blacklotus

That's at least a cool $1K worth of Valks. Very nice collection. And yeah, a single Valk will never be as impressive as a whole squadron on display such as yours. I wonder which Macross fan will do the same for the upcoming 1/2000 SDF-1?

Sorry, I wasn't clear - I meant why there aren't more duet songs irregardless of singer/lover pairings, since all the Macross stuff (original,0,+,etc) is really about love triangles? Thanks. I'm gonna look for those M7 CDs when the S$/Yen rate is better. While my Macross/M+/M0/MF CD collection is quite good (not complete, but quite good), My M7 CD collection is at a miserable 1 CD - Milene sings Minmay. Yeah, it's that bad.

Yes, I agree. That duet is very good. Actually, if you have the Macross Perfect Collection 3 CD set, there's another duet for the song "Runner." I won't follow it anymore, The shadow you cast as you run away We all keep running until the end But we still can't see the goal. What awaits us after today? What awaits us beyond tomorrow? Even now, I keep running toward The light that shines so far away Too bad, there aren't more duet song performances in the Macross Universe. Should have at least a Basara/Milene duet, right? sigh...

Spot on about the type of marketing successful companies engaged in. Coca Cola has been selling just that 1 product for almost 100 years too, repackaged in different containers. And you definitely work for Toys R Us. I got 3 of those re-colored Jedi starfighters from ToysrUs(sg) - Anakin's yellow, Obiwan's red and Vader's gray.

1000 Thank yous from me to you, Gubaba. I had the Miss DJ CD for like almost 2 decades, and I've yet to understand most of it since I stopped learning Japanese after my schooling days ended. Guess now it's a good time as any to hit the books again and pick up where I left off. p.s. Those youtube links to videos of 中森明菜 and 松田聖子 sure bring back nostalgic memories for me. Also noteworthy is the Akina Nakamori video in the related column. Also reminds me how old I am now as compared to my youth where the 1st wave of J-pop craze hits Singapore in the late 70s and early 80s. Now J-pop is superceded by K-pop (Korea) among the youths of today as Japanese stuff is no longer considered cool. Sigh...

I see Cyclone Trooper's points as well. Unfortunately for me, I'm always collecting the 'bad' guys' stuff: Star Wars (AT-AT and Star Destroyers definitely cooler than those puny snowspeeders and medical Frigates), Ultraman (I'll take lobster claws Baltan over silly egg-eyed Ultraman anyday, Battlestar Galactica (Raiders and Base-stars definitely win style points over Vipers and Battlestar), etc. So if the Q-Rau really did badly and hurt Yamato's bottomline, I guess the Regult and Glaug will probably take another decade to be released by Yamato, if ever. Maybe Bandai may do us a favour and release the Q-Rea to test the market when the global economy has recovered. p.s. I own 1st release 2 Red Q-Raus and 1 Blue Q-Rau, all bought from webshops located in Japan. Luckily for me, I'm based in Asia. So the shipping isn't as costly as shipping all the way to USA/S.America.

So it's a 2CD soundtrack. Do you happen to have its ISBN number? I'm also sourcing for it in 2nd hand stores. I was hoping to visit Japan this year with the info. But the global econ crisis and the surging increase in YEN vs S$ (35% up) means I have to postpone indefinitely. Still it will be good for me to have the info, which I will use when I finally visit Japan.

I will take the original "bad" SF movie over this. Mostly because it has the cute pixie-sized Kylie Minogue and Raul Julia in that one.

I'm glad to see that there are other fans of Southern Cross after all. I thought for a moment I'm the only one on Earth. I see in you another Mika Doi fan too. (Voice actress of Lana, Houquet and Misa). And still actively working today. I'm very glad. I will always link her with Lana, Houquet and Misa. Nobody else will do. Just like Fujiko should always voiced by Masuyama Eiko and Belldandy should always be voiced by Inoue Kikoku (she was substituted for a few episodes of the Mini-goddesses for some reason, and I recognise straight away it's not her.) And Mari Iijima will always be Lynn Minmay. I know that at times it's difficult for the actor involved to be so stereotyped. (Christopher Reeves (RIP) is always Superman to me). It does mean that the actor did such an outstanding job to make that character his/her own. So in that sense, it's the best compliment for an actor.

Was it ten? I thought it was 20? Robocop didn't even bother to count to 3. BTW, quite a number of concepts in this sci-fi movie become reality. Cities run by Corporations, SUVs, etc. Great movie, I say.

