CF: "Comic Fiesta" or "Cosplay Fiesta"?

Good afternoon!

I haven't updated anything in a while as I'm busy with doujinshis and video games.
I wish to get back to reviewing anime but it's nothing more than a pipe dream i guess?

But today I'd like to talk about Comic Fiesta, and how it has evolved since I first set foot into the event. 17 days left until the big day, it's like an anniversary celebration for Malaysian Otakus so I feel like it's an obligation to come every year. I've been attending the event for 9 years, and this year will be my 10th anniversary as a doujinka (unless I count the years that I've been on hiatus)

art work does not belong to me http://comicfiesta.org/

Rather than going down memory lane, let me just get straight to the point. Since a few years back some attendees have been complaining about the true objective of Comic Fiesta; that it's no longer faithful to its name and glorifying cosplays instead. I noticed this changed but I didn't have problems with it, because I enjoy looking at cosplays as well as I love looking at comics (be it original or fanbooks).

I think people expect Comic Fiesta to be just about comics; selling independent comics, having a meet and greet session with comic artists or so. But for me, as I watched how CF evolved since 2004, I see the cosplay culture as a derivation of the event's name.

Should Comic Fiesta be only about comics? What about passion that is evolved from the love of comics? Cosplayers don in costume of comic characters, so how does it stray too much from the namesake? Back in 2004, I saw Kingdom Hearts cosplays in Comic Fiesta but nobody ranted against it, nobody said it's NOT "Video Games Fiesta". Most comic lovers are into video games as well, hence some artists decided to make fancomics based on video games they love. All of these are related to each other, so I disagree that 'Comic Fiesta' should be taken too literally.

I'm just baffled by how people complain cosplay is overshadowing the doujin industry, when every year there are always art booths. The number of art groups are multiplying, to the point we had to fight to get a booth for CF. We rush towards deadlines, we work hard, we make ads... yet some people think we didn't exist. Aren't you the ones allowing this to happen? I wonder if you guys even bother checking out the doujin booths and review each one of the comics.

Also must I remind you that there are cosplayers among the doujin community too?

I was told that CF stopped having awards for best doujin booth display or making art competitions, but those are already replaced by pre-event event called 100 Days Countdown, as well as CHAM2, which I think only those who can appreciate art and other artists pay attention to them. See, it's not like the artist community is totally underrated, it's just that these complainers (I'm amused that some of the are among the photographers community) probably don't give a fuck about them anyway.

Another problem with the lack of love towards the art community is that not many people are into doujin-reading culture. In 2004 almost every doujin booths sold their own original comics. As time passes, I was hoping to find more comic books on every booth. But recently it's all about badges badges and badges. Nowadays it's harder to sell comic books compared to mini merchandise (don't get me wrong I don't hate them, just that there are over-abundance of them that it's hard to choose). There was one particular year, my previous group had ours sold out, but last year we no longer had that magic. I'm not bitter about it though, I'm just stating what I observed throughout the years, and I can safely conclude that there are fans not nurtured to love elaborated ideas on stories or alternate interpretations of the series that they love.

I don't really have any problems with celebrity cosplayers being invited as guests in any event. I may not care about them, but it makes other people happy so I kind of feel happy for them. There are a few celebrity cosplayers that I like too, and their appearance make me happy - and I'm speaking as a non-cosplayer, as a regular guest and as a doujinka.

Of course it would be better if the committee invite anime/manga artists or staff from the animation studio, but I'm sure that's gonna cost a lot. Think about it, if you want the 'real' stars of comic and animation kingdom to come, you might need to sacrifice more money.

And I understand that you're already complaining about the ticket price too.

In the end, I don't really care much about what CF has in store for us. All these years I attend just for one reason; to have fun with friends.

check out our stuff this year!

Distant Worlds: Final Fantasy 2014

Good afternoon!

It's been over a year since I last updated my blog. I'm busy with doujins so I really don't have time to write anime reviews, let alone have the muse to do so. My Japanese language sensei suggested that I'd write again since I often write brief reviews on my facebook posts. But allow me to restart with writing a review on Distant Worlds as requested by a friend

Due to unfortunate events, we arrived late for the concert; as a result we couldn't enter the concert hall until the orchestra finished one set. But we were able to listen from outside and it was equally beautiful. The moment we got in they started playing Dancing Mad (Final Fantasy VI's final battle theme) which the conductor Arnie Roth claimed that it was something they have never done before.

