you walk into a room to avoid social contact, but there is someone else in the room and you can’t explain your reasons for intruding on them.

source: https://saturdayxiii.tumblr.com/post/152346537089

Step 1: Figure out how to levitate things with magnets.

Step 2: Put it in everything.

Step 3: ?????? (Kickstarter)

Step 4: Profit!

source: https://saturdayxiii.tumblr.com/post/152335677229

Set up a progress blog for a Sonic ROM hack that I’d like to do. Hopefully it motivates me, or, even better, entices others who may be interested to help me out.

source: https://saturdayxiii.tumblr.com/post/152303514779

Yesterday I saw Castle in the Sky at my local Theatre.

I’ve gone to the theatre to see a couple Studio Ghibli films, as well as a select few other anime movies, and each time it poises a small conundrum for me; I can’t stand anime, but I enjoy seeing these films.

I’ve felt this way for about half a decade now, but for the rest of my life I’ve adored anime.  I was raised on Wizard of Oz, Bumpety-Boo, Mrs. Spoon, and regularly demanded that Serendipity the Pink Dragon be rented for me.  Once I was old enough to recognize “anime” as a branding term I wholeheartedly subscribed to the otaku way.  Now, however, I can’t make it 3 episodes into any new anime without getting angry.  Nor can I dedicate time to my previous favorites without getting bored. So when I opt to pay money to watch a film in theatre and find myself being entertained it’s confusing.

Studio Ghibli is not exempt from the things I think I hate about anime.  Their films are rife with recycled voice actors, swap-able soundtracks, repeating character designs, and reoccurring personalities.  While I am safe from nose-picking heroes riddled with inner turmoil, and obligatory panty jokes, the stories of Ghibli movies are some of the least dynamic I’ve ever seen (you’d think that they made these movies for children, or something), and don’t let that message of environmentalism hit you too hard on the way through.  Yet when they come to my local big screen, I look forward to participating in the experience.

And it certainly is not the theatre experience that changes this for me.  I enjoy Ghibli at home as well, but because I can’t identify what keeps it enjoyable while still appealing as an anime I don’t actively seek out the few films I have yet to see.  Over saturation could be part of my problem.  Yet, despite how rare it is for me to do so, I often feel punished for experimenting on my own.  Even when attempting to re-experience old favorites.  Your dilemmas feel forced and self imposed now, Vash.  Castle in the Sky in the Ghibli spectrum should conjure up the same irritations that the last hit show I watched in the general anime spectrum did, but it doesn’t.  I’ll be back for more, and I’m not sure why.

So, I went and saw Laputa: Castle in the Sky yesterday.  The artwork was wonderful, and the score was lovely.  The story wasn’t very interesting, and the characters didn’t develop, but it was exciting to see them chased into the awe-inspiring caverns of the earth, adventurously fly with pirates through the clouds, and I held my breath as they scaled the outer walls of the flying castle Lupita.  I would see it again, but preferably while I had something else to do, like chores, or an art project.  6 out of 10.

source: https://saturdayxiii.tumblr.com/post/151944972574

I watched the first episode of Channel Zero and I’m intrigued.

As soon as the show came out there was the usual mindless hype, then the first real reviews I saw were rather negative.  I’m not one to ever believe hype, but it has been an interesting puzzle to try and sort out my own opinions, which of course should be nigh impossible from only the first episode, but I damn well will try.

The acting is pretty stale compared to other hit shows, but I guess that would be typical for Syfy.  I can deal with a bit of unintentional camp.

The tone is also modernly ADHD.  Quick cuts to currently meaningless scenes and images abound in a desperate attempt to develop suspense, but this largely interferes with the pace and my ability to tell what’s going on.  The episode was nearly over before I realized that the 2 child characters we were scatteredly following were actually flashbacks of the main character.  This may be a greater testament to my aging ability to follow such story telling, but there are other aspects that genuinely bring out confusion rather than atmospherical unease.

So the story is a bit silly and forced.  Sure, it may be hard to be otherwise when the central reveal of your story has been on the internet for years, but I still feel they could have toned back the tropey drama and let some genuine mystery unfold.  As it is, there isn’t much for breadcrumbs to mull around inside your head, you simply have to wait for the next spastic action from our main character.

Having typed this out, I am less optimistic as to what the show realistically has in store, but at an arms length there is still hope. The hardest step of intertwining traditional characters into a short story that had none has been handled fair enough, and there is likely (hopefully) more going on than the typical horror tropes currently being presented. The costume and character designs are fantastic and are exactly what I would hoped an adaptation of Candle Cove would look like.  So I think that the artistic vision for the show is genuinely well met, I just hope it doesn’t get shortchanged as these ideas are translated into direct character actions. 

Despite my tone and concerns, I am optimistic and I aim to enjoy whatever is presented until it either pays off, or until I simply can’t. source: https://saturdayxiii.tumblr.com/post/151803373179