Final Vegeta

Actually, it is one of the things that are sorta useless... but it is just so cooool and as a form looks more sensed than the gimmicks in many other mecha anime. Also the Assault Walker mode was so cool in that it was even a reference to Macross. I think that could be also a cultural reference to yoga: The word "yoga" derives from the Sanskrit root yuj ("to yoke"); which is cognate to modern English "yoke". Both derive from the Proto-Indo-European root *yeug- meaning "to join" or "unite" [1]. It is generally translated as "union of the individual atma (loosely translated to mean soul) with Paramatma, the universal soul." This may be understood as union with the Divine by integration of body, mind, and spirit. In Japanese "kokoro" can be translate both as heart or as mind, so Aquarion's gattai is kinda like a yoga's group exercise. Also, I think the "union with the divine" part explains why a datenshi is needed to have the real Aquarion. Beside this there is the myth that yogis (those who practice yoga) could acquire legendary powers called siddhis: mystic yogi can enter into the sun planet simply by using the rays of the sunshine. This perfection is called laghima. Similarly, a yogi can touch the moon with his finger. Though the modern astronauts go to the moon with the help of spaceships, they undergo many difficulties, whereas a person with mystic perfection can extend his hand and touch the moon with his finger. This siddhi is called prapti, or acquisition. With this prapti siddhi, the perfect mystic yogi can not only touch the moon planet, but he can extend his hand anywhere and take whatever he likes. He may be sitting thousands of miles away from a certain place, and if he likes he can take fruit from a garden there (NOD, pp. 11-12). The prapti siddhi provides a perfect example of what we mean by the extension of access between locations. Consider the yogi on the earth who reaches out his hand to touch the moon. Does the yogi experience that his hand moves up through the atmosphere and crosses over thousands of miles of outer space, followed by a greatly elongated arm? This hardly seems plausible. We suggest that this siddhi actually allows the yogi to directly reach any desired location, and thus it requires higher dimensional connections between remotely separated regions. The idea here is that Krishna always has direct access to all locations, and by His grace this power of direct access can be conferred to varying degrees on various living beings. I think this could be the ispiration for Mugen Punch, but the real prapti in the series is practiced by Gen who takes object out of nowhere. Also worth noting there is a siddhi called "mahima", which can makes you as big as a mountain. FV

New news here: it seems there will more Aquarion, although maybe only a movie. FV

I've heard it was the first episode subbed in Deutsch. Size about 189MB. FV

I watched anime as a child but I do remember little of them. At the time there were Nagai robot shows, and I did like them (I was always a mecha nut), but I found especially interesting Robotech. I also liked Saint Seiya, and other shows, but I found the Veritech Fighter really an inspiring design. In elementary school I was once asked to draw something, and I drew a VF-1 battroid like in the opening. Years later a friend of mine was lent some tapes. It was my first exposure to Evangelion (it was around 1996, I think). I had already read very positive reviews of it on magazines, but it actually left me cold. I was like "well, now I need to know why the enemies are called angels, shouldn't I?". Luckily on the third tape I saw something amazing: the trailer of Escaflowne. Carmina burana-like BGMs, medieval mecha, clash of metal, this beated everything I had seen at the time. That trailer impressed even my friends. I had to got my hands on it, so I got it in subbed Japanese. Escaflowne was an anime I really adored. I began debating Escaflowne over Evangelion, and that was also my first exposure to anime fandom; it gave me some social clues. After Escaflowne I tried to track everything Kawamori did, and I was delighted that he also did Macross, although I had to wait some years to actually see Macross and not Robotech. I think Kawamori has his flaws, yet he has some kind of skill that others don't have. He has a peculiar sense of poetry and also lot of self-irony. On the basic level though, I just find his battles cooler than others. If you take Evangelion for example the enemies are tendentially limbless sitting ducks, while only the Evas are fast (I know this was done because of limitations in animation, but I still don't find it commendable). Rahxephon added more insult in that action was similar but the protagonist was helped in almost every battle by the misterious girl (there is also the fact that Rahxephon blatantly ripped-off even key scenes of Evangelion ending). I like in battles limbs moving and a sense of skill, I don't care much for thinking mecha. Also other works may have more consistent animation, yet rarely I found scenes that impress me aside from the anime of Kawamori. Over the time I got over Escaflowne. Now my actual fav is Aquarion with its zen tone and mecha swordfencing, yet I think Kawamori can do even cooler anime. About Evangelion, I recommend reading this interview: Hideaki Anno probably felt terrible after reading that absurd e-mail criticism or having the series praised to death in an insulting manner in sub-culture magazines. But that's because "Evangelion" is a story about communication including misunderstandings such as these. I think judgement of anime is what tear anime fandom. It creates rivalry and factions. If people could just intervene to clarify cultural insights, joke about anime and express their admiration for what they like in their anime anime fandom maybe would be a better world. There is no point in debating which anime should be superior to all others. FV