I agree with you. I don't eat Made in China foodstuff either. I throw them away. Unfortunately, lots of International food companies like Nestle/Danone/Cadbury have factories in China. Why? Because it's cheaper to make stuff in China. As for lead paint in toys, can you be sure Japanese toy companies like Yamato/Goodsmile/Alter/etc with their factories in China don't use them? Just because I'm ethnic Chinese doesn't make me a Citizen of China. Heck, Singapore used to detest Communists. We used to round them up, throw them in the locker, and then throw away the keys. Why do we do that? Because when they lose in a democratic poll, instead of accepting the fact that they lost, they riot and wanted to cause a civil war in Singapore instead. And yeah, the Mongols tried to invade Japan. Luckily for the Japanese, and us Japanese culture fans, the "Divine Wind" aka KAMIKAZE sunk most of them. Of course, if you ask the Americans, I don't think they have very good memories of the term "Kami-Kaze" aka suicide bombers in Zeke (Zero) planes. And yes, the Mongols conquered China too. Unfortunately for them, they become assimilated by the Chinese they conquered. Same with the Manchus. And btw, China is not a "homogeneous" society like Korea or Japan. It consists of over 30 ethnic groups, with various sub-groups among them. And all with their own languages. Mandarin is called PuTongHua "Common" Language in China. It's not even the main language used in large cities like Shanghai/Guangzhou/Beijing where their local dialects are used instead. BTW, 'dislike' IS NOT equal to 'HATE'. If you're Japanese, I think you should know better that there are differences in "not liking" something and "hating" something. Subtlety is a Japanese trait, or so my Japanese significant other likes to remind me. ^ _ ^ Also, FYI, our Singapore govt peg their salary structure to the average of the top 30% of the world's companies' CEOs. So our President earns a cool US$2million per year, excluding perks. I don't agree with this policy, but they won the votes in a democratic vote. Oh well...next election then. BTW, the rational for this policy is so that these govt officials will not become corrupt.

Luckily, Alter doesn't make castoffable figures, so I can save some money. (Yeah, I'm still angry at Alter for making the nicest looking Kanu of Ikkitosen, together with a non-removable top. And no, I'm not about to cut up a S$120 figure)

Much as I dislike the USA I see now, I have no hatred for Americans. Actually, if it's not for the Americans, I'll be speaking Japlish right now. Or worse, I might not even be around right now, seeing how the Japanese massacre the Chinese in Singapore. (Yes, I'm ethnic Chinese) I was just wondering, what happen to the good old American values? You remember right? Your grandparents/parents save for the future, spend within their means, ensure their children have a good education, and have a good home environment to raise kids. You know, the Waltons/ Brady Bunch/Family Ties/Cosby Show values? Or are those values just TV fantasy? I'm sadden at how in just less than 3 generations, USA has gone from the World's Biggest Creditor nation to the World's Biggest Debtor nation.

I got their other cast-offable figure (the Sekirei number 9). But the figure's so-so only. Anyway, I'm sticking with Megahouse stuff. (Bad economy, so buying only stuff with good consistent QA and yet cheap. Ok, Not really cheap at about S$100 per figure (inc. EMS shipping) but still cheaper than other companies' products...)

I just found out this man-bra thingy is old news circa Nov 2008. But here's the exact item I saw on Singapore news (we're slow...) a few days ago: http://gizmodo.com/5092694/man-bra-keeps-your-moobs-in-check Webshop that sells the item: http://www.wishroom.net/ Ok. I admit have moobs too (haven't been hitting the gym for almost 3 years now, ever since I'm completed my service in the army reserves. But you ain't gonna see me wear these...)

It happened all the time when I was in University staying in the dormitory. A number of my female friends lost their panties/bras after hanging them out to dry overnight after washing. And their biggest concern isn't that there're pervs lurking about. (We're all pervs, in one way or another). It's the fact that women's undies cost a bomb. And as students, we don't have much cash to replace them every time they got lost/stolen. In the end, they hang them in the dorm rooms under lock and key instead of the communal washlines. p.s. This is in Singapore, a so-called conservative Asian society. But don't believe the propaganda bull-poo. If asian countries are so conservative, why is it that the 2 countries with the largest populations in the world are Asian? (China and India) And the last time I checked, there ain't many people emigrating to China or India. Most wanna get out from China and India and go to USA/UK. (Heck, even Jet Li, a Chinese martial pugilist that got his BIG break playing a Shaolin monk in a movie (Shaolin Temple, what else?) is now a US citizen.) But we Singaporeans got it better: We have Gong Li as a Singapore Citizen now. (Yeah, she got kicked out of the Chinese Communist Party. Too bad for them...) WOOT! http://www.google.com.sg/search?q=gong+li&...lient=firefox-a Sorry for all the off-topic gossips. But I got bored waiting for a cast-offable Sheryl figure...

Thanks for the explanation for the newest crisis. Sounds similar to the Tulip/South Seas/Dotcom scams then. I guess we stupid humans never learn. I'm whistling the Monty tune now...

