The New Otaku Surf Web Site.

     After much consideration I’ve decided to move the website to www.otaku-surf.com If you’ve got this site bookmarked please update. I figure now is the time to change it up just a bit since I’m starting to get into a bit of HD video/film projects related to Anime Conventions. 

    I’ve already put up two HD movies shot with my camera, but I don’t expect to lessen my interest or my gundam photography. I’ll still continue to do it, even moreso, since I’ve invested a bit more into the new website. Hope you guys like it and I’ll see you on the other side!

And without further ado, you can find the new site at: 

www.otaku-surf.com

The Unity May Figure by Good Smile Company.

     Unity Mei is a character from the Eroge game Unity Marriage. I got this figure after I saw a few reviews online of it. I really don’t collect figures, this and my Revoltech Yoko, are the only real female figures I have, but I really had to get this one. The color scheme is well done especially with the flowers thrown Unity’s awesome capes.

    This figure is my first static figure in a very long time, so I took a few pictures of Mei with a background I thought would fit her design and not necessarily her color scheme.  

    Anyhow, I really like the figure and it’s become a permanent fixture on my desktop along with my new macbook pro, which I took pictures of Unity with. Seems like the popular thing to do is to take pictures of your figures with the Mac OS X desktop in the background which I do with this figure as well. 

    As with Moonlight Candle, the figure has me interested in the Unity Marriage game which looks pretty cool judging by the art and graphics on the website.  

The Unity Marriage Eroge Website.

Unity Mei with the Macbook Pro Desktop Screen.

Another shot of Mei from a different angle with the mac's screen providing background.

Mei medium shot with Mac Screensaver.

A closer look at Mei's floral designed cape.

Unity Mei without capes and hat. The stand the figure came with is pretty cool and very,very study.

Medium shot of Mei.

Again, I have to point out the design of the cape and the colors used. Well designed figure.

Unity Mei

Hina and the student council from the ending song of Hayate no Gotoku's Season 2 first episode.

     My favorite comedy anime is back! It’s been a long wait since the end of the 52 episode Hayate no Gotoku Season 1. And what better way to reward me for my wait then an ending song featuring my favorite character from the series, Hinagiku Katsura and the student council backing her up. 

     One thing I’ve noticed is that the animation is a tad bit different than the fist season and that’s because J.C. Staff is taking over after they did the brief OVA a few weeks back. I would describe the animation as being a bit more simple looking than SynergySP which isn’t a bad thing.

The official Japanese Hayate no Gotoku Homepage, that they just recently redid, chock full of info and merchandise.

     When we left Hayate, a combat butler that can beat the hell out of any-type of Mechas that get in his way, he still owed a huge amount of money because of his good for nothing parents and working for the tsundere-otaku-rich girl Nagi Sanzen’in, and getting into some crazy situations with Nagi and her friends at school.

     After the opening song of the new episode we’re treated to a brief overview of last season and get into the episode where a race is coming up for the school, and Hayate sees his chance to get Nagi outdoors. 

Hayate no Gotoku – Season 2 Episode 1

Hayate and Nagi during the opening of Season 2.

     One morning, Nagi gets a leaflet from her school announcing long distance running competitions. So she decides to take the day off from school so she doesn’t have to participate. Maria, Nagi’s maid, won’t hear of that and talks Nagi into participating with Hayate coaching her. 

     Hayate is pretty confident that Nagi can do run and hopes this will bring her to the outside world more often rather than indoors in her Otaku ways. Hayate begins training Nagi, unfortunately she’s not capable of much….

Unenthusiastic Runner and Overenthusiastic Coach.

Some of her friends show up to support her...even though they all think that she will fail and.....

...after 5 minutes running a total of 50 meters, Nagi's down for the count.

     Nagi’s about ready to throw in the towel, when Nagi’s head butler, Klaus chimes in and says that Hayate’s not a good butler and steering her towards a corrupt path. Nagi’s angered by this and says that Hayate is a great butler and so much of a good influence that she bets that if she doesn’t win a race, Klaus can fire Hayate.

     Klaus and Nagi make the bet with Hayate completely dumfounded by this. Nagi believes she has a chance to win a race as long as the school star runner, Hina, doesn’t run in the event she chooses. So she dispatches Hayate to meet with Hina. 

     Hina suggests that both Nagi and Hayate run the freestyle marathon which is a pair’s race where there is a cash prize involved. Unfortunately, Hina’s sister-teacher Yukiji hears of this and wants to get involved to the dismay of Hina and Hayate.

