Blog 234 > Heavy Metal to Babymetal

Konnichiwa, my Titanium Toyboxers, if you’re still out there! Can you believe it’s been nearly 2 and 1/2 years since my last post 233? And nearly 10 years since my first post 001? So what’s the momentous occasion? Babymetal! Of course, it’s very possible that many of you have already discovered their music years ago. But, as for myself, the inevitable event finally smashed into me on March 25th, less than 2 weeks ago, as I’m writing this on April 5th-6th. Luckily, I discovered them in time for the release of their headbanging second album, Metal Resistance, on April 1st. Nice! But wait, what if you’ve never heard of them before? Well, if Metallica represents the metal gods, then Babymetal’s Su-metal, Yuimetal, and Moametal represent the metal demons. Or maybe the metal fox (kitsune) spirits!

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Blog 233 > Five Decades of the Doctor

Greetings, my Time-Traveling Toyboxers! After two years, your Toymaster has teleported from the time vortex to return temporarily to the Toybox. Are you ready? Are you ready for the Doctor? As the entire science-fiction universe already knows, November 23, 2013 is the “Doctor Who: 50th Anniversary” broadcast event “The Day of the Doctor”. Not only have I been a long-time fan of the classic “Doctor Who” TV series (1963–1989) with Doctors #1 through #7, I’ve also finally caught up on all 7 seasons since the current TV series (2005-2013) rebooted with Doctor #9. So let me ask you again: Are you ready?

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Blog 232 > Bye Netflix, Hello SWTOR!

SWTOR rocks! Yup, my Tatooine Toyboxers, I’m back for my final broadcast of 2011. And guess what I’ll be talking about? The “Star Wars: The Old Republic” (SWTOR) massively multiplayer online (MMO) game, of course! Well, just a little bit, hehe. After two amazing SWTOR beta weekends (11-13 and 25-28 November), I leapt back into SWTOR early access almost one full week (14 December) before the official launch date (20 December), and brought back my bad-ass female cyborg character, Punktrooper Motoko Mandara, based on the most-famous cyberpunk chick in anime history: Major Motoko Kusanagi, the elite anti-terrorist commander in “Ghost in the Shell”, “Stand Alone Complex”, and “Solid State Society”. Haha, very nice indeed!

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Blog 231 > Old Republic to New Renders

Whoa, three months flew by fast! And now, my Tattered Toyboxers, I’m back for a mini-broadcast. For this one, I’ll be leaping from 2D art to hi-def hardware to 3D renders, and hyperspacing from the Old Republic to Daz Studio to Poser. How did it all begin? I think it began in July-August with my unexpectedly consuming interest in the upcoming “Star Wars: The Old Republic” (SWTOR) massively multiplayer online (MMO) game! Since then, that interest has spread into SWTOR-laced 3D art as well, haha. So here we go, folks, time to let the Force flow through us…

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Blog 230 > Firefly Rags to Castle Riches

Heyyy, welcome back, my Trickling Toyboxers! What’s new? Well, this time, it’s a new mega-broadcast focussing on the infamous Nathan Fillion, from his current spotlight as the multi-season star of “Castle” (2009) to his previous spotlights as Captain Malcolm Reynolds in the retro-sci-fi cult-favorites “Serenity” (2005) and “Firefly” (2002). Why a Nathan Fillion post? Well, why not? First of all, “Serenity” and “Firefly” are two of my personal favorite sci-fi titles. Secondly (on 11 June 2011), when I decided to give “Castle – Season 1” a try, I was hooked. Thirdly (on 21 July 2011), when I witnessed Nathan as Richard Castle dressing up as his old character Malcolm Reynolds in “Castle – Season 2” Episode 6, I had no choice but to write a post, haha. So here we go, folks, time to burn up the atmo…

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Blog 229 > J200XC, P90X2 & Body Rock

