A Breaking Bad break

It’s Jessie and Hector from Breaking bad!

Just LOLed so hard after this!! This guy doesn’t speak a line in the whole series but his character was awesome!

Stolen from here

One Piece beckons

This Sunday was dedicated to One Piece. I had been reminiscing about the series now that I have decided to stop seeing it for a few months (love to let it build up). So the pictures below are from the first ten episodes I saw today. If you haven’t seen it, go see it. If you’ve seen it, you know it’s great!
In the first few episodes, we see a pattern developing:

Ya, if you haven’t seen One Piece, you might think he’s serious, but Luffy, of course, after saying this, bursts out laughing!

Luffy and food! Not Luffy and Hancock, but Luffy and food!

Luffy and Zorro.

I think this was a wonderful meeting. Both of them have
major/life-defining goals, but find each other appealing and crazy (Well, everyone finds Luffy crazy, but here Luffy finds Zorro cool!) We are also introduced to the 3-sword style and Onigiri, but Luffy-Zorro combo is a must-see. I like Sanji as much as these two and he’s as perverted as he is powerful. I also think that the anime builds up on these three guys as the lead. Sometimes it’s just nice to see these three appear when Nami and Usopp are in trouble.

Speaking of her, Nami isn’t half-bad. She isn’t very hands-on in the fighting area, but she sure is logical and clever. Nothing misses her, tricks, tomfoolery or treasure!

Aww, this dog was so sweet!

Of course Luffy loves loyalty and helps the dog! He’s been wearing that hat since so many years (see below) and seeing a dog fight for his late master’s shop needs no further motivation.

This is one of the rare times I’ve seen Luffy angry. I think he’s intense in the Arlong Park/Nami’s arc and in Robin’s arc, he’s just plain right awesome! But that hat is like magic. It’s connecting him, Shanks and Gol D Roger.

To be very honest, I didn’t/don’t really like Captain Buggy. I think I read somewhere that Oda created him very early on. Also found this: Asked if Buggy's penis were also able to split and fly off, author Oda replied "his penis can fly too". – I love you too Oda!

Yes Luffy and food – we get it! Best relation he has had!

Okay, this villain – Jango the hypnotist – walks backward and falls asleep when hypnotising his patients! How Cool!!

I just finished ten episodes and I am so looking forward to Usopp, Sanji and Nami’s battle!

For the love of truth

The Closer is a pure bliss. Love her or hate her, Brenda gets you results.She doesn’t always do it by the book, but her passion and determination are so exhilarating, siding with her is the only way out. Too bad it’s ending! 

I’m a sucker for detective shows and I’ll take them in any form- Detective Conan, Agatha Christie, Midsomer Murders, The Closer, Psych and so on. I like it when there’s rigorous fact-finding, a bit of analysis and maybe a moral or two.


Keizoku 2: Spec: Lazy cop and angry cop solve crimes related to special abilities.

Just to be clear I mostly watch shows that include more investigation/talking and less CSI work. For me CSI work should be limited to aiding an investigation and not being just the investigation. I’m sure there’s more to detective/police work than just blood/spatter analysis and an autopsy.


Detective Conan: One of the longest running manga and a great detective show. Not only is there a new mystery with each episode, but there’s a over-arching mystery that’s just too cool (the villains are named Gin, Vodka, and Vermouth!); Plus having awesome love pairings also helps a bit.

I also dislike shows like Bones, Castle. I think their strength is mostly the pair and the will-they-won’t-they aspect of it. However, there is just one time that something like that actually worked. And it was:


Trick: A perpetually-scared professor and an out-of-work magician team up to resolve what seem like miracles. Not only is this chemistry great, but the plot is wonderful too.

Some other recommendations: The Mentalist, Midsomer Murders, Jonathan Creek, Columbo.

The many faces of Shinichi/ Detective Conan

Yes they are very different!

Of course everyone is out to get me!

Disorder | Rating
Paranoid: Very High
Schizoid: High
Schizotypal: High
Antisocial: Low
Borderline: Low
Histrionic: Low
Narcissistic: High
Avoidant: High
Dependent: Low
Obsessive-Compulsive: Moderate

I take these sort of tests once in a while and as I think, so I receive. Though I think there is some conspiracy here. I would say I’m extremely antisocial and dependent. But if I say I let other people make my important decisions, it’s an oxymoron, isn’t it?

