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!

Anime vs K-pop

ecently I saw this ongoing immature feud between Anime fans and K-pop fan(s) in lol facebook. I dunno how it all started but from my POV it was fail, fail everywhere. Each of them defended their fandoms like it's some kind of jihad, and acting like jahiliyah to each other in attempt to troll.

The hatred is ironic

But from what I can see is the one side, although many in numbers, fail badly at the art of trolling. The other one, although she may seem completely delusional seems like she had successfully made everyone's attention turn to her. Congrats Datin Comel for being epic! Once in a while it's nice to see low class 'anime people' being bashed by someone other than those from our circle, and it was one hell of an entertainment.

Look, I'm no fan of K-pop, I just grew tired of saying bad things about things I didn't even try out. And I have a few friends who are into K-pop so it had taught me to be less of a hater (yeah right I still act like a hater now and then for a the heck of it). I think it takes time to get used to it. In general, pop is one of my least favourite music genre (though I may enjoy some) and I don't really like hearing repetitive words in songs. Lyrics of popular K-pop songs are too simple and straightfoward, and Korean language doesn't sound as beautiful as Japanese (to me), hence my disinterest towards K-pop. I don't like the idea of the idols having to train too hard for a few years and reconstruct their looks to appear as an ideal celebrity, although I salute them for working that hard. I don't like the fact that I can't see any difference between their looks though - perhaps I should squint harder (and sometimes they look like anime cosplays - come on, those are real life bishins and bijins!) However, one thing I gotta admit is their choreagraphy is waaaaayyyy more entertaining to watch than how J-pop's, and the Korean idols have better vocals than average Japanese ones. I'm serious.

Also one of the factors that makes me dislike K-pop is how the fans can be so obsessive overreact to worthless insults when you can just simply overlook it.

a surprise to those who are ignorant. 

The thing is K-pop knows how to market, consequently overshadowing J-pop worldwide, although J-pop has quietly reached the shores of those who are aware. Hey, they can sing in English (WonderGirls at least) and they can sing in Japanese too (TVXQ, Girls Generation, 2pm, etc) that they even invade anime OPs and EDs. Can the Japanese do that? English pun tak lepas.

It makes the whole anime vs k-pop thing very irrelevant.

So these low class anime people are attempting to hurt them K-pop fans, or maybe one particular fan with all the k-poop hatred and calling her delusional for thinking that she's above everyone and her boyfriend is one of the K-pop idols. Well these anime fans or no better; they're arguing as though their life depends on it. Perhaps if they win their 2D waifu would materialize and agree to marry them. I don't know. I lost it when they start involving heaven and hell into their childish debates. I'm still having a hard time figuring out why are they trying to hard to defend or explain to their enemy when they can just ignore Datin Comel's insults. She seems to be having more fun entertaining these anime macaques rather than actually experiencing butthirt. I dunno how it is on the K-pop fans side but somehow this further proves the fact that anime is for kids.

To be fair, both parties are dumbfucks. Your social life probably fail really hard if you keep locked up in your own world.

Here's something to entertain yourself with (OP performed by TVXQ/Touhou Shinki/DBSK)

Conclusion: before thinking that you know what is the root of all of your hatreds... to them low class anime people, you should try listening to one of the K-pop songs and low class K-poppers should watch one of the casual non-mainstream animes.

Otherwise just stop wasting your time displaying tl;dr of your hatred and replace it with whatever you enjoy most (unless you enjoy failtrolling then go on).

The Bolehland Culture

Today I will take a break from anime stuff and talk about a wonderful country called Bolehland. It is a multiracial country and has a very unique culture that can never be found in other places! So since it's a multiracial country obviously there are racist issues here and there. I'm so bad at intros so I'm gonna cut to the chase. Oh no this won't be the typical tourism post, I'm just gonna rant about the special things of Bolehland that many may not notice. Or too dumb to notice. Whatever.

Since I am one of the so-called natives of Bolehland, I would like to refer a subsection of the natives as "Meleis" (courtesy of 1Obefiend). I've exclude myself from being part of them because I'm one of the already evolved ones, and yet they'll be the main character of this story. So here we go!

1. Time Dilation Technique

I remember once we have a group camp back in matriculation college, before the day we depart to the camping site we had an assembly. A representative said to us "Tomorrow, you must assemble at the foyer 7am SHARP"

The next day, 7 am sharp, I was the only one at the foyer.

Apparently, according to Meleis culture; SHARP means at least 30 minutes from expected time, and it is "better late than never". They do not respect those who wait, but the person who wait is often too soft to get angry. In Meleis culture it is inappropriate to tell what the other did wrong, but it is okay to talk sh*t behind the person's back and allow him to keep doing the wrong thing.

FYI, this Time Dilation Technique is infectuous! I had not realized this until a few years back, where I was the only Malay in class and I'm always the first to arrive (see I told you that I am evolved)!Thus, it has become a Bolehland culture!

And sometimes they use this habit of theirs when they visit other countries. This may irritate foreigners but foreigners need to understand that time is NOT gold to Bolehlanders. Thank you Meleis, for sharing your secret technique!

2.  Respect Your Elders

Respect your elders regardless of how rude s/he is. Even if you want to share a new knowledge where the older generation did not earn, YOU CAN'T. You really can't show off that you're smarter because it would hurt their ego feelings. Yet they want the younger generations to study hard, encourage critical thinking, but when your opinion differs, you're just being disrespectful!

It is also okay for adults to be obnoxious towards younger people, whether or not the young ones show respect. They demand respect, yet as more experienced people, by their actions, are not setting a good example to youths so that they can follow. So how would the younger generation know the true meaning of respect if they keep doing that?

Because in Bolehland, "respect" means keeping quiet and let yourself be walked over.

3. The Way of Envy

When an evolved native (or even members of the other races) is financially or intelectually better than most, the Meleis get envious of him. But when they envy, they do not put an effort to become the same level as the evolved native. They insult him, spread bad rumours about him, or worse, bring him down.

And these Meleis sometimes see criticism as "envy" too. When they see a critic (rather than 'support'), they will ask you how will the race advance/develop if another member of the same race keep on criticizing them? It's just part of their culture for people to baby them, so it's completely okay to have a half-assed effort. Better than nothing, right?

4. Complaining means you're ungrateful

"hey this nasi goreng is tasteless, why not put a bit of salt"
"STFU YOU UNGRATEFUL BASTARD!"

You just really can't question, criticize and offer suggestions (or hold a protest/demonstration) to the higher ups. The higher you go the more limited your vocab is, so they take that course of action as 'complaining'. Consequently, it breaches their ability to think in other perspectives that they'd label you for being ungrateful. Perhaps it is because they think that they're gods.

