半支煙

Whitney Houston.

2012-02-13T02:26:00.004+08:00

Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012). One of the most iconic female R&B, soul and pop female singers for nearly twenty years, from mid 80s to early 2000s, has died at the age of 48. She won so many prominent music awards for some of the most memorable R&B songs ever sung, although from early 2000s onwards, she was beset by personal problems and struggles, leading to eventual decline.

Chloe & Dylan ~ Tin Hau Kong Temple.

2012-02-11T02:22:00.008+08:00

Esther decided to bring the family to the temple for some prayers. I was abit apprehensive at first coz the place is practically an Ah Beng, Ah Lian central, like Genting....I know, I know. Politically incorrect, coz I'm one too. But it..is...just...so...boring. But the two precious kids loves it, we want some prayers for an auspicous start to the new year (amongst seas of uncles and aunties like those seen in Hua Hee Tai on Astro, Mom's current fav channel) and more importantly, we could catch up with Will, Karen and Johnny Boi, so we met them there so a really quick CNY catchup before they leave for Malacca the coming weekend.

Chloe & Dylan ~ KLCC.

2012-02-07T03:46:00.009+08:00

Brought the family to KLCC. Busy with crowds as usual. Dylan just loves the fountains, so we decided to have breakfast at Dome. Both kids busy with the iPad as well. Having breakfast, looking at the scenery, fountains and having fun with iPad. They are better at multi-tasking than Esther and I. Dropped by Kinokuniya for books but couldn't find any which I had in mind - mostly graphic novels. Later, at Uniqlo. Ah Pek like me at a young to mid age range target market Japanese clothing store. Maybe I am too self conscious. But my self consiousness evaporated once I saw their Miles Davis tees collection. Grabbed two immediately. Where's Coltrane? Ah, then there's Garrett, absolutely nuts about their popcorn. Expensive but hey, once in a while, no harm I reckon.

ThreeA ~ Popbot : Blind Cowboy & Ghost Horse Set.

2012-02-03T23:58:00.035+08:00

The wicked flee when none pursueth
~ Proverbs 28:1

A (mis) interpretation.

Name : Flint Westwood.
Alias : The Blind Cowboy; The Blind Gunslinger.
Age : Unknown.
Std. Armaments : The Seven Guns of Perdition (customised Colt Dragoon Revolver).
Abilities : Supernatural senses. Lightning speed reflexes. Perfect accuracy. Average hand to hand combat. Average arcane knowledge and mysticism.

Somewhere on Noctis Labyrinthus, Mars. The self styled Quadruplets of Apocalypse - Billy Bob, Bobby Joe, Jim Bob and Joe Bob - AWOL Martian soldiers now nefarious outlaws, responsible for un-calculable number of crimes and atrocities across the Red Planet, and had evaded the Arbites of Mars for five years. They were hiding out at one of the non-descript caves on the central plains after one of their recent murderous spree and looting. The brothers were sociopaths with zero empathy, practised cannibalism and inflicted all manner of grotesque and gruesome torture upon their victims before dispatching them. In their temporary hideout, the four fiendish brothers were dividing their loots and eating one of their latest victims - a six month pregnant woman. They were gloating and amusing themselves over the horrific acts of brutality they had just committed - attacking a farm, killing the owner and his entire family. A dusty red wind was suddenly gushing and whirling around. The flames of the pit fluttered eerily. The four of them instinctively stopped eating and reached for their weapons - shotguns, lasguns and blasters. Someone or something was approaching the entrance. Like a mirage, shadow or silhouette, it slowly takes form in the dusty darkness of the Martian night - it's a rider on a horse. "Who goes there?!" Jim shouted while the others takes their stand. "Death." replied the rider. "Death?! Lookit 'im guys. This ain't no barn party with juicy belle to go ballin' with!", roared Jim as he draw his blaster. BOOM! BOOM! Two shots rang out and echoed throughout the cave like righteous thunder. Both of Jim's arms were shot off before his brain could even registered the pain. A lightning quick succession of two more shots rang out. BOOM! BOOM! Joe was lifted by the momentum of the shot a good five feet off the ground and flew ten feet away from he was standing. Bobby was blown into half. He could still see his lower torso, upside down view, as his head hit the ground. Billy managed to shoot his lasgun at the rider. The latter nonchalantly tilted to the left while the beam shot passed his right. "Slow..." the rider said as he simultaneously shot at Billy. BOOM! His body bounced and hit the cave wall five feet away, bones shattered and internal organs turned into pulps. "Whas tha...oh...shit..mah arm! Tha..that hurrrt!!!", Jim screamed in pain. "Shut up. It hurts my ears." The rider dismounted and walked towards him. Jim could see the stranger clearly now. A man, a cowboy, like from those western spaghetti flicks he watched starring Clint E. and J. Wayne when he was at a Schola Progenium, hundreds of orphanages run by the Ecclesiarchy. The man was wearing a typical cowboy setup, and had a hanky wrapped around his eyes. "Youse f***in blind!" Jim blabbered deliriously. "Please...take the loot...just...urgh...let me...liveeee!!!" BOOM! A round went off at Jim's left leg. "Arghhh!!!!" he screamed, echoing into the dusty night. The man dragged Jim to the flaming heath. He heated up one of the machete lying around. The man seemed to be bristled with righteous anger as he sighted the cannibalised bodies. He was feeling their pain and terrible death at the hands of the four hicks. The Blind Cowboy cauterised the open wounds on Jim's arms and leg to stop the bleeding. "Ya know. Of all the hunted, ya'all tops it. Ah had been standing there listening to youse louse for an hour. Youse insects. Ah would wanna do somethin much, much more nastier than just shooting ya'all. But ah wouldn't wanna stoop to yer level." the man said before pistol whipped Jim into unconsciousness. The Blind Cowboy tied up Jim, set him upon his horse, the aptly named Ghost Horse, and made his way back to the Martian capital at Olmypus Mons. "Abashed the Devil stood...And felt how awful goodness is...and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely...saw, and pined His loss." Jim lamented tearily, quoting from Milton. "Indeed..." mused the Blind Cowboy.

All murderers, heathens and heretics of Mars are usually sentenced to one of the Nine Circles, the capital penitentiary but seeing the severity and atrociousness of the crimes Jim Bob and his three late brothers had committed, he was sentenced to atmospheric immolation instead.

Due to the Great War, the Ecclesiarchy occasionally recruit individuals on unofficial mission to carry out bounty hunting on outlaws across Mars. Known as a Retinue, these bounty hunters can also accept jobs from citizens of Mars. One of the survivors from the Quadruplets of Apocalypse, a 14 years old girl, had hired the Blind Cowboy to hunt them down. At Olympus Mons, the Arbites of Mars gave the Blind Cowboy his next assignment - to capture alive or dead - a certain William "Bleak" Mission and Javier "the Fighting JC" Chigurh, two heretics whom had escaped to Terra. The Arbites' sources had located both of them at New Andria, sub-sector 2046, formerly Italy, in Eurasia. The Inquisition of the Holy Order of the Ecclesiarchy expected the Blind Cowboy to come back with the two or die doing it. He had no choice - one, 90% of the total bounty collected were to be kept as insurance and gets forfeited if he failed. Two, a Kurz Bomb had been implanted into him, a tiny bomb armed with tracking device directly fed to the Arbites monitoring his every movements.

The flight was arranged meticulously and carried out by a disguised Luna supply ship during a brief cease fire period between the two warring factions (the only cease fire ever announced, suspected to be due to the disruption of warbots supply to both factions shortly after the N.O.M. Luna Assault Incident). The Blind Cowboy was given two weeks to accomplish his mission. During the journey, the Blind Cowboy thought flashed back to his pre-Retinue years. Seemed very, very long ago. His name is Flint. Flint Westwood. A former outlaw of Mars during the Terraforming Years. Promise of a new life and constant wars on Terra drove billions of the populations to the then Duchy Principality of Mars. Turned out life was harsher on the red dust ball. Massive planetary landscaping had just begun. Constant thunderstorms and rains brought about by the atmospheric processing stations turned the place into one giant mud ball. Mud tsunamis killed and drowned millions each year. So was the harsh Martian winters and dust hurricanes. Oxygen was lacking too. Mentally and physically tired, Flint went on the run when he accidentally killed his supervisor during an argument about his pay cheque. With hardly any existing laws then, Flint became a highway man, joined other roving gangs, robbing merchants and attacking supplies routes for the black market. He was a natural for being a sharp shooter in Western Mars, as well as developed a reputation for being pitiless on his victims but no women and kids. After the Great Amnesty was announced by the Duchy government, Flint took the opportunity to open his own moisture farm with the loots he had saved. Flint met a local farm girl whom managed to break through his gentler side and they married, resulting in three children. Life was becoming better as business took off, as the Great Agrarian period begun and farm produce were traded to the populations on Terra. All these came crashing down when a group of on the run rogue warbots led by a mysterious man with Stahlhelm and gas mask attacked Flint's farm and killed his entire family. He was seriously injured by the skilled man. That's not the end of Flint's trouble. All privateers on Mars were required to pay tithe to the Duchy Government. Tithe collectors were sent after Flint, but seeing his conditions, the sadistic officer of the collectors took both Flint's eyeballs as payment instead. After suturing both his hollowed eyes shut using dental floss, Flint took out a box from a hidden vault which contained one of the most fearsome supernatural weapons known to mankind. Known as the Seven Guns of Perdition, it was a gift from W. Colt. There was supposed to be a travelling gambling set as well where the banker always win and the losers pay their souls but Flint had since traded it off to a sharply dressed, velvet coated gentleman named Bub. The Guns of Perdition were forged by Colt from the shards of a broken blade once wielded by a fallen Angel of Death, and contained its furious essence. The revolvers are said to be able kill anything, never misses, never leave the owner's possession, and never run out of bullets. Augmenting his already quick gun drawing skill, the essence of the the revolvers heightened Flint's ability to a supernatural, lightning fast level. Irregardless where or how he aims, the Blind Cowboy never misses. Each shot is powerful enough to pierce warbot armors, inflicting fatal injuries, irregardless of the circumstances and nature of his targets - humans, warbots, aliens, demons or other supernatural creatures - with one caveat, that is if his intended target was righteous or virtuous in soul. The revolvers wouldn't not work on these individuals. Although rarely, the Blind Cowboy sometimes uses the revolvers to double up as hand held weapons to fend off close combat weapons.

Wrapping a handkerchief used to wipe the blood off his family and his wounds around his eyes, Flint developed supernatural senses, particularly heightened sense of hearing, much like echolocation; and smell. It is said if he were to concentrate enough, Flint could hear broadcasting frequencies, blood cells split and clouds scrapping each other. He could also pick up scents several miles away and decipher them intricately. Through an ancient incantation, Flint uses it to summon the Ghost Horse, a skeletal, seemingly rotting draft horse. The Ghost Horse can be summoned anywhere, anyplace if and when Flint needs it. It is once said that the Ghost Horse real name is "Old Billy". After arming himself and ready, Flint, now known as the Blind Cowboy first act was giving his family a proper burial and mourned them for seven days. Then he went tracking down the tithe collectors and killed them. He attempted to locate the rogue warbots and their mysterious commander but to no avail. He then led a living as a bounty hunter. The name Blind Cowboy became legendary after the Massacre at the Oakey Corral where Flint was outnumbered one to a hundred. Decades later, after the Ecclesiarchy came into power, his talent was recognised by the Inquisition, and he was recruited as a Retinue to carry out contract killings, assassinations and hunting other outlaws on Mars. As Terra came within his "sight", the Blind Cowboy whispered, "New Andria, brace yerself."

It was a scene of carnage. The entire three squads of ANKOU Police Garrison were utterly destroyed, each double tapped by the Blind Cowboy. The N.L.C.S. special force unit moved in and met similar fate. Baron Shadow watched with concern through the Eyes of New Andria. The blind gunslinger stood among the downed security bots like a spectre of death. He was holding Tommy closed, one of the revolver placed upon Tommy's head, calmly asking for Bleak's where about. The tone of calmness heightened Tommy's fear. The Blind Cowboy could hear Tommy's heartbeat and and sense whether he was telling the truth. "For the last time. I don't know!" Tommy retorted. The Hand of Fate glowed brightly. Fighting JC laid on the ground about ten feet away. He may had defeated numerous hordes of zombs, all manner of demons and occasionally even rogue zombots, but this time round he couldn't find a breakthrough. JC's fast, but even he couldn't dodge bullets. JC remained alive but suffered from flesh wounds. The Blind Cowboy surprised. JC was the first individual to have survived a shot from a Gun of Perdition. "A righteous soul...", mused the gunslinger. Lil Shadow arrived on the scene, and hurled a small, square box towards the Blind Cowboy, who instinctively shot at it. The blown box immediately enveloped the gunslinger in an amber-like substance. Lil Shadow saved the day again. The Blind Cowboy was encased in a Polymer Cube, rendering him motionless as if the entire world was put on pause button. The Baron had reluctantly gave his daughter the device, something he procured from the diabolical man-child genius boss of the Rothchild Corporation. Later, the Kurtz Bomb was extracted out but the device blown up a medic after the procedure. The Arbites of Mars were incensed at the blind gunslinger's failure but nothing could be done further as the war had resumed earlier than expected. With a sudden all out attack on Deimos by the Terran Coalition Forces, all focus and resources were diverted to the defense of the Martian moon instead.

The Baron personally spoke to the Blind Cowboy, who was still suspended within the Polymer Cube, through psycho communication, offering him amnesty and political asylum, with condition that he will now serves New Andria as one of the bounty hunter/protectors, like Tommy and Fighting JC of the Adventure Kartel. He also agreed to compensate, thrice the amount, the Blind Cowboy for the forfeited bounty he saved on Mars thus far. The blind gunslinger agreed, and was released. With nowhere to go, ironically, the Blind Cowboy went to Tommy's record store and found him there. Tommy freaked out initially but the Blind Cowboy seek reconciliation and shelter. Tommy's cool with it and initiated the gunslinger into the AK team, realizing the awesome ability and guns the cowboy possessed. The Blind Cowboy asked about JC's condition. Tommy reassured the Blind Cowboy that JC was a-ok but could be pissed for taking him in as an AK member but Tommy will sort it out with JC directly. Suddenly, Tommy nearly jumped out of his skinny jeans when the Ghost Horse materialised behind him, in the record store. "Holy Ghost Rider! You got a tele-portation device too?!" shrieked Tommy. "Nope. Ah could summoned him anytime, anywhere ah wanna 'im to be. Ole Billy 'ere is my only companion. Ah hope youse may accept him as well. 'e's as harmless as a dead martian raccoon." the Blind Cowboy calmly replied. "Uh, okay...well, here's the deal. You can either double up with JC or bunk in the gym. Either that or you may have to rent a place nearby. But the Band Aid horse gotta stay outside." instructed Tommy. "Like ah said, Ole Billy can come and go as I wanna 'im to. Ah am fine wit just bunking on the floor anywhere. Just gonna get mah sleepin bag." replied the Blind Cowboy as he grabbed his stuffs and with some incantations, the Ghost Horse disappeared into the thin air. A long awkward silence then resumed. "Uh, want some thing to eat? Drink?" Tommy broke the silence. "I could not sense any whiskey around. Only liquor fits for ladies. But ya got coffee. Black as a black hole, please." requested the gunslinger. Tommy bypassed the kopi luwak, and reached for the instant coffee instead. Tommy surely ain't going to serve some expensive gourmet stuffs to someone he hardly know (or anyone for the record, except Lil Shadow). With a Merle Haggard record playing in the background and over coffees, they started to get acquainted and understand each other better. From that day onward, the Blind Cowboy "rode" with the AK team. Simmering tensions could be observed between JC and him, but they respected each other, with their own unique abilities and skills complimenting each other. On trouble free days, the Blind Cowboy would just sit outside Tommy's record store and played a harmonica. The gunslinger and the skeletal horse were great tourists attraction, a curio of sort, and a hit with Eastasian tourists. Tommy begun charging them for photos taking session. Tommy never enforced Bleak's decision to have a standard AK tracky uniform (which resulted in the acrimonious departure of Fat Drown's older bro, the Drown, due to the latter insistence to wear tracksuits only). After numerous, exciting and often life threatening situation (the Blind Cowboy is not immortal although he's suspected to be very old) adventures with the AK, the Blind Cowboy and Ghost Horse decided to say goodbye and set off from New Andria to, in his own words, "explore Terra on their own. But we shall be backed one day." JC and him shook hands and exchanged pleasantries before departure. So off went the Blind Cowboy on the Ghost Horse, whistling the tune from "A Fistful of Dollar", riding into the sunset.

Hot Toys DX06 ~ Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides: Captain Jack Sparrow.

2012-02-02T00:51:00.015+08:00

The fountain does test you, Gibbs. But better to not know which moment may be your last. Every morsel of your entire being alive to the infinite mystery of it all. And who's to say I won't live forever, eh? "Discoverer of the Fountain of Youth."I have no say in it, Gibbs. It's a pirate life for me. Savvy? ~ Jack Sparrow.

And here's Jack Sparrow, the leading protagonist from the Pirates of the Carribean franchise movies. This is the Hot Toys DX version based on the 2011 fourth movie version, On Stranger Tides. Missed the earlier versions, so this is an opportunity to collect one. Pirate characters are hard to come by. In my personal opinion, the protagonist is full of character, with a swashbuckling adventure storyline reminisent of those Indiana Jones movies, Depp is amazing as Sparrow. I just could not fathom how a movie which is originally based on the Disney themepark would eventually become movies. BTW, loves the first two, absolutely hates the mindboggling third, nice fourth sequel. The costume and accesorries are fabulous. And here's the deal, amongst Hot Toys headsculpt on their MMS series, this one (by Kojun) and the Christopher Reeves' Superman movie (by Arnie Kim) takes the cake for being closest likeliness to the real deal. Johnny Depps' HS, compared to the Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber HS is closer to the real deal 'ere. Savvy?

3R ~ Desert Fox : General Feldmarschall Erwin Rommel (1891~1944).

2012-02-02T00:31:00.012+08:00

We have a very daring and skillful opponent against us, and, may I say across the havoc of war, a great general.
- Winston Churchill.

There exists a real danger that our friend Rommel is becoming a kind of magical or bogey-man to our troops, who are talking far too much about him. He is by no means a superman, although he is undoubtedly very energetic and able. Even if he were a superman, it would still be highly undesirable that our men should credit him with supernatural powers... [ending the memo with] I am not jealous of Rommel.
- British General Claude Auchinleck.

"thanks to propaganda, first by Goebbels, then by Montgomery, and finally, after he was poisoned (sic), by all former enemy powers, he has become a symbol of the best military traditions. ...Any public criticism of this legendary personality would damage the esteem in which the German soldier is held."
- Kircheim.

The Desert Fox by 3R, which if not mistaken, is affliliated to DiD Corp, (in) famous for their lineup of leading Nazi figures. Quality is usually a tad above the std. fare offered by DiD, which is already doing a great job for the price I am paying for a 1/6th figure nowadays. Always been attracted to this charismatic Nazi Field Marshall famous for his exploits in the Northen Africa Campaign in WW2.

Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as the Desert Fox (Wüstenfuchs), was a German Field Marshal of World War II. Rommel was extraordinarily well known in his lifetime, not only by the German people, but also by his adversaries. Popular stories of his chivalry and tactical prowess earned him the respect of many opponents, including Claude Auchinleck, Winston Churchill, George S. Patton, and Bernard Montgomery. Rommel reciprocated their respect. Hitler counted Rommel among his favorite generals.
He won the respect of both his own troops and the enemies he fought. As one of the few generals who consistently fought the Western Allies (he was never assigned to the Eastern Front), Rommel is regarded as having been a humane and professional officer. His Afrikakorps was never accused of war crimes. Soldiers captured during his Africa campaign were reported to have been treated humanely. Furthermore, he ignored orders to kill captured commandos, Jewish soldiers and civilians in all theaters of his command.Rommel was among the few Axis commanders (others being Isoroku Yamamoto and Reinhard Heydrich) directly targeted for assassination by Allied planners. However, unlike the other two, the attempt on Rommel's life was a failure.

He was a highly decorated officer in World War I, and was awarded the Pour le Mérite for his exploits on the Italian front. Rommel held battalion commands and was an instructor at the Dresden Infantry School from 1929 to 1933. From 1935 to 1938, Rommel held commands at the Potsdam War Academy. In 1938 Rommel, now a colonel, was appointed Kommandant (commander) of the War Academy at Wiener Neustadt (Theresian Military Academy). Later, Rommel took command of Adolf Hitler's personal protection battalion (FührerBegleitbataillon), assigned to protect him in the special railway train (Führersonderzug) used during his visits to occupied Czechoslovakia and Memel. It was during this period that he met and befriended Joseph Goebbels, the Reich's minister of propaganda. Goebbels became a fervent admirer of Rommel and later ensured that Rommel's exploits were celebrated in the media. Rommel acted as commander of the Führerbegleithauptquartier (Führer escort headquarters) during the Poland campaign, often moving up close to the front in the Führersonderzug and seeing much of Hitler. After the Polish defeat, Rommel returned to Berlin to organize the Führer's victory parade, taking part himself as a member of Hitler's entourage.

