The BBQ

Today was a really nice day at the beach. I usually hate the beach, but as I always say, anything is doable if you are doing it with friends.

The planning session beforehand was in the lovely confines of the Nyonya Restaurant outdoor stalls, although the restaurant was long closed when we got there- pasar malam food will do just fine ! After the usual 'two channel' discussion (tau lah tuuu) the plan was set...at least in theory! More on that later...

I was at Hua Ho at about 9.40 AM...still not open, but the doors were open and the escalators were working. It's interesting to see how people run around and prep a department store before it opens- I would have taken pictures but that would have been weird, plus I was also trying to save time. Picked up the BBQ chips and salsa and a few other things ( ROPE, DUDES?), then zoomed to Muara.

en route, someone texted me- "You got kerosene?" ......dude who the hell brings kerosene with them everywhere they go? Mi etu no capische! Sul serio...

Anykoows, I got there at about 10-ish and as usual there is no parking at the Muara Beach. Expand the beach and beautify it, but the car park? We have to start thinking like car-crazy Bruneians when we build these things....

Found Wafiy wandering around with his guitar like a gypsy and we found the others quite quickly. Amin, Azhan, Yuzzey, AJ, Mun, Faye, Farah were already there. We settled in and started the BBQ up, although to my shame I'm not really good at these things; I prefer cooking in the kitchen. Here's a shot of what I mean...

notice I'm missing? hehe kes inda pandai BBQ

Being a bit useless on the BBQ (plus still going around with the Gala guilt) I took to the guitar. Now I can't sing, so it's very unlikely I know any songs! even if I did play along to one no one would probably know the words! so thank goodness for this fella showing up...

yes he reads the news!

The plan was to do some after-lunch activities, and we proceeded to the first; a pass-the-parcel kind of game. I was kind of hoping for spin the bottle, but we didn't have a bottle heheheheh.... the task was simple, someone keeps time with music and everyone passes a ball around. The Ball Getter would have to do something that Amin made up. I got the 'be a baby' command...

But lo! the second event was somewhat pre-empted by a FASHION SHOW! That's right, a HEELS FROM HELL show! Needless to say, the 'heel relay' was off! Just look at these raging hormones! Pure beauty in heels made to er...inflict pain!

I only know these guys like this- ankles and above!

I don't know these girls... Thailand trannies?

The rest was a long.......long........long.......long walk to the end of the beach! I don't know what else to say, that's all it was! Dropped my phone but luckily Azahan found it ! Other than that it was walk, pose for pics, walk, pose for pics, pose for more pics, walk, walk, pose.... very Bruneian, no? Who are we if not the most able volunteers for strange/mad poses!

The last interesting find was this marlin Yuz and I ran into. It seemed to be carrying its eggs so it was a female (swordfish species are like that).

That is one huge fish! (and those are Azahan's fingers)

I still owe the girl on the left an apology for something I still don't know what I did....but as a wise friend says, 'move on'....but I'm still scratching my head. Just what did I do? That should be the mystery of 2008, we have 2009 to ponder over it....

or as they say in babel -Japanese...

私はまだ私が….したことを左の女の子に私がまだ知らない何かのための謝罪を負うしかし賢い友人として言ったり、続く私の生命と….しかし私はまだ私の頭 部を傷付けている。 ちょうど私は何をしたか。 それは2008年のミステリーべきである私達過すそれを熟考するべき2009年を….

For Yuz

biar ia heheheh.....


I had to visit the eye doctor yesterday after a crazy allergic reaction to some 'batang pisang' vegetables (not the banana fruit, thank God) left me with eyes that looked like minus signs.

the problem was I have this crazy shifting phenomenon going on when I look straight- my carpet and even my Guitar Hero Highway look like they're off center and running to catch up with the rest of my vision!

I now have three eyedrops, one eye cream and two anti histamine sets to take for 14 days.