5. GTFO country

When you stir up trouble by criticizing Bolehland in any way, for instance, showing how ungrateful you are, Meleis who are not mentally evolved enough to come up with a sophisticated rebuttal would instantly tell you to get out of the country. Even worse if the person is of a race different from the natives, they're often told to go back to their respective countries where their great great grandparents belonged to.

The argument is very weak because these people and their generations have long lived in Bolehland, and oblivious to the culture of their 'original' country. In fact, it is a very invalid argument for this people have grown up and got used to things in Bolehland. But telling them to GTFO is the best thing Meleis can do (and I also found out that this can be infectious too)

6. Meleis are superior

Because they are God's chosen ones. There are no reference text for this because it's merely their own assumption.

7. Wormhole Digger

(aka, Wormhole Hunters, Wormhole Raiders, etc)
When you hurt a Meleis's butt, he is bound to tell you this: "aku akan cari kau sampai ke lubang cacing!" (translation: "I will find you even if i have to dig a worm hole!")

But don't worry, they will never find you. They're Meleis, they don't have that kind of motivation.
(as of now I am still waiting for a certain keyboard warrior to find me at the wormhole).

8. "Apology" means "Cowardice"

According to Malay Beliefs, when you did a huuuuuuuuuuuge mistake and apologize later, it means that you're a coward. This is why many Meleis (is this also infectuous?) love having a cold war with one another because the unapologetic attitude is very honourable and courageous. Yet they love to demand an apology, and when the person says sorry, other than calling him a coward you know what is even better?

They'll question his sincerety.

Perhaps apology is not enough, they'd expect these wrong-doers to exile or kill himself. Or find him deep in a wormhole to beat him up. Such sadistic people my unevolved fellow natives are.

The irony is, they call themselves Muslims, who believes in God (and believes that they're the chosen ones), and yet their belief contradicts to the Islamic way on forgiving others

i can't find a better screenshot lol

I think there are more silly things Bolehland has but I'll leave it up to here. If I get any ideas, there'l be part 2!
So if you're butthurt and is about to rage on the comments section, then CONGRATULATIONS! You've just proved that I am right! But if you're thinking "omg I can't believe I've been so horrible, I should change my attitude" then CONGRATULATIONS you're about to evolve into a pokemon! Forgive me for hurting your feelings then but it is what I intended.

You can call me a race traitor, sure I don't mind being exiled.
You can tell me to gtfo of Bolehland... would you care to sponsor me?
You can tell me that my mouth has no insurance/license, that's because I can't find any.
You can tell me "ingat ko bagus sangat?", no, I am not, but I know I'm definitely better than you.
[Edit: tak puas hati? Talk to my representative here]

oh don't get me wrong, I love my Bolehland. It's just that I hate this kind of people aaaaand of course there are people better than this lot. So do visit the country on your next vacation - think of the FOOD! The food is great here.

Now back to henshin-ing myself into a Japunis.

Anime is for Kids

Sometimes I'm starting to agree with this.

ohlolwat i cannot brain this

I mean considering the fact when average otakus are told by their normal friends that "anime is for kids", the otaku would be like "OH YEAH? HERE LOOK AT ALL THESE HENTAIS". I mean seriously is that all you can do? Show hentai to prove that anime is NOT for kids?

That's child's play.

What if the plan backfired and your friend starts to think anime = hentai?

This is probably a popular retort among newbies but bet you haven't heard about the anime being accused as hentai back in 2006. Unless you have, then this is a reminder. Oh the OUTRAGE! Of course I was one of those who were pissed. Nowadays I couldn't care less about what people wanted to say; anime is cartoon, anime is for kids, anime is hentai... because majority of it it's true because we keep getting derpy moeshits every season - it's meant for light hearted purposes. And you can simply get excited watching the bug eyed creature acting dumb or your ridiculously perfect blonde Asian guy being princey. Seriously, if these shits can't utilize your adult brain then I have to agree that anime is for kids (or maybe your adult brain has reached the maximum value that you cannot fuck your mind further). However, I allow you to consider this statement invalid if you think your fave moeshit or fujoshit is not as dumb as I think it is.

You want to disprove the fact that anime is for kids? Go watch something mindboggling (other than your fanservicey stuff), learn stuff from it and grow. Anime is not just mere entertainment, at least that is what I think. I am aware that half my life lessons were taken from shounen influence. No you don't have delude yourself by pretending you can do Kamehameha or BANKAI (unless you cosplay). What I mean is, when you see the annoying naive hero work hard, then work hard as he does even if it seems stupid. If you see the shoujo manga heroine moves out of her anti-social shell, then try it yourself. However, I see you guys still whining about how your life sucks, no friends, no confidence blablabla-

But then your idol is Naruto and Ichigo.

Don't give me that "easier said than done" shit. Even them anime/manga is realistic enough to show their hardships.

Even that emofag Sasuke has a motivation yo. It's evil but at least he doesn't wallow in self pity.

i guess you can show guro too

I proudly say that I am one of those "shut ins" who used to be a tad too antisocial and I broke out of it. I even have people envying that I have many friends (ONLY ON SOCIAL NETWORK DAMMIT NOBODY TEXT MY PHONE UNLESS IT'S SOMETHING IMPORTANT but it's fine cos I'm too lazy to entertain people via text all the time), because it naturally comes when I try. Heck I'm still a quiet person and I prefer doing stuff alone but i do socialize.

Okay the point is, when you watch anime show them that 'anime is not for kids' by your attitude. Don't be so quick to be pissed off at the statement. Remember that this ignorant friend of yours have never seen such animes with hentais serious plots and life lessons better than talent shows. Just smirk and tell them that you're sorry that they have so very little knowledge of what you're passionate about. Learn from the mistakes the characters did, even if it's fictional, you can prevent it from happening to your life. Learn how to experience a character development with them. Just prove that you can still become mature even if you're into something childish.

Also, do open your heart to your normal friends. Try something else, completely different from anime - maybe reading or outdoor activities. If they know you're not just an obsessive anime-tard, and you're capable of talking about other things than anime, then I'm sure they can accept your childish hobby like it's breakfast. By now I'm sure a lot of my acquaintances is aware of me being a fan of anime and video games, and I've never heard them saying negative things about my interests.

And speaking of mindboggling animes, well, sometimes no matter how ridiculous it seems you can still relate it to real life (the politics, the society, the philosophy etc). You could slip in some deep quotes or mention something hypothetical you extracted from an anime while talking about related real life topics with others. Well I dunno if it would work but I think I've done this a few times. No significant impact but then I'm not desperate to bust the myth.

But just in case I meet someone who has this "anime = kids" mindset, I'm just gonna blab about how much anime has changed me throughout the years... lessons that unfortunately real life stuff couldn't teach, where I sometimes wish boring fandomless people need to know.

