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sketchley

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  1. sketchley
    Funny you should phrase it like that... I remember reading a review somewhere that the Alien (in the first movie) had a personality with shades of a murderer - it wasn't just killing humans to protect itself, it was actually enjoying the fear it was making in its victims. This is most apparent when it takes on Veronica Cartwright's character. Sadly, it was only Alien 3 that attempted to recapture that part of their personality. (Not that I consider that movie part of my 'head canon'...)
  2. sketchley
    Agreed. The series lost all credibility for me with the VF-19 book. In short, it was when they indicated the wing-mounted multi-missile pods and large bombs/cruise missiles that were pictured on the cover of TiAS:M+ into detachable mini-drones firing bullets and lasers, respectively. I think it was at about that time that my interest in translating the books evaporated, too. LOL But the pictures are still nice. v(^_-)v
  3. sketchley
    I think that's what the writer is trying to say. More screen time and more dialogue = better characterization. One thing to keep in mind is that the article is written for the average person, who doesn't know anything about GiTS. So, please keep that in mind when contemplating the line that was quoted.
  4. sketchley
    BBC News has a review of the movie that puts it into a fairly decent light: http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20170330-how-good-is-the-new-ghost-in-the-shell Perhaps the most important part of that article is that the writer appears to be a fan of the series
  5. sketchley
    Good points. For those kinds of uses, and as long as one is aware of the limitations, it's a great tool.
  6. sketchley
    I agree with the point about influence from others, and to others. We could say that anime is influenced by the early, major creators - such as Walt Disney. In this context, GiTS, as an animation, is merely 'coming home'. Or the inverse - Transformers: a Japanese show that spawned an American-made show, that in turn, spawned another Japanese show. I think the best way to conclude this line of thinking is having a look at a previous generation of art influence - Katshushika Hokusai's Great Wave: http://www.bbc.co.uk/culture/story/20150409-the-wave-that-swept-the-world So... now that I'm looking at it from the context presented in the article - this film is merely the latest evolution, or generation, of what's being going on in the art world for centuries. Ergo: no whitewashing. @Chronocidal: I think you hit the nail on the head. Masamune Shirow was purportedly a high school teacher. So, maybe GiTS (the manga) is his ultimate teaching tool. LOL
  7. sketchley
    Great Mechanics G: 2017 Spring Released: 2017.03.18 In short, no Macross coverage. Though, there is a big article on the upcoming Yamato 2202. Of note is the English subtitle for that new series: "Starblazers" (not present in the Yamato 2199 title). In 'Macross-y' news, there's: 4 B&W pgs interview with Kawamori-san - the return of his feature article "Listen To Kawamori-san!". This time, the topic is "Overseas Work". The two accompanying picture sets are noteworthy: - Japan Tours Festival 2017 in France (reported on by MW members earlier this year). - the transforming 1:9 VF-1S at the Beijing Comicon.
  8. sketchley
    This isn't the first time that I've heard the Japanese considering anime characters international. Something to do with the hair, eye, and skin colour. Perhaps the best way to sum it up is how non-Japanese characters generally act in anime. That non-Japanese behaviour inversely makes it more accessible for foreign (or non-(East) Asian) markets. Examples of anime where the characters behave Japanese would be Sazae-san, Doraemon, and Yamato (but the last one is a bit of a stretch - as the ship's crew is supposed to be international, and I only get the feeling when they are singing patriotic songs...). Anyhow... Agreed that anime (English definition) is definitely more exclusive and limited in scope than the Japanese definition (the same holds true for otaku, in Japan). More than it just being a shorthand version, it's also a fundamental difference in perception. In general, East Asians (going on personal experience here, may or may not cover a wider area) perceive terms inclusively, whereas English speakers (or Western Europeans) perceive terms exclusively. This can be illustrated with the approach to religion and philosophy. In Western European based cultures, religion and philosophy are exclusive and separate (Christianity, Judaism, etc. vs. anarchism, nihilism, etc), whereas in East Asia their not one or the other, but a mix of both (Buddhism (religio-philosophy, Confuciansim philoso-religon, etc.). This perception applies equally to anime: it is fundamentally an art movement (as you said), but there are nuances of it being limited to only the Japanese expression of it. So, in a way, the discussion on whitewashing isn't applicable at all! But in another way, it is partially applicable at best. Hope that makes sense!