In World War II, three months before the invasion of France, Rommel was given command of the 7th Panzer Division, for Fall Gelb ("Case Yellow"), the invasion of France and the Low Countries. Rommel further distinguished himself as the commander of the 7th Panzer Division, nicknamed Gespenster-Division (the "Ghost Division", because of the speed and surprise it was consistently able to achieve, to the point that even the German High Command at times lost track of its whereabouts. It also set the record for the longest thrust in one day by tanks up to that point, covering nearly 320 kilometres.) during the 1940 invasion of France. Rommel received both praise and criticism for his tactics during the French campaign.
However, it was his leadership of German and Italian forces in the North African campaign that established the legend of the Desert Fox. He is considered to have been one of the most skilled commanders of desert warfare in the conflict.
But some allege that he had little sense of logistics or military strategy.The allegation on Rommel little sense of logistics was based on his eagerness to drive for Egypt, when the necessary logistical support was lacking, meant that these drives ultimately failed with great losses. Rommel took great chances on several occasions, gambling entire battles on decisions made almost on the spur of the moment and with incomplete information. Contemporaries who had to work with him under adversity often had very few kind words to say about him and his abilities. His bold attacks often caused larger enemy formations to surrender but his aggressiveness did cause resentment among fellow officers, however, who felt he at times acted too recklessly and failed to keep his sub-commanders and colleague commanders properly informed of his intentions. He was also criticized for claiming too much of the glory himself, neglecting support from other elements of the Wehrmacht and downplaying other units' achievements.

The inglorious end of the North African campaign meshed poorly with the Nazi propaganda machine's relentless portrayal of Rommel as an unbeatable military genius. This opened in Berlin the awkward question of precisely what use now to make of the erstwhile Desert Fox. Back in Germany he was for some time virtually "unemployed". He was eventually given command of Army Group B with responsibility of opposing potential Allied cross-channel invasion in Normandy. He ordered millions of mines laid and thousands of tank traps and obstacles set up on beaches and throughout the countryside, including in fields suitable for glider aircraft landings, the so-called Rommelspargel ("Rommel's asparagus").The Allies staged elaborate deceptions for D-Day, giving the impression that the landings would be at Calais. Rommel concentrated fortification building in the River Somme estuary and let the work in Normandy lag. By D-Day on 6 June 1944 the German command structure in France was in disarray. Rommel, and several other important officers were on leave. The absence of Rommel and continued confusion in the army and theater HQs led to hesitation in releasing the armoured reserves to Normandy. Rommel personally oversaw the bitter fighting around Caen. The Allies pushed ashore and expanded their beachhead despite the best efforts of Rommel's troops. By mid-July the German position was crumbling. On 17 July 1944, Rommel was being driven along a French road near the front in his staff car, a RCAF Spitfire strafed the car near Sainte-Foy-de-Montgommery and Rommel was injured. He was hospitalised with major head injuries.

Late in the war, Rommel was linked to the conspiracy to kill Adolf Hitler. Early in 1944, three of Rommel's closest friends — the Oberbürgermeister of Stuttgart, SA Brigadeführer Karl Strölin (who had served with Rommel in the First World War), Alexander von Falkenhausen and Carl Heinrich von Stülpnagel—began efforts to bring Rommel into the conspiracy. They felt that as by far the most popular officer in Germany, he would lend their cause badly needed credibility with the populace. Additionally, the conspirators felt they needed the support of a field marshal on active duty. Rommel, however, opposed assassinating Hitler. After the war, his widow—among others—maintained that Rommel believed an assassination attempt would spark civil war in Germany and Austria and Hitler would have become a martyr for a lasting cause. Instead, Rommel insisted that Hitler be arrested and brought to trial for his crimes. By the time of his head injuries, Rommel had made up his mind to do his part to get rid of Hitler. After the failed bomb attack of 20 July, many conspirators were arrested and the dragnet expanded to anyone even suspected of participating. Rommel was fairly perturbed at this development, telling Hans Speidel that Hitler's behavior after the attack proved that the dictator had "gone completely mad."

It did not take long, however, for Rommel's involvement to come to light. His name was first mentioned when Stülpnagel blurted it out after a botched suicide attempt. Later, another conspirator, Caesar von Hofacker, admitted under particularly severe Gestapo torture that Rommel was actively involved. Because Rommel was widely renowned, Hitler chose to eliminate him quietly; in trade for assurances his family would be spared, Rommel agreed to commit suicide. The truth behind Rommel's death did not come out until Field Marshal Keitel testified about it during the Nuremberg Trials.

The North African Campaign :
Italy aimed to challenge Britain for control of the Mediterranean and to move on Egypt and the Suez Canal, and the British colonies in East Africa. In addition to these threats, the British had to fight to counter German influence in the Middle East. Early in 1941, as Italian offensives collapsed, Germany was forced to come to the aid of its weaker ally.

1940
10 June: The Kingdom of Italy declares war upon France and the United Kingdom.
14 June: British forces cross from Egypt into Libya and capture Fort Capuzzo.
16 June: The first tank battle of the North African Campaign takes place, the "Battle of Girba".
13 September: Italian forces invade Egypt from Libya.
16 September: Italian forces establish front east of Sidi Barrani.
9 December: British and Indian forces launch Operation Compass with the Battle of Marmarica (Battle of the camps).
9 December: Indian forces capture Nibeiwa with cover from British artillery.
9 December: British tanks and Indian troops overrun Tummar West followed by Tummar East.
10 December: Indian forces capture Sidi Barrani with support from British artillery.
11 December: British armoured forces arrived in Sofafi, but Libyan and Italian divisions had escaped.
16 December: Sollum captured by Allies.

1941
5 January: Bardia captured by British and Australian force.
22 January: Tobruk captured by British and Australian force.
30 January: Australians capture Derna, Libya.
5 February: Beda Fomm captured by British.
6 February: Fall of Benghazi to the Western Desert Force. Lieutenant-General Erwin Rommel is appointed commander of German Africa Corps or Afrika Korps i.e. Deutsches Afrikakorps (DAK).
7 February: Italian Tenth Army surrenders.
9 February: Churchill orders halt to British and Australian advance at El Agheila to allow withdrawal of troops to Greece.
14 February: First units of the Afrika Korps under Erwin Rommel start to arrive in Libya during Operation Sonnenblume.
24 March: Allied forces at El Agheila defeated; Erwin Rommel starts his advance.
4 April: Australian & British forces withdraw from Benghazi. Benghazi captured by Axis.
6 April: British 3rd Armored Brigade is captured in Derna.
8 April: British, Indian and Australian forces captured at Mechili.
10 April: Siege of Tobruk begins with Australian, British and Indian forces defending.
15 April: British forces are pushed back to Sollum on Egyptian border with Libya.
30 April: Australian forces lose a small part of their positions in Tobruk during the Battle of Salient, roughly a 6th of Tobruk is now held by Germans.
3 May: Australian forces counter attack in Tobruk unsuccessfully.
15 May: British troops launch Operation Brevity to gain more territory from which to launch Operation Battleaxe later in the year.
16 May: Italian forces attack Australian forces in Tobruk forcing them to withdraw.
16 May: Operation Brevity called off. Allied forces fall back onto the Halfaya Pass, captured the previous day
26 May: German forces launch Operation Skorpion and move up to Halfaya Pass
27 May: German forces recapture Halfaya Pass; British troops are forced to withdraw
15 June: British and Indian troops launch unsuccessful Operation Battleaxe
5 July: Auchinleck replaces Wavell as C-in-C Middle East Command
15 August: German Panzer Group Afrika activated with Rommel in Command.
1 October: 5th Light Division redesignated 21st Panzer Division.
18 November: Auchinleck's offensive (Operation Crusader) begins with British, Indian, South African and New Zealander forces.
21 November: British armored division defeated at Sidi Rezegh and withdraws.
22 November: New Zealand forces attack Bir Ghirba but are unsuccessful. Indian forces capture Sidi Omar.
23 November: New Zealand forces capitalize on Indian advances to wreck Afrika Korps HQ at Bir el Chleta.
23 November: Rommel launches Panzer attacks on the British XXX Corps, but face resistance from SA, NZ and British forces. British and NZ forces withdraw towards Bir el Gubi
25 November: Panzer attack on Indian forces at Sidi Omar is repulsed. In the second attack in the evening, Indian forces destroy the 5th Panzer Division.
26 November: Ritchie replaces Cunningham as commander Eighth Army.
27 November: New Zealand troops at Sidi Azeiz defeated by overwhelming advance of Panzers and German infantry.
28 November: 15th Panzer despite being outnumbered 2:1 force British tanks to retreat exposing the New Zealand forces at Ed Duda on the Tobruk by-pass.
1 December: New Zealand troops in Sidi Rezegh suffer heavy casualties by Panzers
3 December: German infantry suffers heavy defeat at the hand of New Zealand forces on the Bardia road near Menastir. German forces suffer losses against Indian forces and forced to withdraw at Capuzzo (Trigh Capuzzo)
4 December: NZ forces repulse German attack on Ed Duda. Indian forces face attrition in an uphill attempt to capture Point 174 against entrenched Italian forces without artillery support
7 December: Tobruk siege relieved by 8th Army consisting of British, Indian, New Zealander and South African forces.
13 December: 8th Army attacks Gazala line. NZ forces stopped at Alem Hamza. Indian forces take Point 204. Indian infantry face Afrika Korps and against heavy odds destroy 15 of 39 Panzers.
14 December: Indian troops repel repeated Panzer attacks on Point 204.
15 December: German advance overruns British forces en route to Point 204, but Indian forces at Point 204 hold on.
16 December: Rommel facing reduced Panzer numbers orders withdrawal from the Gazala line.
24 December: British forces capture Benghazi.
25 December: Agedabia reached by the Allies.
27 December: Rommel inflicts heavy damage on British armour who have to withdraw allowing Rommel to fall back to El Agheila.
31 December: Front lines return to El Agheila.

1942
21 January: Rommel's second offensive begins. A lone He 111 of the Sonderkommando Blaich successfully bombs the Fort Lamy air field.
23 January: Agedabia captured by Axis forces.
29 January: Benghazi captured by Axis forces.
4 February: Front line established between Gazala and Bir Hakeim.
26 May: Axis forces assault the Gazala line, the Battle of Gazala and Battle of Bir Hakeim begins.
11 June: Axis forces begin offensive from "the Cauldron" position.
13 June: "Black Sunday". Axis inflicts heavy defeat on British armoured divisions.
21 June: Tobruk captured by Axis forces.
30 June: Axis reaches El Alamein and attack, the First Battle of El Alamein begins.
4 July: First Battle of El Alamein continues as Axis digs in and Eighth Army launch series of attacks.
31 July: Auchinleck calls off offensive activities to allow Eighth Army to regroup and resupply.
13 August: Alexander and Montgomery take command respectively of Middle East Command and Eighth Army.
30 August: Rommel launches unsuccessful Battle of Alam el Halfa.
23 October: Montgomery launches Operation Lightfoot starting the Second Battle of El Alamein.
5 November: Axis lines at El Alamein broken.
8 November: Operation Torch is launched under the command of General Eisenhower, Allied forces land in Morocco and Algeria.
9 November: Sidi Barani captured by Eighth Army.
13 November: Tobruk captured by Eighth Army.
15 November: British forces capture Derna.
17 November: First Army (Operation Torch's Eastern Task Force) and Axis meet at Djebel Abiod in Tunisia.
20 November: Benghazi captured by Eighth Army.
27 November: First Army advance halted between Terbourba and Djedeida, 12 miles from Tunis, by Axis counterattack.
10 December: First Army front line pushed back to defensive positions east of Medjez el Bab.
22 December: First Army starts three day offensive towards Tebourba which fails.
25 December: Sirte captured by Eighth Army.

1943
23 January: Tripoli captured by British Eighth Army.
30 January: Axis forces capture Faïd pass in central Tunisia.
4 February: Axis forces in Libya retreat to Tunisian border south of the Mareth Line.
14 February: Axis advance from Faïd to launch Battle of Sidi Bou Zid and enter Sbeitla two days later.
19 February: Battle of Kasserine Pass launched by Axis forces.
6 March: Axis launch Operation Capri against Eighth Army at Medenine but lose 55 tanks.
9 March: Rommel leaves North Africa on sick leave; replaced by General Hans-Jürgen von Arnim.
19 March: Eighth Army launches Operation Pugilist.
16 March: Battle of Mareth begins.
23 March: U.S. II Corps emerge from Kasserine to match the Axis at Battle of El Guettar. Battle of Mareth ends.
26 March: Eighth Army launch Operation Supercharge II outflanking and making the Axis position at Mareth untenable. Battle of Tebaga Gap takes place.
6 April: Right wing of First Army links with Eighth Army. Battle of Wadi Akarit takes place.
22 April: Allied forces launch Operation Vulcan.
6 May: Allied forces launch Operation Strike.
7 May: British enter Tunis, Americans enter Bizerte.
13 May: Axis Powers surrender in Tunisia.

source : wikipedia.

Chloe & Dylan ~ Scones.

2012-01-29T01:08:00.006+08:00

Esther got some scones for the kids over the weekend at Sim Yoon's....

Chloe & Dylan ~ At Sunway Pyramid.

2012-01-29T00:52:00.007+08:00

Took the family to some nice exterior deco at Sunway. Nice Chatime tea!

Chloe & Dylan ~ Bubbly Bath.

2012-01-29T00:46:00.004+08:00

At Sim Yoon's place, the two precious havin a great time in the bath..

Chloe & Dylan ~ CNY 2012 at Malacca.

2012-01-29T00:32:00.007+08:00

A total change from the dull Teluk Intan. Sorry, too honest. More merrier atmosphere. Journey there is smooth, and no jam. Tried to avoid the city centre as much as possible, too many tourists. But risked it when we went to Jonker's Walk for a t-shirt or two at the Orang Utan House by Charles Cham. It's becoming a tradition, to get the latest tee reflecting each CNY on the imprint. Also, went nearby for the delicious, could not get any where else, as where as I am concern, the spring roll outside of Madam King's store. Gotta prepare to wait though. Delicious it is, with all arteries choking lardy goodness but not too many though, as it can be overwhelming after one or two rolls. Call it the Law of Diminishing Return. Esther's mom whipped up some delicious traditional CNY lunch and dinner as usual.

CNY 2012 ~ Teluk Intan.

2012-01-29T00:12:00.009+08:00

Back to TA (Teluk Anson, the ole name for Teluk Intan), on Sunday early in the wee hour of the morning, 6am to be precised, for the fear of traffic exodus. Pop and Mom called in on Friday evening and they took about 6 hours for a 2 hours trip. Surprisingly, hardly any jam. Great. Reached there at 8am, stopped by McD to grab some breakfasts. But with no kids around, the cousins' kids were all either in Spore or Penang, sister and family in Langkawi, it was admittedly a rather quiet affair at TA. Feels like an old folks home, hehehe. But the kids enjoyed themselves, finding their own way to entertain themselves, at night, played some fire crackers and sparklers, one which unfortunately landed too near us, gave us a fright. No Ah Lek's chee cheong fun this year, as it was getting too expensive, and too lazy to go out. By Tuesday, we were off back to Subang for a rest before departing for Malacca on Wed morning.

Chloe & Dylan ~ Recovered from Food Poisoning.

2012-01-21T03:50:00.005+08:00

At last, the two precious recovers... all's well. Relief..

Chloe & Dylan ~ Food Poisoning Pt. 2.

2012-01-20T01:27:00.004+08:00

Chloe recovered. Dylan is still weak. Esther said he did vomit once at the hospital but has since stopped. So is the diarrhea. I am very worried. Dehydration is one of the primary issues at times like this but Dylan refuses to take either the medication nor the oral re hydration solutions unless force to, which results in him throwing further tantrum. He is still feeling weak and looking pale...Very stress...since we are curious why Esther and I are still alright, the doc said it could be due to many reasons, mostly personal hygiene or could be some form of bacteria, virus.

Hot Toys MMS 69 ~ The Dark Knight Batmobile Re-issue.

2012-01-19T12:17:00.010+08:00

Yup, it's on! Re-issue is generally not a bad thing, it's good news for those who miss out the first (and second) time. Anyhoo, a great addition to personal 1/6th scale vehicle collection like the Kaneda's 1/6th bike and Ma.K SAFS. And I wonder, if HT would also re-issue Batpod? Anne Hathaway's Catwoman looks kinda nice on it. Hhhmm, Anne Hathaway's Catwoman, if HT were to release it vs. Michelle Pfeiffer's version. Decision decision....

Chloe & Dylan ~ Food Poisoning....

2012-01-19T12:08:00.007+08:00

First mom, then Squetch's little sister, now Chloe and Dylan, all down with suspected food poisoning. Didn't sleep last night at all, both precious kept throwing up, even after visit to the 24 hours GP. Chloe got better, but Esther had to bring Dylan to the hospital as he threw up each time he took the medication (as well as refusing it and threw tantrum). Please let them be fine and healthy again soonest possible.

Hot Toys 2012 Products Hint?

2012-01-19T00:45:00.008+08:00

...looks like more hard earned money will be spent on Hot Toys if above releases were to be true (and release this year, like, what happen to Captain Harlock and Metal Gear Solid figures announced last year?). First off, I have always dreamt about a 1/6th Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman and Danny DeVito's Penquin from Tim Burton's Batman Returns, the 1992 sequel to 1989 Batman. I skipped HT recent release of Michael Keaton's Batman and Jack Nicholson's Joker from the pre-reboot, which is still a memorable and classic movie. It's just that I'm more inclined towards the "Nolan-verse" version of the caped crusader and the clown prince of crime. Hopefully it would be in 1/6th scale or with a choice, and not strictly in 1/4th scale... Then there's Robocop and Robocain, both I personally considered iconic characters from the 1990's Robocop 2. HT released Robocop before, that's prior to me getting all crazy over 1/6th figure. This would be an opportunity I could not miss to complete 1/6th figures of characters from my fav movies. And finally, HT may re-launch the Tumbler from Chris Nolan's 2005 Batman Begins and it's sequel the 2008's The Dark Knight. I miss the opportunity to own one back when HT released it, and now, thanks to scalpers and flippers, the vehicle is going for no lesser than RM5k, some even goes to an "insane" price point of RM10k, which is ridiculous. From the preview of the upcoming "conclusion" to the "trilogy" of the Batman movies by Chris Nolan, the Dark Knight Rises, there are several Tumblers in camo armed with cannon (?) and intercepted by the "Bat Wing(?)". Hopefully it is not the camo version. Finger cross, I am looking forward to HT making official announcements on these figures and products soon...

DiD x Inicons 1/6th Steve Jobs Pt.2 ~ "I Quit!"

2012-01-18T14:46:00.012+08:00

Conversely, from previous reported news and last post, it's a "no go" after all for the DiD x Inicons 1/6th Steve Jobs figure. As per reported in one of the leading toy blog, toyhaven (toyhaven.blogspot.com) on 16th Jan 2012, and announced in inicons website (inicons.com) on 15th Jan 2012, here's an extract from the issued statement,

"For the past 25 years I have been a big fan of Steve Jobs following his achievements religiously and using Apple products. His passing left me with emptiness, sadness and a feeling of great personal loss. Four years ago I created a single figurine of Steve which I placed on my desk next to my Mac. I decided to share this memento with the rest of his fans as a commemoration to Steve."

"I would like to take this opportunity to reinterate that the original intention for creating the figurine was driven by a fan's admiration of Steve. We respect copyright and trade mark rights and therefore indicated on our site that we were not providing any Mac, iPhone and iPad models with the figurine. Further, we haven't used any Apple related brands. Unfortunately we have received immense pressure from the lawyers of Apple and Steve Jobs family. Regardless of the pressure, I am still Steve's fan, I fully respect Steve, and his family, and it is definitely not my wish or intention that they be upset. Though we still believe that we have not overstepped any legal boundaries, we have decided to completely stop the offer, production and sale of the Steve Jobs figurine out of our heartfelt sensitivity to the feelings of the Jobs family.

We understand that this decision will cause many of the fans' disappointment, but please forgive us as there is other alternative unless to have the blessing from Steve Jobs family...We will aim to have full refund to the fans who have pre-ordered.