Student Body President Hinagiku Katsura talking with Hayate about the competition.

Yukiji Katsura thinking about how much alcohol she could buy with the race's prize money.

     After so much training and Hayate’s job on the line, Nagi’s more determined than ever to participate in the race with Hayate and win. But both run into a few obstacles and some familiar opponent/friends from last season on their way to victory. 

Nagi begins to show distress early into the marathon. Hayate is totally worried about the race and his job.

Himuro, another butler at the school, stops Nagi and Hayate's path to victory.

Hinagiku and Miki, a fellow student, try to stop the teams advance. Unfortunately for Hina, Hayate leads her to a suspension bridge away from Nagi.

Hina's one weakness is heights so she's not doing too well on the suspension bridge.

     With Hayate dealing with Hinagiku, it’s now up to Nagi to win the race. As she gets closer to the finish line she begins to like running and sports in general. Maybe it’s the start of a whole new Nagi.

Nagi makes it into the stadium closing the distance to the finish line and realizing sports isn't that bad afterall.

And of course Nagi wins the marathon with much determination!

But of course Yukiji's determination for more alcohol beats Nagi's determination by inches. I love the expression on the guy's face.

At the end of the episode, Yukiji wins the marathon, Nagi will probably never do any sports ever and Hayate has lost his job.

     Not a bad start to the second season! It was pretty funny, especially at the end where I really thought that Nagi was going to win. It’s going to be interesting since the next few episodes deal with Hayate out of a job and trying to improve himself so that he could once again become Nagi’s (combat) butler. 

     The animation from J.C. Staff didn’t really bother me. After watching the OVA, I’m pretty much used to the way that the characters are drawn now, and it’s not a substantial change when compared to other anime series.

     It’s a real struggle not to read the manga to get an idea of what might happen during this season’s episodes. But it’s all the more reason to watch the series. Another plus for this episode is the amount of Hina coverage she gets. She’s also featured in the ending song. Win win! Until the next episode.

Ayumu Nishizawa, who has a crush on Hayate, and her brother try to see the competition at the school. Their stopped by some scary looking security guards.

Izumi (another favorite of mine) and Wataru doing the marathon commentary.

Maria cheering on Hayate and Nagi.

Miki, Hina and Hayate watching Nagi closing in on the finish line.

Nagi putting Klaus, the head butler, in his place.

Nagi and Hayate think of victory.......as everyone else starts running.

Another shot of Hina during the ending song of the episode

The GNZ-005 Garazzo with GN Blades activated.

     After getting the HG Gadessa, I was about ready to get the HG Garazzo. Just before I was going to get it however, I noticed one important thing that was left out. 

     The GN blades were not separated on the HG model. Instead they were stuck together. Fortunately Bandai released the Garazzo in it’s Robot Damashii figure line which had the separated and finger-like blades.

Garazzo mounting an assault with GN Beam claws.

     How does a Robot Damashii hold up against an HG model? Pretty damn good.

GNZ-005 Garazzo

GNZ-005 Garazzo

     The GNZ-005 Garazzo is a mecha suit piloted by Bring Stability a humanoid Innovator whose enemy is the Gundams in the series Gundam 00 Season 2. The Garazzo’s main armament/weaponary is his GN Beam Claws on both hands which also could form into a GN Hand Beam Saber.

     The HG model of the Garazzo has the GN Hand Beam Saber included but not the Beam Claws which are exclusive, for now anyways, to the figure featured.

     This being my first Robot Damashii figure I’m pretty impressed with it when comparing it to my HG Gadessa which is a similar design to the Garazzo. The figure is slightly smaller to the HG’s and of course already put together.

Aiming for the kill.

Garazzo in mid-air tracking.

I went ahead and inked the figure and was going to put some water decals on it, but the mecha looked so much better without them.

     One thing about the figure that the pictures can’t really show you is that the white parts on the mecha are actually a white purplish tint that’s more closer to the anime’s version than a lot of the pics of the model and figure online where it looks plain white.

    The figure does have panel lines that you can trace with Gundam markers like I did with mine to give it more of a detailed model-like quality. It really goes a long way. 

     The Garazzo comes with two face plates, one which is full red and the other with a regular mecha face with eyes and silver mouth plate which takes up a majority of the face. It’s fairly easy to remove and replace.