After Kefkka's final form theme, it's Final Fantasy XIII's signature music, Light Eternal. Not quite familiar with it since I don't really have any interest playing the game, but watching the movie above the orchestra makes me want to play FFXIII. Next they performed You're Not Alone from Final Fantasy IX, which is my favourite piece from the game though it didn't sound too different from the last Distant World's concert in Kuala Lumpur. Before the interval, it's Chocobo Medley; also a little disappointing to me although they put an effort to make it a little different. I am still hoping they mix all the medleys from every game.

So it turns out we missed 6 songs and I was a little upset that I couldn't make it in time to hear Battle with the Four Fiends, and I think it affected my mood during the first half of the concert. But I personally think that the second half was better because of.... FEELS.

Final Fantasy VII's Opening - Bombing Mission wasn't anything special, Final Fantasy VIII's Fisherman's Horizon was ok and I love the choir part. I was excited that they're gonna play Final Fantasy XII's The Dalmasca Estersand as it's the best song in the game though it wasn't as epic as the studio version. Then we go back to VIII's with Don't Be Afraid.

Now the next part has the best feels, both songs from Final Fantasy X back-to-back. The Hymn of the Fayth was short but it gave me goosebumps. I personally think that Zanarkand was the most beautiful piece in this concert. Now this reminds me why have I not playerd FFX remastered yet?? (Oh wait I don't even have the BD yet!)

Battle & Victory Theme Medley was next, I was kinda hoping that they mix all the normal battle medleys something like this because I love all of the battle themes! But oh well at least they performed Gilgamesh aka Battle on the Big Bridge (Final Fantasy V) and Those Who Fight (Final Fantasy VII).

Final Fantasy VI's Opera 'Mario & Draco' (which is a mix of The Opening, Aria di Mezzo Carattere, The Wedding  Grand Finale performed consecutively) has something new in it; the inclusion of a narrator. Though I expected the narrator to have better voice as heard in The Black Mages version (it's in Japanese but you get my point) or sound more British because British accent is sexy. Nonetheless a mouthed the lyrics along with the singers. Maria & Draco never cease to amaze me in spite of being just a minor scene in the game, and I still wonder what is really the significance (Does it has something to do with Locke x Celes?)

A Final Fantasy concert is incomplete without the Main Theme and this is also gives me (forgive my lack of vocab and tumblr influence) SO MUCH FEELS ;__;

And of course, what's a Final Fantasy concert without Sephiroth's theme? One Winged Angel (Final Fantasy VII) was played during the encore and I wasn't surprised. I guess you really can't deny the awesomeness of this song (though some people argue that Kefka's theme was better).

Overall, I think the fast paced songs especially battle themes were not that great, maybe because I'm used to listen to the rock covers or The Black Mages' rendition. Some songs sounded a bit too fast from its original pace. However, I love the slower songs a lot as in... it gave me the chills and made my hair stood at its end. The movie which was played along with the concert was sometimes distracting, the 32-bit cutscenes looks awkward with the live orchestra (but they did maeke me wanna play the games again, and I haven't even finished the classics! Trust me the gameplay seemed much harder than the recent ones). And I do think the 'AMV's could have done been better.

The first DW in KL was better I think...?

So yeah done with the review. I'll try my best to get back to anime reviews next. Luckily I have MyAnimeList that helps me keep track of my completed animes.

Review: Fate/Zero (anime)

At first I wanted to combine the first season together with season 2, but then there’ll be a lot of mixed feelings. Because I find the second season much more exciting that the first. And the main reason is to see more of Broskander.... and to hear the OP by Kalafina.

Season 2 is simply the continuation of the first season, and there’s no ‘RESET’ story mode as seen in Code Geass and Kimi ni Todoke. Those who died in the previous season, just died. In this season we have 2 episodes for Emiya Kiritsugu (and more insert song by Kalafina aw yiss), on why he has such principles and his goals in reaching the Holy Grail.