Lastly, we wish to thank everyone for their admiration and appreciation of the figurine, and again we offer our sincere apologies to affected fans.

inicons.com"

Real Steel.

2012-01-14T14:40:00.009+08:00

And if Warrior is reminiscence of Rocky and The Wrestler, well the 2011 sci-fi Real Steel reminds me of the underdog versus the big guy kind of movie, like the original The Karate Kid (1984) and the fantasy baseball story starring Robert Redford and Glen Close, The Natural (1984). Directed by Shawn Levy, and starring Hugh Jackman and the ever luscious Evangeline Lily of Lost, the mind boggling TV series, it tells the tale of robot boxers in the near future, and also yet another estranged relationship between Hugh's character and his son from a previous relationship. The story is made entertaining with the fights between the 'bots boxers, which indirectly serves as a catharsis which eventually strengthen the father and son relationship. I think overall it's about giving everybody a second chance at redemption and putting faith and hope above all in what seems to be an insurmountable situation.

Warrior.

2012-01-14T14:30:00.006+08:00

Rocky (1976) and The Wrestler (2008), are some of the great classics about sport and the personal lives of its character, which touches the heart and comes with "soul". Now I would add this 2011 movie to the list. Directed by Gavin O' Connor, and starring veteran Nick Nolte, Tom Hardy (last seen by me in 2010 Inception, and now almost unrecognisable as he beefed up tremendously for this movie, and for the upcoming Dark Knight Rises as Bane) and Joel Edgerton (last seen in The Thing prequel), this flick's 'bout the two brothers estranged relationship with each other and their father, all happenin' within the world of mixed martial arts tournament. Watch this and get ready for a heartfelt moment, particularly the intense climatic battle between the two brothers.

Chloe & Dylan ~ Helping out with CNY cookies.

2012-01-11T03:31:00.009+08:00

When it's CNY, it's always cookies time. Thanks Esther, and of course, the two precious.

Chloe & Dylan ~ Apple iPad 2.

2012-01-10T01:47:00.005+08:00

With all the news surrounding DiD x InIcons 1/6th Steve Jobs figure, it's undeniable that the late Apple founder's product is darn addictive. Esther "supposedly" got the iPad 2 for herself last month, but in actuality, it's more like a gift for Chloe and Dylan. They have been playing and tinkering with the new found tool ever since.

DID x Inlcons : 1/6th Steve Jobs figure served with a "Cease & Desist" order by Apple.

2012-01-09T12:32:00.010+08:00

DID Corp got served with an immediate cease and desist order for its upcoming figure of the late Apple founder, Steve Jobs.

From Wired.com (http://www.wired.com/), January 5th 2012,

Creepy Steve Jobs Doll Nixed by Apple Lawyers
by Christina Bonnington.

You just knew a boatload of bootleg Steve Jobs merch would start flooding in after his passing last year. Like street vendors outside of the World Series, online retailers started producing T-shirts, books and other various and sundry items. But after a Chinese manufacturer unveiled a miniature Steve Jobs prototype doll, Apple’s legal team pounced.
Apple’s lawyers sent a letter to the Chinese company stipulating that “any toy that resembles the technology company’s logo, person’s name, appearance or likeness of its products is a criminal offense,” according to a report from The Daily Telegraph.
In California, personality rights (California Civil Code Section 3344), which address the use of a person’s name, likeness, voice, or signature without their prior consent, last through the entirety of a person’s life, and for 70 years after their death.
The offending company in question, In Icons, quickly gained media attention earlier this week after debuting the 12-inch figurine on New Year’s Day. The doll comes clad in Jobs’ signature uniform and a few accessories: Two pairs of glasses, a black turtleneck and blue jeans, New Balance trainers and a pair of apples (one bitten, of course). Shamelessly, it even includes a “One More Thing” keynote backdrop.
Buzz about the incredibly detailed, borderline creepy $100 doll quickly spread, and caught the attention of Apple’s legal team.
This isn’t the first Jobsian Barbie to get slapped with a C&D. In November of 2010, Apple requested M.I.C. Gadgets cease marketing and selling an iPhone-wielding $80 Steve Jobs doll.
Let this be a lesson to future bootleggers: If you’re going to make any sort of unauthorized Apple paraphernalia, keep it on the down-low, or your venture may be incredibly short-lived.

According to an article by Dailymail (http://www.dailymail.com.uk/), InIcons boss Tandy Cheung said Steve Jobs was not subject to the rules around likenesses of screen stars, "Steve Jobs is not an actor, he’s just a celebrity… There is no copyright protection for a normal person. Steve Jobs is not a product… so I don’t think Apple has the copyright of him."

As of today, the figure will proceed for sale next month afterall, according to Softpedia (http://www.softpedia.com/)

Steve Jobs Figure Deemed Legal, Goes On Sale Next Month

by Fillip Truta.

According to a recent discovery, Apple’s lawyers are shooting their mouths off, nothing more, nothing less. They can’t ban the sale of InIcons’ Steve Jobs figurine as they don’t own a form of intellectual property pertaining to the visionary genius.
And that’s mostly because he’s not among the living anymore. In most territories around the globe, image rights do not survive beyond the grave, according to a piece by paidContent.org.
There are, however, some states in which ‘personality rights’ do exist, including Indiana, Illinois, Texas, Connecticut, Georgia, Florida, California, and a few others.
But there’s no federal law that recognizes image rights after death, and a good example of that is a case in which it was ruled that no one had any exclusive rights to market Marilyn Monroe, the paper notes.
In conclusion, “Apple’s warning about the doll is an empty threat in most places.” And the name ‘Steve Jobs’ doesn’t even appear on the Cupertino giant’s list of registered trademarks.
This should come as good news to those eagerly waiting for the action figure to go on sale next month.

All abuzz over ‘Ethical Clothing'.

2012-01-08T03:21:00.007+08:00

By JOSEPH SIPALAN and JOSEPH KAOS Jr
~ from The Star, 6th Jan 2012.

PETALING JAYA: If you are working at the Defence Ministry, be sure not to wear “clothes that poke eye”. This was one of the many colourful descriptions of “Ethical Clothing” (etika berpakaian) that is acceptable within the ministry's standards. Netizens on social networking sites were literally ROFL, which is cyberspeak for “rolling on the floor laughing”, as they shared the link to the ministry's amusing English translation of the staff dress code on its official website. “Clothes that poke eye” is a literal translation of pakaian yang menjolok mata, which is supposed to mean revealing clothes in Bahasa Malaysia. Other finds included: “collared shirts and tight Malay civet berbutang three”, which, in Malay, is berkolar baju Melayu cekak musang berbutang tiga. Baju batik lengan panjang berkolar / cekak musang buatan Malaysia, meanwhile is translated as “long-sleeve batik shirt with collar / mongoose fight made in Malaysia”. There was also “shine closed”, which was translated from kasut bertutup, or closed-toe shoes. Another was the brief summary of the ministry's history on the website, which read: “After the withdrawal of British army, the Malaysian Government take drastic measures to increase the level of any national security threat.” The actual summary in Bahasa Malaysia read: Selepas pengunduran tentera British, Kerajaan Malaysia mengambil langkah drastik untuk meningkatkan tahap keselamatan negara dari sebarang ancaman. The ministry took down the English translated version several hours after it went widespread on Twitter and Facebook. A ministry spokesperson said a clarification has since been posted on the website, adding that page hits shot up remarkably yesterday. The clarification on the website said corrective action was being taken on the related software to ensure translations were accurate.

...................................................................

I literally smiled when I read this on the local daily (on an otherwise another dour day). While my own English is, admittedly, sub-par at best, me thinks certain ministries should take the effort to do translation from Bee Em to Inglish more professionally, not just running through the translation via, just a suspicion btw, say Google Translate.

黃明志新年歌 CNY SONG by Namewee.

2012-01-04T15:23:00.007+08:00

CNY 2012 is about 2 weeks away...recently discovered Namewee's crazy, hilarious, smacked with Hokkien vulgarity MV.

Chloe & Dylan ~ Happy New Year 2012!

2012-01-01T00:21:00.006+08:00

Happy New Year y'all!

ThreeA ~ Adventure Kartel : Fighting JC.

2011-12-28T23:27:00.033+08:00

Ezekiel 25:17. "The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you." ~ Jules, Pulp Fiction.

A (mis) interpretation.

Name : Javier Fernandes Chigurh.
Alias : Fighting JC.
Age : 50 years old.
Std armaments : Himself; Divine intervention and protection; the Blind Oracle.
Abilities : Expert hand to hand combat; master of all known martial arts; above average stamina, strength, dexterity, speed, endurance; mystic adept; arcane knowledge.

The din of the distant battle on land and above kept JC awaken throughout the night. The horizon lit up on interval from the warbots tracers, lasers and bombardments. The night sky was glittering in the dark. His thought wandered back to his past. Seemed like a life time. JC was born in the toughest 'hood in one of United Imperial Americana cities. Pop left when JC was still inside his mom's womb. His mom had to work in a back breaking job 24-7 as a boiler at a local warbot manufacturing plant to support him up and ensure there's food on the table and bills were paid on time. JC ran with a local posse from young after being expelled from middle grade school for beating a fellow student to near death for bullying and attacked on an Eastasian exchange programme student. He instinctively learnt it was the character of a person that matters, not creed, culture nor skin color difference. In his late teens, he was noticed by J. Manny. Manny was nicknamed "The Baptist" due to for his knack to torture loan defaulters by drowning them in a tub filled with water. He witnessed a young, skinny JC outfighting and breaking the arm and leg of a man in several places. The man was 6 foot plus, weighing at least 200 pounds and muscular. He could had swatted JC like a fly but instead was beaten to pulp by the skinny lad. Manny knew a natural when he saw one and he took JC under his wing, giving him proper training and guidance. JC could be his money making machine. Manny owned a fight club and gym, taking bets and making money on the side, one of the many "businesses" under his ten fat, sausage like fingers. Manny groomed and trained JC into a top mixed martial arts fighter. Eventually JC would ran out of local opponents to fight. Manny knew it's time for JC to go regional and full pro. JC defeated everyone, and became the youngest number one contender, and where he won the prestigious Sparta Mixed Martial Arts World Championship at the age of 20, a title he held for the next 13 years. It was a record which that remained unbroken. JC himself became rich and living a lifestyle of excesses and grandeur. The 'bling bling' never stopped coming. More importantly, JC's mom would never have to work again, but yet she remained humble, staying at her old small flat, and continued to worked at the plant. She even reprimanded JC for his excesses. "Wastin away your life like that" she said during one of their quarrels. His mom eventually succumbed to cancer, never had the opportunity to see JC eventual "enlightenment". JC's train of thought broke as his eyes welled with tears.

It began in his dreams, about an encounter with an old shepherd tending sheeps on a hilly area with vast green grasses all around. These dreams would subsequently morphed into nightmares, with a giant serpent coiling around JC. He would try to break free but the serpent's grip was an unbreakable vise squeezing around his torsos, leaving him breathless. He would woke up covering in sweat. Day after day, he tried to forget the dreams and nightmares. Thinking he's going "Insane in the Membrane", JC consulted psychiatrists about the issue but without any breakthrough. He also began to un-consciously, underwent behavioral and personality changes. When he got his tats, he had "God Life" inked on his chest with a cross instead of "Thug Life" with an AK 47 as he initially wanted. He also tattooed "Zomb" on his fingers instead of "Bomb" (and he blamed the tattooist when asked about the meaning of the word), and "Mary, the Mother of God" on his back instead of "J.B. Mary, Da Queen of Soul" a female pop R&B rap artist he once admired. He began to grow tired of his current lifestyle and career ~ the endless partying, decadency, and fighting in the iron cages. He began to take up courses to re-educate himself, took up religious books and others like Dante's Inferno and Purgatory, Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, Milton's Paradise Lost and Regained, tomes like the Bhagavad Gita, the I-Ching, books on mysticism and arcane knowledge. By choice, JC started to celibate and became a vegan. At the age of 34, JC made an important decision ~ he decided to give away all his possessions to various charities and those in dire need. JC also announced that he was retiring, giving up the championship title. This incurred the irk of Manny, the man whom controlled his career and life. He ordered some of his homeboys to teach JC a lesson. JC was shot six times on the chest at a drive by, but miraculously survives and non of the bullets hit any of his vital organs. He confronted Manny, saying he will remember Manny's gratitude, but he had now paid his due, owing Manny no more. JC then exited the life he once knew. The dream and nightmare began to stop. The stranglehold of the seven sins began to loosen upon JC, although, he would still seek forgiveness from Upstairs for the "wrath" part.

Time passed and JC, by now almost unrecognizable (beard, moustache, looking haggard but still lean, mean and, packing punches and kicks which can break bones and rupture internal organs), was travelling from city to city along the Amazonis Planitia on Mars, making his way to Olympus Mons with a group made up of eclectic individuals, calling themselves the Thirteen Acolytes, consisting JC himself, of brothers Pedro and Andre, both former pirates; sister-brother team, Johanna and Jimmy, both former mercenaries; Phillipe, an ex-gigolo; Bart, a former smuggler; Matthaus, a former tithe collector; Tom, converted former Ecclesiarchy preacher; Jamie, Simone, Jude, all former Arbites of Mars; and Judy, a former female assassin. They preached to those who listened, about the decadency and corruption of the religious ideals by the Ecclesiarchy. For a brief period, they were successful. Even a Cult of the Thirteen Acolytes was formed and spread among the Martians citizens. Declared heretics, they became highly wanted by the Ecclesiarchy of Mars. They rescued a man from being crucified by the Arbites but in the ensuing fight, only the man and JC survived. The deceased twelve other Acolytes were secretly martyred. The man introduced himself as Bleak Mission. With numerous Arbites and their agents, the Retinues, going after them, both JC and Bleak successfully smuggled themselves on board a ship back to Terra. Co-incidentally, the flight was one of last few allowed for departure from Mars to Terra, and vice versa, for an hour after it departed and entered neutral space, the religious Ecclesiarchy of Mars announced secession from the atheist Terran governments. The latter formed the Terran Coalition Forces, marking the beginning of the Great War between Terra and Mars.

Arriving safely on Terra, Bleak and JC parted ways. JC journeyed across the Seven Nations of Terra, gaining a reputation as a self styled monstrum venator, and eventually settled in Andria, Eurasia. Surviving the subsequent destruction of Andria, JC later got re-acquainted with Bleak, whom had also became a monster hunter and paranormal private investigator for hire. Bleak formed the Adventure Kartel, a bounty hunting, paranormal investigating and fighting unit with extra judicial powers in New Andria, recruiting JC as AK first member. This was partly due to the emergence of the walking deads i.e. Zombs, infected with the Nurgleth virus and attacking population of New Andria. But with Governor General Baron Shadow, forbidding Bleak to ever return to his city, even the newly reconstructed one, he forced Bleak to depart once more. Bleak handed the Hand of Fate and the management of the AK collective to Tommy, Bleak's long neglected son. He requested JC to protect, train in the art of self defense and guide Tommy "towards to the Path of Righteousness". JC never promise Bleak but said he would try his very best. He initially stayed at the Church of Heavenly Fist, only to realize that the members were actually perverse demonic worshippers of the Ruinous Powers. After battling the demon possessed individuals, banished a demonic entity and burnt the building down, JC opted to rent and stay at the attic converted into a room at Tommy's record shop. A mattress on the floor, blanket, and pillow, with a wooden chair, table and lamp completed the minimalistic decor. Tommy defunct band, the Missionary Position, rehearsal room and recording studio on the second floor was converted into a training room and gym at the behest of JC. JC had also began to train Tommy martial arts. JC was often at the forefront in the fight against the Zombs, demons and other foul creatures of the Ruinous Powers. JC would inked a cross onto his forearm for each successful mission. Tommy often commented how JC was a one man fighting machine against the Zombs, irregardless how numerous they may be. But he was also a bit worried about JC's "excessive enthusiasm" when dealing with these foul creatures. One particular incident which really freaked Tommy out was when he found a Zomb head in the fridge, a Smeg no less, of which JC humbly apologized. JC replaced the fridge with a second hand, pirated version. JC then explained that the Zomb head was the Blind Oracle. Tommy suspected that JC would had started keeping trophies from each of their victorious battles, a sure sign of battle madness. The news on how Terran grunts killing the Reds privates and then keeping their ears as necklace flashed acrossed Tommy's mind - think Apocalypse Now, Platoon, Hamburger Hill. Tommy began to have self reservation if some nuts were loose in the old man's head. Later, to Tommy's relief, JC explained that the Blind Oracle had sworn an oath of loyalty to JC and acted as a motion sensor, detecting the Zombs and other Ruinous Powers entities, supplying clues to JC on their movements. The Blind Oracle is so saturated with corpse gas, it can go into trance and clairvoyancy, foreseeing the Zombs horde next movement and action. JC eventual objective is to gain as much information from the Blind Oracle about the Zombs HQ underneath old Andria, now known as Necropolis. JC learnt that the Zombs are led by another walking dead known only as Zomb MD, who performs all manner of diabolical modifications and experiments on the Zombs. Then, there is the standard A.I. responsible for maintaining and sustaining the Rothchild Corp. alpha class orbital research station, until its subsequent orbital decay and crashed onto old Andria, suspected to have been caused by a N.O.M. saboteur. According to the Blind Oracle, the A.I. is mutating into a "living, twisting mass of bio-mechanical horror, of which its tentacle-like circuitry is transforming the entombed city into its own nightmarish image" and calls itself, "The Heart of Darkness". This led to suspicion by both JC and Tommy (as well as Baron Shadow), that the Rothchild Corporation may be embarking on some form of researches on warp travel (which will enable interstellar ships to "jump" to any point within the galaxy instead of travelling using the Near Faster Than Light method) and unwilliingly (or otherwise), opened a warp portal unleashing demonic entities of the Ruinous Powers around New Andria. Baron Shadow is also keeping a close eye on JC, whom he considers a "loose cannon" and highly unpredictable, for he is worried that one day, JC would eventually upset the fine balance of the truce between the monster hunters and the children of the night, an event which would result in unprecedented bloodshed and war, which had occurred once during the tumultous Dark Days a thousand years ago.

To JC, there is no grey area between black and white. During one of the Zombs attack, JC single handedly defeated about 40 of them within 15 minutes. Covered in black foul blood of the putrid walking deads, JC quickly asked for disinfectant, anti-viral shots, soaps and towel to hose himself clean (Cleanliness is Godliness). When Tommy took the towel to dispose off, he saw what seemed to be an image imprint of JC's face on it, which looked remarkable similar to the Shroud of Turin (of which the Baron still keep in his mansion, the world's largest collection of all manner of artifacts owned by an individual and never ever accessible to a member of the public). A bright idea sparked in Tommy's mind. He sent the photo of the towel to Baron Shadow. The latter was naturally excited and paid a considerable sum for it to Tommy, but upon receiving the towel, Baron Shadow flew into a fit. As it turned out, within an hour of receiving it, the image had changed into a smiley face instead. The Baron sent a squad of ANKOU EX Shadow Security to see Tommy demanding not only full refund, but also to pay compensation for "making a fool out of the Baron." All JC could say was greed, one of the seven sins, was "never good. Greed muddles. Greed clouds the mind. Hope this would be a good lesson to you. JC had saved Tommy's life more than both of them could remember, with JC sometimes severely injured in the process. An example was when Xaphan, a demon prince of the Ruinous Power, possessed an aristrocrat dabbling with the dark arts in New Andria. He kidnapped Tommy and lured JC to rescue him. Under possession, the host was transformed into a monstrous demonic entity and attacked JC with warp powers and later stabbed him with the Spear of Destiny. Despite bleeding profusely, the infuriated, berserking JC suddenly turned the table around and proceeded to rain a torrent of punches and kicks to the demonic monster. Beaten unconscious, JC then proceeded to ministrate the Last Rites on Xaphan, thus sending it Upstairs instead of banishing it back into the Chaos Void. Needless to say, Xaphan got to face the wrath of the Cherubims guarding the Purgatory Gates and had its arse severely beaten. All that was left of the aristocrat was a shrunken corpse. JC remarked to Tommy, "F***! I had been shot, kick, punch, bitten, what-f***-ever, but never until now been sticked into my belly with a nearly 2000 plus years old, dirty, rusty spear. Who did Xaphan think I am? Son of God?!".

...............................................................................

