: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.

Of Computer Fans and Replacement Parts...

Ah, what one non-functioning fan can do to a computer...

:anime: Throwing It Down With Yawara!--For Free!

When AnimEigo announced their acquisition of Yawara! last year (hinted at in a rather interesting game on AnimeOnDVD.com's forum), many fans and admirers of the show were caught by surprise. The 124-episode anime, a big hit in Japan and highly-rated by those who have watched, follows high-schooler Inokuma Yawara as she is being prepped by her grandfather to be a judo champion like him, despite her desire to live life like a normal girl. Recently, its licensor provided another surprise, this time in the form of a free preview disc. The disc will feature the first four episodes (sub-only, like much of AnimEigo's titles) and will be available at no cost to either those buying other AE products or those chiefly interested in the discs themselves (there is a $5.00 shipping & handling fee for them, though).

It's a great move by AnimEigo to offer a preview disc of a show like Yawara!. Though it will cost them, the impact is cushioned a bit by the length of the overall show ("Four down, 120 to go") and the increased prospect of potential buyers. When taking that and the adjustable preorder pricing scheme (more preorders, lower price) for the first season box in consideration, AE should be able to absorb the preview disc costs.

For the occasion, I'll be listing this on HardDoor's Free/Low-Cost Anime Guide. It may not be streaming or downloadable, but it is available thru the Internet and it is for free, so I suppose that it counts in the end. The ordering was simple enough, so hopefully Yawara! will be as good as they say once it comes onto my steps.


P.S.: AnimEigo could have done this via digital distribution, but I guess they either didn't have the capabilities/contacts, or they wanted something more concrete like a DVD, which can give the sense of obligation or drive to finish the rest of the series. Not to mention, it can be viewed and traded at any time more easily than by DD. Either way, I like the idea very much and I will be eager to see how good the show is and how it is presented.

:anime: Boo for Bandai Visual USA? One Year's Difference...

A little over a year ago, I made my first official full-fledged post on HardDoor on the emergence of Bandai Visual USA, the American arm of the revered Japanese production studio. Bandai Visual was known for helping create such seminal classics as Gunbuster, Macross, and The Wings of the Honneamise (of whom would lend its name to that of the U.S. firm's label), and as such, expectations were high of the type of series and impact they would make stateside. The high-end job done on their premiere offerings, the Limited Edition re-releases of the first two Patlabor movies, and the potential in creating a strong library of titles showed a great deal of optimism for what to expect from the young upstarts in the future.

:boxing: Boxing Bits ::08.01.07:: -:The Extended Rounds:- x 3

Three weight classes, three titles (or just two, depending on the last one), three bouts...all in one installment of Boxing Bits!

:Sat.07.21.07: Hopkins Out-Masters Winky
Bernard Hopkins defended his belt successfully against Ronald "Winky" Wright, via Unanimous Decision, in a fight that was both entertaining and ugly at times. Hopkins stuck to his usual pattern of starting off slow in the first four rounds and later mauling his opponents down as the fight wears on. Winky was game and the more active of the two, but his ineffective punching (in terms targeting, as both had identical punch stats per round) to Hopkins' more pinpointed flurries aided in his defeat. What also did not help was the class of Light Heavyweight, which no doubtfully had a role in his sluggish movement and pacing in the latter rounds. Hopkins, a poster boy of dedicated conditioning, looked as if he had become a little too comfortable at that weight, as he had a noticeable belly coming in the ring and looked fatigued by the sixth round. However, both fighters burnt off much of that excess fat as the bout went on, looking more like their usual selves at the end. As much action it contained, the fight itself had a good deal of clinching and holding (more from the champion than the challenger) and the actual combat itself looked less than masterful. If this was at middleweight, it could have been a much better fight--and an easier one for both. So if this sort of action couldn't cut it...