I talked the other day about how there was an announcement concerning Suzumiya Haruhi coming on Tanabata (today), which was the same day as some special events in the third novel. Well, it seems that Kyoto Animation has produced a publicity stunt of sorts by uploading a 22-minute flash promotional video onto the official website depicting the events of that night in live action (with Haruhi and "John Smith") from a security camera point of view. For those of you with niconico accounts, you can watch it here since the official site appears to be down at the moment from probably getting hammered by all the fans trying to access it. For those of you without accounts, there's also a torrent of it available on Tokyo Toshokan. In any case, I'm very impressed by the extent to which Kyoto Animation is promoting this show since this video matches perfectly with the Newtype magazine announcement. I expect that this will eventually make its way one of the DVDs for the second anime season, but for now, this is almost like getting a glimpse of what a live-action Haruhi would be. Source

Always wanted to created a union here at Gamespot, but I need a certain amount of people to get it started.

Now I'm aware that there are plenty of other anime/manga groups out there but most of which seem dead and boring. Hopefully once flyANIME gets created we will have lots of goodies for our members. The goodies include; contests (amv, graphic, quizzes, etc), union blog posts, wallpapers, direct download sites, etc.

Of course you can talk freely about anime/manga in the union forum. Just be sure to slap on some sort of spoiler tags.

If anyone is interested in creating an anime/manga group with me, please comment to this blog post or message me via PM or Windows Live Messenger (MSN). Caboose228@hotamil.com

Newtype's August issue will soon be hitting newsstands soon. It is reporting that Suzumiya Haruhi's second season has finally been confirmed. The official announcement is set to be made on July 7th, 2007 (07/07/07) Haruhi Season 2 is set to air around fall/winter of 2007. I don't know about you guys, but I can't wait! ^_________^

I'm curious if the are going to put this in any of the upcoming episodes of Lucky Star. We'll have to wait and see.

Well, not only is Haruhi on the PSP and the PS2, but now the Wii! No joke. Please Microsoft make her come to my 360! There isn't a set release date yet, but I'm guessing sometime early 2008. Hmmmm if Haruhi makes her way to the PS3, I might find myself buying one. Sigh, it will be worth it. I hope we can do the Hare Hare Yukai Dance using the Wiimote and Nunchuck.

Source: Kotaku

Not only is Haruhi going to be on the PSP, it's also going to be on the PS2 now! I think I speak for all of us when I say w00tw00ttacular! The game is set for launch in January of 2008. The game features Haruhi as " Ultra Hero Haruhi" and is a parody of fantasy RPGs. It will also be differnt then the PSP version. I can't wait!

While waiting for Lucky Star episode 12 to come out with some subs I figured I'd watch one of my favorite episodes to pass the time and to have a good laugh. While watching the scene were Konata was running and it went into Track and Field mode, I couldn't help but remember when I used all those dirty tricks to help me win. You know, rubbing something against the A or B button to run faster.

In the scene, they used a coin (which worked but not that great, for me anyway) and a thermometer. I remembered also using a toothbrush, tucking my thumb under my shirt and rubbing it back and forth, and using two fingers. For me, tucking my thumb under my shirt worked the best. We all did it and we all had our speical ways of doing it. Anyone remember how they preferred it? If you haven't played Track and Field, well I guess you can just refrain from answering.

Vol. 3 had more violence then the previous volumes. We are introduced to a new character named Pinocchio or Pino. He works for an organization called Padania. He is a young hitman who is hired to protect a group of terrorists who plan on planting a bomb. He is very skilled with a knife.

Yes, his name is Pinocchio. He is actually quite similar to the the wooden puppet. Not that he's made of wood, but he does what the man who raised him tells him to do in order to make him happy and like him. He also causes lots of trouble seeing as he is a hitman.

Angelica is finally back out in the field for the first time in a while. However she seems to need medicine and ends up passing out. Maybe because it was her first time out in a while and she got nervous, maybe she feels that if she did pass out that Marco would love her and care about her more, or maybe she wasn't feeling well. You can decide and come up with your own theories when you read it.