I leave it aside whether this figure is intended to be the Christian Messiah as I do not want to offend anyone. Also, I do not have any substaintial knowledge of the AK story (if there's any). The figure's different from the usual Hot Toys etc. figures. The details are a complete opposite to say, HT standard (not to mention it's increadibly dusty, I can literally see them floating around when unpacking it. Did they really put them through piles of dust during production?). But that's exactly why I am gearing up on collecting selected stuffs from ThreeA. It's different and re-freshing from the usual fare. And another good thing about ThreeA stuffs are sometimes it allows me to imagine the characterisations and storylines for myself. Of course, the official infos are around, there's a 3A Wiki, there's the forum for fans, and occasional cryptic bits of background infos drop by the man himself, Ashley Wood. But ultimately, that's what the whole fun is about, more shiok, for me, at least, personally, to re-think and re-imagine the whole senario. Just like when I played those old toys mom and pop got for me back then. He-Man vs Optimus Prime, the Zoids doubling up as Voltron's nemesis. Credits also go to works by Neil Gaiman, Mike Mignola's Hellboy series and others too numerous to remember or mention here. I'm gonna enjoy the ride while it lasts.

ThreeA ~ Adventure Kartel : Bleak Mission.

2011-12-27T01:42:00.024+08:00

Name: William "Bleak" Mission.
Age: 40 years old.
Std. Armaments: The Missionary Gun (customised Hobson & Dolch Series B blaster); Custard the Satanic Labrador; various stabbing weapons i.e. knives, machetes; hand grenades; various artifacts for protection and fighting against the Ruinous Powers; former owner of the Hand of Fate.
Abilities: Military tactics and strategic knowledge; technical, engineering knowledge; hacker; mystic adept; arcane knowledge; expert hand to hand combatant; cunningness.

A (mis) interpretation:

"It's done, Grandma." Bleak said as he fired up another Habanos cigarillo ("nuthin taste better than the hand roll ones by a torcedora on her sweet inner thigh" Bleak always say). Baba Yaga, the mighty witch of old Eurasia, forgotten by time but remain relevant even in times like these, is pleased with the result. "Good work, my dear child. As promised, you may now leave. I shall miss you, my sweet child. Do visit me sometimes?" After three long years, the word Bleak has been longing to hear is finally uttered by his imprisoner. The last sentence makes him nervous but it has to be a "yes". How Bleak got into all the trouble with the ancient hag is just one of the many of which Bleak had experienced throughout his tumultuous and colorful life experience. After all, what can be expected of someone who has made "adventure" his only mission in life? Prior to the trouble with Baba Yaga, Bleak had been in situations both dire and exciting, a pre-requisite for someone longing for endless "freedom of adventure and devil may care attitude". Bleak was from Andria, sub-sector 2046 of Eurasia and originally worked for the dhampir Governor General of Andria, Baron Maximilian von Sydow (or Shadow). The latter is an obsessive, impulsive personal collector of ancient lores and artifacts and Bleak carried out his job perfectly, including locating and securing the original Dr. Frankenstein's monsterous homunculus, Draco Tempes aka Lord Dracula the Impaler, the preserved head of Sherlock Holmes, the mummified Egyptian high priest Imhotep, amongst others. Bleak was banished by the Baron over his tumultous love affair with the Baron's daugther, Cherry Shadow. Roaming about and in no particular order, Bleak had been a Terran grunt in the endless, ongoing Great War, battling the Martian "Reds" army and warbots, a mercenary with the militant group, N.O.M.,until he was caught in a ménage à trois with his female commander and a de Plume ("a psychedelic, mind blowing experience I tell ya" Bleak recalled), a black marketeer and smuggler with M.O.D., another anti-establishment group, a moisture farmhand on Mars while on the run. Bleak was later caught in a compromising position with the owner's wife, and nearly crucified by the Ecclesiarchy of Mars arms of law, the Arbites, but rescued by the Fighting JC, a werewolf after being cursed by the sorceress Circe but cured through wolfbane, as suggested by Custard, although he nearly died from its poisonous effect, had slept with both goddesses and demons, outsmarted demi-gods and deities alike, and many more too numerous to be raised and mentioned. He has made enemies out of friends and friends out of enemies. Bleak has betrayed and being betrayed countless times. Outsmarted at times but never outwitted, Bleak has seen and tasted exciting adventures which will last a man several lifetimes. Bleak eventually ends up as a self styled adventurer, treasure hunter, mystic artefact seeker and private investigator on all things monstrous and paranormal. Making his way back to New Andria to see a son he thought he never had, he came across a village where he learnt of children disappearing into the darkness of the nearby forest of Świętokrzyskie Mountains (or what is left of it after numerous orbital bombardment by the warring factions). Investigating, in return for a bag of golds from the local villagers, he stumbled across remains of the children's bones and stones arranged in patterns too similar to Bleak. Experience tells him the kids had been some one's meal. Not wild animal for sure coz there's no wild animals on Terra for a long time. Initial investigation led Bleak to suspect Baba Yaga. After all she possessed infamous reputation for such incidences. Infuriated, he left for the Thrice-Nine Land and tracked her down onto her chicken leg hut and battled her one on one. In the process, Bleak shot out one of her eyes, rendered her losing part of her infernal powers, and burnt the hut down. Only to later found out that it wasn't her who kidnapped and ate the kids but another witch from nearby Łysa Góra mountain. Baba Yaga had long forsaken to partake in the Feast of the Innocent. She loved them too much to do that. Baba would had killed Bleak there and then, but like always, he manages to negotiate his way out. Using the Hand of Fate as leverage (Baba could technically still kill Bleak but as he was then owner of the Hand of Fate, doing so would invoke the Furies to come after her), Baba gave Bleak three tasks to redeem himself. First, he must fight Koschei the Deathless at the Thrice-Tenth Kingdom. This he did and survived, which surprised the hag. Then he must un-make all the damages done to her and the hut. Bleak proceeded to the work immediately - he not only re-constructed the old chicken leg hut but made it into a effigy-like walking, mobile fortress of which he used primarily carcasses of discarded and fallen war bots in the region as well as adding their weapons, further "pimped it up" by adding auxilary systems such as anti-radar, anti-heat seeking devices and other modern upgrades. He did the same thing as replacement for her traditional mortar, pestle and broom by using a discarded Terran hovering platform, and "souped it up". He added two mini guns to the hovercraft, each with 10,000 shots per second capability (according to Bleak, he did not want the old hag to end up like dear Santa, a pal of his, whom was shot down by a MK2 Bramble's RPG during the '89 Christmas sojourn. Luckily, the merry old fatso and his luscious Santarina groupies survive. Red Fat, as Bleak "endearingly" calls Santa, was said to have given a finger and shouted "Yippie kay-yay, youse metal muthaf*****!!! Ho~ho~ho y'all!!!"). For ammunition, he modified the human skulls from the fences into "Skull Boom" for the cannons, and human skeleton finger digits for bullets. The machines are fueled only by bio-degradable substance which are aplenty in times like this since sinners and hustlers often seek Baba Yaga out for help but could not pay in return ("there's always room for more" Baba Yaga often said of her fence of human skull poles and skeleton fences). Bleak painstakingly wrote down every instructions and operation procedures into a manual for Baba Yaga, whom was delighted. As assurance, so that nothing breaks down, Bleak "borrowed" and re-formatted a few Square² MK1 to run the house. He then cleaned up the mess surrounding the former chicken leg hut. The final task was abit tricky, as it got to do with restoration of the bullet wound inflicted on Baba's left eye. Bleak modified a Lasgun and attaches it onto Baba Yaga's eye, connecting it to her synapse. Not only it block her powers from further seeping away, Baba Yaga could also shoot laser from her left eye. But she would need to recharge the battery once every month. Satisfied, the old crone returned the Hand of Fate to Bleak and allowed his leave. Bleak then set out for New Andria with Custard where he met Fighting JC once more and together, set up Adventure Kartel. He stayed for two days and then disappeared from his son's life, Tommy Mission, once more, leaving him the Hand of Fate and a short note. Latest clue to his whereabout points to the direction of the Isle of Avalon in Oceania. When Lil Shadow visited her godmother, she was perplexed and surprised beyond surprise at the new look of the place. "So, what do you think, my dear child?" asked Baba Yaga. "Uh, welcome to the 21st Century?" replied Lil Shadow.

Bleak best pal and sidekick at the moment is Custard the Labrador. Custard was one of the six genetically engineered prototype canine replicants produced in the early 80s by the Rothchild Corporation. It was a rare, experimental foray into bio-mechanical engineering spearheaded by Luthor "Jumpin" Bean, Sr., then working as chief supervisor of the now-defunct Circle of Lab division. The dogs were intended to be emotional stabilizers for the unstable Harold series warbot. Other originally intended responsibilities include carrying out scouting and area recon mission in the battle field. Possessing intellect which match their creators, the canines were also built for war. They were robust and as fierce as ancient battle hounds. Their bites and claws were said to be strong enough to tear apart ceramic steel platings. It's eyes, ears and nose contained auxiliary sensors. A Lab could scan through the entire light spectrums, pick up all range of broadcasting frequencies and extract informations from sense of smell from miles away. Before the Circle of Lab sales pitch was to be presented to the Terran governments however, Walter Rothchild suddenly passed away and eventually replaced by his son, Darwin. Darwin subsequently replaced all of his late father's projects with his. The six Labradors were to be culled, but Bean Sr. allowed them to escape. After wandering aimlessly around, the canines settled in the Republic of United Middle Eastern Kingdoms. There, they quickly gained notoriety as self styled "Canine Pirates of New Luxor", terrorising the merchant shipping lanes. During one of his adventures to seek out the Eye of Horus, Bleak fought the canines on numerous occasions. Finally, the local government sent a squad of Dropcloth warbots from the 230th Middle Eastern Regiment's 102nd "Slaugtherhouse" Company to exterminate the dogs once and for all. Custard is the only survivor (but with its left eye slashed off by a chopper), after being saved by Bleak, whom himself was wounded in the melee. Feeling indebted, Custard imprinted its mind onto Bleak and has been staying loyal to him and by his side throughout his adventures ever since. Bleak has grown tremendously fond of it. Custard often advises Bleak on important matters, and has protected, and saves him from trouble on several occasions. They could communicate with each other in human language. This is the reason why some people who come across Custard calls it "a satanic dog", a term which Bleak loves and since then, has introduced the Lab as Custard, the Satanic Dog. It speaks in a deep, baritone voice akin to J.E.Jones, a well known movie actor. Custard carries a backpack on its body. It contains several copy of grimoires (The Book of Thoth, The Liber Juratus, the Clavicula Salomonis, the Lemegeton and the Necronomicon), an unknown rune stone and ring, and a signed copy of Playboy by the late Hollywood sex symbol/actress Marilyn M.

.....................................

I imagine Bleak as an anti-hero, something like Clint Eastwood's character in A Fistful of Dollars I guess, with some Spielberg's Indiana Jones, Guy Ritchie, Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez works thrown into the mix.

Chloe & Dylan ~ Lameeya.

2011-12-24T02:44:00.008+08:00

When Esther suggested Lameeya, a noodle food chain outlet for lunch, I shot it down initially. Meh, probably another run of the mill type of noodle outlet. Furthermore it's lam mee, and what can beat the traditional apek coffee shop lam mee right? As usual, I am wrong and the wife's right, as I enjoyed the noodle so much that I ordered double....and still eyeing Esther's prawn mee.

Winter Solstice 2011.

2011-12-22T03:30:00.007+08:00

It's time for Tong Yuen again, so everyone ('cept me, being a lazy bum), got their hands busy making those dough balls with Malaccan brown sugar inside. Chloe and Dylan entertained themselves by making various version of "snowman, turtles, tortoise and ice-cream".

Chloe & Dylan ~ Steam boat again.

2011-12-21T03:14:00.009+08:00

Loves it when having a steam boat dinner at home with Esther and the two, cheeky, mischievous precious. Peeling the cockle's shells and washed it thoroughly is a chore though...worth it coz loves cockles.

ThreeA ~ Adventure Kartel : Lil Shadow.

2011-12-05T02:46:00.026+08:00

I only smile in the dark
My only comfort is the night gone black
I didn't accidentally tell you that
You'll get the message by the time I'm through
When I complain about me and you
You can keep me company
As long as you don't care
You wanna hear about my new obsession?
~ Garbage, Only Happy When It Rains.

A (mis) interpretation:

Name : Elizabeth von Sydow.
Alias : Lil Shadow.
Age : 300 years old.
Std. armaments : Skull Booms, and anything she could grab on to bash the Zombs, including Tommy Mission (if he incurred her anger).
Abilities : Expert hand to hand combatant; master of an ancient martial art called Sekhmet's Wrath; heightened physical strength, endurance, stamina, speed and senses; healing ability; slow aging; arcane knowledge; mystic adept; 300 years old worth of dhampir instinct.

Lil Shadow is the youngest daughter of New Andria's Governor General, Maximilian von Sydow and his wife, Lucida, also known as Baron and Baroness Shadow. Like her family, Lil Shadow is a 300 years old dhampir, currently equalvalent to an appearance of a 17 years old teenager as all dhampirs age at an incredibly slow rate. She's an old soul, with 300 years worth of experience and wisdom. Lil Shadow has a twin sister, older than her by 15 minutes, Eliza von Sydow, the infamous Cherry Shadow, and a elder sister, Elaine von Sydow or Big Shadow. Like both her parents, her elder sister rarely, if ever, show her face beyond their tightly ANKOU Shadow Security garrison guarded, gothic and stately mansion. Both her parents are part of a secret organization known as "The Cognate Society", which were united throughout the globe, taught to refrain from violence unless forced to, and has integrated with humans into a system of coexistence. Ironically, the dhampirs are created by the King of Vampires himself, Drago Tempes, to retaliate against the his own "Blue Bloods" or pure vampirs to surpress and retaliates against their brief cold blooded, murderous rules over the humans after the great defeat of the vârcolac or werewolves clans. Lil Shadow sees her heredity equally as a curse and a gift. Like all dhampirs, Lil Shadow can walk in the sun but subjects to higher rate of sunburn. She has a normal human diet with no desire for blood, although drinking blood would enable her to heal faster from injuries and multiply her physical strengths to even higher level. Lil Shadow ages slowly, and is not immortal. She can be injured or killed, although her recuperative properties and resiliency against all forms of diesease are higher than a normal human. She would have thought that after living for three centuries, she would have seen everything life throws at her, but life never ceases to amaze and spring surprises for her. Although forbidden by her parents, Lil Shadow personally helps out those in need of protection from the Zombs and other creatures of the Ruinous Powers in New Andria when they are unleashed after upon the destruction of the original city. It also helps her keep her mind preoccupied and prevents her from falling into state of suicidal depression, which affects at least 60% of the all dhampirs, usually due to internal conflict based on moral or religious reasons. She fights her adversaries using an ancient martial art called the Sekhmet's Wrath, which are taught to her and sisters by their father and mother. Lil Shadow has mastered it well, as evident when she confronted the Beast of Gévaudan, a psychotic, serial killing vârcolac preying on young women, was literally torn apart by her bare hand and sent the pieces to the Lycaon and Callisto chieftains of the vârcolac clans around Eurasia as warning to abide by the Pact of Truce. Lil Shadow also uses the Skull Boom, cannonball-like hand bomb made from human skulls procured from the ancient Eurasian witch, Baba Yaga, whom is also her and Cherry's godmother.

Lil Shadow is currently adopting a a semi-Bohemian lifestyle. She loves avant garde poetry by the Black Mountain poets, writings by the "Beat generation", auteur films and indie music. She gets to know Tommy Mission and the Adventure Kartel collective when she drops by his record shop one day and got into a conversation with Tommy about works by Kathy Acker, French critical theory and philosophy. For Tommy, after being dumped for the 49th time, it is truly love at first sight (or maybe it is due to Lil Shadow's dhampir aura. Who knows for sure?). Tommy falls so hard in love, too deep and emotional that he shed a tear there and then, smearing his face with his guyliner. An awkward moment of course, and memorable for both of them. Lil Shadow, however, knows only too well not to fall in love and enter into a relationship with a normal human. Tommy knows she's a dhampir but what he doesn't know is that his father, Bleak Mission, was once also in love with Lil Shadow when he was around Tommy's age. Lil Shadow did not return Bleak's affection, which resulted in the disastrous affair between Cherry and him, incurring the anger of Baron Shadow. Bleak was banished from Andria (and the beginning of an adventure of a lifetime). Lil Shadow sees a young Bleak in Tommy. She nevertheless remains a close ally and friend of Tommy and his AK comrades. Though Fighting JC dislikes her presence, Lil Shadow often team up with them to fight the Zombs, other foul creatures and supernatural forces of the Ruinous Powers. She has also saves them from sticky situation on several occasions, such as when the Zombs decided to launch Bomber Zombs into the city (Bomber Zombs are literally walking deads bloated with corpse gas or ethylene that they explodes upon impact like water balloons. They are propelled/launched into the city through ignition of the highly combustable corpse gas release from a valve inserted onto their rectum). The subsequent corpse gas released from the exploding Zombs caused Tommy and JC to hallucinate (Lil Shadow said Tommy shouted, "I'M NATALIE P.! I'M A BLACK SWAN!", while flapping both arms and doing his best imitation of a ballerina. Fighting JC went to the rooftop, and shouted, "I AM THE GOLDEN GOD! BOW BEFORE ME, ALL YOUSE WORTHLESS WORMS!!!" while beating both his chest like a gorrilla). Lucky for the Skull Boom at hand, Lil Shadow detonated one which incinerated all the Zombs (as well as nearly levelled half a city block). Tommy and JC were given treatment for the hallucinogenic effect, which lasted two days. They were interned temporarily at the local asylum due to lack of available wards at the overcrowded hospital due to the Zombs attack. When Lil Shadow visited them, Tommy can still be seen humming to the tune of pop singer Kylie M's "Locomotion" while JC was break dancing, old skool style. Photos and video capture of their antics at the height of hallucination has since gone viral with more than 40 millions hit on the Eyes of Yggdrasil, the World Wide Web.

.....................................................................................

Tommy's been lonely on the shelf for quite some time, so I reckon its time to get Lil Shadow to accompany him. This is the original, first release version. BTW, ThreeA Toys can be literally dusty, apart from that perpetual smell of turpentine. I imagine Lil Shadow's personality as somewhat a milder version of Lisbeth Salander, with some sprinkling of a stereotypical hipster persona.

Hot Toys MMS 156 ~ Captain America.

2011-11-15T02:05:00.033+08:00

Dr. Abraham Erskine: So, you want to go overseas? Kill some Nazis.
Steve Rogers: Excuse me?
Dr. Abraham Erskine: Where are you from Mr. Rogers? Mmm? Is it New Haven? Or Paramus? Five exams in five different cities.
Steve Rogers: That might not be the right file.
Dr. Abraham Erskine: No, it's not the exams I'm interested in. It's the five tries. But you didn't answer my question. Do you want to kill Nazis?
Steve Rogers: Is this a test?
Dr. Abraham Erskine: Yes.
Steve Rogers: I don't wanna kill anyone. I don't like bullies. I don't care where they're from. Well, there are already so many big men fighting this war. Maybe what we need now is the little guy, huh?

Col. Chester Phillips: General Patton has said that wars are fought with weapons but they are won by men. We are going to win this war because we have the best men. And because they're gonna get better. Much better. The Strategic Scientific Reserve is an allied effort made up of the best minds in the free world. Our goal is to create the best army in history. But every army starts with one man. At the end of this week we will choose that man. He will be the first in a new breed of super-soldiers. And they, will personally escort Adolf Hitler to the gates of Hell.

Steve Rogers: You know for the longest time I dreamed about coming overseas and be on the front lines. Serving my country. I finally get everything I wanted, and I'm wearing tights.

Col. Chester Phillips: Son, who approve those colors on your uniform? The enemies gonna spot you from miles away as you're brighter than Rudolph's nose in the foggiest night. And that "A". Damn it, you're gonna be a walking target for the snipers!
Steve Rogers: Senator Brandt, sir. He said it would be a good representation of our American fighting spirit.
Col. Chester Phillips: Well, don't mind me saying but I wonder what that pencil pusher in a plush office would say if you were to come back covered in American flag!*

Dr. Abraham Erskine: So many people forget that the first country that the Nazi's invaded was their own. You know, after the last war the...my people struggled. They...they felt weak. They felt small. And then Hitler comes along with the marching and the big show and the flags and the...and the...
Dr. Abraham Erskine: And he...he hears of me, my work and he finds me. And he says, you...he says you will us strong. Well, I am not interested. So he sends the head of Hydra, his research division. A brilliant scientist by the name of Johann Schmidt. Now, Schmidt is a member of the inner circle and he's ambitious. He and Hitler share a passion for a cult power and Teutonic myth. Hitler uses his fantasies to inspire his followers. But for Schmidt it is not fantasy. For him, it is real. He has become convinced that there is a great power in the earth, left there by the Gods, waiting to be seized by a superior man. So when he hears about my formula and what it can do, he cannot resist.
Dr. Abraham Erskine: Schmidt must become that superior man.
Steve Rogers: Did it make him stronger?
Dr. Abraham Erskine: Yeah. But, there were other effects. The serum was not ready. But more important, the man. The serum amplifies everything that is inside. So, good becomes great. Bad becomes worse. This is why you were chosen. Because a strong man, who has known power all his life, will lose respect for that power. But a weak man knows the value of strength. And knows compassion.
Dr. Abraham Erskine: Whatever happens tomorrow, you must promise me one thing. That you will stay who you are. Not a perfect soldier, but a good man.

