Does anyone still remember those old Japanese sci-fi shows (tha's sentai for you anime geeks) that used to appear on afternoons?
If anyone does I have a few questions for you.

• Why does Peebo of Bioman seem flamboyant or even gay, I mean its quite impossible for robots to be gay right?

bioman

• Why do super teams have to be color themed?

Shaider

• Why does Shaider ride his Bluehawk motorcycle standing?
• Why are Pume Le-Ar's henchmen afraid of him he's just a big ugly head that sticking out of a wall?
• Is Doctor Ang a zoophiliac since he fell in love with his pept Babsy?
• Does anybody remember those cool formations of superteams before attacking their enemies?

Ultraman

• Why does Ultraman and Magmaman fight ruber dinosaur toys that doesn't seem to move?

Annie

• Does Annie change her underwear?

Maskman

• Did the Maskman team invent the double-star rubber band trick that was famous in our school when we are in grade 4?

Machine Man

• Why does Machine Man wear a plastic table cloth for a cape?

Director, from Maskman

• How does Director from Maskman fit himself into a pyramid (which I think he bought from Johnny Midnight, who used to ripoff people with his toning water scam)?
• Why does Shaider wave a flourescent light for a sword?
  Why does it seem that there are only four violet trooper henchmen of Puma Le-Ar every fight sequence?
• Why didn't the Maskman team kill Ukirampa everytime he'd ressurect the dead villain of the week into a giant beastie?
• Doesn't Doctor Man and Madame Auring look alike?
• Why does Machine Man drive his car facing the floor?
  Aren't the villains from such shows are the most gracious and union friendly employers since they do not fire their henchmen when they mess up a mission?
• Isn't Director from Maskman Tanee from Takeshi's Casttle?
  Why does the members of the Bioman team stick out their bodies and stretch out their arms when they'd be riding that silly red police car like vehicle in the end?

Masked Rider Black

• Is it Max Alvarado who played the role of Gorgon in Masked Rider Black?
• Why does Annie play Galaxian in her fighter plain?
  Why do tricycles fly as fighter planes in Shaider?
• Doesn't Mori from Cosider look like Dick Israel with a long hair?
• Have you noticed that one of Shaider's bosses has a transparent Tupperware bowl in her head?
• Why does Machine Man have to travel and drive his car and then convert it into a plane and then travel to Bicol (I guess) to fight his enemy that is standing right in front of him?
• Isn't the name Micheal Joe silly?
• Why does the Maskman team fire a minirature jet plane as a canon?

Jetman

• Do you stil remember the other insignificant Bioman Johny-COme-Latelies: Fiveman and Jetman?
• Why did Americans ripoff such shows and make stupid versions of them like VR Troopers, Power Rangers, The Masked Rider, Ultraman Tiga, Ultraman Dyna and Tattooed Teenage Alien Fighters (that has a sentinent mucus for a leader)?

Janperson

Jiban

• Does anybody care at all for the also ran Shaider ripoffs like Jiban, Janperson and Space Ranger?
• Does Boknoy a baseball qualify as a reliable sidekick?

I know there are a lot more of those questions that remain unanswered. I mean those were just a few of my observations that I remembered only now since we were talking about it at work I know you also have yours so please feel free to share your observations.

posted by m35b @ Tuesday, November 30, 2004 |

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posted by m35b @ Thursday, November 25, 2004 |

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posted by m35b @ Thursday, November 25, 2004 |

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this is quite a cool breakthrough for this blog...
I heard that this blog that this blog got into a close call with its posting function.
Good thing chuck was able to avert such.

posted by PayItForward @ Wednesday, November 24, 2004 |

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Early this day was a close call for this blog apparently an rss feeding application that I installed is on conflict with the blogger system and has resulted with the posts not appearing at the blog. I thought then that the blog was all but obsolete and rendered useless since I can no longer post I almost cried when that was realized when I entered the blog template which shows an incomplete html code of the blog's body. Good thing though I thought of re-configuring the html by deleting all the customization that I implemented on the blog. It was cool that I store up the modifications in text files in this computer as well as share my graphics with luiboi, life'semotion and pinaybloodrush so that I can use their blogs as references for the codes. It was a close call but thank God it was averted.

A cool thought m35b has now surpassed 3000 visitors, and I'd like to thank all the loyal visitors as well as the new ones and as well as those who've made mention of this blog.

posted by m35b @ Wednesday, November 24, 2004 |

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Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this blog.

posted by m35b @ Wednesday, November 24, 2004 |

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posted by m35b @ Tuesday, November 23, 2004 |

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There are much talk about how inefficient the public school system is nowadays though I'd beg to disagree with them since I got along fine right now and not once did I ever study in a private institution I could cope up with those in the private schools, another is that I have a mother who used to be a public school teacher for almost 40 years and I have come to grow up in the school where she teaches as a teachers' kid and I can say that in my experience almost all of the teachers that I had in elementary were exemplary and can be looked up to academic aptitude-wise and personality-wise.
What it is written above is very true but that is not really the main reason why I posted here. The real reason is that I've come to recall my days in G. Del Pilar Elementary School.

• I remember the trays of food for recess and how we were encouraged to buy from them instead of buying scramble with Brown Cow, Popsicles where the wrappers are shafted in a barbecue stick by its vendor and fishballs that are all conviniently located perpendicular to our school gate.
• 
  Speaking of trays for reces I cannot help but laugh at the food in there nameley the galletas de patatas.
• 
  There's always this bunot raffle scam initiated by sidewalk vendors outside the school where they'd tease you with cool toys and even a gameboy if you'd give him 1 peso but it would always turn out that you'd win a chick (sisiw).
  
• I have rich classmates who have Coleman jugs, stroller bags and backpacks with a clock attached to it.
  
• Marvel Superheroes Trading cards were cool and are only worth P1.50 per pack which contains 3 cards and a gum.
  
• There were kids who'd be 'possessed' ala The Exorcist and they'd hurl their desks just like the hulk at our school janitors.
  
