Why I don’t like DiC

So, here I am, writing my first article for GONG. What’s a girl to write about? Something that she’s excited, yet annoyed about, of course.
When I was young and still in the I-want-to-be-a-Disney-princess phase, I watched the DiC version of Sailor Moon. I car pooled with my friend Diana at the time. I would get home in time to watch most of SM and tell her all about it the next day. She wanted to be Sailor Venus, I opted for Sailor Mecury.

The first thing that clued me in to the possibility that the SM version I was watching was a load of BS was a boy. This boy, in 6th grade, had the SM manga. The little magazaines that only had one chapter at a time, but usually had color for the first couple of pages. (I later dated this boy, perhaps hoping he had learned something about what girls want from a guy from SM. He hadn’t.) The manga was so different. Tuxedo Mask didn’t throw roses (not once in 18 volumes) and make lame speeches. He admitted to being a thief, made a badass villain, and had his own powers as the prince of Earth. Sailor Moon was the comedic relief, but in a crisis she was hardcore! In order to stop Tux from using the silver crystal’s power to take over the Earth, she got him with a poisoned sword, then used the same sword on herself in despair! Plus, there are points in the manga where it is clear they had a sexual relationship. (It’s a good thing my mother thought Sailor Moon was a kiddie show and didn’t understand my need to read all 18 ‘comic’ versions.)

Sailor Moon prompted my dive into the online anime world, spending a great deal of time on the Sailor Moon Romance Archives (especially the Hentai). It also lead me to other awesome anime and manga series. When Hastings first had their graphic novel section open, it was just two or three shelves, filled with Urusei Yatsura, Oh! My Goddess, Battle Angel Alita and, of  course, Sailor Moon. While I can trace my anime history back to Yume no naka no Rondo (Gigi and the Fountain of Youth) and Pokemon, Sailor Moon is where I really got my start.

Now why in the world do I bring this all up? Because the lovely Tina lent me the original Japanese episodes of Sailor Moon. It was corny in places (Why the speeches Tux? Admit it – a 12 year old girl is your writer.), but in taking out all things not ‘fit’ for sensitive American viewers, DiC made a fun and occasionally intensely dramatic series into a trite mess. To compare the versions in a way I hope people who have never watched or read an episode will understand, I turn to a Pokemon reference.

Sailor Moon manga = Pokemon manga/original game

Original Sailor Moon anime = First season of original Pokemon anime

DiC Sailor Moon = The worst season of dubbed Pokemon you know ( I personally spared myself the brain trauma and have only caught enough to know it’s gone bad).

Thanks for reading, peoples! I’m off to play my daily Animal Crossing.

Top 5 Heisei Kamen Rider Series

I’ve been thinking a lot about the current generation of Kamen Riders as of late. With the stunning opening of this year’s Kamen Rider Decade, I realized just how awesome the franchise has been consistently over the last 9½ years. Now, if you have no idea what I’m talking about, shame on you. However, I will be kind and link you to some knowledge: Kamen Rider. Study it and be back later for the test. In the meantime, this list should give you a good place to start if you happen to be interested in checking out some of best tokusatsu Japan has to offer. Of course, be sure to dive into the original Shōwa Era Riders as well, including: Kamen Rider (1 & 2), V3, X, Amazon, Stronger, Skyrider, Super-1, BLACK, BLACK RX, and the movie riders Shin, ZO, and J.

Requirements: I’m considering the Rider designs, the show’s concept and motifs, the originality and execution of the aforementioned, and the overall quality of the show and its story-telling.

5. Faiz

This one is all about the story-telling. A slow-paced drama, Faiz could have easily lasted two or episodes longer than it did. Actually, I wish it had; the end was rushed to make way for the next series, Blade. Despite this, the character-driven story of this series is worth following, as the ending genuainly leaves us feeling for all the characters, those that are lost and the ones that are left up to our imagination. The Greek alphabet motif is done well; the Riders look good and have neat toys. Also, I liked the open-endedness of the Rider Belts in this series. They do “belong” to certain characters, but almost anyone can use them – kinda. Let it suffice to say that the belts change hands almost every episode or so.

Top X – 2009 VG Babes

G.O.N.G. is now official, for I have come to make it so. Witness the arrival of Zasalamel my fellow geeks, otaku, nerds, and gamers. I have come to bestow upon this fledgling e-zine its stamp of certified geekdom: the all powerful and mercilessly controversial “Top X” list.

Ta-dah!

Hey, you knew it was coming eventually. A geek-taku site just isn’t a geek-taku site without at least one of these things. I’m proud to bring G.O.N.G its first and hope more soon follow, so, without much more dallying, let’s get to the list:

Top 25 Video Game Vixens

Only a few “Top X” lists could be more difficult to formulate and more often discussed, chief of those being “Greatest Game Ever” and “Best Final Fantasy Ever.” I’ll leave those arguments for another day, perhaps in a list the whole G.O.N.G. family contributes to. Here, however, is my personal list of the sexiest pixilated/polygonal beauties to grace our TVs and monitors. If you disagree, fine – comment. If you agree, great – comment. Want to suggest a few changes? That’s what comments are for!

Lastly, my criteria for this list are rather simple: sex appeal, influence/legacy, recognition. The first is rather obvious (you won’t fine any bosses from God of War on here), but that doesn’t mean I’m so shallow that beauty is just skin deep – I’m not. The third point is also quiet self-explanatory. The second takes into account how important that character is to her franchise and gaming in general; this is honestly more of a tie breaker of sorts.

Now, the list:

25.  Ashe – Final Fantasy XII

The crown princess/queen of Dalmasca, this hottie (un)dresses the part. Seriously, Dalmasca is in the middle of a damn desert, so if I were her, I’d wear two strips of leather and call it a skirt too.

Been A Long Long Time

Sup folks. For those of you who don’t know, this magazine was created to be something like a catch-all publication for all corners of Geekdom. Now that its the summer, I believe that it time for some real journalism! Not the snobby kind that reports crap that nobody wants to read about, but awesome reviews, unbelievible stories, and a bevy of art in all of its forms.

Here’s a few things to look forward to over the summer of 09!

The first Paperback print version of GONG

The Debut of Phantasy West, a Pen and Paper RPG made by yours truely.

Actual Freeware Fridays

Operation E-Z800

GONG becoming the Official E-Zine of the MTSU Anime Club.

Perhaps  a GONG Twitter.

Look forward to this things… and MORE!