Garazzo with GN Hand Beam Saber.

Garazzo jump attack.

     The figure has pretty good poseability and can do the majority of poses the HG Gadessa can. However there are some upper arm limitations on the Garazzo, but that’s based on how the shoulder armor is designed rather than some inner frame problem.

     On the right should armor there is an extension like belt, on the other it’s the massive GN Shield, that stops the upper arms from going fully upwards at an angle but it’s not that much of problem since the figure’s torso can turn completely and bend from one side to another.

     The legs, lower arms and hands have the same moveablity as the HG Gadessa, however this figure has the added choice of using four pairs of hands which include: two fisted hands with metal knuckles, two open hands, two GN Hand Beam Sabers and two GN Beam Claws.

Garazzo with GN Beam Sabers

     The Garazzo has got a great design and its main weapon, the GN Claw Blades, look fantastic on the figure. Speaking of the figure, as already stated its poseablity is comparable to the HG Gadessa and its joints are pretty solid, there’s no loose armor since everything’s pretty much tacked on. 

     I wish the figure came with a stand since I just went ahead and used the HG Gadessa’s stand, but only then it was still a loose fitting for the figure. I’m also hoping they do decide at one point to include some decals down the line. I used some leftover decals for my modded Gadessa and I think decals would look good for this line.

     Nevertheless, I’m looking forward to getting a few more Robot Damashiis after my purchase with this one.

Garazzo with GN Shield

GNZ-005 GARAZZO – iMovie

     The last time that I bought a figure was back in 2007 with the Haruhi Suzumiya figure at the Mid-Atlantic Anime Convention. I was a fan of the series and still am but I’m really not much of a figure person, that is until recently…. I decided to get the Yoko Revoltech figure after finally getting around to watching Gurren Lagann. After watching the series, I have become a fan, especially of Yoko’s.

     Other than the Revoltech figure I also got the Gurren Lagann Yoko Portraits magazine, which has some really nice art of Yoko and production notes and art pieces. The magazine also includes some polaroids of some of the art inside of the magazine. Also, I briefly touch on the series, Gurren Lagann and wonder to myself why I didn’t get into this series earlier!

Yoko – Fraulein Revoltech Figure

Yoko geared up with shooter sunglasses and rifle.

 

     The Yoko Fraulein Figure came out in October of 2008 and a new version (movie version) of it is coming out in late April and May. Yoko comes with two interchangeable faces, two front hair pieces (one of which includes her sunglasses), her gigantic mecha busting rifle, 2 gun mounts for the rifle, four pairs of hands (including one giving the peace sign) and a stand. 

     With this being my first Revoltech figure and nothing to compare it to, I really like the figure. The paint job is really well done for the figure. The  poseability of it is pretty good considering that it a figure and even though it does have some limits on how you could pose it, there’s several options to put Yoko in a kick ass stance. 

Yoko's rifle is gigantic! You can tell it's even taller than her!

     Yoko’s legs can swivel to the right and left as you can see above where I’ve also digitally removed a stand. After building so many MG Gundams, I guess I got used to the poseability of them especially on the ground.

     I would say you would have a 50/50 chance of getting Yoko to stand how you want her to without using a plastic stand. One of the things that really makes the character fall from one side to the next is her rear giant hair piece. But with some patience you could maneveur her legs to the point where she doesn’t need anything to support her.

Yoko leaping in mid-air to stop a Gunmen.

     Barring that issue, I’m glad I got this figure. There’s enough poses you can do with her to satisfy most of your needs, given that this is a figure and not a fully fledged MG or PG Mode….I mean figure.

     Now I can’t wait to get the new movie version of her, which essentially is the same body from what I can tell, but with different faces included, a new full hairpiece and additional weapons.

     After getting this Revoltech figure, I may looking into buying more given that they look pretty detailed, have some poseability and some with extra accessories.

Yoko in mid-air again.

Gurren Lagann Yoko Portraits Magazine

Yoko Portraits Magazine Cover

 

     The Gurenn Lagann Yoko Portraits magazine is chock full of original art pieces of Yoko which also includes rough animation sketches of Yoko throughout the series, information on her gear (mostly her rifle), a section of full colored photo album pics of Yoko from the series and in an envelope in the back of the magazine, 8 polaroid pics of Yoko.