After knowing what the Holy Grail is all about, I really think that the invention is pointless. And all the battles I saw is just totally a waste of time, a waste of property damage. And the fact that the Servants aren’t exactly having the same wavelength as their masters makes me think that it’s even more pointless. Oh but at least you have an (imaginary) friend to talk to, moreover, they’re heroes from ye olden days WHO WOULDN’T WANT THAT weh.

But I gotta admit they’re all really good and nice to watch. As I said in season 1, no abra kadabra POOF you turn into a frog thingy but you gotta use your magic wisely as though you’re in a real battle. Speaking of battles you’ll also see some jet fighting… which makes me wonder where the aircrafts came from. I don’t think it existed during Arthurian legend or Epic of Gilgamesh. But hey it’s magic! Gilgamesh, or also known as “Archer” does not even use bow and arrow to attack, but he opens up a portal to take out the collection of his huge dildos.

sorry i just had to post this w

Going back to Kiritsugu, the probably the second last episode made me go WOW about F/Z (other than Broskander and Yuki Kajiura). All this while I had been supporting Kiritsugu to win the battles (although I still fukken hate Saber) and KILL THE MAGES WITH FAIYAAAA~N , but then he’s given this psychological mindfuck and I got mindfucked as well. I felt guilty all over. Felt guilty for supporting him, felt guilty for having such mindset. But that particular episode OWNS and it made me realized how the second OP very much relates to Kiritsugu. And since then, when I listen to “to the beginning” I feel a sharp pain inside…

Speaking of endings, here’s a bit of spoiler… THE GOOD GUY DIDN’T WIN.

If you've seen or played Fate/Stay Night you would've known this spoiler already but still it answers your curiousity on how it happened. You might feel like your probably favourite team should’ve deserved to become the champion… but this isn’t a contest of how awesome you are as a character, or as partners . No matter how strong your servant is, doesn’t mean that you’re gonna win. No matter how smart you are as a Master, doesn’t mean you’re gonna win either. Ah, Holy Grail is about luck i guess?

And there’s nothing bad about that because we’ve all seen how often the good guys win, and how often the main team of a sports manga always have to win because the plot is about them. Now we see how the good guy had his ass kicked, and how the ‘bad guy’ is satisfied about his so-called goals. And it’s sad that the winner didn’t really have any great wishes to attain the grail, so it’s a waste that it was not given to the ‘supposed’ winner. But at least he did not destroy the whole world. Oh yeah, this is another story where the the shit only happens in one area but they act like it’s gonna affect the whole world, and everything had to happen in JAPAN although you obviously have gaijins as participants.

Art by Yukasu

While it is true that most of the characters are given backstories, I’m just sad that characters like Assassin and even Gilgamesh aren’t given any flashbacks. Assassin is like something to fill in the blanks in the Servants slot, they just can’t wait to finish him off. Gilgamesh on the other hand is just there like a douchebag acting like he deserves to be fangirled over. There doesn’t seem to be any development for this guy either cos he’s an arrogant bastard from the beginning to the end (if turning into a psycho ex kind of character is some kind of development then...okay...). And then there's Irisviel being the isteri solehah, which I personally don't like but sometimes having a character like that is OK.

There’s no need to tell me to start reading the novels or play the VNs etc to understand more about them, I pretty much can refer to their wikia. I’m disgusted by the mage system used in Fate series that I’d rather not indulge in it, disgusted by the battle royale, disgusted by how each of the characters want the Holy Grail for their own selfishness. Especially Saber… seriously, “restore Britain?”. Is she aware about how UK is during that time period? Probably the other Servants too have really dumb goals, unrealistic towards their current state of existence and makes this whole battle royale stupid – except for Broskander’s wish because IT MAKES MORE SENSE TO COME BACK TO LIFE AND DO WHATEVER THE HELL YOU WANT.