In conclusion: if you don't wanna grow up (with your anime) then just accept the fact that anime is for kids, because you are one.

2012 Achievements Unlocked

Yes I'm at home as usual during New Year's Eve, I've never partied outside my whole life during this time of the year. Oh no it's not sad I'm just gonna watch animes or read manga like it's just any other day. Or maybe I'll just end up sleeping as midnight passes by. I hate the crowds anyway. Hope other people have fun out there watching shitty performances and have sex without protection so that you can dump babies 9 months later.

2012 is a pathetic year for me personally but at the same time I've improvised in other aspects.

Such as, I continued Japanese class and now i'm about to take on Lower Intermediate part 2. However I'm not goo in conversing in Japanese just yet, but lately I can pick up vaguely of what Japanese songs are saying.

Next I successfully become a fan of Assassin's Creed series thanks to Reppu_kiri and deady. Then I also became a fan of BBC Sherlock.

Also thanks to AFKLOL I gain more anime people cyberfriends particularly from LYN Anime Shrine and thus becoming the event of the year. Hey I consider this a part of my social life improvement.

Went to various Japanese artists concert this year; Nakagawa Shoko, Kalafina, Miyavi and TM Revolution.

Speaking of TMR, since his concert was in Singapore, I really travelled all the way there alone, and went back to KL alone as well. Of course I meet friends there but still the journey was solitary. I got lost, and i even almost lost my ebitetsu (phone) in a foreign land but the battery is gone instead!

While still talking about travelling, this year I traveled all the way to the east coast with my friends in a car. Yeah drove all the way there. Of course we switched drivers.
I'm baking stuff quite recently lately. I think it's somewhat inspired by someone. Earlier this year mom challenged me to do Pavlova, and I hear meringue is a very difficult thing to make. You really need to be pro. I didn't manage to pull it off but it tasted quite okay. At least i got the marshmallowy insides though it turned kind flat.

And the next SUCCESS which became my mom's favourite is mille crepe cake, of which the layers didn't really become crepe but more like a pancake. It's really easy to make but it takes quite a while to finish it. And you don't need the oven to do this

I've also levelled up my 'otaku' mode... or maybe fangirl mode is more specific cos I only care about the fujoshit stuff... buy buying some of the merchandise like these

and these

I haven't got the chance to fool around with the plamo yet though.

Speaking of fangirling, by the end of year thanks to Kuroko no Basket, Magi and K I shamelessly added fellow fangirls via facebook and developed friendship just by going crazy over the fictional guys. And thanks to them also I found the spirit to draw once again. I also shamelessly barged into a gath once wtf AND I HAVE GENTAROU KISARAGI TO BLAME!

Now that i mentioned him I became a Kamen Rider fan watched my first Kamen Rider which is Fourze and then I fell in love with OOO.

Other stuff I did is to read American Comics for the first time. I only read one of Thor's comics but then they failed to keep me interested so yeah bye I'm gonna be weabo all the way.

I got a Yukata (which I didn't even wear yet) and a pair of geta (mom said I can't walk like a dude wearing those)

Other minor stuff... I did a confession and got away with it. I made something for birthdays of a few friends. Faced a really horrible family issue like a MAN. Procrastinated for like... a whole year.

on to real life achievements... I've become a postgraduate student. This is just one step ahead to achieve my dreams. And I've worked as a tutor for more than a year, while earning very little yet learning a lot more especially on how to deal with kids. Nah I don't think I can deal with many types of kids yet, but by teaching them maths I'm kind of revising the formulae as well. Which is important in case I need to do theoretical shit for my research.

to sum it up, meeting people and facing hardships had changed the way I think and the way I see things. It's not that I'm easily influenced by people, i'm just pretty much trying to be open to others' opinion or way of living their life - although I may personally dislike the lifestyle. I consider this as another achievement unlock, for me as a person.

2012 is ending, so all i need is a resolution for 2013. I'm not gonna be pessimistic about this anymore by saying "who cares" so let's have something to motivate myself. The most important thing is I HAVE to be more diligent about my postgraduate studies. I'm gonna draw more next year and I plan to make a doujinshi with several people. And I'm gonna keep vowing to grow mature so that I won't become like certain childish 'adults' out there.

Happy New Year everyone. Put your past behind, take them as a lesson, and let's move forward for a better future o/

Best of 2012 Anime

The year is ending, thanks to Reppu_kiri for the suggestion of listing the best (and worst) of 2012 anime. Probably too early to post this but I plan to post something else on the last day or on new year. I've listed my version down here, and note that you may not agree with me so prepare for butthurt. Also keep in mind that I'm not the type who watches every single anime there is each season, I'm least likely to watch those moe shows and trust me there are bishounen-filled animes which failed to catch my interest as well.

So here goes nothing.

Best Show:
1. Uchuu Kyoudai
2.Shin Sekai Yori
3. Fate/Zero Season 2

Initially I put Hyouka in the top 3 list, but Shin Sekai Yori just went from “watafak” to “omfg that’s totally awesome!” putting Hyouka in fourth place. While I disike season 1 of F/Z I find the 2nd season much more exciting to endure. Uchuu Kyoudai hits the number 1 spot as it’s no longer your average shounen high school drama. Like Tiger & Bunny, it’s about carreer people and mid-life crisis, except that the show is more realistic compared to the superhero themed anime. And it tells you it's not too late to achieve your dreams even if you're over 30 years old (and continue on dreaming), it gives me hope. What makes me love the show a lot is the fact that it hits home – and due to that I haven’t watched anything further than episode 8 yet.

Worst Show
1. Ebiten
2. Kamisama Hajimemashita
3. Phi Brain: Kami no Puzzle Season 2

Among the three, Phi Brain S2 is the only one I watched until the end. Why do I watch it anyway? It’s because there’s an epic FukuJun. Why is it horrible? You can check out the review. I cannot bring myself to finish the other two, so I won’t bother reviewing them. Therefore I’d leave my rant here. Personally I think Kamisama Hajimemashita’s plot and characters are horriby written; the story is about a girl who experienced misfortune thanks to her dad and is suddenly given a blessing by a god who randomly found her (it’s called FATE pfft-). However there’s no hint of her trying to survive in the state of poverty as the story shallowly focuses on how’d she deals with the supernatural bishounens more than anything. You don’t actually feel the hardship of being abandoned by your family, but you only get to see Miss Mary Sue complaining about how she wants her normal life back. Ebiten is on the other hand is supposed to be about otaku girls but I find the show’s depiction of them quite insulting. It went too far in terms of ecchi, I don’t see how otaku girls would act like that and I really can’t relate to it. For more accurate representation of ‘otaku’ girls, you can find it in Kuragehime.