  9. sketchley
    Good points, both. The only thing that I'll add is: the only way you'll learn a skill (Japanese) is by doing it yourself (with machine translators for help, in this context). The more you do it, the better you get. Eventually you'll reach a point where you can get the gist of it just be glancing at it. Of course, if you're just after a phrase here or there, then machine translation is convenient. On that note, I've found Japanese sites translating into English better than English sites! My recommendation for text translation (though the quantity of ads suck) is: http://www.excite.co.jp/world/english_japanese/ . For individual words or phrases, the aforementioned Parapara-kun add-on in Firefox. And for katakana words, Google with "Wikipedia + target word". Re: Cancer Pod The reason for that is just the way machine translators work: they use the most commonly used definition (or translation) of a word. When it comes to Macross, we're down 2 counts: military terms are generally not that common in everyday Japanese (so anything military is a secondary or tertiary definition), and Macross is incredibly niche at the best of times... so you can see how the Japanese word for cancer (gan) can get mixed up with the borrowed term for gun pod (gan-podu).
  10. sketchley
    Hahaha This reminds me of something the Japanese made, that DID weird me out: Thermae Romae. I get that it was made for the domestic market, and there's a dearth of good quality Western actors in Japan, but still...
  11. sketchley
    One interesting point that it raises, though, is how the average Japanese perceives anime in general: the characters themselves are international (or foreign, but that is also a loaded word that should be taken with a grain of salt).
  12. sketchley
    There's only so many variations on the theme that they can do. Nevertheless, looking at the posters for clues, we have the Engineers being mobbed by Aliens. And is that a Queen poking her head out of the bunch (upper middle)?
  13. sketchley
    Interesting. Though, it should be pointed out that the GiTS manga came out about 2 generations ago, and the anime movies/TV series about 1 generation ago (talking people generations here). In cultural and age context for the people they're interviewing, the originals would be roughly akin to how the average North American feels about "Gone With The Wind" and "Casablanca". So, take what they're saying with a grain of salt. GiTS will never be at the same order of magnitude as say, the casting of Chinese actresses in "Memoirs of a Geisha".
  14. sketchley

    While signatures are turned off... important links:

    http://monkeybacon.mywebcommunity.org/ (Sketchley's Translations)

  15. sketchley
    Thanks v(*^.^*);;; I think it was more a 'by our powers combined'. Different interests aside, of late I've always gone straight to the point (to avoid the TLDR response), and you (Seto) delve into the nuts and bolts. Which may be why people are more cognizant of you. Anyhow, having much experience with machine translators, all I can say is: if you can, break what you're trying to translate into smaller chunks (E.g. where commas or parenthesis show up), and double check with other automated tools (E.g. the Perapera kun add-on in Firefox). In general, although powerful, Smartphones are not the best tool to use for this kind of work. So, the sooner you can get the Japanese text into a proper computer, the easier/faster it will become. Edit: the current lack of signatures on this site is frustrating. So... one workaround for a link to my Macross Translations site is a hardlink (not hyperlink T.T) in the 'interests' section under my user ID on the left of this post. Not ideal, but that's what we've got to work with. Anyhow, check out my site for *some* translations of some of the books in the VF Master File series! Thanks.
  16. sketchley
    Yes. Micro-missile Launchers in the shoulders, and Internal Armament Loading Bays in the legs - though they were always visually depicted as two-port micro-missile launchers. http://monkeybacon.mywebcommunity.org/Stats/Statistics/VF-171/VF171.php#OFFENSIVE_SYSTEMS
  17. sketchley
    Perhaps it's better to think of those rear thrusters more as manoeuvring rockets, then for propelling the craft forward at great speed...
