I walked around the commercial booths, I had pasta and coffee at the Moe Moe Kyun meido cafe, I attended the Chiwa Saito and AnoHana panels and, of course, the I Love Anisong concerts. Let's start with quick impressions of the latter. All the concerts were well attended by paying ticketholders - unlike last year when a large amount of unsold tickets were given out at the last minute to fill the venue space (this is based on hearsay but I heard it from two unrelated parties and I regard both as reliable).
MikuPa had the best turnout, the Main Stage (Suntec Exhibition Hall 402) was full and even invited AFA guests and artistes who had not bought tickets had to stand on the far left side of the hall which had seats A-Z and 1-45 (1,170 total). Assuming half of the "VIP" tickets (reserved seating) concert-goers bought only MikuPa (I Love Anisong Day One Only) tickets at SGD 148 and the other half bought Three Day packages which would cost SGD 125 for the first day, then a guesstimate of revenue generated by Vocaloid fans would amount to SGD 159,705. Assuming an equal number of standing tickets at SGD 48 each (sub-total of SGD 56,160), Miku, Rin & Len and Ruka, as well as their live band raked in SGD 215,865 (USD 167,068). Not bad for 100 minutes' work. And also quite respectable when compared to how the concert revenues of nine acts SeaA, Aniki, LiSA, FLOW, Kanako Ito + Chiyomaru Shikura, Milky Holmes, angela, Kalafina, and May'N, (using similar assumptions except seating was reduced from A-S) amounted to SGD 35,055 per act. The equal weight assigned to all nine acts is grossly unfair as it was clear that some acts pulled in way more tickets than others but this calculation usefully dramatizes the pulling power of Hatsune Miku and her brethen.
In terms of personal marginal utility (i.e. enjoyment imho), my ranking of the I Love Anisong acts would be:
1. Hatsune Miku: superb holographic projection and audio, a setlist which included a good mix of old favourites and newer Project Diva2 numbers (I've fallen hard for Rollin' Girl and Uta ni katachi wa nai keredo, both by doriko), an excellent live band who seemed genuinely gratified by the audience response, I've never cared much for the Kagamine twins but this live party has made feel positive about both of them, yes, even Len.
2. angela: atsuko-sensei's voice and katsu-oniichan's guitar playing sounded as good as their studio-produced albums, their charisma and experience performing live then further enhanced the former, I wanted to hear more songs e.g. YOU GET TO BURNING
3. LiSA: the only other act backed by a full live band, shouted myself during the singing the chorus of a surprise rendition of CROW SONG, nice mix of songs from her own album and anisong (including Fate/Zero's Oath Sign)
4. Kalafina: superb vocals, sang all their biggest hits, Hikaru-san surprisingly conversant in English
5. Ichiro Mizuki: I grew up listening to his songs but I honestly could not remember most of them beyond some faint stirrings during the opening strains and the chorus, unveiling of the Katte ni Kaizo anime OP marred by audio lag while the OP animation played but Aniki was unfazed and carried on like a HERO, some fans who didn't know him seemed amused but also remained respectful due to the presence of passionate fans of his in the rest of the audience
6. Kanako Ito + Chiyomaru Shikura: Kanako-san's singing did not sound as good as her studio album and Shikura-shachou's prancing around with his guitar compared poorly against katsu-oniichan's effortlessly flamboyant flair but it's hard to feel badly towards Kanako-san as she was very friendly and chatty when I got her autograph and Prez Shikura is 5pb.'s President Boss Guy so I feel grateful to him for giving us Steins;Gate. All four songs (Universe Engineer, Another Heaven, Skyclad Observer and Hacking to the Gate) generously catered to the Steins;Gate fan in me but concert goers who haven't seen the anime would have been left cold.
