Happy Turn vs. Disco Girl
Posted by Michael Pinto on Apr 30, 2008 in Japanese TV
Is it me or does the model from this 1979 snack commercial for Happy Turn remind me of Roller Girl from the film Boogie Nights?
Telepathy-Love
Posted by Michael Pinto on Apr 29, 2008 in Japanese TV
Shown above is a commercial featuring 70s J-Pop sensation Telepathy-Love, one of the many acts that rose up after the success of Pink Lady. Below is a fun album cover featuring the duo:
Album cover found via Kimberly Lindbergs, check out her cool sites: cinebeats.com, peppermintkisskiss.com and jsound.blogsome.com. I also got a kick out of her art and photography site.
Godzilla vs. Green Tea
Posted by Michael Pinto on Apr 12, 2008 in Japanese TV
Being both a Godzilla fanboy and green tea addict I got quite a kick out of the above commercial spot from Singapore.
Found via dekku.blogspot.com and coloribus.com.
Cute Little Baby Pandas Drinking Milk
Posted by Michael Pinto on Apr 10, 2008 in Japanese TV
This ultra cute video was shot by NHK in Sichuan Province, China. I wish I had a baby Panda as a pet…
How To Spot a Cylon Poster
Posted by Michael Pinto on Apr 9, 2008 in Battlestar Galactica
Old School Fanboy Rant: Having grown up in the 70s the original Battlestar Galactica was like treasured junk food, so while you craved a high quality meal like Star Wars you were pretty darn happy to find a weekly TV show that spaceships buzzing around and things blowing up. The new series tries to make up for that “original sin” but misses the key selling point which is that Galactica was never trying to be the coolest kid on the block — what made it charming was the cheese! But if you’re a new school Galactica fanboy (or fangurl) then you’ll have to adorn your hacienda with this poster:
“The tin toasters are easy! Those damn Cylons are tricky bastards. I’m not talking about those big walking toasters with the oscillating eye, the big flying models full of gore and guns, or even the so-called “hybrids.” I’m talking about the humanoids. The religious zealots who are out to subjugate humanity in any way possible. I hate those guys.”
Dr. Who Budget Gets Drastically Slashed
Posted by Michael Pinto on Apr 7, 2008 in Dr. Who
I always love to come across fanboy inspired LOLcats...
Own a Life-Sized Cylon
Posted by Michael Pinto on Mar 21, 2008 in Battlestar Galactica
Shown above is the Cylon Life-Size Figure which is available for wealthy Battlestar Galactica fans for $7900:
“The Life-size Cylon figure, as seen in the reimagined Sci-Fi series ‘Battlestar Galactica’, is manufactured exclusively by Fred Barton Productions, Inc. of Los Angeles, California, and licensed through Universal Studios. Each Cylon is hand-made using only the finest materials and overseen by the ‘Robot Man’ himself, Fred Barton.”
Miyuki Torii Cosplay Commercial
Posted by Michael Pinto on Mar 20, 2008 in Japanese TV
The above commercial stars Japanese comedian Miyuki Torii — I just love how she’s talking to a Black Jack (a well known Tezuka manga character) cardboard cut out. And as with all clever advertising I have no idea what they’re selling…
Sailor Moon vs. Saku Saku
Posted by Michael Pinto on Mar 15, 2008 in Japanese TV
Shown above is an episode of Saku Saku from a while ago which featured Sailor Moon as a guest, well not the animated one but an actress playing an incredible simulation. Being a talk show I never have any idea what’s going on, but for some reason I can’t help but keep watching (they always seem to have quite a bit of fun). Speaking of Sailor Moon, it seems like there will be a live action version of the show. But for your immediate entertainmenthere is part two of our faux Sailor Moon interview on Saku Saku:
Kamen Rider Parody
Posted by Michael Pinto on Mar 2, 2008 in Japanese TV
I’m not 100% sure where this video clip is from, but it seems to be a parody of the long running Kamen Rider TV series (some of which came to the United States as the Power Rangers). I just can’t get enough of the Muppetesque characters in the skit…
Kekkō Kamen
Posted by Michael Pinto on Mar 1, 2008 in Japanese TV
Warning: The above video might be slightly NSFW (well depending on where you work). As soon as I watched the clip I was struck by just how surreal it was — Miki Komori (who’s an adult video star from Japan) seems to be wearing underwear on her head and her hair style looks very “avant-garde” to say the least. The video looks like a Saturday Night Live parody of something, but rest assured this is an actual series of films:
“Kekkō Kamen (けっこう仮面 Kekkō Kamen) is an adult rated manga and anime series from Japanese creator Go Nagai. The series is about the misadventures of a student named Takahashi Mayumi who attends a boarding school called “Toenail of Satan’s Spartan Institute of Higher Education”. Takahashi’s only protection is from a mysterious figure known as Kekkō Kamen.