Johann Schimdt : Du zirkus affen! Bow before me!
Steve Rogers : Circus ape? Have you look into the mirror lately?
Johann Schimdt : All ze time, ihr blue suited affe!
Steve Rogers : No wonder you're nuts!*

"Dum Dum" Dugan: You mean to tell me that you can leap over a tall building in a single bound, or stop a speeding train like that comic character caped superhero I read?
Steve Rogers: Only in fiction.*

*own addition.

....................................................................................

A (mis)-interpretation :

Name : Steven "Steve" Rogers.
Age : 18 years old (as of 1944).
Alias : Captain America.
Abilities : Physical, senses, intellectual attributes enhanced to the peak of human potential; expert martial art artist and hand-to-hand combatant; all-terrain acrobatics; master tactician and field commander; prolonged life and slow aging.
Std. armaments : Vibranium-steel alloy shield, Thompson M1928A1 "Tommy Gun", Colt. 45automatic pistol.
Current status : Active.

Chronology :
June 1918 - December 1920 ~ Outbreak of the Spanish flu pandemic. German epidemiologist Dr. Abraham Erskine begins research on the influenza virus. His study results in the creation of the super serum which amplifies a human physical and intellect to peak possibility.
July 4, 1924 ~ Steven Rogers is born in Brooklyn, New York, the only son of Joseph Rogers, a watchmaker and Marilyn Johnson, a full time housewife.
October 29, 1929 ~ Collapse of US stock market. The Great Depression begins. Steve is diagnosed with gastrointestinal disorder. Health related problems would continue to plague Steve into his teenage years.
August 2, 1934 ~ Adolf Hitler becomes Führer of Germany.
October 1, 1934 ~ Creation of German air force and expansion of army and navy. Establishment of Deep Science Weapons Research, a division of the Schutzstaffel (SS) under the command of Standartenführer Johann Schimdt. Schimdt later establishes HYDRA, a clandestine, self preservation group within the SS itself.
March 3, 1935 ~ HYDRA agents discover Dr. Erskine super serum formula. Schimdt forces Dr. Erskine to apply the serum to him.
September 15, 1935 ~ Nuremberg Laws announced by Hitler which deprived Jews of German citizenship, political and civil rights.
November 12, 1938 ~ Dr. Erskine and his family escape to Britain after the Kristallnacht pogrom against Jews. He takes his super serum formula with him. Schimdt and HYDRA agents begin manhunt for Dr. Erskine.
January 29, 1939 ~ Discovery of nuclear fission. Hitler orders the creation of Germany nuclear energy project, Uranverein. Schimdt is appointed to supervise the entire project.
September 1, 1939 - June 9, 1940 ~ Germany invades Poland, signalling the beginning of World War 2, follows by invasion of Scandinavia. HYDRA establishes a nuclear weapon development research center in Norway to utilize the heavy water produce by the Vermork Hydroelectric Plant located outside of Rjukan in Tinn, Telemark to breed plutonium.
May 10 - June 25, 1940 ~ Germany invades the Low Countries and France.
October 16. 1940 ~ US announces military draft, followed by first ever peacetime draft lottery by end of the month.
March 1940 - July 1941 ~ Germany initiates the Battle of Britain and the Blitz. Dr. Erskine and scientists of other occupied nations are evacuated to US. The Battle of Atlantic is also being dominated by German U-boats. Italy begins attack on the Mediterranean, Northern Africa and Middle East, follows by Germany attacks on the Balkans and Crete. In July 1940, the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) is established.
June 22 - December 6, 1941 ~ Germany launches the invasion of Soviet Union under Operation Barbarossa.
December 7, 1941 ~ Japan attacks Pearl Harbour, resulting in US and Britain declaring war against Japan the following day. As part of the Tripartite Pact, Germany and Italy declare war on US on December 11, 1941. Japan synchronises the Pearl Harbour attack with the start of the invasion of US, British, Dutch colonies across Southeast Asia.
March 1942 ~ British army begins a series of campaign against Germany and Italy in North Africa with success.
May 7 - June 6, 1942 ~ US victory over Japan in Battle of Coral Sea and Midway marks the first in a series of naval and air battles which would results in change of initiative to US from Japan in the Pacific War.
June 13, 1942 ~ US intelligence agency, Office of Strategic Services (OSS) is established. Information obtained from SOE and Norwegian resistance agents that Germany is nearing completion of producing weapon grade plutonium. The Scientific Reserve Division is established by Allies to undertake scientific projects which include, amongst others, Dr. Erskine super serum to produce "super soldiers".
November 19, 1942 - March 18, 1943 ~ Soviet counter-offensive successfully drives back the German army from Stalingrad to Kharkov. In February, Germany launches a counter-attack which recaptures Kharkov and Belgorod.
April 5, 1943 ~ Steve Rogers, after being rejected for military duty on numerous occasions due to his health and physical issues, is personally enlisted by Dr. Erskine for his super serum experiment and potential test subject. Steve and other candidates are sent to Fort Benning for military training. Steve is chosen after Col. Phillips, the commander supervising the selection of individual for the experiment, is convinced by Dr. Erskine and British SOE agent Peggy Carter that Steve Rogers possesses the right aptitude for the test.
May 12, 1943 ~ Steve Rogers, designates as "Weapon I", undergoes the super soldier experiment successfully at an undisclosed laboratory in New York. Dr. Erskine is assassinated by a HYDRA agent under the guise as one of Senator Brandt's bodyguard at the end of the experiment. The agent is captured by Steve Rogers, who chases him on foot through at least five city blocks whilst the former escapes driving a car. The HYDRA agent commits suicide by biting a cyanide capsule hidden in his tooth cavity. A Daily Bugle photographer takes a picture of Steve Rogers and publishes an article the next day, propelling Steve into public popularity. The super serum formula is lost together with the death of Dr. Erskine. Samples of Steve Rogers blood is extracted to replicate the serum, which would take minimum 5 years to complete. Under Senator Brandt recommendation, Steve Rogers joins the United Services Organizations (USO), touring US under the alias "Captain America" to help raise war bonds. As Captain America, Steve Rogers proves to be popular, increasing the purchase of war bonds by at least 20%. He would later join celebrities like Bob Hope and Marlene Dietrich to entertain front line troops overseas.
July 5, 1943 - May 12, 1944 ~ Germany begins retreat on the Eastern Front from Soviet Army after the failure of Operation Citadel. In July 1943, the Allies land in Sicily and begins the Sicilian and Italian campaign, resulting in resignation of Italian dictator Mussolini and signing of armistice by Italy to the Allies.
October 12 - November 16, 1943 ~ Two operations, Operation Grouse and Operation Freshman, with objective to sabotage and destroy the Vermosk hydroelectric plant in Norway is undertaken by Combined Operations. The mission is carried out by the SOE trained Norwegian commandos with assistance from the US special team, the Howling Commandos, which is led by Steve Rogers close friend, Sgt. James "Bucky" Barnes. The first operation is successful in its objective of provision of the area blueprint. Operation Freshman, however, ends in failure and several members of both commando teams are captured and killed by HYDRA. Surviving members from both operations, including Bucky, hide out in the mountains, where they subsist on moss, lichen and reindeer.
November 17, 1943 ~ Steve Rogers learns of the incident through Peggy Carter while entertaining front line troops in Italy. In an unsanctioned mission, he embarks on a solo rescue operation by flying a plane to Norway. The successful mission re-instates Steve Rogers for active duty in the military. He is promoted as captain, and new commander of the Howling Commandos. Schimdt not only learnt about the interest the Allies have in their nuclear weapon development project but also of the presence of the second recipient of the late Dr. Erskine's super serum. Steve Rogers and the Howling Commandos carry out a series of clandestine, sabotage missions against the Axis as well as providing armed assistance to the occupied nations local resistance movements.
February 16, 1944 ~ As part of Operation Gunnerside, Drs. Adelind Zola, the head of the scientific weapon research of HYDRA, and confidante of Johann Schimdt, is captured by Steve Rogers and the Howling Commandos during a raid on board an armored train carrying parts and critical components related to the production of nuclear bomb. Zola, under intense interrogation, reveals that Schimdt intends to simultaneously bomb not only Washington, New York, London and major Soviet cities with nuclear devices but also Berlin and the Far Eastern nations. She also shares that ultimately HYDRA intends to annihilate their enemies and the Untermensch (sub-humans) by bringing about a global nuclear holocaust codename Götterdämmerung. Survivors would be selected as part of the Lebensborn program, which would be implemented through application of the super serum, to create a true Aryan race to occupy new, racially hygiene Lebensraum (living space). It is also learnt that Schimdt is actually "Weapon 0", the first human test subject of Dr. Erskine's super serum. Whether Schimdt or Zola is aware of how a post nuclear holocaust would affect the human population remains unknown.
June 6, 1944 ~ Operation Overlord commences with the "D-Day" landings in Normandy by the Allies, opening up the Western Front in WW2.
June 10, 1944 ~ Soviet Army launches Operation Bagration, a massive offensives along the entire Eastern Front against Germany. German army now takes a defensive position.
June 20, 1944 ~ US achieves victory at the Battle of Philippine Sea, cutting off Japan's line of communication with their Southern Resources Area. Japan is beginning to be deprived of their crucial raw materials to fuel their war productions.
July 9 - 11, 1944 ~ Operation Doomsday commences, consist of two airborne divisions, two infantry divisions, one armored division, the SOE, the Howling Commandos and with support from Milorg, the Norwegian resistance movement, against German occupied Norway. The Allies successfully breakthrough on day two against strong German coastal and infantry defenses, and secured defensive perimeters. Proceed towards the primary HYDRA base near the Norwegian-Finnish border on the third day, three completed atomic bombs are discovered being loaded on board Horten Ho 666 flying wing fortress bombers. Both forces sufferred heavy casualties. Two bombers are prevented from taking off. The third bomber slips through, with Schimdt personally onboard, accompanies by a company of HYDRA commandos. Steve Rogers gets on the bomber, and personally neutralised the entire HYDRA commandos. Engaged in a hand to hand combat with Schimdt himself. Severely injured, Rogers overwhelmes Schimdt and kills him. The bomber plane is automatically lock on course towards London, with countdown timer on the atomic bomb. Rogers overrides the auto pilot to manual but could not un-arm nor dissable the timer. He steers the bomber beyond the Artic Circle whereby the entire plane explodes with a blinding light and sheer destructive force.

Epilogue:

Hitler commits suicide on April 30th, 1945 during the Battle of Berlin in his underground bunker. Mussolini is killed on April 28th, 1945 by Italian partisan. Germany surrenders unconditionally to the Allies on May 8th, 1945 (VE Day) and is divided into four zones, with all former territories return to its former owners. Japan formally surrenders to the Allies on September 2nd, 1945 (VJ Day) after the US atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, marking the end of World War 2 and the beginning of the Cold War between the Western Powers and Soviet Union. A series of military tribunals are held to prosecute prominent members of political, military and economic leadership of the defeated Third Reich Germany, known as the Nuremberg Trials, held between November 20th, 1945 to October 1st, 1945. Drs. Amelind Zola escapes prior to the "Doctors Trial" in November, 1946. Famed Nazi hunter, Simon Wiesenthal believes she could have been rescued by a combined elements of HYDRA and Soviet Union's NKVD. However, it later evidences later emerged that the CIA exchanged Drs. Zola for Jewish refugees as part of agreement with NKVD. The late Dr. Erskine's super serum is successfully replicated by 1956, under supervision of the newly established counter-intelligence agency, S.H.I.E.L.D., a division of CIA. The first human test subject is Major Bucky Barnes with alias "The Patriot", designation "Weapon II". He would play a major role in a series of proxy wars and cladestine operations against the Soviet Union during the height of the Cold War in the 50s and early 60s. The Soviet Union also successfully replicate their own super serum. Unknown to the Allies, Steve Rogers survives the explosion by bailing out during the very last second and suffers from comatose upon landing. A team of Soviet Union researchers found him frozen alive. Through his blood sample (and Drs. Amelind Zola expertise), the super serum formula is applied to Natalia Romanova, alias "The Black Widow", designation "Weapon III". Steve Rogers comes out of his coma but suffers from amnesia. With false history feeds to him, he undertakes the alias "The Winter Soldier" and fight for the side of Soviet Union. After a series of encounter and battles with former friend Bucky Barnes, Steve Rogers eventually regain his memories and returns to US. He also successfully convinces Natalia to switch allegience. S.H.I.E.L.D. continues to secretly apply the super serum to various individuals throughout the 60s and into 21st Century. One of the most controversial subject is Isaiah Bradley, alias "The Liberty", designation "Weapon IV", who is deployed for the Vietnam War, as he is selected during the infamous Tuskegee syphilis experiment in Tuskegee, Alabama under the pretext receiving free health care from the government when in fact it is a secret study natural progression of syphilis in poor, rural black US citizen. Bradley, seeing the reality of the war and the atrocities inflict by both forces upon each other and innocent local populations, goes AWOL until his capture by Steve Rogers and the Screaming Eagles Special Squad at the Cambodian border after the war. He is eventually re-convince by Rogers to return to US. He is successfully rehabiliated and is now a member of the Screaming Eagles Special Squad. Another is James Logan, designated "Weapon X", deployed for the Middle Eastern conflict. He went AWOL during a mission in Iran and current whereabout is unknown.

.....................................................................

Admittedly, I'm not a fan of Captain America, but the 2011 movie directed by Joe Johnson and starring Chris Evans as the legendary Marvel comic superhero partially changes all that. And loves that costume. This is the eventual version from the movie (Hot Toys has also announced the other version, as well Red Skull in the coming lineup), which I think looks better than the upcoming Avengers movie version.

U2 ~ Achtung Baby 20th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition.

2011-11-12T02:11:00.011+08:00

Ah have a vision! A vision! Television!

~ The Mirrorball Man.

Finally 'ere. The 20th anniversary edition of the album which redefined U2, setting stage for them to reinvent themselves creatively and musically for the 90s. Physically big box set, with revelatory articles about the album by various individuals current and past, plus nice pics within a hardcover book, just like the Nirvana set. 6 CDs in total. Achtung Baby, is well, to my ears, just like the original one. Zooropa, which has had its roots during the Zoo TV Tour, and meant to be an EP expanded into a separate album, also sounded the same. Personally, I think it shouldn't be included within the set and should be given a separate treatment (and I will still stick to the original album version as it does not come with any lyrics). The Uber and Unter Remixes are given the clubbing DJ treatments, and well, I just kinda felt abit awkward when I listened to it. For those who owned the singles, the b-sides are here and the bonus tracks are kinda nice but still growing on me. The gem of the set actually, is the Kindergarten - Alternative Achtung Baby. Not sure when the songs were recorded, perhaps selected from early takes of the original but oh boy, does it stick to me like an ear worm. The songs I'm so used to are given different arrangements, some kinda stripped down thus sounding more rockier and earthy. There are additional lyrical rearrangements, some which sounds inaudible (Bongolese, Bono?) like in "The Fly", but great, lifting the entire experience, at least to me, to another plane. The gem amongst the gems here is probably "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses", a personal surprise as I always thought the original , while good, is not comparatively as great as their other singles. One listen is all it takes to keep me pressing the repeat button. The DVD documentary is alright thought I personally felt it is done to atone for the criticism thrown at "Rattle and Hum". No new facts in the DVD of which U2 fans have not heard before, like how "One", the single which saves U2 career as one pundit said, was born out of "Mysterious Ways" song bridge, the determination to reinvent, redefine and maintain relevant, the tensions which almost led to the breakup of the band as a result of it, the disappointment instead of salvation in Berlin, but all the negative vibes plus lots and lots of hard works which eventually gave birth to one of the greatest 90s albums. The music videos are all here, all seen before as well as the Sydney Zoo TV Tour concert (which I had in VHS format), infamous because the first night, party animal Adam could not make it after a previous night of wild outing, and his bass tech, Stuart Morgan, had to stand in for him. The one filmed 'ere was of the second night. Bonus materials DVD consisted of the MTV coverage of the Zoo TV experience, and true to it's objective, consists of mocking their own popularity, rock stars and others in general, ironic and nonsensical at the same time (the Tour would eventually grew to a circus like atmosphere, a vortex which would sucked in everyone famous from across the spectrum of the society - Bill Clinton, Salman Rusdie, the supermodels of the 90s, of which Adam briefly dated Naomi Campbell (luckily she did not throw a bass at him when they broke up eh ;), various rock stars and bands, actors and actresses, etc. etc.). For the super core fans, they would have settled for the ultimate completist set, the Uber version by now. For average fans, go for this set, even if it was only for the Kindergarten album, it's worth the price of admission.

Ricky Hui Koon-Ying (許冠英)

2011-11-10T15:18:00.006+08:00

Ricky Hui ~ August 3, 1946 - November 8, 2011.

Thanks for all the laughter and goofy moments.

Nirvana ~ Nevermind 20th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition.

2011-11-09T00:32:00.006+08:00

Spring is here again, tender age in bloom, he knows not what it means, sell the kids for food, we can have some more • The water is so yellow, I'm a healthy student, you're my vitamins • Take your time, hurry up, the choice is yours, don't be late • And just maybe I'm to blame for all I've heard but I'm not sure, I'm so excited I can't wait to meet you there but I don't care • I don't care if it's old, I don't mind if I don't have a mind, get away from your home • Have to have poison skin, give an inch take a smile • Never met a wise man, if so it's a woman, gotta find a way to find a way, I had better wait • One more special message to go, as defense I'm neutered and spayed, what the hell am I trying to say? I got so high that I scratched till I bled • The second coming came in last and out of the closet • At the end of the rainbow and your rope • Don't hurt yourself, I want some help to help myself, she's just as bored as me • I've got this friend you see, who makes me feel, I don't regret a thing • And the animals I've trapped have all become my pets • Our little group has always been and always will until the end, with the lights out it's less dangerous, here we are now, entertain us, I feel stupid and contagious, here we are now entertain us, a mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido, yay, yay, a denial, I'm worse at what I do best and for this gift I feel blessed, I found it hard, it was hard to find, oh well, whatever, nevermind.

"Punk is musical freedom," says Nirvana's guitarist-singer Kurt Cobain. "It's saying, doing and playing what you want. In Webster's terms, nirvana means freedom from pain, suffering and the external world, and that's pretty close to my defination of punk rock."

As for Nirvana's music, it can be described as hard rock riffing with punk rock energy - all within a pop sensibility. "By defination pop is extremely catchy, whether you like it or not," Cobain says. "There are some pop songs I hate but I can't get them out of my head. Our songs also have the standard pop format: verse, chorus, verse, chorus, solo, bad solo. All in all, I think we sound like The Knack and the Bay City Rollers being molested by Black Flag and Black Sabbath."

Drummer Dave Grohl agrees: "Yeah, I can see an inverted cross draped with plaid scarves drawn by Raymond Pettibon while he's whistling 'My Sharona." Adds bass guitarist Chris Novoselic: "Pop is the strongest of our sensibilities 'cause god knows we don't have any common sense."

Says Cobain, "People have opened up to an appreciation of hard rock in punk and it's great that they've fused together. Now it's time to appreciate the pop side. Attitude is one thing but a good song is the most important thing, it's the only way to really touch someone."

Therein lies the rationale behind the title Nevermind. "No one, escpecially people our own age, wants to address important issues," Cobain continues. "They'd rather say, 'Nevermind, forget it.' On one hand we're not a political band -- we're just some guys playing music -- but we're not just another mindless band asking people to forget either. There's no rebellion in rock 'n' roll anymore. I hope underground music can influence the mainstream and shake up the kids. Maybe we can change some kid's life and stop him from becoming a welder or a sleazy lawyer. Maybe what we need is a generation gap."

Maybe what we need is Nirvana.

~ extracted from The History passages contain within the box set.

......................................................................................................

The set arrived. My first CD box set. Did not expect it to be coffee table book size set. Comes with the original album and b-sides from the singles, several alternative mixes, the abandoned Devonshire mix by Butch Vig, the live at Paramount concert and the DVD. Honestly, for hardcore fans only. Most fans would probably got most versions from previous and various releases anyway. I didn't (except for the singles box set). Budget conscious fans should probably settle for the 2-CD Deluxe version, which should be fine. And if wanna save even more, forget about the whole releases. Just stick to the original album. Now where's Achtung Baby...