     The dust cover of the magazine can also be removed to reveal a black and white picture of Yoko as the cover.  Another Gurren Lagann Portraits magazine was made for Nia. And if it’s as good as Yoko’s I’m there! Below are a few pictures from the magazine.

Love this shot of Yoko and little Kamina down in the left corner.

Yoko in her space outfit and her hover scooter. Although I am a bigger fan of Yoko's outfit on Earth, her spacesuit here looks pretty good.

A favorite of mine because Yoko's playing a favorite sport of mine. Hopefully it will warm up soon here so I could hit the courts.

Yoko in all her glory.

I don't this shot of Yoko during the beach episode made it on air. Speaking of which, here's hoping for a revoltech figure of Yoko in her yellow swimsuit featured in aforementioned episode.

 Gurren Lagann – Anime Series

Yoko from the Gurren Lagann anime.

 

     When I first was exposed to the Gurren Lagann series I didn’t really think much of it. At that time I wasn’t active on my blog and was set on Gainax doing something similar to their previous works, for example, Evangelion, FLCL, etc.,etc.,etc.  But I should’ve known then as I know now, to give their anime sometime to sink in and you’ll be hooked.

     For me the hook, line and sinker was Yoko, but as the series went on I got to appreciate the other two main protagonists in the form of a young boy named Simon and his courageous dont-get-in-my-way “brother” Kamina.

     The series takes place sometime in the future, where most of the population is living underground in a very primitive sort of way. There’s no televisions, phones, or cars in the underground city. But one day the main character, Simon, stumbles upon a small drill and a mecha (called Gunmen) that leads him, Kamina, and an outsider, Yoko, to the surface.

     There on the surface they fight other Gunmen piloted by Beastmen who eradicate any human that comes to the surface. Thankfully for Simon and Kamina, there are other people on the surface, including Yoko, who rebel against the Gunmen.

The main characters of the series. From left to right: Kamina, Simon and of course Yoko.

The Gurren Lagann mecha named by Kamina, piloted by Kamina and Simon. I would love to get a decent model of this.

One of the boys' Gunmen opponents in the beginning of the series. The Enki, piloted by the beastman Viral.

One of my favorite episodes of the series involves the characters going to a bath house. This has got to be one of the funniest and uncensored anime episodes ever!

     I bought the Gurren Lagann Special Edition DVD 01 which contains the first 9 episodes of the series, and to me its the best of the series which spans 27 episodes. Don’t get me wrong the rest of the series is also well done and does take a series and cosmic turn that’s interesting, but the first 9 episodes really focuses on a brotherly-best-buds-forever vibe with Kamina and Simon that I could relate to.

     That aside, the whole series is a mecha pouncing insane journey that only Gainax could offer. My only caveat is that it’s only 27 episodes….and 2 movie retellings….but that’s always how it is when you come to the close of a great anime series.

Kamina and Simon in the Lagann mecha.

Yoko iMovie

A screen capture of iMovie on my new Macbook Pro.

 

     After a few of my friends began pushing me towards everything Apple, I decided to get the new Macbook Pro 17 inch matte screen. I’m glad that I got it, it seems everything I run like Adobe Photoshop CS4, runs much faster than other computers I’ve used. But then again I’ve heard that Adobe software runs faster on Apple computers using MAC OS. 

     Anyways, I decided to try the iMovie out on Yoko. iMovie has a lot of options that are similar to Windows Movie Maker, which has been my movie software of choice. But I’m thinking about getting Final Cut Express, since I’ve heard that Express is quite similar to Final Cut Pro.

    iMovie does have a bit more features than my Windows Movie Maker, and I use a few on this movie.

My G's Festival Magazine Box with all its goodies scattered.

     I’ve always wanted to get a G’s Festival magazine ever since I spotted a few at Heisei Democracy. It’s more expensive than most manga and anime magazines since they add in a few special well made extras.

"Moonlight Cradle" game poster in Akihabara. (Photo by punynari.wordpress.com)

     This month’s focus is “Moonlight Cradle” a game (Eroge) that comes out on Feb 27. As you can see from the picture above in Akihabara courtesy of Punynari, there’s been advertisements for this game strewn throughout.

     Apparently a few of the characters have appeared before in other games, but this one is not a direct sequel to any of them.  

G’S Festival Vol. 15

G's Festival Magazine Vol. 15

      Dengeki G’s Festival magazine specializes in bishojo games and devotes issues to games and includes exclusive items on the characters.  Vol. 15 focuses on “Moonlight Cradle” an eroge that features numerous heroines from the game, which is coming out for Play Station and PC.