The scariest part though, was when the optometrist dabbed these color drops into my eye. For 10 minutes, everything was in this color! I panicked and almost ran out the room! I thought I was going blind or something- no wonder I couldn't look straight!

Having my eyesight affected is not fun, I tell you...

Lets101 Quizzes - fun Myspace quiz

One of those tag thingies

The rule is , google image

The rules are simple. Use google image to search the answers to the questions below. Then you must choose a picture in the first page of results and post it as your answer. Have fun..

(a) place you'd like to travel to


(b) a favorite place


(c): a thing you can't live without



(d): favorite food



(e): college major

(f): a bad habit


(g): the name of my love

(h): searching for


(i): wishlist

2007-2008 in a nutshell

When I first got the order to do the PGCE at UBD I balked and let out more flames and fire than a dragon eating peppers in hell. I condemned everything from the top to bottom and how stupid rules affect smart people (I still do). Now that it's ending I'm rather sad at having to leave. I feel like I've had two experiences of youth time- one in the UK and now here. I feel more well rounded and fluent and 'in touch'.

The first semester was interesting to say the least (the paperwork trail before was NOT) but I felt really detached from the education courses but really stuck into the History courses. It's no surprise most of my UBD friends are from FASS and not SHIBIE. In fact I can't think of anyone (not from the PGCE course) from semester 1 who is still my friend now that semester 3 is ending that was from the SHBIE courses. The only damp squib was probably the slightly lame convo festival.... to be remedied in 2008!

I'd post some pics but I can't be arsed- maybe a later post? I haveto blog more....

Second sem was very interesting; for 80% of the PGCE people it was the last semester and for my new buddies at FASS it was their second, or second to last semester there. I met two of the members of the Midnight Malam Malam Makan team (we are all 'A' people too, including the honorary lady member heheh). The memories from this time in early 2008 were awesome- cramming and jamming PF2212 at Suzie's house, wise cracking Dr Kurtz's "tutorials", that Amway proposal (I said no) and of course Dr Boorer's awesome classes/tutorials/interview sessions. I miss you history people- MOT and all!

The TP? Less said about it the better. I heard the school went even crazier after I left, good riddance for me! (I think I still owe them some work).

There were those two awesome vacations- KL in June and Australia in July; it's all on the FB for details, I was extremely satisfied with both for different reasons. I lost a glove again in Australia , but otherwise breathing new air really makes me come to life. I am definitely coming back to both places for sure.

Third sem, that's when it really got exciting. With a smaller timetable life was easier, and the Hang Out period began. The arrival of a new VC as well as a veeeery familar BPM FASS committee (nothing against BMSHBIE, but their room is creepy) made for a cranking up of the excitement level. The MMMT team based ourselves in Red Canopy ( later Thyes) and even got into bowling. I also made friends with an assortment of people; amateur video coreographers, would be shredders, queens, hair models, metro boys, dive enthusiasts, coffee people, download kings/queens , drama folk , Romeos and Juliets, costume makers and cooks - to say the least. Whoever says UBD people are boring and identical really needs a Makita drill up the ass. I've never had a reason for staying up late so much until now!

According to my car, in the first two weeks of Raya I travelled a sum total of 10,520 km - that's 10 times round Brunei! Thanks to my scattered friends all over Brunei!

One thing might have made this less than perfect- a complete mess (on my part) after the Gala Night that was supposed to end the whole shebang.

I only have to say this- I am truly, deeply sorry to Hazemah and Faye for my reaction to your sincere apology. I've had a lot of people apologize to me in my life without being geniune. I eventually lost my trust in anyone who apologized, because people have done me in almost immediately after being sorry. You did not deserve such a harsh reply from me.

I. am. sorry.

As for two people who have somehow turned from warm to cold - Niza and Mun; I have no idea what started your U-turns towards me, but I can only apologize here as well. I just wish I knew who or what happenned. I don't like being marooned, but being shunned hurts more ,no matter what I might have done. Feel free to hate me, but just tell me why. Hell, I'll give you each one free shot to my face. I just wish people would just tell the truth to me.

