J-Pop/K-Pop Recommendation #2-TVXQ

Hello, and welcome to J-pop/K-pop Recommendation #2! For the past few days I've been going back and listening to all of the old J-pop and K-pop songs that I used to bust out into dance too (well, those of which I remember). And while searching YouTube, I came across the long forgotten TVXQ-Catch Me music video. Of course I did some intense freaking out because of the fact that I've completely pushed it's existence out of my brain. After that rediscovery, you could say that their songs have been on repeat and blasted for a good 2 days straight. Speaking of which, I would like to take a quick second and apologize to my family for torturing their ear drums with my extreme failure to belt out Changmin's super high scream of coolness. I love you guys, and sorry for filling the house with unintended, torturous-sounding whale screams!

Anyways, TVXQ first debuted in December 26, 2003 and at the time, included  the members Jaejoong, Yoochun, Junsu, Yunho, and Changmin. But due to a controversy that involved SM Entertainment's long term contracts, Jaejoong, Yoochun, and Junsu are now no longer involved with TVXQ.

But during the time when all 5 of the original members where still present, they produced two of my favorite songs Mirotic and Balloons. Now, I listened to Mirotic first and my first thoughts were "Sirs, your immense showing of skin is highly distracting...(not that it's a bad thing)". But it had a very serious and tough tone to it. So when I stumbled upon Balloons, I was shocked at the laid back aura and I almost passed out from a fangirl overload due to their cosplay. Despite my shock, it very quickly made it to my list of "feel good" K-pop songs.

Now adays, it's existing members are Changmin and Yunho. Even though it's just the two of them, they are still going strong and their songs Catch Me and Humanoids definitely shouldn't be overlooked.

TVXQ is definitely a group worth listening too and really hold an important place in K-pop history. Plus, did I mention that they have the biggest fan club in the world? That's gotta say something.

 

Songs

 

TVXQ-Mirotic

 

TVXQ-Balloons

 

 

TVXQ-Catch Me (Coolest dance ever!)

 

TVXQ-Humanoids

 

Plus, check out the teaser to their new song TVXQ-Something

 

Merry Christmas!

I hope all of you guys have an awesome holiday and enjoy spending time with your friends and family!

Merry！*＜(*￣▽)ノ由”iii ヽ(^o^ )^_^ )ﾉChristmas !!

Best Comeback Ever!: Dragonball Z Battle of the Gods

Now before I get into talking about the movie, let's take a moment of silence to thank Toei Animations (animators of my favorite series Sailor Moon and Chrono Trigger) for continuing to animate the Dragonball series, and let me say this, it was one of the best animations I've seen in a while. But I'll get more into that later.

Name: Dragonball Z:Battle of the Gods
Release Date: March 30, 2013
Language: Japanese
English Subs? Unfortunately, not yet

Summary
After a long slumber, God of Destruction, Birus (or Bills) is awakened by his trainer Uis (or Wis) and is told that Freeza was defeated by a Saiyan. Shocked, Birus tells Uis about a dream he had about a Super Saiyan God and Uis informs Birus of Goku and his past. Soon after, they make their way to Kaio-sama's planet and challenges Goku. After discovering the Goku is not Super Saiyan God, they make their way to Earth in order to find some hint of the alleged being.

My Thoughts
Oh. My. Gosh. Epic. This has to be one of the coolest comebacks in the history of comebacks (and not just because their making a new series due to the awesome response to the movie release). They really threw everything out in this movie.

Some of the highlights that I liked about the plot was that they had virtually every character shown at least twice, not including villains. Even Pilaf, Mai, and Shu were shown, and they had a pretty important roll! And the fight scenes were very noteworthy. They were just packed with so much action and humor. And speaking of humor, I don't think I laughed so hard in so long. Fair warning, I have never in my life seen Vegeta and Shenlong act the way they did.

The graphics were actually very good. To be honest, I was never a fan of when the animation switched from 2D to 3D and back to 2D, it just never flowed and looked pretty weird to me (like in Lil Pri). But I was extremely pleased with how they combined the 2D and 3D scenes. It flowed together and didn't look choppy and awkward too look at.

Finally, the soundtrack was far from boring. It stayed true to the original Dragonball Z series, and still held onto the original opening song"Cha-La-Head-Cha-La" by Flow. The fact that they kept the song, made me do almost literal flips off the couch. Yes, I was super happy about that.

Overall, I loved this movie. It was funny, action packed, epic, and basically everything that the Dragonball series already was. Awesome. Do I recommend it? Absolutely. It's a must see for any die hard Dragonball fan or just any fan in general.

