrink and a sundae cone to take away the taste. I finished the radio commercial, sold it to client and had the usual Saturday Night Out with the gang (which was basically sitting at Chili's making fun of the UFC on TV). Ah. Holy Week is coming with the long vacation. Finally, rest. That's gonna be good.

Angel Art


Angel on a ledge.

Here's a nice artwork I made of Angela Gale AKA Angel Ace, my original manga character. She's just kicking back, enjoying the free night air as she watches the lights of the sleeping city. Like the toe ring? Heh.
I'm currently working on the next Angel Ace issue, with help from some friends. I'm hoping to release this Angel Anthology within the year. At the very least, I want to release a prelude to this, perhaps an ashcan-type comic with pinups, art, character designs and info, and maybe a mini-story, soon. We'll see what happens...


I like the nightlife!

The Ghost Surfer

Now, I still seem to be tone-deaf when it comes to Third Eyes and sensing the supernatural, but this seemed pretty interesting. A new trainee at the office (who sits right behind me in our area) was working alone a few days ago. It was in the afternoon and the rest of the people where on a training seminar, so he had the room to himself. As he was working, he heard the distinct sound of mouse-clicking (as in computer mouse). At that time he dismissed it as maybe sounds coming from the adjacent offices. Never mind that he was quite sure that there was no one else in the immediate area.
Then, some days later, the same guy was working late. It was just before midnight, and he was finishing up his load when, once again, he heard the telltale mouse clicks.
The clicks were, in his words, VERY close. It was as if someone was leisurely surfing. Almost certainly within the area, but there was no one else there… or in any of the nearby rooms.
The final straw came however, when the lights started flickering.

Needless to say, he decided it was time to call it a day.

Now, I’ve worked late in the office myself many, many times, but I’ve never encountered such things… though I have at times decided to hold off the call of nature when I saw that the CR lights were out (and I don’t know where the light switch is). We just moved into our new area, but I’ve never heard of ghosts or eerie events there before. Then again, prior to the Creative Team moving into the area, the place was the Finance Department… maybe they were just too occupied with numbers and figures to notice spooky stuff. Heh.

Interesting. Intriguing. Not enough to make my equivalent of The Ring, but still pretty cool.

Dead or Alive Motion Picture Coming Soon!


The DOA girls get some beauty rest in preparation for their movie debut.

Now this is news close to my videogaming heart. Plans for a Dead or Alive motion picture have finally been cemented, according to a report by Reuters and the movie trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter. The film is apparently under the wing of Impact Pictures, a company which is a veteran of videogame-to-movie conversions (they handled the first Mortal Kombat movie, and Resident Evil.
According to Paul Anderson (Impact), the movie can be described as ‘Charlie’s Angels meets Enter the Dragon’.
The story will focus on about six characters from the movie, with special emphasis on four female protagonists. The DOA girls, both beautiful and well-versed in the martial arts, are invited by Fame Douglas (a corporate magnate with shady connections from the game’s storylines) to take part in the Dead or Alive fighting tournament. The action will supposedly be set on an exotic island. The writer for the film is reportedly JF Lawton, known for penning the scripts for Pretty Woman and Under Siege.
Unlike the more mystical and fantasy-based Mortal Kombat movies/games, DOA will be set more or less in ‘reality’(No otherdimensional overlords molesting the DOA girls? Aw nuts...). Fans of the game will be treated to a film that remains loyal to the game’s essential principles, while mainstream and non-gamer audiences can still look forward to a fun, enjoyable and sexy popcorn movie. The PG-13 film will also feature at least one scene of ‘babes in bikinis’, a tribute no doubt to the sexy DOA game spin-off, Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball. DOAX has sold close to 500,000 copies worldwide since it’s release.
The DOA movie will reportedly be released together with Dead or Alive 4, the latest DOA fighting game, in late 2004. Since that’s still a ways off, gamers will be glad to know that Tecmo is set to release Dead or Alive: Code Chronos in Fall 2003. Chronos is rumored to be a spinoff fighting/action game based on past games in the Dead or Alive series. Just what it is exactly may be finally revealed in the upcoming E3 2003.

While I am having so much fun with DOAX, I am really looking forward to DOA Code Chronos; though just what exactly it IS remains a mystery to this day. Hopefully there will still be as much trademark DOA cheesecake and fan service in it as much as action…
As for the DOA movie... well... there really hasn't been much success in fighting game movies. The Streetfighter movie sucked, and the Tekken anime was horrible (the live-action movie was plagued and doomed even before it started). Double Dragon... Ugh... that second Mortal Kombat film... GGGGUUUUHHH...
But then again, Dead or Alive is all about butt-kicking, sexy babes. You'd have to be really bad to mess that up... right? Just get great casting for the characters, a damn good fight choreographer and wirework (easy on the Matrix stuff and zippy editing though) and a reasonable script and... it may be a nice, enjoyable, popcorn movie. If it's at least as cool as the first Charlie's Angels film was, I'll be pleased.
Crossing fingers now.

Pinay in fighting game!


"Kamusta, kabayan! Ako si Talim from the Fiesta islands in the Philippines! Mabuhay!

Yep, there's finally a Filipino character in the colorful world of videogames. That character is Talim, a female fighter who uses the Kali martial art in the awesome new weapons fighter, Soul Calibur 2! Described as a priestess of the wind, Talim is one of the elite fighters out to find the fragments of the evil sword, Soul Edge. Her fighting style is fast, in-your-face and nasty... MABANGIS! Heheh.
If you want to learn more about Talim and her back story, click here.

Soul Calibur 2 (import/Japanese version) is already out in Japan for the PS2, Gamecube and Xbox. A US release is scheduled in August 2003.

Funny Copy

I was surfing around the net and came to Jabootu, a 'bad movie' site. Scanning through the coming Cheezy films of 2003, one particular entry had me laughing out loud. It was for a movie called Vampire Assassin by Cinetel productions. The tagline read, "To kill an army of vampires, you must become one."
So... how does one become an army of vampires? Heheheheheh...

Check out the site for a list of upcoming corny and cheezy movies, and quite a few laughs.

Training Day

Today is the day that I first rode the new MRT which travels west-east along Marcos Hi-way to Aurora Boulevard all the way to Recto. After several years of traffic caused by construction, the wait has finally paid off. My mom informed me that the trains were operational, and had been since President Macapagal’s birthday recently. Woohoo!

There are a few cons, though. The nearest station to my house at Katipunan is a WALK. About ten minutes at least, uphill. Well, I get exercise. Anyway, once I got to the station, I was kinda amazed that there seemed to be no one entering the place. But there was of course the large streamer announcing the ‘Libreng Sakay’ (Free Rides) which would last until tomorrow. As I stepped towards the security guards, I was asked from which office I was. I was at a loss of words for a second and was on the verge of flashing my agency ID when the female guard finally realized I was a passenger. Heh.
The Katipunan MRT station is underground, and pretty impressive actually for its size. The place was empty, clean and cool as I walked down the stairs and rode the escalators to the riding platforms. When I got there, I saw several other passengers waiting (I could probably count them on my fingers).
The train for Cubao arrived after a few minutes of waiting, and I was on it. There weren’t enough people to fill all the seats, yet predictably there was still the odd man standing. The train waited for a few more riders to board, and we were off.
The new MRT is at least a third wider and maybe a little longer than the EDSA MRT. It was a cool feeling to see the buildings along Aurora from the new vantage point. I actually stood up just to see the new sights. Nice. From Katipunan, there was only one other stop (Anonas) before reaching Cubao. Luckily, that was my stop since the train apparently only operated up to there as yet.
I really didn’t know how complete the Cubao terminal was, but it was already at least 9/10 finished. There was a length of the side which seemed to be totally open; anyone wanting to jump off from the MRT to the street below need only take a running start; the only thing standing between him and space was a rope cordon. Aside from that, I was almost positive that I saw Gloria (the Prez) herself; well, obviously it was just a lady who had the same hair, facial shape and height due to the lack of any security personnel or commotion

I got down and proceeded to the EDSA MRT, which would take me to Ayala and my workplace. Had a new era begun for me? Probably. Commuting to Cubao, which once was unpredictable, now had a new dimension. I could probably make it in less than thirty minutes once the train was completely running, and that helps a lot to shave off transit time. I hope it all just works out as great as the second MRT. Trains rock.