     The magazine really has some dynamic art pieces including a small but awesome illustration gallery. G’s Festival included three exclusive items: a mouse pad, a cellphone cleaning trinquet and a gigantic pillow case.

The mouse pad featuring Estel from "Moonlight Cradle." It's a good piece of art featuring one of the heroines, Estel. I've been meaning to get a new mousepad for sometime, this will more than suffice.

      This issue starts out with a section on the main characters and some profile art pictures of them with some including some rough sketches and game art.

      After looking through the art work, it really got me inspired to get started on drawing again.  I’ve noticed a few of these characters have some resemblance to other well known anime which is a good thing. Like Cynthia, looking exactly like Nagi from Hayate no Gotoku….can’t wait for the second season.  

Feena Fam Earthlight

Feena Fam Earthlight. The character also graces the gigantic pillow that came with the magazine.

Some Feena art inspired/from the game.

 Estel Freesia

Estel Freesia. My favorite character from the game so far and it didn't hurt she's now the new face of my mousepad.

Art above from/inspired from the game. I really like the rough sketches that are featured with the characters, especially this page's.

This is a promotional video for the game.  It’s got a nice theme song.

Natsuki Takamizawa

Natsuki Takamizawa. Kind of reminds me of Askua from Neon Genesis Evangelion. I have yet to see the new movies.

Natsuki art. Again really love the rough sketch section and the little comic strip included.

Cynthia Marguerite

Cynthia Marguerite. She can almost pass for Nagi from Hayate.

Cynthia art from/inspired from the game.

The official Japanese Web page for "Moonlight Cradle." Click the pic to enter.

Cynthia is also featured in the exclusive cell phone trinquet with the magazine. I really don't have a use for a cell phone cleaner, so I think I'm going to use this one as a "Gundam" cleaner instead.

     Festival also dedicates a few pages to the game itself which looks pretty cool. I think the last Japanese game I played was some years ag0 that ran on Windows XP or 98. I think if I’m able to find it for a good price I’ll probably buy “Moonlight Cradle.”

     I’m also planning on getting a macbook pro, which means that I’ll have to get parallels to use Windows on in order to play this game…and know a bit of Japanese. 

Preview page of "Moonlight Cradle."

Another preview page.

One more page from the "Moonlight Cradle" game.

     Another extra that came with the magazine is a gigantic pillow case featuring Feena. Surprisingly enough, the material its made out of, is very well made. It feels more like polyester than cotton.  It’s pretty shiny too.

The Feena pillow case that comes with the magazine. It's pretty long!

A close up view of the pillow case.

     G’s Festival magazine itself is pretty thin, but it comes with all these extras and some fantastic art. Based on what I’ve seen so far, in terms of the graphics, “Moonlight Cradle” is a game that I will actively seek out and put a review on whenever I’m able to find it.

     The magazine is something I may pick up on a regular basis, depending on what game they showcase next and what extras they include.

     I end with my favorite part of the magazine.  This issue also included a brief illustration gallery for “Moonlight Cradle.” I’ve got to start drawing again! 

Estel

Feena

Cynthia

Feena

Another great art shot of Estel.

Gadessa attacking with wrist Vulcan Cannon.

     Unlike Gundam Seed, Gundam OO ‘s sequel is better than its predecessor. For me Gundam Seed should have ended after the first series. With Gundam OO, the story is expanded upon and has more compelling plots and characters.

     I really like the political story as it relates to what’s going on currently in the world. One aspect that I really enjoyed this time around were the mobile suits, especially the ones the bad guys piloted. After i saw episode 13, I decided to modify an HG Gadessa to the Innovator Hilling Care’s colors.

HG GADESSA GNZ-OO3 - Hilling Care Prototype 

Gadessa - Pilot: Capt.Hilling Care

     The Gadessa is an Innovator Mobile Suit piloted by Hilling Care. The original colored Gadessa is piloted by Hilling’s fellow Innovator Revive Revival. The Innovators are out to unify the world through corrupt and evil ways and its up to the Gundam to kick their ass.

     The Mobile Suit’s weapons include a beam saber (which did not come with the model), vulcan cannons attached to its upper wrists, GN Blades attached to its arms  and of course the Gadessa’s massive GN Mega Launcher.

Gadessa with GN Mega Launcher.

Gadessa firing GN Mega Launcher.