Rating
10/10
 

BL Movie Review #1-Junjou Pure Heart

After my long while of trying to find some age appropriate Yaoi anime (which never worked out unless it was shonen-ai), I once again stumbled across that weird part of YouTube. Fortunately though, this accidental find put me into an awkward-in-a-good-way mood and thus ignited a new flame of obsession for BL films.

Name: Junjou Pure Heart
Release Date: September 4, 2010
Language: Japanese
English Subs? Yes

Cast [Actor->Character]
Rakuto Tochihara-Keisuke Tozaki
Yuta Takahashi-Shousei Kurata
Mitsuyoshi Shinoda-Miyata Kazuomi

Summary
A writer by the name of Keisuke Tozaki has a chance meeting with his former high school crush Shousei Kurata. After a night of drinking together, Tozaki admits that he had a crush on Kurata. How will their relationship develop from here?

My Thoughts
Being my first BL (Boys Love) movie, I was curious to see if I would get the same fangirl mood I get when watching an animated BL series. And I'll admit, I didn't really fangirl as much as I thought I would. But what it lacked in fangirling scenes, it made up in the actual plot. The fact that the movie didn't rely heavily on BxB action, earned my respect in the sense that I would consider it an actual film, as opposed to a movie who's main goal is to drown you in your own nosebleed.

The soundtrack was really well composed. It was very lighthearted and enhanced the mood of the story in a very subtle yet effective way. Would I go out on a full hunt for the OST? Not really, but it's still worth listening too. Plus it makes a good track to study too!

Character wise, the movie was well casted and the characters were really conveyed well. Rakuto Tochihara, to me, had the perfect uke face and I couldn't have asked for a better person to portray Tozaki. Yuta Takahashi on the other hand, really didn't stand out that much to me as a seme, but more of a "friend to the uke" type of person, as far as looks goes. This, though, can be easily forgotten by his superb acting.

Overall, I really enjoyed this as my first BL movie. The only con I can really think of is some of the kissing scenes. They seemed very over exaggerated and forced, and quite frankly, a bit awkward to watch and not realistic at all. But that's my only complaint about that, and despite those few scenes, it doesn't take away from the rest of the movie. This is defiantly one I would put on my recommendation list of BL movies. 


Rating
8/10



Here is the movie for those of you who would like to watch it.

 

 And here are a few screenshots of the movie.

My favorite line!

 

I Can Die Happy: Sekaiichi Hatsukoi Gets A Movie in 2014!

YESSSSS!!! Nothing can every express my happiness for this movie. Going back to my first post on this blog named The Best Thing That Happened To Me Since Starbucks, I discussed the basic plot and a short description of the couples in Sekaiichi Hatsukoi. Since the series stopped at Season 2, like it's counter part Junjou Romantica, I dreamed of the day that a Season 3 would be released for either (or both) of these fantastic shows. Unfortunately, to this day my wish has yet to come true, even though I am 95% sure that the currently ongoing mangas have enough material to work with for a new season. But load and behold, Studio DEEN decide to gift all of us Yaoi hungry fangirls with a Sekaiichi Hatsukoi MOVIE.

In this movie, the focus is on the best friend of Takuno Masamune, Yokozawa Takafumi. Now if you were anything like me watching this series, at the mention of the name Yokozawa you would be screaming crazy things like "Takano-san belongs to Onodora, not him!!!" or "Takano doesn't love you, go find another person!". And thanks to our efforts, Yokozawa is taking our advice and is going to find himself a man he can finally claim as his own, also known as Zen Kirishima.

The specific release date is to-be-announced, but is supposed to be aired in Japan around spring of 2014. And in order to feed your newly profound eagerness, here is a 16 second long teaser to help make the anticipation worse.

 

 

 

More information will be followed once it's released. And before this post ends, I have one extremely nagging question: Yokozawa, seme or uke?

BANZAI!! 2013 BanzaiCon

Yay, my first die hard anime convention! I had a bunch of fun here, especially since we got the three day passes (another first!). And I must say, there was a hefty amount of people there. I don't know if it's because I live in a very not-so-happening place, or I don't know a lot of anime lovers but I was expecting a lot less people. But hey, I'm not complaining.

The dealers room wasn't as big as I expected it to be. One could easily do a quick swoop around in less than 3 minutes, but the overall content of the room was good. I was eagerly greeted by the wonderful stand of Japanese snacks, some I have seen before, and some that completely baffled my mind. I ended buying a Champagne, Hot Chili Oil, and Curry Flavored Ramune. So far I have only tried the Curry Flavored Ramune, and your mind has the hardest time deciphering if it tastes sweet or like curry. Like I said before, baffling, but worth the experience!