IIRC it was the same of Macross Design Works, nothing new. Aside from this, there is something I'd really wanted to know: how is called the halo-like thing on the back of Solar Aquarion? Do notes say something or at least tell what that thing was supposed to do? FV

Escaflowne is absent because Kawamori didn't draw the mecha. This is the reason why also Macross Plus' Ghost X-9 and Macross 7's Panzerzorene are absent in Kawamori Design Works (I have the Macross Design Works). FV

By the way, Aquarion is airing here in Italy. It is surprising how fast they were, given the series has ended very recently in Japan. Well, probably they saved some time with a horrible dub, but that doesn't matter. What I wanted to tell you is that the original TV version is slightly censured. I've seen only up to 4 episodes, but there are some scenes (a pair of) where there is more lingerie. Below there is a picture from episode 3. Yes, she is Tsugumi. In the original TV version there was only a wall in that point. FV

Exactly. I too had the idea of a movie remake for M7. I think it should start with a battle where there is an enemy fighter chasing Basara inside the city, and they fly under bridges, smash buildings in tight turns, that kind of stuff, all while Basara sings. At the end the enemy regain consciousness; since this is a movie everything should be more powerful since the start, including Basara's songs. After the first battle Battle 7 and City 7 are split. In Battle 7 there is Mylene (who gains her own Valkyrie at this point) and Gamlin (so that they could start building their relationship). In City 7 there is Basara and (obviously) Milia. One side learns something from the prisoner, the other from Lux planet. They have the first encounters with the Protodevilns, the reunite, Sound Force get soundboosters, and then I think there should be the final battle (with parts of Operation Stargazer in it). Sospension of disbelief is not really a problem, even serious movies may have questionable plot points, but when everything is resolved with action (usually violent action) people no longer notice the buildup. For a Macross 7 movie, a slapstick style is fine; you don't need to kill people, or to get blood on screen, just show that when someone is hit he feels some kind of pain, while buildings don't get this exemption. FLCL was done this way and was still cool. But first of all, redesign Protodevilns FV

I've heard it was designed by Satoru Utsunomiya, who did episode 19 of Aquarion. Unluckily he can't adapt his style to other charas. Anyway, Eureka looks like a guy from Naruto, I think it was called Gara. FV

Rahxephon was deeply ugly, and I've seen it all. It was like taking Evangelion and splitting its characters in two, either personality, role in the anime, personal story and such. Also it had kitschy designs, and I ain't kidding. This is a monster of Rahxephon, and this is the first image google gave me for "kitsch". Mind the resemblances. If there is something I can't see is bad chara designs, not in the sense of badly drawn, but simply ugly. I don't think I'd like Eureka 7 because I find its designs ugly (even though mecha designs are good, which couldn't be said for Rahxephon). By the way, interviews help the understanding of Evangelion. FV