Dylan ~ Faux Pearl Stuck In Nostril!

2011-11-09T00:19:00.004+08:00

No joke. Took half day off. Received call from Mom. Dylan had put one of Esther's synthetic pearl into his right nostril. Initially went to nearby GP. The doc said it was kinda too deep to be extracted using their equipments, highly recommended to see ENT specialist instead. Drove him to ENT clinic, but doc not in. Drove to nearby specialist centre instead. ENT specialist in OT, gotta wait or go to their emergency wing. No choice. The emergency wing doc, together with three other orderlies held down Dylan as he cried. Heartbroken and shed a tear and two. Siti cried too, Chloe looked stun at the situation. Took three attempts, as Dylan was traumatized and had to pee, then second attempt he managed to free himself. Praying, the doc finally extracted the pearl out. Esther arrived in time not to witness the entire personally stressful incident. I hope Dylan learnt his lesson. More importantly, he is safe and healthy again.

Depeche Mode ~ Some MTV videos.

2011-11-04T01:30:00.014+08:00

...some vids from DM, from top, the original "Its No Good" music video (Anton Corbijn made an appearance early on stage), followed by the alternate version made for their Paris Exciter Tour (as backdrop to the song live), and bottom, the infectious yet heart-breaking "Precious".

Sade Adu.

2011-11-04T01:25:00.005+08:00

Sade Adu is the lead singer of the band sharing her first name, Sade. Simply one of the most sensual contemporary, pop R&B infused jazz lead singer out there. The songs are simply irresistibly sensual.

Paula Abdul.

2011-11-04T01:19:00.004+08:00

Before she becomes sort of cannon fodder to Simon Cowell as part of the three judges in talent search contest series like American Idol and currently, X-Factor, I remembered Paula Abdul from the Pop R&B dance hit album, the '88 "Forever Your Girl". Songs like "Straight Up" and "Cold Hearted" still makes me wanna shuffle my feets, hehe. And then there that's MTV videos which features an animated cat dancing with her in "Opposite Attract". Believe me, it was a grand thing back then.

Janet Jackson.

2011-11-04T01:17:00.006+08:00

She needs no intro...those days of her Pop R&B dance infused albums, particularly the '89 monster hit album "Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814" and sexual theme infused '93 "janet" sure bring back those mammary, opps, I mean memory from the late 80s, early 90s period.

Chloe and Dylan ~ Kinderworld Concert 2011

2011-10-30T00:02:00.005+08:00

Time flies fast. Another concert by the students. Dylan stands still throughout his performance hehehe. Shy I think. It's alright. His first performance on stage afterall. Chloe's ok with her dances, to the tune of a MJ's song. Surprise of the night was when Dylan got a best student award.

The Thing 2011 Prequel.

2011-10-15T00:55:00.008+08:00

The problem with sequels - they are often not up to my expectation. Tragic but true. Examples include The Terminator (excellent sequel T2, but let's stop there), Alien, The Exorcist, even Rocky and Rambo. And The Matrix should not be a trilogy. I refuse to acknowledge the existence of AVPs, T3, or other cross over franchise and numerous sequels with insipid ideas. The same problem applies to prequels, most infamously for me are the Episode 1 to 3 Star Wars. The reason I reckoned is because the originals are so well made and done, it shouldn't be tinkered with further. Just leave it alone. Most "victims" of sequels or prequels are often commercially driven and often are from the horror category. Case in point is The Nightmare On Elm Street by Wes Craven. Freddy Krueger is one of the scariest bogeymen on screen in the original. But alas, after a couple of sequels and a tv series, Fred is a joke. And so was the remake. Let's not even get started with the Saw torture porn franchise. There are, however, exceptions. Like The Grudge, The Ring and maybe even REC. I guess the entire storyline of a movie shouldn't just goes on and on forever. And then there's the current trend of remake....ugh.

So when news were announced that they were going to make a prequel of John Carpenter's 1982 cult sci-fi horror classic (which in turn was a remake of the 1951 The Thing from Another World but more faithful in its theme based on the 1938 novella Who Goes There? by John W. Campbell), I was abit apprehensive. The Norwegians were all wiped out right? So what's there to tell? But alas the fan boy part gets better of my logical sense and curiosity also played a big part as to why after closing hours, I told Esther that I wouldn't be back for dinner and were going to USJ Summit GSC to catch Da Thang at 9.10pm last night. I was curious as to how the original alien looks like (or the imitation) which crashed the so 80s space saucer at the bottom of our planet 100,000 years ago. I was curious how the Norwegians discovered it, what they did to it, what da thang did to them, and how it all ended as a Husky hunted by the remaining soon to be dead tragically two surviving Norwegians in a helicopter all the way to McMurdo, the American Antartic research station.

The prequel began three days before the cataclysmic event in the '82 movie. The Norwegians picked up and were homing into a form of signal (Alien?) from nowhere of the super white landscape of Antarctica when the ground gave in onto a chasm which housed a massive UFO. Engaging an American paleontologist Kate Lloyd (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and flown to the Norwegian station, Kate realised not only did the Norwegians found a space ship, but also a complete alien specimen fully frozen a few distances away, which was why she was needed in the first place. Again her advice, the Scandinavian boys took a tissue sample from the alien within the block of ice (they managed to crave it out intact) and partied away, perhaps in anticipation of a Nobel Prize, fame and fortune. But soon the ice began to melt and the creature literally jumped out from it (thus explaining why when Mac and Doc saw the block of ice, the center was hollowed out). The Norwegians began to search for it and the killings and assimilations began. Kate pointed out that the creature is a form of parasitic organism capable of digesting and subsequently imitate any of its victims cell structures. She also pointed out that some of them were not who they are supposed to be and paranoia sets in. A winter storm came as predicted. Trapped and nowhere to go, and to flush out the imitated from the real mccoy, Kate checked each of the Norwegians for inorganic material present in them, in particular, teeth fillings. You see, the creature cannot imitate non organic stuff. But some of them did floss as the dentist told them to, so it added to further confusion until one of them began to transform (and subsequently merged with a victim - creating the nicknamed Splitface Thing Mac and Doc found burnt outside the station. I always thought Splitface Thing was an individual). Kate and another guy managed to killed it, but now had the task of going after another imitator who was going to the UFO to kick start it and fly off. In the end, Kate was successful in her task of killing all the imitators and drove off to the Russian research station 50 miles away (why not McMurdo?). A lot of stuffs were explained in the movie - the axe was used to hack a creature which was once an arm of Splitface Thing. The corpse Mac and Doc found sitting with his throat severely cut (almost to the point of decapitation) and slitted wrist was either killed by Lars (one of the last two Norwegians alive and then shot dead by Garry at McMurdo) or performed suicide (noted that the slitted throat depicted was more normal and less severe). Sitting through the credits, it showed Lars and another pilot going after a Husky, thus leading to the opening of the '82 movie. So my verdict for this movie is this - it felt like a remake than a prequel. The sequences, plots were almost familiar to the '82 movie. Two big drawback here which made me feel this movie would probably ends up as one of the average horror movies out there. Firstly, there is an adherent lack of urgency, absence of despair and very little degree of paranoia shown by the characters. The creature is also curiously more "predatory" in which it actively seeks out its victim and even hunts them. In contrast, I prefer the subtle, quiet, when no one's around only the creature will try to assimilate its victim, and unless forced to, only reveal its form, as in the '82 version. Secondly, what I often consider the bane of horror special effect, CGI. The creatures (as well as designs) were no different from most first shooter computer games monster i.e. Doom, Quake. I missed the old tech age of using real, practical materials to construct the creatures. By using CGI, it was somewhat different (unless if it was a really big monsters, like the Cloverfield giant or even 2005 King Kong, then it probably works). The glory of gory was taken out. These two "ingredients" are what made the '82 version endearing to this day. Thus John Carpenter's version still rules.

Chloe & Dylan ~ With Mom.

2011-10-08T22:35:00.005+08:00

...the two precious having some fun time with Esther.

Steve Jobs (February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011)

2011-10-07T17:30:00.005+08:00

Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Inc (formerly Apple Computer, Inc), died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 56. A little recall from my ever dimming memory. The first sight of an Apple computer is a Macintosh owned by a friend. I asked why not a PC with Windows OS? He said he wanna be different and the all in one Macintosh was easier to use. It didn't make much sense to me then. And it was expensive. Then iMac arrived on the scene. To be precise, the G3. Yes, the one which is encased in plastic translucent body shaped like an egg. That's when I really took notice of the fruit logo company. This was followed by the G4, which is kinda disappointing for me coz I didn't like the lamp like design. But when the G5 debut, oh wow. Apple has put the sexiness back into an otherwise mundane product. And it continues to do so. iPod, iPhone, and the phenomenally successful iPad. I finally got me hand on a MacBook Pro. Entry level model of course. And after a little bit of practise, yes, indeed, it is much comparatively easier to use. All in all, due to Jobs visionary innovation and driving creativity, Apple has came up with a product lineup which are practical and asthetically sexy.

Chloe & Dylan ~ Tang Lung at Home 2011

2011-09-16T14:41:00.006+08:00

Ahh...time goes by quick, and before I know it, the Lantern Festival is here...bring on the lights and mooncakes. All forms of lanterns are available as usual but the one this ole man truely desire is the vintage Racing Horse Lantern. Just couldn't find any here in KL.

Hot Toys MMS 149 ~ Sweeney Todd : The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street

2011-09-11T23:04:00.025+08:00

This figure by HT is based on Tim Burton's 2007 black comedy horror musical, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. The movie itself is based on the highly acclaimed, award winning 1979 musical by Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler. The story is based during the Victorian era, whereby a barber, Benjamin Barker (Johnny Depp), was falsely charged and sentenced to a life of hard labour in Australia by a corrupt judge lusting after the barber's beautiful wife. He returned after 15 year, with another sailor, Anthony and learnt from his former land lady, Mrs Lovett (who operates an unsuccessful pie shop on the ground floor), that his wife had committed suicide after being raped by the judge, Turpin. Sweeney Todd, as he calls himself now, vows revenge on the perverted judge. Meanwhile Anthony has fallen in love with the ward of Turpin, Johanna. In fact, Turpin wants Johanna for himself. As such he locks up Johanna in an asylum after learning she intends to elope with Anthony. As event progresses, Todd very nearly accomplished his revenge on Turpin but the plan is ruined at the very last minute by Anthony. Consumed with hatred and anger, Sweeney, in his insanity for failing to kill Turpin, vent his anger on all his customers. Sweeney kills them with a slash on the neck, using the straight razor. The barber chair has a trap door underneath, whereby the bodies are disposed and baked into pies by Mrs Lovett, whom has fallen in love with Todd and becomes a willing accomplice. Ironically, Mrs Lovett's pie business begins to meet with success after using this "ingredient". Todd also begins to devise a new plan to entice Turpin to return to the barber shop. He sends a letter saying that Anthony will free Johanna and brings her to his shop. Around this time, Mrs Lovett took in a boy Toby as assistant. Also, filthy beggar woman begins to pester them for then unknown reason. Later, Toby witnesses a victim being dropped from the barber shop onto the bake house as well as finding a toe in a pie and informs Mrs Lovett about it. Todd and Mrs Lovett then search for Toby but not before Mrs Lovett hides him underneath the sewer. Then the beggar woman went to Todd's barber shop, she is killed as Turpin returns to claim back Johanna. Todd manages to kill Turpin this time around. Johanna sees the murder of Turpin and is about to be killed by Todd but his attention is diverted by Mrs Lovett's scream. Turpin has in his death throes grabs Mrs Lovett. As Todd goes to the bake house to look at Turpin's corpse, Todd begins to recognise the face of the dead beggar woman, who turns out to be his wife. Mrs Lovett has intentionally lied to Todd from the beginning, and pretending to forgive her, Todd insanely dances with Mrs Lovett before tossing her into the oven, burning her alive. Toby, who is hiding in the sewer, then creeps up behind Todd and picks up the razor. He knows Toby's presence and raises his own neck for Toby to slash as he kneels and cradles the body of his wife. Before I forget, Todd also did not realise that he has a daughter, who turns out to be Johanna.

Blitzway ~ Tony "Scarface" Montana.

2011-09-11T23:04:00.023+08:00

I never f**ked anybody over in my life didn't have it coming to them. You got that? All I have in this world is my balls and my word and I don't break them for no one. Do you understand? That piece of shit up there, I never liked him, I never trusted him. For all I know he had me set up and had my friend Angel Fernandez killed. But that's history. I'm here, he's not. Do you wanna go on with me, you say it. You don't, then you make a move.

In this country, you gotta make the money first. Then when you get the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, then you get the women.

The World Is Yours!

What you lookin' at? You all a bunch of f**kin' a******s. You know why? You don't have the guts to be what you wanna be? You need people like me. You need people like me so you can point your f$%^kin' fingers and say, "That's the bad guy." So... what that make you? Good? You're not good. You just know how to hide, how to lie. Me, I don't have that problem. Me, I always tell the truth. Even when I lie. So say good night to the bad guy! Come on. The last time you gonna see a bad guy like this again, let me tell you. Come on. Make way for the bad guy. There's a bad guy comin' through! Better get outta his way!

Is this it? That's what it's all about, Manny? Eating, drinking, f**king, sucking? Snorting? Then what? You're 50. You got a bag for a belly. You got tits, you need a bra. They got hair on them. You got a liver, they got spots on it, and you're eating this f**kin' shit, looking like these rich f**king mummies in here... Look at that. A junkie. I got a f**kin' junkie for a wife. She don't eat nothing. Sleeps all day with them black shades on. Wakes up with a Quaalude, and who won't f**k me 'cause she's in a coma. I can't even have a kid with her, Manny. Her womb is so polluted, I can't even have a f**kin' little baby with her!

You know what capitalism is? Getting f**ked!

You think you can take me? You need a f**king army if you gonna take me! I'm Tony Montana! You f**k with me, you f**kin' with the best! Go ahead! I take your f**king bullets! You think you kill me with bullets? I take your f**king bullets! Go ahead!

Frank : Hey, Tony. Remember when I told you when you first started working for me, the guys that last in this business, are the guys who fly straight. Low-key, quiet. But the guys who want it all, chicas, champagne, flash... they don't last.

Elvira : You say f**k too much.

..................................................

Brian De Palma's 1983 Scarface tells the rise and fall of Tony Montana, a Cuban whom was part of the hundreds of thousands Cuban refugees seeking political asylum and expelled by Castro from Cuba, resulting in the Mariel boat lift (April 15 to October 31, 1980). According to the pretext, Castro also took this opportunity to include criminals from prisons and mental hospitals as part of the refugees arriving in Miami, Florida. Montana was part of these groups of criminals. From being held at a temporary makeshift refugee camp, Montana and his pals, including closest friend and right hand man, Manny, seized each opportunity presented to him and audaciously (as well as violently) worked his way up to become one of the biggest drug lord running a massive drug empire. Scarface gains notoriety and memorable not only for its extreme violence and excessive usage of vulgar language (for its time) but more importantly, for its underlying view of a distorted version of the American Dream. Montana works hard to amass massive fortunes for himself but through drug dealings and killing of rivals. Montana has no redemptive value, is crude (but audacious and cunning) and violent to the point of being a borderline sociopath as well as morally bankrupt (even though he refused to allow an assassin to go ahead with the killing of a Bolivian journalist who wanted to expose the connections between the drug barons and key government individuals because the man's spouse and kids were with him). He lives in a huge but opulently designed mansion and has a trophy wife, Elvira, but like Montana, is herself a materialistic, hardcore drug addict. He seems to care about his mother and sister but may secretly harbours an incestuous desire for the latter, an event which would eventually led to the death of Manny at the hands of Montana. He achieves the distorted Dream but at the cost of his own sanity and the lives of those around him. In certain conversations within the film, Montana, drunk and high on drugs himself, he reflects back onto his own success and his drug business empire. Is this all there is? In the climatic ending, Montana (after being indicted of money laundering and failed assassination of the journalist), he eventually fell in a hail of bullets in a drug fueled, brutal final stand with an army of Bolivian assassins, a retaliatory act by another Bolivian drug baron. Scarface has since gained a cult following status, particularly amongst the hip hop community. It also attracted criticism from the local Cuban community for the negative portrayal of the Cuban society in Florida. And this is perhaps one of the best performances and memorable characters on screen portrayed by Al Pacino.

Chloe & Dylan ~ Natalie's Fullmoon Gathering At Malacca.

2011-09-11T23:03:00.038+08:00

Another addition to Kah Yau's ever expanding family hehe...

Sim Yoon and Choo's Wedding Trip To Bali.

2011-09-11T23:03:00.030+08:00

Courtesy of Choo and Sim Yoon's wedding, with Esther and Renee being chosen as one of the bridesmaid (hmm, isn't bridesmaid suppose to be single only to be eligible?), the family got to go on a nice 4 days 3 nights trip to Bali, staying near Kuta Beach at the Conrad Hotel. The two precious had great moments of their lives, first time on plane. I was quite panicky at first, coz I was worried they might be afraid to get on the plane or something like that. We didn't get to go anywhere, as most tourist destinations and attractions are vastly spread out, and Esther got her time full doing several rehersals for the actual event. And since Renee, whom Esther hasn't got in touch with for quite some time, was around, I looked after the kids, while the ladies go about the preparations and catch up with the times (Renee is now working for the International Red Cross, and constantly travels). Even though, the Conrad was great enough for us, beautiful and with a beach front (the Indian Ocean I told the two precious who then looked at me in an odd manner...) where we spent most of our time. We did go out but only nearby area when we need to shop for some wines for the reception. It was a church wedding and the church, known as Infinity Church, was one of the most modern, minimalistic and stylish churches I had ever been to. Alas, on the actual day itself, Chloe and Dylan threw quite a tantrum and cried for Esther. So, we actually had to witness the entire process from the outside window. But it was alright in the end. Thanks Choo, Sim Yoon for the invitation and making it a memorable trip for us.

Enterbay ~ The Storm Warriors (风云II) : 1/6th Nameless (無名).

2011-09-11T23:02:00.023+08:00

Name : Nameless aka Mou Ming (無名)
Aliases : Wai Ying Hung (韋英雄); Mou Ying Ming (慕英名)

Weapon : The Heroic Sword (英雄劍)

Swordplay Styles :
The Ten Thousand Reciprocating Swords Principle (萬劍歸宗)
The Swordplay of Nameless (莫名劍法)
The Sorrowful Swordplay of Nameless (悲痛莫名)

Martial Art Skills :
The Heavenly Sword Stance (天劍)

I waited, like a Cantonese saying, "until my neck got so long" for this figure to arrive. Well, not really arrive. It's just that Sam was kind enough to "pass on" one from their HQ due to another customer whom has not collected it for a quite a while. See, I was on the waiting list. And knowing the trend Enterbay is currently into right now, I would probably be 80 by the time it arrives. Just kidding. So is it worth the wait? Well, let's just say that the real deal looks way off from the prototype. Of all the Storm Warriors figures, Lord Godless has got to be the one closest to the prototype pics and the best. I just want to complete the set...

911 ~ Ten Years Later....

2011-09-11T23:01:00.009+08:00

11th September 2011. I was watching a movie on the telly when a friend called and said that one of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center was on fire. What is the title of the movie and which channel I asked her. No, she said. It was not a movie and it was on CNN. I immediately switched channel. As the images of a passenger plane being shown slamming straight onto one of the Twin Towers, while the other spewing plume of black smokes and flames, I immediately went into goosebumps. New York was being attacked, I told her. We hung up, I woke up me mom, we both watched in horror as eventually both towers collapsed. We also realised that Pentagon was being simultaneously attacked and another attempted one had crashed, foiled by the heroic sacrifices of the passengers against the hijackers. The next day, at the office, everyone was talking about it. Colleagues, customers, suppliers. At home. The images of the dust covered survivors are still fresh in my mind till today. Eventually, it emerged that a terrorist group called al-Qaeda and its leader, Osama bin Ladin, was responsible for planning and carrying out the attack. Thousands died, all innocent peoples just looking towards another day at work....firemen and policemen whom responded to the disaster were sacrificed. The 911 Attacks as it came to be known, would marked the beginning of an era whereby opposing enemies are no longer distinctive, as like in a war where two nations of opposing nationalities fought on the battlefield. Terrorists are terrifying opponents. They care not for the innocents, they are faceless and deeply rooted in extreme ideologies which can only be described as insane. Terrorist attacks are not new. These include public bombings what the IRA did. But the 911 attacks would be the most infamous and audacious as it is considered an unprecedented direct attack onto America. The attack also emboldened some of the other terrorist cells, most infamous include the two Bali bombings, claiming two hundred lives of revellers and locals. The mastermind bin Laden, was eventually located and killed by US Navy SEALs and CIA covert operation on 2nd May 2011, in Pakistan.