I am Dog hear me bark

Lets101 Quizzes - Blog Quizzes

War Junkies and Air Gears

I don't care what his excuses are- Hazman is a war junkie and he is very much in denial about it. Sure, war has been a part of history but that is no reason to teach history 'to form 3 boys who will join the army anyway'. War junkie. I hope I can kill you someday slowly. See war, see Postdam, see Auschwitz, see war veterans with scars all over them. I have. You have not. So shut the fuck up you little war junkie and play with your little toy soldiers. You have no guts, let alone any brains.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That aside, I have another review (which no one will probablly read):

This time it's a popular anime in Japan and the States, AIR GEAR.



I had heard that even the dub of this anime was better than one would expect, although I rarely watch dubs (out of availablity issues, really). I did fancy myself some shonen anime for a change, apart from the TV diet of Slam Dunk and Appleseed (plus the Vagrant shorts). So I got myself the first season of Air Gear on DVD and let it rip.

The first thing that hits you in the face is the awesome drum and bass (ish) soundtrack by Skankfunk. Every episode was a blast to watch because of the soundtrack ,which was perfect for this sort of anime with all the racing and high tempo action. Even the closing theme was thubthumping. It certainly helped me watch this anime in a good mood and was a refreshing change from metal guitar or orchestral backgrounds from a lot of anime I've seen lately (not that they are bad, just overused).

The concept of Air Treks, which are basically two wheeled rollerblades with engines and computer chips could have gone overboard but I'm glad it didn't. The idea of 'flying' with blades is something any 90s kid (like me) can appreciate, and the anime does a good job of demonstrating just how liberating the feeling is, even for the huge Buccha- a flying 7 foot guy in a pink shirt is so very anime. The animation could be a bit smoother, but barring CGI I can't really see how it could have been done justice. The idea of racing up vertical walls is crazy- I love it!

The show has some pretty interesting moments, particularly the Parts Wars that involve a lot of physics, falling down and racing. Our 'baby face' main character is shown to be a quick learner (Sakuragi Hanamichi but with less restraint) on the Treks, although I really loved the moment when upside-down rider Onigiri actually defeats a succubus-type character. I loved it everytime Buccha's "tank" appeared, I felt like running away from the screen each time it appeared.

That brings me to another strong point of the anime- characters. I was dreading that it would be an "Ikki and friends" show but it seems to be about everyone all at once, despite the main character being the Black Crow himself. Kazu , the loyal second is not given the chance to shine (the anime does not cover even half of the current ongoing manga story) as much as I would have liked but that's the problem with 26 episode anime these days; too many plotlines, not enough episode time. Ah, to reminisce about the old days when anime had 40 plus episodes....
A lot of the characters who show up are not really well used , partly due to their roles in the manga occuring later; Takenuchi Sora is particuarly not telling half his story, which might disappoint manga fans , at least until there is a second season.

Overall though, the characters are strong and make you think about them from the flighty nude-addict Simca (read the manga for more), the red haired flame King Spitfire and naturally, Ikki's four adopted sisters who all have wierd personalities apart from Ringo, the one everyone will root to end up with him (again, read the manga for more). Despite the lack of focus on many supporting characters everyone is there to be counted, which is pretty good in any anime ,a genre where a lot of characters are mere cameos for no reason. In sticking with my previous pattern of character relationship preferences, I'm not so glad that there are hardly any overt romantic relationships apart from Rika and Sora, which in the manga is a thing of the past but just restarted in the anime.

When the series degenerated into fighting teams near the end it ran the risk of becoming an 'arena combat' type of show . I was liking the F and E class matches where there was a creative goal to be reached, or the A-Class match where the tag is attached to a balloon that everyone has to chase. The matches with Behemoth were hardly a coda for anyone apart from Onigiri (just watch how he wins, it's hilarious), and the Kyoto arc that follows is not really worth being the ending of the series, especially since nothing at all has been tied up. The plot seemed written for more episodes but I was disappointed with the sudden halt to proceedings with nothing but a big Air Trek jump to show for it.