Best Male Character

   

1. Rider/Iskander (Fate/Zero)
2. Kagami Taiga (Kuroko no Basket)
3. Oreki Hotarou (Hyouka)

Worst guy: Yamanaka Kenji (Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun), Itou Mamoru (Shin Sekai Yori), Libertà (Arcana Famiglia)

The only reason why I watched F/Z is for Broskander, and thanks to him I have no regrets watching F/Z until the end. But I gotta say I’m most impressed by Kagami Taiga’s character – he who I thought would be another typical arrogant shounen boy but turns out he’s not. He may look like that but he KNOWS how to tone down his ego. Oreki on the other hand is not your hot-blooded protagonist but his skills as a detective, even when deducing pointless stuff which makes him kinda unique.

YamaKen is the guy I hate most in TonaKaibu, thanks to something I learn from Sukitte Ii Na Yo - I don’t think he’s really in love with the main girl but he’s just going all CHALLENGE ACCEPTED with the whole situation. To me, he doesn’t know what he’s doing or how he really feels and I’m hoping the plot allows him to grow into someone better (been there done that I guess lol). I acknowledge that the existence of Mamoru in Shinsekai Yori is pretty much an important plot device, but I can’t help disliking him for being so weak and unable to accept the ‘truth’. Liberta didn’t give me a good impression as he looked as though he was trying too hard to be the ‘perfect’ guy (this may just be my own opinion).

Best female character

   

1. Koko Hekmatyar (Jormungand)
2. Morgiana (Magi)
3. Murasaki (UtaKoi)

Worst Girl: 1. Todayama Kyouko (Ebiten)
2. Momozono Nanami (Kamisama Hajimemashita)
3. Saber/Arturia (Fate/Zero)

Koko is like the female version of Lelouch, a much much better female strategist-type character than Gundam 00’s Sumeragi and even Fairy Tail’s Mavis. Well, at least she HAS a character, though I still find it baffling to have a very young lady to lead a mercenary unite. Morgiana has half or maybe two third of Erza Scarlet’s epicness as a female warrior, and as a character (not a tsundere nor the need-to-be-protected type). I believe she can grow more. In third place I would like to put Watanabe Saki (Shin Sekai Yori) instead of Murasaki… but Saki is still in her low self-confidence phase and is still uncertain about the truth around her, I can’t like her that much yet. So it’s this depiction of Murasaki (based on a true story) is what I like more cos I feel like I can relate to her.

About Kyouko and Nanami, I’ve explain briefly about their respective animes so you could get a clue from there. Saber is bland, ‘nuff said (allow me to explain more once I get to F/Z season 2 review)

Best OP [EDIT]

1. To the Beginning - Kalafina (Fate/Zero S2)
2. See You - Yuya Matsushita (Natsuyuki Rendezvous)
3. KINGS - Angela (K)

Best ED:
1. Circle of Friends - Totsuka Tatara/Kaji Yuki (K)
2. Yubi Bouenkyou - Nogizaka 46 (Magi)
3. Catal Rythm - OLDCODEX (Kuroko no Basket)


There were many great OPs this year but not many awesome EDs, as far as I’m concerned. The OPs I listed up there are my top 3 since they relate to the story the most, though I'd like to mention that I love ClariS's "Wake Up" from Moyashimon Returns, Yuki's "Sakamichi no Melody" from Sakamichi no Apollon, Nano's "Now of Never from Phi Brain, and GranRodeo's "Can Do" from Kuroko no Basket.

Can't seem to find the really really great ED this year but I love "Circle of Friends" most cos it's sad ;__;. As for Magi's ED, it sounds like children singing and it really suits the main trio cos they look like kids having fun (althought the current storyline in the manga has become a bit darker). Catal Rythm is the third cos I can't think of anything else that's good, and it's one of the few memorable EDs I have in my head.

Best OST:
1. K - Endo Mikio
2. Sakamichi no Apollon - Kanno Yoko
3. Kuroko no Basket - R・O・N

Sorry couldn't find playlists for them except for Sakamichi no Apollon, and I can't find other OST's for KuroBasu. I've been addicted to K's OST since the moment I watched the trailers, then I fell in love with the rest of the background music while watching the show. My weakness is damn good OSTs even if the show turns dull and not even bishounens can save me from dropping. And surprisingly it's the type of "hip-hop" genre my ears are able to accept. Next, I gotta be honest that I haven't watched Cowboy Bepop so I don't know how Kanno Yoko sounds like, but thanks to Sakamichi no Apollon for making me like jazz a little bit more (the only jazz songs I like is anything from video game OSTs). Another surprise for me is that, i didn't expect Kuroko no Basket to be anywhere near unique but then it has a list of EPIC tracks. So it's another show I enjoy watching because the music suits the mood of each scene :3

Best Art: Ai no Kusabi (2012), K, Utakoi.

not gonna say much about the first two but Utakoi is a special case. It's like Okami + Katanagatari type of art, although not as pretty but I really love looking at something different.

[EDIT]
Best battle scene
1. Yatogami Kuroh vs Munakata Reisi (K episode 7)
2. Archer vs Berserker (Fate/Zero S2 episode 2 or 15)
3. Aomine Daiki vs Kise Ryouta (Kuroko no Basket episode 24)

lol this one is just extra, something I thought up last night while marathon-ing K before the final episode. Kuroh vs Reisi has the most beautiful animation to date, as I loved how KuroBasu animated Aomine's movements in the anime. But even better when he faces Kise because Kise executed his "Perfect Copy". Archer vs Berserker is jet fighting goodness. Yeah ranked this according animation awesomness X3
---

Once again lemme remind you that I don't watch all anime, so forgive me if my thoughts are rather biased. And there are animes I plan to watch like Psycho Pass but don't really have the time cos I prioritise my favourite ones. So you can recommend me anything that I've missed, especially OPs, EDs and OSTs. Or you can like... counter me if you see your fave show/character in my worst list, tell me why they're not meant to be there - see if you can convince me otherwise. I'm open for healthy debates yeah.

Rant on Assassin's Creed series

So I'm gonna compile thoughts on all five Assassin's Creed games in one post. Don't think I have to write about them one by one, especially since I'll be away this weekend. But i won't elaborate much since I'm sure there are better reviews out there.

wallpaper by http://senzorka.deviantart.com

The first game I played was Assassin's Creed 2, where two of my friends shoved the disc into my face (in a good way). And i asked others whether I should really try this out, I was totally convinced when someone said something about Leonardo da Vinci.

