~*Hikari Kirameku*~

KAT-TUN con encodes are ready. Have at 'em. Expect DVD version stuff a bit later.

For now...I sleep.

I'm actually updating from my dreamwidth account right now. It's nice that there's LJ cross-posting. Only reason I haven't deleted my LJ completely is because of the JE comms that refuse to migrate over.

Anyways, I have ordered the CAST concert. Both the LE Blu-ray and DVD. They're on their way and will hopefully get to me before Sunday.

I'm worried about having enough money for Kame's RAIN single, however. My work suddenly severely cut hours, and it's really put me in a bind, since I've already spent so much on the concerts. I hope I can manage okay. If I can't buy them, I won't be able to upload them, which would suck. Plus, you know, I really want to watch them...

Speaking of uploads, since I'm so broke, the Blu-ray rip for CAST might take a while. The only Blu-ray ripping software I could find cost money, and wasn't exactly cheap.

*sighs*

Stupid retail job, being near useless when I really need it.

So my copies of the Senakagoshi no Chance singles came! I only bought the two LE versions, for the PV and Kame's solo song. Kame's solo is soooo gooood, OMG. So happy. Yamapi's was actually pretty good too, but I just consider that a bonus (not really a big fan of his, kinda neutral towards him). Anyways, it's up on the page, as per usual. Also managed to download Nakamaru's Otsukare Thanks solo from Amazon JP, so I put that up too. They're in the Misc. section.

Also got some new Ao no Exorcist goodies! On top of Vol. 19 (I collect the Japanese versions as well as the English ones), I bought the Iro Iro artbook. It's got pretty much anything and everything Kato-sensei has colored for AoEx over the years. It's basically the AoEx artbook I've always wanted. I am so happy with it.

In pet news...I kinda accidentally but not really started a foray into antkeeping >.>; I found a queen Black Carpenter Ant, and have decided to keep her. We'll see how that goes. TBH, I've always wanted to try keeping ants... find them interesting to watch. Also, I redid one of my 10 gallon aquariums. I've got some Harlequin Rasporas and Pristella Tetras in it. Gonna try adding the original betta occupant back in today, and see how they get along. If they don't, he'll just stay in the 1g tank I have him in currently.

Anyways, that's my update. Now I go back to lurking, lol.

Due to some circumstances, I've decided to try selling off some of my NEWS collection. Details under the cut.
( Goodies under here )

Due to some whispers that LJ may finally be on the way out due to servers switching to Russia, as a precaution, I'm importing my journal over to Dreamwidth. Probably not a huge deal, since I rarely post here nowadays anyways, but there are a lot of really old entries from when I used to use this site regularly that I'd like to keep around. Now, luckily there is cross-posting between there and here, so that's not a huge issue either. If the time comes where I ever have to shut my LJ down though (provided LJ just doesn't disappear one day), I'll be sure to put up a notice.

As for upcoming things I'll be posting soon, I should be getting some Ao no Exorcist goodies around the end of the month.

Also, I will no longer be buying NEWS stuff, so I won't be updating that page anymore. Nothing against NEWS, but I've found their recent singles to be "meh" and their concert was way to expensive. Plus, IRL stuff (like my car) has been eating most of my disposable income, so I can't justify it anymore. I'll still be listening to their stuff though, I'll just be relying on rips again like most everyone else. I already do the same with HSJ anyways too.

I will still be getting KAT-TUN stuff though...if/when they give us something to buy. Recently got my goods from the 10ks concert. The three uchiwa, pamphlet, and penlight. Lovely pics in the pamphlet, and Kame's uchiwa makes me lol. Good stuff.

Anyways, that's about all. Til next time...

Our favorite scaredy-cat of KAT-TUN is 33 today! Yay! I'd post something a little more involved, but I don't have the time. I'll spam Tumblr later though!

WE'RE GETTING THE KAT-TUN 10KS DVD NEXT MONTH OMG!!!

I've pre-ordered the LE already! It comes with a CD with Brand New Stage on it, along with a 120 pg. special booklet! I am so looking forward to this, it'll be the last KAT-TUN release we'll have in the forseeable future.

Also, since I haven't posted in ages and I think completely forgot to mention, I also have a pre-order for the NEWS single coming out this month, so that'll be something fun to have in the meantime (although by the time it gets here, my KAT-TUN DVD will probably have almost shipped. NEWS single is coming SAL, but I'm splurging on EMS shipping for the KAT-TUN DVD).

And other things that are taking their sweet time getting here...the last Eyecon I needed from Kamen Rider Ghost (hoping it shows up soon, I hate SAL sometimes), and then my vol. 17 of Ao no Exorcist (which just shipped so it'll take a bit too).

So many goodies from Japan to expect~

I meant to do this LAST week, but I was lazy and didn't. Ooops. :P Ah well. With the way the episodes have been, it's been just as well to wait a week anyways. Spoilers are in this one, so tread with caution if you're also watching Kamen Rider Amazons, Zyuohger, or Kamen Rider Ghost.

