Maria Ozawa | Fake Message But Genuine Number, LOL | Enlarge

Hey, Maria, what’s up? Whoa, really? Oh crap, wait, not another fabricated message, lol. Oh well, while the returning French-Japanese adult-video idol Maria Ozawa never sent me any stunning bright-eyed cheer, a guy can dream, can’t he? But if you’re wondering, my fellow Toyboxers, nope, this isn’t a “Palpatine’s Day” or “Anti-Palpatine’s Day” weekend post. Not really. Not officially, lol. Ehh, who cares? How was yours anyway? Oops, before you answer, get your twisted mind ready for yet another five-layered mega-post! This week, we leap through spiraling blog battles-and-rules, sneak under indestructible foosball ninjas, skip past random girl-shaped drama-and-gothica, peek at heart-breaking high-school girls, and slide down slippery ring-burnt relationships. Nothing dangerous, of course, lol. So are you ready? Now on with the show…

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Danny Clone & Barbie | Click to enlarge

The Adventures of Danny Clone

• Warning: Massive 58-photo segment following the show.

• Danny Clone: Hey Jay, are u sure about this?
• xJAYMANx: Sure, let’s push the envelope a little bit, hehe.
• DC: Okay, if you’re sure.
• xJ: Yeah, let’s do it. Go ahead whenever you’re ready…

• [Audience applause.]
• DC: Okay!… Welcome ladies and gents to “The Adventures of Danny Clone”. I’m your host Danny Clone, a third-rate copy of the extraordinarily unique and original Danny Choo!
• [Audience applause.]
• DC: But first, a quick plug for Good Smile Company! And the beta launch of the English Good Smile website at eng.goodsmile.info! Where they go the extra mile for your good smile!
• [Audience applause.]
• DC: And your good cash… Just kidding, just kidding!
• [Audience laughter.]
• DC: Today, our guest is the beautiful Barbie from Las Vegas.
• [Audience applause.]
• Barbie: Thank you, DC. Would it be okay to call u DC?
• DC: Why not? I’ve been called worse things!
• [Audience laughter.]

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Suddenly Acquired Figma Saber | Click to enlarge

Yeah, another grinding week in the real world. Office-chained client-work for IBM continues to be grueling. I continue to endure burn-out mode while my blood-shot eyes (including my supernatural left eye, lol) approach boil-out mode. Yet despite it all, I manage to limp along with anime and web design as my crutches, lol. So, in no particular order, a few highlights over the last couple weeks…

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Photos 2354-2420 by xJAYMANx | Click for all 59

Triple damn!!! More than 2 1/2 months since my Vader Versus Haruhi photoshoot in mid-August! Tied up with work, anime, my brother’s wedding in September, and the completion of my latest Mirai masterpiece in October. But finally, we welcome my 1/6-scale “Saber in White Swimsuit” (Clayz, June 2006) obtained in August 2007, 1/6-scale “Bunny Girl Yuki Nagato” (Atelier Sai, April 2007) obtained in May 2007, and 1/7-scale “Storm Trooper” (Kotobukiya, November 2003) obtained in July 2007.

For this Canon photoshoot, I ended up with 59 shots, taken with various backgrounds. And for the first time, I experimented with the “Auto Levels” function in Photoshop. Wow, it automatically adjusted the color and contrast pretty well!… But what’s the funniest of all is that this looks like a trooper-armored Danny Choo kidnapping Saber and Nagato! Just like he “kidnapped” the easy-on-the-eyes Aya Hirano, hahaha! Enjoy!

Otakurl it! >>
My Anime Figure List >>
Click for Full Photoshoot (59) >>

Photo 2354 by xJAYMANx | Click to enlarge

Coming soon! My full photoshoot of Swimsuit Saber and Storm Trooper!

I don’t know if this has ever been done before — creating a video by setting a figure photoshoot to music — but in any case, here’s my first one. Ever since my original Blog 044 > Fateful Circumstances anime-figure photoshoot (47 shots taken in March 2007) featuring Yukino & Arima (from Kare Kano) and Saber (from Fate/Stay Night), I’ve had this intriguing idea in my head, of somehow composing a slideshow and setting it to music. After a preliminary 3-photo test, plus a few hours composing this one, I think the video actually turned out pretty well for an experiment! Enjoy the show!

