Putting Up Links On A Tuesday

I totally and completely meant to post last week but between getting ready to move into my dorm, said move into my dorm, and starting fall classes, updating the blog fell by the wayside. I hope y'all enjoy this round-up of links to pieces I've enjoyed lately as some sort of apology; this month's Fujoshi O'Clock update will come later this week!

• This Wondermark strip about computer support speaks to me on a molecular level as a former A/V assistant. Your dongle's totally rebooted.
• Zack Davisson wrote up a brief history of yokai for Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai back in 2013, but it is still a worthwhile read for yokai enthusiasts. Also, read Shigeru Mizuki!
• More yokai? Why not! I find this piece on the gendering of yokai across the shojo/shonen demographic divide a really fascinating look at how Japan's mythology is skewered based on the target audience.
• Naoki Urasawa and Hisashi Eguchi talk about manga in the 70s and 80s. I think that's all you need to know there.
• A lot of Patreon sponsored posts at Ogiue Maniax have been really worth reading, but with a title like 'Diners, Saiyans, and Drives', how can I not link to it?
• Contemporary Japanese Literature looked at one of my favorite sub-sets of manga - the shojo manga - as part of the 'cultural cross-pollination' which has inspired current women in English language comics. They talk about Bizenghast as well as Bee and Puppycat, which are both awesome. Also, look, a Smile cover!

4/8/15: Happy Lost Day (Again!)

Somehow, it feels like I only recently celebrated 815 Day, which is another major day for Lost fandom. Now, we are celebrating a day that will only occur once in our lifetimes: a day when, for literally one second, the date and time become 4/8/15 16:23:42.

Those numbers, of course, are the major driving mystery of the show Lost - from Hurley's lottery ticket to the code imputed into the Swan Hatch computer and gobs more examples I can barely begin to list - so when the calendar and the clock reflects said sequence, we gotta celebrate the occasion!

Funny thing: I didn't watch Lost when it was first airing. I only started watching it seriously in 2013/2014, so I could impress my best friend who is a Lostie, the one who I now refer to as Daniel Faraday for reasons that are only obvious to me and anyone who has ever met IRL Faraday. I did not think I would love it as much as I came to do, but gosh darn it, I did. I laughed, I cried, I wanted to punch certain characters in the place (also known as why I curse at the TV screen any time William Mapother shows up in any other show, eff you Ethan you know what you did).

People Magazine has a worthwhile post on Lost Day and why it's so important in the show's canon. Now go watch some episodes!

Now Is The Winter Of Our Link Spam ('15 Edition)

Been a while since I've done one of these, yeah? I'll keep it short.

• The Comics Journal covers alternative manga as they talk about the Fukui Ei'ichi incident and the prehistory of Komaga-Gekiga. It's about Osamu Tezuka! Who, naturally, is a complicated man and manga-ka.
• For fans of cult/classic TV and film, Shout! Factory now has a free streaming service for the shows and movies it has licensed, including MST3K, The Saint, and some Roger Corman films (via Comics Worth Reading).
• A delightful read from the poetry Dreamwidth community: If Dr Seuss Were A Technical Writer by Gene Ziegler.
• For the ladies of Star Trek fandom, this 'A Woman's Place Is On The Bridge' t-shirt seems like a must have.
• Snack food has a fandom? Apparently so! Stumbled across snack food review site Taquitos, which reviews snacks from across the globe, albeit with a North American bias.
• Lastly, did someone say Space Dandy deck-building tabletop card game? Because Seven Seas and Funimation are saying just that and it looks awesome.
  
  

Open Thread: Legend of Korra Series Finale

Technically, the Korra finale airs tonight on NickToons - which is how I plan on watching it - but I know it was released online beforehand, so there's no point not having an open thread about the dang thing now. Drop all your Korra-related feelings and thoughts here!

Note: to avoid spoilers, I won't be able to read comments until tomorrow morning. Try and keep it civil if you do comment.

Psst, here's the official release schedule of the Korra finale from Bryan Konietzko's Tumblr, just so everyone knows the full details.