• There were rumors that the school was once a cemetery, but later on I'd find out that such urban legends are so with almost every public school.
  
• There would be the exercise sessions right after the flag ceremony.
  
• There are these cool marching band tunes played as the pupils would disperse to go to their rooms after the flag ceremony.
  
• You're considered cool if you already started wearing long khaki pants on grade 4.
  
• There is more than enough space to play agawan base, mataya-taya, monkey monkey and langit lupa in our school.
  
• There are 1 peso movies shown in our school to raise funds for its reconstruction because it was render condemed by the government following the July 16, 1991 earthquake.
  
• There was this long vacation following the erruption of Mt. Pinatubo.
  
• Crushes, girlfriend-boyfriend relationships are considered a taboo then.
  
• I get to play Bioman, Maskman and other role playing games with your friends at school.
  
• Wearing Mighty Kid Shoes was hip at our school and you're considered extrahip if you have a Doppy Dogs pair of Mighty Kids.
  
• We thought it was then cool to wear baseball helmets ala the Guwapings.
  
• There were food considered as hits in the recess tray those were Eat Bulaga Cornick and Wonder Boy chips.
  
• You could talk about your favorite cartoons at class and no one would think you're weird.
  
• I was then introduced to barbershop grin jokes starring Juan, Pepe and Pedro as well as those stories where stupid competitions would be held where the Japanese, American or whatever would compete with Filipinos over the most gross out titles.
  
• I was more than once threatened by other kids na "aabangan daw nila ko sa labas" after class. Or I would be challenged to a "square" on recess.
  
• There were mango trees to climb or hurl stones at to get their premature mango sprouts.
  
• We'd eat any eddible fruit in our school and that would include even eating kamias.
  
• There are monkey bars to exhibit our gymnastic abilities.
  
• There are bamboo like trees that we'd slide from (ala Ghostbusters) from the second floor of this condemed building in our school. The same tree would also has this fruit that stings you with intense burning itch if it makes contacts with your skin.
  
• We'd imitate Principe K from Ok Ka Fairy Ko by placing thumb tacks on the soles of our shoes and we'd tap dance.
  
• We'd ride loose boards like sleds from the second floor of this condemed building in our school via the stairs.
  
• How I can afford to not write notes because my teacher would give me a personal secretary because I'm a teachers kid.
  
• How I am this sort of untouchable super-kid at school because I'm a teachers' kid.

Too bad such good things come to an end....

posted by m35b @ Friday, November 19, 2004 |

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eople say that books define and makes up a person and I honestly believe that. In
fact I could summarize my life by the books that I've read, which would described the way my
mind ticked and what sort of stuff it is that captivated my fancy during the time.
As a kid I grew up with a lot of children's book from Ladybird and it stories were
all told to me by either my parents or my other sibling. But to start with it wasn't my
first book reading. Another is that I also grew up with Bible stories and one particular
story that I really loved at the time was that of Joseph The Dreamer. I was not yet into
that, in fact there was a time in my young life that I didn't really fancy reading. I
remember the many times that I failed periodical exams in my elementary years because I
didn't felt like reading the test question and since the test was in multiple choice I
simply randomly placed ABCD in diffrent patterns in my answer sheet to get it over with.
But all of that seemed to have changed when one time my older brother Kuya Louie
started telling me this story from this book that he's reading it was William Golding's Lord
of the Flies, as was enthralled by the tale of young boys stranded ala Swiss Family Robinson
steadily falling into savagery, and I was thrilled that I was able to relate to the
characters of Ralph, Simon and Piggy in the tale, I was grade three at the time.
Come grade four I got into collecting comic books, I started reading them it was
this particular Superman story entitled Metropolis Mailbag that sparked the trend of my
collecting which would remain as a part of me up to now. By grade five I finally got to
finish my first book it was Jules Verne's 20, 000 Leagues Under the Sea, my father was
thrilled at that breakthrough that he even made mention of it in a letter that he sent to my
Kuya Peddie who was at the time studying in Israel. One book led to another from Verne would
come Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, Lost World; Kipling's Jungle Book, Dumas' Three
Musketeers and Merville's Moby Dick.
By the time I reached grade six I got into the graphic novel genre upon reading the
works Howard Chaykin and Neil Gaiman, later on as I got in transition from elementary to
high school my comic book collection have already exceeded a hundred copies, and my book
reading has then lapsed for a while but I still read a few one of them is this book called
Mysteries of Space & The Universe by some author that I've long forgotten as well as this
fictional manual about vampires and werewolves both of them given by my Ate Susie.
Come high school I got into collecting Trade Paperback collection of grand tales
from DC The Death of Superman, Knightsend, Zero Hour, Superman/Doomsday: Hunter & Prey,
Panic In The Sky, The Killing Joke and a lot more were bought out of the lunch money that I
saved by not eating my lunch and not taking the usual tricycle ride from the school to our
house.
It was where later when I was about to graduate that I was able to read Edgar Reyes'
Sa Kuko ng Liwanag, Utos Ng Hari and other Palangka short stories that at the time were
given to us as projects but at the same time I also found this cool discovery of DC's
Vertigo line of comic books which featured the writing of Peter Milligan, Garth Ennis, Grant
Morrison, Gaiman many more along with that I finally got to appreciate the humor of the
Giffen-DeMatteis era Justice League.
Come college I've already consumed a lot more books during the summmer vacation. But
the start of college was a time where I thought one has to have this sophisticated mind so I
started out with Exupery's The Little Prince and then followed it with Lualhati Bautista's
Bata, Bata Pano Ka Ginawa?. It was then also that I got to meet Ave Perez Jacob who
introduced our class to Filipino literary works by that of Juaquin, Ordoñez, Sikat etc. By
the time I got into the writings of Alfonso Mendoza nameley that of his short stories which
were compiled in paperback as Iskalper at Iba Pang Mga Kuwento.
By the time that I was starting out in college it was also the time that I started
out taking my Bible reading seriously where I tried to read the Bible from cover to cover
which would last for two years. Around that time also I was introduced by Kuya Ponch my
discipler at church to read Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and Asimov's Foundation Series.
Then I came to meet Jeanie and was able to swap a number of books with her at my
favorite book at the time was Ethan Hawke's The Hottest State and several Crichton novels
like Sphere, Jurassic Park, Congo and The Lost World.
Halfway through college also got me interested in leftwing politics and anarchism I
started out with Will Durant's Story of Philosophy and several anotations from the works of
Marx, Lenin and Mao. By third year I was able to finish the summarized version of Amado
Guerrero's Philippine Society & Revolution and BISIG's The Socialist Vision which opened
further horizons at lefty litterature from that of Reid's Philippine Left: Political Crisis
and Social Change; Marx's Communist Manifesto; Alfredo Saullo's Communism in the
Philippines, Sallinger's The Catcher In The Rye; Sison's Philippine Revolution: A Leaders
View, Jose Dalisay's Killing Time in a Warm place, Dekada 70 and a lot more.
That was a time of discovery for me though it cost me my relationship with God and
it embittered me with how the world works and gave me such a jaded point of view at how the
world works though indeed it has served its purpose of opening my eyes of the fact that the
world really is quite unfair.
I would be stagnated with such subverssive literature up until the time I would
finish college where God in His part of re-aligning me back to His will would lead me to
discover this book called Jesus Freaks by Toby Mackeenan of DC Talk and J. Wilkerson's Hey
Preach You're Coming Through which got me to cry in the bus as I was reading it. The Bible
once again became of interest to me and that long been kept silent longing for something
that I cannot explain which in its way also felt like a big void in me got me again to read
the Bible at a more personal level I got to read Warren's PDL, C.S. Lewis' Miracles, William
McDonald's True Discipleship, Graham's Peace With God and a lot more.
The Bible became such a personal book to me which lead me to move on and have this
new perspective in life and that is that I am already dead to sin and alive in Christ and
therefore it is no longer I who lives in me but Christ. It was cool and I began to have this
passion for apologetics and in studying the histrocicity of Jesus and the history of
Christianity it was really cool that I got to read Paul Little's Know What and Know Why You
Believe books as well as C.S. Lewis' The Great Divorce as well as a lot more books, tracts
magazines and others.
Seeing as how the Bible as a book have remain that personal and that long lasting to
me makes me realize that like a book I myself is sort of a novel that God writes I am still
in the process of its completion and there would still be a lot more of plot twists and
turns and of conflicts and victories before my story would climax with that one final amen.
But as for now I'd continue to live a life on that great book which is the Bible.

posted by m35b @ Friday, November 19, 2004 |

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The Philippines have long been having this fascination with midgets though not at that type wherein the local showbiz press is taunting at Mahal's love life one of the most famous dwarves in the local show business industry, there were shows and stars and a handful of midgets that glazed the silverscreen with their talens long before Mini Me or better yet Verne Troyer as he is known in real life became a franchise to various shows, commercials (Cadbury) and music videos (Crazy Town's Butterfly).

What I have here is not a profound or introspective sociological perspective at the pressence of midgets on movie and television what I have here is just a mere summary of midgets that as memory serves me been present in the entertainment medium that is television which has in one way or another raised me in the 80s and the early 90s. (Too bad there's so few of their photos in the net.)

Paeng Giant
If my memory serves me right he was the first 'love-team' partner of Mahal back then when she was still on Lunch Date (the show that replaced Eddie Elarde and Bobby Ledezma's Student Canteen) with Randy Santiago, Chicky Hollman-Yulo and Tony Rose Gaida. That was before Mahal's love life was something that is of a novelty. I can remember him wearing this sailor's hat when I saw him personally at a motorcade theatre tour for the movie In The Navy where he supported the then sweet as ever tandem of Lotlot & Monching.

Mahal
She said to be only 15 at the time when Keno asked her of her age while she was in Lunch Date. There she played the role that is to be the antithesis of Aiza who was at the time the most bankable asset of Eat Bulaga. My cousin who once joined as a contestant on one of their contests fondly told me that Mahal when she handed his consolation prize money to him was only up until his waist and my cousin was only 11 years old at the time.

Noel "Unga" Ayala
Who could forget Ungga from the Istarzan parody of Edgar Rice Burough's Tarzan which starred comedian Joey De Leon. During the first Istarzan movie Noel was clothed in this midget ape suit where he graced the screen with his stupid grin jokes together with the late Rene Requestas. But during the ending of the movie he was shown to have removed the mask and later starred at the film as Ungga who together with Chitae would be the slapstick sidekicks of Istarzan.

The dwarf in Going Bananas
I've long been struggling to recall this guy's name but true enough if you were one of those who've watched Gong Bananas at the time he was this white skinned dwarf who has this patch of hair in his cheeks who was to serve as Whitney Tyson's husband during skits. He was famous for his role as the opportunistic perv on the show's parody of the Electrolux commercials where it features Jay Ilagan as a salesman who'd be singing the "i'm gonna knock on your door, ring on your bell..." routine where simultaneously before he could finish the word "bell" Monica Herrera or whoever that starlet is would open the door that he was previously knocking on and he'd accidentally press on the actress' breast, where all the while this midget was watching from a distance and he'd get the idea that if he'd be the one who's doing that he'd be led even lower to the girl's body, but
sad to say everytime he'll be doing the same routine of Jay Ilagan he'd always end up with
Johnny Delgado or Al Tantay opening the door for him and he'd accidentally press on the
actors' crotches.

Goliath of Takeshi's Castle
This dude was sort of a late comer a Johny come lately that was added to the mishmash of Anjo Illana and Smokey Manoloto who were at the time the hosts of Takeshi's Castle on IBC 13. He'd always be shown in his kimono weilding this sword and he'd always get his ass kicked by their boss Takeshi.