In spite of all that, this anime is highly recommended, but you gotta endure the dullness of the first few episodes of season 1 (I know some of you suffer this, I did too). And keep in mind there’s the awesome Servant called Rider/Iskander and there’s episode 24 to writhe in pain with. Battle scenes are great too. Oh yeah a friendly reminder; OST by Yuki Kajiura.

i have no regrets

Animax Carnival 2013

I didn't go to Animax Carnival last year but this year the event took place in a confined area somewhere in Sunway Pyramid. No entrance fee but you have to queue up if you want to enter the Animax realm, but it's not as bad as ComicFiesta.

thank goodness it did not rain inside

Once you enter the realm you're obliged to do some rituals before exiting - in order words you don't have freedom to wander around but since it's small and there's nothing much to see, then it's understandable. No official merchandise and doujin booths. So you had your body stamped with some symbols from hunter x hunter or Fairy Tail. Fairy Tail's mark is finished, so I took Cait Shelter guild logo cos I like Wendy. Then you play three of the games usually found in Japanese festivals. Forgot what they're called but I like the Daruma game... too bad I can only hit once -_-

Then there's the lolwhut photobooths and wheel of fortune thingy. Me and future-dr Lime had fun giggling at the shotas wearing the sailor costume sdkdshfkhsdfhsdkfhdfk.

Then once our rituals are finished, coincidentally the cosplay competition started. Unfortunately the competition is biased towards Fairy Tail only but good thing I'm a FairyFag so I enjoyed most of it.

You can also see the event happening from up above. I forgot to mention May'n did a performance on Saturday but I had class that time. I'm not a huge fan of May'n but I do love her Brain Diver song ;_;

Cosplayers were scattered everywhere. My friends and I planned to have lunch at Sushi King but then obviously that the place is weeabo infested. Even Sakae sushi. So we opt for Teppanyaki!

Anyway I love this Kuroko, it reminds me of this Kurokonyan

and then my kokoro went どきどきどきどきどきどきどきどきどきどきどきどきどき when I saw these two!

here's the rest of the photos I took

Overall I wasn't so satisfied with the event itself, but I'm happy enough to find the nice cosplays and the most important thing is to get to gather with friends no i'm not being tsundere or anything

One thing I dislike most is the tendency for event organizers to give really big and wide goodie bags, but there's not even a thing inside it. The last huge goodie bag I got was from AFA Singapore, with One Piece pictures and I had to buat muka tebal walking from the MRT station to the KTM checkpoint. The WORST part is it's very inconvenient in the crowds cos it may get stuck or hit random people. Once the bag accidentally hit some arab girl and she was glaring at me like I did the most wonderful sin.

This is short and simple okay bye (i gotta focus on reviewing anime next...)

Review: Jack the Giant Slayer

I know I have a lot of pending animes to review, but it's just that I haven't found the mood to rant about them yet. But this particular film is disturbing my thoughts lately so I had to let it out.

Jack the Giant Slayer is a film adaptation of the infamous Jack and the Beanstalk and also Jack the Giant Killer. With some unnecessary romance and a really cool supporting character. Unfortunately the story is not as badass as the title sounds, not even the main character himself.

Story starts with a little boy listening to the story about Giants. I assume this is Jack as a child so I thought it was a neat intro. Then the scene switched to the little girl listening to the same story and I was like "oh crap this story is going to have a fukken heroine". At this point I could sense that the predictability is very high. Fast foward, Jack has to run an errand for his uncle and went to the city and got fascinated seeing the first girl he met. As if there aren't any fine maidens in the village area. Turns out the girl is a princess (why does this sound so damn familiar?). And then this girl is a rebel princess; she wants adventure and seek for her true love. I'm pretty sure this kind of princess is overused, and as I predict the princess ran away from home. And then she meets the main character, all the cheesy lines start from here.

So I'm gonna be straight-forward; the script made me cringe in many parts especially when it comes to Jack and the Princess. So I was like can I skip this part? no? Hurry up and finish talking you two! Wow, I don't mind boy-meets-girl kind of cliche but we need a little more revamp ith the interaction between them (I guess I watch to much anime).