December Link Post: Saturday Night's All Right For Link Spam

Here are some of the great and interesting items I've read since the last link dump:

• Lauren at Otaku Journalist is kicking off her 2014 edition of Twelve Days of Anime, something she took part in last year and was great to read every day. I'd participate as well but I didn't even watch enough anime this year to cover twelve days of talking about it.
• Smart Bitchy, Trashy Books talk about the latest attempt by mainstream television to cater to geeks and nerds who love adventure shows, the TNT program the Librarians. I dunno - it sounds like a brainless version of Warehouse 13.
• The Asahi Shimbun talks about the Westernized Doraemon and how it was brought over to America via Disney XD. I didn't realize his "yummy buns" were actually cut down in amount, yikes!
• My fave music blogger and IRL friend Gaosalad has introduced me to a new J-Pop group, Color-Code, whose "I LIKE DAT" music video pleases me on so many levels. They're like a cross between Capsule, Saori@Destiny, and Ayu herself.
• [CW: racialized slurs, anti-Chinese slurs] It's more about Chinese-centric racism than Asia in general, but it's worth a read for anime fans who interact with Asian culture on a regular basis: s.e. smith writes on Chop Suey, Ching Chong and Asia in pop culture.
• Lastly, at the Hungry Bug Diner, ABCBTom writes about Sayo Yamamoto and her use of charcoals for anime art, in series like Attack on Titan, Psycho-Pass and Eureka Seven.

Ten Years Later: Happy LOST Day!

Ah, what a glorious day for LOST fans. Today is the day that, ten years ago, ABC aired the pilot episode to JJ Abram's LOST, which will end in 2010 with six seasons and an epilogue. It's also the day, in canon, when Oceanic Flight 815 crash landed on the infamous island that started it all.

Below is one of the weirdest, well-known promo ads for LOST, taken from a British television channel sometime around season one. It's bizarre but it's also a surprisingly apt character study of the original cast of characters.

Even though I didn't really watch the series while it originally aired - actually I semi-binge watched it during late last year and early this year - LOST will permanently have a place in my heart as one of the most engaging, entertaining, thought-provoking series in recent TV history. I love the characters, the writing, the relationships, and the mysteries that drove the story and kept me glued to the screen season after season.

Feel free to share your favorite memories of LOST in the comments!

Open Thread: Peter Capaldi is the Doctor

"Clara, am I a good man?" You tell us, Malcolm -
err, I mean, Doctor.

All right, fellow Whovians. It's time to dish. We're now three episodes into series 8 of Doctor Who and our new Doctor, played by Scot actor Peter Capaldi. His Doctor and Clara have been fighting dinosaurs, inside Daleks, and making merry with Robin Hood for the past three weeks - and this Saturday's episode promises to be a spooky, eerie entry.

How is everyone taking to the Twelfth Doctor? Do you like his demeanor, his outfit, his accent? Are you able to watch Capaldi strut across time and space without making Thick Of It jokes? Tell me - please! Double brownie points if you have any interesting theories on what is going on with "Missy" and her paradise garden.

Breaking News: Nickelodeon Apparently Determined To Make Korra The Last Avatar

Edit: IGN has a full report on the Legend of Korra panel at SDCC 2014, containing details on the future of the show.

Let's be honest: Legend of Korra has had its problems, from a bumpy season two to obnoxious love triangles and low ratings, but recently fans had been falling back in love with the adventures of Korra and crew in Republic City with its newest season. Season three of Korra has been more amusing and entertaining that it's been since it's premiere. Good news, right?

Now Nickelodeon has decided that pulling in one million viewers every Friday night is no longer good enough for Avatar Korra.

Wednesday Briefs: Supernatural Man of Mystery

Let's dispense with a lengthy intro to this week's Brief story! As our LOST bonanza continues, our hero Desmond finds himself in some unlikely company. Will this stranger be his savior or his destruction? Read and find out!

Constants and Variables (Part 5/?): LOST, Desmond Hume-centric, PG-13, prompt - “Do you know what you’re doing?”

Canon note: Takes place during season five of LOST, albeit an AU take on said events in episode six, "316". It's actually ridiculously AU because it fucks with two major plot points, one involving Desmond and one involving Daniel, both of which will become evident as soon as the story kicks into gear. Spoilers for the rest of season five and events in season six are within. Eventual Desmond/Daniel and implied Juliet/Sawyer & Jack/Kate.

In these recent chapters, events will run concurrent with the events of "Whatever Happened, Happened" and "Dead Is Dead" in season five.

Previous chapters: Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four

>>>>>>>>>>>>

"So you must be Desmond."

Desmond Hume stops, one foot out in front of the other. He doesn't know the voice, but somehow, the voice knows him. He has the feeling that the other person, a man, has a gun trained on his back but he has no proof. So he keeps his back turned, lest he be greeted with a bullet in the chest.

"You've got me, brotha. You know me, but I don't know you. Have we met?"

Wednesday Briefs: Ships Passing In The Night

It's Wednesday, and Wednesday Briefs is back with the LOST flavored goodness you may or may not be reading! I took a week off to figure out what direction the story is going in, so hopefully it'll really start moving along in these upcoming weeks! This week, Daniel and Desmond are unknowingly drawing closer to each other...