Sex and Violence and a Senseless Sequel


Lady assassins up the wazoo!

I picked up a Hongkong movie on DVD entitled Naked Weapon. The film stars Maggie Q, Anya and Daniel Wu, and is yet another film in the infamous Naked series (which includes the similar earlier film, Naked Killer), which pretty much popular for it's steamy sex and violence. Not for kiddies, but mature viewers, especially those who love seeing kick-butt model-gorgeous girls go at each other's throats. The story is a doozie; A mysterious woman named Madame M runs a female assassin ring, which specializes in training young girls to become professional killers who use sex as well as martial arts. To this end, she brings together forty young girls and puts them through a six year program to forge them into deadly fighters. Along the way, many are weeded out, and like another popular film of mine, Battle Royale, it soon becomes apparent that Madame M only wants ONE to survive the batch.
Later, full-fledged assassins Charlene (Maggie Q) and Katt (Anya) are experts in the trade. A cop (Daniel Wu) soon gets wise to the murders the girls perpetrate, and soon becomes embroiled in the sordid drama.
Now, Naked Weapon may not be as classy as the recent So Close (Su Qi, Zhao Wei) but you really can't go wrong with sexy girls and martial arts, can you? Heh. Anyway, the fight scenes are cool and pretty wild, and come with some pretty raw CG effects that seem to be all the rage in Hong Kong films. The movie does have some leaps in logic and some credibility problems... I mean, you train forty girls for six years, feeding, housing and giving them all sorts of training... and then just kill them outright? Waste of man- er, girlpower, if you ask me. Kinda reminds me of the SIVA organization from my Angel Ace comic, but it would be such a waste to just kill off well-trained operatives in-house... and violate and mistreat them as well? Sigh.
Anyway, it's not a great film, but it's pretty and entertaining if you're looking for some mindless sex and violence and martial arts with lots of babes. And it's mostly in english, too!

Another DVD I picked up is Atlantis II: Milo's Return. Yes! I wasn't aware of this sequel as well! Apparently, the gang from part one gets together again, including of course leads Milo and Kida. They soon go off on a world-spanning journey to discover the secret of the Atlantean crystals. Anyway, shoddy animation and action highlight this direct-to-video release... plus the normally hot Kida spends most of the time fully clothed... what's up with that? BAH!

Well that's pretty much it. Hopefully I can get stuff done tomorrow since it's a holiday... particularly to enjoy the stuff I've acquired over the weekend.

The Soul Still Burns!


I got my hands on the PS2 version of Soul Calibur 2.

Soul Calibur for the Dreamcast was one of the most beautiful fighting games in both looks and gameplay ever, and it is a viable reason for gamers to pick up one of Sega's last consoles. The game was a mammoth leap over the PS original, Soul Blade, and just screams excellence. Well, it took quite a while, but a sequel to that masterful weapon fighter has finally arrived... and then some! All three major consoles (Xbox, PS2, Gamecube) have a version of Soul Calibur 2, with each version being differentiated by a 'guest' character that is unique to that platform. For PS2, the fighter who's sitting in is Heihachi Mishima, the DOM (Deadly Old Man) from Namco's other big brawler, Tekken. Now how, you would ask, would a fist fighter like Heihachi do in a game full of guys and gals with big honking swords? Well, pretty good actually... he plays very similarly to his Tekken outing, but comes with iron bracers to parry blows. Anyway, Mitsurugi, Taki, Ivy, Xianghua and the rest of the veterans are joined by newbies Yunsung (a sword wielder like Hwang), Talim (a tonfa fighter), Raphael (a fast rapier user) and Cassandra (veteran Sophitia's younger sister who also uses a sword and shield). Also new to SC is Necrid, a monstrous fighter designed by Spawn creator Todd McFarlane (Spawn is the guest character in the Xbox version of SC2).
SC2 has TONS of modes and secrets, like extra weapons, stages, costumes and fighters to unlock in the various modes, particularly the Weapon Master Mode which sends your chosen fighter on a quest all over a map, fighting various duels to satisfy varied conditions- from fighting in a quicksand arena to defeating enemies with only throws. Thankfully, Namco loaded the game's extras with favorites like Sophitia, Seung Mina, Cervantes and Yoshimitsu. SC2 certainly has loads of replay.
Graphically, the game looks great in every arena, though I have to say it's not an obvious, huge leap over the first game; and the DC version actually looked more hi-res. Plus, I just find the costumes of the characters... not too great. Oh well. Not everything can be DOAX, I guess... but we can dream... Anyway, the animation, stages and characters just look excellent, and that's all you have to know. This game is a beauty.
In terms of gameplay, SC2 is fun and easy to get into, the control is perfect and the fighting just rocks. The characters have tons of moves, with cool alternate stances, throws and combos. The balance seems quite great, and the lineup of fighters is diverse and full of interesting personalities.

Soul Calibur 2 is a must for fighting game fans; games this big are rare, and it comes out in a time when crap like Tao Feng infest shelves. Get it when you can! At the very least it will hold the fort until the Dead or Alive: Code Chronos comes out...

Zsa Zsa #2 Preview!


For mature readers Ever!

The second and concluding part of Carl Vergara's opus, Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah won't be available in stores until the end of April, but you can have a taste of the fun, action, humor and gorgeous art right now! Alamatcomics.com has posted 10 full pages online for your enjoyment! Click here for your Zsa Zsa fix now!

Wanderlust

At lunchtime I decided to get out of the office and just drift around the area. I haven't been able to do that in the past couple of weeks, so it was nice to finally just have the time to do it. I got into a cab and zipped on down to Glorietta. We passed by Rustan's and saw that there was yet another strike outside the posh store. My taxi driver remarked 'Some people can never be satisfied. They should've been thankful to even have jobs.' I looked on and thought, yeah, life was hard and jobs are often hard to come by. But you can't really fault people for wanting something better. For all we know, the owners of these big superstores are really crappy with their workers' pay. I know one particular store chain here is quite miserly in spending... well, I guess that's how they stay rich. Heh.
Anyway, I walked around for a bit, at a loss for awhile on where I should eventually have my noontime repast. I eventually decided on an old favourite that I haven't enjoyed in a long time... Soup Kitchen. I'm a soup guy, what can I say? I love soup with anything, and try to have some on the side with my meals. Well, here, the soup is the main dish, and everything else is on the side. I got the classic Chili, which comes really savoury and spicy and hot with chips and cheese. Mmmm. I ordered a half-chicken sandwich (which is half of a chicken sandwich not a sandwich made from half a chicken) on the side and a creamy chocolate mousse for dessert. SK's mousse is quite rich since unlike the versions of other restaurants, it doesn't have a 'bread' or cake base... it's just white cream and brown cream. Delicious.
After getting full, I walked some more and picked up my catch of the day: A copy of the PS2 version of Soul Calibur 2!!! WOOHOO! Now, the trick is getting the thing to work... Anyway, I finished off my journey by heading into Bibliarch and getting some mags. Ah. A long weekend looms, and it should be a nice little break.