7. May'n: I appreciate that she's supported AFA/I Love Anisong, coming faithfully every year, but LiSA having a live band (probably due to Sony Music's support) spoilt the market a bit particularly as I didn't care much for the four backup dancers in her act, I understand that, like LiSA, she wants to establish her own identity through her own songs but I couldn't help but feel I wanted more Sheryl Nome at this nonetheless very hardworking and competent performance.
8. Milky Holmes: I didn't know either of their two songs and one of the four were not present, they were certainly cute and played their roles unabashedly so I can see how they appeal to certain demographics.
9. SeaA: The first song was ok - being somewhat familiar due to being on heavy rotation as the AFA official theme certainly helped but the rest of the unfamiliar songs, the garish outfits and still-needs-work dancing actually made me feel bad for them. When they introduced Deli-Delidelicious as their last song for the evening, a little girl in my row shouted: YAY! which nearly made me OTL physically; so cringe-inducing as it was spectacularly rude and yet reaffirmed that old adage of true words out of the mouths of babes.
FLOW: Not rated as I left after LiSA's performance. Sorry guys but in the immortal words of Utamaru: who cares about guys?
The most important daytime Main Stage event in my book was Chiwa Saito's live dub and Q&A. I (and I'd wager many in the audience) hoped that her final afureco would be of the scene when Homura's leg got trapped (and probably crushed) under the collapsed well and she started to fill with DESPAIR and then Madoka showed up to finally make her wish. But I guess they didn't want to spoil us, part of this whole charade of see no fansub, hear no fansub and speak no fansub thus assuming that we haven't seen the show yet orz
The presence of producer Iwakami-san was an added bonus and it was great to hear from him that she was directly recruited for her roles as Hitagi Senjougahara and Homura Akemi without needing to audition. This really needs to happen more often if our favourite senior seiyuu are going to make a decent living and go on entertaining us. I was also LOL at how Iwakami-san almost had to stop himself from bowing whenever he mentioned, in reverentially hushed tones, Shinbo-kantoku. I still rank Shizuka Itou's live appearance at STGCC 2011 over Chiwa Saito's due to the marathon 10 min afureco of the former and the five line requests. We were all grateful to the person who made the line request for the Embarrassing Words Are Forbidden line from ARIA's Gatchapen and the question about which character you're most like in RL - apparently Keroro Gunso's Natsumi, causing her to bellow the character's trademark WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!? line.
I didn't plan to attend the Ano Hana panel but it was memorable for the enthusiastic response of the audience to the Q&A wrt Yukiatsu's crossdressing as MANma (which then became a running joke for the rest of the panel). I was also LOL when Danny Choo had a spot of trouble trying to think of how to translate osananajimi and members of the audience had to help him out, shouting: "Childhood friend!!" I suppose Danny doesn't watch much harem/moe anime and that this concept isn't going to appear in his Mirai Millennium anime (though he definitely knows what tsundere is).
Concluding this post with a note on commercial matters (all completely based on hearsay, anecdotes and quick personal impressions): the number of companies taking up booths have thinned out. I think this is a positive thing as the surviving players are committed to bringing genuine merchandise to Singapore fans for the long term. The goods of the usual shounen shows did very well as did Gundam merchandise (via Sheng Tai Toys which is also involved in the Gunpla Expo Singapore 2011 at Compass Point from 15 to 27 Nov). Shana limited edition goods sold out pretty quickly but it seems that sales of Madoka merchandise slowed down on Sunday while there was moderate interest in Ano Hana goods and not very much interest at all in Hanasaku Iroha stuff. I was somewhat suprised that Madoka goods did not sell out but, other than that, it sounds about right.
©2012 hontou ni. All Rights Reserved.