The dealer's room overall was pretty interesting. Aside from the snacks, I got myself a wig, a Sailor Moon necklace, and a Vampire Knight Magnetic Bookmark Set (gotta keep reading interesting). I also contemplated on buying a kimono which was going for $20 and up, but instead decided to settle for a macha green Alpaca. To my happiness, they had a little table of Kpop CDs and I almost got one. The only problem was that the prices were ranging from $35 the least to about $100. My opinion, stick to ITunes if you just want the songs, but go ahead and spend the dough of you want to collect and have extreme bragging rights.

Panels, a great way to get informed and have a butt load of fun. Thanks to my gracious parents who were willing to sit through the entire 2 hours of screaming and singing, I had a wonderful time fangirling and dancing at the Kpop Panel. I also got a new arsenal of catchy songs that I am now thoroughly obsessing over (B1A4-What's Happening, Bigbang-Monster). Kpop panel aside, I also went to an FX Make-up Panel which is very informational to a person (like me) who knows absolutely nothing about how to make scars and burns. The questions from the people around the room also give you a more detailed explanation and tricks for future reference. Bonus, she passed out free Almond Joys! 

The only disappointment I had was at the Hatsune Miku Concert Panel. Not only was the room packed so much that I was breathing in hot dog breath from the guy next to me, the screen was barley visible. If the people who run the panel know that Hatsune Miku is practically an icon now, they should've either put the screen higher or put other screens around the room. From what I could see, the video was extremely low quality. It might've been the fact that it was a bunch of YouTube videos compiled onto one big video, but whatever the case I was disappointed enough to leave within the first 10 minutes and YouTube the videos myself when I got home. At least that way I knew I would've be plagued by the drastic hot dog breath the entire time. 

Overall, I really enjoyed myself. I'm will admit that I was expecting it to be bigger, but then again I think I'm just spoiled on MegaCon. Plus, it's all about the content. Would I go back again? Probably, though it might not be my ultimate first choice.

Did you go to any Anime Cons lately? Comment below and tell me your thoughts on it :)

My new magnet set!

 

 

 

 

Can't do an anime con without Ramen.

 

 

Where their is Ramen, their is Rice balls.

Back From Time Traveling, Now Back to Work

I know, I have been gone for a long time. And by long time, I mean LONG time. But hey, I'm back and totally hyped up!
And just to address one thing, I tried to upload the MegaCon pictures but my computer decided to reject me and deleted the post that had it. Five times. But I did take some pictures of a more recent con which I will post up soon.
Again, I'm sorry for my long absence!

2013 Megacon This Weekend!

Hey guys! I just wanted to let you know that the 2013 MegaCon in Orlando, Florida is this weekend! Yes, I am going, and I'll be sure to post some pictures of it. Tickets will be sold on site starting tomorrow at 10:30am, so make sure to pick one up.
If your contemplating on if you should go or not, I highly recommend you do. I go to the MegaCon almost every year for the past 6-7 years now and each time I find something awesome. They have comics, gaming, anime (you can't forget the anime), and the always awesome Artist Corner! For those of you who don't know what that it, it's basically a corner of the convention room where potentially successful comic writers and artist are. My favorite part? Buying $1.00 magnets and pins! The Artist Corner is the only place I will buy those kind of things because of there originality. I mean, who is going to have a gigantic magnet with a monster crab on it in there locker? This guy! So if anything, do it for the aspiring artists. Heck, buy a couple of there comics while your there.
Another thing I like this year in particular. The Weasley Twins baby! I had a chance to meet Tom Felton (Malfoy) back in the HerosCon, but I chickened out. But not this time! The awesome thing about meeting celebrities at conventions, is that nobody at work or school usually goes to conventions. So think of it as a chance to take a picture of your friend's celebrity crush, post it on Facebook and rub it in there face. I mean, that's why Facebook was invented, right?
If you want some more information on it, I'll attach a link to the website below.
http://www.megaconvention.com/#

Hope you guys can make it, and check in soon for a post of my epic experience at the 2013 MegaCon!

J-Pop/K-Pop Recomendation #1-DGNA

Members from Left to Right: Hyumin, Jay, Karam, Injun, and Mika

Hontouni Gomenasai!I know there's been a totally lack of activity lately, but my life has been extremely busy. I'll really try to write more often.

For about a year or two now i've been loving J-Pop and K-Pop. So I decided to share with you guys some of my findings. My very first J-Pop band which consisted of all guys is Daikoku Danji, or their Korean name Dae Guk Nam Ah (DGNA). Even though they debuted in Korea, their popularity seems to be most in Japan. DGNA is one of my all time favorites, and all of their songs are heartwarming and fun to sing and dance along too. I highly recommend them to anybody.

Here's a link to a video of their songs. Enjoy! =^_^=
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKW6iKcukeQ&list=FLDStHkNLo5IkqniPm10aW_g&index=35