URL of the test: http://www.4degreez.com/misc/personality_disorder_test.mv

A gift from Japan

Of course, despair becomes you Japan.

The return of the Picspam!

Cavity: The tale of the lizard and the snake

They just disappeared in the darkness, somewhere
The lizard and the snake
Coming and leaving,
meeting and parting
Reunited, but fated to part.

The colour of the sky, they never saw
only the whiteness of the ceiling.
Never reached out to the brightness,
content to live within the confines.

Living to only die, was the lizard’s wish.
Dying was living, said the snake.
With glazed eyes and shaking limbs,
at the waterworks they parted,
the snake slithered and the lizard stayed.
Both wished to meet again, yet never again.

A fateful coupling, I whispered,
Releasing one and taming the other. 
Watching the snake glide,  wishing it would die,
watching the lizard petrified, wishing it would leave.

The sun in the darkness
the snake dies daily.
The darkness in the heart,
the lizard breaks itself, only to be born again.
Blood and black, craving and despair,
taint me again, today.

The man who cannot marry?

Hiroshi Abe, I might just agree with you!

P.S.
さびしいのにおいは何ですか？
私です。

What Am I Watching? Ichi

                             
So I’m looking at my download folder, which is just about to burst, and I think – How many dramas/anime am I watching?
Just a fair warning – Things that I watch are usually divided into episodic and non-episodic. With the episodic ones, I take my time cause the I think the story isn’t engaging if the author has to resort to episodic events. The non-episodic ones are sometimes also called awesome!

So here’s a list:
1. Inuyasha


Anyone’s who’s even a little bit into anime would have heard of this series at least. A high school girl is transported into feudal Japan reeking of demons and slayers. Here she meets the half-demon Inuyasha who is after the sacred jewel that can turn him into a full-fledged demon.
I like the series as a whole, but it’s too episodic and lengthy.  
For more pics, go here

2. You’re Under Arrest
Another anime. This time it’s cops in a quiet Japanese city.

The series is fun. Look at what they have – two female cops and an unusual motley crew. I’ve just started this but sadly this is episodic too.

3. Fringe

Welcome to episodic land! Fringe is something I watch when I’m loading up on some other (better) serials.  The place taken by Fringe now was earlier occupied by Criminal Minds. They try to do something better, but it’s all already been done. While Fringe is worth a watch, it’s not worth a save.

4. Glass no Kamen (Glass Mask)

And now, the good stuff. Glass Mask is such an inspired story. I first picked up the 1984 version anime and am currently watching and being inspired by the 2005 version. This is such a strong story that I’m now reading the manga.
Simply told, Glass Mask is the story of a teenage girl who knows nothing but acting; a simple girl who transforms on the stage. A must-see for everyone. Also a long, passionate love story.  

5. Gungrave

This anime is a delight to see. Not only does this have a strong storyline, I’ve fallen in love with its songs. Revenge, friendship, love, honour – and guns. Dark and serious, I love the heavy angst.
Here’s the opening!
p.s. The quotes on the wall!!!

6. Gal Circle
So this was an odd one. I am following the brilliant Jdrama reviews of this guy here! And when I saw Gal Circle there, I was a bit confused. A cowboy lands in Shibuya and with his pure-hearted Japanese and heart, tries to correct the behaviour of young para-para (dance) girls!! SO Odd!
 
But fun! Even though there is a usual moral ending, it’s just fun to watch everyone making a fool of themselves! Or you can just watch it for the tons of girls including Toda Erika!

7. Luther

I’m not asking for your approval sir; just your silence.

It’s just too good to see Idris Elba back on the screen and talking in British accent. The last I saw him was in The Wire as Stringer Bell…ahh, good times. Luther is a mystery/cop show. It’s not the best show around but it’s extremely powerful and it’s good. A definite must-watch.

Okay, this is just part one of what I’m watching. I’m sure by the time I write part two, many of these will either be done or long gone. I’ll update soon.
I sorta have a life!