Angelica does end up getting back out onto the field and ends up doing quite well. She is happy that Marco is happy with her performance.

The volume still has its sad moments like the others just not as many and it's not centered around them. Like always we continue to learn more about each character through their actions.

Plot Summary: When 17-year-old Makoto Konno gains the ability to, quite literally, "leap" backwards through time, she immediately sets about improving her grades and preventing personal mishaps. However, she soon realizes that changing the past isn't as simple as it seems, and eventually, will have to rely on her new powers to shape the future of her and her friends.

Run Time: 100 minutes
Genres: Adventure, Drama, Romance, Science Fiction, Slice of Life

Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo (The Girl Who Leapt Through Time) is one of the greatest movies you will ever see and is my favorite movie of all time. Now I realize that most of you probably aren't into anime and could give two poops about it, but please check this movie out, I guarantee it will touch you in someway, shape, or form. It definitely touched me and gave me a different outlook on life, handling/dealing situations, and how handling/dealing those situations can change everything.

I would upload screenshots, but I don't want to spoil any of it ^___________^. So anyway, do yourself a favor and check it out.

After finally creating another Japanese account (my old one expired) to get my hands on the Trusty Bell (Eternal Sonata) demo I can say that I am 100% satisfied with what I just played. The only bad thing about the demo was we were not introduced to the story line (which most already know, but it's nice to actually play with the story instead of reading about it). I can't believe that I waited this long to make another Japanese account. Below are my impressions of the demo. I will also explain a few things about the battle system, etc. Enjoy.

When we first start playing the demo we are automatically tossed into a forest leading to a town. On the way to the forest there is a NPC there that explains how to the whole fighting system and everything works. There are also a few monsters for you to fight on your way. The very first thing that I noticed was how beautiful the game looked. The art is simply jaw dropping. I found myself just stopping and staring at the scenery for quite some time, especially when I was running around in the town. The water and everything was just perfect. To sum up the art in one word, SEXTACULARJIZIMOMGSECHSKMEUPNOWPELASE!

The battle system works quite nice as well. It takes a few battles to get used it, but after the second or third battle you should have it down and it feels right. Each of the characters in your party has two different special attacks. There are "Light" and "Dark" special attacks. When standing in the sunlight or a lightened area, you use the "Light" special attacks and while standing in the dark or shaded areas when battling, you use the "Dark" special attacks. From what I noticed you have infinite special attack. This could get changed but who knows. Notice that in the screenshot above there is a light area and a dark area.

Instead of using your special attack you can just hack and slash or directly attack the monster. This is still 100% affective and by doing this, you can bring up what I call the "Special Attack Boost". In the corner of the screen there is a star with a number next to it. As the stars and the number increases, it raises the special attacks power but only for that particular battle. It is helpful especially on the boss battle. To the left of both screenshots above you will notice a bar. The bar there is the "Time Till Turn Ends" bar. In other words you can keep attacking the monster until that runs out. Then it goes to the next character in your party and the bar starts over again for them. The monsters are also limited to a certain time to attack.

When a character in your party dies and the fight is over, they will be revived the next fight but with 1HP so quickly heal them. There are also items that can revive downed party members.

Overall I can say that I am quite pleased with the demo and can't wait to get my hands on the full game. This has everything I look for in an RPG. It has the art, the story, the characters, the turn based battle system, and everything is perfect. I couldn't ask for more. I'll post my full review come September. (Supposed release date).

Screenshots Courtesy of Xboxyde.com

Vol. 2 of Gunslinger Girl was no let down. If you enjoyed the gun fights and action bits of the previous volume, it's still all there so no need to worry. However this volume seems to focus on the past more then the present and the background story of some of the girls. We are also introduced to a few new characters. Be warned though, the last two chapters where very sad. I suggest having some kleenex nearby when reading. "Once upon a time there was a land of pasta."