Category: Note

Guns

Picture swiped from ROGF728.

I’m currently reading up on the FN Five-seveN, as I decided to give Jake one in Jake and the Dynamo 2: Dead to Rites. I always meant to let the poor kid have a gun sooner or later. It just took me longer than I expected.

Urbanopolis doesn’t disallow personal weapons; it’s just that they’re mostly worthless, since shooting a magical monster with a conventional firearm is a good way to earn yourself an instant, fiery death. And human-on-human crime is relatively rare, partly because implacable external enemies have bred unprecedented human cooperation and partly because most every serious crime is considered a form of treason that can get you a drumhead trial and a rapid execution.

There’s a bit more military action in this volume than in the one previous. I might need to bribe Kai Wai Cheah to read parts of it over for me to make sure it’s halfway plausible.

Check the New Header!

You may have noticed a new header at the top of the blog as well as a new browser symbol. To give credit where it is due, this is Pretty Dynamo’s insignia as interpreted by Lee Madison, who is working on the cover art for the novel release of Jake and the Dynamo.

Mr. Madison has run into a lot of difficulty and has been swamped with work, which is partly why the book’s release has been delayed. Nonetheless, he’s still turning out top-notch work, and I’ve been really impressed by what I’ve seen from him. I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to the completed cover.

If things go as planned, the book should be out in time for Dragon Con, which will be in Atlanta from August 30th to September 3rd. I’m crossing my fingers that we’ll have the book out by then.

Happy Birthday, Sailor Moon

Today, June 30, is the official birthday of Sailor Moon. All peasants are hereby ordered to rejoice and make merry on pain of death.

Mako-chan’s baking.

Technical Difficulties

I’m having some new trouble over here with posting content. I’m mentioning it partly by way of excuse, but also to see if readers have any suggestions.

My Blu-Ray/DVD player has basically stopped working. The only one I own is the one built into my computer, which is now about ten years old, so this is no great surprise. It’s basically stopped playing any video disc I put into it. This is frustrating not only because it means I’ve lost access to my DVD collection but also because it frustrates some reviews I wanted to produce. Replacing the computer is something I’ve known for a few years that I’d have to do soon, but it is simply not in the budget right now. I might consider an external DVD player, which would be considerably cheaper, and which I could also hook to my television, which at present I barely use except when I plug the HDMI cable into it from my computer.

I have also apparently lost the ability to screencap iTunes. I’m not sure if this is because of an iTunes update designed to protect copyright, or if this is because of some change in my system (I’ve updated iTunes a couple of times recently, but I also had the computer in for maintenance—so who knows?). I’ve tried some different software and nothing has worked. This is frustrating because I’ve always liked the convenience of iTunes in spite of some problems, but I rely heavily on screencaps for my reviews. In particular, this will mean I can’t create screencaps for my reviews of Sailor Moon, as well as some other things I was planning to discuss.

So anyway, that’s where I am at right now. I hope to have some solutions to these problems soon, and of course I appreciate any suggestions.

Was Cleaning Out Some Old Stuff, and Look What I Found!

“First my Striker terminal, then this, this little slap at my industrial complex. You’re a flea, Jonathan Power, and I’m going to swat you!”

I played this in a VCR, and I have no equipment to capture images from it except by photographing the screen, so please excuse the picture quality.

Anyway, I absolutely love Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future, an ill-fated children’s television series that ran for one season in 1987. It was the first—and last—attempt at interactive television, something that many at the time mistakenly assumed was the future of TV. Costing a million dollars an episode, sparking controversy for its violent content, and plagued by continuous fights between the writers (led by J. Michael Straczynski) and sponsor Mattel, the show was destined for early cancellation. Continue reading “Was Cleaning Out Some Old Stuff, and Look What I Found!”

Initial Notes on ‘Wedding Peach’

I managed to finish all of Saint Tail, but I have nothing to add to my earlier review. It’s an undemanding but sweet story, and I recommend it.

I’ve moved from there to some other mid-9os magical girl titles. I’m right now watching Magic User’s Club, which Nozomi Entertainment has kindly added to its YouTube channel. I am also reading the manga version of Wedding Peach, which I am having to gather slowly, piecemeal, much as I did with Saint Tail.

Wedding Peach is a title that a lot of magical girl fans love to hate, mostly because it appeared a mere three years after Sailor Moon and closely resembles it. Its creator, Sukehiro Tomita, was in fact a writer on the Sailor Moon anime. Wedding Peach has the same relation to Sailor Moon that Day Break Illusion has to Puella Magi Madoka Magica: it’s a little too obvious in its coattail-riding, so it provokes some ire.

That being said, I like what I’ve seen of it so far. The manga, at least, one-ups Sailor Moon in its art quality (not that that’s hard). The characters are likable, and the action is a tad gritty, with an unexpected amount of blood and bruising. Continue reading “Initial Notes on ‘Wedding Peach’”

Jake and the Dynamo Releases on June 1st!

And on another note, Roffles Lowell, the official illustrator for Jake and the Dynamo, sent along this little sketch after I announced that the book was set to release on June 1st.

I believe that’s a picture of Dana having finally conquered Chelsea in Magical Girl Rumble.

Holy Saturday

God is dead.

I’m Catholic, in case that wasn’t obvious, and we’re now in the midst of the Easter Triduum. The fifty days of Easter begin tonight with the Vigil.

Last year, in Deus ex Magical Girl fashion, we celebrated Easter with the egg-obsessed Shugo Chara. This year, I intend to keep that tradition alive by celebrating with the pseudo-Christian magical girl story Saint Tail, which I think I’m finally ready to review, just in time for Easter. Stay tuned.

Crossing My Fingers

I just cranked out and submitted a short story all in one sitting, which was probably not smart, but it had to be done. I’m kinda proud of the story, so I’ll hunt for another venue if it comes back to me.

Also, happy Good Friday.

Incoming: ‘Sugar Sugar Rune’

I have managed, with some difficulty, to acquire the rest of the Moyoco Anno’s Sugar Sugar Rune, the first three volumes of which I reviewed previously. So a final review of what some consider the greatest “cute witch” comic is incoming in the near future.

I said before that this series, which originally came out in English through Del Rey Manga and is now out of print, needs to be re-released. Something I missed at the time: apparently, according to Anime News Network, the title has been acquired by Udon Entertainment,  and was slated to see a release in the second half of 2016, though that never actually happened. Perhaps there will be a release sometime this year. It ought to be in full color, though that’s probably asking too much.

Brief thoughts: the premise and introduction, set up over the first three volumes, are stronger than the sword-and-sorcery epic it tries to become in its latter half. It appears to break its own rules a couple of times to bring about its conclusion. Still, I like its stylish goth look, and it brings an unusual attitude to the genre, being saccharine and girlish, but with an unexpected bite.