So, first off, Kamen Rider Amazons. I've watched 1-3 subbed, and 4 unsubbed because I'm waiting for the O-T version. It's been really damn good so far. I've warmed up to Haruka despite the fact that I dislike the more streamlined Rider design (just doesn't seem very Amazon to me). Meanwhile, I'd LIKE to like Jin, but I can't right now cause he's kind of a jerk. We'll see how things go later. Ep. 3 gave me Agito vibes, what with Haruka dealing with the transformation stuff (and his is pretty nasty with how Amazons work in this series). Still, I am a SUCKER for non-human/kaijin Riders, especially the organic ones, so yeah...granted not sure if Omega still counts as an organic Rider with the belt...though he DOES have a wilder, non-belt form too (that looks arguably cooler, but I digress). Anyways, still looking forward to seeing what happens with him. Also really loving Mamoru so far...he is a cinnamon roll for being a mole monster. Granted, I'm not expecting to make it to the end of this series. I saw the original Amazon, and the original mole died. Also, this is a Kobayashi series and that bitch likes to kill everyone you like if she can get away with it (yes, I am still pissed about Ankh, regardless of how much little ghost Ankh following Eiji amuses me, and fuck the entire Ryuki series in general). Anyways, it'd be a pleasant surprise if they actually keep him alive since the whole fanbase is already expecting him to die, but they'll probably kill him off to mirror the original, and because we can't have nice things (especially THIS series, it's pretty dark).

Now, Zyuohger...TBH, I can never seem to get into Sentai as much as I do Kamen Rider, but this season isn't terrible...and from what I heard it's been infinitely better than the last few seasons. Once again the focus is sliding more towards the guys, especially Red (just ONCE it'd be nice if the ladies got some decent character development too, without the guys involved). Still, Yamato is a likable Red, so that's a plus. This episode we finally get a good look at the Eagle Zyuman, or as parts of the fandom have dubbed him "Bird-Kusaka" after the actor's Faiz character (since we still don't know Bird-Kusaka's actual name yet). He's kind of a jerk, which surprised absolutely no one given who his actor is, but he DID save Yamato, so looks like this character isn't a COMPLETE ass and will probably end up as the 6th member in time...I'll be shocked if he doesn't (but we won't know til June when Zyuoh the World debuts, probably). Either way, the show's been a fun romp, and at the very least it's something to watch while I wait for Kamen Rider subs.

...and now, Ghost. Oh MAN...fucking Ghost. We're at ep. 28 now, and shit got GOOD...and kinda sad for Alain. Alain's been getting a shitton of character development recently, since they needed to do the antag -> protag switch. They did it slow and they did it well. Unfortunately the whole thing did kinda end with his dad getting killed in front of him and dying in his arms, and his brother is still trying to kill him too. Luckily he's successfully earned Takeru's trust and made friends, and seeing Takeru go NUTS on those mooks in ep. 27 was pretty badass (tore through those guys like WOAH). Meanwhile, Makoto's back and got his upgrade and we got to see that debut this episode. Deep Specter is so cool (and I love the colors...I love pink, blue, and purple, and not just because they're KAT-TUN colors ;D ). I am so happy I snagged that Eyecon toy, should hopefully get here soon. Makoto finally told Alain to call him "Makoto" instead of "Specter" too, and I squee'd happy squees. So everyone's made friends now! We actually got our first triple-henshin this ep too, but some shit happened that put Takeru out of commission, so only a double-finisher (courtesy of Necrom and Specter). Anyways, it'll be fun to see where things go from here. They'll probably start moving towards Takeru getting his final form, and while I don't think Necrom will get any upgrades, he IS going to be able to start using Ghost's Eyecons from time to time, which'll be fun too. Ah, on a side-note, they did get rid of Cubi, but they didn't kill him off. He made friends with another Ganma, and they're going on a trip together...so I'll miss seeing his shenanigans, but at least I'm happy he wasn't killed (and another MotW was spared to boot!). Plus, maybe he'll pop back up again later, who knows? (Although it'd probably be safer for him if he doesn't ^^; ) Anyways, next week Alain gets a new outfit from the old Takoyaki lady and we laugh at the horrible fashion sense (at least it's a nice shade of green?). I suppose it could look worse though, and I like him in more casual clothes versus the uniform he was wearing anyways.

Anyways, that's all for this week. I'll update this as I feel like it...probably when more cool stuff in the shows happens, lol.

So, Over-Time picked up subbing for the Kamen Rider Amazons specials airing and managed to get a hold of some decent raws, so I decided to watch the first episode. TBH, the designs for one of them didn't impress me, not a big fan of the "updates" they've been giving the old-school Riders. Plus, Amazon is the only Showa series I've ever managed to watch, and even though it kinda sucked, I've always been really fond of the Rider's more organic design (I am a sucker for those types of Riders. Kamen Rider Gills is my all-time fave). Anyways, I figured we at least have one of the new Amazon Riders looking old-school (Amazon Alpha, the red one), so I figured what the hell, I'll give it a go with very little expectations.

Hoooooly shiiiit~
I forgot how badass it can be to watch a Kamen Rider series aimed for older audiences. I was excited. Also, in typical Amazon form, shit's getting ripped apart and kaijin are loosing limbs and it's doing it's predecessor justice. XD Super happy with several of the throw-backs to the original too! Also, found out the green Rider doesn't start with the form you see in the promo pics, and his pre-belt form looks a LOT like the original Amazon, and that made me happy. Actualy, kinda thinking now he got an updated design so he wouldn't get confused with his predecessor, lol. Like I said, we still have red at least.

Anyways, I'm pretty damn happy with it. No idea if things'll stay that way, but it was a good starter episode. We'll see if things change after shit hits the fan in ep. 2, lol. I don't even know when the next episode even comes out, TBH o_o; Hopefully they won't take too long. If anything, the main thing I'm worried about is the writer...her series are VERY hit-or-miss with me...guess we'll see.

At any rate, I'll try and have fun with this alongside Ghost! :D

As much as I adore derpy happy Rin, that was supposed to be temporary while I look for a new KAT-TUN icon. I might have to hit up some of the more recent 3-nin magazine scans. I'd use mine, but they aren't here yet :/