Welcome, my Tweeting Toyboxers! Now that I’ve regrouped and reintegrated my abandoned Twitter and WordPress.com posts into the Toybox, I can now relax with a shiny new entry. This time, we’ll curl, crunch and focus on extreme workouts! From my hybrid “J200XC” to the web-based “BodyRock.Tv” to the highly-anticipated sequel “P90X2”. So, without further ado, let’s rock the show…

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Blog 228 > I Have Moved to Google+

Haha, no, my Tumbling Toyboxers, I’m not leaving the Toybox. However, I must say…

R.I.P. WordPress.com. R.I.P. Facebook. R.I.P. Twitter. Thanks for the short but sweet memories, March-July 2011. Follow me on Google+.

If you remember in my Blog 225 several months ago, I wrote: “… To explore the bright blue bubble… I feel it’s time to move onto the next phase of my extracurricular life… I no longer have the blocks of time and energy to spend. The days of pulling a heavy wagon have drawn to a close. And the days of carrying a simple backpack have begun. In other words: a new WordPress, a new Facebook, and a new Twitter… By freeing myself from a heavily-centralized self-hosted ‘wagon’ of computer files and folders, I can leap lightly from site to site with a simple but liberating ‘backpack’ of ideas and expressions. Free to pursue and explore exotic new territories along my technical path. At least, that’s the theory. We’ll see what the bright blue bubble offers…”

Unexpectedly, all three paths led me to the same sparkling destination: Google+. See you there.

Blog 227 > Happy 100th Birthday, IBM!

Happy 100th Birthday, IBM! Yup, after the stunning announcement in March, blazing acquisition in April, and furious integration through May, I finally became an official IBMer on June 1st. Yup, photo ID badges too, hehe. But guess what? Just two weeks later, IBM celebrated its 100th birthday on June 16th. What monumental timing!

To celebrate, feel free to peek at this illuminating and inspiring YouTube video: IBM Centennial Film: 100 X 100 – A century of achievements that have changed the world.

Proud to be a newbie IBMer, hehe.

Blog 226 > From Angels to Devils

Ah, from Angels to Devils! More specifically, a 5-day Utah hiking trip that conquered (1) Zion National Park’s strenuous “Angels Landing”, (2) Bryce Canyon National Park’s breathless 8000-foot elevations, and (3) Arches National Park’s dehydrating “Devils Garden”. Wow, such an awesome, inspiring and unforgettable trip! Here’s the day-by-day breakdown…

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Blog 224 > Angel Beats & Dead Monsters

Angel Beats. The beats of an angel. Beats. Wild. Guns. Hurt. Girls. Dead. Monsters. All the key ingredients of a brilliant anime series, eh? Haha, like my last mega-cast, that pretty much sums up another super-quick speed review. Inspiring. Mind-boggling. Heart-breaking. Four of five stars. My maximum for a short 13-episode season. But nonetheless impressive. Yup, about two-and-a-half months ago, on 23 July 2010, I finished my 18th anime title or season of the year. Now, two-and-a-half months later, Angel Beats! still resonates. Huh, haven’t seen it yet? Well, let’s fast-forward through this intro! One-two, one-two-three-four, let’s start the show…

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Blog 223 > Women of the Clone Wars

Star Wars. The Clone Wars. First, the pilot film. Next, the Season 1 television series. Then Season 2. Now Season 3. Brilliant. From the settings and scenes to the characters and conflicts to the dialogue and drama. Sublime. That pretty much sums up my speed review. Five stars. Spectacular. But now that you know my point of view, why not focus a quiet Jedi-like eye — or a silent Sith-like smile — on the alien women of the Clone Wars series? Do you have a bad feeling about this? Haha, enough said. Let’s start blasting! And may the Force be with you!

