This Happened With Me Too

The Pet Professional - By Jason Salsbury and Matt Kaufenberg

Just for the record, I was one of the idiots at Comic Con who thought that Jason was the artist of "The Pet Professional." Turns out he was the writer. I get him to sign my booklet anyway though.

Who Would Have Thought I'd Be Defending THIS?!

Anime On DVD Community Forums: Zatch Bell - confirmed edit

Let it be known here and now, that DESPITE the editing, "Zatch Bell!" is an EXCELLENT series and worth reading at least once!! There, enough said.

You've GOT To Be Freaking Kidding Me!

eBay: OMG Harry Potter! It's [Character name] .. on my TOAST! (item 5601561868 end time Aug-02-05 21:14:29 PDT)

WARNING: Clicking on the link WILL spoil the ending of "Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince!" You have been warned.

I have this fascination with the most bizarre things you'll see on eBay. The last time I did an eBay blog it was about a guy who was selling ad space on his body (all so he could meet Bill Gates and get a free XBox 360). Now we have someone who is selling a piece of toast, that supposingly has [character name] who died in "Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince" on it. Not only is the auction itself kind of silly, but what's worse is that people are actually bidding on this silly item. Over $40 dollars last time I checked. Maybe I should carve J.K. Rowlings name on a rock and sell it. I might make some real money for once in my life.

"Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince" Discussions

Amazon.com Discussion Boards - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

This is my favorite message board on the internet. Just several people who happen to be real good friends with one another. Right now there is a pretty good debate going on with what the outcome will be for our favorite wizard in the final Harry Potter book. I strongly encourage everyone to join in.

Amazing

Sailor Jes' Fanfic

Recently I've been (for somewhat obvious reasons) addicted to Harry and Ginny fanfiction recently. However, I somehow managed to stumble upon this Sailor Moon fanfic called "The Way," by someone named Sailor Jes. Wow is the only word I can use to describe this fanfic. This fanfic has got to be, without question, one of the best fanfics I've ever read. Basically it is nothing more then a regular story that uses the Sailor Moon characters (without having them actually turn into the Sailor Soldiers), but what a story it is. This story is WAY too good to just be a fanfic, and even if you aren’t the biggest fan of Sailor Moon, I highly recommend you read this fanfic. The link is posted at the top of this post. Enjoy.

More Harry Potter Blues

Well folks, I've now officially read "Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince." I'm sure many of you have already read it, but for those of you may still have yet to read it (or at the very least have gotten to the end), then you may want to be warned that I will be discussing something that happened at the end of the book. So for those who don't want spoilers, it may be best to just skip this post until you finish the book. Now then, on to my rant. "Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince" has been beaten up quite a bit recently. There are readers who believe this be the best book in the series, and then there are readers who believe this to be the worst book in the series (to the extent where some people have vowed not to read the final book in the series).

Personally, I don't this book is either of these. Granted, there WERE parts of the book that serious sagged, and the ending was perhaps one of the best (worst?) cliffhanger endings written for the series, but I think it was nothing more then a very solid book (for me, "Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire" was the best book in the series to date). One thing you can't deny though is how much of a controversy this book has caused. Not with church groups mind you, but with fans of the series. Many people do not like how a certain person died. Some people do not like how a certain character came off as clueless when he/she was very wise in the early books. Some people do not like the betrayal that was in the book.

There are revelations about Dumbledore, Snape, Voldemort, and Harry Potter in the book, and they all have heated debates about their fates in the (supposingly) final book. So with all this debate going on, I want to discuss...Ginny. Aside from "Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire," my second favorite Harry Potter book is "Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets." One of the reasons I love that book so much is because of Ginny. Once she came onto the scene and showed that she was both shy (scared to talk to Harry) and brave (sticking up to Draco Malfoy), I fell in love with the character and saw great potential for her character. While Ginny has always been, more or less, in everyone's shadows in following books, once "Harry Potter and The Order of The Phoenix" was released, I was pleased to see she had a bigger role in the series.

I didn't want to discuss my theory of Ginny's purpose in the series with my friends (because they would laugh), but now that I've read "Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince," I know EXACTLY what her role is going to be in the final book: To be Harry's wife! Ever since I read "Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets" I had this instinct in my gut that these two characters were made for each other, and now that I've read six out of seven of the books, I'm very confident of where Harry will wind up in life. I know Harry and Ginny got together and separated by the end of "Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince," but I believe this will be a temporary split, as these two characters love each other too much to stay separated for good.

No, they will get together at the end of the seventh book. Why do I say that? Well, what got me thinking was (surprisingly) something that happened in the first book. In "Harry Potter and The Sorcerers Stone" Harry finds a mirror that shows him his deepest, darkest desire. In the mirror Harry sees his parents. Does this mean Harry longs to see his parents? Well, that could very well be, but to interpret this vision as just that would be cutting out the heart of Harry's desire, which is really to have a loving, caring family. As of now, the family that has (pretty much) accepted Harry as a member of their own family are the Weaslys. So since Harry's deepest desire is to have a family, wouldn't it make the most sense for him to officially become a member of the Weasly family by marrying their only daughter?

