Yuumoushin.com (勇猛心)

Another aspect of my time in Japan that I really enjoyed was the chance to see some of the craziest shows. We have our share of pranks and bloopers here in the U.S., but they pale in comparison to what Japan’s TV shows do to people (I would imagine huge lawsuits ensuing in the U.S. if some of the things done in Japan were done here). The video below is HILARIOUS. I’m surprised they were able to get away with what they did, especially towards the end…I mean, if someone were to get in the way or if it veered off in the wrong direction.

Anyway, watch for yourself and enjoy!

Nothing like a little surprise party to get everyone’s weekend started on the right track.

Today marks 11 months since I tore my ACL and had it repaired so I’ve decided to talk a bit about our recent ultimate games (yep, I’m back in action).

I got my athletic brace a few weeks back, but was still a bit hesitant to go full on. For one, it was awkward to wear the brace and sprint. For another, as much control as I have over where I step, I was (am) still worried about any outside lateral hits. It’s been solid though, and our team is starting to fall into sync again. We have played three games thus far, and our current record is 2 wins 1 loss.

The first game was against a team no where near our level so it was an easy win (we actually won the game at the half, and to even up the playing field, loaned them some players for the second half). For me, that was actually a plus – it gave me a chance to really explore the fit and versatility of my brace. It actually tore up the inner part of my leg (a nice raspberry behind the knee) so now I wear a neoprene wrap to protect the skin. The second game was literally a stomping. 10 to 1, them over us. I was pretty comfortable then, though. Even made a big dive which not only surprised myself, but also my teammates (same great group of people that saw me tear my ACL last year). Today’s game, however, was a great match up, and by far the best day my brace and I have had so far (haha). There were an equal number of players (men and woman), and pulling/passing/catching skills seemed to be well matched. We did, however, have them in terms of height and athleticism. We started off a bit slow, but really pulled together towards the end. It was a solid win for us, although we still need to work on our stacking and coordination efforts. And for me, it’s great to be back out on the field, running, jumping, and throwing the disk. I’m even playing racquetball again.

Looking over my last few posts, there hasn’t been much of a pattern with regard to my topics of choice. From food binges in Japan to collecting toys. haha. Well, not to disappoint, let me talk a bit more about superheroes (In a sense, this is related to the previous post since I did talk about comics and superhero toys).

Anyway, I think I’m one of the few who actually enjoyed Ang Lee’s version of The Hulk. The Banner character wasn’t great, but it wasn’t horrible either – i.e., I didn’t think Eric Bana’s Banner hindered the progression or feel of the movie. If anything, Ang Lee (and the CGI team he used) did a really solid job at capturing the Hulk. Rather than an angry, smash it up sort of character, I’ve always thought of him more like a confused, extremely strong child (of course, this depends on which comic arcs you’ve read). I thoroughly enjoyed the movie’s approach, and appreciated their attention to the subtleties. Take, for example, his escape from the military confine – as he was running away, they had him tripping over his own feet, and then his reaction when he realized he could jump extremely far was very well done.

My biggest complaint about Ang Lee’s Hulk was Nick Nolte’s character towards the end, when he took on super elemental powers. I also didn’t really like that Banner’s transformation was due to something his father did to him as a child. Does it always have to be some genetic thing these days? It worked as a slight modernization in Spiderman, but was it necessary for the Hulk? Wasn’t really feeling that. That aside, Hulk is a popular character and the angst Banner has to deal with being essentially a modern day Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde has always intrigued me.

In a recent announcement, looks as if Edward Norton is going to helm what they claim to be a revamp of the Hulk. I like the idea of taking the character in a new direction, but I’m even more stoked about Edward Norton playing Banner. He’s arguably one of my favorite actors, and clearly has skills when it comes to portraying characters with mental/internal/emotional struggles.

I still have a lot of my toys from when I was younger (mostly Transformers, but I also have a few Justice League of America action figures and Star War’s toys). I also have comics – the older ones I own consist of mainly weekly/bi-weekly prints, where as my more current collection is in trade paperback form or book form (it’s nice getting an arc or story in its entirety versus week-to-week). Even still, what I have pales in comparison to this guy. His post is interesting, and he takes the notion of collecting beyond the “this will be worth something someday,” which in my opinion is often over-hyped and gimmicky (and promoted mostly by people looking to make a quick buck on ebay).

I think the most obvious reason for my toy collecting habit is that the hobby brings me back to the good times of my youth. When you’re a child and you’re playing with toys there is nothing else like it. You’re innocent, you don’t have to pay any bills, no one has ever cheated on you and broke your heart, and you’ve never had your car stolen or anything terrible like that (hopefully). I think this is why I like keeping a lot of figures in the package, especially ones of the Star Wars variety.

Sometimes it’s merely the challenge, and this guy seems to enjoy what he does. I’m curious as to how Star Wars toys in particular hit a special note with him, but it might just be timing (the toys were popular during some of his fondest memories?). Perhaps in the same way I associate childhood toys with convertible robots. hahaha.