I was afraid of playing stealth games, I couldn't finish Ninja Gaiden cos I totally sucked (back then I was more of an RPG-fag). But AC2 gives you a GPS so you basically know where the red dots are walking. But you have a choice to become incognito or nortorious. So it wasn't that hard. In the end I enjoyed the game because it was fun to figure out a way to kill your target in stealth mode. And Ezio has a romantic way of killing people it makes me blush... Other than that, it was like a vacation to different parts of Italy. Florence, Tuscan, Forli, San Gimignano and especially VENICE (row the gondola too)! And you have mercenaries, courtesans and thieves to assist you in your mission - and they turn out to be sub-sections of the Order of the Assassin's. Minigames are important to the plot, and you have the obligation to finish it to see what is meant to be seen.

Venice is a romantic place... owait-

AC: Brotherhood inherits the awesomeness of of its predecessor, but even better when you have assassin recruits to come to your aid. Now you have side missions to liberate forts (again this makes assassination a really fun thing to do) and try out the machineries Leonardo invented. The only drawback is probably that you only stick around Rome, but Rome is a freakin' huge place to have a walk in. Thankfully the architecture makes up with it.

Before carrying on the Revelations, I decided to finish the first game first. Since I am aware that Revelations is about tracking Altair's memories, I thought I should connect with Altiar first before I get confused in the fourth game. So we go all the way back to where assassins originated from, Masyaf (now in Syria), and i suppose the inhabitants were Muslims (it's more cool to call Muslims 'assassins' rather than ;terrorists' ww). AC was an extremely straightforward game, and I found myself feeling awkward that I don't have allies to depend on. Which makes it a challenge to move about as a lone wolf bird of prey, and trust me the combat system was still troublesome. There were a lot of running and falling, and you need to at least hide rather than going out of the radius when guards are on high alert. Yet you have a lot more freedom in killing people. The funniest part is when a WILD TEMPLAR APPEARS and start throwing curses at you. Here we also learn the three tenets of the Order; do not kill innocents, hide in plain sight and do not betray your Brotherhood. The worst part is to collect the flags, but in the end I couldn't care less (no trophies lol) and the fact that Altair cannot swim.... AC wasn't as awesome as AC2 and Brotherhood, but at least you get another vacation, this time in the Middle East - more architecture p0rn!

AC1 may feel like nothing but here's my favourite character. No kidding.

AC was really a PROLOGUE for the whole plot. It's when you start AC2 you realize it's actually the real "chapter 1". It was only in AC2 you know more about the current timeline issues, and the Templar's main plot. So now let's move on to Revelations. Ezio travels to Turkey, and whoopie more beautiful buildings!! This is when I realize you have to be super specific when it comes to fighting different types of opponents. We get to kill everyone with our litte allies and assassin recruits. And eagle vision has a massive improvement; now you can see traces of the glowing red/gold people! While funding money is very easy in the last two games, Revelations is a bit difficult due to the Islamic banking system (no interest, it's haram). Ezio has become wise with age, and I kind of feel sorry for him when he pants after dropping from a ledge =A="

Recently I've just finished Assassin's Creed 3. It was a game I anticipated most this year, and I actually bought it as a birthday present. I had fun with Altair and Ezio, and I was looking forward to have the similar feeling with Connor. However, the game began with a faux protagonist. You wonder why it isn't Connor, but this guy, I think you can see where it's coming. But then there's a plot twist that makes you go "Wait. What?" (just as Desmond did) and rewards you a trophy called "so how do you like 'em apples?". So much for trolling. But once you get to control Connor, you find yourself missing Haytham a lot more.

I would love to rant but all my feelings about AC3 are paralleled to this article: 7 reasons why Assassin's Creed 3 is actually disappointing

this sequence was fun but simply not enough FEEEEELLLLSSS

All the feels, yet the thing that disturbs me most is the nearly impossible and what-the-fuck-is-it-even-necessary Secondary Objectives. Sure, I have no problems replaying the part where I need to assassinate a guy from above. But when you're telling me to protect two important guys while throwing redcoats into the water makes me think "What? Why can't I just shoot them from above and act like a REAL ASSASSIN?". Now I know that these Secondary Objectives existed since AC2 trilogy, and it starts to get a little ridiculous in Revelations, but I don't remember feeling like I want to throw the controller at the TV just to give a fuck about 100 Sync. The interactive trailer fooled you by hinting that you CAN have different ways of reaching your target. There was so little freedom that I started to appreciate AC1 a whole lot more because Altair DID what a spy/assassin is supposed to do; investigate the enemy, analyze the area, and comes up with THREE options on how to go for the kill. You want a full frontal assault badassery? Go ahead. You want to sneak into secret passages like a ninja? Go ahead!

Another goddamn disappointment is the declination of the Eagle Vision. Connor didn't even need it; he's a Native American, and obviously he had hunting skills. All he needed is too look for clues. And oh there are no clues left behind by Subject No.6 to unlock. Here I was hoping that he could see traces of red like Ezio could in Revelations, but there weren't any. So now you cannot even have fun playing tricks on the guards with your trip mines (i loved planting those funny bombs in Revelations just to see how the guards react lolol). More importantly, you don't have any information on where the guards might walk unless you stick around for a few minutes to see the patrol pattern.... ONLY if you do not have any time limit to consider!

I had floating maidens. What about you?

You might think this review here has a lot of whining but I don't think whether you're veteran or a newbie is the problem. The post wraps up on how the game really is like at certain parts. The main point is the fact that it's no longer a stealth game and you don't have that similar enjoyment as you had in the previous four games. There were many cases where Connor breaks the second tenet of the Order (FUKKEN HIDE IN FUKKEN PLAIN FUKKEN SIGHT and why the hell are you commanding the patriots??), and other than that it's just really hard to be stealthy because now the guards a lot smarter. Probably it's because you're now in America *shrugs*... or sometimes a little dumb (or it could be a glitch) because sometimes i randomly get "HEY YOU!" while I'm just walking peacefully several metres away from the fukken lobsters D:. Now that you're in infant America, a really boring setting because most houses are made of wood and there aren't any minarets and towers with aethestic carvings to jawdrop at. Could've chosen settings where CULTURE exists.

But guess what the best part of the game is? The Naval Battles (is that a very assassin thing to do?) and the Assassin Recruits. And I also thought Davenport Homestead will become an assassin HQ but instead you're just rounding up outcasts to live happily ever after with.

Now I'm not gonna talk about the story or the characters of the wholse series, you can look at it elsewhere and I agree with them whatsoever. But I can tell you that AC3 doesn't have memorable ones as you found in AC2 (or otherwise people around Altair if you care to notice)

I am actually surprised to have found this in a bookstore here. It costs around RM35 - RM39, in BORDERS. Just bought the first one, and I hope I look forward to Connor's true colours he failed to show in the game.

In spite of all the crap I said about AC3, do try to play it if you think you can handle the gameplay. I know there may be pros who hold pride that they face the challenges like robots, but not everyone is lucky. And if you have not tried the Assassin's Creed games, go pick it up now. It's worth it. You might wanna skip AC3 thought and just read the spoilers, but you'll miss out the Naval Battles.