Zsa Zsa 2: An early review!

Last night, I ate dinner with Carl and Cams at Almon Marina Megamall. We were waiting for the new stocks to arrive at Comic Quest, and talking about various things over gourmet sandwiches. When time finally came for the weekly bloodletting for my reading material, I took home several issues of Tomb Raider, the latest Elektra and a copy of Protoculture Addicts anime magazine. Yes, I know Newtype USA is more than enough to sate my anime news cravings, but... well... it's for old time's sake. Heh.
Anyway, as we were going home in Cam's car, I had the pleasant and distinct surprise of being given a copy of the final build of the second issue of Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah! This truly wonderful, humorous and visually splendid homage/deconstruction/remake of the Darna story by Carlo Vergara proved to be a big hit among comic readers... Carl has had to re-stock the various CQ branches with copies since they run out so fast; one funny story being that even the sample/display copies were taken by readers dying to see this beautiful and irreverent superhero/heroine comic.

Anyway, the second issue, which is due by or before the end of April in stores, continues the adventures of gay beautician Ada and her super-powered alter-ego, Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah. She has to face the powerful Amazonistas from Planet X, alien women who have eliminated their own male counterparts on their planet. Is Zsa Zsa a match for the evil and english-speaking Queen Femina? Or is the planet doomed to be conquered by the feminist invaders?
Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah #2 should once again entertain with its trademark hilarious dialogue and funny expressions, but this time Carl ups the ante with some truly impressive action sequences. Name it, Zsa Zsa's got 'em... high speed Matrix-esque kung-fu, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon poses, high-tech weaponry, scantily-clad vixens, surprising revelations, dramatic death scenes (!) and all the good stuff. Of course, even with all the drama and action, ZZ still manages to squeeze out the a laugh, chuckle and a hoot with every other page. Once again, Carl raises the bar. Heh.
If there is any complaint, I have to say that the first had more laugh-out loud moments, though there are several priceless touches in issue 2 that just make me smile everytime I think about them. Of course, I won't spoil ANY of them here... you'll all have to wait till the end of April though. At the time of this writing, Zsa Zsa 2's already at the printers. Don't worry though... the conclusion of this first (and hopefully not the last) Zaturnnah story is very much worth the wait.

Ang Kagila-gilalas na Pakikipagsapalaran ni Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah is sold at Comic Quest branches. Story and Art by Carlo Vergara, Black and white, lots and lots of pretty pages. Get it now, mga bruha. Heh.

Alias At Last

Last night I was able to catch the first episode of the popular spygirl series, Alias, starring Daredevil star Jennifer Garner. It was cool to see the series in the original english dialogue instead of the tagalog dub on local channels. What do I think of it? It ROCKS. MIss Garner just captivates every scene, the layered and complex story is excellent and intriguing, the action is hard-hitting and gritty and the music is cool with key scenes. Sydney Bristow has now officially joined my collection of top female heroines; yep, right along with Buffy, Kim and yes, Angel. Heh.
Anyway, the series is just starting and we've yet to get to the even cooler episodes with the trick gadgets and other gimmicks that made this show a hit. Fortunately it's on AXN so it's almost impossible to miss since the schedules give you so many chances to watch the show. Ah. Good things come to those who wait. AAAAh.

Shocking Movie News!

4th Lord of the Rings film planned! Director Peter Jackson has announced that there will be a movie devoted entirely to the aftermath of the LOTR story, taking place in Hobbiton and The Shire as it is invaded by Uruk-Hai and their mysterious leader, 'Sharky'.

The old TV series Man From Atlantis is going to be remade into a movie.

In a surprising bit of Harry Potter news, the role of wise wizard Albus Dumbledore has been given to Oscar-award winner, Jack Nicholson.

A movie based on the Zelda games by Nintendo is planned. Early reports have said that Orlando Bloom and Heath Ledger are being eyed for the role of the swashbuckling Link.

HAPPY APRIL FOOL'S DAY!!!

What's a skipping train?

It's what you call a train at the MRT station here in Manila that skips every other stop (thus remaining mostly empty) for the sole purpose of easing the crowds at overloaded MRT stations. I learned this fact this morning at the Cubao MRT station. Cool! That way I was able to get to work on time despite the crush. Heh.
Anyway, at work I finally made the big move to a new desk in a different part of the office, with a mostly-new team and different accounts. I'll miss my older jobs with TV shoots with pretty girls... but then again, cool TV commercials are mine to make wherever I go. Hoho...

Catching a movie

At the tail end of the day, my friend Pot came along, wanting us to go do something. Bored and not able to sleep, I agreed and decided on seeing Dreamcatcher. Now, this Stephen King novel-turned horror-action-buddy movie hasn't had too many good reviews, but I stil wanted to see it if only for the fact that it comes with The Final Flight of the Osiris, the CG-animated Animatrix episode by Square USA. Anyway, we first went to Greenhills' Theater Mall, but it wasn't showing there. Eventually we headed for Robinson's Galleria to get our cinematic goal. Despite entering at about 4:30 for a movie set for 4:00, we didn't seem to miss much (except perhaps for Osiris, which is shown just before the main flick), since the scary and gory stuff wasn't on when we got in.
Dreamcatcher is all about a quartet of lifelong friends, the 'special' child that they befriended and who gave them special powers, an alien invasion and an insane army commander. Sound exciting? Sound like a blockbuster? Nope. What it all amounts to is a movie that's pretty mixed up in terms of content, theme, message and levels of entertainment. Part John Carpenter's The Thing, part Outbreak (That old Dustin Hoffman movie... Morgan Freeman was in that too), part Stand By Me.
Basically, twenty years ago, four boys save a retarded kid from bullies. This sets them on a lifelong friendship with the boy, whom they call 'Duddits'. Along the way, Duddits reveals that he has some special powers; powers to read minds and find people. These powers he shares with his friends, who grow up to adulthood. Every year, the friends meet at a cabin to reminisce and just bond. Unfortunately, this year's reunion comes with some sinister events.
A sick man stumbles into the area, entering the friends' cabin and soon proving that he's hiding some terrible... things. Suffice to say that after that, there are some gross-out stuff, strangely phallic aliens, a weird possession and Gollum-like split personality conversations, some odd psychic powers and an oddly-out of place helicopter attack on a SPACESHIP. Oh well.
The cast is forgettable, though actor Damien Lewis (Band of Brothers' Captain Winters) is the easiest to discern and has the best seat in the house (heh) in terms of the story. Oh, and Tom Sizemore and Morgan Freeman are there as well, proving almost pointless aside from adding some pointless action sequences.
Watching Dreamcatcher entertained, grossed out and made me laugh. It's a pretty bad movie, but I can't condemn it too much... not when it comes with the simply beautiful Animatrix episode, Final Flight of the Osiris.
This 9 or so minute short animation film tells a short story of the titular ship from Zion, the human city in The Matrix. Onboard, lead characters Thaddeus(Morpheus clone) and Jue(CG Ming-Na Wen) enjoy a scenic striptease/sword duel training simulation where they slowly strip away each other's already scanty clothing. Of course, we see a lot of perfectly-rendered CG skin here, something not seen in Square USA's earlier CG work, Final Fantasy the movie. Anyway, an alert breaks up the simulated interlude and the crew gets back to reality. There, among the ruined buildings of the surface, they find a virtual swarm of machines and a huge drilling machine being readied directly over Zion.
Pursued by the numberless robots, the Osiris's crew tries one single chance to get a warning to their home. Jue volunteers and after a tender moment with Thaddeus, she's back into the Matrix and off to do her mission as her comrades battle a losing fight in the real world.
At just under 10 minutes, Osiris doesn't have much substance, but it's DAMN pretty to look at. All it does is whet your appetite for the next Matrix sequels, and that's pretty much all it was meant to do. The CG is great (Pot didn't notice it was CG until I told him) but still not perfect (or too perfect), but it was a notch better than the Final Fantasy movie. A cool, sexy anime that I will want to have along with the eight other Animatrix episodes when the DVD comes out in June.

Well that's that for now. We'll crash back at the house and have a pizza dinner, most likely. And then, it's to rest since tomorrow is yet another long day of work. Sigh.

And now for something a little different...

Last night, the gang went off from our usual haunts to the colorful, windy expanse of Manila's waterfront, Malate. Me, Vinnie, Dean, Gig, Jason, Cams and Noel piled into the van and went along Roxas Boulevard looking for a good place to eat a late dinner. We were quite pleasantly surprised at the bright, pretty lampposts that lined the long road overlooking the sea; they looked like neon lollipops from one of Jason's near-future Manila settings. Heh. Anyway, bright lights made the place almost likeable to me (Old Manila really isn't my place). We finally decided on a restaurant at the Wharf. We ate at the far end of a... well, a wharf. The food was good but unless you're flush with cash, you should stay away of the menu items that are paid for in grams. Anyway, I had the perfect food for a sea-themed restaurant... gravy-covered chicken. Heh. Anyway, other items ordered by the guys included Oysters Rockefeller, sisig, inihaw na baboy and seafood rice. While a band at a neighboring restaurant provided music, we talked and chatted the night away with discussions and talks which eventually went home to Dean and Noel's 'dark pasts'. By the time we actually got a breather from all the talking and laughing, we were ALONE and the whole restaurant was being packed away for the morning. Oh well.
Of course, the night didn't end there, and we went off to Malate's main hub where the young, hip and gay crowd congregated. Dean and Noel toyed with the idea of acting like a gay couple as we looked around. Sadly, we discovered that one of my and Vinnie's fave places- the French cafe known as The Blue Frog, was closed. Our feet took us predictably to a popular gay/sex shop where we perused the various souvenirs, paraphernalia, lingerie, sex toys and what have you. By a miracle, we actually bought something- Gig walked out with a neat, colorful ring.
Finally, we settled down inside Comic Cafe and had drinks while we winded down and talked about some ethical and moral matters. It was nice to just rest in the aircon interior, looking out at the young crowd that milled outside, totally alien to most of us. By the time we considered going home, it was well past 3 AM... our latest foray so far. Cool. But I really need to rest now. And catch up with other stuff.

Another Mortal Kombat Klone

I came home with a new Xbox game, Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus. It's a fighting game in the vein of the popular Mortal Kombat series (which had a bit of a resurgence recently thanks to an exceptional new installment). This translates into an atmosphere that is heavy with martial arts/oriental mysticism, gaudy costumes and lots of brutal, bloody fighting. TF is all about the conflict between two powerful groups of fighters: The Pale Lotus sect (the good guys) and the Black Mantis sect (the bad guys). The lineup of fighters includes your usual young upstart all-around hero, an old master, a big bruiser and some scantily-clad babes. There's also a guy who's a dead ringer for action star Jet Li.
The setting is in an alternate-reality version of a near-future USA dominated by oriental culture. This 'New China' is strangely empty of anyone except the ten or so fighters in the game, and is a silent setting for the various martial arts duels. Both sects are fighting over the pieces of a tablet that will give them the key to immortality. Of course, each of the fighters in both sects has their own sordid back stories, but Tao Feng has an exceptionally detailed history and drama raging between the characters. Depending on how much you get from the plots and subplots, this may power your drive to finish the game's lengthy Quest mode. Otherwise, you can cut your teeth on Training, VS, Tournament, Survival and Team Battle modes.
Anyway, the game looks very nice; the fighters are very well detailed and lifelike, at least at the same or perhaps even better level than, say, Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance. However, it Dead or Alive 3 still holds the best graphics for a fighting game title on Xbox. The stages are cool and range from an arcade to a museum; each has walls and obstacles you can slam opponents into (like DOA3). TF takes the environmental factors a bit further by letting characters swing from poles or catapult themselves from walls as attacks. In addition, there is the danger of getting an arm hurt or broken, resulting in a loss of strength. Finally, there is the cosmetic effect of the fighters getting bloodied and their clothing torn during the course of the fight.
Sounds great, eh? Well, on the bad side the game is HEAVILY dependent on dial combos, and for some reason there seems to be no way to break a chain once you get hit by the first blow. This pretty much boils down to you watching your fighter get battered repeatedly as the CPU does a long, long combo. Frustrating like hell. Gah. And there doesn't seem to be that many moves; or maybe I just haven't played it to the fullest... there are some kicks and strikes, a couple of grabs and three Chi attacks. It seems limited and nowhere near as varied as the better 3-D games: Tekken, Virtua Fighter and DOA. The animations, while often smooth, can get jerky and stilted at times. 3-D movement is also hell and pretty useless for avoiding attacks, and blocking is tricky.
Sigh. Even worse, there seems to be zilch in terms of extras. Only two costumes per character (USELESS!!!) and ONE hidden character that can be used only in VS mode (The only character ever worth getting with these conditions is VF's Dural) means... bad replay value. Oh well, there's the quest mode which should take you some time to play through, but in this day and age, there should at least be hidden swimsuits for the babes to wear. Bah.
Tao Feng isn't horrible; that belongs to the bland and pretty stripped-down Kakuto Chojin. It's serviceable, and there are some cool ideas. However, even the presence of John Tobias, one of the original producers of Mortal Kombat, in the development couldn't make this wannabee even close to it's competition. A valiant, but failed effort.

I have to say though that the funniest and probably most distinct thing I will remember of Tao Feng is the voice acting of the Quest Mode's narrator (Master Sage)... from the accent of the guy, the voice actor just HAS to be Pinoy. Heh.

Roads Not Yet Taken

For some reason I was in the mood for a good discussion tonight, and together with Carl I thought about what I could do aside from my usual day job in advertising. If I wasn't working in an agency, where could I go? I wouldn't- and couldn't- go to another office-setting, I think. If I left the agency setting I'd probably do freelance work, something like my friends Arnold and Cynthia have been doing for some time now. I'd probably specialize in something along the fringes of media and advertising- most probably doing art for storyboards for TV commercials.
Our discussion went onward to other directions; Carl told me about teaching. Imagine that... me, a TEACHER. Heh. Well, the pay doesn't seem spectacular, but the hours (it's really, really flexible) allows for lots of side jobs to complement your teaching salary. I laughed at it at first, but... why not? I've been in advertising for over six years, in a wide assortment of agencies (from teeny-tiny boutiques to big multinationals), done everything from TV commercials to AVPs... why CAN'T I be a teacher? Heh. Well, it's amusing to think about the possibility. I wonder how cool a teacher I'd make?
Anyway, I'm back to the Salt Mines tomorrow. I wonder for how much longer though? Hmmm.

