Re: Random thoughts inspired by the November 2003 Newtype USA

On Mon, Dec 1, 2003, 1:01am (EST-3), [EMAIL PROTECTED] (Vince Lamb)
wrote:
>I suspect, though, that there is a problem with
>U.S. federal regulations regarding contests that
>go through the mail. That's on the way into the
>US. Then there might be problems with customs
>going back to Canada. I don't know if ADV can
>fight either one of those sets of problems. Sigh.
>You should read the complaints from the Canadian
>Survivor fans about being unable to get on the top
>rated show in Canada!

I'm surprised Canadians would watch that crap!  (not into these reality
shows myself)

Perhaps I should move up there, I've been looking into movine somewhere
that'll depress me further.

>Yeah, I'm *from* Ann Arbor, but I don't live there
>anymore. In fact, while I live in Michigan, I'm
>considered to be in the Toledo TV market.

OK, I'm gonna narrow it down to somwhere in Monroe or Lennawee Counties
then!

Too bad you'd have to put up with our crappy stations though, but most
TV stations these days aren't really that great to watch outside of
network programming these days.  When I was a pre-teen, I used to pick
up stations from Detroit, Cleveland, Canada and other DX stations via my
indoor UHF antenna in my bedroom!  It was so fun to watch something I
couldn't get locally (you can't get that with cable/satellite people!)

>Two more anecdotes for you all. At the Suncoast
>video in Port Huron, MI, the anime section has
>grown from 3'x6' to 16+'x8' over the past 4 years.

I wish I knew how big the Suncast selection was in my city, as the
Suncoast location at the Southwyck Shopping Center closed up earlier
this year.  :-(

>At the Sam Goodies in Southfield, MI, the anime
>section has doubled in size since *April* from 1 to
>2 2'x4' racks of DVDs. It would be larger, except
>that the store is unable to cut back on the space
>for other kinds of DVDs and videos. Consequently,
>there are boxes and boxes of anime DVDs on the
>floor below the racks and the discs move quickly.

We used to have "Musicland" at Northtowne years ago (a subsidiary of Sam
Goody).  Today Sam Goody is owned by Best Buy apparently, who also
operates the mega "Media Play" chain as well (at least we still have
that store in Toledo).

>>>Anime Insider listed "One Piece" as "the coolest
>>>anime you've never seen" and it's the highest
>>>rated anime in Japan. At least the manga has
>>>made it to the US. Now, whatever happened to
>>>Funimation's license?
>>Who knows. I'm still having my fingers crossed
>>anyway.
>Ditto. BTW, the manga is a scream!

I already read through the January issue's worth of chapters!  I only
wish they did it more as a weekly than a montly as I hate waiting to
continue it.  (If you ever pick up that issue of Shonen Jump, check out
the "O.K. Jump Guy" page for several of my submitted drawings!)

Would also like to see Detective Conan somehow brought over (heard
FUNimation has this too)

>I don't have to encourage her to do anything. Quite
>the opposite. She's the one who wanted to start
>reading manga and anime magazines and pulled
>me into the interest, although I admit to not
>resisting, having watched the first wave of anime
>(Kimba, Amazing 3, Gigantor, 8th Man, Speed
>Racer) during the late 1960s

Though not from Toledo I bet!  (had to research this at the library to
find out the awful truth, yet I was surprised Fred Ladd was also from
Toledo too)

>and the very first part of the second wave (Star
>Blazers) in 1981

A fine show I missed sadly.

>and then following the early days of Animania as
>chronicled on the University of Michigan computer
>bulletin boards from 1990 to 1994, when I was a
>graduate student there. In fact, I have to restrain
>her spending, ask to read the manga I've bought
>her when she's done (I have the entire run of
>Chobits by my bedside), and put off her getting
>Newtype until I review it on raam. She was
>*thrilled* to get it yesterday!

I know how it could be with the expenses and all.  I pretty much stopped
buying Newtype a while ago as I felt there wasn't too many interests to
make it worth the money to blow on it, I'd probably only get interested
if a DVD or a poster in it might be what I'll want.

>From the Master of Car-too-nal Knowledge...
Christopher M. Sobieniak

--"Fightin' the Frizzies since 1978"--