An Ode to Rurouni Kenshin

With all the hullabaloo concerning Rurouni Kenshin's live-action movie screening here in the Philippines,  is it any wonder why so many fans were starting to get antsy from all the waiting since the opening date kept on being delayed. As for me, I was just happy SM Cinema made the gamble and took the chance to get the licensing to show it.

The date they finally gave was December 5 and was said to be a one day thing only. Funny thing was when my brother and I checked a few days later, Rurouni Kenshin was still showing and going strong. Never underestimate a generation of fans I say. 

Fortunately, my brother and I plus a friend of our's were able to watch it on the day Rurouni Kenshin was released. I was even sick then. Still am, actually. BUT, I do not regret going even though I was shivering like crazy after watching the film. If you've ever watched the anime, heck, if you've read the manga, the movie will be a sure treat for you. It was just.......amazing! The casting was great, the treatment they used made it pleasing to watch, and the fight scenes had a quality to it that made it look 

natural. 

Plus, the story line was easy enough to follow and the easter eggs were just a delight to see. Acting wise? Not bad. Not bad at all. 

(maybe because I'm biased? five stars!)

★★★★★

CAST:

Himura Kenshin - Takeru Sato

Kamiya Kaoru - Emi Takei

Sagara Sanosuke - Munetaka Aoki

Myojin Yahiko - Taketo Tanaka

Takani Megumi - Yuu Aoi

Saito Hajime - Yosuke Eguchi

Udo Jin-e - Koji Kikkawa

Kanryuu Takeda - Teruyuki Kagawa

Gein - Ayano Go

Inui Banjin - Genki Sudou

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As a side note and a little bit of shameless plug, UP AME (University of the Philippines Anime Manga Enthusiasts) held a Rurouni Kenshin live action promotion and cosplay competition last December 2 and Yui for President was invited to perform! Yay! 

Here's a part of their performance: 

(from: Lemon0Zero)

(Yui for President)

Phone Theme

Recently I was very fortunate enough to buy a new phone. Of course one of the first things I did was to set up the overall theme. So, this is what I ended up with:

I still want to do a lot but for now but that's what my brother and I came up with. What can I say? I like how the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo(s) look. Plus, a few friends of mine have different names in my contacts. Seeing the silliness of it just makes me smile. 

2013 Planner

So, since I had a 2012 Starbucks planner this year I was curious what 2013's Starbucks planner looked like and googled 'starbucks 2013 planner philippines' and ended up seeing this. I just couldn't help it and started my own mission of collecting 9 Christmas beverage stickers plus 8 core beverages from Starbucks.

FINALLY, with the help of my wonderful friends and family, I was able to get this!

I'm sorry that I don't have the time to put a detailed review of the planner but if you want one, you can go here. I came across that article when I googled the planner.

Now that I finally have one of my own, I might get another one if I can manage it :-p But for now, I think I'd like to help my other friends to get one of their own. 

Yui For President

It's been a life-long dream for a lot of my friends to have their own J-Pop band and finally, last year they formed one called Yui For President (Y.F.P.) and performed for the very first time at the UP-Ame festival. Just remembering it now brings a smile to my face. 

This year, Y.F.P. was able to take part in the Asian Kung-Fu Generation tribute night held last Oct. 20. Then, they participated in the Otomonagatari: OtoROCK battle of the bands a week later. AND, I'm happy to say, they won best vocalist, keyboardist, and they were the champion band for the night. 

おめでとうございます!!!!

Yay! Can't wait to see you guys and girls perform again! :-)

Here are some videos of Y.F.P's practice and performance for Otomonagatari. (Videos grabbed from YuiforPresident) 

Brave Song - LiSA cover

Crossing Field - LiSA cover

Official members of the band:

Vocals - Macky Santiago (not present)

Vocals - Zoreen Macaraig

Guest Vocals - Hannah Zuñiga

Keyboards: Brian Abenoja

Bass: Tin Caberto

Guitar: Kahlil Santiago (not present)

Guitar: Joseph Angelo

Drums: Migs del Mundo

Drums: Chino Bartolome (not present)

For more information about the Otomonogatari event, here's their facebook page: Otomonagatari

For the Y.F.P. facebook page, go here: Yui For President

Just Write!

Sometime ago I attempted to write for the NaNoWriMo challenge which ended in failure. It was interesting and fun but I was kinda disappointed that I wasn't able to finish 50k words of written work in one month. The fact that I have so much plots and sub-plots cluttered in my brain being left unused seem like such a waste. I actually have about three stories that I itch to write about but I end up mixing up characters and wondering if this person would work better in this other story or vice versa. Of course, in the end I ditch everything and start from the beginning.

One thing useful I learned was this: "Come up with your ending before you figure out your middle. Seriously. Endings are hard, get yours working up front."

That quote is from Emma Coats, a former story artist from Pixar. That's a big problem for me. I get so excited about the characters that I end up not being able to find an ending for the story I'm plotting out. It's great to love your characters but you can't really focus only on them.

That aside, here's to me fleshing out a set of characters, focusing on one story for the time being, and painfully eliminating certain scenarios that I love but aren't really working out.

Time to write!!!

The Road So Far

So, last week Supernatural season 8 started and it just about made my heart smile. There was a little catch though. I stalled in season 7 and paused in episode 5 while the rest of the Saltgunners all over the world are having mini strokes from the epicness of the first episode of the latest season (witnessed that myself from my brother).

With that said, I'm watching the rest of season 7 so that I could catch up with the rest of the fandom. I can't believe it took me this long to watch it. Bad girl.

A Little Something About Nails

My aim on writing in my blog this year was to exceed the number of entries I made the previous year. I think I started off well especially since typing didn't seem so daunting. To be honest, I think I just grew lazy as the year went on. There were a lot of things I could have written about. Watching Avengers, about the engagement of my close friend, about my love for Japan, about my desire to learn Italian, about attending a Cindy Cruse Ratcliff workshop, about the interesting animes and mangas that are out recently, and much more.

I'm a bit saddened that I wasn't able to do all that but I'm not gonna flip tables in frustration over it. Now that I'm here typing this entry, I'm trying to think of something to write about. The only thing that comes to mind is my recent obsession with nail polish. It's a shame I don't have a picture of my nails right now. It's a really nice color I bought from Face Shop:

The one I'm wearing right now is not on this list but I have about four from this line and plan to buy more. I think the pale colors are really pretty to look at. I also have some from Etude:

The colors are great, right? I'm not much into glittery stuff and those crackle stuff. So, these plain colors (minus the other silvery looking ones on that image), are really lovely. My obsession with this stuff worsened thanks to my friend's Totoro nail art. I would really love me some of that :-)