Original Photoshoot >>
Original Full-Size Video > 856×480 WMV >>

Draft 10a by xJAYMANx | Click to enlarge

Hey, fellow otaku! Some of you have already seen my first piece of fan art for DannyChoo.com called “Past & Future Circumstances” which depicts sisters Kako & Mirai Suenaga. Well, last night, I finally found some time to work some more on my next piece, portraying Mirai Suenaga in battle. But damn, due to my ongoing blog updates and other responsibilities, it’s been slow progress since May 28th; only my 10th random day in the last month. Sadly, no more than a couple hours each day.

So to rectify the situation, I thought a progress post would kick my anime butt into high-gear! From Draft 10a, here’s a 750×500 section of the full 1800×1200 battle scene so far, with layers and layers of temporary reference images beneath my black lines. My reference images include those from Fate/Stay Night and Ergo Proxy. But at this point, I estimate a mere 10% completed. Hmmm, maybe I’ll cut the frequency of my blog posts? Gahhh!

Past & Future Circumstances >>

Photo 013 by xJAYMANx | Click to enlarge

Ah, finally! My first figure-collection update in ages! Finally moved out the boring 8-year-old vases from the stepped wall in the living area, and replaced them with my collection of still-boxed anime (and Lara Croft) figures! Jeez, 17 figures still boxed! For those who don’t yet know, with the exception of some of my earliest figures, I don’t open boxes until I’m ready to do a full photoshoot. Then once I’ve finished the photoshoot, I display them in the ever-rising shelves above my laptop setup. Only 37 figures opened! And yesterday, I just bought and added a third tier of shelves to make room for new post-photoshoot figures. Argh, will it never end? But now, more pics…

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Photo 003 by xJAYMANx | Click for all 47

Ah, springtime! Quite fitting for another sunny light-hearted photoshoot! This time, from another top-favorite romantic-comedy series, and one of the most-beloved love stories in anime history, Kare Kano (or His & Her Circumstances; here’s my review), we introduce the unforgettable boy-and-girl 1/8-scale “Arima & Yukino” (in resin), released by the now-defunct Tsukuda Hobby back in the late ’90s.

In January 2007, by sheer luck in the Amazon Marketplace, I stumbled upon this rare figure! After several months of waiting for the right time, I finally used three Amazon gift certificates to reduce the price enough to get it! Clearly, the rarest piece of my collection!

Also, we welcome back, from Fate Stay Night and Fate Hollow Ataraxia, the blonde-haired 1/8-scale “Saber in Brown Dress” (in PVC), released by Alter. She’s the first-ever figure to arrive at my doorstep last year in May 2006! In fact, after checking all of my favorite figure sites plus eBay, she’s pretty rare herself, LOL!

For this Canon photoshoot, I saved 50 shots, then narrowed it down to 47 shots, 4 of which I used Photoshop to increase the lighting by 10 and contrast by 10. I tried to create some interaction between the blonde Saber and the black-haired Arima, along the lines of a random attraction. Did it work? Hehehe ^_^

Otakurl it!

Click for all 47 >>

Photo 26 by xJAYMANx | Click for all 50

Merged with Blog 015 > Part 1.

Click for all 50 >>

Photo 1 by xJAYMANx | Click for all 50

Hey! My newest photoshoot taken today on Sunday, Dec 17th! In this case, I decided to go back and feature the first figure i ever ordered, way back in April 2006. That is, the first figure to grab me, strongly enough to own her: my 7-inch 1/8-scale “Saber in Gothic-Lolita Black” figure (the same “Saber” from Fate/Stay Night). So, to improve upon my original September-2006 photoshoot using my crappy HP digicam, today I used my Canon and a dark forest-fiery backdrop, took a total of 75 saved shots for 2 different poses (with and without skirt), and somehow narrowed it down to the best 50 shots…

Click for all 50 >>

Rider from Fate/Hollow Ataraxia | Image from Hobby Search

As I was checking my email at work, I found this new pre-order (for April 2007) in the latest issue of my “Hobby Search” email subscription… Since I liked “Rider” in the “Fate/Stay Night” anime series, the 1/6-scale “Rider” swimsuit figure definitely caught my eye!… But I don’t like her so much that I can’t wait for her to appear on the more-affordable “Twin Moons” American site… if she appears there at all…