Unfortunately, for those that trusted these 'crooks' with their retirement funds, I doubt they can just let it be and move on. Can one imagine asking the Jews to forget about Hitler and the gas chambers and move on? Can one imagine asking Stalin's/Mao's/Saddam's/Pol Pot's victims to forget about it and move on? Sorry, but in my opinion, these financial crooks are the equivalent of those monsters. Lives and families are destroyed because of them. Imagine someone's 70/80 year old grannies and grandpas have to come back out to work as minimum-wage workers now because of these 'crooks'. And if one goes according to recent trends, these 'crooks' with their highly paid lawyers will most likely get off scot-free. That's justice? p.s. Sorry. Enough anger venting from me in Macrossworld forum. This is supposed to be a happy place for grown-up kids like us.

Hmm...cosporn...yummy. Anyway, I love the fact that the Japanese acknowledge that adding in the element of fantasy does spice up a human's sex life. After all, humans are higher intelligent beings, not some base animals. Then again, I just saw a documentary clip on my local news channel (Channel News Asia) about a Japanese company selling bras for guys. Apparently, it's selling well. And I thought, ok, this fantasy thing needs to have a line drawn somewhere. BTW, those bras come in black, white and pink.

Oh yes, I remember. That's the one WHF exclusive that makes me curse and swear at Movic (the company that produces the figure) for killing my enthusiasm for collecting figures based on Shunya's art . After this "who gives a damn about our customers outside Japan" attitude, Movic is now on my permanent BOYCOTT list. She's beautiful right? Twin tailed hair style and topless to boot. If I remember correctly, she's limited to only 100 or 200 pieces only. sigh... p.s. You visit Heisei too huh? Too bad for us Shingo's on a long hiatus. But good for him to do something else though. Hope he's healthy and all.

That's how my rational side is thinking. However, when one reads about how Thain (ex-Merrill Lynch CEO) spends a million dollars to decorate his new BOA office while laying off people at the same time, that's when rationality disappears and the guns come out blazing. Sorry man, but's there's a limit to rational thought and all a person wants to do is to cut off someone's balls with a blunt knife. (think 'I Spit on Your Grave', 'Foxy Brown', 'Death Wish')

Ouch. I feel your pain. I still cannot believe these MFcukers made those kind of money, hurt so many people, and yet get to live a good life. Why no one bother to run them down or shoot them, I have no idea. After all, innocent children in schools are gunned down for no reason. I would if I had lost everything because of these arseholes. Think Maddoff. I apologise for the strong language. But I cannot think of more appropriate terms to describe these criminals. All the best mate. Keep up the cheer and listen to Monty Python alot. Good luck.

Oh yeah, I got that 1/350 Yamato. Then I found out my modeling skill aren't up to par. So it's still Mint in the opened box. BTW, I also found out that one can replace Yamato's plastic gun barrels with real metal ones which HLJ carries. Not cheap though. Still, I can satisfy myself knowing I owned the Mother of all Yamato battleship toys out there. Thank you Bandai. p.s. Don't ask me how much it cost to ship EMS from HLJ. It was an impulse buy when times were good, and money was rolling in. Not anymore though. sigh. p.p.s. HLJ shipped it to me in the box Bandai used to ship to their retailers. It's 2 model pieces per box. I can crawl up in that box and ship myself out.

Tell me about it. I was angry at Megahouse for doing that to their Queen's Blade series. I'm missing their Echidna (pale blue WHF edition) and their Maido Alice (blonde with black maido dress, another WHF edition) from my collection. Also, a few magazine limited QB figures are missing as well. (original sculpt 2P color Reina, not this new one that's just released, and the Ninja version of the demon queen (not so bad since except the different colored clothes, she's the same skin color without the clothes. ) Anyway, I'm past all these exclusive things. If they're missing from my collection. So be it. I guess this economic crisis is weighing down heavily on me spending extra money to hunt down exclusive figures. As it stands, with the yen appreciating about 40% vs my S$, I'm already contemplating stopping this hobby and concentrating on my career, hoping to find ways to add value so as to keep away the pink slip. No job = No food and definitely no expensive toy hobby. Guess the pictures of this magazine exclusive Ranka is all I will have in my collection, unless some shop/person decided to sell at SRP. I doubt so though, since most exclusives are marked up quite heavily. Oh well, life goes on.

Argh...Hobby Japan/Megahouse always does that - this is a Hobby Japan limited edition figure. You buy the particular issue of Hobby Japan with the coupon. Cut it out, then mail it to Hobby Japan with the money for the figure. The figure is usually priced the same as the standard release. Damn, a white angel wings Monster Girl Ranka with the correct hair color. Guess I've to hunt down evilbay for this one then.