I come across a lot of odd signs in Japan. Some are just down right funny, some just don’t make sense and I guess some are just a bit creepy.
Found at Koganei Koen, Tokyo
Maybe I’m just used to the more familiar signs you see in parks like, “Beware of Pickpockets” or “Pick up your dog’s poop” that I find the sign above a bit creepy. The sign above says, “Beware of Perverts”.
This beautiful piece of work may have been already taken down and there may already be about a billion pictures of this amazing robot in the net but I’m still uploading mine
Life-size RX-78 Gundam at Odaiba
To all those who have seen it, this moving, life-sized Gundam replica was truly an amazing sight!
(And from the looks of it, it seems like the world-wide recession means nothing to the Japanese. The RX-78 Gundam spits on recession’s face!)
Went to catch the Terminator Exhibit being held at the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation/ Miraikan in Odaiba, Tokyo last Saturday. In conjunction with the Terminator Salvation release and I suppose as a celebration to the fragile bond between Man and Machine, an exhibition of the robots, artworks and actual costumes used in the Terminator movies and series are being displayed until June 28.
I was expecting more props and robots to be showcased but nonetheless, the exhibit was still interesting and the robots and production tidbits were enlightening. It was a cool experience to see the actual robots and artworks used in some of the most unforgettable movies of all time. I’ll be back.
Terminator Exhibition – Battle or Coexistence?
Terminator Exhibit ・ターミネーター展(Ta-mine-ta-ten )
T-800 Endoskeleton
Appearance: The Terminator, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, Terminator Salvation
T-800 in the flesh
“Death rendered in steel” as James Cameron would put it. The T-800 is designed to look and act like human. Made of a yet undiscovered, ultrastrong alloy, the T-800 likes to wear dark glasses and has a knack for spilling unforgettable, comical one-liners.
Appearance: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
Cameron Phillips (TOK715)
Named after Terminator’s creator, James Cameron, Cameron Phillips/TOK715 is the Terminator sent to protect John and Sarah around 1999. The TO715 is disguised as a beautiful, petite, teenage infiltrator.
T-1
Appearance: Terminator3: Rise of the Machines, Terminator Salvation
The T-1 is an autonomous military robot with a rather anthropomorphic head, sensor eyes, gatling guns for arms, a torso that swivels like a human and caterpillar tracks for legs.
Hydrobot
Appearance: Terminator Salvation
Hydrobots are serpentine aquatic units that move in swarms and patrol the waters.
T-600 Endoskeleton
Appearance: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Terminator Salvation
The sinister-looking T-600 units are covered in a sheet of rubber skin meant for espionage and infiltration purposes. The T-600′s are superseded by the newer and more advanced T-800s.
Moto-Terminator
Appearance: Terminator Salvation
Moto-Terminators are high-speed pursuit units using motorcycle chassis. In the Terminator Salvation scene where John Conner reprograms a Moto-Terminator for use, I just can’t help but think of Batman’s Batpod and wait for Christian Bale to spill his line: “I’m Batman.”
Other highlights of the exhibit were the Actroid DER3 and a creepy, almost real-looking moving arm. The Actroid DER3 is a humanoid robot with strong visual human-likeness developed by Osaka University and manufactured by Kokoro Company, Ltd. The Actroid DER3 can move and talk – like, whoa!
What to do when you’re drunk and on board the empty 終電 (shuuden or last train) going home from a late night karaoke – dance like crazy in the empty car!
The annual Tokyo Game Show which is said to be the world’s largest computer entertainment expo was just one of those events I told myself to go to once I set foot on Japan soil. I’m not that much of a gamer but I’ve always been fascinated with cosplayers and the yearly Tokyo Game Show abound with them. Thus, off to Makuhari Messe in Chiba City,Meemax, Ramil and I went for the 2008 installation
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Meemax and I En Route to the 2008 Tokyo Game Show
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Meemax and I decided to do our own cosplay minus the anime or game characterization and the result can be seen from the picture above. My feet hurt like freaking hell as I am not used to wearing high heels and Meema’s apartment and the Game Show venue was a good walk away from the nearest train stations. It was worth it though because we both looked sizzling hot and passers-by looked at as with jaw dropping amazement
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Yeyenman the Booth Babe - photo taken by Meemax
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At the Tokyo Game Show site itself, otakus gawked at us trying to figure out if we were portraying some character. Some photographers particularly foreigners who I think were not very familiar with anime or game characters even asked us if it was okay to take our pictures. Others just snapped their cameras away without permission. I felt very self-conscious but also very gratified (my feet endured agonizing pain for this cosplay-thingie for crying out loud!). Somehow, I felt how it was like to be one of the booth babes or cosplayers It was a very interesting experience
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Tokyo Game Show Booth Babe
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Come to think of it, my costume was very similar to one of the booth babe’s as can be seen from the picture taken above by Lau. Maybe I’ll plan my costume ahead next year and actually portray a real character
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Cosplayers at TGS 2008 - photo by Ramil
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Because I woke up particularly late that day, we ended up going to the site late and were only able to catch a handful of cosplayers But it wasn’t really such a total waste though since we were still able to catch a couple of interesting ones
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Cosplayer - photo by Meemax
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The day ended with M joining us for a drinking session and movie marathon at Meema’s apartment. What a day
I swear to go earlier next year. And for that costume… who to portray, who to portray
Ang mga ka-kosa ko sa CELda, ang mga Batang RF Cage ay nasa Japan! Ano pa ang gagawin namin kundi maglakwatsa? Namiss ko na rin ang mga ito na kasama ko sa hirap at ginhawa sa thesis at pag-overnight sa lab Sino ang kumuha ng EPROM ko?
Batang RF Cage sa Japan!
Dahil geek kami, first stop, Akihabara, kung saan kumain kami ng steak sa Pepper Lunch at nagtingin ng kung anu-anu-ano
BRFC sa Yodobashi, Akihabara
Picture-picture on our way to the Imperial Palace to visit the Queen… errr, Emperor. Hahaha. Ang jologs namin pero ang saya!!!
BRFC at the Gyoko-dori Underground Gallery
Imperial Palace!!! Sa labas lang. Apparently twice a year lang binubuksan ang Imperial Palace, tuwing Birthday ng Emperor at New Year.
BRFC sa Imperial Palace!
At makukumpleto ba naman ang Tokyo tour nang di pumupunta sa Tokyo Tower?
BRFC sa Tokyo Tower (Well medyo sumisilip lang yung tower, hehehe)
Ito rin ang araw ng pagbalik ni Elai sa Tottori at hinatid namin siya ni Tinats sa Shinagawa. Awww… mamimiss ka namin, Elai! Balik ka, ha, o ako naman ang pupunta sa Tottori.