Nerd talk

Hi.

It's been over a week since my last update.

Shit happened. So I was not realy in the mood to update blogs although I have my drafts ready.

I actually forgot the topic that I intended to write in this blogpost. But I'm gonna begin with something anyway. I just resumed my lower intermediate Japanese class a month ago. I did a last minute revision on my "beginner 2" notes. The next day a couple of classmates mentioned that they didn't revise, and probably forgot what they've learnt. Typical. I must've forgotten a few things too. But then... since I watch anime and listen to Japanese music most of the time, I think I've been revising unconsciously. I haven't reached that level, but it's easy to remember vocabs and a few verbs when you often rape your ears with Japanese audio.
My only problem is remembering the particles, and probably sentence structure. Ask me to speak spontaneously then i'd be like...

Oyeah so here's the supposedly main content. I've been thinking about the 'nerd culture' or 'otaku culture', whatever you call it. When I was a lot younger I thought nerds and geeks are those gariben/bookworms who don't really have a social life. But now, tumblr tells me otherwise. Fangirls and fanboys are like the subsection of the nerd culture. And then I wonder how does this differ with the non-nerds (or what we call 'normalfags' ). But then I define 'normalfag' as someone who doesn't have any particular hobby and follow the norms and mainstream stuff. Of course there are nerds who follow the norms but seems like nerds have something that they can occupy with. And I'm also talking about non-anime geeks like those who likes cars or sports or... oh, hmm does being a shop-a-holic considered a nerd too? Do Beliebers, Little Monsters, Directionals include in the nerd culture too? I know Doctor Who and Star Trek fans are considered "nerds". But how do they differ?

It's like they're so obsessed with their fandoms that they notice that there's nothing wrong with their love life (not that it's a problem to me). Being someone who is interested in various things, I tend not to understand the life of those who are not attached to anything 'fun'. Occassionally I hang out with my non-nerd fans, and we can talk about general things... but somehow it's not as exciting as conversing like below...

• "hey do you watch ?"
• "yeah the animation is pretty good but I personally hate the ending"
• "IKR? Remember the time when did "
• "Yeah seems like there's a loophole there. Because mentioned that . But why is the ending like that?"
• And then you two start being all philosophical and whatnot. And you're probably discuss about the songs and moe/bishin characters too.

Okay so that's one of the most sophisticated example of a conversation. Because most of the time I hear derpy shallow fangirling kind of talk (hey I'm guilty of this too)... or just a bunch of otaku-joke that no normalfag can understand (THIS CONSPIRACY THEORY EVENT ACTUALLY HAPPENED BUT THEN SOMEONE SENT A D-MAIL TO THE PAST SO OUR CURRENT WORLD LINE DOESN'T SEE IT HAPPEN!!!!). Bottomline, it's fun to be occupied with silly things; you'll forget your despair and you get ideas for fanfic. you learn life lessons. You may walk alone in a shopping mall, feeling sad or neutral, suddenly you see something that reminds you of your fandom, suddenly you're grinning like an idiot. Hey it makes your day.

Yeah being a nerd is fun :3 and we do have a LIFE!


Next... FALL ANIME.

So I'm gonna watch Magi, Ixion Saga, Kamisama Hajimemashita, Code Geass: Boukoku no Akito and Code Breaker. So far I've already seen Zetsuen no Tempest and Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun and the most anticipated...

K!!

I'm most impressed with this anime, since the first episode gave me a lot of eye-candy. It's so intriguing and so mysterious, and you wanna know more. Though it may remind you of Durarara!!, No.6, Persona 3 (game) and probably Code Geass and Guilty Crown. The characters look so perfect, it's impossible to choose who you want to fall in love with (who cares. TAKE ALL BISHOUNENS!!!) And the cast is wuahahaha c'mon~ you have Tomokazu Sugita, Tsuda Kenjirou, Ono Daisuke, Takahiro Sakurai, Mamoru Miyano, Fukuyama Jun, Kaji Yuki, Namikawa Daisuke and even Sawashiro Miyuki! I have high hopes for K but I hope it didn't turn out to be like Sacred Seven, it looked amazing at first but then it was mehhh. However, K has beautiful OST to make up for it even if it reaches a downfall. The OST is composed by Mikio Endo... apparently he's a newbie composer and K is his first work. I look forward to this. I miss looking forward and get all excited towards an anime, ever since Tiger & Bunny is over nothing else seem to complete me.

Yeah this shall be the only first impression post in this blog haha.

Comeback

Hi, so I'm reviving this blog cos I have a serious urge to write about what i think of the anime I watch. I usually tweet about them, but I don't think it's enough.

 

But since I left it for over a year, I can't immediately review the recent ones. So I plan to post the ones from the previous years first. Oh guess what i have over 10 animes to review, then there are 3 tokusatsus. And probably I'm gonna crap about the PS3 I played for the past year. Oh yeah there are series like BBC Sherlock, Merlin and Glee... Yeah a lot to do. and I need to focus on my irl issues too.

 

Ok the reason why I've been too lazy to update this blog is due to the blogspot system a year ago. It pisses me off when I accidentally erases my drafts and blogspot immediatey autosaves. Stuff I've been writing for hours gone just like that! In order to avoid that, I write my reviews in Microsoft word before transferring them here. It used to be more of a hassle. Moreover, it's the when it comes to posting image in every blogposts was a hassle too.

 

When I came back the format has improved a lot, so I don't have any frustrations with the images to upload etc.

 

And eversince I opened up this blog (in 2008?) I hadn't done any modifications to the designs or templates. I left it with white background and no banner. This time I decided to weeabo-fy my blog; changed the title from "WTF / quantumvolpina" to "[ VieN ] degozaru / vien-oneesama". And the current background is an art from the game Okami. Erm... this might be temporary as I have something else in mind. It's too pink lol.

Previously it was called "quantumvolpina" because I thought i'd include any science related stuff in the blog (and that I'm taking physics), but I figured that it doesn't need mix ups so the blog should be focused on typical nerd stuff.

 

Other than that, I don't think I'll be using smaller text size anymore -aside from image description.

An important reminder though:

• I do not own all the images used in the blog, all images belong to their respective owners unless it is my own work.
• My reviews are not to be taken seriously, as I do not take ratings into consideration, including aspects in terms of art, story, characters, etc.
• I'm not really a good writer, so just enjoy the sarcasm.

I may include chatbox later. However, there'd be no twitter feed since my twitter is private.
In case you're interested, http://twitter.com/VulpineNinja. But don't you dare follow me if you can't handle the random rants and fangirling and preaching and hating.