Another sticking point is the fan service- I know this is also prevalent in all of OhGreat!'s work but the story needs to be told before anything should be bandied about. It's much more interesting when it's really comedic, accidental or meaningful to the character (look at Onigiri's "honey", for instance) rather than Simca suddenly appearing in Ikki's bed naked for no reason other than to titliate him. It ain't funny, at least not to me.

How shall I rate it? I would normally give my grade for average shows with some noticable flaws (7) but thanks to the soundtrack still in my head I will push it over the barrier and award an

8/10.
(Heroic Age review postponed)

Review No 2: Glass no Kantai @ Garakan: The Glass Fleet

As promised, this is meant to be a summative review of Legend Of The Glass Fleet @ Garasu no Kantai. Read the Code Geass review down there for disclaimers and warnings.

I'm always inclined towards space operas so I tend to have higher standards for the ones I watch. I've seen a lot of ads on Animax about this show and even watched a preview episode attached to another anime DVD. I was quite impressed with that episode and was looking forward to the other episodes after getting the box set.


My first impression was that there wasn't a suitable number of episodes. As a general rule, medium paced shows should have more episodes (at least 40) to flesh out the characters. Fast paced shows that have things that change over and over again can survive on a half season of 26 episodes, but not a show like this. Vandread, perhaps but not Glass Fleet.

The characters are interesting enough, even if the cast is ridiculously huge. The lead character Michel Vorban is your perfect combination of Princess Leia and Padme Amidala, combined with a dash of Maid Marion and D'Artagnan. She is very vulnerable to her past, which is why we never really see her act like a woman until we meet the second protagonist, the impossibly named Cleo @ Kureo, who commands the aforementioned Glass Ship (that's some glass, it doesn't shatter easily). The crew of the Glass Ship is your typical motley crew, my favourite being Hizack ,the man with a hundred secret skills and psycho legionnaire helmet (he even finishes the list at one point and has to think). Michel's butler Jean is Alfred Pennyworth-loyal to the end, complete with tea set; so is his niece. I have no idea how a tea set can survive an entire TV series !

The villain(s) are drawn from the wierd and wild, given the nature of the series. You have series of generals and admirals who have all sorts of wierd quirks; I particularly raise an eyebrow at the fat gentleman with the harem. The Holy Royal army is spectacularly presented in CGI, with floating country/continent bases and neatly lined fleets. The volume of the Holy Emperor's army is shown to be its primary strength, one scene in the show shows how a minor lord with his own army is still outnumbered 100 to one despite his huge continent.

That does bring us to the Holy Emperor Vetti. Barring his annoying boy-lover/bodyguard Ralph he is truly a loveless man but a great rival to Cleo. He is a pretty interesting villain, since he is also stuck in the mileu of politics and warfare of his own side, a bit like Char Aznable in the 0079 Gundam series but more in control. If it wasn't for Ralph he would be near the Red Comet in my 'sympathetic villain' ranking. The daughter of the Black Cross Pope starts out as an enigmatic person but turns into a psycho bitch- what do you expect from marrying an openly homosexual megalomaniac? It's interesting that he chases Michel because he thinks she is her brother (Her real name is Lacine, Michel is her brother). The look of disappointment when he finds out the hard way is priceless. He's heartbroken ! Although I'd recommend staying away from Episode 11 due to its genuine creepiness about his past.

Yet there are too many characters who don't have enough time for themselves to shine. We don't get to know Theodoric or the rest of Michel's "People's Army" that well, nor do we learn much about the Church of the Black Cross, or the prisoners who Cleo and Amire escape with. They all seemed like good avenues to explore, the prisoners in particular. One episode of Mospeada had a similar crew who you could feel for, even if they only lasted an episode.

