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sketchley

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Everything posted by sketchley

  1. sketchley
    Goods 06: Macross Related Games 2: http://monkeybacon.mywebcommunity.org/MCRgoods/MCRgoods.php#06G Newly translated. While there's nothing on in-universe stats or setting, the stuff on the "Axe Frontier" series is interesting. At the very least, this sheet gives us a good indication of what all future Macross games will be like.
  2. sketchley
    Mr. Kawamori and Mr. Hidetaka are scheduled to make an appearance at the Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum on Sept. 1: http://www.city.takarazuka.hyogo.jp/tezuka/4000020/4000209.html It's another opportunity, but the venue is too small for such a big announcement.
  3. sketchley
    Supporting soft power in the land of Mario? :wink:
  4. sketchley
    Due to this conversation, I rewatched the 2009 movie last night, and... well, it doesn't hold up very well now that we're getting a stream of Star Wars movies to fill the craving for sci-fi movies. :wink: While the characterization and chemistry between the principle cast (that I mentioned earlier) holds up, it struck me that the action scenes (in particular) are a confusing visual mess. I'm not referring to the lens flare (that just compounded the problem). On top of Mommar's point (thanks!) about the cameras being too close, there's the split second cuts, and excessive camera shaking. Ugh. It makes me thankful that the Star Wars filmmakers haven't adopted that (and JJ Abrams himself scaled those things back significantly in SW7). What about Into Darkness and Beyond? Do viewers have to suffer through the same bad combination of split second cuts, extreme camera shaking, and blinding lens flare? Or is the 2009 film the worst for that?
  5. sketchley
    Ugh! Don't remind me of the seriously BAD physics in JJ Abrams' movies! In this instance, I completely ignore the plot, because the introduction of the characters*, and the chemistry between the actors, is a ride onto itself. That said... I haven't gotten around to seeing that movie's 2 sequels... * that's the young TOS crew, not anyone else. :wink: You know... that would've made for a very interesting movie. It would, however, have completely derailed the origin story of Kirk et al, and probably would've ended up being a major distraction in the movie—à la the pod race in SWI.
  6. sketchley
    This is just a guess: it could be ease of manufacturing. Welding plates into a square(ish) shape is infinitely easier then molding/forming complex curved shapes. I can provide price quotes. That said... as soon as I got into thinking about wire transfers and how much the receiving Japanese banks take off... it became a big 'argh' (in my best Charlie Brown impression). Just for arguments sake... I'm approaching it from the Japanese copyright perspective. In very short and generalized terms, translations would be treated the same as dojinshi (which are, themselves, a grey area). What I've heard is that they are 'tolerated' to 'encourage' as long as they remain small scale. I take it you don't have kids?
  7. sketchley
    Well, I'm all for it, if it is done tastefully and with discretion, like what they did in "Gladiator" when one of the main actors passed away 3 weeks before filming ended.
  8. sketchley
    Ah... that actually sounds usable. I was worried that it would be the filmed -but not included in the film- parts of her talking with the new Republic. That said, I think I actually prefer the idea of writing the character out during the opening scroll (E.g.: died due to injuries from being exposed to the vacuum of space) then including her in the film. I guess you could say what I'm most worried about is them doing something like what happened with Tarkin in "Rogue One": replacing a perfectly capable look-alike actor with CG; and the ensuing 'uncanny valley' effect forcing the viewer out of the film (admittedly the effect is less pronounced on a TV screen).
  9. sketchley
    Darn it! I was going to say "hey, if you paid for translations, I'd be able to pump 'em out much faster and help your project." Right now, as a hobby, not to mention in addition to a side job at a translation company... well, we all know the snail's pace I'm currently producing them at.
  10. sketchley
    It says "未定" on their plaques (= not yet fixed, undecided, pending). The main plaque in the middle (the white one) says "監修中". This one's a bit harder to translate succinctly (= under [editorial] supervision). One Japanese site offers the helpful definition of 'supervise' as "to watch a person or activity to make certain that everything is done correctly, safely, etc"). So... shall we go with "undergoing revision"?