Mononoke Dance
Posted by Guest Author on Feb 29, 2008 in Japanese TV
This is Denki Groove’s recent music video, “Mononoke Dance”. Denki Groove is a band who released their first album in 1990. They are the key band bridging the Technopop and club music. Key member Takkyu Ishino has been working on his somewhat more techno styled solo albums in recent years so proper Denki Groove releases have been rare in the last few years.
Sheena Easton and the Shochu
Posted by Michael Pinto on Feb 25, 2008 in Japanese TV
It’s funny I always associated the above song with Sheena Easton selling out to some national gym chain in the 80s, little did I know the same song was also used to sell a shochu drink in Japan!
Doctor and Davros
Posted by Michael Pinto on Feb 17, 2008 in Dr. Who
I sometimes just don’t get the folks who do the merchandising! Shown above is limited edition $300 model of Doctor and Davros from the classic 70s Dr. Who episode Genesis of the Daleks. While I loved that episode I just don’t get the appeal of having this on your shelf unless it’s some sort of eBay investment scheme. Why not instead release a model based on sexy sidekick Leela whom every fanboy had a now not so secret crush on? I’m also amazed that in this era of mainstream acceptance of cosplay that the Doctor’s fashion forward isn’t on sale at better apparel shops worldwide…
eBay investors please take note: Dark Horse will be releasing the above model in May.
What’s Your Lost Nickname?
Posted by Michael Pinto on Feb 8, 2008 in Lost
Lost fanboys (and fangurls) should check out Sawyer’s Nickname Generator — my nickname is Freebird…
Found via zaeega.com.
Year of the Rat: Monty Python’s Rat Tart Sketch
Posted by Michael Pinto on Feb 7, 2008 in Television
Celebrating the Chinese New Year (year of the rat) in fanboy style with Monty Python!
Year of the Rat: Rat Patrol
Posted by Michael Pinto on Feb 6, 2008 in Television
Tomorrow marks the start of the Chinese New Year, so we’re exploring fanboy themes relating the Year of the Rat. Rat Patrol was a TV series that ran from 1966 until 1968 which featured the exploits of four Allied soldiers (three American and one Brit) during World War II whose mission was “to attack, harass and wreak havoc on Field Marshal Rommel’s vaunted Afrika Korps”.
Battlestar Galactica Season Four Promos
Posted by Michael Pinto on Feb 5, 2008 in Battlestar Galactica
Here are the latest promos for the latest season of Battlestar Galactica, first it’s Baltar:
L’Arc-en-Ciel: Chronicle
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jan 29, 2008 in Japanese TV
This is a series of short surrealistic (but slightly silly) interstitial films from 1999 by the popular Japanese rock band L’Arc-en-Ciel. The videos were shown in-between music videos on their DVD collection Chronicle. What’s odd is that even though this video is quite avant-garde, their music is much more conventional J-Pop.
My Teacher is a Dog!
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jan 25, 2008 in Japanese TV
This is a commercial for Softbank in Japan — the talking dog is cute, no? It’s for the White Plan Family Discount for a cell phone service. I like the shot where the dog is hanging out at home after class…
Patariro Collectables Commercial
The anime series Patalliro! ran from 1982 until 1983 and is interesting because it was based on a manga by Mineo Maya which focused on bishounen (i.e. pretty boys). The show was more comedy than anything else, but I think it’s a good early example of Yaoi, which are manga focused on male gay relationships marketed to the ladies. There’s a good article on the show here by Mary Kennard. It was funny for me to come across that article because back in the early 80s I knew Mary, as she could be spotted at meetings of the Cartoon/Fantasy Organization in New York City which I went to all of the time.
Just Say OK to Pocky!
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jan 13, 2008 in Japanese TV
Check out those those tacky 80s gaucho pants which are featured in the above vintage Pocky ad!
Ken Shimura Silly Skits
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jan 9, 2008 in Japanese TV
Shown above is a funny skit starring Japanese comedian Ken Shimura from the the Fuji TV series “Ken Shimura’s Lordship like Vaca”. I got a real kick out of this skit which is based on Bjork’s swan costume:
Koala Cookies Commercial
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jan 8, 2008 in Japanese TV
Shown above is a vintage commercial for Lotte’s Koala’s March cookies: