Topic: RossRoy's Random Viewings

[Tom]

Was Ricky Gervais' Microsoft clip posted here in this forum at some point? It's also great.

[Achim]

Hehe Yeah, I keep going to that comedy club in GTAIV hoping to see Ricky. But the game seems to prefer Kat Williams for some reason 

When I played it it would start with Kat and go through all of his bits. Then Ricky came up and each time I went I'd see another bit of his. Then it went back to repeat Kat. I think there is about 4(?) of each.

Was Ricky Gervais' Microsoft clip posted here in this forum at some point? It's also great.

No. Should I search YouTube or you have a link readily available?

[Tom]

Was Ricky Gervais' Microsoft clip posted here in this forum at some point? It's also great.

No. Should I search YouTube or you have a link readily available?

This video was produced as an internal introduction video for new employees at Microsoft, and was leaked to the internet. It was pulled from YouTube at the time (but found a home at other video sharing sites). But now it's back on YouTube also.

Due to its length it's divided into four parts:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKyV-l8i5lg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKXz2qDTiBU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEOz7nxky6Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXdKMoFqHWA


Sorry Sébastien for spamming your thread.

[RossRoy]

Sorry Sébastien for spamming your thread.

Yeah, you should be careful. The anonymous moderators will come down and unleash their wrath on this off topic discussion! 

(click to show/hide)

[Jimmy]

The anonymous moderators will come down and unleash their wrath on this off topic discussion! 

You aren't invisible, you have a set of blue stars under your name

[RossRoy]

Spaced: Complete Series

Original Title: Spaced Year: 1999 Country: United Kingdom Director: 1.1. Beginnings Rating: 15 Length: 345 Min. Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital Stereo, Commentary: Dolby Digital Stereo Subtitles: English, Trivia

What they say
THE COMPLETE FIRST AND SECOND SERIES OF THE MULTI AWARD-WINNING SITUATION COMEDY SPACED

Spaced revolves around two idle twentysomething flatmates - immature skateboarding would-be comic artist Tim (Simon Pegg), and moody, responsibility-sh writer Daisy (Jessica Stevenson), and their self-induced lack of success in employment, relationships and life in general. Together with their oddball assortment of friends and neigbours: Marsha, Brian, Mike and Twist, they exist in a world perched precariously on the edge of normality.

My Thoughts
I finally watched Spaced. And you know what? I definitely should have joined the marathon Achim, Jon & Tom did back then. Both series are very good!

I love the mix of seriousness vs all-out comedy that happens in British sitcoms (at least, in the ones I've seen so far). I think it's something that is missing in most sitcoms this side of the pond.

I don't want to rehash what has been said here, so I'l say that I fully agree with most of what was said in that thread.

Highlights for me:

• Tim doing the army dance at the rave in his tight pink shirt
• Brian's installation at the art house - especially the reactions at the end
• The whole "Matrix" episode at the beginning of Series 2
• Anything with Tyres 
• Sophie 

There are plenty of good moments, both funny and touching. The series as a whole is a great watch. You can't go wrong.

[RossRoy]

Divergence Eve: 1.Welcome to Watcher's Nest

Original Title: Divergence Eve: 1.Welcome to Watcher's Nest Year: 2003 Country: Japan Director: Hiroshi Negishi Rating: NR Length: 120 Min. Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, Japanese: Dolby Digital Stereo Subtitles: English

What they say
In the 24th century, intergalactic space travel has become a reality. One of the first outposts in the far reaches of space is WATCHER'S NEST - an inflation hole drive portal - which has recently come under attack by a mysterious force known simply as GHOUL.... A group of young female cadets assigned to the portal are unexpectedly thrown into a hornet's nest of trouble as they finalize their training to become elite pilots in the Seraphim Squadron.

Episode 1: MISSION 2
Episode 2: Quantum Barrier
Episode 3: Necromancer
Episode 4: Specular
Episode 5: Seraphim

My Thoughts
Well, they certainly don't waste time explaining what's going on! Right from episode 1, you are thrown right into the main character's (Misaki Kureha) second mission. Nothing much is explained. They are fighting some unknown enemy and the episode ends on a big explosion with fate unknown to some other characters. Second episode? Jumps backward a few months and we are back at the beginning of training for the 4 main girls.

So far, the series is good. Not knowing what is really going on, and learning it as the girls do, gives the series an air of mystery, which I like. It's still early in the series, but some plot threads are being laid out, and I'm eager to see their resolution. Something really odd is going on with Misaki

One thing I have to mention, for anyone who may be interested in the series. Make sure you like Fan Service. There's a LOT of it. Huge, extra bouncy breasts, tight skimpy outfits, cramped mecha cockpit allowing for revealing angle shots, etc. There's even full frontal nudity right in episode 2! Personally, I don't mind fan service, but I know some anime fans hate it.

So far, Divergence Eve doesn't look like it will revolutionize my view of anime, but, it is turning out to be good entertainment, and the story looks like it'll develop into something interesting.

[RossRoy]

Divergence Eve & Misaki Chronicles

Year: 2003

Country: Japan

Director: Hiroshi Negishi

Rating: NR

Length: 120 Min.

Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1

Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, Japanese: Dolby Digital Stereo

Subtitles: English

What they say
In the 24th century, intergalactic space travel has become a reality. One of the first outposts in the far reaches of space is WATCHER'S NEST - an inflation hole drive portal - which has recently come under attack by a mysterious force known simply as GHOUL.... A group of young female cadets assigned to the portal are unexpectedly thrown into a hornet's nest of trouble as they finalize their training to become elite pilots in the Seraphim Squadron.

My Thoughts
I decided to review both series as one for a very simple reason. While Misaki Chronicles is a sequel, it picks up right from the end of Divergence Eve and continues the story. Hence I decided to treat it as a 26 episodes long series, instead of 2 series of 13 episodes each.

The story is told in a very puzzling way, playing with time, mixing the past with flashbacks and the present. It does work, in the end, you know what happened and what led to the events depicted. But it is very puzzling and it takes a while to actually start understanding what's going on. But once you do understand and have some back story to the whole, a lot of little scenes take a new meaning and the series as a whole becomes more interesting.

Divergence Eve mainly deals with Misaki's training as part of the Seraphim Squad. You know, right from the start, that there's something about her, because she shouldn't be there. She's scared of firing a gun, can't keep control of her Rampart Armor (a sort of Mecha), yet Seraphim is an elite squad assembled to fight the Ghouls (uberpowerful enemies). Of course, you find out what's so special about her, and she saves the day ... or does she?

Misaki Chronicles, oddly, doesn't center around Misaki at all. Well it does, because it deals with the aftermath of Divergence Eve, the main character here becomes Lyar von Ertiana (Seraphim's commander) as she investigates to understand what's going on. I won't say too much, just in case, but let's just say that the situation is a mess, and Ertiana, along with what's left of Seraphim, has to figure out what's going on.

There's one thing they did that I don't understand and that annoyed me, because I don't like the look of it. They used CGI for all the space sequence, the Rampart armors and the Ghouls. Now, the CGI wouldn't be so bad if it was better integrated (à la Futurama). The thing is, anything that is CGI in the show is rendered as the same look as shows like Transformers: Beast Wars (which was first released 6 years prior!) It clashes again the traditional anime stuff, and makes it stick out, and I don't like that. I don't mind CGI, but keep a consistent look. Make is cell shaded or something. Don't make half-realistic / half-cartoony textures on the CGI against traditional Anime. At times, well, most of the time actually, it looks like the Rampart armor are made of plastics, the Ghouls too. And the movement? Gosh! They can get such smooth movement for the hand drawn anime, they could've at least tried and made it a little less mechanical and rigid in the CGI animation sequence. But then, the series was released in 2002 (its original run in Japan), and they were on an Anime budget (which I've no idea how much it is, but I'm guessing it's somewhat less than they had for Gollum ) so they may not have had the money to generate better looking CGI.