Battle Royale 2 Update!

Aint It Cool News posted a cool article concerning the sequel to one of my fave films- Battle Royale (by the late Kinji Fukasaku). The appropriately-titled Battle Royale 2 picks up a couple of years after the end of the first film. Shuya Nanahara (Tatsuya Fujiwara), one of the survivors from the first movie, has since been very busy since he started to 'run'. He's now a professional terrorist and revolutionary, staging actions against the oppressive government. And he's not alone... Shuya leads a group named Wild Seven, which is composed entirely of past Battle Royale survivors. Together, they have accomplished quite a lot against the regime holding the BR tournament. During Christmas though, a disaster that levels several skyscrapers and kills over 8000 people is blamed on them. With this tragedy in its pocket, the goverment enacts a new anti-terrorist act and throws another class of doomed students wearing explosive necklaces. The game this time is a bit different... land on Wild Seven's island stronghold, and eliminate them. Or die yourself.
Weird premise; why not just send the army to do it? Perhaps the regime is more sadistic and evil than we thought. Anyway, this seems to guarantee tons more sickle-waving, gunfighting, knife-slashing and skull-smashing violence than before, and a lot of clean school uniforms will get bloody before this is over. No release date yet, but we'll be keeping our eyes on this one.

Angel Ace NEXT Developments



I've been in a bit of a quandary on what to put in the next Angel Ace comic. I've thought of stories focusing on Mike and Angel, just Angel, Angel's past, Kai and the SIVA, Angel and Kai's past... but for some reason, I've just failed in focusing on any one single plotline. Well, I've finally thought of the solution.
Do them all.
Well, not really all. But many, and in a way to tackle topics and events which would be hard to put into a single story.
Angel Ace NEXT will be an anthology of sorts, with short stories dealing with each of the important characters written and/or drawn by talented contributors. I've already told some friends about this, and everything looks great. It's very early, but I am excited at the prospect of letting other creators get into Angel's boots or Gregor's trenchcoat. Or Kai's... um... belt. Heh.
Anyway, the next Angel Ace comic will be a thing to see, with lots of variety in art and writing. Of course I will be still doing most of the stuff, but one can't always do it alone. Especially when you've got so much talent in your circle of friends.
Within the year. By hook or by Took.

Work Weekend


Me and the lovely cast of my new TV commercial.

The weekend was long for me, though not for the reason I'd usually want. I was working from seven in the morning to late at night. I only got home from the shoot early this Monday morning. AGH. Oh well. At the very least though, it was for a very nice TV script which should look quite nice when it's finally finished and showing on TV here in Manila. Anyway, I had the great pleasure with working with some lovely young ladies, and the script was pretty close to my heart. Our lead talent, as I had mentioned before, bears a striking resemblance to Hong Kong actress Zhang Ziyi in many of her angles and shots. The role and story of the commercial as well follows this fact. Let's just say it's the closest I will get in the near future to a VISA 'Dining Out' type commercial. Heh.
Anyway, this was a rush job, so we expect the spot to debut on air in a couple of weeks or so. Sigh. I really hope it comes out great. Now I can breathe a little easier and just... pause. Ooh! The Oscars are on...


We risked our lives to get this sneak peek into a ninja dressing room...

A Long Day

Early this morning I set off towards a university campus to attend the shoot for my new TV commercial. As before, the day would be mostly waiting for shots to be set up, meals and drinks to be served and more waiting. But this time however, at the very least I could look forward to seeing gorgeous models on camera. In fact, I have to say that our lead talent reminds me of an international star. Heh. Anyway, I took some pictures and hope to post some images soon. The day was long and I left the shoot at 10 PM. Sadly, I had to beg off from our gang's usual Saturday Night Out since I was tired, sleepy and still had ANOTHER shooting day tomorrow. Sigh. Got to get back my lost weekend somehow, someway.

Prepped for the Work Weekend

Tomorrow I go on location to attend yet another TV commercial shoot. I think I will have fun since the board is pretty cool and the talents are mostly gorgeous young women. Heh. Hopefully we finish the day early so I won't miss the nightlife. What I will miss though is my Greenhills Day. Argh... No new games or anime... Gotta make up for it on Monday. Yes, that's the ticket... Monday is my funday next week.

Serious blood loss... Ahh...

New stocks finally arrived just before closing time at Comic Quest, and so I found myself getting drained. Picked up the latest Newtype USA magazine, which once again impresses me with all the good stuff an anime fan would want. Also got the latest Blade of the Immortal (one issue to go to finish the current Fall Frost story arc) and the second issue of Thundercats Return, which maintains the cool art from the first issue. An unexpected purchase of the night is the small, 'traveller' sized TPB of the Crossgen fantasy-adventure, Meridian. I've heard good things about this title, with some of my friends telling me that it brings to mind Angel (Ace). I've procrastinated getting it, but now with a good opportunity and a nice number of issues (the collection has issues 1-7) it was a no-question buy. Cool!
Anyway, It was a long day at the office, divided between thinking up advertising copy and monitoring the TV for news on the ongoing US-Iraq conflict. How do they expect us to work when these things are happening?! Sigh.

"The war has begun."
- Magneto, X2

I left the house with the Fox News channel announcing that only fifteen minutes was left in Saddam Hussein's alloted time limit before the US-led coalition started their big push. I'm in the office now, and just a few minutes ago CNN, BBC and other news channels have reported that indeed, the war has started. There's talk of anti-aircraft fire being heard, and some 'precise' weaponry and munitions being employed to take out a possible member of the Saddam government.
I remember the images of Bagdad night skies lighting up with anti-aircraft flak and tracers. I remember the weeks-long air bombardment. It the allies had finished it then, this wouldn't have been necessary.

Just finish it quick, and thouroughly. And let's all get back to living normally again.

Buffy is MINE! HAHAHAHAHA!!!

While walking about at Park Square, I came by a video shop and got myself the boxed set of Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Complete Third Season. I've always liked the show, and since the shop gave a pretty good price (at just over 2K), I decided to get it. One of the most absurd prices I've seen for the Buffy DVD box sets is Php 9000 (!!!). DAAAAMMMNN!!! Anyway, I would have wanted to get the first or second seasons first, but I think it's a good thing since the Third Season is supposedly the best.
The 3rd Season basically has Buffy returning to Sunnydale after some time of exile. The season highlights include the introduction of the rogue slayer, Faith, and the return of Angel. Of course, a fearsome Big Bad awaits the Slayer and the Scooby gang at the end of the stretch.
Personally though, I kinda enjoyed the high stakes 5th Season, and having a gorgeous evil god named Glory as the final boss was cool. Well, that's further down the road I guess. Again... gotta find time for this, since a couple of the gang has already expressed a desire to borrow the set. Heh.

Questforce II

I went over to Comic Quest and disappointingly, new stuff hadn't arrived yet. On the bright side, most of the gang was there. They played a word game while I drew away my time sketching out our superhero aliases from comicbook the movie. Afterwards, we set out to have dinner at Jia Yao restaurant. I had dumplings with fly lice-er, Yang Chow fried rice, and a bowl of steaming congee split with Mike. Really filling dinner despite being inflicted upon with a waiter whose brain was on the fritz. PAH.
Anyway, I got home to watch some WWE wrestling, a guilty pleasure I can now once again indulge in thanks to the Solar channel. I really ought to check out my new anime acquisitions, but watching the physical farce is just irresistible. Tired and feeling a bit under the weather, I just want to turn off my brain right now. Especially with the prospect of having NO WEEKEND this Saturday and Sunday. Yep. Got another TV commercial to shoot this weekend. Oh well.

