Lucky Star: What Animal are You?

The more I see of Lucky Star the more I enjoy it! Shown above is a clip from epiosde 18 in which Konata tries to figure out what animal each character is most like.

Voltron the Motion Picture

If this film happens it won’t be animated but live action ala the Transformers. Of course I’m now so burned out on 3D animation I tend to think that live action the best way to go, although it makes me wonder why the Simpsons has inspired people to think aout 2D again. My other bet is that everyone in Hollywood with the rights to a giant robot wants to make a film right now:

‘Voltron’ gets bigscreen go

“New Regency is looking to assemble its own giant robot movie.
The 20th Century Fox-based production entity is close to a deal with the Mark Gordon Co. to adapt “Voltron: Defender of the Universe” into a live-action film.

Gordon has been developing the pic, based on the popular 1980s Japanese animated TV series, comicbooks and toy line, with Justin Marks penning the script.”

Cheery Cute Characters by Michael Fleming

Shown above are some very cheerful character designs that Michael Fleming illustrated for a game company,

Daleks vs. the Cybermen Call Center

A Dalek attempts to renew his house insurance…

Napoleon Dynamite in 30 Seconds

The bunnies are at it again by re-enacting the movie Napoleon Dynamite in 30 seconds.

Found via Linkfilter.net.

Jonny Quest jets to the Bigscreen

I’d love to see an animated version, of course they’d ruin it by doing it in 3D so I guess a live action version of Jonny Quest might be decent:

WB sends ‘Jonny Quest’ to bigscreen
Mazeau to adapt Hanna-Barbera series

“Warner Bros. wants to send Jonny Quest on his first bigscreen adventure. Adrian Askarieh and Daniel Alter, who have the vidgame-based “Hitman” bowing in October from Fox, will produce the live-action adaptation of the popular 1960s animated TV series from Hanna-Barbera, with Dan Mazeau penning the script.

Askarieh, a longtime fan of the series, is hoping to turn the property into a family-friendly adventure franchise — something the studio is clearly looking for now that “Harry Potter” is winding down. Mazeau recently sold his fantasy adventure spec “Land of Lost Things” to Paramount Pictures’ Nickelodeon Films, with Arnold and Anne Kopelson producing.”

The Hello Kitty Car

Shown above is the Mitsubishi i Princess Kitty which features a Hello Kitty design motif (click to see all the detail at full size, trust me it’s worth it):

Mitsubishi i Princess Kitty (Hello Kitty)

“It was bound to happen sooner or later… and after ANCEL and DAMD’s pimp of the Mitsubishi I, here’s the Hello Kitty version of our beloved Kei-Car. Don’t panic though, because only one of these will be sold! If you want to see this car irl, jet over to Japan because it will be on display in a big Japanese store between July 25th and 31st.”

Read more…

Speed Racer Videogame in the Works

This game will be based on the movie (not to be confused with the previous game shown above):

WB gears up ‘ Speed Racer’ game
Studio to self-publish day-and-date release

“Continuing to expand its inhouse videogame work, Warner Bros. will self-publish the game based on next summer’s tentpole “Speed Racer.” Versions of the game playable on Nintendo’s Wii and DS will launch day-and-date with the pic’s theatrical release in May. A version for Sony’s PlayStation 2 comes out in the fall along with the DVD. Given the short development schedule, Warner Bros. apparently decided not to invest in “Speed Racer” games for the high-powered PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles.”

Urahama Alisa meets the Baskin Robbins Snowmen

This computer animated snowman commercial (perfect for August viewing!) stars up-and-coming model Urahama Alisa.

Watchmen Cast Comparison

The folks at filmick.co.uk have come up with a very well done chart showing previous and current efforts to cast Watchman as a film. It’s sad that we’ll never know what the Terry Gilliam version of the film would have looked like.

Robin Ator’s Robot

I love the powerful draftsmanship and sense of scale in the above robot sketch by talented illustrator Robin Ator.

Batman going Anime?

This sounds very cool if they could get the right team from Japan on the project:

‘Batman’ Taking Animated Route For Movie

“Warner Bros. apparently is putting together an anime project that would help bridge the gap between “Batman Begins” and the upcoming sequel, “The Dark Knight,” according to Batman-On-Film. The anime series will carry a PG-13 equivalent rating, and include stories written by Josh Olsen of “A History of Violence” fame as well as “Batman Begins” writer David Goyer. Also onboard to write episodes is comic book scribe Brian Azzarello.