GN Mega Launcher deactivated mode.

Gadessa waits for Mega Launcher to power up.

Gadessa with GN Mega Launcher.

     This is my first HG model, a model type that I should’ve started with instead of the PG so long ago. compared to the MG’s and HG’s, this model is a bit tighter especially in it’s joints.  These things are super tight! But that’s to be expected because of their size and simple construction.

     I’m amazed at how well the model can contour its body to different poses even with the GN Mega Launcher attached to its back. Which brings up one thing that I didn’t like about the Mega Launcher. There’s really no small device or contraption to close the system all the way so at times parts of the launcher’s system hang out at times.

     What I really like about the Gadessa is it’s feet. Aside from the design the feet has some maneveurability when it comes to moving to its side.  But Bandai’s designed the feet so you can actually have some pretty good stances even with the GN Mega Launcher attached to its back.

The HG Gadessa has pretty good poseability given its size and that it's an HG.

Gadessa with Beam Saber. The HG model did not come with one, it's a small nitpick, but would've liked the one.

      The feet as mentioned are very good in keeping the model stable, however you do have to remove the front pieces of the two toes in order to change them from flight feet to ground feet. Perhaps when they make an MG out of the Gadessa they’ll figure out a way to do the feet instead of removing them altogether.

Gadessa with GN Mega Launcher.

     I was a little skeptical of buying an HG, because I’m so used to PG and MG models, but I’m glad I got the HG Gadessa. It doesn’t have the same mobility as higher end models, but the mobility it does have really impresses.

     The model really impressed me so much so that I’m going to go ahead and get the HG Garazzo, which has a similar frame to the Gadessa but a different color scheme and  uses long beam sabers attached to it’s fingers instead of the GN Mega Launcher. Hopefully an MG version of the Gadessa isn’t too far away.

HG Gadessa in Hilling Care's colors.

GN Mega Launcher preparing to fire.

Gadessa GNZ-003 piloted by Capt.Hilling Care.

Gadessa with GN Mega Launcher and Beam Saber.

HG Gadessa - GNZ-003.

 HG Gadessa GNZ-OO3 Prototype – Hilling Care

M.M. wakes up looking for her lost mecha, Kemeko.

     Kemeko DX was a show that I’ve been wanting to check out after I went to a few anime forums and heard some pretty good things about it. Urusei Yatsura, is one of my favorite anime,  and cartoon of all time and this show reminds me a bit about it. 

Akiha from "The Girl Who Leapt Through Space."

     I also take a look at “The Girl Who Leapt Through Space” show, which is something decided to watch since I was a bit curious after I bought my Megami which dedicated it’s cover and poster to it.  

Kemeko DX

M.M., Kemeko's Pilot, makes an appearance in class.

     Kemeko DX, or Kemeko Deluxe, is about a boy named Sanpeita who is one day thinking about a promise made to him 10 years ago by a girl about both of them getting married in 10 years.  As he’s reminiscing about the event a spaceship drops into his bedroom and he’s invaded by Ghost In The Shell-like droids and the mecha-of-all-mechas, the Kemeko.

Rise and shine, Kemeko's in the house.

Kemeko makes short work of the droids and Sanpeita's room.

     After the carnage, Kemeko tells Sanpeita that she is his wife. Sanpeita doesn’t want to believe all that has happened and quickly leaves to go to school, where we are introduced to his good friend and well endowed one at that, Izumi and some of his other odd ball friends.

Izumi, Sanpeita's childhood friend...how can she stand so upright?

Misaki and Ryouta, Sanpeita's weird friends.

     It turns out that Kemeko is just relentless in getting Sanpeita to be her husband that she follows him to school. Something also is after Sanpeita, as he is attacked by a giant rice cooker on the school’s roof. Kemeko is able to defend her would-be husband and show her true form as she emerges from the Kemeko mecha.

M.M., emerges from the Kemeko.

M.M. wakes up looking for her lost mecha, Kemeko.

     Sanpeita realizes that M.M. looks exactly like the girl who promised him that they would marry in ten years time, but he’s not exactly sure. He doesn’t even have anytime to contemplate this as the Ricecooker Mecha’s Hand returns and Kemeko once again saves the day.

     I really enjoyed Kemeko, so much in fact that as soon as the first episode was over I looked for the remaining ones. Other than the main story going on there’s a few little other subplots, about Sanpeita’s mother as a struggling mangaka and his friends weird knick knacks, that make the show already better than it is.