Macross 7 should be compared to shows of similar length. Gundam Wing is OK, and indeed had crappy animation. Macross 7's chara is still better, though. Escaflowne was not consistent because Yuuki was working for the movie X at the same time, and there were obviously some quality drop in the second half, but aside from this it was high budget, with a decent amount of (non integrated) CG, that at the time was uncommon for a TV series. Also there was little recycle of footage. Evangelion has good animation but with a low number of drawings and lots and lots of still shots, and sketchy backgrounds. Unparalleled direction, but there was better animation than that. FV

I just watch everything Kawamori does. FV

I think Kawamori should first design a new set of Valkyrie toys and THEN start a new series. FV

Try to see things from the point of view of a criminal. If you don't want to go to jail, to self-defend yourself from society you can kill. The culture of killing for self-protection is appaling at first, but it can irk if there is someone with the same idea but different position. This ultimately demonstrate if something is truly a good universal principle. You would be mad if you hadn't a reason for what you do. It doesn't matter if it's a sophism as long is a reason. Societies instill a fear of being mad, so you have to find a reason for actions you (or others) have already done and choices you (or others) have already made. There is a propaganda tecnique where you hide the real reasons of your enemy; then, this group of people becomes mad. The movies already linked madness to evil. As an hystorical example, luddites comes to my mind. That was not the way Gandhi's pacifism was. According to Gandhi, pacifists should be ready to be killed for their cause. His idea was that when in Great Britain British saw Indians were only victims, the same British would have started opposing India's occupations. Besides, the fact that there weren't British casualities would have allowed India and GB to remain friends. Ultimately, the boycott worked. Money is more important than talks. I find this treating peoples like puppies. There is difference between national heroes and heroes of humanity. In an episode of Aquarion there was an interesting psychologic concept. If there is something you wanted to do but you repress your inner will, you will hate people that do it. Or something like that. According to Buddhism, if you fix your mind on a thought, you will become that thought. Once upon a time I already thought that when you hate someone you will become like him. Concentrating intensely your thoughts on someone (actually, your mental image of him) you will end up filling his silhouette. At least, it tends to happen in most peoples. Rationale thought shows that when a problem is not easily solvable within the same level, it's better to go up one level and see the same problem from its causes. In the end of Macross the humans were facing the risk of another war with a Zentradi army. If they had placed more attention in fighting the enemy they will have ended up like the Zentradi or the Protoculture. FV

This applies in finnish also, almost at least 363214[/snapback] Also in Italian. There is just some slight distintion in words like "pesca", which is written in the same way but depending on the pronunciation of the "e" can mean two different things. All in all though, Italian has very little omophones to care about, so the pronounce of vowels doesn't need that many nuances. Btw, this reminds of a piece of spelling reform satire, attributed to Mark Twain: For example, in Year 1 that useless letter "c" would be dropped to be replased either by "k" or "s," and likewise "x" would no longer be part of the alphabet. The only kase in which "c" would be retained would be the "ch" formation, which will be dealt with later. Year 2 might reform "w" spelling, so that "which" and "one" would take the same konsonant, wile Year 3 might well abolish "y" replasing it with "i" and Iear 4 might fiks the "g / j" anomali wonse and for all. Jenerally, then, the improvement would kontinue iear bai iear with Iear 5 doing awai with useless double konsonants, and Iears 6-12 or so modifaiing vowlz and the rimeining voist and unvoist konsonants. Bai Iear 15 or sou, it wud fainali bi posibl tu meik ius ov thi ridandant letez "c," "y," and "x" - bai now jast a memori in the maindz ov ould doderez - tu riplais "ch," "sh," and "th" rispektivli. Fainali, xen, aafte sam 20 iers ov orxogrefkl riform, wi wud hev a lojikl, kohirnt speling in ius xrewawt xe Ingliy-spiking werld. FV

