Watched Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

I got this from the library a few days ago, and finished it last night. I was wondering if it would be any good or not, and I was very impressed by the results. 

 The plot of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind is about a post-armageddon Earth except it's set over 1,000 years later which is a bit different than a few decades like other gloomy stories in fiction. The Earth had been taken over by a toxic forest with killer insects all around it. A few places on Earth are still inhabitable, but most are torn apart by tragedy or war.

The peaceful Valley of the Wind has a princess named Nausicaä who is pure-hearted and gentle. She then sets out on her quest to restore peace between not only the human world but the entire eco-system. I really liked her character, and despite her preference for pacifism, she knows how to fight and how to perform other amazing stunts. 

Despite being released in 1984 (original Japanese release date) the animation still looks top-notch, and the story hasn't aged one bit. If you're a fan of anime movies, then you have to check out Nausicaä, because it's hard to find others that match it's quality.

A Look Into Video Games: Tingle's Balloon Fight

Tingle's Balloon Fight was a Japanese only video game for Nintendo DS given to only Club Nintendo members under certain conditions. The game featured Tingle from the Legend of Zelda series and giving him his own game in the Balloon Fight series.

It basically what it was. Tingle in the old school NES game Balloon Fight. Though there was the 2 split screens, new backgrounds, and whatnot. 

I do wish I had a chance to play this game, but due to it's limited availability I doubt it. Oh well there's always someday.

Things I Like: My Neighbor Totoro

 

One of the best films to come out of Japan is easily My Neighbor Totoro. It may not have been huge in the U.S. but it made a decent splash. Back there, Totoro is as popular as Disney.

The story is set with two girls who move out to the country-side in a creepy old house. They later meet with the mysterious, strange, yet lovable Totoro. 

 Totoro has charm and grace that most anime films never seem to capture. It's also one of the first anime that has hardly action period, yet it's really good regardless. 

The Cat Bus still freaks me out though.

Things I Like: Ponyo

I saw this movie shortly after it was released on DVD, such a great film that came straight out of Japan. 

The movie is about a young mermaid/fish girl named Brunhilde by her strict father. She later sees the surface and runs away from home to see the rest of the world. 

A young boy named Sosuke finds her after getting trapped, and names her Ponyo. He first thinks she's merely a fish, but later finds out that she can transform into a human-like girl.

I really liked their friendship, and all the hardship they have to endure through the course of the film.

Ponyo is a creative spin off the Little Mermaid legend, and features wonderful animation in addition to a great story. Fun for the whole family.

Watched Princess Mononoke

Went to my local library yesterday, and browser their tiny anime collection. I actually never heard of Princess Mononoke before, and I was willing to give it a shot since it was a feature film instead of a long-running series.

The film is set in pre-modern Japan with a fantasy setting. A young prince slays a giant pig demon that was about to attack his village.  The demon managed to wound the young lad, and he later finds out that he's been cursed. The predicament makes him unbelievably strong, however he's also been told that the curse will eventually kill him.

The film is also pretty long, so there's a mix between action and back-story. I really liked the fight scenes between Ashitaka and the samurai. Some of the scenes with mostly talking seem to drag on a bit too long.

Despite that, it's a really neat movie. It's like a battle-worn katana: it may be a little dull here and there, but in the end the film delivers a cutting edge experience.

The Legendary Starfy Review

Even though the series was Japanese-only throughout the GBA days, I was intrigued to see the series come stateside. However I decided to wait for a price drop, and then forgot it's total existence for awhile. My girlfriend got me this for Christmas so I was happy to take Nintendo's "new" series out for a spin.

While the game might share some similarities with the Kirby series, it's not a shameless clone. Starfy absorbs no enemy's powers, and swims rather than floats. The marine platforming is interesting to say the least, but yet the underwater gameplay at times makes you want to swim back to the surface and come back for air.

Starfy does many things right; it's cute, colorful, has fun levels, whacky bosses, and even 2 player co-op. However despite what it does right, it just never breaks the mold. Starfy feels like a basic platformer with decent levels that anyone can enjoy. That's all fine and good, but it doesn't hold a candle to the finest Kirby games out there. I know that's a rather unjust comparison, but I'm not exactly going to pre-order a sequel. 

Score: 7 out of 10

'Radiation turns up in all kinds of food products in Japan'

After visiting the Fukushima nuclear plant and meeting with Japan's prime minister, the head of the IAEA, Yukiya Amano, has promised to provide all necessary expertise to complete the second phase of containing the crisis by early next year. For more on what's happening in Japan RT's joined live from Hiroshima by nuclear energy expert Doctor Robert Jacobs.

Also watch:

• Suicide Plague: Japan swept by Fukushima depression‬‏
• UN Nuclear Chief Visits Crippled Japan Plant‬‏
  

Also read:

• Japan’s food supply under threat as radiation from Fukushima Daiichi spreads - Bellona

• Japan Scientists Say Sea Radiation Tests May Miss Seafood Threat - Bloomberg

Hilarious Japanese video "Nuclear Boy" explains the nuclear crisis to Japanese kids...

I know "hilarious" is not a word you'd want to apply to the current nuclear crisis in Japan, but this is a very funny cartoon made in Japan and full of scatological reference (ample references to "poo poo," diarrhea, soiled diapers, etc.). The cartoon is about a character named Nuclear Boy, who gets sick after the huge Japanese earthquake and tsunami. The video is full of humor, but it ultimately takes a poignant turn toward the end.

Have a look at it. We're only talking four and a half minutes here. It's a fascinating glimpse at how Japanese culture handles its crises. And the animation is very cute and funny. It's a sweet salute to a brave people who have been coping with a hell of a lot of devastation and loss in recent days.

Japan Devastated by 8.9 Earthquake and Tsunami; Please Keep in Thoughts & Prayers

A 8.9 earthquake hit Japan earlier and then a huge tsunami devastated Japan afterward. This is such an awful tragedy!  Please keep your thoughts and prayers with the people in Japan.

Here is video of an office, this one in Sendai, near the epicenter which shows when the earthquake hit: 



From a Tokyo Supermarket:



Here is picture of the tsunami hitting the city of Sendai:




I found some excellent footage on Youtube of both the earthquake and tsunami which hit Japan earlier today.



H/T The NY Times 

Remembering Pearl Harbor

Here are some pictures of the attack on Pearl Harbor I found at The Seattle Times:

God bless those who sacrificed their lives that fateful day.