:anime: And Another One Bites...

Kadokawa Pictures USA, the licensing arm of Japan's Kadokawa Pictures, closed down on August 31, leaving a number of to-be-distributed titles such as Ga-Rei -Zero- and H2O ~Footprints in the Sand~ in possible limbo and becoming the fourth (or third, depending on how you view it) American anime company to dissolve within the year. It's such a shame to hear this news, as their products were of high quality and they seemed to put a lot of effort in ensuring it (as personally observed with The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time). The titles in question may still be in queue if the closing only meant a reallocation of resources and that negotiations would occur through the parent company and not the subsidiary, but as of this moment, there is no word on their fate or of those that have already been released by the likes of Bandai Ent., FUNimation, and Nozomi Ent. I have really enjoyed their work over their too-brief lifespan, and along with their awesome eyecatch, I'll definitely be missing them if this is truly it.

:boxing: Road to the Pacquiao Stakes:: Mayweather vs Marquez

Perhaps the one match-up worth seeing right now that isn't named "Manny Pacquiao vs Floyd Mayweather, Jr." is "Floyd Mayweather, Jr. vs Juan Manuel Marquez"--well, arguably at least. It may not carry as big a marquee ring to it as the first, but it is as big a fight as that is. The argument can be made that Marquez is the real #1 P4P fighter in the world, having knocked out Juan Diaz in stunning fashion after a brutal war earlier in the year and taking Pacquiao to the brink in their two encounters (and for the record, I thought he won the first and lost the second--both by a round). On the other hand, Mayweather once held the mythical title for a good while, but has last fought nearly two years ago. With a date against the Pacman looming just beyond, he'll need to get by a man that not only fights nearly as well as him, but has his own plans of getting after the fighter.