  18. sketchley
    And the finished VF-31A Super Pack... I'm glade that I decided to paint the folded over tails. Not only does the white on the sticker for the tops come out stronger, the underside also looks closer to the anime (in two ways: the tails themselves, and the tabs on the parts that sticks into the main wings). I was thinking about doing some additional painting (e.g.: engine nozzles and head laser cannon), but went for the quick build. Now... problems: aside from the aforementioned leg parts not sitting flush in the wings, there's also the stickers. The underside being bare is disappointing, but not unexpected. The main problem is the stickers for the small, forward missile launchers (either side of the head laser cannon), and the grey spots on the Super Pack boosters. The gaps in them just didn't want to line up! Also, I dropped one of the stickers for the blue bands at the back of the Super Pack Boosters, and one end folded over. As I couldn't get it separated, I had to trim it off... on both packs! So, handle with care...
  19. sketchley
    I don't know. I kind of like that beat up, covered with grime from exploded hydraulic lines, and charbroiled in an explosion look. So, I recommend cleaning up the worst looking parts (maybe even putting some of that black back on ) - you know, the few parts that look out of place for hard-core weathering - and go with that. It 'should' be easier than cleaning everything off, too. Though, my suggestion sort of precludes having an aiframe colour anything other than white...
  20. sketchley
    Just an FYI (to you and others posting model kits): it's much easier* to do if the background is a solid colour (preferably one with a colour difference from the model. Sh9000's above are a good example: white on creme). * Replace 'easier to do' with 'much more likely to be done' at your discretion.
  21. sketchley
    I've only seen him in "The Ides Of March". Quite good. Catch it if it shows up on the movie channel.
  22. sketchley
    1) no. All parts that have been 'covered' by Super Parts have been replaced with new molds (forward fuselage head area, upper engine nacelles, lower engine nacelles/inner wings, and vertical tails). 2) no stickers for the underside. There are a pair to put on the sides of the legs, but they're like unit markings, and not proper colour swatches. Annoyingly, the folded-over tails are molded in dark grey plastic. They only provide stickers for one side. So, it looks like I'm going to have to paint them white...
  23. sketchley
    Picked up the VF-31J Super Siegfried last weekend, and started work on it this week. The biggest change to the base kit is that the engine nacelles are completely new molds. That's not a problem for the top ones, but it is a problem with the bottom ones... in short, while the light grey fuselage from the original molds fit smoothly, the white fuselage/wings do NOT. As it's quite small, you can probably get away with leaving it as-is. The seam line between the light grey and white wing parts is basically flush, except for the very rear of the kit, where the white side pops up about 1 mm. 1. grey and white sections flush, neither 'clicked' into the dark grey engine nacelle part at the rear. 2. light grey clicked into the dark grey. Mind the gap with the white part! 3. normal type VF-31J for comparison. Wing parts line up flush. 4. best shot I could get highlighting the gap. (the front section of the wings isn't properly affixed with the dark grey plastic - I was test fitting at this point to see where I had to file). So, I set about 'fixing' the problem. It's a relatively easy fix, and if you keep your filing strokes angled correctly toward the interior of the dark engine nacelle part, you won't have to worry about banging up the outer surface of the kit! (In other words, even novice modellers can do this with little fear of wrecking the kit!) Tools: hobby file, parts separator (freebie from now defunct Dengeki Hobby Magazine) Top tip: keep the dark grey lower engine nacelle part attached to the nose part, as the section that joins the two halves of the dark grey part is flimsy, and was already showing stress marks from merely disassembling the kit. It makes the filing hassle free! 1. one side shaved down. The interior side that was filed off is roughly level with the internal hollow. It gradually angles up to the exterior of the part. 2. rear view with one side filed down. 3. test fit to check filing. Left side is filed (wing parts are flush), right side is not (wing parts not flush) 4. filing complete! 5. reassembled. White and light grey fuselage/wing parts flush, and rear part of the wing Super Packs properly seated 'inside' the white wing part. All told, it took about 15-20 min to do this fix. But a big chunk of that time was figuring out where, what, and how much to file off, as well as taking pictures.
  24. sketchley
    I think that's only part of it. Some of the more recent fighters have extremely high manoeuvrability (calling it superior may be a bit of a stretch), and the Soviets/Russian designs have always had a higher level of ruggedness to them (E.g.: able to takeoff or land in a farmers field). So, they have quality, it's just measured on a different scale.
  25. sketchley
    Those Lego trucks look neat! Alas, the text is... disappointing. "参考出品" = Reference Display and... "1/24 ハーガン（試作）" = 1/24 Hagan (prototype) :cry:
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