Trailer for next Animatrix episode online!

Ain't It Cool news has posted an article with a link to the trailer of The Final Flight of the Osiris, yet another short film in the Animatrix series. Osiris introduces to us Jue and her crew as they race to warn the human city of Zion of an impending machine invasion. Animated in startlingly realistic CG animation by Square USA, this part is perhaps one of the most awaited of the Matrix anime.
With liberal amounts of sex appeal (Jue shows off her CG-perfect bod in the episode's hot training duel/striptease sequence), action and a gripping story, Osiris will probably give us more satisfaction in it's scant 10 minutes than the sad, sad and ill-advised feature film, Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.

You can find the trailer here.

Ab Ovo #2 now available

The second issue of the Levi's-sponsored comics anthology, Ab Ovo (Black, White and Red) is now available at Comic Quest and Levi's branches. This time around, there are a lot more stories, art and literature to enjoy.
Participating artists/writers/creators in Ab Ovo 2 include Arnold Arre (Mythology Class, Trip to Tagaytay, After Eden), Marco Dimaano (Angel Ace, Immacolata: The Fury of Hinirang), Jason Banico (Baylans, TXTMen), Honoel Ibardaloza (Bagani), Dean Alfar (The Lost ), Nikki Alfar (The Lost, Ruin, As Snow As Blood, TXTMen), Vin Simbulan (Isaw Atbp.), Oliver Pulumbarit (Lex, Nancy & Argus), Carlo Vergara (One Night in Purgatory, Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah) and Tony Bucu (P-Noise)
Get your copy now at Comic Quest for P50, or free with a purchase of Levi's jeans at Levi's outlets.

A Brand New Superhero Team!

My good friend, comic compatriot and weekend warrior Dean had some fun and submitted all our group's names at Comic Book the Movie to learn our superhero names. Some interesting results:
Dean became Doctor E., Nikki became Doctor Mayhem, Carl became Mecha Witch, Cams is Molecule Girl, Jason is Captain E.(Maybe Dean and Jason are part of the E-Team), Vinnie is The Black Baby, Noel is Mega Warrior, and Arnold and Cynthia are Doctor Danger and Captain Justice respectively.

And me? I am Commander X!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

Together, we are the Quest Force! Seeking better dinners and gimmicks... for all mankind....

Heh-heh.

Treasure Planet

It’s been a long time since I watched the latest but not quite greatest Disney animated flick, but I decided to delay talking about it since I was saving it till after me and the gang watched it together. But since the sci-fi interpretation of the classic pirate story has come and gone as quickly as it did in the US (where it was a big flop), I don’t think we’ll be watching it any time soon. Oh well. Moving on…
Treasure Planet is a pretty close translation of Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson. Basically it’s all about the quest for an almost mythical treasure trove of an infamous pirate. The main hero, delinquent youth Jim Hawkins (Joseph Levitt) comes into possession of a map to the said treasure. He, along with a family friend named Dr. Doppler (David Hyde-Pierce) set off on a ship to go find it. Unfortunately, the ship’s crew consists of dangerous mutineers, led by a cyborg named Long John Silver (Brian Murray). A bond of friendship has grown between Jim and Silver… but will this bond overcome greed and obsession for the richest treasure in the galaxy?
Of course, Treasure Planet boasts quite imaginative yet whimsical updates from the original novel. Islands have been replaced by whole planets and star systems, and sailing ships have now been given the ability to travel through space. Instead of going for a wholly sci-fi look, Treasure Planet is mixes high-seas with high-technology, for a very interesting look. Aliens as well as humans populate the film, with some funny designs. My favorite character has to be the beautiful Captain Amelia (perfectly voiced by Emma Thompson), a no-nonsense cat-like humanoid who just commands the screen everytime she appears (heh). Another clever design is Long John Silver himself, who sports a CG-animated arm that’s so cool, it almost made me want to have an arm amputated. Almost.
Anyway, as it does stay close to the original story, Treasure Planet has action, some off-screen deaths and some imagery and situations that may be a bit intense for very young kids. However, it does stay pretty comfortable within Disney safety zones. The friendship between pirate and boy, supposed to be the center of the story, is well done, but there’s really never any question of where Silver’s true loyalty lies.
Overall, performances are excellent, though Martin Short’s manic Ben (a robot missing a few chips) can grate a little. The visuals are awesome on the big screen, so that at least was worth the price of admission.

In all, Disney’s Treasure Planet was a serviceable, entertaining feature. Not incredibly great, but a sight to see and an imaginative take on a timeless story. Worlds better than crap like Titan AE, but it’s still irksome to know that it received more marketing support than the divine Spirited Away. Oh well.

Opening an old box o' chocolates

Forrest Gump, the Tom Hanks film about a loveable simpleton who traipses through life, love, success and heartache was shown tonight on HBO. I liked it then, I still like it now. Pretty nice film, though some of the 'events' and things that Forrest 'inspired' are just too contrived; such as him inspiring the 'happy face' and 'Have a Nice Day' symbol by wiping his muddy face on a T-shirt... or how he started the saying 'Shit Happens'. Still, it's nice to revisit this modern classic. I still think that his lifelong girlfriend/eventual wife with issues, Jenny (Robin Wright Penn) was kind of a mega-user person. Heh. Anyway, it was pretty funny to see Haley "I see dead people' Joe Osment in the film as Forrest's son, Forrest.

Alias at last!

The hit action/spy thriller series Alias, starring Jennifer Garner, hit Philippine TV quite some time ago. Horribly enough though, ABS-CBN put the show on their masa channel, dubbing it in tagalog. Alyas Alias? AAARRRGHHHH!!!! There's nothing more irritating than something like this. They didn't even at least put the show untouched on their more high-end channel, Studio 23.
Well, soon viewers can watch the adventures of college student/CIA agent Sydney Bristow as she tackles deadly missions, delves into double-dealing organizations and plots against national security... in english! AXN Action TV will be showing Alias soon. Woohoo! Now it's just a matter of time. I hope they replace Relic Hunter with it. Or that sawed-off Sheena. Long time coming.

In a hip and happening place

Last night for a change we decided to go to Eastwood. Luckily we all fit into Cam's car- Dean, Gig, Noel, Jason and me. The place was packed with a weekend crowd, from very young and attractive teens to older party animals. Like us. Heh.
Anyway, we decided on a restaurant named Mama Rosa. We ordered a range of stuff. I got a Lukban longganisa sandwich, while the others got dessert stuff. We then spent the rest of the evening people watching and talking about the entertainment scene.
Today I stay home and try to do some art stuff. I want to enjoy as well my latest acquisitions; anime VCDs and DVDs of some new series; Wolf's Rain, the live-action You're Under Arrest series and the collected Gatekeepers 21 OAV. I also got DVDs of some cool movies; Below is a ghost/monster story set in a submarine in World War II. So Close is a Hong Kong action flick with femme fatale assassins starring Su Qi, Karen Mok and Zhiao Wei.
Lots of stuff, and I gotta have time to enjoy them. That's the trick.

Campy Classics


Dun... Dun... Dun-Duuuuuuunnnn.... Remember that classic score?