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It's time to play the music / It's time to light the lights
Redemption queue for light sticks prior to the concert
A bit of confusion earlier when people queuing to collect tickets (SISTIC booth in Millennia Walk, not here at Suntec)
Well, light sticks (green) are pretty much a Must Have piece of equipment for any Miku Live attendee
The Hardcore: Part of a contingent of Japanese fans who had flown in specially for this Miku Live Party; their energy during the concert was really infectious and their unabashed love for Miku also helped normally reticent (tsundere?) Singaporean fans come out of our shells much more quickly
The Japanese contingent (just left, under of the right screen) leading the celebratory cheers at the end of the concert
Tribute by a pair of Singaporean Vocaloid fans
...and GATTAI with the Japanese fans
Japanese cosplayer: this was her second trip to Singapore
with another one of her countrywomen
Both belonging to two of the same countries; Japan and the Miku Prefecture of Otakuland
A pair of Australian (?) Vocaloid fans; incidentally there was an Ancient Greece themed wedding ongoing at the same building LOL
Singaporean Miku and Len cosplayers: their friend (not pictured) kept urging them "dun keep using the same poses leh!"
Kagamine Rin cosplayer
She had lots of variety of poses
Later saw her right at the front: Row C
But she was to the far left so it's a great pity that not likely she'll appear in the BD/DVD when it comes out; you could clearly see some of the cosplayers among the audience in the recording of the 2011 Sapporo Live
Not sure about her but I saw one Miku cosplayer at the taxi queue; she was going home while still wearing her full costume!
Heard that there was a Japanese fan who turned up when the sales just started and said (a la Comiket): All two please
And this post concludes with some shots of a Snow Miku cosplayer
While there are lots of versions of Miku (my favourite is Love Is War Ver), this is winter-themed one harkens to her hometown of Sapporo in Hokkaido
Thanks for the live and the memories! See you again soon!!
©2012 hontou ni. All Rights Reserved.
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Watching Gurren Lagann invariably leaves me in a contemplative mood; so, I wasn’t surprised when my recent rewatch of it ended with me reflecting on the quiet heroism that my grandfather (on my mother’s side) displayed throughout his life, which includes fighting in World War II. I decided to be a bit selfish and write something for this blog about him so others can read how incredible he was. I chose today to this so I could also remind people to thank a vet for the sacrifices that they have made.
My grandfather was a man of little words and he didn’t like talking about his experiences in WWII or his earlier life so I’ve only heard parts of the story of his life from other family members over many different times and have had to put them together. It goes something like this.
Like so many other immigrants living in the Mahoning valley, my grandfather’s father worked in the steel mills and in those days it was a dangerous job. So, it wasn’t all that surprising that his father was killed while working in a steel mill nor that my grandfather’s mother decided to remarry. (That there was no welfare state like there is today probably contributed this decision.) Several years later, my grandfather’s step-dad contracted a bacterial disease while working in a steel mill and, since this was a couple of decades before the invention of antibiotics, he ended up passing away too. This left my grandfather’s family in a bind. By now there were several younger siblings that needed to be fed as well as my grandfather’s mom; so, even though my grandfather was still elementary age (once I was told he was in fourth grade and another time in sixth grade), he dropped out of school and got a job in a steel mill to support his family. Which he was able to do.
He continued to work in a steel mill until WWII and eventually joined the Army Corp of Engineers. I’m not sure if he was drafted or volunteered to go but he ended up going to the European theater and seemed to primarily work on building bridges. Like I said he didn’t talk often his war experience but I do remember hearing that he went to France soon after D-Day. (I think D-Day+3 but I’m not too sure.) One thing he did say about his time in Europe was that he disliked the French because they were a rude people.
After the war he returned to Youngstown to settle down and raise a family; he rarely left the area again. One of his war buddies offered to set him up to be an apple farmer in Washington state but he declined (thankfully, or else I wouldn’t be here 
). He continued to work at a steel mill, tinkered with machines, and single-handedly built an addition onto his house when the family got to large. He literally did everything from digging out a full basement to laying the roofing shingles. The backdoor steps that he poured where so massively overkill that when a drunk driver tried to drive his full-size SUV at a high rate of speed through my grandparent’s house about ten years ago, those steps were able to stop the SUV before it could hurt anyone in the house or even cause major structural damage to the house.