It is not clear whether these will be animated episodes available on the Web, or if Warner Bros. will take the Matrix route and release them directly to DVD instead. Online promotion of television and movies, especially through the areas of online video, have become much more popular in recent years, and Warner could choose to take the viral promotion route. At the same time, however, comic book fans have been known to buy just about anything that is released on their favorite characters, so it might be a better money-making opportunity for the studio to go directly to DVD.”

…of course a Batman manga was created a few years ago by Kia Asamiya.

Robota Trailer

Shown above is a trailer for Robota by Star Wars mecha designer Doug Chaing. I have no idea if there’s any sort of story, but man do the visuals look great!

Samurai Jack Background Showcase

Shown above are two backgrounds from Bill Wray’s blog, he has an amazing collection of backgrounds that that he and Scott Wills painted while working on Samurai Jack.

Found via Cartoon Brew.

New York Times Discovers Nerdcore

Because if you heard about it six months ago the New York Times will write it up today:

Dungeons, Dragons and Dope Beats

“…Then nerdcore came along. A largely white subgenre of hip-hop that celebrates the solitary pleasures of science fiction, computers and bad teenage movies, nerdcore is emerging from the shadows of the Internet, where it spent the last half-decade as an in-joke. This do-it-yourself brand of rap, part self-expression and part self-satire, has inspired two documentary films, and its own festival, Nerdapalooza, in California. This month, MC Chris — otherwise known as Christopher Ward, 31, the son of a finance executive from the affluent Chicago suburb of Libertyville, Ill. — will attempt an unprecedented nerdcore crossover when he joins mosh-pit-friendly rock acts like New Found Glory and Sum 41 on the Warped Tour.”

Pachimon Game Museum

The Pachimon Game Museum is an online Japanese website that shows off gaming rip-offs from China from the PolyStation II (shown above) to the Jank Box 36X.

Oreo Cookies

The above commercial for Oreo Cookies in Japan stars actress Narumi Riko who got her first beak with the tv series Trick which was sort of like X-Files meets Scooby-Doo.

Girls with Guns

Peter Schneider is a fanboy from Germany who has put together an amazing gallery of Girls with Guns on Flickr. His collection of 433 spans both the globe (Europe to Korea) and muliple genres (old westerns to sci fi).

Hello Kitty Cat Clothing

I don’t know why they didn’t think of this sooner! Now you can now buy a Hello Kitty outfit to humiliate, err “dress up” your cat. But I have to admit that there’s something very cute about the photo above, although I can only guess at what poor neko is thinking.

Ultimate Star Wars Fanboy Contest

Here’s your chance for fame and fortune, well maybe just a little bit of fame: The producers of the Fanboys film are having a contest for the Ultimate Fanboy Video. What’s neat is that the winner will get a walk on part in the upcoming film Fanboys.

Distraction Game (Pyo Pyo Fruits)

Distraction Game (also known as Pyo Pyo Fruits) is a fun Flash game from Japan. What nice about it is that as you play characters outside the frame of the game (shown above) nudge the creen to distract you. My hat is off to whomever cam eup with the design…

Found via Metafilter.

Phoenix Lander to Launch Today

While it may be a slim chance, it’s interesting to think that in just nine months we could find life on Mars:

Nasa to launch Mars polar probe

“NASA is to launch a spacecraft on a nine-month journey to Mars, where it will dig below the surface for clues to the existence of past or present life. The Phoenix probe is scheduled to lift off on Saturday from Cape Canaveral, Florida, atop a Delta II rocket.

The mission will aim to shed light not only on the history of this water ice but also on whether the region could support microbial life. Crucial to this question will be tests for complex, carbon-based chemicals (organics) in the soil and signs the ice periodically melts. “The real question we’re trying to answer is: ‘has that ice melted’, because liquid water in contact with soil may provide us with a habitable environment,” said Peter Smith, the mission’s principal investigator and a professor at the University of Arizona.”

Star Wars Talking Dashboard Statues

Luke use the turn signal! The Star Wars Talking Dashboard Statues shown above spout a clever Star Wars phrase when you push their yellow button. Although I’m surprised that they don’t have an R2-D2, even though he doesn’t speak human he seems more like an ideal passanger for ones own X-Wing vehicle…

Anime from 1933

This is a great example of Anime before the age of giant robots. This is a clip from Ugokie-Ko-Ri-No-Tatehiki (The Fox Versus the Racoon) directed by Ikuo Oishi (1901-1941):

Also see (in Japanese):

http://www.n-eigashinsha.jp/kori.html