Ace questions here please!
Recent Responses
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Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
Near perfect movie, arguably the best Batman movie (although the Tim Burton original is my personal fave) and it has loads of great action and great performances by Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy. If you've not seen it, what's keeping you?!
Other than that, I recommend:
Ninja Scroll
Sword of the Stranger
Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door
Macross Plus
Akira
Redline (released domestically this year)
That's 6 anime movies that have good dubs and excellent action. Sword of the Stranger doesn't get anywhere near the level of love it deserves so I think everyone should see that one, you'll have a really hard time finding another animated movie with fight scenes that are as well choreographed as they are in this movie! -
You are most definitely asking the wrong person if you want to know about cosplay. Why do you want to know about cosplay anyway? I guess what most anime fans nowadays consider "the real shit" to be stuff like Gurren Lagann, Code Gay-Ass, K-On!, Lucky Star, Bleach, Higurashi, High School of the Dead and other assorted garbage (Gurren Lagann is the exception here, but otherwise, send me your hatemail). Also, if you go to an anime con, it seems like half the cosplayers are dressing up as videogame characters anyway!
I'll let you in on a secret though. The stuff you've seen, that's "the real shit", "what anime is all about", "japanimation", or however you want to label it. Akira and Ghost in the Shell are awesome, if you want more stuff that's about pushing what you can express through animation I would check out the following movies:
Patlabor
Memories
Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro
Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door
Perfect Blue
Jin-Roh
Black Jack
Grave of the Fireflies
Redline
Summer Wars
Space Adventure Cobra
Ninja Scroll
Porco Rosso
Barefoot Gen
Princess Mononoke
Interstella 5555
Macross Plus
Royal Space Force: The Wings of the Honneamise
That's in no way a definitive list, but I think all of those movies are at least great, and at best completely mind-blowing. In short, if you like the cartoons, watch more. If you like to dress up, ask someone else! -
I can't honestly answer this question without seeing the movies first. I guess the order in which I'm excited to see them goes something like this:
Captain America
X-Men: First Class
Thor
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Green Lantern
Captain America looks great and the casting's been spot on. The costume is awesome too! I love Cap and it's good to see him being treated well.
Green Lantern looks like shit and it pains me to see how much money is being wasted on something that looks incredibly tacky. Don't get me wrong, I like some GL stuff and I thought the animated GL movie that came out a while back was pretty cool, but this movie looks atrocious. I'm probably still going to see it though. -
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This is really nice. It's cool that someone took the time to read my answers, and actually think about what I say. Even though I'm honest and open about myself, it's interesting that someone could perceive my feelings differently from the way I jot them down.
You're probably right! I would never use the term "work-shy" though because I think it sounds a bit wishy-washy but otherwise I think you interpreted what I said perfectly.
I find it really hard to get started on things that really matter, but when I think about things that I've actually achieved - no matter how small - I'm usually proud that I did them. I should just get on with it! Hopefully I'll be doing something more productive with my time next year and I forge a solid work ethic and I'd like to say I'm going to commit to that.
I'll also hopefully have a side project or two lined up soon so I can get more involved in things I'm passionate about rather than being so passive to entertainment and feeling bad about it.
Guts and hard work! -
Definitely had a super fun time at Rosie's! A lot of funny things happened and the company was just awesome. More stuff like that please!
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Wow, I like this question. I would immediately dismiss the Pokemon part because I had seen quite a few anime beforehand (Akira, Devilman, Ghost in the Shell, Street Fighter 2) so that wouldn't be fair.
The question also seems to imply that I revere Japanese culture above all else, when I am much more of an all-purpose nerd with a preference for action in all mediums. I consume a lot of entertainment, mostly from Hong Kong, America and Japan but I wouldn't say I put any one culture above the other. Should I be satisfied with the entertainment put out purely by either Britain or America? There's so much variety and interesting stuff out there I don't think it's fair to dismiss any one culture or entertainment industry.
I was personally really impressed by the film Merantau Warrior that was released recently from Indonesia. Although obviously influenced by the Tony Jaa films from Thailand, there was a lot there culturally that I'd not seen before, and the effort to make a meaningful story was handled a lot better than any of Tony Jaa's efforts.
One thing I really appreciate about Japanese entertainment though, is the unrestrained insanity and creativity at work. It seems that only in Japan can someone write a story in which a character can touch a pressure point and cause someone's head to explode without even a hint of irony.
I started watching an anime recently called Law of Ueki which is a kids show with a cast of characters with X-Men like powers, except the powers they have are all extremely lame. The main guy can turn trash into trees, and one of the guys can turn towels into metal but only if he holds his breath! Of course, anime can be just as formulaic as entertainment from any other country, but I like how weird it is.
If American cartoons regularly came out that match the quality of the Batman animated series or Justice League I would watch just as much American animation as Japanese.
One thing that's definitely true about your statement though, is that it's probably because I consumed this stuff at a young age that I like it so much. One of the reasons I fell into watching a lot of anime was because it was one of the only ways that I could watch stuff that was really violent. My parents wouldn't let me watch 15s and 18s for a long time but they would let me see anime because I guess they thought it was for kids! I saw crazy stuff like Ninja Scroll and Perfect Blue long before I saw Terminator 2 for example. That may have led me to have a greater inclination towards animation and to this day I consider the entertainment value of animation to be equal to live action.
Man, I've barely touched upon why I like this stuff, there's loads more to it but I feel like I'm just rambling now.