I wish he’d have lived a little longer then he did because I was just starting to get old enough that his curmudgeon-like nature no longer scared me and I could appreciate him. Looking back I love how he’d show up for a family doing for about 30 minutes – just long enough to eat and engage in a small amount of socializing – before going back home. I have a couple mementos of him including his telescope and the wooden box he built to hold it and the various accessories.
In keeping with remembering Veteran’s Day, here our some pictures and postcards that have been digitalized that come from his time in WWII.
Picture of my Grandpa and Grandma at Mill Creek Park
Picture my Grandma sent over for my Grandpa while in Europe
I believe this picture was taken while he was still in training.
The next three are pictures that my Grandpa wrote notes on the back of.
I don't know if this is one of the bridges he helped build or just one that interested him.
They look cool in this picture
edit: I was looking through some of the other pictures I got and was wondering what exactly this contraption was:
I love how my Grandpa writes "of" as just an extra loopy "f".
Filed under: anime, off-topic, other wallpapers and pictures 
Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere seems to be a show you either love or hate. Or maybe you hate to love it, or love to hate it. I don’t know. In any case, it can also easily be one of the most confusing shows out there. It seems a bit busy for nothing to actively progress, doesn’t it? At least, until we hit episode 5 and finally achieve some semblance of a plot. A perfectly logical reason exists for this and it all boils down to the “insane professor’s” plan to blow up his own town.
For those who didn’t pay much attention to the synopsis the synopsis on MAL, go back and read it again. The key here is the Testament and its associated Union. The Testament is used to reenact “history.” It is the be all and end all of all major goings on in the world of Horizon. At least it used to be. In the year 1648, the Testament suddenly stops recounting history. Now, a logical problem arises. When all the major decisions of society and the world are determined by a book, what do you do when you suddenly lose your seemingly omniscient guide?
You see, people have become complacent. The first four episode highlight this fact. Despite the very serious problem of the end of “history,” people simply go about their business. No one seems to have a problem with it. We have our plucky students going on plucky adventures and chasing tail. To quote an especially apt Bible verse: “pay attention to yourselves that your hearts never become weighed down with overeating and heavy drinking and anxieties of life, and suddenly that day be instantly upon you as a snare” (Luke 21:34-35a). Complacency has certainly snared the people, and this is where the “insane professor’s” plan comes to the fore.
He has realized the people’s current attitude is not sufficient for forging a path into the future. When you want to wake someone up, you might shake them. If you want to wake the entire world up, you have to shake them with an equally large and suitable event. What better event than the complete and wanton destruction of a major city? Especially when the holy Testament said nothing of the event! If you have any doubts to his strategy, pay attention to his speech. He outright offers to abort the destruction of Mikawa if anyone can present him a sufficient plan for preserving a future for humanity.
Of course, no answers are forthcoming. Maybe five minutes isn’t long enough to come up with something. But the event will certainly make them think. Maybe the pluckiness and the tail can wait until after the world is saved…
Of all the holidays that inspire anime bloggers to post off-topic about, Halloween wouldn’t be my personal choice as the biggest but I just realized that I haven’t missed a Halloween yet. So for the fourth year running, I hope everyone out there had a great Halloween.
I’ve been trying to work through a bit of writer’s block lately but with the Fall season starting to really hit it’s stride I hope the inspiration will get me writing more often. Anyways, the next picture is of the pumpkins that carved this year, mine is the one second from the right.
Good anime Halloween pics seemed thin is year:
And let’s close with a couple other pictures from around my house for this Halloween season. I’m just glad there’s not snow on the ground at this point .
I was disappointed that a grand total of 3 kids came Trick-or-treating this year; the normal is around 25 to 35 a year. I gave these intrepid kids (it was sprinkling a little bit) double the normal amount of candy .