     I’ve already seen through episode 5 and it gets better! The only bad thing about it, as far as I’m concerned is that it’s only 12 episodes. Hopefully the manga comes state side. The musical ending has to be one of the best, it’s realy catchy too, check it out!

Rice Cooker mecha after Sanpeita and Izumi.

Sanpeita, visualizing his dream girl's evolution from cute girl....to Kemeko?

Kemeko in action.

M.M. and Kemeko.

 The Girl Who Leapt Through Space 

Akiha from "The Girl Who Leapt Through Space."

      The girl who leapt through space is a sci fi comedy about a girl named Akiha who actually lives in space with her family. One day her older sister tells her, that Akiha is going to be married. Akiha doesn’t like the idea of that, only being 17-years-old and still in high school, so she and her maid, Imo, decide to run off.

Imo ejects from her maid droid.

Akiha and Imo going to school and planning an escape from the family.

      Akiha eventually meets up with some friends at school and they decide to help her evade her family, especially her cooky sister, by placing her in a pod. Unfortunately, a huge colony craft space jumps into Akiha’s path and she and Imo are sucked into the colony, where they meet Leopard, an AI and the only being in the colony.

Akiha and Imo investigate the abandoned colony.

Akiha and Imo meet Leopard, otaku-ish AI of the colony.

     Meanwhile, the local police is investigating the colony’s appearance and send out Itsuki Kannagi to investigate.  Leopard feels a bit anxious with the authorities down his throat so he decides to kill himself and run himself into the Earth. After some pleading from Akiha, he decides rather clumsily to decide to live again.

    He gives Akiha a golden gun which activates a mecha known as a QT ARMS. Kannagi also has one and helps Akiha to activate a large lever on the colony to help Leopard steer clear of the Earth.

     This show didn’t make me laugh as much as it did with Kemeko DX and the story for me is okay. I did like the design of the QT ARMS, especially Kannagi’s. The stand out character has to be Leopard, with his juvenile behavior through the end of the episode.  I’ll watch a few more episodes to see if I like where this one is going.  

Itsuki Kannagi from the Mysteries Division.

Kannagi's QT ARMS mecha, which is kick-ass!

Akiha's QT ARMS mecha.

Akiha and Imo.

Sinanju aerial strike using beam shield.

I figured when I left this blog over a year ago that I wouldn’t return. But alas my love for Gundam and Anime has returned. I plan to continue this blog on a regular basis.  At least an update every month.

I start off with the Mobile Suit that brought me back, the MG Sinanju.  I really didn’t expect Bandai to churn this one out. I figured the company would just direct all attention to Gundam Seed and its predecessors. But I’m glad they decided to produce the mecha.

Unicorn versus Sinanju. (Digitally rendered to include flare)

I also review the MG Unicorn which I had bought last year and played around with the idea of doing a post on it,  but never got to it.  My usual shooting studio, the Blue Ridge Mountains, is no longer available to me so I decided to play around with indoor settings, light and shadows and some digital manipulation.

MG Sinanju

The MG Sinanju after a triumphant battle with the RX-O.

The Sinanju is a Neo Zeon Mobile Suit from the Japanese novel “Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn.” Full Frontal, the pilot’s name, operates the mecha. I decided not to put, Full Frontal(..this name is kind of odd and funny name.), in Sinanju since I found that the configuration for the seating was a bit loose on my model.

But that’s the only thing that I found that was loose on this model. It looks like a tank and it’s built like one too! I’ve accidentally dropped it a couple of times from the shooting table, with the end result being no damage and all it’s armor plates attached with no sign of letting up.

Sinanju with Beam Saber.

Sinanju kneeling with Beam Saber.

I’ve got to give props to Bandai for this model.  I think it’s one of the sleekest and deadliest designs that I’ve seen for any type of mecha. Even though it’s bulky and huge, Sinanju’s maneveurability is incredible. You can see from the shot above, it’s knee joint is fully capable of bending to almost any type of pose you can think of.

Sinanju waiting to strike in the shadows.

I knew before I ordered it that there was no way in the world that I would leave it unpainted. I deviated a bit from the color schemes provided, the biggest difference is the joints and hands which I painted light gunmetal gray to give it a steel looking quality.

