“Tell me what you eat,
And I’ll tell you what you are.”
-Brillat-Savarin Iron Chef
It occurred to me tonight that I’m really infatuated with television cooking and food shows. Particularly the cooking contests type shows. My favorites include Top Chef and Hell’s Kitchen. And don’t even get me started about the Food Network, an entire network devoted to the joys of food and cooking! I love it! But why do I love it all so much? Continue Reading »
Music in anime seems to be the topic of the day. I just finished reading an interesing post by 2xKnight over at AnimeFansOnline. He takes a hard look at the impact of music in anime. Something that is near and dear to my heart, but I guess you could probably tell that if you’ve read some of my earlier posts. I’ve mentioned my love of both themes from Pucca and Lucky Star when discussing the animes. 2xKnight’s post really got me thinking about the fact that when I think about all the anime that I consider to be my favorites, they all have fantastic music! There has to be a link, at least for me.
Can music make or break an anime? I don’t know. While I don’t think that the two are mutually exclusive, I do feel that good music and good anime make for superior entertainment. The music from the opening theme to the background music, sets the mood and often tempo of the anime. And long after the anime has ended, just hearing the music again will remind me of a show that I enjoyed. Lately, I’ve really gotten into just listening to a lot of the music from anime’s that I like. Heck, I don’t what the lyrics are half the time but that does little to deter me. When the music is good, who cares?
Now, I’m not going to debate the legality of downloading music online but Gendou has a site that is one of my favorites for so many reasons. And he even has a streaming J-Pop radio station that completely rocks! You should check it out.
And lastly, below are some Youtube videos that are a small sampling of some of my favorite anime music. Take a listen and let me know what you think.
Technorati Tags: anime, music, anime music, youtube, youtube videos, videos, Pucca, Lucky Star, Beck, Bleach, FLCL
Pucca loves Garu
He’s a pretty boy
Ninjas with noodles
Kissy chase, kissy face
Wham bam bam!
Pu Pu Pu Pu Pu Pu Pu Pu Pu
Pucca funny love
Such begins the infectious opening theme to Pucca, the Korean cartoon (or anime, if you prefer) currently being shown on Jetix. The music alone is reason to watch. The catchy little theme by Plus-Tech Squeeze Box worms it’s way into your brain until you find yourself wandering around the house singing, “Pucca loves Garu…”. But the show itself is just as much fun! The bright and colorful cartoon centers around Pucca, a sweet Chinese girl who loves noodles. But even more than noodles, she loves Garu, a ninja boy. Pucca is cute and absolutely mad about Garu. Garu, on the other hand, tries his best to avoid her. Despite being a very skilled ninja, Pucca seems to effortlessly best him at times. Perhaps, it’s the power of love?
The cartoon is filled with fun and silly characters like Garu’s best friend/occasional rival, Abyo. A Bruce Lee look-a-like, he’s constantly ripping off his shirt for no apparent reason. Or Tobe, a rival ninja that has it in for Garu. He regularly appears with his gang of ninjas to try and best Garu although he never seems to. He has some of the funniest lines in the show. The episodes are short and honestly, delightful! Pucca is just so darn cute with that grin and giggle of hers. It’s impossible to resist! To paraphrase Mega Tokoyo “..the cuteness…it is too much!”
Pucca loves Garu!
So give into the sweetness that is Pucca and watch! Share it with your kids! You’ll be surprised how insidious this adorable little show is. Before you know, you too will be hooked!
Technorati Tags: Pucca, anime, youtube, youtubevideos, videos, Funny Love, Garu, Jetix, Abyo, Tobe, Plus-Tech Squeeze Box
Tonight I watched the first episode of the new season of Eureka. It began it’s sophmore season on SciFI Channel on Tuesday night and I truly hope that it lives up to the first season, which was great! It’s a simple, quirky little show that got a lot of hype to start with. I suppose you’d classify it as science fiction. The premise is that Eureka is a small-town in the Pacific Northwest that is inhabitated by the brightest minds in the country, perhaps the world. Scienctists, theorists, geniuses, who work on the impossible basically. The town was established by the government after WWII and doesn’t appear on any map. It’s inhabitants are responsible for all the greatest scientific discoveries made in the last fifty years. Needless to say, these inhabitants are an odd lot with their own unique set of problems. Into this mix throw a former US Marshal and you get the series, Eureka.