  11. sketchley
    If the dialogue was generic enough, they won't have to. Or... if the writing is good enough, then they can set it up in the story so the dialogue makes sense.
  12. sketchley
    I agree that Plus is more entertaining than 7 (let's just put that in terms of the pacing, and leave it at that for the mo' ). However, as far as objective fact goes: there's a Firebomber themed bar in Osaka. I occasionally go there. Pretty much all of the Japanese fans who go there know about Macross either from 7 or Frontier. They are often surprised to hear us Western regulars when we say we like SDFM or got into Macross because of SDFM. Plus, II and so on don't come up. I don't hear about Delta much, but that could just be like us Westerners talking about how we prefer SDFM (or Plus, or whatever) and don't mention the other shows. Take whatever one wants from that, but I interpret it as: shows like F, and Delta are where Big West et al are currently making their profit. I won't be surprised if the next series is similar in tone, etc. to those. Of course, the wild card is Mr. Kawamori. How much will he concede to the sponsors' demands? How much will he follow his inspiration and do his own thing? If memory serves, before Delta he mentioned in an interview that he wanted to get rid of one of the 3 pillars of Macross (but couldn't because of the sponsors). In a way, the lack of (Valkyrie) action in the later half of Delta begs the question: was that his way of meeting the sponsors demands while doing his own thing, and experimenting with getting rid of one of the 3 pillars of Macross? And now that that's out of the system, should we expect the opposite in the next series? (= a Valkyrie focus)
  13. sketchley
    To be honest, I was interpreting "well received" in something along the lines of "there was enough interest in it to make a profit for the production company"... and Seto's post kinda twisted my interpretation all around. So, please don't stop being pedantic on my sake. Just note that my interpretation is different from the one Seto posted. I'll refrain from posting my opinion on Delta, but I will say this: I'm happy that it was good enough with the people who readily open their wallets for such things, that the sponsors have decided to give Big West et al the funds to make a new series so soon.
  14. sketchley
    Isn't "good" an opinion, and "well received" a factual statement? Anyhow... perhaps it's better to look at this from a different perspective: video games. (First person) shooters are popular in North America. In Japan, RPGs (or story based games) are popular in Japan. Both are good (or bad) depending on where one is coming from. Each culture has different preferences about what is "good". Returning to Macross: the producers understand what is currently popular in their target market (Japan), and have geared the show that they made for that. It's kind of irrelevant whether it is popular overseas or not*, as being successful in Japan means money to keep making new shows. And isn't that what we all want? * consider overseas success the icing on the cake. That's a suitable analogy for the % of profit that revenue stream makes.
  15. sketchley
    I agree to disagree (regarding Neil's movies, that is). I've found all of his movies watchable and entertaining. Some have left me more satisfied with more things to ponder then others (Chappie... had introduced a few too many ideas that could have been developed a bit more). So... I'm actually excited about what he could do with Robocop.
  16. sketchley
    I occasionally purchase Lego here in Japan. There seems to be two versions of the packaging available to retailers: one with the English name written on the front, and one without. I haven't examined it minutely, but everything else about the packaging appears to be the same (choking warnings in various languages, etc.).
  17. sketchley
    Macross 15 all the way! PS... I'd refrain from asking a new question that changes the direction of the topic for at least 24 hours - to give those in other time zones a chance to respond.
  18. sketchley
    Speaking of that, a couple of months ago they had a commercial on TV (here in Japan) informing that they were not going out of business (in Japan), and apologizing for the confusion (it's Japan after all...). While not being able to partake in any sales, it is heartening to know that I'll still be able to take my kids there (well, at least until they outgrow toys).
  19. sketchley
    The short answer is: it's just like what we saw with the SDF-1. One thing I've come across in my translations of the Zentradi ships is that basically the front 1/3 of that ship is all gun related mechanisms. So, if we can presume that the majority of crew, ship facilities, hangars, etc. are clustered in the center to rear of the ship, then the disruption is less then if hangars and crew are spread throughout the font, too (this arrangement is the same as the SDF-1). Also, due to the way the gun barrel opens, there is most likely great disruption to movement within the ship (the top and bottom half separate vertically to expose the central core), and possible from internal hangers to external hatches (it makes one wonder if the hangers attached to the outer hull and move with it or not). Alas, there are hardly any specific details on those ships (and most mecha in Macross).