The graphics are state of the art, although the physics have to be ignored in some cases. The Glass Ship is likened to a lance that tears through ships after branding it with the old royal insignia, something I find very cool. The fact that no one uses guns (except Hizack's ship cannon) is interesting, it makes the combat more intimate and personal. The opening scene of 'marrying' two space continents is spectacularly done, so solemn up till the twist of Michel showing up. The lands are unbelievably vast despite appearing to be small continents, complete with lonely cottages (my favourite scene of all occurs in one) , lakes and mountains. The ships all look like cookie cutter ships but that's mass production for you. Admiral Jiwen's whale like ship is good for a laugh ,especially when Cleo can't adapt to its slow speed or archaic messenger style. Over all the technology in this show is a balance of steam power and suspension of disbelief. It also seems like people can survive in hard vacuum, too.

So with all these good elements, just what makes it fall a bit short of what it could have been? A thick plot and a lot of wasted opportunities. Not enough episodes makes it hard to understand anything about the old Royal Family, or why Cleo and Vetti have the Soliel power source in their bodies. The last episodes remind me a bit of Gundam X and D.O.M.E , with the revelation of the Guilty Prophethood and the techno-cube. The Admiral Jiwen is one of the best supporting characters in the show ,despite his lack of use as a character. BB the wine merchant/ warlord is a key player throughout, although we know nothing of her at all. Too many missed opportunities. I have no idea who is it that raised Cleo, because we aren't introduced to him at all.

We have very little about the world pre-Vetti, especially why humans are stuck orbiting the black cross of galaxies. We don't know how twin brothers can be separated so far apart (and for what reason?) . A lot more revalation would be required for such a diverse world of characters. The Black Cross seems like some sort of wicked religion, but why does everyone believe in it? So many plot holes.

Cut to the chase, the show is too short and sums up things too quickly to digest. I can predict a lot of fanfiction expanding the story for that reason alone. The show really missed its chance to really impress me, despite its notable characteristics and attempts at novelty. The good swordplay, ship choreography, exotic fashions and good doses of humour are kind of undone by the wierd pace of the plot, which meanders helplessly after a tragic incident in the middle third of the series before crashing into the end. Potential is wasted for a great many things, romance included. Rachel, the pope's daughter is disappointing indeed and is more stupid than love struck.

Overall score: 7.5/10

next up: Heroic Age

As it turns out....

I am not only a bullshitter, I am also a hypocrite...?

someone explain to me, how someone I've never personally attacked calls me those things?

Can't eat potatoes, just pass them along, pal.

I hate you too. Mind your knees, you won't have them after you meet me.

Series Review/ Revival of Life

I'm back. I died a while back, but I was told not to go yet. I guess you could say the plot thickens. I still hate the same people I have always hated, and the list seems to grow exponentially. Frankly for me, that's a regular part of life. Let the hate reign!

But first, I've always wanted to do one of those review blogs. Thing is, blogging it one episode by one episode is tiring and I generally watch TV series from the DVD box, start to finish. I'm a marathon man, indeed. So each review is essentially a whole-series review rather than a step by step review. It does pay to live in South East Asia ,heheh

I don't give ratings for each category and the overall rating I give is based on how the series affected me, impressed me and made me think. I'm not a starry eyed fangirl shipper or A X B kind of person- I'm more of a Western literary minded person who is more Tolkien than Tezuka, so the perspective is mostly from a non-otaku point of view.

So mind the flames.

First up is the last anime series I watched. It's name is Code Geass : Lelouch Of The Rebellion.

Written by the ladies at CLAMP, whose work I normally enjoy (Cardcaptor Sakura, Tsubasa Chronicles) or get frustrated with to the max (Chobits, X, X/1999) I was intrigued by this foray into the world of giant mecha and colourful male leads.