Fat Boy Sings "忐忑"

2011-08-15T19:20:00.002+08:00

This is an ultra hilarious rendition of the the infamous song, the first original and the second....well. LOL.

U2 ~ Achtung Baby 20th Anniversary.

2011-08-10T00:57:00.003+08:00

Another '91 iconic classic album. After the hugely successful Joshua Tree album (1987), the subsequent live and new songs album/documentary Rattle And Hum (1988) gathered generally mixed critical review, with accusation ranging from being over-grandiose, over-earnest, and self-righteous. Personally, it still nevertheless contains some memorable songs, such as When Love Comes To Town duet with the great BB King, the unrated Heartland, and really excellent live, gospel infused rendition of I Still Haven't Found What I Am Looking For. But perhaps the best of all is the live (?) version of With Or Without You which contains the additional "we will shine like stars on the summer night" or something like that, excellently captured, with Larry looking probably as the best drummer of the year. But yet, after the mammoth success of Joshua Tree, how can the band top that? It did, and in 1991, after a tumultuous recording process which nearly break the band, Achtung Baby landed and is famously described as the album "intend on chopping down the Joshua Tree". Re-inventing themselves from previously "savior" like role, the band members, particularly Bono, took hold of the fast food pop culture, style over substance, decadent, sleazy culture and mix it all up into one particularly addictive album of the 90s. Everybody knows "One", "Mysterious Ways" and perhaps "The Fly" but the one favourite personally is "Ultraviolet" and on the U2 360 Tour, it is such a treat to see the glowing UFO like mic with Bono wearing a laser beamed jacket singing it which then segue into With Or Without You. And perhaps to capture the decadency of the entire idea of the Achtung Baby idea, there's the "Uber Deluxe Set" which comes even with a set of the Fly infamous goggle like sun glass! But the price, whew! I think I''ll settle just for the Super Deluxe Set instead.

Nirvana ~ Nevermind 20th Anniversary.

2011-08-10T00:40:00.004+08:00

1991 - Didn't realise the impact the musical realm has had on me. So many good releases. And top amongst them is undoubtably Nevermind, the seminal, break through, sopomore album from the Seattle sound "grunge" band, Nirvana which re-defined the early to mid 90s musical direction and opened up numerous opportunities of previously cult-ish "underground"/"alternative" bands not heard amongst the mainstream music listeners and avoided by listener friendly radio stations. The 20th Anniversary edition has been officially announced, available late Sept 11, and is a must have, coz of arguebly the album which defined the early to mid 90s musical direction. Comes in two format - 2 CDs deluxe ed, and a 4 CDs + 1 DVD "super" deluxe ed., with the later said to be limited only to 40,000 copies worldwide.

Amy Winehouse

2011-08-10T00:33:00.003+08:00

Amy Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011)

And so she woke up
Woke up from where she was
Lying still
Said I gotta do something
About where we're going

Step on a steam train
Step out of the driving rain, maybe
Run from the darkness in the night
Singing ha, ah la la la de day
Ah la la la de day
Ah la la de day

Sweet the sin
Bitter taste in my mouth
I see seven towers
But I only see one way out

You got to cry without weeping
Talk without speaking
Scream without raising your voice

You know I took the poison
From the poison stream
Then I floated out of here
Singing...ha la la la de day
Ha la la la de day
Ha la la de day

She runs through the streets
With her eyes painted red
Under black belly of cloud in the rain
In through a doorway she brings me
White gold and pearls stolen from the sea
She is raging
She is raging
And the storm blows up in her eyes
She will...

Suffer the needle chill
She's running to stand...

Still.

Headplay ~ 1/6th Leslie.

2011-06-26T03:15:00.005+08:00

...and here's the late kor kor's HS. I was telling David and the other Sam (another proprietor on the same floor as xl, whom entertained us with his rendition of Leslie's hit songs, live at the shop as well as a little bit of crash course on the late Canto Pop megastar's history, bought three Leslie's HS at the same time. Big time fan apparently) on how I would probably dress him up in his final few years series of concerts whereby he was cross-dressing on stage. Female high boots, mini skirts can probably get. But can anyone point me the direction of a 1/6th female wig? Plus a mike?

Headplay ~ 1/6th Donnie.

2011-06-26T03:10:00.005+08:00

Saw an array of headsculpt on display at BTS xl-shop recently, to my surprise, some of it (well from my skewed perspective anyway) really do closely resemble those stars the HS attempt to capture. I never heard of Headplay, the company responsible for it, so I decided to plonk down RM70 each for a Donnie and Leslie after much hilarious conversation on all matters related to current controvesy with Enterbay's Game of Death product quality with David (Sam's down with diarrhoea after downing some see ham...he looks surreal-ly green that day). "Donnie" HS's fine 'cept the neck's abit long-ish and the skin texture kinda jiao jiao abit. Otherwise ok.

Chloe & Dylan ~ RC Cars.

2011-06-26T03:03:00.004+08:00

Brought the family for dinner near Puchong new village area for some delicious sang yee soup. A pasar malam was going on, Esther and I took the opportunity to get some Pagoda t-shirts and RM10 a pair shorts. Chloe and Dylan refused to go off, mesmerised by the toys on display at one of the stalls. Esther, in a rare display of giving in to the kids, bought them a pair of RM15 remote control cars. Needless to say, once back home, its a riot.

Hot Toys Captain America Preview.

2011-06-23T01:34:00.004+08:00

A must-have figure. No two ways about it. And just notice that two personal fav characters share the tri-colors. But heck, it means I gotta go back to xl-shop again to place PO, for the third time this week!

T2 with CooModel M134 Minigun + Bag (- the grenade launcher)

2011-06-23T01:17:00.003+08:00

Okie, got the bag, time to gear up T-800 with the M134 minigun but darn it, where's that grenade launcher?

Ryan Dunn

2011-06-23T01:15:00.003+08:00

Ryan Dunn (June 11, 1977 – June 20, 2011).

The Potty Duo.

2011-06-22T01:24:00.005+08:00

The cheeky duo with their Gran.

Hamster.

2011-06-22T00:35:00.007+08:00

Dylan's birthday is around the corner, so Esther decided to get him a pet hamster from Petsmore at Empire Subang to start a little bit of "responsibility" thing for him. Dylan seems less afraid when it comes to touching or petting a cat or puppy, as oppose to Chloe, who will scream and run, or if I am around, will climb all over me, from anything alive and furry, irregardless whether it is a puppy or mouse. While I do intend to eventually get them a pet dog, Esther cautioned that maybe that would be a tad too much degree of responsibility involve for the dog to be properly taken care of at this point of our life. Anyway, we also got the hamster, a female by the way, a little three tiered cage with accessories (necessary or otherwise) plus the bedding (I call it substrate as I am more used to reptile and aquatic pets) and proper food. Once home, we let it out abit and immediately it went straight underneath the sofa. Dylan caught it with his bare hands but perhaps apply a tad too much pressure, the hamster seemed to let out a sound and tremble nervously! Fortunately no unforeseen incident happen to the hamster and as of today, it seems to be happily playing and eating inside its cage.

Father's Day 2011.

2011-06-22T00:32:00.003+08:00

Chloe and Dylan made two little cards for me for Dad's Day this year. Love you both dearly!

Happy Birthday Esther!

2011-06-22T00:26:00.004+08:00

Held a little celebration for the queen's birthday.

The Millennium Trilogy (Movie).

2011-06-18T00:38:00.007+08:00

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest aka The Millennium Trilogy (2009), starring Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth Salander and Michael Nyqvist as Mikael Bloomkist is the Swedish language movie adaptation based on the best selling crime novel trilogy by Stieg Larsson (15 August 1954 – 9 November 2004). In Lisbeth, never have I come across a stronger representation of a female (anti) heroine on the silver screen (than perhaps Lt. Ripley?). The American version is set to roll out on cinema this coming December, by David Fincher. Gotta be good then.

Antichrist

2011-06-18T00:15:00.005+08:00

When Lars Von Trier debut Antichrist in Cannes back in 2009, the audience were shocked by its openly brutal and graphic sexual contents. An opportunity to watch it arrived few weeks ago. Starring Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourgh, Antichrist is beautiful to look at, yet its content and subject matter are really disturbing. On the surface, the story deals with an unnamed couple whose only child died upon falling down from an open window. The woman spirals into deep depression and emotional anguish. She also tries to replace these griefs with sex. Believing that the therapy is not working, the man decides to help his wife to confront her fears and grief, first through psychotherapy at home and when that's not working, subsequently try exposure therapy at a creepy, lone cabin amongst the woods known as Eden. The man chooses the place as he learnt that she somehow fears that place. And oh, by the way, throughout all this, the man seems to be really emotionally rooted and stable (distance? arrogance?) despite the death of his child. And from this point onwards, the movie gets more and more creepy with build up of sinister tones and images, such as the deer with a dead fawn half dangling out and later a fox which is in the midst of self dis-em bowling itself uttering "chaos reigns!". Oh man. The surrounding woods are really creepy, steep with foreboding sense of death and decay. Lots of fogs, expose tangling roots, blood sucking bugs, mud everywhere and hailstones pelting down the rusty zinc roofing with a sense of doom and gloom. No boy scouts happy camping in the wood scenario here for sure. Anyway the man later discovers a notebook written by his wife from her earlier stay at the cabin when she was doing a thesis on gynocide. It is hinted at that she could have reached a conclusion with her studies that nature is in essence, evil and thus all women are inherently evil (this part sparks the accusation that this film is misogynistic to its core). And the arrogant man is not welcome here, despite all the solutions he could come up with. After all wasn't Eve the one whom led Adam astray ed in the Garden of Eden and subsequent banishment for both of them? The deterioration in her hand writing may also points to the gradual instability of her mental health (or finally embracing evil?). Photos of the woman and her late son at the cabin showed that there may be a sinister planning on her part by subtly multilate her son's (mis-matched shoes) feet (this got me bristled angrily for a moment). Flashback also reveals that she was looking at the son when he fell... Then there's the hint where witchcraft or paganism is involved. The film then gets more gory, as she eventually gets all mental and inflicts the most painful form of torture on her husband (as well as upon herself) that's ever captured in nicely, shot cinematography (as opposed to those run of the mill torture porn movies ala Hostel etc.). The director seems to want to tell the audience that indeed the woman in the movie (or controversially representing all women in general. Ouch.) is evil. Or insane. Whatever. In the end, the man prevailed despite all the life sapping torturing the woman made him gone through (the wife just suddenly gave up - don't understand why), eventually managed to strangle her and subsequently burnt her body on a funeral pyre. Then, while hobbling his way out of the woods, creepy images of thousands of women with blurred faces are seen walking towards the man. So what is the movie trying to say? All at once - masculinity vs feminism, nature vs man, nature as chaos instead of originally envisioned Eden. And of course, Hell hath no fury like a woman scorn.

Hot Toys MMS Announcement ~ Superman The Movie.

2011-05-25T01:53:00.006+08:00

...HT announced the figure sometime back in late 2010, in supposedly DX format. And I thought it would be DX 05. I even POed it at xl, which doesn't make much sense since HT hadn't even officially announce the figure (just a teaser) and after much confusion and apologetic moments, Sam agreed to park the deposit for other subsequent figures. From the latest teaser released by HT, the highly anticipated figure is reverted back to the standard MMS lineup but I ain't complaining. After all, I collect figures which represent my favourite characters, be it from the pages of a graphic novel, animations or movies. And this is the first ever superhero movie I've watched, thus ensuring plenty of nostalgic moment for me once it is here. Looking at this pic (taken from toy-world via the onesixthwarrior forum), I thought I almost heard the cinematic and heroic opening score by John Williams playing in me head. And back in 78, as a three year old, I do believe a man in blue, yellow and red can really fly.

Exile on Main St.

2011-05-18T02:45:00.010+08:00

Mama says yes, Papa says no,
Make up you mind 'cause I gotta go.
I'm gonna raise hell at the Union Hall,
Drive myself right over the wall.

Rip this joint, gonna save your soul,
Round and round and round we go.
Roll this joint, gonna get down low,
Start my starter, gonna stop the show.
Oh, yeah!

Mister President, Mister Immigration Man,
Let me in, sweetie, to your fair land.
I'm Tampa bound and Memphis too,
Short Fat Fanny is on the loose.
Dig that sound on the radio,
Then slip it right across into Buffalo.
Dick and Pat in ole D.C.,
Well they're gonna hold some shit for me.

Ying yang, you're my thing,
Oh, now, baby, won't you hear me sing.
Flip Flop, fit to drop,
Come on baby, won't you let it rock?

Oh, yeah! Oh, yeah!
From San Jose down to Santa Fe,
Kiss me quick, baby, won'tcha make my day.
Down to New Orleans with the Dixie Dean,
'Cross to Dallas, Texas with the Butter Queen.

Rip this joint, gonna rip yours too,
Some brand new steps and some weight to lose.
Gonna roll this joint, gonna get down low,
Round and round and round we'll go.

Wham, Bham, Birmingham, Alabam' don't give a damn.
Little Rock and I'm fit to top.
Ah, let it rock.

My Bloody Valentine.

2011-05-17T00:26:00.007+08:00

When I look at you

Oh, I don't know what's true

Once in a while

And you make me laugh

And I'll see you tomorrow

And it won't be long

Once in a while

Then you take me down

Then you walk away

When you say 'I do"

Oh, I don't believe you

I can't forget it

When you sleep tomorrow

And it won't be long

Once in a while

Then you make me smile

~ When You Sleep

Time to re-listen to an all time "shoegazer" fav album while awaiting the arrival of the re-mastered version later this year....

Very Hot ~ SDU.

2011-05-13T01:59:00.024+08:00

These guys have been around for a while on the shelf, and SDU needs no intro in 1/6th world. As mentioned before, I think, it was a Hot Toys SDU that made me dive into the 1/6th collection in the first place. I think it was a tribute to the Michael Wong's movie called First Option. Anyway it costs a limb on eBay nowadays and I heard the muscular bodies they used are not quite reliable, so I skipped it. I am glad Very Hot issued 3 new versions sans the bodies, of which I used HT ones. And there are no instructions to place what on which and where, so it is mostly guesswork. It can be embarrassing....such as misplacing the microphone (?), straps, and tearing almost all the safety gloves.

DID ~ French Resistance : Pierre.

2011-05-13T01:59:00.020+08:00

Quentin Tarantino's 2009 Inglorious Basterds wasn't up to my expectation, after my expectation was set super high up on any expecting Tarantino's movies from his Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, the much under rated Jackie Brown, Kill Bills Vol 1 and 2. Death Race is just ok but it's fun to watch the manner of which it pays tribute to the 70s drive in movies style. Me thinks Robert Rodriguez's Planet Terror and later, Machete are slightly much better and truer to the style of earlier Tarantino cult movies listed above. Anyway, having avoided Hot Toys Aldo Raine due to its perpetually "uh?" look and missed out on Hans Landa, here's DID's take on Mr. Pitt's portrayal of Lt. Raine. Reincarnated as a French Resistance with a nice, metal bicycle. Reminds of those huge, heavy as tank "Rolex" bike I used to see uncles ride around with...

DID ~ Standartenführer : Hans.

2011-05-13T01:59:00.019+08:00

...a nice companion to "Pierre", the DID version of Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz) from Quentin Tarantino's Inglorious Barterds.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

2011-05-10T21:01:00.009+08:00

They shrugged at each other. Fook composed himself. "O Deep Thought computer," he said, "the task we have designed you to perform is this. We want you to tell us...." he paused, "The Answer."
"The Answer?" said Deep Thought. "The Answer to what?"
"Life!" urged Fook.
"The Universe!" said Lunkwill.
"Everything!" they said in chorus.
Deep Thought paused for a moment's reflection.
"Tricky," he said finally.
"But can you do it?"
Again, a significant pause.
"Yes," said Deep Thought, "I can do it."
"There is an answer?" said Fook with breathless excitement.
"Yes," said Deep Thought. "Life, the Universe, and Everything. There is an answer. But, I'll have to think about it."
Ford glanced impatiently at his watch.
"How long?" he said.
"Seven and a half million years."
Lunkwill and Fook blinked at each other.
"Seven and a half million years!" they cried in chorus.
"Yes." said Deep Thought.
(Seven and a half million years later.... Fook and Lunkwill are long gone, but their ancestors continue what they started)
"We are the ones who will hear," said Phouchg, "the answer to the great question of Life....!"
"The Universe...!" said Loonquawl.
"And Everything...!"
"Shhh," said Loonquawl with a slight gesture. "I think Deep Thought is preparing to speak!"
There was a moment's expectant pause while panels slowly came to life on the front of the console. Lights flashed on and off experimentally and settled down into a businesslike pattern. A soft low hum came from the communication channel.
"Good Morning," said Deep Thought at last.
"Er..good morning, O Deep Thought" said Loonquawl nervously, "do you have...er, that is..."
"An Answer for you?" interrupted Deep Thought majestically. "Yes, I have."
The two men shivered with expectancy. Their waiting had not been in vain.
"There really is one?" breathed Phouchg.
"There really is one," confirmed Deep Thought.
"To Everything? To the great Question of Life, the Universe and everything?"
"Yes."
Both of the men had been trained for this moment, their lives had been a preparation for it, they had been selected at birth as those who would witness the answer, but even so they found themselves gasping and squirming like excited children.
"And you're ready to give it to us?" urged Loonsuawl.
"I am."
"Now?"
"Now," said Deep Thought.
They both licked their dry lips.
"Though I don't think," added Deep Thought. "that you're going to like it."
"Doesn't matter!" said Phouchg. "We must know it! Now!"
"Now?" inquired Deep Thought.
"Yes! Now..."
"All right," said the computer, and settled into silence again. The two men fidgeted. The tension was unbearable.
"You're really not going to like it," observed Deep Thought.
"Tell us!"
"All right," said Deep Thought. "The Answer to the Great Question..."
"Yes..!"
"Of Life, the Universe and Everything..." said Deep Thought.
"Yes...!"
"Is..." said Deep Thought, and paused.
"Yes...!"
"Is..."
"Yes...!!!...?"
"Forty-two," said Deep Thought, with infinite majesty and calm."

~ The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

"Now it is such a bizarrely improbable coincidence that anything so mind-bogglingly useful could have evolved purely by chance that some thinkers have chosen to see it as the final and clinching proof of the non-existence of God.
The argument goes something like this: "I refuse to prove that I exist,'" says God, "for proof denies faith, and without faith I am nothing."
"But," says Man, "The Babel fish is a dead giveaway, isn't it? It could not have evolved by chance. It proves you exist, and so therefore, by your own arguments, you don't. QED."
"Oh dear," says God, "I hadn't thought of that," and promptly vanishes in a puff of logic.
"Oh, that was easy," says Man, and for an encore goes on to prove that black is white and gets himself killed on the next zebra crossing."
~ The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

"I've come up with a set of rules that describe our reactions to technologies:
1. Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works.
2. Anything that's invented between when you’re fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it.
3. Anything invented after you're thirty-five is against the natural order of things."
~ The Salmon of Doubt : Hitchhiking the Galaxy One Last Time.

