:boxing: Pavlik KO's Near KO Winner Taylor!

Kelly Pavlik stepped into the ring looking to dethrone middleweight champion Jermain Taylor. Instead, "The Ghost" nearly got exorcised out of Atlantic City.

:boxing: The Prime Motivation:: Taylor vs Pavlik

Injuries seemed to KO more fights than actual boxers in the ring, as a number of big bouts set for September, such as Juan Manuel Marquez-Rocky Juarez, have been either postponed or canceled altogether. Luckily, at least one of them is still raring to go. Middleweight champion Jermain Taylor will lock horns with hot challenger Kelly Pavlik in a contest that has been on the wishlists of many a boxing follower for a long time, tonight in Atlantic City. Two young, undefeated fighters known for their potential, offense, and power, it is a bout that cannot be an absolute "will win" for either. Taylor, though, has not looked spectacular in much of his fights since his first Hopkins match. He has had some glimpses of greatness, but his lack of clean skills (which has deteriorated more with each fight) and lasting stamina have been growing issues, and he has not won many of those fights in convincing or definitive fashion. Despite this, he has won all of them (however contested they have been). Pavlik, on the undercard of Taylor-Spinks, showed many why he has been as lauded as he has been by displaying good skills and strength in a KO win against Edison Miranda--the kind that is capable of taking out the champ.

:anime: Up and Over The Waterfall with Geneon USA:: R.I.P.?

On September 21, Geneon Entertainment [USA] Inc. sent out a letter announcing the foreclosure of their "distributing and marketing operations" as of 5PM PST tomorrow, September 28. Coming as a culmination of the dropped ADV Films deal, all orders from Geneon will be "FINAL" as of Friday and non-terminable afterwards. In addition, all titles with releases past November 6 have been cancelled and With the fate of their production team already sealed as of December 31 this year, the end of Geneon USA as we know it appears eminent as well. I say "as we know it" because it is unknown about what Dentsu is doing, or why Geneon is where it is right at this moment. Things do not look good at all for the subsidiary from all angles. However, the signs still point towards a "licensing arm" reformation and judging from polls on ANN and AoD, people still have a lot of love and faith in Geneon and are looking forward to purchasing their products again should they ever return in some capacity.

On the brighter side of news (depending on your feelings for the group), Bandai Visual USA has announced that their dot-anime web shop will be acting as their "interim retail center" , which become the primary spot to purchase their offerings until another deal elsewhere can be reached (as suggested earlier).

:anime: When Big Busts Go Bust:: Fanservice Gone Bad (and Good) -[Part2/3]-

::Ikki Tousen::

Like Eiken, Ikki Tousen was another series that had gained a noteriety for its flagrant use of fanservice--and ironically, was also another series by J.C.STAFF. Aside from these facts, the large-chested (nowhere near Eiken standards) and scantly-clad female character designs, and my wanting to see how a show as villified as this one would play out, the similarities end here.

:anime: When Big Busts Go Bust:: Fanservice Gone Bad (and Good) -[Part 1/3]-

[-:Pre-Word:- This was originally a review slated to be posted in August 2006. However, I never got around to finishing it, as I wasn't pleased with it initially (and writing about Eiken isn't one of the more joyous of tasks). Later I managed to fix it up, but after watching the-second-show-to-be-covered, I decided that this big breast/fanservice matter deserved a bit more than a simple post.

And here we are. --HD]

:anime: When Big Busts Go Bust:: Fanservice Gone Bad (and Good) -[Intro]-

Since antiquity, human beings have held certain interests and "obsessions", for lack of a better word, of select matters across many fields. Violence, machinery, art, recreation, and nature are a few of which has fueled the fancies of mankind. One of its greatest is that of the human body. As an avatar and the primary visual distinction between individuals, the body has gained a high level of admiration and influence in terms of human relations, artistic expression, and physical activities. Perhaps the most focused-upon body type in our history is that of the female. In ways of maternity, fertility, and sexuality, the female form has been captured and idolized in generations of art forms and artwork. As such, the noteriety from it can create varying sensations of "obsession". Males, stemming from a number of factors, have shown over time to be tantilized by and strongly attracted to the female body, while the females themselves have shown a propensity for altering, or "bettering," their appearance in order to improve it, also for various reasons. This strive and attraction towards bodily perfection, either total or selective, is an ever present, ever evolving aspect in human existance. Every era and every culture has its own unique ideals as well as identical traits. One reoccuring aspect across time in repect to women has been of the breasts, one of their most noticible features. Though not pertaining to all periods and peoples, the penchant of having a large, full chest has been one sought after by both sexes for many generations. Males have tended to take notice of, if not become fixated on, them due to carnal or sexual notions, where as females may hold them in esteem or wish to attain that certain look for personal reasons or affectionate gain from the opposite sex.

:boxing: Golden Week:: The Gold Standard Magazine and The Golden Girl...

With much talk on the anime side of things concerning the now-dead ADV-Geneon alliance and the effects a consolidation of power would have on the industry, it comes as a bit of irony that on the other side of HardDoor--boxing--there was a surprise acquisition of its own. Sports and Entertainment Publications, a subsidiary of boxer/promoter Oscar de la Hoya's Golden Boy Enterprises (and mostly owned by his promotion section), bought the venerable Ring Magazine, in addition to its other boxing and pro wrestling periodicals. Ring is considered a Holy Grail in the boxing community and its rankings are often taken as seriously as, if not more so than, those of the sanctioning bodies (well, those are disputable anyway, but that's another topic for another time...). De la Hoya has reassured everyone that the long running publication would retain its editorial freedom and that neither he nor his promotion would have any role in it.

:anime: Up A Creek with Geneon USA:: ADV Deal Done Away With...

Over a week ago, it was posted that Geneon and ADV Films would be entering a "strategic alliance" that would see the latter Houston-based company take over distribution, select marketing, and sales duties from the Japanese subsidary come October 1. Now, the biggest news in the North American anime industry just got much bigger...and more odd.

:anime: ADV Films Acquires...Geneon?

ADV Films perhaps made the biggest acquisition of the year, if not in the history of the entire North American anime industry, two weeks ago as the company announced that it was taking over Geneon Entertainment [USA] Inc.'s distribution, sales, and "certain" marketing duties. This deal was originally rumored the weekend before, with both entities keeping quiet about the news leak. With it being now being official, ADV will take on Geneon's sizable catalog and will be handling their given affairs on October 1 this fall.

ADV and Geneon's new "strategic alliance" caught many by surprise. And going by their press release and the news itself, it isn't one that can be easily comprehended either. It isn't entirely clear as to how they will be handling sales (Are they doing the figures or are they partaking in the sales?) or what those "certain" marketing duties are or what they entail. Distribution is rather clear cut in its terminology, but it is this and other aspects of the deal that deserve to bear more scrutiny.