< Wednesday, May 28, 2003 >

Miyazaki Films:
Spirited Away
i was planning to blog about this long ago but never did, so i'd thought why not now. well i don't remember all of what i intended to say but i'll say what i can recall.

For one thing i enjoy Spirited Away much more in japanese, the main reason being that the main female character sounds older than the english one. I don't quite fault the voice choice in the english version, since the character is 10 and the english voice is of a ten year old... while the japanese voice is more mature sounding and seems to be that of a teenager. And this is the opposite of the male voice for Haku, where the english voice sounds older than the japanese voice. This makes for a bad combination, where the romance of the english version is presented as being between a very young sounding girl and an older sounding teenage boy. It doesn't sit that well with me. But in the japanese version, the age difference doesn't seem that great so i'm more comfortable with that romance aspect of the story.

Overall the film is pretty good, though i don't have a particular fondness for this film that i have for his others. I'd say the best feature of this film is the visuals, especially on the big screen, though the main girl is not the prettiest of Miyazaki's heroines.

Another good feature of the film is the unpredictable story, where you're not quite sure how it'll end. Of course, the reason for this is because it's an unusual story, and i'll also add that it ended kinda strangely for me.

Castle in the Sky
Unlike Spirited Away, i prefer the english version over the japanese one for this film. The main reason being the empty, hallow feeling that i get when watching the japanese one.

For the english version, a revised background score was used. This score is more present in the film not only in use (as in parts in the japanese version that were in complete silence have background music in the english version) but also in complexity (as in the japanese score was more simple in composition and had a less orchestrated sound). Thus, instead of the hallow eerie silence of the japanes version, the english dub has a more lively and colourful sound.

In addition to the background music, there is the english dialogue that makes the english version more fun and entertaining. In the english version, there is a lot more tallking in the film, something i noticed in Spirited Away as well. People in the backgound make noises like a crowd should, and featured on-screen characters just have more to say. Not only do they talk more, but what they say is also more light-hearted, kind, humourous and dumb (but i mean that in a good way).

The story in general is quite simple and nice, although truthfully i was anticipating something more adventurous. The best part for me is the voice acting done by Mark Hamil, he's sooo great!!! ^u^



time to take medication @ 08:06 a.m. * * * * * * *< Monday, May 26, 2003 >

just some of the thoughts i've had of late:

i never really noticed that daisuke had red eyes
which usually strikes me as a very scary trait... except for him

abandoned fics left unfinished irritate me

many sites don't update often enough

even though i'm not a kamui + kotori fan, i admit that it's quite cannon...
but i can't stand kamui x kotori cause it's terribly OOC

kamui is so cute

i suck at ordering good food

i'm a picky eater perhaps worthy of being a food critic, yet could never really be one since i don't like trying new/strange things

i hate the dreams i have before waking up, they're sooo weird that i'm so happy when i wake up and escape them

i want to rent some films

and that's all for now, and i bet that was a boring read too. ^u^

[edit] Lawful Drug
just thought i'd bulk-up this entry and include my current state of giddy-ness(?) involving lawful drug.
It's the more i look at Rikuou with glasses, the more i find that he looks pretty good with them. I admit that originally i found him to look kinda scary and like a jerk, ha ha! actually i still think he looks like that, but now he seems more mysterious. But i'm still not a Rikuou fan, though i don't hate him at all. I suppose my main point is that this setting of an all boys' school coupled with Kazahaya's cluelessness (is that even a word? ^u^) is quite funny.



time to take medication @ 03:38 a.m. * * * * * * *< Friday, May 23, 2003 >

took a quiz:



Switzerland - A neutral power for as long as most can remember,
it has avoided war for several centuries.
However, it is still considered highly advanced
and a global power.

Positives:
Judicial.
Neutrality.
World-Renouned.
Powerful without Force.
Makes Excellent Watches, Etc.

Negatives:
Target of Ridicule.
Constant Struggle to Avoid Conflict.
Target of Criminal Bank Accounts.

Which Country of the World are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

you should try it too, for some reason i found it really fun. and i suppose i'm satisfied with my result, i find being a country that can make great watches quite complimentary. however i would love to be canada as well, to have "loved by all" as a description would be very nice. i wonder if a canadian created this quiz?



time to take medication @ 06:05 a.m. * * * * * * *< Sunday, May 18, 2003 >

CLAMP's website
So.... remember when i told you to see the new layout for clamp's website? Well it seems that the plain look is a temporary one until the end of the month. So hopefully they haven't abandoned their album stuff and i could possibly see more nice little pictures. Also i hope they continue with the Birthday section too cause i wanna know when Fuuma and Kamui were born. Hmmm.... i'm eager to know what the new and improved June layout will be like. It's nice that they're changing the look, it's been the same thing for months (kinda like my own layout ^-^).

Convention Comments
Now let's see.... what else to write?
I guess i could list some things i've realized about the anime fandom while @ the lastest con:

voice actors have lots of groupies (of sorts)

i can go to a con without buying any anime/manga stuff

i can go to a con without getting an autograph

cosplaying is not for the camera shy

cosplaying is not for the self conscious

cosplaying is not for me ^_^

fellow fans can weird me out (sad but true)

the picture definition of otaku

i'm a subdued fan

audience response is often enough different from mine

i should try harder to keep my opinions in my head
      (it can be embarrassing to do otherwise)
yeah i dunno why my previous experiences haven't been as enlightening? Oh well, tis a pity i was too stingy to buy anything. Maybe next time then. ^_~



time to take medication @ 10:29 p.m. * * * * * * *< Friday, May 9, 2003 >

Ha ha!! still same layout, maybe later this month i'll change it or maybe not. sadly i have much left to do for my "in progress" one, and it's been such a pain to make.

wow! it's been two whole days that i haven't touched the computer... almost three! I must thank my friends, tv and even books (if u can imagine) for entertaining me those few days.

Anime North
Oh in may, that con is much earlier than the other one, i wonder how the two compare? I thought i read somewhere that Anime North is more cosplay friendly, or did i make that up?? (i'm not sure) I think they're held at different places, but i'm surprised that it's held downtown. I guess the name gave me the wrong impression. ^u^
About the japanese voice actor Hikaru Midorikawa, i wonder if his BL work, of which you speak of, is what's really captured your interest. Afterall, i didn't know that you were a heero fan?

The quiz says i'll see you in purgatory, although strangely it's either
that or level 5. ^u^

more furuba comments
Wahh!! how could you have such terrible thoughts, doggie should be alone!!! true, i don't know this old girlfriend, so i can't say anything bad about her character. but i feel it suits doggie's character to be unattatched. besides, i find it a little bit annoying that almost every sohma guy has the same tragic past love life. actually i find that /very/ irritating. doggie doesn't need anyone anyway, he's just fine writing romance novels and spying on school girls. As for the rooster guy, maybe you've seen more of him than i have. but from what i've seen he seems very nice and i like his passiveness too. i especially like how he gets along with akito, true their not friends, but i enjoy how different his relationship with akito makes him. Really i can't explain why i find him ideal, is it cause i like his compromising nature & yielding? ^u^



time to take medication @ 11:59 p.m. * * * * * * *