Sinanju in Flight. (Stand digitally removed)

One thing that I really wished I had done last year when I was putting the Unicorn together was get water decals, which I did with the Sinanju and helped a lot to give it more detail.  Having said that the gold water decals that come with the Sinanju were horrible! You’ve got to have a lot of patience and dexterity in order to put those on. They are also a bit more flimsy than the water decals you buy from Bandai.

The Sinanju includes a few weapons and from what I understand he’ll be getting a big new one come April.  Like the Sinanju itself, the designs of his arsenal are well done and just add to the menacing look of the Neo Zeon Mobile Suit.

Sinanju with Large Beam Axe-Blade.

Sinanju Aerial Strike with Beam Axe Saber.

Sinanju kneeling with Beam Rifle.

Sinanju strike using double beam axe blade.

As mentioned before, the gold water decals that came with the Sinanju were just too flimsy, so I had to use the regular decals for all the gold emblems that you see on the model. It took some patience to get them on and align them just right, especially for the knee and elbow joints.

The white line markings across the leg and shoulders also proved to be kind of difficult for me even using the water decals that I purchased separately from Bandai. Fortunately enough the rub on decals that came with the Sinanju were a bit easier to use than previous rub-on’s. So if I made a mistake using the water decals I could go back to the rub-on’s.

Sinanju with double axe sabers.

Sinanju in Flight. (Stand Digitally Removed)

Sinanju strike with Beam Rifle.

I’m glad I purchased the Sinanju, it’s a favorite design of mine especially since it has a kind of resemblance to the Kampfer. The poseability is incredible for it, given that it’s big and bulky. The markings on it add to the detailed look, once you get them on and aligned right. The model is a must buy for Zeon fans and all-around mecha fans, you won’t regret it!

The MG Sinanju

RX – O Unicorn Gundam

RX-0 Gundam Unicorn

The RX-O Unicorn Gundam is again from the aforementioned novel Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn. Piloted by the novel’s protagonist, Barnage Lynx.

I bought the Unicorn Gundam early last year after I played around the idea of coming back earlier to Otaku Surf. This normal mode of the Unicorn, looks pretty simple enough, but it is much sturdier in this version than it is in Destroy Mode.

The decals do a great job of making it more detailed since it’s practically all white.

RX-O Unicorn Armed with Gatling Gun.

RX-O Saber Strike.

RX-0 Gatling Strike.

RX-O Unicorn Gundam Destroy Mode

MG Unicorn Gundam - Destroy Mode.

This is the reason why I bought the Unicorn. It’s awesome psycho-frame Destroy mode. I really like the fact that it has all those red psycho-frame panels throughout it’s body. This mode also is slightly taller than the normal mode of the Unicorn.

The only real downside for the model in Destroy mode, is that it’s armor is very loose, since it was made to be transformable.  This can be a bit frustrating when you’re trying to maneuver the arms and legs.

Another negative is it’s knee joint which is not as poseable as previous MG’s and newer ones like the Sinanju. I went ahead and slightly modified the knee joint on its right leg for some flexibility.

Unicorn flight with Double Gatling Gun.

Moonlight Unicorn Blast Off.

Unicorn with Sabers

I like the Destroy mode so much in fact that I’m thinking about getting another one and possibly doing a Banshee of it. It’s a great design that adds more unique details to the popular well-known classic Gundams.

Unicorn versus Sinanju.

Unicorn with Beam Rifle

Unicorn Fully Armed

Well, we finally come to the end of this very long post after a very long hiatus. I’m very impressed so far with the Gundam Unicorn MG’s and hopefully Bandai will continue to produce them.

Although the Gundam Unicorn has a few problems, in reference to it’s leg mobility and loose plating, I still like the model’s design and have no regrets in purchasing it.  The Sinanju, to me is an excellent MG. The only real downside again, is having the time and patience to get those gold stickers aligned correctly.

I’ve heard that the Delta Plus may be the next one they produce from Unicorn, which I think is fantastic. If they make an MG out of it, I’ll be the first to pre-order it.

The MG Unicorn Gundam

Hunt for the White Unicorn, Resurrection & Revenge

 

My Almost Completed MG Unicorn

Well, it’s been a while and it took something huge for me to come back to the blog–The MG Unicorn and Sinanju. Once the Sinanju arrives and I’ve completed it, I’m going to post them together.

This time around I don’t think I’ll be shooting outside on the beach since it’s really,really cold! To compensate I’m going to try my hand at graphic manipulation.

Hurry up and get here already.