Constants and Variables (Part 4/?): LOST, Desmond Hume-centric, PG-13, prompt - "Sometimes I feel like I'm trapped in time..."

Canon note: Takes place during season five of LOST, albeit an AU take on said events in episode six, "316". It's actually ridiculously AU because it fucks with two major plot points, one involving Desmond and one involving Daniel, both of which will become evident as soon as the story kicks into gear. Spoilers for the rest of season five and events in season six are within. Eventual Desmond/Daniel and implied Juliet/Sawyer & Jack/Kate. Like the previous chapter, this one runs concurrent with the events of "Whatever Happened, Happened".

Previous chapters: Part One | Part Two | Part Three

Wednesday Briefs: You're Gonna Carry That Weight

Welcome back to Wednesday Briefs! Here comes the latest installment of my ongoing LOST fanfiction. Last week, Desmond confronted Miles about the whereabouts of Daniel Faraday and ended with a new sense of direction. If you are behind, you can read part one and part two before continuing onward!

Constants and Variables (Part 3/?): LOST, Desmond Hume-centric, PG-13, prompt - "Why are you asking me these questions?".

Canon note: Takes place during season five of LOST, albeit an AU take on said events in episode six, "316". It's actually ridiculously AU because it fucks with two major plot points, one involving Desmond and one involving Daniel, both of which will become evident as soon as the story kicks into gear. Spoilers for the rest of season five and events in season six are within. Eventual Desmond/Daniel and implied Juliet/Sawyer & Jack/Kate.

This chapter runs concurrent with the events of "Whatever Happened, Happened".

Wednesday Briefs: Everything Broken Can Be Fixed

Namaste, readers! Welcome to another installment of Wednesday Briefs! We are continuing our journey in the LOST 'verse, guided by everyone's favorite accidental time traveler, Desmond Hume. He's back and more determined than ever. But will he find Daniel Faraday in time? Will anyone ever make it hope alive? And what will Hurley do with all of these Apollo Bars? I hope you stick around and find out!

Constants and Variables (Part 2/?): LOST, Desmond Hume-centric, PG-13, prompt - “Do you think he's going to be okay?”

Canon note: Takes place during season five of LOST, albeit an AU take on said events in episode six, "316". It's actually ridiculously AU because it fucks with two major plot points, one involving Desmond and one involving Daniel, both of which will become evident as soon as the story kicks into gear. Spoilers for the rest of season five and events in season six are within. Eventual Desmond/Daniel and implied Juliet/Sawyer & Jack/Kate.

>>>>>>>>>>>>

There are (at least) three separate realities for Desmond Hume.

Wednesday Briefs: Whatever Happens, Happens

You thought it was over, you thought it was done, but this newest Wednesday Brief has only begun! I've started another multi part story for this Wednesday, and yes it's LOST, but the thing about this one is, I have no idea what direction it will take or how long it will be! But we'll have fun exploring the possibilities of this brave new LOST world together! 

I'm having too much fun playing in Abrams' fictional island 'verse to stop, really. I hope I can do the original characters due justice.

Constants and Variables (Part 1/?): LOST, Desmond Hume-centric, PG-13, prompt - "take the initiative, VW bus"

Canon note: Takes place during season five of LOST, albeit an AU take on said events in episode six, "316". It's actually ridiculously AU because it fucks with two major plot points, one involving Desmond and one involving Daniel, both of which will become evident as soon as the story kicks into gear. Spoilers for the rest of season five lie within. Eventual Desmond/Daniel and implied Juliet/Sawyer & Jack/Kate.

>>>>>>>>>>>>

There are (at least) two separate realities for Desmond Hume.

Wednesday Briefs: Have A Cluckity Cluck Cluck Day

Look at all these briefs lately! Yes, it's Wednesday - which means another round of Wednesday Briefs! And I hope y'all liked last week's, because here comes another JJ Abrams flavored hit. Yes, I've written another LOST fic, but this one has actual dialogue! And action! And I hear people really like that stuff! Also, it involves everyone's favorite unlucky at life lottery winner as well as everyone's favorite sassy Southern con man on a mission. Here we go!

Mean Mean Pride: LOST, Sawyer and Hugo-centric, PG-13, prompt - "stop acting like an ass, island"

Canon note: Takes place during season two of LOST, when the living was easy and the idea of time travel wasn't even a gleam in poor Desmond Hume's eye. What can I say? I have an overwhelming affection for the Swan Hatch Era, before everything went all wibbley-wobbley timey-wimey (whoops, that's from Doctor Who!) on us. Title pulled from the lyrics of a certain Rush song because come on, Sawyer. And yes, that's a Steven Universe reference in there, too!

Whoever let it slip to Sawyer that Hurley used to work in a fast food chicken shack was going to get it. They were going to wish that the polar bear had found them first.