I enjoyed the series. There are some great moments. Nothing earth shattering (although they do shatter a planet! haha) but it's a good entertainment series. A little confusing at first, but if you stick with it, there is something worthwhile in the story.

[RossRoy]

Paranoia Agent Collection

Original Title: Mousou Dairinin

Year: 2004

Country: Japan

Rating: NR

Length: 319 Min.

Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1

What they say
A mysterious mugging happened in Tokyo. The victim was Sagi Tsukiko, the designer of the incredibly popular toy Maromi. Tsukiko’s testimony is that the attacker was a young boy on rollerblades swinging a bent golden bat but many suspected Tsukiko to have knocked herself out. The reason was that the attack came at a convenient time when her boss was pressuring her to come up with the next groundbreaking design.

Soon after, the next victims appear, all of them going through some sort of crisis in their lives and their testimonies always involve "Shounen Bat", that young boy with the golden bat...

Who is this "Shounen Bat"? Who's his next target?

My Thoughts
What a weird series. I read that Satoshi Kon (Perfect Blue, Millenium Actress, Tokyo Godfathers) used Paranoia Agent to bring to fruition all the little ideas he had that couldn't be integrated into his movies. I don't how true it is, and I can't find the link where I read that, but whether it's true or not, the show feels like that.

It is such an eclectic mix of different styles, different themes, it's really unnerving. The basic story revolves around Lil' Slugger who goes around and smacks people who are "cornered emotionally". It starts standard enough, with a girl getting smacked while under pressure to create the new kid's mascot. Then two detectives take the case and start investigating.. and from there.. well it becomes a lot of different things.

The series itself is interesting. Might even be a good metaphor to mass hysteria/paranoia that could happen with a serial assaulter on the loose. Yet, it's not really my preference.

[RossRoy]

The Adventures of Mini-Goddess

Original Title: Aa Megami-sama: Chicchai tte Koto wa Benri da ne

Year: 1998

Country: Japan

Rating: NR

Length: 356 Min.

Video: Full Frame 1.33:1

What they say
Belldandy. Urd. Skuld.

They're back -- sort of!

That's right, everyone's favorite goddesses are back, and this time they're on television. Unfortunately, though, someone seems to have washed them in hot water, as they've been shrunk.

Whenever Keiichi is away, it's time for Belldandy, Skuld, and Urd to play. Follow the Adventures of the Goddesses as they shrink down and have fun with their Rat sidekick, Gan-chan. Be it battling Gan-zilla or kitchen appliance romance, the Mini-Goddesses are there to have a good time.

My Thoughts
What do you do when you have a popular manga, that spawned a popular anime OVA, where the characters are Goddesses, and therefore have almost unlimited powers? Of course! You shrink them and have fun with them!

That's exactly what they did here: 48 episodes of simple fun.

[Najemikon]

Spaced: Complete Series

Original Title: Spaced My Thoughts I finally watched Spaced. And you know what? I definitely should have joined the marathon Achim, Jon & Tom did back then. Both series are very good! I love the mix of seriousness vs all-out comedy that happens in British sitcoms (at least, in the ones I've seen so far). I think it's something that is missing in most sitcoms this side of the pond. I don't want to rehash what has been said here, so I'l say that I fully agree with most of what was said in that thread. Highlights for me: Tim doing the army dance at the rave in his tight pink shirt Brian's installation at the art house - especially the reactions at the end The whole "Matrix" episode at the beginning of Series 2 Anything with Tyres  Sophie  There are plenty of good moments, both funny and touching. The series as a whole is a great watch. You can't go wrong.

Somehow missed this post. But anyway, I am so glad you enjoyed it after all our hype! There's a documentary on disc 3 you might find interesting. It's more substantial and, basically, interesting than the average DVD filler. They even do a nice little scene on the doorstep of the flat suggesting a possible future for the characters (if not the series, sadly).