It’s a light-hearted yet suspenseful show that combines science fact, fiction and humor. The characters are eccentric and whacky, just like the town. Sheriff Jack Carter (played by Colin Ferguson) is generally the voice of the average man amid the geniuses. And his one-liners are some of the funniest on television right now. In addition to suddenly becoming a single parent to his troubled teen, he’s forced to deal with everything from bizarre experiments gone awry to unrequited love. The show is well-written and well cast. It’s an all around good show and that’s rare on TV these days.
So far, season two has lived up to the first season but I’ll keep you informed. If you want to check it out for yourself, tune into SciFi Channel at 9 Pm on Tuesday nights. I believe it’ll be worth it for you.
Oh, one more thing…SciFi Channel has done a whole set of ads called MADE IN EUREKA that are a lot of fun! They’re done in the classic infomercial style and are wonderfully over the top! If you haven’t seen any of them, you should check this out…MADE IN EUREKA
Technorati Tags: Eureka, SciFi Channel, TV, television, Sheriff Jack Carter, Jack Carter, Sheriff Carter, Colin Ferguson
Writing my entry yesterday about Shaun of the Dead got me thinking about another Simon Pegg/Nick Frost/Edgar Wright project that I love a lot. ..the TV show Spaced! It was originally on BBC 4 for two seasons back in 1999. Rumor has it that they left the show so that they could make Shaun of the Dead. Actually some of the jokes that show up in the movie came directly from the TV show. It is, in my opinion, British humor at it best.
The story follows Tim Bisley (Simon Pegg) and Daisy Steiner (Jessica Hynes, who also shows up in Shaun of the Dead). Two strangers in need of an apartment who find the perfect flat. Unfortunately, the landlady is looking for a professional couple. So, long story short, they pretend to be a couple and much chaos ensues. It’s a wonderfully funny show full of pop culture references, especially for sci-fi/gaming/comics geeks. Nick Frost appears as Tim’s best friend, Mike Watt. Mark Heap stars as a disturbed artist who lives downstairs. And Julia Deakin steals the show with the strange landlady, Marsha Klein. It’s a fast paced, dry witted free-for-all. The only downside to Spaced is that it only ran for two seasons.
Pegg and Stevenson originally pitched the show (Spaced) as a cross between The Simpsons, The X Files, and Northern Exposure.
I’ve been fortunate enough to stumble onto two British comedies that seem to circle around the same group of professional comedians/friends…Spaced and Black Books (which I’ll talk about at a later date). The actors and actresses seem to enjoy working with each other. Which is a great because they’re all so talented and funny! If you can find it, go watch Spaced. It’s an awesomely funny show!
Technorati Tags: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Edgar Wright, Spaced, Shaun of the Dead, Jessica Hynes, Daisy Steiner, BBC, Britcom, british comedy, Tim Bisley, Julia Deakin, Marsha Klein, Black Books
Movies are the topic of the day and I’d like to open that category with one of my all-time favorites as well as a modern day cult classic Shaun of the Dead. It’s a hilarious, witty comedy as well as a truly scary horror/zombie movie with just a dash of romance added for good measure. It definitely wins my movie trifecta of good writing, good casting and good directing. Co-written by and starring Simon Pegg as Shaun, the film is the best kind of tribute to classic horror movies, especially George Romero’s zombie movies. Throughout the film are images or lines that most horror fans will recognise. For example, the haunting taunt from Night of the Living Dead, “They’re coming to get you, Barbara” becomes a rescuing battle cry here, “We’re coming to get you, Barbara!”.
The movie follows Shaun as he shuffles through his ordinary life, too bogged down in the routine details to notice the signs of an impending disaster that keep popping up all around him. It’s those echoes of normalcy within the horror that are so eerily well done in this movie. Shaun and friend Ed (played by real-life buddy Nick Frost) remain oblivious until reality literally walks through their front door.
“We’re coming to get you, Barbara!”
It’s just a great all-around film. If you’re a fan of comedy, horror, zombies or even light romance then there’s something here for you. This DVD is one that belongs in your home collection. It’s great for those crisp fall evenings when you’re looking for a good scary movie or late Friday night when you & your pals are looking for a fun movie to watch after a few beers.
Oh, and just one more thing…dogs can look up!!
Technorati Tags: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Edgar Wright, Spaced, Shaun of the Dead, Jessica Hynes, british comedy, horror, zombie, movies, cult classic, George Romero, Black Books