More proof of this is in "Harry Potter and The Order of The Phoenix," in which Ginny ends up both comforting Harry when he needs it, and putting him in his place when he gets to be unreasonable. This is the kind of person Harry needs to have, and I think Ginny is the best one to fit the role for this. While many people will claim that Harry showed little interest in Ginny until "Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince" came out, I have to admit that this was brilliant writing on Jo's part, because it takes most boys in real life a bit of time to realize that the person they love has been right in front of them all this time. Finally, the last bit of proof comes in Sirus's death. Now when I first read "Harry Potter and The Order of The Phoenix," I was kind of...perplexed as to why Jo Rowling would kill such a minor character in that book.

After all, Sirus not only died pretty quickly (too quickly maybe. Some people didn't realize he died until the following chapter), but he was a horribly underdeveloped character, one that spent more time hiding in the shadows then he was interacting with anyone. When I study the death more closely, I realized that Sirus's death was more symbolic then it was tragic. Harry's biggest desire was to have family, and he found the closest thing to family in his godfather Sirus. But Sirus (due to his Azkaban prison sentence) was always looking at the past and never the future. Harry can't live in the past, so Sirus had to be killed so that Harry could look torwards the future. I didn't get Sirus's death then, but I get it now, and I can see why Jo was very strict in making sure he died.

With all that in mind, I can safely assure everyone (and all Harry/Ginny fans out there) that our favorite couple WILL get married at the end of the series! Of course, there are several of you out there who are bound to point out that certain events in the books are suggesting that Harry might not even survive at the end of the series. I've heard these rumors, and I can safely say that Harry WILL live in the end! There is no possible way he can't. If he died, I promise you there would be a mob. All the millions of Harry Potter fans are NOT spending years reading these books, spending a couple hundred dollars, and reading a couple thousand of pages of a book series, only to get to the end of the series and have the main character die.

I'm sorry, but that would be the worst ending of all, if nothing else but because it would mean that Harry spent years of suffering, only to die without ever being able to truly live a happy life. What kind of an ending is that? If Jo does go in that direction, then it will truly show a lack of love for her characters. Now you may be wondering why I bothered to write all this for the Ginny character? Isn't the death far more interesting to talk about? Maybe, but everyone else is talking about who "died," that I just don't feel like repeating what someone else has already said. Very few people seem to be talking about Ginny, and since I found the love triangles in "Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince" to be some of the most interesting parts in the book, I felt that it was a shame that people weren't talking about it as much.

And before you say anything else, I DO find the character relationship scenes more interesting then all the flashback sequences of Voldemort (which, unsurprisingly, just showed us that Voldemort was a jerk as a kid)! I love the Harry Potter books for the human aspects of the stories, NOT the mystical aspects! So if I talk about Harry Potter, chances are it will be about character relationships. Don't like it? Then Mugglenet.com may be a better place to read your Harry Potter rants.

San Andreas Gets AO Rating

San Andreas rated AO, Take-Two suspends production - PlayStation 2 News at GameSpot

Video games are always in controversy spotlights, and this week is no different. This week, the ultra-violent best seller "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" officially became the first major AO rated game to be released. Of course, last week the game had been on store shelves for months with the M rating. So why did the rating get changed now? Because of a sex mini-game that some hackers discovered in the code. No big deal right? Well, actually, it IS a big deal! It's a VERY big deal! Not the mini-game itself mind you, which is quite honestly one of the stupidest mini-games I've ever seen, one that offers no fun or (excuse the pun) pleasure for the person playing the game, but the big deal is what went on to hide this game from the public.

Like stated above, I take very little offense to this mini-game. It was made by some perverted men, it was put in the game, and then it was locked away under every layer of code so that no one could unlock it. Since I don't play GTA to the extent most people do, I highly doubt I would have ever stumbled upon it myself. What I have a problem with is that Rockstar looked everyone in the eye and said that they did not create this mini-game, and that it was the creation of a hacker. Once the game was found in the code of ALL the versions of the game though, then the curtain was pulled back to reveal that Rockstar had, in fact, created the mini-game. Then they continue to claim this was a hacker incident. What a bunch of bull.

Right now I am in support of the ESRB giving San Andreas the AO rating. Not only do I think this is the rating the game should have gotten in the first place, but it is a good warning to other game makers that you just can't slip stuff like this in games...even if it isn't meant to be seen by anyone (if this is the case then why keep the code in the game in the first place?). Really, that's all there is to it. I'm sure many of you are wondering where my rant is about Hillary Clinton is, or wondering why I'm not questioning the difference between the M and AO ratings (there are, unfortunately, too few differences to base a discussion around them), or that maybe this is some censorship conspiracy. No, my problem with this whole situation is that Rockstar lied to us, and they got what they deserved.