Wolf's Rain had 4 recap episodes in a row, and it was a 26 episodes series. I consider that the worst you can do. Anyway, I do like Phantasm, and in fact I think it was one of the best episodes; Kawamori worked on it. I especially like the scene with 0-G Love, I love the kind of oxymoron of a tense scene with catchy pop music; for a beginner, like Kawamori was, that scene really showed talent. Also the magic bycicle scene was pissing hilarious. Global's Report on the other hand added very little and was plainly boring. FV

By the way, is it me or "The door is going to open that will change the world" is good for the Engrish page? FV

I think Kawamori is a great designer. As for transforming mecha he is certainly unrivaled, and everything else is also very stylish and has a rather believable look (especially the joints. Compare Gundam GP-01 and GP-02 hip attachments to other Gundams). Oviously he has his limits in designing mainly sleek, neat and pointy-footed mecha; he is not the man for bulky retro mecha. All in all though he has had a certain degree of variety. That is not to say there aren't other great designers out there, but the combination of Kawamori with Miyatake and Itano Ichiro is deadly. FV

Aquarion But of the old robots... I think Getter Robot. Plotwise old stories were all very similar, but Getter had a cool robot. I also liked Daitarn 3, the protagonist was cool and Daitarn 3 had a very nice Italian opening song, one of the best made in Italy (you can listen to it here). FV

Episode 19 was animated by Satoru Utsunomiya. I didn't know him before, but it seems he is a big name in the animation department. Weird but good (the episode). Just found: Images from Aquarion 2006 Calendar. FV

Goldrake (Grendizer) is Italy's national hero because it was the first robot show aired. Personally, I don't think I liked it more than other robot shows. I do agree the design is uglysh, although not the worst. Now, this is an Italian site, please try to browse following the images. The ugliest robots I know are Balatack, Diapolon and Godam. Grendizer, Zambot, Bryger, Groizer X are still ugly, but on a lesser scale. FV

Not quite. Contrary to popular belief (perpetuated by the above-mentioned caricatures), Napoleon was not especially short. After his death in 1821, the French emperor's height was recorded as 5 feet 2 inches in French feet. This corresponds to 5 feet 6.5 inches in Imperial (British) feet, or 1.686 meters, making him slightly taller than an average Frenchman of the 19th century. The metric system was introduced during his lifetime, so it was natural that he would be measured in feet and inches for much of his life. A French inch was 2.71 centimetres, whereas an Imperial inch is 2.54 centimetres. In addition to this miscalculation, his nickname le petit caporal adds to the confusion, as non-francophones mistakenly take petit literally as meaning "small"; in fact, it is an affectionate term reflecting on his camaraderie with ordinary soldiers. He also surrounded himself with soldiers, his elite guard, who were always six feet tall or taller. I am slightly taller than Napoleon, just a centimetre. Anyway, we have two sayings here in Italy: "lies have small legs" (meaning that lies can be discovered easily) and the "L rule" (meaning that your height is inversionally proportional to the length of your member). Maybe in English there are similar sayings. The first saying has a special sense in Italy because of our prime minister Berlusconi, who was prescripted for false statements during an oath in a trial. By the way, in his family name the ending "oni" is a plural augmentative, while "berlusco" comes from "bis-losco" (disused word), which means "two-times dishonest" (really!). I can't guess why his family got that name... FV

This may be untrue. The vacuum is actually a thermal insulator. For more informations, see how vacuum flasks work. FV

There was a more plausible option in reconstructing what the scene meant: Guld loaded live ammo in YF-19's gunpod because he expected Isamu to fire them. He put some blank to be warned that live ammo was coming; he trusted his skill to survive that moment. That way Isamu was supposed to be expelled from the competition with just a calculated risk. In the real fight though things went in another way. FV

Funny, there was an Italian site that described how the Smurfs were hiddenly deviating children's minds towards communism. Many people don't know that "SMURF" in fact means "Socialist Men Under a Red Father". (I hope the author of that site wasn't serious. Never liked the smurfs anyway) FV