Freshly DREWed!

EVENTS :     “Hero: The Grand Channel Launch” at the Philippine Trade Training Center

Sorry, it took quite awhile for me to compose this blog entry regarding my latest ANIME-related stint which transpired two (2) weekends ago. I went to the Philippine Trade Training Center (PTTC) for the 2^nd day of the “Hero: The Grand Channel Launch” in the hopes of buying myself another anime novelty item. Although there were A LOT of booths selling stuffs that range from the typical anime DVDs, manga, toys and actual clothing accessories, I wasn’t able to buy a single item because what I was looking for wasn’t simply there (with the exception of a discounted ticket for the “kAME Ulit: 2^nd Collegiate Anime Fair” due this Saturday in U.P. Diliman)…

Hero is the first all Tagalog-dubbed anime channel to be made available only on Skycable. This latest channel addition was made possible by a subsidiary company of ABS-CBN, one of the two leading channel networks here in the

Philippines. Before Hero came along, Animax Asia pioneered the first ever 24-hour anime channel in Philippine cable television. Its shows are usually shown in their original language with English subtitles.

I must say, the event was a huge success seeing that the venue was JAMPACKED with people, young and old, eager to participate in the many activities presented by the organizers. Of course, there is the usual ‘Cosplay Competition’ but with an additional twist in the form of an adlib skit performed rather ingeniously by the Filipino cosplayers themselves (you have to admire the local talent…). There was also the ‘Zenny o Bayong’, a trivia contest sponsored by the country’s leading MMORPG company, Level-Up! Games Philippines, as patterned after those local noontime shows. Showrooms for action figures were also put up for the delight of collectors. Playpens for card battle, online gaming and other anime-related sports were also put up to the enjoyment of the young-at-heart. There were also those mini-events opened only to the kiddos (WTF!) wherein, after completing all the required tasks, they get a hefty goodie bag from Hero! Anyway, I just roamed around and took MISCELLANEOUS pictures just to amuse myself while I was at the venue. I also have landscape shots of winning cosplayers which I will post soon so stay tune ok. For the meantime, click on the snapshots below for a full-sized version:

NEWS :    Power to the People…

The last side trip I took along the narrow pathways of the Muslim Area in Quiapo proved to be a very PRODUCTIVE one. An officemate tagged along and although it was a very hot afternoon, I managed to survive the heat and brought home two (2) DVD titles or rather collections. Why so? The DVDs that I bought contained five or more (5-6) titles each for a WHOPPING total of 11 movies all-in-all in just P 50 per disk! In sum, I spent just P 100 (= $ 1.83) and therefore, P 16.66 per title. Wow, isn’t this a real BARGAIN? I even outdid my officemate who bought six (6) DVDs with only 1 title in each disk, spending an average of PhP 35.00 per disk. If only she looked further and waited for the right offer, maybe she could have gotten the most with her money. At home, I tested the movies and found all of them to be in peak condition. Although there are neither bonus materials nor special features, a complete and perfect copy of each movie is already okay with me.

I do however feel GUILTY because, I myself am a Government Employee and there I was that afternoon, spending my salary (which came from the taxes my countrymen paid) on pirated optical media. I remember in my Basic Economics Course that “piractechnology” entrepreneurs are included in the informal sector/economy that contributes to the demise of the entertainment sector. But hey, I’m just being a practical consumer here and besides, the people in show business earn A LOT compared to a measly civil servant like me. I believe that piratechnology is somewhat the ‘great equalizer’ when it comes to consumer purchasing power. I know it’s not right but I would be a hypocrite if I say that I’m not for piratechnology. My apologies to the Optical Media Board and the entertainment sector as well, the people just can’t help it…    

Hereunder are the titles that I bought:

*

DVD #1: ‘Best Korean Movie Collection 1’ (with English, Mandarin or Thai subtitles)

1. Jae-young Kwak’s “My Sassy Girl” (2001)
2. Jin-gyu Cho’s “My Wife Is A Gangster” (2001)
3. Heung-sun Jeong’s “My Wife Is A Gangster 2” (2003)
4. Han-chun Park’s “Spy Girl” (2004)
5. Yun-ho Yang’s “White Valentine” (1999)
6. Jae-young Kwak’s “Windstruck” (2004)

**

DVD #2: ‘The Box Office New Romantic Movie Collection’ (with Bahasa, Mandarin or Thai subtitles)

1. Michael Winterbottom’s “9 Songs” (2004)
2. Everett Lewis’s “Luster” (2002)
3. Rebecca Miller’s “The Ballad Of Jack & Rose” (2005)
4. Bruno Dumont’s “Twentynine Palms” (2003)
5. David Mackenzie’s “Young Adam” (2003)

LOVESTRUCK :     Vandread OST Rocks!

As an anime ENTHUSIAST myself, I admit to being prone to anime “last song syndrome” and even if I don’t understand the words that come out of my mouth, I still enjoy singing to the tune of my favorite Japanese addiction. That is why recently, I bought myself two (2) audio CDs of “Vandread”. The anime has 2 series and so there are 2 separate soundtracks. Both OSTs contain a massive lineup of mostly instrumental and some vocal songs composed by renowned songwriter, Yasunori Iwasaki. Good thing I bought them while ON SALE because apparently, the production of the said audio CDs has stopped already and so mine were one of those few remaining stocks (WHEW!).

Anyway, the reason I bought the CDs because they offered a DIVERSE range of musical genre from sexy trance to the typical J-Pop, a bit of hard rock, some classical retro, and even one track that sounded like a music box designed to make a baby sleep soundly. Some of the instrumental tunes may have been too short but I ENJOYED listening to them as well.

If any of you guys and gals are interested in acquiring a copy of some of these tracks, just email me and I’ll respond with the requested attachment. I’ll be making digital copies of the tracks using Windows Media Player’s “Copy from CD” function and save them as *.wma files instead of the bulky *.mp3 version. Unfortunately, I don’t know how to post a sampler of these tunes online so you people will have to do the necessary research on your own. 

"Let’s make a smile yes together - everytime I support you." (a space geisha seducing in English tongue)