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Blog 222 > Black Rock Shooter Attack

Black Rock Shooter. Yup, she’s attacked and blasted the anime world like a tornado-twisting thunderstorm. While I’ve ducked and dodged through the barrage of irresistible PVC figures, even I couldn’t avoid the hype surrounding the “Black Rock Shooter” (OVA, 2010) anime, released last month, haha. So why not shoot out my own speed review, right? While my text might be short and sweet, rest assured that my gigantic volley of images will pummel and pump you up! Well, enough said, let’s get ready to rock and go!

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Blog 221.1 > From P90X to Insanity

What’s up, y’all? Insane yet? For my latest Toybox installment, I’m going to switch it up with a mini-cast follow-up of my last mega-broadcast. We’re going to leap over “P90X”, dig under “Insanity”, and jump into my own hybrid hysteria of “J200X”, haha. Yup, it’s going to be short but sweet. So let’s turn it on, tune it in, and pump it up. Let’s go!

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Blog 221 > Panties, Punches & Power90X

Panties? Punches? Power90X? That’s right, my Tantalized Toyboxers! For our latest mega-broadcast, we plummet into a splashing plethora of poorly-protected panties, penetratingly-precise punches, and perfectly power-packed repetitions, ranging across scantily-clad “Agent Aika” original anime and live-action shows, to humor-sprinkled “Gokusen” and blood-stained “Crows Zero II” high-school films, to unbelievable Jackie Chan and Jet Li martial-arts classics, to the heart-pumping and body-building “P90X” exercise program. So what are we waiting for? Let’s go! Let’s start the mega-cast…

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Blog 220 > Live Action, Asians, Aki & Me

Aww, thanks, Aki-chan! Happy Belated Birthday to you too! Sadly, Aki-chan’s message is genuinely fake, hehe. But yup, 5 days after Aki-chan’s March 14th birthday, on March 19th, I climbed another year higher, wiser and more tuned to the ways of live-action J-drama, K-drama, Asian gravure idols, and Japanese onigiri. Not bad, huh? On that note, my Tender Toyboxers, let’s step away from “fake” 2D anime and animation this week, and instead, sit back, relax with a bowl of sticky rice, and enjoy a refreshing bottle of “real” 3D entertainment. Ready? Then let’s do it. Let’s start the show…

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Blog 219 > Sayonara 2009 to Onigiri 2010

Sayonara, 2009! Konnichiwa, my Tirelessly Tumbling Toyboxers! Got onigiri? Are you ready? Ready to endure a tumbling tidal wave of tear-jerking titles, blood-splattering titles, angst-ridden titles, and titles not worth mentioning? Ready to slash and slay another dragon-sized mega-cast of 99 wallpapers? Ready for some onigiri? Hehe, then what are you waiting for? Let’s start the show…

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Blog 218 > Endless Jumong, Autumn & Me

Konnichiwa minna-san! Greetings, my Tingling, Trembling and Tumbling Toyboxers! Well, enough of the pompous pleasantries. Let’s get to the point. Are you ready? Ready to withstand another soul-smashing tsunami of spellbinding anime, American sci-fi, Hong Kong classics, Japanese comedies, and Korean epics? Ready to digest rock bands, canine menaces, cute costumes, and mouth-watering waves of food-food-food? Ready to battle an unimaginably monstrous mega-cast equaling fifty or more mere-mortal posts? Not yet? Then please leave the battlefield, hehe. But if you are, better polish your psychological shield and sharpen your cultural sword! Prepare to engage! On with the show!

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Blog 217 > Despair, Devastation & Delight

Despair! Devastation! Delight! Can you truly distinguish one without the others? After all, one girl’s pain may be another girl’s panic may be another girl’s pleasure, don’t you think? Haha, welcome back, my Traveling Toyboxers! Welcome to yet another deliciously disturbing taste of another marvelously mad mega-cast! A mega-cast of classroom-crashing desperation, triple-pistolled typhoons, purse-lipped pianists, lunar-licking digestion, and hardware-clashing relaxation! What am I talking about? Well, buckle up, pipe down, lean back, and let’s figure it out, lol. Ready? Three, two, one, let’s start the show!

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