And yeah, I'm an eternal fanboy. Should I feel bad about that? -
Golgo 13. He never misses.
(Unless the target is guarded by a Russian psychic) -
This is hard. The movie that trumps all else in sheer quantity of amazing one liners is The Running Man, but then I have to go through the arduous process of choosing the best of best.
"I don't do requests"
"Hello cutie-pie, one of us is in deep trouble"
"Oh, he had to split"
For me though, I think the best one liners are the ones spoken to the villains before dealing the finishing blow with reaction shot included. I also love that reversal moment in Commando when Bill Duke says "Fuck you asshole" only to discover that he's all out of bullets, Arnie's smug retort is masterful in a satisfyingly lazy way.
The one that's made me laugh the most is probably:
"Iced that guy, to cone a phrase."
That is one of the most perfect lines in cinematic history and probably the best thing about Last Action Hero.
There are a lot of other great non-Arnie one liners too, but when I think of one liners he's my go to guy. That said, I always like the look of contempt on Sly's face when he says "Fuck 'em" at the end of Rambo 3 and I'll always vouch for Kurt Russell, especially when he has so many classic lines in Escape From New York and Big Trouble in Little China.
Rowdy Roddy Piper has a few classics in They Live as well.
"Brother, life's a bitch... and she's back in heat."
"I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass... and I'm all out of bubblegum."
There's probably loads I love that I can't think of right now but that's a whole bunch and you only asked for one. -
Man, you're asking the wrong person! I've barely played any new games this year. I think the only new games I've played are God of War 3, Super Street Fighter 4, Dragon Quest 9, Pokemon Heart Gold and Tatsunoko VS Capcom. That's mostly due to not owning any kind of current gen console though. Of those games, the one I've played the most is Super Street Fighter 4 and the one I think I've enjoyed the most is probably God of War 3 (Been with it since the beginning so I was happy to see it to the end). I love me some Super Street Fighter 4 but every time I play it I'm just frustrated that it's not 3rd Strike, which is what I always end up going back to.
I've had a shot of the demo for Vanquish and that really impressed me. My brother is going to lend it to me after he's finished with it I hope. From my first impression of this game I think that it will probably be my favourite of 2010 because it features game mechanics which I personally find the most rewarding (constant momentum and emphasis on both reflexes/twitch gameplay and critical thinking/decision making). It plays like a new age Resident Evil 4 or even God Hand to an extent and is probably the perfect example of why I prefer the Japanese approach to gameplay (greater emphasis on mastery). -
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This is very very very hard. I'm gonna be really lazy though and say Christmas, Christmas every year. My family has the best ones ever and it's always amazing.
Other than that, there have been certain times when my parents and my bro have supported me through hard times when I've been less than helpful to say the very least. For that I'm eternally grateful, I'm a really hard person to put up with at times!
I really love the things we do together as a family, and I like that there's a common sense of familial humour that's very distinctive. Anyone that's ever sat at the dinner table with us should know what I mean. I don't know if other people consider our patter particularly good, but unless my parents are getting on my case, I usually think it's gold. -
This is actually an excellent question. I don't seem to have any major beefs with particular people anymore. Should I start more fights with strangers in the hope of a good argument? I might make some proper enemies and that would keep me on my toes.
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I struggle to my feet, point my finger at the camera like a gun and say "bang" softly before falling forwards to the floor.
Nah, mine would probably be really lame and dumb like holding my friend's hand and requesting that they "take...care of the...orphans after...I'm gone...uggghhhh" as my eyes roll back into my sockets.
OH! Maybe my friend could be shouting at me to pull myself together and I just turn and say "I'm already dead!" and then EXPLODE! -
Not a massive fan of that idea tbh. Can anyone vouch for the act?
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Which key South Park episodes should I watch from the last 2 seasons? I always forget to watch it even though I always love it.
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Dare - Stan Bush
Sometimes when your hopes have all been shattered
And there's nowhere to turn
You wonder how you keep going
Think of all the things that really mattered
And the chances you've earned
The fire in your heart is growing
You can fly, if you try leaving the past behind
Heaven only knows what you might find
Dare - dare to believe you can survive
You hold the future in your hand
Dare - dare to keep all of your dreams alive
It's time to take a stand
And you can win, if you dare
Everybody's trying to break your spirit
Keeping you down
Seems like it's been forever
But there's another voice if you'll just hear it
Saying it's the last round
Looks like it's now or never
Out of the darkness you stumble into the light
Fighting for the things you know are right
Dare - dare to believe you can survive
The power is there at your command
Dare - dare to keep all of your dreams alive
It's time to take a stand
And you can win, if you dare
Dare - dare to believe you can survive
You hold the future in your hand
Dare - dare to keep all of your dreams alive
The power is there at your command
Dare - dare to keep all your love alive
Dare to be all you can be
Dare - 'cause there is a place where dreams survive
And it's calling you on to victory -
I think I'd like to be kicked through one of those Japanese paper walls in Fist of Fury by Bruce Lee, that would be legendary. Maybe I could be the really inept warm up to Robert Baker's character.
In terms of who could make it look the best though, I would have to go with Benny Urquidez. Spinning back kick to the chest would send me through more than a pile of boxes, that's for sure! -
ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
Yare yare daze.
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Hamish’s Bio
Living in a shrine dedicated to my...
I'm a full-time time-waster.