[RossRoy]

Somehow missed this post. But anyway, I am so glad you enjoyed it after all our hype! There's a documentary on disc 3 you might find interesting. It's more substantial and, basically, interesting than the average DVD filler. They even do a nice little scene on the doorstep of the flat suggesting a possible future for the characters (if not the series, sadly).

I did watch the documentary. It was fun seeing them reliving all those experience and sharing it all with us. I also liked the part where they notice the two guys taking photos of the house and they just come out and talk to them. It was a nice moment.

[RossRoy]

Ah! My Goddess TV Series Premium Box

Original Title: Aa Megami-sama Year: 2004 Country: Japan Director: Rating: NR Length: 632 Min. Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1 Audio: Subtitles:

   

What they say
Keiichi Morisato is an engineering student, top driver of his campus motor club, and not very lucky with the ladies. While calling for take-out food one evening, a wrong number puts him in contact with the "Goddess Hotline". One misplaced wish later, Keiichi finds himself blessed with Belldandy, the perfect girlfriend and a goddess in every sense of the word. Unfortunately, she doesn't have any idea of how to act in the human world, and her presence quickly gets Keiichi kicked out of the dorms. Fortunately for Keiichi, his troubles have just begun!

My Thoughts
As mentioned in the very first review of this thread (my my! has it been that long already?) the TV series format is much better suited to the Ah! My Goddess world than the OVA was. There's a lot happening. What I like is how they handled the introductions of the characters. They actually spread them out pretty well all over the series. It's like whenever the series would start feeling stale by focusing too much on the same character, they'd mix things up by introducing someone new. And once everybody is introduced, they have fun with the relationships between them. Of course, the Goddess angle would have absolutely no meaning if they didn't actually make it an obstacle, which they do, especially towards the end of the series.

I really enjoyed the series. It's a a very light hearted romantic comedy, and it's really fun.



--- edit ---
I just ordered Series 2.

[RossRoy]

Ai Yori Aoshi
   

Original Title: Ai Yori Aoshi

Year: 2001

Country: Japan

Rating: NR

Length: 24x ~22 min.

Video: Full Frame 1.33:1

Audio: English: Dolby Digital Stereo, Japanese: Dolby Digital Stereo

Subtitles: English

What they say
Kaoru Hanabishi just wanted to help. Aoi Sakuraba just wanted to find her first love. They never realized they were looking for each other. Ever since their arranged marriage 18 years ago, Aoi had been in love with Kaoru, but she traveled to Tokyo to meet him when she learned the marriage had been called off. While Kaoru’s impressed by Aoi’s loyalty, innocence and beauty, to accept her affection, he might have to return to the Hanabishi Clan and the emotional and physical pain he suffered during his childhood... Their self-control and their love will be put to the test when she moves in and he tries to stay a gentleman!

My Thoughts
Very enjoyable series. This is a harem-style romantic comedy, with all the quirkyness that comes with it.

The series is fun. There's a good mix of silly comedy, awkwardness, soft and heart warming moments. The secondary characters are interesting, if a little unidimensional. One aspect I was surprised with is how they handled Taeko (one of the secondary character), which is introduced as being incredibly clumsy. So I immediately thought they'd overuse it. Well, I'm glad they didn't, which kept the character interesting. Actually, I found something to like in every characters, which is surprising.

Definitely looking forward to watching the sequel, Ai Yori Aoshi: Enishi!

[RossRoy]

Wow! I just finished doing something I've been putting off for a while now: putting newly watched stuff onto the bookshelves. They reason I had been putting it off so much is that I knew I'd have to make the whole thing spill out into a second room, but I didn't want to do it yet.. Today I bit the bullet. I had no choice, I had to move the table on which they were being accumulated.

What I ended up doing is take out all the Disney/"Kids" animations. along with anything that could be classified as "special interest" (music concerts, humour stand up, etc) as well as some odd shaped cases and moved them to another shelving unit I already had. This cleared three full shelves, leaving room for the new stuff, and some room to spare.

But, it's now painfully obvious I will have to modify my sorting. I'll probably end up having to go the "per-genre" route, or take the TV-series out and place them elsewhere. We'll see..