"2005 San Diego International Comic Con Report: Preview Night"

The Comic Book Guy.com: "2005 San Diego International Comic Con Report: Preview Night"

Here's the deal: I am actually a very shy person and hate having my picture taken. I have had my picture taken more times in the last five days then I have in the las five YEARS! The fact that I am also posting my picture online frightens me, as I have no idea what people will think of the way I look (hopefully they won't mistake me for a kid, as I'm older then I look). Geez, I'm getting goose bumps. Hopefully I won't regret posting my picture online.

Harry Potter Blues

Here I am, typing up a HUGE report on the San Diego Comic Con for my site, getting my "connections" together, all the while a copy of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" sites on my shelf unread. You can not imagine how depressing that makes me feel.

washingtonpost.com

washingtonpost.com

This is just too darn funny. While I do think "The Boondocks" comic strip has gotten WAY too nasty since George W. Bush won the election, it is nice too see that sharp, political satire can still find its way into this comic strip.

What A Day

Man, today was a long day. I woke up this mourning to pick up a friend from his house, and we went back to my house and played some "Conker: Live and Reloaded." An hour later two of our other friends show up. We play some more Conker before we pull out our Donkey Kong bongos, and I finally get to open my new copy of "Donkey Konga 2," which I was saving to experience for the first time with my friends. I'm glad I waited, as misery loves company. Don't get me wrong, the game is still as fun as the last game was, but the music selection is absolutely terrible. We plowed through most of the songs, and none of us could find a single song we liked. After thirty minutes of trying to enjoy "Donkey Konga 2," we decided it would be best to play the first one instead.

Sometime today my aunt thinks she is having a heart attack and is rushed to the hospital. Turns out she's okay though, so we all breath a sigh of relief. I look at the calender and realize that the San Diego Comic Con is this week. Wonder if I'll be able to sleep tonight knowing that. I look at my review pile and hope that I don't fall TOO far behind on my reviews when I get back! I pause while I'm writing this to listen to Michael W. Smith's song "She Walks With Me." I am awestruck sometimes at how good this mans songs are sometimes. After I listen to the song I notice three volumes of "Slam Dunk" that are unopened because I haven't finished the first DVD yet. I want to finish them, but the subtitling for these DVD's are so horrible that I can't help but watch an episode each week.

I go downstairs after writing the last two paragraphs to get a snack. Since I'm watching my weight I decide on the grapes and low fat yogurt. As I come upstairs I look at my manga collection on my bookshelf and notice that I still haven't read "B'tX" yet. It's been over a year now, maybe I should read it. Not tonight though, as there's an unread copy of "Dr. Slump" I haven't read yet. I notice this blog is starting to sound pretty random. I like cheese. Hmm...maybe I should change the title to this blog entry. Nah, too lazy to do that. Yep, it's just been one of those big, exciting, tiring days.

The Fans Are At It Again

Anime On DVD Community Forums: Shojo Beat Issue 2

I knew fans wouldn't be able to go another month without complaining about Viz Media. This time they are complaining about some editing in "Nana" in the newest issue of "Shojo Beat." What was censored? A nipple. You heard me. Here's the original image, and here's the "Shojo Beat Image. Tell me folks, is this worth boycotting the magazine over? I mean honestly.

Burn, Baby, Burn

Most Un-Patriotic Thing I've Seen (This Week)

I've been talking about Sean Howard's blogs off and on recently, blogs that I find to be full of looney ideas, ideas that actually render the man insane even. I don't know why I keep reading them though. Maybe I'm just curious to see what new moronic ideas he has each new day, but regardless how I slice it I read them. His latest one he talks about the most patriotic thing you could do. Strangely enough it's not to honor veterans, or sing praises of how great your country is, but is, instead, to burn the American flag. His blog on this subject (which is currently off the homepage until he archives it) says that the flag is a symbol, NOT an idol, and that as Americans we can show how much we love the flag by burning it!

Why? Because we have the freedom and the right to do so. Yeah, riiiggghhhttt! Here's the thing about the American flag: Yes, it is a symbol, nothing more nothing less. Yes, you do have the right to burn it if you choose (until the Senate passes the law that says you can't). But the question is why do it? You want to know why I love the American flag? I love it not because it's an idol, but because of what it REPRESENTS! It represents freedom, unity, and courage. My grandpa fought in WWII, and fought to protect the very things our flag represents to us. The American flag may be a symbol, but it's what that symbol represents that makes it loved by so many people.

If you truly love everything the flag stands for why burn it? There may be the freedom to do this, but what about respect? Where's the respect in what the American flag represents if you burn it? That's like getting Stan Lee to autograph your Spider-Man comic book, saying how much you respect Mr. Lee for signing it, and then burning it. Just because you can. What a sick idea it is that you are a patriot because you burn the American flag, and disrespecting the very ideas you supposingly love so much. Sometimes I wish Sean could just keep his big mouth shut so that I could concentrate on his comic instead of his idiotic "ideas." Oh, and to the rest of the world, Happy Independence Day!