So yeah that's all.
With that, i bid you adieu with this little fellah

art by me, copyright by Marvel

Japanese songs - do you understand..?

All this while I never hide the fact that I like Japanese music and video game soundtracks. In fact, I always find oppurtunities to show off that interest. I'm not ashamed to let people know that my scope is not as limited as theirs, and to imply to them that I'm different. I prefer to listen to my mp3s without my earphones plugged, but since I do respect my roommate then I would. Otherwise, people will easily know that I listen to J-pop and J-rock. Not only that, there are songs from other languages too (good music does not only limit to one or two languages, no?)

[Disclaimer: Yuna from Final Fantasy X-2. For decoration purpose only]

Then one fateful day this question popped up: "Why do you like to listen to songs we don't understand?" [case 1]

And then today I was happily watching a Music Video of Complication by ROOKIEZ is PUNK'D when someone burst my bubble with "Do you even understand what they're saying?" [case 2]

It stings.

I may not show it, nor did I explode. But still, what's with those kind of questions? Condemning? Close minded? Or you just can't value a good music just because it's not English or Malay? As if your Hip hop or R&B hit songs are that amazing. I'm always open to preview songs in foreign language, regardless of how little I understand it. You can always find the lyrics translation, ne? unlike some people, I use the internet wisely (and abuse with wisdom!)

Of course I don't understand Japanese lyrics, in spite of attending Japanese Language lessons. Well, we can't complete all the syllabus for some reason, but I do have some basics. but I do like Japanese songs since I started watching anime (which was like how many centuries ago?), but have never really been much of a fan. It was difficult to find lyrics back then, nor the translation... and I used to be a n00b when it comes to downloading stuff. So I only, FINALLY, got myself some Japanese songs about 4 years ago, when I stole it from a friend.

One of the factors of my inclination to Japanese songs is that I was once tired of listening to lyrics of mainstream music (which was also about 4 years ago). Tired, disgusted, annoyed. This is also one reason why I started lurking for video game OST. Japanese songs saved my ears from that blight. Safe from those soppy romantic songwords and perverted implication of getting laid.

well then i was like "now that i got some nihon no uta, I feel like singing-along!". I started to find lyrics of the songs that I like most, then out of curiousity I wanted to know what it means. I can't remember when is the first time I came across the lyrics translation, but once I found it.... imagine my surprise.

THE LYRICS ARE BEAUTIFUL!
(this was my answer for case 1)

I know the translation may or may not be exact or direct, but once you look at it, you realize that those popular songs that you hear on the radio is not up to par with J-music. Not just in terms instruments used, or rythm or whatever u wanna call it. The lyrics are just so goddamn poetic, and it makes you wonder what it really means. Sorry, I'm the kind of person who likes to evaluate lyrics and how the message is delivered. Malay and English songs lack this writing skill, and as a result the songs sound too straightforward... repetitive and in the end becomes boring (so boring that I want to throw up). Wait... lately I notice Japanese songwords seem to have repetition too... (sometimes even without finding the translation, you can guess what they're saying cos you're already familiar with several Japanese words) but oh well, my artistic side is still in love with the metaphoras. Even if there are English songs that are this good, they don't neccessarily belong to the mainstream. :3 As for Malay.... to be honest, it's Hazami. I kinda prefer his version of Winter Sonata theme than the original Korean, cos the latter has more direct message.

Anyways, I'm not really impressed by this post of mine. I guess I'm just ranting. I'm angry about this 'attitude' towards songs-you-can't-understand. I did my best to control my anger in [case 2] but it caused me to lag a bit before I simply respond with "if you don't understand find the lyrics translation". Easy wor, got internut wor... I wanted to say more but I didn't want to show that it really affected my feelings. Before this, the same person kindly asked me to remove them Japanese songs from my WMP cos she can't understand it (eh it's not like I understood either... but if you ask me what do i not understand is WHY DO YOU LIEK J BIEBER???). If i were to judge music, it's not the language but the story behind it, the melody, the genre (and sometimes the singer).

Ah... One of these days I'll just explain it properly.

So I wonder, (if there's anyone out there who read this) have you ever got this kind of comment before?

Video Games Live (prelude)

About a week (or more) before 17th April, I had two dreams regarding VGL. But it was not just a dream, it was like a nightmare. The first dream; I had entered the Plenary Hall which was smaller than I expected (considering that I've never been there) - it was at the size of the average classroom in my faculty. However, in spite of having the third best ticket I somehow took a seat at the front most row. Although the 'hall' was small, I remember that I was rather excited to be there. The second dream was much scarier, because I was in a rush - I think I was rather late for the show due to the fact I forgot to bring the tickets.

Three days before the event, I won the second last ticket for the 2.30 pm show from the twitter contest. And so I came to the conclusion that... THOSE TWO DREAM WERE SIGNS OF A GOOD OMEN! And as promised (not officially) I gave it to deady, since I've already bought the tickets for the night show. What's even more epic is that of all places, I reunited with a former schoolmate + bus buddy which I have not seen for TEN YEARS (cheesy much? But it just happened to me!). And at the end of the day, finding out we have so much in common made me happy. THANK YOU VGL TWITTER CONTEST!!!

So after my Japanese Language class, my family and I went straight to KLCC. Looks like I forgot to inform them that VGL and PC Fair were at the Convention Centre, not Suria. So we kinda had to walk a long way to get there... sure feels like performing pilgrimage cos the crowd is like moving in clusters all towards the Convention Centre. I never though I'd bump into Ookami senpai there who already watched the 2.30 show. We thought of getting autographs during the meet and greet, but we were a tad too late for that. It's our fault for not lining up in the first place DX

At the same time deady was trying to summon me, but I was too busy forcing senpai to do dogeza to heed her call LOL. I was too lazy to walk back to suria, but somehow deady used some trickplay to get my to Burger King only to see Reppu ungentlemanly finished his dinner already. He doesn't see us as ladies, but as his shikigami/familiars. KEJAMMMM... Hwaha honestly I'm okay with it lah. (so we cannot consider it as Reppu's unintentional harem...). And then deady is like... unable to finish her sentence because of her laughing fits, and Reppu bumped into a few of his acquaintances (gile popular taichou ni), and a certain degree of my fujoshi side is disclosed.... Social Link up~!

So we walk around Kinokuniya and Jusco a bit (SECRET ROUTE GET!!). Then deady had to go back, and I left Reppu to meet up with my long lost friend. Wheeee~! Talk for a bit... Unbelievable for me to talk much since I'm pretty much a quiet person. I guess, I HAD to talk - cos we've been separated for a decade, and we used to chat about anime/manga stuff (her being DBZ fangirl, while I'm into Sailormoon) in the bus otw home. But time was short, and I had to go to toilet then we had to get inside already. I forgot to take pics with her, unfortunately T__T. Nevertheless, in spite of the cheesy plot, I LOVE THIS EPISODE OF MY LIFE!