But what I enjoy most is the action part; the fights, the battles, the giant slaying - to the point I think they could've made the story work even WITHOUT the presence of a heroine. The princess role is just as a damsel in distress, and a reason to get the plot moving. Don't be fooled by the armour she's wearing ok, it doesn't mean anything. But I'm sure we've expected more from her considering the fact that she wants one hell of an adventure. Jack on the other hand is some kind of Gary Stu, like the writers have no idea how to create an epic protagonist other than a hormone raging one. Yes I understand that he's a teenager but he's just meh. The best character here is Elmont, cos he's cool in everything, and he's the most significant. Plus he's the loyal vassal type (ultimate weakness!).

The villain isn't even worth mentioning, but the Giants are brilliant in their own way. To be honest I was almost disappointed 30 minutes before the movie ends cos I thought there wouldn't be any Giant vs Humans battle. As I mentioned earlier, I expected Jack to be more badass - before watching I had a picture of a BAMF hero slaying giants like they're frail bamboo trees with blood splattering around but NO! No no no you only got Jack trying to impress a girl he just met before all this crisis happened. Therefore, I can conclude that the character development is bad.

The story doesn't have that much plot twist... as I said it was mostly predictable (except for Elmont). But if I consider it as a kid's show then I say it's pretty decent and enjoyable. But since it's PG-13, which implies that it's for older people then... they could've written a less shitter princess, script.... and plot.

Ah now I'm relieved.

Review: Ookami Kodomo no Ame to Yuki

Yeahhhh I have a lot of pending reviews but this one deserves to be reviewed now, before I forget all the feels cos the movie is so damn awesome.

Studio: Madhouse, Studio Chizu

The trailer shows the basic stuff, like a girl falling in love with a werewolf (why does this sound so familiar) and have a couple of children with him. What the trailer DID NOT show is how totally different it is from the typical werewolf romance and shoujo shit the story is all about. Which is why you really HAVE to check this out even if it's not your preferred genre.

So you have the usual girl meets boy story, and the girl is attracted to the boy because he seem different. Familiar again? But good thing it wasn't set in a freakin' high school and the girl isn't a Mary Sue although she is kind of ordinary. At least there aren't any intervening characters that drags the whole story into some love triangle/reverse harem crap. It's free from soap opera and illogical happenings (okay except for the werewolf part). The girl isn't freaked out when the guy reveals who he really is, much like a certain empty shell who has the hots for a certain sparkly undead. That aside, the best thing about their relationship is that everything went naturally from just friends to lovers. There wasn't a need for either of them to try too hard to impress one another, those pointless blushings, the in denial scenes and what not. The guy may come off as cold at first but good thing he isn't like Uchiha Sasuke.

And the wolf guy is so sweet that I think I'm diagnosed with diabetes right now.

cooking for his pregnant wife = perfect husband

The art may be simple, yet the animation is pleasant. No one looks as though they're wearing special costume for a fetish-themed AV. The backgrounds deserved the details more than the character designs do.

Now allow me to rant out what I analyzed from the show. So prepare for possible spoilers.

Stories about a single parent is common in anime nowadays but this time it's a single mom who had to raise a pair of supernatural being. I'm amazed at how strong she is dealing with her loss and the burden she had to carry all alone. Deep down I expected her to snap and dump her wolf kids and moved on with her life. But she didn't. She fukken dealt with it. She knew that the children carries their father's abnormal genes that she even studied really hard on how to specifically raise them. So basically the story is about how to raise weird kids if you wanna compare it real life. And it had never crossed her mind to find a new lover/husband just to ease her burden. Rather than blaming her children for being that way, she made a drastic decision that prioritize what is CONVENIENT for the kids. She's patient and works hard all the way, never complaining.

Seriously, are all Japanese moms like that?

Now let's talk about the kids. I think there's a really strong message behind their character developments.

Being born 'special' has its advantages, and at the same time it has a drawback. Yuki (the elder sister) and Ame (the younger brother) both have the dilemma of being born as not normal, but each with their own way. Each of the siblings have their own stories to tell. Yuki was proud to be a wolf at first, but as she grew she felt more connected to the human side. Ame on the other hand was upset that wolves are often portrayed as the bad guy causing him to hate who he is, but the opposite happened. Ame and Yuki had a conflict on 'which is the right way for them to live?'; as a human or as a wolf?