Last night I went to Megamall's Astrovision to look at what's new in DVD and video. Ironically, I took home a couple of old flicks, which date back to when I was a little kid. David Lynch's Dune was the first film adaptation of author Frank Herbert's novels about a universe full of warring families, or 'Houses' (I think this term pretty much introduced the House title for me) and the ubiquitous spice melange that everyone's fighting over. I remember watching featurettes and movie-in-the-making clips on Dune... of how it was actor Kyle Machlachlan's first film, of the special effects and stuff (mainly about the fat, diseased Baron Harkonnen's ability to float) and the epic story. I also remember watching the flick in the theater.
Dune was a big change from 'cleaner' sci-fi like Star Wars; battles and fights were bloody, brutal and gritty, and there are many grotesque scenes as well as action and drama. I remember many things clearly in Dune: The weird, full-body suit uniforms of the elite Sardaukar Terror Troops (which sound just as cool today as it did years ago...), the cool Atreides personal force fields, the sight of Atreides troops lying dead in piles (ala Krull... default good guy armies are SOOOO weak), Patrick Stewart as an Atreides officer, the Emperor and his generals playing videogames to defend their ship/fortress against the Fremen (pretty ridiculous, I think) and more. Dune is also the first time I saw 'thought bubbles' in a movie. Oh, and as a last detail, the Dune movie is preferred my friend Vinnie over the recent TV mini-series since it contains the 'correct' way of pronouncing the word 'Harkonnen'. Heh.
From what I can recall, Dune wasn't really that big of a success; people just didn't get it, simply because there was far too much book to fit into a movie. Well, Lord of the Rings did it... Oh well. Anyway, despite this, I like Dune, so I got it for my collection. It's a pretty bare package though; no extras whatsoever... only a Play Movie and Scene Selection are available.


Isn't it about time for another Sheena remake? With Milla Jovovich. Gyyaaa...

The other DVD I took home was Sheena. Yep, Sheena: Queen of the Jungle. I love jungle girl movies, and Sheena was probably the best of them (which is really not saying much). It's classic camp, and while the acting and plot are pretty thin, sexy actress Tanya Roberts gives the role her all and shows of her dazzling beauty. I think it's probably the last time we'll see a real authentic jungle girl portrayal, down to the really, really skimpy bikini and loin-cloth outfit (though the film used a brown skin outfit instead of the original comics' leopard/tiger skin bikini) and the ability to control animals. The film also adheres to the original comic character being barefoot (though in some sequences we can see Miss Roberts wearing some transparent sandals...), which is something 'modern' jungle films/TV series don't do anymore (Tarzan and Sheena in the recent TV series wear designer fur boots). I have to admit, I'm a big Tanya Roberts fan, and this movie just shows her off so well. Now if only I can find an original Beastmaster DVD... Heh.

Anyway, Mike and I ate at Marina after closing down the store. I had Kilawing Tanigue while he had clams and sizzling Tanigue. We were tired and it was a hard week, so we went home early. Should be an interesting day today. Have Greenhills to visit later, and hopefully a nice night with the gang tonight.

Looking Back At Philippine Comics

Paolo Manalo, a professor on creative writing at the University of the Philippines and the literary editor for The Philippine Free Press, does a long, interesting and exhaustive article on the local comic book industry. Read the article here.

Laugh, Damn you!!!

Yesterday I attended a recording session for a radio commercial I wrote. It went pretty smoothly, since the talents were good and the provided music fit perfectly. However, there was a slight bump in the road since we had a part which required a little kid to laugh. Try as our young talent did, it seemed simply beyond him to act a sincere, natural-sounding giggle.
Me: "Think of something funny!"
Kid: "Don't know anything funny."
Me: "What a sad child."
We tried tickling him and telling him to try and stifle it so it would seem natural. All we got was a stiff 'Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha." that reminded me of Haley Joe Osment from A.I. I tried doing a stand-up comedian routine.
"Laugh, or I'll take off my shirt." I said.
Laughter all around. Except from the kid. Argh.
Anyway, after a while we decided to just use a laugh already recorded by my producer for another thing. It melded perfectly, so all was good. Apparently, little girls are easier to use for things like this. Oh well.
Anyway, despite some overtime, I was able to make it to Comic Quest for the weekly bloodletting. I got the latest issue of Official Xbox Magazine and Thundercats Return #1. Later, me, Gig and Mike had a nice dinner at The Strip near Pearl Plaza. While Gig had her bacon burger from Hotshots, I had Mongolian Barbecue rice and some Chicken Poppers. Mike had mini-pizzas. We stayed there for a while in the open-air parking lot/foodcenter, talking about stuff from PC RPGs to Hinirang. After a while we called it a night, and headed home.
Lots to do. Gotta catch up. Gotta catch up.

MAD's Guide to making an anime out of ANYTHING

There's an anime about fishing, cooking, ping-pong, reading and who knows what else. The Japanese can make a feature about anything... and now YOU can too! Learn how at Mad about Anime.

Spirited Away at the Office

I brought the new US version DVD of Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away to the office today, to share it with some friends. The english dub is quite excellent, with the voices for the leads Chihiro and Haku coming off perfectly. FYI, Chihiro's english voice is actress Daveigh Chase, who played the evil Samara in the US version of The Ring. Haku is played by actor Jason Marsden, who appeared in White Squall. I must say director John Lasseter did a great job in handling the english release. Too bad Disney didn't follow up with a better marketing job. Instead they poured everything into the mediocre but visually stunning Treasure Planet. Oh well.
At least I in my own little way I am helping get this film out. More people just need to be Spirited Away...

JUON (The Grudge):The Next Ringu?

I discovered a new Japanese horror film entitled JUON (The Grudge) while surfing, and some are seeing it as yet another big, scary hit from the land of the Rising Sun. In the same way that Ringu became a box office hit in the US and here in Manila, JUON may follow suit. The Japanese just do horror so differently; blood and gore aren't what's plastered into the films. It's all about atmosphere, music, a pervading feeling of dread and the audacity to strike at us in situations which we would usually feel safe in. Unnatural things, supernatural things. Things that zip by in the corner of your eye. That's how the Japanese are scaring the pantaloons out of everyone else in the world. JUON is all about a curse; a haunted house filled with evil and hate. And it's all about creepy spirits that appear when you least expect it... and even if you do expect them, it will still scare you. SHEESH. I showed some officemates the JUON trailer and the girls were screaming like banshees. I wonder when, if ever, this flick will make it here?
Sporting the same writer as Ringu, JUON just may be the next big horror hit. Will Japanese horror movies sweep over the world like anime did? Who knows.

Anyway, if you want a creepy peek at the scary movie JUON, click here to visit the official website that's loaded with trailers, images and other stuff. (You WILL have to navigate through some kanji though. Just explore.)
Just don't be surprised if you see something peeking back...

MAD about Anime now online!

I've just made a new blog, entitled Mad about Anime. There I will be sharing my thoughts about anime stuff, from my favorite series, OAVs and movies to wants, wishes and rants about the whole otaku thing as it comes to me. I will still mention stuff here, but the new blog will contain more in-depth articles and hardcore anime fan stuff that I would not want to inflict on any non-otakus. Heh-heh.
Anyway, I've already added Mad about Anime to the Blogroll, but you can also pay a visit to my spankin' new blog here.

Open the Gate!!!


The original Gatekeepers series was a fun, light and bubbly sci-fi action-comedy series about superkids battling aliens.