Weng Weng

The last but not the least in fact the most significant, since he was the one that paved the way for those mention above to make their careers in Philippine showbiz. Said to have been 'pinaglihe' to Sto. Niño he stands at the most 4ft tall and starred on various local 70s James Bond ripoffs as Agent 00 star of the movie For Your Height Only. Where he is shown as this suave secret agent that has these various stupid high-tech gear. As the 80s weaned and as the decade came to close his career faded into obscurity. It was said that he had settled in the USA and have appeared even on Hollywood Squares. Though as a testament to his contribution to the art his film For Your Height Only is the very first Filipino film to be made into DVD format, and his persona featured on magazines such as Details and on various websites. It could be said that he was an importable commodity of the Philippines since he is looked upon as a serious actor in the States. He is also
subject to the fascination of counter-cultural guru Dino Ignacio of Bert Is Evil and Maritess VS. The Superfriends who dedicated a site for the short dude.

While there are also others who seemed to appear as though they fall under the same category as those above but are in fact in a different class themselves.

Niño Mulach
A very popular child star of the 70s, who was said to have been given anti-growth horomone drugs by his to dampen his growth (maybe they think that he could be imortalized as a child star much like Baby Herman, from Who Framed Roger Rabbit?) sad to say the speculated action resulted with Niño's career downfall during the early 80s where it would be ruled by his coursin Aga (who's career was in the first place launched by Niño) and his cohorts in the Bagets. He would every now and then resurface with a new girlfriend or wife or something.

Kuhol
This guy is quite short but I'm not quite sure if he's a dwarf but he is quite famous in his own right since he still has a career now where he'd sporadically appear in movies and television shows. He started out as the slapstick assistant of Mr. Shooly from the socially and politically oriented talkshow cum comedy Mongolian Barbecue.

Now don't get me wrong or anything this post in by no means intended to down the
above mentioned people nor do I have a bigot attitude to those who are born with dwarfism.
It was inteded as a reflective post since I remembered the time when such issues were just
plain fun and there were no controversies such as that of Mahal existent at the time and
how on my perspective I see Americans finding such humor funny nowadays which is evident
with Mini Me, that black guy who appeared on Me Myself & Irene and the midget Blink 182
parody on the Man Overboard video. I hope you find this post worthwhile.

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For a detailed bio of Weng Weng - http://www.trashvideo.com.au/wengweng.htm
For a review of For Your Height only - http://www.capital.net/~phuston/WENG.HTML
For Dino Ignacio's Weng Weng Site - http://www.wengweng.com

posted by m35b @ Thursday, November 18, 2004 |

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I pretty much have nothing to write about other than to give you folks some updates on my other projects that I'm working on that are in one way or another related to m35b.

First up is that I've already finished adding PayItForwad to the Unity of Opposites site ring. As well as have finished some customizations for the site. Another is that I've recently changed the layout of Pinay Blood Rush making it appear more sleek or something (though I'm not so sure about that so you be the judge.)

Lastly is that I'd like thank the people who've been visiting this blog and that its already nearing to 2000 visitors already so I just urge everyone of you to come and continue to visit this site and if in any case you won't mind please do sign my guestbook.

Thanks.
God bless.

x.s.
By the way check out the new post over at PayItForward if ever you're interested. Thanks.

posted by m35b @ Wednesday, November 17, 2004 |

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An earlier post below tells of the reformation of the band Pay It Forward.

I am just glad to announce here that the band now has a site that is still in its beta-testing phase but nevertheless is a ground breaking step forward for them.

click ---> here <--- to visit the site.

or send an e-mail to: payitforwardrocks@yahoo.com for your comments and suggestions.

Thanks.

posted by m35b @ Tuesday, November 16, 2004 |

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I'm late.
I just got in to report for work.
I'm late and do you want to know why?
The darn train can't accomodate the number of people going in for work. And come to think of
it the government says that we're in a fiscal crisis yet based on my experience from that
train ride that I take everyday it seems as though almost everyone is off in a hurry to go
to work.
This sucks because being late means that the minutes spent on travel time would be docked
out of my salary, which is already below my cost of living since I wasn't able to report for work the past week because I got sick.
Come to think of it if it wasn't for that horrendous train ride I would have been able to report for work earlier because the location of our office is relatively near the MRT
station. But sad to say it wasn't that easy the MRT is always inefficient. It always fails to come on time. Its trains are too small to fit everyone humanely or comfortably. Its
cashiers on their ticket dispensers are grouchy and the like. But still its the best alternative to traversing the traffic congested path of EDSA. That fact is what makes me captive of that rail system. I think it really sucks.
I can remember our project leader now when she would read the company's rules and
regulations etc. She'd always give this high emphasis on the lates part and how it dampens
our production. And that's what always seems to hold us yoked with the burden of work.
Production. It's all that matters to our bosses. Its what counts. Nevermind the quality or
the humanity of the employee as long as he or she can meet the quota and if they've done so
or more in a consecutive manner they'll be giving you this higher quota so that you'd be
more maximized. That's how it works. I have to report for work yesterday because our project
needs to meet this quota for our client that's in the USA who doesn't give a rat's arse
about holidays and stuff.
It helds us captive.
I can remember how almost if not all of my boses saying this all too familiar lines:
"I don't care how much it takes, if it takes overtime fine. Just don't file it but make sure
you get the job done."
"I don't care get it done whether it be by hook or by crook, deadlines are to be met."
"I don't care if it would mean that you'd have to wake up at 3 in the morning so that you
won't be late we need to meet a given production."
"Absences and leaves need to be filed in advance even sick leaves, which are considered to
be as LWOPs (Leave Without Pay) for temporary employees, but see to it that you'd give a
medical certificate for your sick leave."
And so on and so forth.
It sucks.
Such statements reflect how bosses see their employees.
They're resources, very much the same as oil, land and money.
A better description would be as cattle, that they can milk.
I remember one boss who made this analogy of us employees as workers in a production line
that stamps metals. And that very much describes how he sees us. No more no less.
It's what I hate about capitalism. Human beings are at a higher level whenever they have the
money, the land and the guts to pull off some grand money making scheme to earn more money.
They'd invent, influence and even legislate laws in the existing government (that they
apparently control, which is called bureaucrat-capitalism) to make the law work to their
advantage. THat's where contractualization, lower cost of living allowances, price hikes, no
health care and all those other fiascos that causes the lefties to march to the parliament
of the streets fit in.
It's because it sees people as commodities as capital as resources that they can extract
work off and milk to their advantage.
And the sad thing about it is that it helds all of us captive and it sucks.
I know I ought to be thankful or feel in debt to the company that its given me a job since a
lot of people around me are unemployed or underemployed. But just the same I cannot help but feel this way. I am human and emotions is what makes humans separate from animals, its what makes me at the very least higher than cattle (which is what a lot of the powers that be
think of me). I feel weary and tired and sick of it all at times. And I know its wrong to
feel this way. But I hope and pray that I'd see the silver linnings and the light of what
this means in my life and how it is being used by God to mold my character so I guess for
now I'd be asking God to help me struggle with these negative emotions.
I'd be off to work for now...

posted by m35b @ Tuesday, November 16, 2004 |

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Does anybody still remember those days when primetime cartoons would mean shows like G.I. Joe, The Real Ghostbusters and of course The Transformers?

The cartoons' basic premise is quite simple it tells of an age old power struggle between the inhabitants of the planet Cybertron. Among those two factions there are the good guys called the Autobots lead by a humanoid trailer-truck-cum-robot named Optimus Prime.

While the nasty ones are called Decepticons who are lead by Megatron who can transform into a gun which is often fired by his right hand robot Starscream or sometimes by Soundwave.

Well anyways it is a toy-line-inspired cartoon, derivative of "Star Wars" and designed onlyto sell toys to the kids. (I mean how many of us who've grown in the 80s did not have at least a single toy that transforms from a robot to another thing right?)

So as the story of the cartoon goes it would always end up to a point where the Decepticons would always be on the verge of gathering enough energon to recapture their planet Cybertron, but just in the nick of time the Autobots along with the help of their human cohorts namely Spike and Sparkplug would always be there to stop them. And on and on it went. There were no clear victories no casualties (though that would be attributed to this thing called "parachute syndrome" which is derived from the G.I. Joe TV series habit ofshowing parachuting pilots for every Cobra airplane that was shotdown, it was so because back then to show death in a children's cartoon might risk offendingparental watchdog groups. )

But all that changed when the Transformers: The Movie was released. Sunbow Productions, a premiere animation studio in Japan in cooperation with Hasbro launched this movie that starred our favorite Autbots and Decepticons into the silverscreen. Originally released in late 1986 the movie was a complete theatrical flop despite its impressive animation, which up to now could rival that of newer animes and its impressive voice cast which even included the late Orson Welles as well as Judd Nelson and Leonard Nimoy. Not to mention its impressive heavy metal soundtrack. Still the movie was not well recieved by a lot of people at the time.

In fact here in the Philippines it did not even make it into the movie houses it was merely shown sporadically along with GI Joe: The Movie on Christmas cartoon festivals or as fillers.

Fair enough the movie got me captivated after all I was a fan of the cartoon.

And the story goes a little something like this time jumps to eighteen years ahead into the future and finding out what happened to all our favoritecharacters years down the road. It starts with the planet Cybertron eventually landing into the hands of the Decepticons and its two moons controlled by the Autobots. It starts with an all out attack launched by the Decepticons on the Autobot's Earth base where a killing spree of characters happened wtih Optimus Prime taking the MVP of the characters that ended up dead after dueling to death with Megatron. But all is not about the conflict of the two robot factions another entity was added in the sheer mishmash of this cosmic war Unicron, a giant planet eating robotic entity has set his sight on Cybertron and is set on collision to devouring the said planet.

And so the movie goes along a lot of conflics introducing and killing a lot of characters along the way where in the end Cybertron would be claimed by the Autobots and their new leader would be a brash unkown transformer named Hot Rod (who never did ever appear on the cartoon series prior to the movie) who'll from now on be called Rodimus Prime.

Though a flop the film retained such credibility so as to establish the continuity of the Transformers Universe as something more than a cartoon used to market toys. It served as a testament that cartoons however silly it may appear to a lot of adults would also be capable of enthralling a lot of complex set of events and then be fused into a solid story that could rival the works of Tom Clancy and the like.

Come to think of it may very well be a derivative of "StarWars"...there were lightsabers, a female robot with a Princess Leiahairstyleish look, a giant sphere that destroyed planets, a saber duelbetween an old respected warrior and the evil bad guy...the warrior'sspirit speaking to the young warrior type and helping him win...okay,in some ways it was _very_ derivative of "Star Wars". All the same,it was a good story, quite action-packed, very exciting, andgripping to those of us of the right age to enjoy it.

Another is that it provided resolution to the seemingly never-ending battle of the Autobots & Decepticons. In the movie there was more than enough conflict, there was death, and there was resolution. It feltmore mature somehow to have the good guys take losses, and then blowthe bad guys away.

It signalled a new era for the cartoon where the story of the post-movie series would be set on Cybertron and its reconstruction instead of the repetitive stories which were set on Earth.

I know a lot of people would easily pick up Ghost In The Shell or Akira given the chance to chose between those two cartoons over The Transformers: The Movie but true enough it has carved itself with a very special mark on my childhood where it shows that nothing good can last (especially for the heroic Optimus Prime) and that all wars cost lives (in the movie's case it was the lives of Brawn, Ironhide, Ratchet, Prime and a whole lot more of others who've been eaten alive by Unicron.)

It is quite a good film especially if you have at one point in your life have come to have loved the cartoon.

posted by m35b @ Monday, November 15, 2004 |

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Surfing the net is one viable option for jolting up your brain. Especially when you're trapped in a very mechanically routine job as mine. The work environment is the usual its just me and the awful admin page othe site that I maintain. But thankfully there is free unlimited access to the internet here at the office thus enriching my skill at the 'Alt-Tab'routine but still true enough it still manages to give me the much needed distraction from the eye aching sight of that lousy boring admin page.
I accidentally stumbled upon a site that contains links to various web sites that carry information about the DC Vertigo line of comics which I am really fond of. So what I did is I surfed the site.

True enough the site was a goldmine of links and one in particular link there got me the link to sites containing a goldmine of information about this opus called The Invisibles authored by the Brit writer Grant Morrison whom I have earlier written a post about in this blog along with his fellow Brit writer Alan Moore. The comic is basically a psychedelic epic that details the adventures of a group of anarchist freedom fighters who battle against physical and psychic oppression using time travel, magic, martial arts, guns and transcendental meditation. It may well have influenced The Matrix trilogy of films or might have been influenced by this old anime entitled Akira.
The story of the comic focuses on a particular cell of Invisibles lead by a skinhead named King Mob whose character is based on the persona of author Grant Morrison among its other characters are that of Dane McGowan aka Jack Frost, a young street punk from Liverpool who could very well be the next Buddha; as well as Lord Fanny, a Brazilian shaman and transvestite; Boy, a former NY City police officer and Ragged Robin, a telepathic time-traveller.
The book intimately distilled Morrison's notion on 1990s conspiracy culture and just about every fringe notion he could find into the book, whether or not he believed in it, creating a hypersigil with the intention of jumpstarting the culture in a more positive direction.
It deals with issues ranging from The French Revolution (which apparently was instigated by the said group); Marquis de Sade (whom they hired to wage their war of psychic revolution); as well as other references to several counter-cultural flora and fauna that has been collectively interwoven by Morrison to create this grand tale about how the human race is caught up ignorant about the real happenings in the world that they live in and the quest of the Invisibles to liberate the minds of the people from that erg of ignorance which has been all throughout history utilized by the powers that be to subdue humanity into constant submission to all heirarchial forms of government, however tyranical they may be.
Its about anarchy for the masses it dispels a lot of references to revolutionary anarchism and its adherence to direct action and the like.
On a personal note it was one of those comic books that have really got me to think about a lot of things. It was an influential book during my transition from high school to college.
The very first copy of it is still read constantly ever since I've brought it home from a comic book shop's sale bin. It was one of the few comic books that have molded me into deciding to take part in student activism in college and not to mention mold my political inclinations. It's what brought me to understanding the true nature of anarchism which is bent on self-control and self-organization as well as personal initiative in making society habitable. And for that reason I take up this space so as to give a fitting tribute to such a work of art that has played its role in my life.
Its comforting to know that every once and a while you'd stumble into something in the net and be reminded of the things that you've valued in the previous years that have come and gone and that reminder was that of the Invisble's contribution in my life.

I may no longer totally adher now to what the comic book may dispel or incite but true enough it has been a positive channel of youthful angst during those years of idealism in the university. This may not be a very well written tribute to such an influential book but I truly hope that this would vindicate my long neglect for its real worth in molding me into what I am today.
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For further information on the book feel free to visit the links below
The Invisibles Links
The Bomb - a collection of anotations as well as a detailed introspection of the book and its inner workings.

posted by m35b @ Friday, November 12, 2004 |

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1. I can't help but laugh at some of the stuff that are cool then.
   Most stupid moral oriented children's shows came out of the 80s namely: Yan Ang Bata, Chikiting Patrol, Friends Of The Earth and Pen Pen De Sara Pen starring Temyong Tamarraw and Connie Angeles.
2. There vareity are shows like Vilma, Lovliness, Tonight With Dick & Carmi, Superstar and Megastar that showcase the so-called talents of the actresses that starred them, and apparently when they mean talent they meant the lead actress dancing to synthpop Top 40 hits in their tanggas.
3. There is this show called Wok with Yan starring Stephen Yan wherein every episode of it starts with him enterring this door with a market place at the background where it shows an old lady buying fish and with each every episode that same old lady is buying fish in the same position.
4. Jograd was still famous then and he has this show which makes parody out of the New People's Army's acronym entitled No Permanent Address too bad he didn't got sparrowed by the NPA Sparrows that abounded the metropolis during the later half of the Aquino regime.
5. There was this adult oriented comedies that are shown at 9pm on television namely Going Bananas which had this singing group called Eddie & The Jakulites and Chika Chika Chicks wherein every episode of it ends with Nova Villa asking her husband Fredie Webb to join her in taking a 'shower.'
6. Saturday mornings are something to look forward to because after that lousy Challenge of the Gobots at 8am it would be time for The New Adventures of Batman & Robin and Astroboy at RPN 9. While on channel 13 it would be this repetitive episodes of Voltes V that never seemed to have ended as well as the Woody Wood Pecker show and Mighty Mouse. While GMA would be constantly teasing kids with toys that they could never afford at Uncle Bob's Lucky 7 Club hosted by Uncle Bob and his Son Jodie who looked like a drug addict as well as Dolly Anne Carvajale.
7. There are these silly Joey commercials (similar to those Lumen commercials of Surf) produced by Royal Tru-Orange and there would even be this character called Boy Cha Cha who endorsed Royal's Sarsa Parilla line of drinks. Fastforward to the present that Joey kid is now an adult and he's hosting this stupid men's show on Studio 23.
8. There are these cool Milo Commercials with Bea Lucero as that great gymnast and this kid who can dribble two basketballs at the same time. As well as there were cool snacks like Chizzles and Chickadees that have those pop up toys, super-hero trading cards and other freebies.
9. Transformers then were the Pokemons of the 80s and you're considered uncool if you didn't know who Optimus Prime is and if you really think about it Bumblebee o the Autobots kind of looks like Pikachu.
10. The COBRAs in GI Joe would always survive their battles and the pilots of fighter plains would always get the chance to eject before their vehicles explode. And Destro wears a metal helmet but when he's talking the lips in the metal helmet moves.
11. Thundercats have this cool jingle that goes like this: "Thunder thunder thunder cats!" which would be paraphrased by my late grandmother into something like this: "Tanda Tanda Tanda na!"
12. Burt Marcello was still alive and well back then at Tawag Ng Tanghalan and he'd always beg Pilita Coralez to let him kiss her in the cheeks.
13. The family computer was then king. And Mario was the Sonic The Hedgehog of video game poster boys at the time.
14. There would be these cool Hana-Barbera crossover series like Wacky Races, Yogi's Space Race and Yogi's tressure hunt which would feature characters like Huckleberry Hound, Snaglepuss, Peter Potamus, Magilla Gorilla and Dick Dastardly in the same show.
15. Who could foget TODAS and their jokes.
16. Does anyone still remember when GMA 7 would open their programming for the day with this clip of a choir singing the Hallelujia Chorous from Handel's Messiah?
17. Why are Japanese super-heroes fond of sporting color themed codenames like Red 1, Blue Mask and why does Shaider stand up when he rides the Blue Hawk everytime he'd enter the Time Space Warp?