The strong message here is, who are you to say which is the right path and which is not? One may think that the 'normal life' is the best way to live, the other may think that the 'road not taken' is what is best for him. But did it really matter? If you think the path makes you happy, then go on with it. Parents should really take note of this. I'm sure you'd be happier if your kid picks the stable choice (of occupation or degree), but don't turn a blind eye to the one who wants to do something different. Just support him, even if shit happens to him don't go all "told you so!".

I'm proud of both Yuki and Ame. Yuki, for putting a lot of effort to adapt with the normal life. Ame, for choosing the path as a lone wolf. Either way is a courageous thing to do.

Moral of the story, mothers and future mothers should take a leaf out of Hana's book :D

Last but not least, the OST!! The OST!!! By Takagi Masakatsu (not someone from anime industry world apparently). Here's the track I love most (I think it's the one where the wolf boy runs around the mountain with his 'sensei')

Fictional Characters I Want to Marry

Today's Twitter Trending Topic is #FictionalCharactersIWanttoMarry and also inspired by Klux Nee-chan's blogpost, so I'm gonna do my version of husbandos.

Oh yeah... please note that not all my fave male characters, and the ones i find incredible sexy and incredibly GAR are in my husbando candidate list. So you may wonder where they stand cos I have another category for them XD

[disclaimer: images do not belong to me but their respective owners/artists]

10. Sarutobi Sasuke (Sengoku Basara)

I'm pretty much drawn to characters who are vassal to a lord or royals, I get turned on by the protectiveness and loyalty. Initially I wanted to include waifus (female characters in the list) and you'd see most of them are the vassal/knight type characters. Plus being with Sasuke allows me to side Sanada too, and I'd rather side with the Crimson Warrior rather than the One-Eyed Dragon.

9. Kanji Tatsumi (Persona 4)

gay domestic BAMF husbando

8. Edgar Roni Figaro (Final Fantasy 6)

play the game, put in him in your party, enjoy his TOOLS skill. His job class is a technician, kinda weird to exist in a fantasy setting (but then FF6 is considered as steampunk), but i'm sure we'd have fun inventing the funny tools XD

7. Lestat de Lioncourt (Vampire Chronicles)

pre-Twilight vampire, a TRUE VAMPIRE and is as sexy as the vampires in Vassalord. He's a rock star too. Oh and he's not really a bad guy, he's just... unorthodox. Unorthodox is my thing~

6. Sirius Black (Harry Potter series) 

Harry has a sexy godfather. 

Actually the latter 5 is harder for me to think so it may not be in order. But the next five is confirmed to be the characters I want to marry.

5. Suoh Tamaki (Ouran High School Host Club)

Reading the manga, I realize that he's more than just a narcissistic prince-type character. Most shoujo mangas often portray the prince type as cool, ridiculously perfect and seemingly flawless (although personally I think their flaw is being picky about who they want to be nice to). Tamaki isn't forever stuck as that shallow bastard but he really grows up. I'm glad he didn't become the typical "fuck what everyone thinks of me" but he definitely tried his best to make his worst 'enemy' approve of him ^^ 

4. Kusama Nowaki (Junjou Romantica)

I'm into semes like him

3. Yatogami Kuroh (K-Project)

Just another vassal-type character like number 10, but he's the only guy who I can consider as a WAIFU rather than husbando. Even his character song is about cooking.

2. Kotetsu T. Kaburagi (Tiger & Bunny)

=//////= Blue Rose + Barnaby Brooks Jr = me

1. Kamina (Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann)

I need an optimistic guy in my life, to keep me going. It was thanks to him that I reached a turning point in my life (from being pointlessly emo into someone who knows how to appreciate herself). I doubt there are any real life men who can beat this guy... I mean, my forever-sorrowful days have been taken away by him so you really can't just come into my life expecting me to worship you as a hero. F*ck 3DPD, you're just a bunch of oppurtunists t(^0^t

 Okay finish.
I feel sad that I can't include Midorima Shintarou, Vincent Valentine, Grell Sutcliffe and even my first anime crush Sanosuke Sagara... but I love them anyways (as favourite gundiks wwwww)

End note: OMG I AM A NECROPHILE.