Okay, so it's tim for the important part where I review/comment about the show.... But not in this post!!! 8D

Look forward to the next one!

2009 Epic End

I never thought my 31/12/2009 would have an epic moment, unlike the past end of year events where the day just pass by just like that.

I used to enjoy watching those bloody concerts on TV, with KLCC as background and "Final Countdown" as the last music blared out loud before the old year ends, and the new year borns. Glad that they don't have it this.. I mean, last year. lol. But I grew bored of those stupid concert. Every year is the same thing. Has nothing to do with new year stuff. It's getting old. Malaysia needs something fresh and new (same goes for National Day events).

[gambar untuk hiasan semata2. Shadow of Collosus]

Anyway... the memorable thing about the last day of 2009 is a silly adventure my friend and I been through. This is a true story of two young scholars in an epic quest for hazardous knowledge. After waking up and drinking my tasteless yet nutritious lunch, my coursemate (Norra) called me, asking for my company to find a legendary book.

Riiiiggghhhttt...

She said there are three of the books available in Pusat Asasi Sains UM (PASUM) stacks according to the library database, while those in the main library are no longer in the shelves. So we got our stuff ready, with me being a little late because she called me from outside my room earlier than I thought. SORRY! I'm usually punctual but I was reading both manga and Bohr's model, and I had to tidy up some things. Then we're off.

We decided to walk since the PASUM area is like... 4 buildings away from our college. If we had taken the bus, it'd waste our time waiting and had make one round around the lake. I had no idea where the PASUM library is, but from the surface I understood that PASUM layout is goddamn complicated, so I let her lead the way. She used to take her pre-U course here. However, after 2-3 years of not wandering about the compound, she has a vague memory of the location... but she knew we had to climb a hill to reach the destination.

Yes, the hill climb is quite an exercise. And it somewhat reminds me of traversing through a video game stage with the 'ancient' architecture and all. We walked by silent labroratories that looked like they're abandoned (although I know the fact that this place is still running, just that maybe the pre-U students are on a break..?). And further up was a construction site, which looked like they're building a shopping complex within the campus area. Really, it's big and like four-storey high. What worries me the most is that it's located on the hill slope, and we had several cases of landslide already. I won't be surprise if this construction crumble into pieces because of careless humans. I pray they won't go shaving the preserved forest in the middle of the campus or the monkeys will RAGE.

"There's no other way to reach the library," said Norra. Referring to the construction site, "It's supposed to be here..." [not the exact dialog but she said something like this]

"Maybe they've demolished the library to build this 'shopping complex'," I said. Being highly imaginative, I saw the construction site as 'ruins of ye olde library' instead LOL. "Let's ask the folks here..."

[gambar untuk hiasan semata2.]

First I suggested the lecturers since the lecturer's block is near, but then better ask someone nearer. We headed for the computer lab's staff room. I almost doubt no one was there because the area looks deserted. Imagine a Silent Hill ghost popping out of nowhere, despite of the blazing sunlight.

"The library....." the staff began answering our question, "....is no more..."[okay i exaggerated mood for the bad news]

Oh despair!

"Never mind..." said Norra.

But being the devoted believer of Kamina-ism (Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann), I wasn't going to give up! Especially when I had agreed to tag along to search for this book, and it'd be a dishonour to drop our quest. I said, "I beg your pardon, sir! We were looking for a book and we discovered that it is kept in PASUM library! If that library is no more, then I am absolutely certain that the book(s) is/are relocated somewhere else! So, answer me kind sir; do you happen to know where it is?" [as if I really said it like this! XD]

Logically speaking, the books can't just vanish with the building =_=

"Oh, then you have to consult the office..." he said.

After thanking him, we climbed down the mossy stairs and through the lousy excuse of a Japanese-esque structure. Then we entered the next site; I can only laugh at the drastic change of theme. You know, UM has a very inconsistent building designs that's equivalent garbage in my eyes. There's a new so called high-classed toilet in my faculty that is totally unsynchronized with the faculty's old buildings. Shamefully, the flush is broken about a month after it's completed LOL.

Anyways, we asked the lady behind the counter of the PASUM office. I almost couldn't hear her voice because she's too softspoken.

"The library....." said the lady, "....is no more..." [well, the way she said it was more sombre]

I repeated the same thing about the book can be found here, and insisted about the books' location. I expected that they might have a temporary library around there. But she asked us to leave our number (only Norra gave) because she would give it to the person in charge of the library books and also suggested that we consult the folks in the main library.

"So what should we do now?" Norra asked me as we walked through the corridor that looked liked an alleyway in spite of facing the main one way road (issit called Lingkungan Ilmu?). "Should we wait for this person to call?"

"I kinda have doubts that this person to call us, we could've asked for her/his number too so we could inquire him/her," I replied. "But let's just go check out the main library."

Then we had to walk again. It's a good thing that I really do like walking even if I worry that I'd stink due to sweating. Walking at the pavements, opposing the traffic, and our vision was partially clouded by gray vehicle farts (I ran out of pretty metaphors). We passed the epic waterfall and the huge UM logo, where we last see the number '2009' on it. I thought of taking a picture there, but a cluster of students were hanging around with that very motive so I passed. So carried on walking and stepping on unnaturally straight zebra stripes plastered on the road.

Straight to the point now, the staff at the counter confirmed that the PASUM books are relocated there. SEE! I knew those binded pages full of vast knowledge would have refuged somewhere! Next, we went to the floor where the books were supposedly situated. The odd looking shelves were in the middle of the main library's standard shelves as though they're surrounded. Norra recited the book's code, and as we had anticipated, the three books of Introductory Nuclear Physics by Kenneth Krane stood together like valiant sentries awaited us!

REJOICE! Victory dance! [Nay, we did nothing more than expressing our gratitude to God that we finally found it]

But in the end, we took just one of them intending to make photocopies of them lol.

So ends the quest, and that's how my 2009 ended.

Moral of the story: ya gotta be persistent to get what ya want. and for knowledge's sake, we may have to sacrifice luxury (of transporation aka air conditioned bus), travel for miles to reach our objective (like Xuanzang in Journey to the West). InsyaAllah, may we get an A for our worthy efforts =]

bak kata norra... "kalo tak dapat A tak tahu la..."

p/s: dialog sume tak semestinya sama dengan keadaan sebenar sebab ingatan aku berkenaan kejadian ini samar2. Dialog juga diubah untuk menimbulkan suasana cerita Lord of the Rings HWAHAHA

~~~~~

End note: HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE! WELCOME 2010! i suck at sappy motivational speech so just go your merry way~

[source: http://www.motifake.com/ ]