Gatekeepers is one of my most favorite anime series. Made by Gonzo Animation (Vandread, Blue Submarine No.6, Hellsing), it mixes cute characters, slick CG effects, elementary school-innocent romance and excellent alien-fighting action to make one of the most loveable anime I have watched yet.
It’s all about the adventures of Shun, a poor Japanese student, his rich girl school princess-love interest Ruriko and their gang of friends/classmates/comrades in the Gatekeepers. These young people have the power to open gates to other dimensions (hence the title) for the particular purpose of tapping into the power/properties of that dimension for their use. These gates are very diverse, from Shun’s Cyclone Gate that gives him wind powers, to teammate Reiko’s Gate of Dazzling, which emits hypnotic effects. Supporting the gatekeepers is the world-spanning, ultra-secret and omni-present AEGIS organization, a paramilitary force whose Far Eastern Branch headquarters is located, conveniently enough, underneath a high school.
If AEGIS is secretive, that’s only proper since the enemy they face, the generically-named Invaders, are more insidious than any existing terrorist cell. Living INSIDE human souls, Invaders are created from humans who are bleak, violent and evil… the scum of the earth… and they can be ANYONE.
Despite the sinister premise, the original Gatekeepers was generally light and fun, with bright colors, young characters with BIG, googly eyes and lots of comedic moments. It was also a cool mecha-scifi action show, and the character designs were excellent.
Gatekeepers is a 25 episode TV series, available on DVD and VCDs at anime shops. It also is often shown on AXN.


The darker, more melancholy Gatekeepers 21 OAV takes up the story 30 years after the original.

Gatekeepers 21 is a 6-part OAV series and direct sequel to the original series. Taking place about 30 years AFTER the end of the previous series, this MUCH darker story reveals that the world hasn’t become the perfect place Shun and company fought for in the original series.
Unlike years before, G21’s AEGIS is no longer a large, powerful organization. Powers of the original gatekeepers can now only be accessed by opening Imitation Gates, which are created through cellphone technology. Very few real gatekeepers exist. As expected, everything seems right for an Invader resurgence… and of course, that’s just what happens. Led by the mysterious and frighteningly powerful Ghost Girl , the Invader menace is more terrifying and possessive than ever before.
Against this threat are Ayane Isuzu, a gatekeeper’s daughter who shuns her parent’s power; the timid Miyu, who has the Gate of Leaping (!); and the tomboyish Satoka, with the Gate of Fragmentation and lots of BIG-ass swords.
Taking up arms as well are Yukino Hojo, the ageless but child-like Gatekeeper of Ice, and Reiji Kageyama… formerly the Gatekeeper of Darkness (and Big Bad from the TV series!) and now commander of the AEGIS network. Perhaps the only ones left from the first series, Yukino and Reiji prepare to fight what just may be their final battle. Will mankind vanish into oblivion, or will the Gatekeepers prevail?
With awesome animation, great character designs, a gripping story full of drama and action, Gatekeepers 21 is a truly masterful OAV release and a must-see for fans of the original series. The worst that can be said of it though is that it asks as many questions as it answers and leaves us wanting MORE. To fully appreciate it, watch the original TV series and enter anime bliss.
Gatekeeepers 21 is a 6-part OAV series available in most well-stocked anime shops on DVD and VCDs.

Fast Trip

I went to Greenhills to get some stuff, and I came away with DVDs of Maid in Manhattan (for mom), I-Spy and the US english-dubbed version of Spirited Away. Unfortunately, the gaming front was bad since I still came home with defective discs. Well, you can't win them all. On the flipside though, I got the whole Gatekeepers 21 OAV series on VCD, along with some episodes of the new series Getbackers and Earth Girl Arjuna.
Gatekeepers 21 is the sequel OAV to the popular anime TV series Gatekeepers. It's all about young girls with the power to tap into the energy of other dimensions (opening gates), and the insidious alien menace they must protect the earth from. Getbackers is about some super-powered repo-men, and Earth Girl Arjuna is an anime version of Captain Planet. Heh.
I was able to do some art and stuff, and that should carry over into the night. Tomorrow's the start of another work week. Oh well. Here's to accomplishing more and better.

Saturday Fun Machine

Yesterday I had my usual foray to Greenhills for games and anime. Disappointingly the titles on top of my want list were still absent, though one store interestingly announced that they would be soon having the live-action You're Under Arrest! series in stock soon. YUA is all about two beautiful lady cops in Japan, and I've actually seen pics of the cast- let's just say that anime heroines Miyuki Kobayakawa and Natsumi Tsujimoto were very well cast. Heh. Gotta get this.
On the gaming front, I took home several choice new games; Simple 2000 Ultimate vol. 6 Love Upper (a cute anime-style all-girl boxing game), Shin Sengoku Musou 3 (Dynasty Warriors- kill everyone around you in Ancient China) and best of all, the new PS2 RPG Xenosaga. Xenosaga is a prequel to one of my most beloved of RPGs- Xenogears The story seems be equal to a high quality anime series, the graphics are incredible and the cinemas LOOOOONG. Should be a good watch as much as it is a game.
After closing down CQ, the gang went out and this time we had a change of atmosphere by going to Katipunan Avenue. We settled for dinner at Countryside restaurant, a less-than five-star place (Dean had a running joke about chickens wandering in the place) that had nonetheless some GREAT barbecue. While we were generally satisfied with our meals, we were somewhat disappointed that there were no soups available (including the chicken sotanghon soup Mike and I craved).
For after-dinner cooldown, we headed off to one of the few places along Katipunan (this place is so dead) that looked good. The Barn is a restaurant/coffee place apparently owned by action star Ronnie Ricketts. The man himself was there, and Jason commented that he'd actually make a good casting choice for the lead role in a movie adaptation of Gerry Alanguilan's Wasted. BTW, Wasted has been re-released by Pulp and is now available once again at CQ and other stores wherever Pulp is sold. Want a good, solid and depressing read about a guy who solves everything with a gun? Get Wasted!
Anyway, we called it a night after an hour or so of drawing and doodling on the paper table covers with crayons, discussing various wardrobe choices and disguises for barefoot Hinirang heroine Immacolata and other funny topics. Heh.

Today I have to go back to Greenhills for a while to get a few things, hopefully a DVD of So Close (the Su Qi/Karen Mok action film) and a replacement for a defective disc. Then it's back home for some pages and artwork to be done. Ah. Weekends are too short. There should be a law to remedy this. There just has to be.

My Hero!

Yesterday I finally got my copy of Jet Li's Hero. I actually got my hands on a bootleg copy before, but it wouldn't run properly. The version I have now is an original Chinese/HongKong disc that is apparently, as of right now, the only legitimate version of the movie available. Anyway, we checked out a few scenes at Comic Quest, and the sound is razor-sharp. Haven't watched it yet... I will most probably watch this with the family over the weekend.
Along with this I kinda splurged and bought a DVD of The Ring (The US remake). The visuals and sounds are creepy-clear, though there are no extras except for a 15 minute short film feature by director Gore Verbinski (made from deleted scenes and snippets from the actual film) and a trailer for The Ringu. I guess I really like the spooky film.
Ah, a Friday. No shoots or anything set for the weekend, so it looks like I can relax finally. Gotta catch up on some art requirements, along with more pages for Angel Ace and Immacolata. I also may start writing and designing stuff for a new fantasy epic storyline that's been mulling about in the brain box for a while. Well, it's all going to happen soon.