Wednesday Briefs: See You In Another Life, Brotha

Yet again, Wednesday has come upon us, which means yet another day of Wednesday Briefs. And this week, I'm breaking ground with a fandom I haven't even discussed in great detail on this blog: JJ Abrams' LOST, which I'm currently in the thick of, watching season five and getting my mind blown with every plot twist big and small. So I hope you enjoy my first proper LOST post on this blog and please, no spoilers anything beyond what is discussed!

Adrift, Again: LOST, Desmond Hume & Daniel Faraday, G, prompt - "time heals all wounds, orchids"

Canon note: Takes place at the beginning of season five. No spoilers past events around episode 2/3. Basically, if you can understand "Faraday's flashes", you're good. Also refers to Ben Linus, Penny Widmore, Hugo "Hurley" Reyes, and John Locke, either explicitly or otherwise.

It begins like this: a flash of light, and everyone is lost.

Or: it begins with Desmond Hume waking up as he has done every day for the past four years in his prison of a hatch, oblivious to the fact that his life is about to take another dramatic shift forward. It begins with a light in the dark and a figure banging on the door from above, and hope, catching in both of their chests like an unexpected breath. It begins with a key in the floor, with the hairs on his neck standing on end, with a promise to a woman he thinks he'll never see again.

The Day of the Doctor Is Here...

"I've been running all my lives... through time and space. Every second of every minute of every day for over nine hundred years. I fought for peace in a universe at war. Now the time has come to face the choices I made in the name of the Doctor. Our future depends on one single moment of one impossible day. The day I've been running from all my life. The day of the Doctor."

All right then. Let's hear what everyone thought of the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special! Personally, I found it was exciting, thrilling, controversial, emotional, memorable, engaging, humorous and just ace all around. And, of course, I loved all the nods to Classic Who.

Spoilers in the comments, of course!

Support The Mystery Shack; Buy Gravity Falls!

One of the strangest, fantastical shows that have popped up on American television in the past couple of years is Gravity Falls, a Disney program that has pulled in a solid, dedicated viewership on a station that usually props up its live action tween shows and more Disney-like properties. To the surprise of everyone, Gravity Falls has survived long enough to be reviewed for a second season - surprise because Disney enjoyed yanking the show around on its schedule and has never treated it as fairly as its other programs.

So when Alex Hirsch, the show's creator, hits Twitter to tell everyone to order the first ever Gravity Falls DVD, it's kind of a big deal. After all, if this DVD - a collection of six episodes - does well sales-wise, Disney will be more inclined to release the first season on DVD. Considering that Gravity Falls is a mystery series with various developing plot-lines, in-series references, and enough hidden symbols to make JJ Abrams' head spin, it's the kind of show you want to watch from start to finish, not just random episodes. So let's make this happen!

The Gravity Falls "Six Strange Tales" DVD comes out October 15th. Season two of Gravity Falls is currently in production and is set to air sometime next year.

Important DOCTOR WHO Reminder Of The Day

(Well, for Americans anyway; the Brits have already seen it!)

Tonight is the premiere of Doctor Who's seventh season, an episode titled Asylum of the Daleks, featuring Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor, Karen Gillan as Amy Pond, and Arthur Darvill as Rory Pond. For those who have BBC America, it will air at 9/8C, with an encore two hours later. Watch it live or DVR it, just make sure if you're a Whovian that you catch it! It looks to be absolutely fantastic.

Note: Since this is a US blog, please keep Doctor Who spoilers out of comments until the episode's aired in the States. Thank you!

Interesting Geek Article Of The Day

Tor.com, I totally agree with you on this (as long as we're talking about U.S. television only, natch): Phineas and Ferb is the Best Science Fiction on Television.

For one thing, outside of its spec fic premise, Phineas and Ferb is a really good show in general. I could write whole other articles on how it’s a blisteringly funny satire of contemporary pop culture, or how it’s a loving portrayal of a blended family that treats divorce and remarriage as normal parts of life, or how it’s remarkably cleverly written using repetition, variation, and song to create complex and compelling characters, or how the secret protagonist of the show is actually Candace, the teenager trapped between her desperate need to be an adult and her own childish desires to have fun. 

All that aside, Phineas and Ferb is a great science fiction, by which I mean it uses an impossible world to tell real stories about real people. 

If you've been putting off watching P&F, let Steve Padnick convince you otherwise. It really is one of the smartest, cleverest, funniest, coolest TV shows currently airing and proof that not all American animation is brain-dead or made by Seth McFarland.

Also, name me a TV show that manages to have a song per episode that doesn't suck and is still original. Glee is automatically the wrong answer, by the way.