I can still think of a lot more but I guess there isn't enough ample time to talk about it. But I guess the 80s were really silly times but it was those silly times that have molded us in the persons that we are today and I guess it has contributed into making our childhood more fun and something worthwhile to look back on.

posted by m35b @ Thursday, November 11, 2004 |

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posted by m35b @ Thursday, November 11, 2004 |

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The demise of Life Is Trying is sort of now just a very distant memory that could be looked at my personal index of tragedies filed under 'tragic stories'.
Nevertheless it has been mended and healed by the course of time which God enabled each of us to be out of each others ways for quite sometime.
As for now that is just short of a distant memory that the rest of us would like to move on from.
Recently for almost a month now I as well as Laix, Mark and the sporadic appearances of both Regie and Cedric have already been doing our share of practicing at good ole Alberto's, for this new project which was as of that time not yet officially named.
We've been able to complete a new song and a new song writing session has already been kicked off a couple of months earlier between me and Laix at my house.
The remaining question now is that whether it should still be called Life Is Trying apparently Mark thought it best to keep the name. But the only problem is that the rest of us think that the name sucks and reflects the immaturity that we had during the time of our existence and it kind of reminds us of band names that ring similar to that of Simple PLan and A New Found Glory which no longer has such credence in the music that they make.
So what I did was type several tentative names in a Notepad file here on the office but sad to say it reaped names that are at best very pretentious and what happened was that this title of an old movie sort of came into my head while I was discussing a new name for a band with Laix while we're waiting for our train ride off to church and the name was Pay It Forward the same title that was of this movie which starred that kid from the Sixth Sense.
He liked it and a week later while we were rummaging through a stack of on sale VCDs in search of a copy of the movie Serendipity I suddenly came across this VCD of the movie Pay It Forward which sort of validates the christening of this new band name. Another is that the new name reflects our newfound stance on life and how it works and it specifically echoes the way we'd approach the issue of piracy if in any case we'd finally be able to record our music. We'd ask our listeners to simply record our stuff on a cassette or cd and give it to their friends/relatives or whatever so that they could pay us forward with how our music have touched their lives.
Right now we've been cut short of our rehersals but due to this sickness that I am still recovering from hopefully we'll be going back to full throttle with this band in the days to come.
For now I'll be contented with the name, which is already a big step towards whatever it is that we'll be facing as a band in the days to come.

posted by m35b @ Wednesday, November 10, 2004 |

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What's in your head now?
A: The name Encar Benedicto whom I believe is the host of this old children's show called Yan Ang Bata.
Isn't that a silly name for a girl?
A: I think so. But there's also a name for this 80s child actress named Bamba which I guess is sillier than Encar.

You were sick for a week so that means you've got a lot of TV time, so I guess you got to watch a lot of shows lately?
A: Not really. TV shows are boring nowadays they're too into that 'reality tv' thing that kind of clutters the airwaves right now. Plus I can no longer find my favorite shows like Knightrider, McGuyver, John & Marsha, Ang Manok Ni San Pedro and Perfect Strangers on air so that leaves me with just spending the rest of the time sleeping the whole day through. Or watching VCDs.

You mentioned VCDs. So what movie did you enjoy on your VCD player lately?
A: I would have to say. The Lord of the Rings minus the long dialougues that I fastforwarded (is there such a word?) because my nephew Arno said so and to quote him: "pangit kasi yung palabas pag-puro usapan lang dapat puro labanan." Which also was one of the most brilliant things that I've discovered in watching movies at home fasforward the boring dialougues and get on with the action scenes.

You said you like action scenes does this mean that you prefer an action movie over drama, comedies and other genres?
A: Actually no. I am really not that of a fan of action movies but I do enjoy blood, gore and senseless violence in movies especially when I am watching them at home because the house represents anything that is mundane and normal our house doesn't really offer me much with anything fun to do other than watch violent movies or play my guitar or listen to my mp3s (which as of press time is no longer an option because my PC died last Saturday.) And all too often when I am already sick and tired of playing my guitar I'd watch cheap B-movies with lots of senseless violence so that I'd get a good laugh at how impossible those things are. Sadly though its on very rare occassions that I get to see such movies on HBO, Cinemax and Star though at times there are some that you'd see on AXN (Anaconda) & Solar which has these cool movies from the 80s that has these zombies and stuff (I always look forward to watching The Refrigerator) which has this scene where this dude is killed by a portable Kodak fan and a trash basket. For the VCDs what we usually have at home are kiddie films like Nemo, and Land Before Time and the LOR Trilogy is the only one we have that has lots of action scenes. And skipping the dialougues even makes the movie more coherent and it still amounted to 6 hours even if I skipped the long dialogues.

You listen to mp3s you said as well as play guitars. So do you play your guitar while listening to your mp3s or are both activities done at different points in time?
A: At times I usually play my guitar to the tune of the mp3 that I'm listening to because its good practice for guitar playing. My favorite tunes are basslines of punk songs because I play bass which is easier rather than those chords that kind of tires me. Although there are times that I just play my guitar without tunes its usually done when I'm writing songs to a hum that Xander gives me.

So you're like a bass player of sorts so tell me have you ever played in a band?
A: You bet I did. I have been in a lot of bands since I started playing guitar in 1996. I presently play bass guitar for church which is cool because I learn a lot of new styles in playing bass and a greater reason which is to praise God.
So you must be a Christian?
A: Yes I am.