Hot Toys MMS DX 04 ~ Bruce Lee : Enter The Dragon

2011-05-04T00:24:00.022+08:00

有佢教曉我地唔係東亞病夫
黃皮膚都可以做番自己
唔要跟人地抄人地黐人地
中國人唔要睇死自己

有佢教曉我地唔係東亞病夫
黃皮膚都可以做番自己
唔要跟人地抄人地黐人地
中國人唔要睇死自己

公元二千年中國五千年
六十年前呢度曾經出過一個人
大家又知唔知道佢又做過一的事
行過一條路令到全世界既人都知道
乜野叫做中國人中國精神
佢拍過電影四五部透過活動既影像熒光幕上
前所未有既動作速度拳腳套路哲學角度
無分國度用現代既電影製造
向全世界解釋中國功夫文化
又行o左一條新既道路
截拳道大懶堂今次係呢度
淨係想你做番一個似樣既中國人
可以學人唔使下下抄人
至好就用心去消化人地點做
試下又問下
呢度點解又有一班失敗既人
唔支持自己人成日走去扮其他人

有佢教曉我地唔係東亞病夫
黃皮膚都可以做番自己
唔要跟人地抄人地黐人地
中國人唔要睇死自己

有佢教曉我地唔係東亞病夫
黃皮膚都可以做番自己
唔要跟人地抄人地黐人地
中國人唔要睇死自己

一個大中華　一個李小龍
無一個中國人唔為佢覺得驕傲
西洋拳劍柔道詠春北派堂腿十二路
各門各路各式各樣每一種招數
佢都用紙筆去紀錄　紀錄低
唔駛做乜野門派既徒弟
以無法為有法
你自己就係最好既方法
要真正表達你本質
至係最積極既武德

佢揀左呢條路佢又行出左呢一步
創立左一套拳法叫做截拳道
佢既主張做人要有自己既態度
唔可以墨守成規就原地踏步
成日企響度得個諗字又唔走去做
做又諗左條歪路
想做就去做但就最緊要行條正路
就如截拳道療陰插眼佢一定唔做

唔要欺騙自己扮假鬼唔三唔四
李小龍精神不死中國人唔會忘記
唔要欺騙自己扮假鬼唔三唔四
李小龍精神不死中國人唔會忘記

你要知道我地中國人有乜唔好
我地有五千年歷史你有冇
為左面子變成白色恐怖
你問心個句你有冇
我想知道我地中國人有乜唔好
你話我封閉我話我有分數
為世界貢獻又有乜唔好
係每個人最基本你做到

有佢教曉我地唔係東亞病夫
黃皮膚都可以做番自己
唔要跟人地抄人地黐人地
中國人唔要睇死自己

有佢教曉我地唔係東亞病夫
黃皮膚都可以做番自己
唔要跟人地抄人地黐人地
中國人唔要睇死自己

有佢教曉我地唔係東亞病夫
黃皮膚都可以做番自己
唔要跟人地抄人地黐人地
中國人唔要睇死自己

1127 ~LMF

My first Bruce Lee 1/6th figure. I am kinda excited as I missed out on the earlier Enterbay ones. Pretty good. Great that Hot Toya improves on the body (less "looks like being carved from wood") and headscuplt (battle damage HS now looks less Caucasian like). Of course, accident happens again for me, this time round I was itchy to get the belt to tie up properly and I could not get it to button at all. Frustrated, used glue, to a rather disasterous result on the overall look. Now, will the upcoming Games Of Death version by Enterbay match this?

Mother's Day 2011.

2011-04-28T00:36:00.008+08:00

Happy Mother's Day, Mom and Esther. Thanks for everything.

A Chinese Ghost Story 2011 (倩女幽魂 2011).

2011-04-26T02:38:00.017+08:00

...by all honesty I did not know they actually remake the classic 1987 movie. I saw the advert in the cinema page couple of days back, and did not even have the opportunity to read any review. Told Esther I would be going off the see it in the cinema, even though she has had her own reservation pertaining to the overall quality and more importantly, will the remake capture the spirit, so to speak, of Tsui Hark highly memorable version? Sad but true to Esther's prediction, I came out of the cinema kinda disappointed. With Wilson Yip ( 葉偉信) helming the film, whose directorial debut is the excellent 1995's 3-in-1 horror comedy 1.00AM and in between, came up with the superb 2008's Ip Man, with the casts led by an ultra-tan guy called Louis Koo as the taoist Yin Chik Ha (燕赤霞), and re-surging popularity veteran actress Kara Hui (惠英紅) (who won the 2010's 29th HK Film Awards for Best Actress in Malaysian director Ho Yuhang (何宇恒)'s nihilistic At The End Of Daybreak (心魔) for her heartbreaking portrayal of a single mother who went all the way to protect her son) as the 1000 year-old tree demon Lou Lou, it should be alright, right? Wrong. First they tweaked, nay, warped the storyline. What come across as a simple, straightforward forbidden love story between a human and a ghost now becomes a love triangle. According to the world of Wilson, Yin is a demon hunter in love with Nip Siu Sin (Liu Yifei 聶小倩) a fox spirit/vixen (instead of a murdered concubine whose body is buried near the roots of the tree demon). As a trainee, he was assigned to kill the fox spirit but unable to bring about the act after being smitten by the sight of her without a thread on her body. Nip, later ambushed Yin in order to kill him but became interested in/distracted by, of all things, the crab apple candy Yin was carrying at that time. Thus a relationship based on a candy was born. It became serious and physical or metaphysical after that (but of course, the audience in the cinema did not have any opportunity to see any love scene between the two courtesy of the censorship pakciks and makciks). After receiving flak from a fellow demon hunter played by Louis Fan (樊少皇), and causing some of his fellow demon hunters to be killed by Lou Lou, a guilt filled Yip severe their relationship by stabbing Nip on the head with a form of charmed blade with the intention to make her virtually forgetting him and their love affair. And the blade happens to be the only weapon which can destroy the Old Tree Demon. Great. (Prior to that the demon hunters managed to seal/imprison Lou Lou within a pool of waters inside the Orchid Temple). And after bum rushing the audience through the beginning and end of the relationship between Yin and Nip, enter Ning Choi Sun (Yu Shaoqun 寧采臣). This time, Ning is not a tax collector but a sort of engineer who promises a bunch of grubby looking and even uglier villagers headed by Elvis Tsui (村長) to find water source from the nearby Black Mountain (the villagers are suffering from a drought. I guess they are grubby cos they earn their livelihood through clay pot making, and perhaps have not bath in a long time). With a bucktooth guy called, appropriately, Iron Teeth and a bunch of criminals in tow, Ning went up the hill but instead of fetching a pail of water like Jill asked him to, they are lured by some sexy demon ladies (including a pair known as the White Snake and the Green Snake) with some saucy dance moves for a bit of time out fun time at the Orchid Temple. And curiously, the interior of the temple, in stark contrast with the village, is bathed in technicolor, psychedelic even, with a hint of some downtown nightclubs with karaoke vibes. And the GRO-like demon girls know how those men want some Motown action due to their brown-ish, oily bodies emitting some scent. But of course, before the men could get what they want, the ladies sucked out all their energies before it is even spent. But we know Ning would survive coz there would be no story without him and what follows are kind of rehash of the 87 version. How naive he was, how Nip fell in love with him so on and so on (at one point, the love scene between the two is again snipped out by the censors. But honestly by this stage, I no longer care about the story). Until the end when Louis Fan's demon hunter reappears with his anarchist-punk-ish looking sister (Wang Danyi Li 王丹怡慄) to take on Lou Lou. That's because the insipid Ning has earlier indirectly blown the bottom of the pool, thus releasing Lou Lou (as well as also poisoning the villagers with skin disease for drinking the water of which Lou Lou has soaked in for years). During the final battle, Yin has no choice but to pull the plug, I mean, the blade from Nip's head and stab Lou Lou with it. Except prior to that Yin has been swallowed by Lou Lou, and in essence, they are actually sharing the same body. So Yin sacrificed himself to kill off the Old Tree Demon, and Nip, having remembered her first true flame, cried a bucket load but decided to hug the more metro sexual looking, with skin as smooth as a baby's bottom Ning in the end while the hapless and dying Yin gets swallowed by the rickety and collapsing Orchid Temple. But except she decided too, that she will perish with Yin as she believes they could not be together. So Ning and the other two demon hunters survives. But again, except that when Ning is on his way, someone with Yin's voice call out for him and he turns around, smilling at the audience. The end. I am lucky to survive this mess of a remake. By all fairness, these are all capable actors and actresses. Yet, the characters are not as memorable as the '87 version and I find no connection at all with them. Louis Koo's Yip looks schizophrenic as a guy who forces himself to forget Nip and not wanting to confront his true feeling (in fact, the other Louis portrayal of the other demon hunter feels and sounds more like the Yip I come to understand in character). Liu Yifei's Nip and Yu Shaoqun's Nin looks and speaks like two teenagers infatuated instead of in love. Kara Hui's Lou Lou is kind of slightly over the top with her banshee like laughter. The dialogues are flat and the humour doesn't jive at all. Somehow I suspected that perhaps there is a lack of material/script/storyline/plotline for the auteurs to fully flesh out their characters. Which is a pity. I guess the director wants to introduce new and fresh elements to this classic to younger audiences, but maybe comes up with too many choices which only adds to the complexity of the plots and storyline. Just keep it simple, like the old classic. But at least I can rest in assurance that the 1987 version helmed by Tsui Hark (徐克) with the late Leslie Cheung (張國榮), Joey Wong (王祖賢), Wu Ma (午馬) and Lau Siu Ming (劉兆銘) still remains the definitive silver screen version of the short story by writer Pu Songling's Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio (聊齋誌異).

Gallants (打擂台).

2011-04-25T03:19:00.013+08:00

"If you don't fight you won't lose but if you fight you must try to win."

"It is not about how hard you hit, it is about how hard you get hit, and still keep moving forward."

Fresh from winning The Best Movie at the 2011 HK Film Awards, as well as Best Supporting Actor and Actress for Teddy Robin (泰迪羅賓)and Susan Shaw (邵音音) respectively, this 2010 martial arts comedy paid tribute primarily to the old school 70s Shaw Brothers kung fu movie genre, and naturally, casts most actors (and an actress) of Shaw Brothers alumni from that era. Primary among them are Bruce Leung (梁小龍), one of those whom were marketed as a Bruce Lee clone during the brief Bruceploitation period shortly after the death of the latter, as well as last seen personally in Stephen Chow's 2004 hit, Kung Fu Hustle as the ultimate antagonist. And he still shows those Juet Kuen Do-like moves in this movie; Chen Kuan-Tai ( 陳觀泰), whom appeared in at least 80 Shaw Brothers productions and one of the first actors with a true kung fu background; Lo Meng (羅莽), the muscular martial arts actor from the latter Shaw Brothers production period ; Susan Shaw, whom was initially famous for her portrayal in the early wave of erotic sexploitation movies, including some directed by the infamous oft-parodied Lui Kei (吕奇). It also features Michael Chan (陳惠敏), known for his triad taiko roles and real life kickboxing expert, and several others in brief or special appearances, faces of actors and actresses from the time when I was just born, yet still appears sporadically in series or movies whom faces are instantaneously recognisable. Oh, it is narrated by veteran comedy actor singer Tam Ping Man (譚炳文) too. Rounding up the casts are Wong Yau Nam (黃又南), of boy band duo, Shine and last seen in Ip Man as an irritating forgettable character,the delicious looking yet feisty JJ Jia (賈曉晨); and the famous chopstick hip hopper, MC Jin. Co-directed by Clement Cheng (鄭思傑) and Derek Kwok (郭子健), and produced by Gordon Lam (林家棟) with the executive producer role being handled by a guy named Andy Lau, reportedly at a comparatively low budget of USD 643, 200 with the film being shot within 18 days. So why do I like this movie? Coz apart from getting to see some of the Shaw Bros production boys and a girl of which Dad and Mom would perhaps recognise, I would say it is because of the excellent fighting scenes, humour and parody laced dialogues, and how the storyline and plots tied everything together in a nifty little package with an emotive conclusion which provide huge entertainment and escapism to me in an otherwise increasingly dour offering from the movies churning mill of Hong Kong cinema.

The tortoises...

2011-04-16T00:09:00.003+08:00

Got Leo a "companion" of sort from The Curve, late last year. But Leo would probably "crush" it. Thus, for the time being, until the growing catches up, I keep them separated. The sulcata is growing fine 'cept for the pyramiding scutes of which it has already developed when I got it off hand from someone. A true eating machine, keeping a sulcata can surely blow a hole in my pocket. And I definitely do not want to overfeed it. It is a balancing act, as like Leo, it would come lumbering towards me each time I am around. Once it spooked off Chloe as it came too near her. Dylan on the other hand, would still try to sit or poke at its shell, of which I strongly discourage him from doing so obviously.

Victoria Bergsman

2011-04-13T03:56:00.005+08:00

Heaven, a gateway, a hope

Just like a feeling I need,

it's no joke

And though it hurts me to see you this way

Betrayed by words,

I'd never heard, too hard to say

Up, down, turn around

Please don't let me hit the ground

Tonight I think I'll walk alone

I'll find my soul as I go home

Each way I turn, I know I'll always try

To break this circle that's been placed around me

From time to time, I find I've lost some need

That was urgent to myself, I do believe

Oh, you've got green eyes

Oh, you've got blue eyes

Oh, you've got grey eyes

And I've never seen anyone quite like you before

No, I've never met anyone quite like you before

Bolts from above hurt the people down below

People in this world, we have no place to go

Oh, it's the last time

Oh, I've never met anyone quite like you before

Oh no, I've never met anyone quite like you before

~ New Order, Temptation.

Milo Manara, Paolo Eleuteri Serpieri

2011-04-11T00:59:00.009+08:00

...they are simply two of the best, most prolific illustrators and storytellers in the field of erotica. "Memorable (and complete with very naughty ideas)" titles from Manara include "Butterscotch" and the "Click" series, whereas Serpieri gives us one of the most erotic female form on pen and paper through Drunna, the highly sexual protagonist in the Morbus Gravis series. Definitely not for the "faint hearted".

Three Kingdoms : A Historical Novel.

2011-04-09T02:44:00.023+08:00

The world under heaven, after a long period of division, will be united; after a long period of union, will be divided. (話說天下大勢，分久必合，合久必分。)

Having read through the entire three volumes of the Outlaws of the Marsh ( 水浒传), I decided to move on to the next Four Great Classical Novels of the Chinese Literature ( 四大名著), the hugely prolific and immensely popular epic, Three Kingdoms (三國演義) authored by Luo Guanzhong (罗贯中), the stylised name of Luo Ben (罗本)(c.1330 - 1400) and translated into English by Moss Roberts. Also known as Romance of the Three Kingdoms, this part historical mixed with part legends and myths is based on events and occurrence during the tumultuous Three Kingdoms period (220–280 AD). It depicts the various warlords battling amongst themselves to establish their own power over the nation during and after the fall of the Han Dynasty (206 BCE – 220 AD). Eventually, three warlords - Cao Cao (曹操) , Liu Bei (刘备) and Sun Quan (孙权) - established the states of Cao Wei (曹魏), Shu Han (蜀汉) and Eastern Wu (东吴) respectively, and continue trying to outmaneuver each others in several battles although without much significant outcome, leading to a temporary stalemate. The beginning of the end of the three kingdoms came about shortly after the death of Guan Yu (关羽) and Zhang Fei (张飞)'s assassination. Shu Han, after the deaths of Liu Bei and his loyal chancellor, Zhuge Liang (诸葛亮) , was conquered by Cao Wei in 263AD due to the incompetency of its ruler, Liu Shan. By then, the Sima family clan led by Sima Yi (司马懿) had established strong authority and influence on Cao Wei after the death of Cao Cao. Sima Yi's grandson, Sima Yan (司馬炎) later usurped the throne from then ruler of Cao Wei, Cao Huan (曹奐) and subsequently established the Jin Dynasty (265 - 420AD). Eastern Wu was finally conquered by Cao Wei in 280 AD, no less due to another tyrannical ruler, Sun Hao (孙皓). With several hundreds of characters contain within the story, and lasting three generations, this explain why I keep back paddling after a few pages ahead in order to keep track of the intricate plots.

Pork Chop.

2011-04-09T02:44:00.022+08:00

[the Big Bad Wolf is theaching his three cub sons about the anatomy of a pig, with a chart showing such as well as the tasty bits of the creature]
Big Bad Wolf: Ist das nicht ein sausage meat?
Three Little Wolves: Ja, das ist ein sausage meat.
Big Bad Wolf: Ist das nicht ein pigsen feet?
Three Little Wolves: Ja, das ist ein pigsen feet.
Big Bad Wolf: Ist das gut for schweiner stew?
Three Little Wolves: Dat ist gut for schweiner stew.
Big Bad Wolf: Ist das nicht ein curly cue?
Three Little Wolves: Ja, das ist ein curly cue.
Big Bad Wolf: Roasted pork, glass of schnapps, ham und eggs, porken chops, pigsen feet, sausage meat, little pigs ist gut to eat. All together now.

- The Three Little Wolves (1936-Disney's Silly Symphonies).

One of Chloe and Dylan favourite movies is a compilation of Disney's Silly Symphonies short animations from the 30s featuring the Three Little Pigs and their nemesis, the Big Bad Wolf. Each time Esther cooks porky chop for the family, a snippet of the dialogue from a scene showing the wolf teaching his three young cubs about the deliciousness of a succulent, nicely cook fresh pork always run about in my mind. The two kids are not so much into pork as their old man does. And if time and money permit, I love to visit those handful of Bierhaus with Esther in the city for a nice meal of sausages and roasted pork knuckles to go with some delicious wheat beer.

Chloe ~ Birthday 2011.

2011-03-31T03:40:00.012+08:00

Happy Birthday my dear Chloe! How you have grown. And how Papa keeps having these anxiety episodes of missing and reminiscence of you when you were still a baby in my arm. Time moves fast indeed. I just do not want to miss any of these opportunities to see you grow up is what I said to Esther when she asks me why I always look kinda sad when we talk about Chloe and Dylan boy. Soon they will be entering primary, then secondary, then tertiary, then lives of their own, managing ang juggling their lives. Esther always say I think too fast and too far ahead. Just enjoy the moment. My retort? Let's try to get another kid...hehehe. We celebrated Chloe's birthday twice, once during the Port Dickson trip and one the actual day, at home with just a simple BBQ party. And it happens to be Earth Hour Day. The irony is that whilst majority of the world is observing it and turn off all forms of light and practise "green" way of living for at least an hour, our household is actually blasting and burning away at least 50 pcs of chicken wings, lamb chops, bacons with fiery industrial strenght coals sending columns of smokes into the sky that night.. And there are plenty of discarded paper cups, plates and wrappers all around with bags amd bags of refuse at the end of the day.

At Port Dickson.

2011-03-31T03:06:00.018+08:00

Had a nice outing with Esther's side of the family in Porty Dickyson. Nice way to unwind and relax from the usual concrete jungle. The beach is still "black" with soots from the nearby refineries and cargo ships along the Straits but at least the two precious now have had their first taste and feel of a sandy beach. We were there when Esther was pregnant with Chloe but we stayed at a different place then. The only place to eat for dinner is this Mexican outlet called El Cactus. Now, when it comes to eating at this place, you must possess un-precedented high level of patience and tolerance coz the service is extremely slow and the wait is like forever. But the food's great and rewarding. Later the next day on the way home, we dropped by a Chinese seafood restaurant for another nice meal. Great day to wrap up a, though short, enjoyable trip.

Suetch The Disc Jockey.

2011-03-31T02:59:00.005+08:00

Hey boys, hey girls

Superstar DJs

Here we go!

Suetch surprised me when, whilst playing with Chloe and Dylan in the room, started showcasting her skills at an impromptu "turntable". Mo wax, y'all!

At The National Science Centre, Bukit Damansara.

2011-03-31T02:54:00.016+08:00

Esther and I decided to bring Chloe and Dylan to the National Science Centre in Bukit Damansara for the dinosaur exibition before the school holiday starts next week. Being first time there, we enjoyed ourselves with the various scientific interactive paraphelias on display as well as this impressive aquarium at at the entrance showcasting various Amazonian fishes. However, the two precious are pretty scared to look at the mechanical dinosaurs on display, irregardless of how much Esther and I try to coax and re-assure them that it is not real. So we kinda spent less than five minutes inside the hall and the remaining two hours outside with outdoor playground where the kids actually enjoy themselves more.

Uncle Peng.

2011-03-28T01:15:00.005+08:00

Uncle P and my cousin, whom just graduated from a medical school, came by for a night stay before leaving for Penang. The two precious immediately warms up to them and would not allow them to rest till all of them have their fill of fun. Nice to see this as Chloe and Dylan usually would be shy in front of people whom they have not seen or not see for a while.

Macaron.

2011-03-28T01:10:00.010+08:00

Curious about this French confection, Esther bought some from Empire as a little treat for all of us. Actually, I had one, so did Esther and Chloe finished the rest. It has gained great profile lately, Macaron, I mean, and honestly for a little hamburger like thing which feels nice to chew but so blady sweet that I was twitching like someone having hypertension for the next two hours. Forget straight black coffee or caffaine laced Pepsi Max. Macaron, the only way to fly, dude, I personally thought it is expensive too. Me thinks of it as a curious item. Try them but only to ease the curiosity. I am sticking to Big Apple if I gonna need some sugar rush.

Chloe & Dylan ~ Pasta Zanmai Empire Subang.

2011-03-28T01:07:00.006+08:00

Whenever we are at Empire Subang, we always have lunch at Pasta Zanmai. It is being unfair for the kids and Esther though, coz they are beginning to complain about being "jelak" at the place. Sorry guys, Papa still loves it muah hahaha.

CNY 2011 BBQ.

2011-03-28T01:00:00.006+08:00

Mom decided to organized a simple BBQ party at home.