  20. sketchley
    Macross Frontier Blu-ray 01 Linear Notes: http://monkeybacon.mywebcommunity.org/OTlinernotes.php Got around to finishing this one off. While nothing in particular stands out, it does provide a nice overview of the Macross universe leading up to the start of MF. If anything, the character outlines at the start of the series are of particular interest.
  21. sketchley
    No news is good news, right? Great Mechanics G 2018 Summer is out and... no Macross content.
  22. sketchley
    I agree. I can't figure it out from just the line art! However, it's probably very simple. The design was originally meant to be a toy or something like that, so it shouldn't be too complicated (keeping in mind that it's a late 80's or early 90's toy technology).
  23. sketchley
    Thanks for the kind words guys. It appears that we lucked out. Most of the older houses in our area (heavy tile roofs) have suffered some kind of damage. Ours is much more recent. An update on the repairs: Luckily the VF-2SS only flops when inverted. So, as long as it is displayed normal, it's not a problem. (see next pict) The others repaired nicely (including the keyboard stand - not pictured). Alas, the joint on the Drakken's drone support is loose... (right pict) Here's the current display on top of the bookshelf (alas that Lill-drakken). The right picture is the other Macross display after the quake. While Max's VF-1 had taken a nose dive off the shelf due to the wind ages ago, I was surprised that even the Phalanx was knocked off it's feet. Those Bandai VF-1... are a real pain to get to stand up straight! And a true-blue "What's On My Workbench": That's a VF-0 mid-build, and the Tomahawk and miscellaneous vehicles come from the Armoured Factory set (I think both sets just need panel lining and decals). The Zentradi dude (from the Nujaderu-Ga set) is mid painting, and the Rigado... his legs are a floppy mess. Any suggestions on how to remedy that?
  24. sketchley
    Today, there was a big earthquake in Osaka. And guess who lives uncomfortably close to the epicenter! What's Not Lying On My Workbench A bunch of stuff took some nosedives off the shelves during the earthquake. Basara -being unique- took his own route, down the back. There was some serious forces at work. Here are a couple of shots of some heavy bookshelves where the earthquake moved them to (left) and after they were moved back (right). These are rather heavy pieces of furniture! See all those books? That's about half of what was on one of the bookshelves pictured above! Anyhow, Lego cleans up easily. Model kits... not so easily. The final two piccies are what needed to be repaired (luckily [or annoyingly] it was mostly a bunch of ridiculously small pieces). Alas, the VF-2SS might not be fixable. I could only find one of the two fang-like pieces that holds the joint for the wing in the backpack. Everything else seems to be OK. Oh, that white thing in front of the Gundam in the last pic? That's part of my keyboard. The quake knocked the tower on my desktop over... onto the keyboard.
  25. sketchley
    Apparently it is true: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-44379473 For those that want the short form, I'll leave you with this quote from a Twitter user in the article: "It's fine to not like fictional characters. It's not fine to harass actual human people." Anyhow... I've recently rewatched The Last Jedi, and while I couldn't divorce myself from some of the comments from here about lack of tactics (E.g. I found myself wondering why the First Order didn't fly a few ships in front of the fleeing...), I found the film disappointing for 2 reasons: 1) slow pace; unlike other SW films -even the anti-climactic SWIII- this one never seems to build up any momentum. 2) the film doesn't appear to be about anything more then what you get on screen. How can I put it? It doesn't hint at or suggest something greater than what we're shown. Don't get me wrong - I loved the film on the first viewing. However, it seems to get worse on repeat viewings... (unlike The Force Awakens, which I really disliked on first viewing, but is inexplicably getting better on repeats... perhaps because it successfully captured the pacing energy from the original SW films?)
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