Oh , we have our CLAMP favourites- a school where people wear black uniforms, kitty costumes with a real cat somewhere in the mix and of course the prerequisite little girls and the fact that almost everyone has long hair. And of course your talented ,sexually ambigious women who keep commenting on people of their own gender (Millie = Tomoyo with big Ds).

None of that is the main element, however. The main element is that young man in the middle of the photo, a certain Lelouch Vi Britannia @ Lamprouge who is a talented but arrogant 17 year old at the Ashford Academy. After a chance encounter with both a strange green haired girl and his childhood friend Suzuaku Kururugi in a Shinjuku subway he gains the 'Geass' ability that lets him command anyone to do anything, basically. It only works once per person and not on the green haired girl or another Geass user.

The twist is, Lelouch is not a good person. In anyone else's story he would be the villain, controlling and pulling people on his chessboard. He is set up to be the protagonist, particularly as his intention is to 'make a better world' for his blinded sister to experience when she can see.

The story takes us through various parts of Japan, including a half-metal Mount Fuji and a perpetually dark Hokkaido. There are several interesting characters here among the wide cast' however, neither Lelouch or Suzaku (the main characters) are among them. When this happens in anime I pray that Yoshiyuki Tomino comes in and simply kills them. Or like the architects of Gundam SEED Destiny, hastily change protagonists until the original one becomes a villain.

Both boys are ridiculously one dimensional and deluded to the maximum, plus the luck they have defeats all the four leaf clovers in the universe. In one episode Zero (Lelouch's deep voiced masked alter ego) is owned in a mecha fight and ejects, lying upside down. Yet no one among his enemies ,including one that discovers him tries to simply shoot him in the head. Oh no, she is shot instead by a confused redhead. He escapes too often and gives in to mega-sacrifice too much. For all his power the boy ends up committing mass murder in one episode, with very little sign of conflict or regret afterwards. The tears shed are crocodile tears- I felt nothing for him as he'll just continue being the selfish, unworthy lead to the series.

I do like a lot of the secondary characters, unfortunately they are needlessly demonized or emasculated rather easily in favour of the pretty boys in charge. If she hadn't shot the poor citizens of Area 11 or surrendered enemy troops, I would fall in love with Princess Cornelia in an instant. Colonel Todou is (to me) a mature , outstanding leader who unfortunately has to play second fiddle to a deep voiced, high-luck brat. I'd take the Four Divine Swords' skill over the Gawain's plot contrivance any day. The subplot with Ohgi and Ville should be followed up in the second season, I've always liked sub-commander types, and especially cross-forces romance. That's another thing I missed here- by the end, no one is actually in a proper relationship with anyone else. Not what I expect with a different girl falling over Suzaku or Lelouch every other episode.

I can't say much about the male character designs- other than the aforementioned Todou and Ohgi, every male here seems to be a lanky creature from bishonen-ville . I can't take the looks seriously enough. I can't help it, I'm just not a fan of artists who draw women very well but make men look like boys trying their hardest to look feminine. The women are beautiful of course, and together with the mecha concepts are the best thing going for this anime. I really like all of the weapons and tools used (yes, wheels!!), although I think the Lancelot unit is a bit too durable for my liking, although in its favour it's incredibly agile. The 'mecha that can blast everything' bit of the Gawain is horrible, though. This series does a good job of close and medium-range combat situations, I'd remove the Hedron beams from the Knigtmares in a heart beat.

The setting is also horrible- Ashford Academy seems to exist outside of the entire geopolitical sphere of the series, like some sort of wierd CLAMP nexus for all school based series.

Overall Grade : 5.5 /10

I'll be following other review blogs when the second season comes out. I won't buy the DVDs or try to download any of it, I don't feel like it's worth the hassle. Unless there comes some plot twist that brings this series forwards to a level of likeability and sense, I am not going to watch the second season.

up next: Glass no Kantai (Legend of the Glass Fleet)