The Park

Gonzo will allow streaming videos of subtitled anime series in the usual online hubs. Smart move. Now, I know why I like GONZO despite the undeserved Gonzo-bashing. Instead fighting the new-ish media, the studio is learning to adapt with the internet culture. Again, awesome. (I know, I know. They employed some hacks here and there, but which studio hasn’t. This studio produced Last Exile, FMP!, Kaleido Star, Saikano, Basilisk, and for crying out loud, Gankutsuou. They’ve steadily grown over the years; and you have to give them kudos for taking creative risks for a lot of their series. You guessed right; I have a slight hard on for GONZO. Many of their shows entertained me tremendously. /end OT)

One thing, though. I hope that because of this new medium, the staffers will be equally compensated for the online airing. I am assuming there will be ads included in the stream; Ads mean money. Think WGA strike.

P.S. I’ll tinker with my layout sometime next week, and take down the WGA banner.

I received 12K book 2 in the mail today. Awesome. I’ve been procrastinating in reading book 1; I’ve only started yesterday at lunch, during work. It’s my designated lunch book this week.

And Reika, about the sucky customer service in bookstores. Word.

I’m a dork when it comes to bookstores. I still have that inexplicable rush whenever I’m inside one, but I hate asking employees for help. Mostly, they have no clue. Argh. And yeah, my online book purchases are significantly higher these days.

Yup. I am a proud owner of a shiny Mr. 2 Bon Clay fig, thankyouverymuch. I’d whip out a picture but I’m too lazy to locate my camera. Still, yay me.

Now, I have to look for Franky. The prices of the ones I’ve seen in eBay are obscene. I mean, puh-lease. As much as I love collecting One Piece P.O.P figs, I am still a sane member of the society, unlike some people. Ahem.

Of course, I’ll be waiting for Shanks this May, and I’m looking forward to the inclusion of Brook to the POP line.

P.S. Sometime in the future, I am SO buying a glass case to display the OP collection. I don’t care if it brands me as a dork forever.

I stopped collecting action figs when I realized how much money I’ve been wasting. But today, I’ll make an exception.

I thought that the One Piece Portraits of Pirates collection were discontinued; I was wrong. So far, I have Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Nami ver.1, Nico Robin, Ussop & Chopper combo, Ace, Bellamere, Tashigi, and Smoker. And I missed the following: Nami ver.2, Vivi, Chopper (solo), and Franky. Man. Out of the four missing, I really want Franky. He’s the priority. I’ll probably scavenge Ebay.

Then according to HLJ, Megahouse released Mr. 2 Bon Clay last month. I already fished out my credit card for that one. Yay, flaming okama way. And in May, Shanks fig will be released. That’s a definite pre-order.

P.S. Man, oh, man. There’s Black Cat’s Saya fig too. And a Roy Mustang and a human Al Elric.

The following musing is a reaction to bateszi’s perceptive commentary on being an Anime fan. I started out to write a comment for the post and I ended up going into a different direction.

It is over. It is done. It is the end of ysp:duh!.

Is it truly over? Is this a mere phase? Is it simply a lapse of judgement? A case of insanity, perhaps? Or is it simply growing old?

Whatever the reason, it is as I said. I am done with my four-year-old anime blog.

The end of ysp:duh! does not equate to the demise of my anime affection. Anime is a constant presence in my short life. And I undoubtedly believe, it will always be. I was reared as a casual anime fan; I watched reruns of Voltes V, Daimos, and Astroboy when I barely reached the age of ten. Later on, I became aware of long-running series; I was engrossed with Ranma 1/2 and Dragon Ball. As a teen, I fell in-love with Usagi Tsukino and Yusuke Urameshi. In the early 2000s, I innocently began writing an anime blog, triggering a full blown obsession. I bulldozed my way through a number of series with exuberant purpose. I had a mission; I succeeded. However, that was a few years ago. Now, I find myself in a different chapter of my life; anime currently hovers in the background.

The fiery passion cools down. The honeymoon period is over. I realized that anime is simply, well, anime. It is inherently different from live action series; yet I find them so comparable. As I am particular with other TV shows, I also find myself more discriminating with my anime choices. Truth be told, only a handful of anime shows right now are worthy of full blown passion.

While I still have anime shows I enjoy, writing for an anime blog is another matter. Writing a blog takes time and precious energy. It takes time away from other interesting hobbies. I’d rather spend an hour devouring a novel or a manga: I’d rather watch episodes of Eureka, Heroes, or Battlestar Galactica; I’d rather drool over Anthony Bourdain and his strange travels; I’d rather marathon a set of anime episodes; I’d rather sing and record a track; I’d rather spend time chatting and texting friends; I’d rather be on a relaxing restaurant tasting various delicacies; Heck, I’d rather finish my crochet project than composing a not-so-adequately written anime review.

Even with the obvious indifference, I cannot blame the lack of passion for writing alone. I angst over random and weird things in this personal blog yet I am not disinterested in pouring out ridiculous posts. In fact, I am tickled. In some ways, I am tired of the anime blog community. For the most part, the fellow bloggers are pleasant folks. However, the community is also entangled with a unsavory few. I am told to ignore these distasteful miscreants but I cannot. The anime blog scene IS a community. I cannot ignore this fact. Bumping into these obnoxious folks with their offensive and disrespectful ways is inevitable. And I would rather stay away from negativity, thankyouverymuch.

The dissolution of ysp:duh! is caused by several of reasons. But mainly, evolving interests in subgenres, blogging disinterest, a disenchantment at the anime blog scene as a whole are the front runners. I debated whether to be as frank in my ysp farewell post, as I am in this blog. I answered, “No”. I try as I may, I cannot admit the cynical aspect of the third reason of my departure from the community. I dislike burning bridges. I hate leaving on a sour note. I wanted to leave the community with a happy face; for there are far more lovely folks than there are the detestable degenerates. (And please, wag silang — yung mga nakakaasar na nilalang — mag-comment sa last post ko, ‘noh!) In a few month, I might have a change of heart and have a mighty return. But for now, the decision stands.

So what’s next for Ten? Well, I have ideas. I miss writing insane and sometimes snarky posts. I miss episode reviews and/or recaps. However, I do not want to be bogged down by the limitation of one topic/genre alone. I want something where I can incorporate my various interests (i.e. anime, Asian dramas, manga, novels, Western TV). For now, I’ll wait for the itch to write.