Closer to Criminal Minds

In the past month, I finished the whole six seasons of The Closer. I had not heard much about this series; only that its lead had won the Emmy. Otherwise, I was totally in the dark about The Closer, which has turned out to be my this year’s best detective show.

Usually, I watch shows I keep hearing about, with some blatant exceptions to the rule (like Parks and Recreation, Glee, 30Rock, etc.). But The Closer is a show about detectives and more about interrogation and smarts than evidence and street stakeouts. Brenda Leigh Johnson, played by the delightfully surprising Kyra Sedgwick, transfers to LAPD as a high-ranking officer, and faces staunch opposition for being an outsider and a woman. But she overcomes that by being a top-notch interrogator and a detective.

The series mostly works because of Sedgwick’s brilliant portrayal as the quirky Johnson. It is a must-watch for all fans of the detective genre.

The other show that I started watching after this was Criminal Minds. I can safely say that it is one of the many shows in the line of the CSI blitz. Although the form of detection is based on psychological analysis, the series feels too churned-up and the characters, heavy. There are some good elements, but those are just once in a blue moon. However, I will not completely shun it.

Shedding the last bit of conscience

Byakuyakou translates to journey under the midnight sun. The two of them proclaim to be each others’ shining but fake sun.

Episode 2 and 3 were an emotional turmoil, a joy ride. Children who split meet as adults, but they still have dread hanging over them. There are witnesses and bullies, suspicious old timer cop and burgeoning evidence all hanging over their heads. One struggles with his last bit of conscience and decides to drown it; The other is sure that to be together forever, everything else is just an obstacle, even being together now.

Episode 3: Hand holding, take 2

The actors are superb, the plot heavy and palpable. At this point, I have no problem with the pacing and I am really glad the episodes are not exactly episodic, as in one obstacle per episode.

Looking forward to the what happens next :)

Sinners who love

A snap from e1 : This was just so warm, coming where it did.

I had been postponing my watching Byakuyakou for a very long time. Now that I have seen the one-and-a-half-hour long episode one, I wonder why I try to delay watching pleasurable things.
This trend, of not watching anime or dramas that I know will suit my likes and choices, is not a new one. I still haven’t watched Monster and Death Note. I know Baka-Raptor recommends it and I surely know that I will be a fangirl when I watch them.
I think this all stems from insecurities. I think that after watching the best, where do you turn to? What if there isn’t anything better after this and what’s left is a pool of mediocrity?
Back to Byakuyakou. I like stories of revenge. Redemption stories are better too, but revenge and getting what one deserves is the best way to get my attention.
Byakuyakou is the story of two kids, who have embarked on a similar journey. There’s laughter and longing, suspense and murder, and star-crossed lovers are always fated for either doom or domestication.
I am looking forward to watching this with force and gusto. Recommend this to everyone who likes good acting and a strong plot.

Desire

Listening to: Taishou A
Sin exists because I'm giving up
Punishment exists because I want things too much
I'll leave everything behind
And travel, keep traveling through the cycle

Why Star Wars?

I am extremely late to this but I just finished watching Star Wars: A New Hope. The movie only seemed important to me in terms of the popular culture references it generates and if one is unaware of the film and its expanded circles, one would not be part of this inclusiveness.

The film itself is decent. I appreciate the wide scope, the grandeur and the epic narrative. Some effects seem ahead of their time and many just remind me of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy or Doctor Who. But some things are extremely mind-boggling.

- Why is Princess Leia so irritating? She’s loud and demanding. And the hairstyle – my god!

- Because I am so late to hear ‘May the force be with you’ in its actual context, I was immediately reminded of the Indian Superman ‘Shaktimaan’, where the villain and his party often end their conversations with andhera kayam rahe (May there be darkness). And of course, there’s always Superman.

- The light sabers are actually a cool concept, expect for the noise they generate. They’re too noisy if one is planning a homely homicide.

- Is someone inside the suits or are they just bots?

- I don’t think it says much for the film if I like C-3P0 or R2-D2 more than the humans, does it? Those guys didn’t even care that R2-D2 was injured! Jerks!