What kind?
A: a sinner that has been saved by grace when I chose to let God take control of my life.

Is it hard?
A: If you rely on yourself and your own strength too much yes its hard but if you depend on God it could be quite easy.

Do you skate?
A: I used to. But I never really got beyond than doing these running olies over gutters and curbs. Which incidentally also got me this injury a long time ago where I actually thought that I have broken my back. My nephew Gato skates and he's quite very good at it.

You come from PUP you must be a commie?
A: Not really. But I did stand on the same issues as the commies did at the time. But a commie not at all maybe an anarchist but who am I to say of all that. I am not political but I am concerned with where I stand on issues and on government policies. I am not as pragmatic as I used to be politically. I am more of a libertarian right now that a dogmatic party adherent. Revolutionary politics is not really an issue of carrying the right party line but rather a more rational ideological stand on issues.

So where do you stand on piracy?
A: I want to say that I am against it but everytime I get the chance to listen to what is being pirated I always come up with me being for piracy so that the music industry of Britney and all those other shallow corporate music giants would die. There's no sense in redeeming a music industry that spews out garbage. I at times hope that I'd have this band and we'll be releasing our records and we'd write a disclaimer for it stating that if ever the listener likes what they've heard they're free to pirate us.

Are you a punk?
A: I used to think and believe that I am. But everytime I see these new poser punk kids kind of makes me want to rather not be called a punk. Yes I am into DIY and all that stuff and I listen to punk music and can answer you with articulately intelligent answers pertaining to punk rock and its history but still sad to say a legit punk is someone who's been at that era when it was created and I am born 30 late. So I guess I am not a punk.
Have you ever been picked on by jocks at school? A: I guess there would always be bullies and their preys and sad to say that I am on the latter. Yes I have been there are a lot of times where a lot of people have let me know how much of an un-'normal' kid I am when I was both in elementary, high school and in college. But I must say that when I see those people now and what they've become you'd really feel vindicated.
Do you like sports?
A: If there were a sport other than skateboarding that would demand less physical exertion then that would be it.
You talk a lot don't you?
A: Yes I do and its really one of the biggest mysteries of my persona that boggles people. Because I always give out this aura of my being this quite shy guy which is really just a facade that reflects the number of interesting conversations which I find rare. A lot of people are into talking about their clothes and how cool Alias or CSI or this new song by Simple Plan is. But that's of no interest to me. And that's the reason for me being silent I seldom do find people that I could talk to, but a very good thing though is that I've come to stumble upon my good friend Jeanie who's really into sharing deep profound conversations with me as well as others like my band mates and my fellow disciples like Aga and the rest.

Tell me about your love for comic books?
A: I love them so much that I wear and tear them a lot because of the amount of reading that I do to them. Which is apparently a mortal sin to those self-proclaimed comic collectors. Yes I'm into comics but not of those X-Men, Spawn vein which are too trashy and repetitive.
Aren't you supposed to be working?
A: Yes.

posted by m35b @ Tuesday, November 09, 2004 |

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After getting a whole lot of sleep for the past week I am not faced with this problem. I feel as though there are literal pales of water in my head and I at times feel this floating (if not drwoning) sensation in my head that kind of gives me this problem with my walking. My legs at times feel as though I were balancing myself in a balance beam kind of like that one that you used to have crossed during that time in high school where you're PE teacher is giving you a practical test based on crossing the blasted thing.

I am beginning to wonder that maybe this is the result of some kind of gas that I accidentally got to inhale during that massive traffic jam that has engulfed the ordinary bus that I was riding when I was trying to escape the frenzy of those poser rockers that are exstatically going to the SMB Oktober Pest. Anyways I find it hard to work, because it makes me feel as though I am afloat.
If it weren't for this feeling all I guess is well. Too bad for me. By the way I am still mourning the death of my PC's hard drive. Nothing much really have changed here in the work place.

I know this is sounding like loathing and all so I guess I better put these words to rest.

By the way its really encouraging that Jeanie is actively doing this production 'thing' at church which indicates her love for serving God and her zeal to contribute to the ministry where she can be of good service of. Another is that Aga who has recently been plauged by the prospect of not going of to college in his last semester at Adason has finally enrolled yesterday all thanks to God's grace and the prayers of those who really care for him.

That's it I guess please do feel free to comment on this post.

posted by m35b @ Tuesday, November 09, 2004 |

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It's quite funny how much things never seemed to have changed in the workplace in spite the fact that you've been gone for quite a long time.
To sum up my long absence in this blog I'd simply have to say that I got sick. Terribly sick.
I spent All Saints Day at home alone wallowing in sickness and catching up on some well needed sleep.
Fastforward it to the following week I am not here back again at the office and its quite funny that not a thing really have changed. It's still too stale and stagnant that again I seem to always almost fall asleep by the silent humming of the centralized air conditioning that can be heard as though they were lullabies.
I was quite dissapointed also that the five days that I've spent around the house still didn't cause me to light up that creative spark in me. The deadlines I've set for the full implimentation of my literary portfolio is still on a longshot and all the other artsy and craftsy stuff that I've set for the days to come still remain undone mainly because I am such a lazy sod.
Another is that the PC I'm using at home has finally gone wack. Just this Saturday it's DOS diagnostics have verified my greatest fears that is the fact thatits hard disk have already failed meaning all that I've written there are erased and can never be viewed and the very least modified. SO goodbye to those countless thoughts and graphic artworks that were not uploaded and not to mention the thousands of mp3s that I've got stored there.
Up to now I still see it a far cry for me to get a new one because I'm financially handicaped for a number of reasons.
Hopefully this set back would be overcome in the days to come. Hopefully soon. For now I'll simply take the time to ponder upon how I'd convince the people of this new job that I'm applying for (which is as a graphic story teller) why they should hire me.
I guess that's it for now.
By the way there are a lot of new posts in pinay blood rush I hope you'll find the time to visit it. . Another is that I've recenty got my head shaved so now I'm sporting this bald head (if in any case you're interested).Thanks.

posted by m35b @ Monday, November 08, 2004 |

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