Manga Review: Fruits Basket vol.3

By Aliraluna

Story and art by Natsuki Takaya

Now that Tohru Honda had a pleasant and safe place to live, knew about the secret curse that some members of the Sohma family had to endure, and went to school with Yuki and Kyo Sohma, she encountered a new challenge: having a sleepover with her two best friends Hana and Uo. 

It all began when Tohru Honda asked Shigure Sohma if she could tell her friends where she was staying and he accepted. When she told her friends, they decided they had to visit the house to assess if it was a suitable environment. During the sleepover, Tohru found out that Shigure was a novelist and later they played cards. Just when the girls were getting ready to go to bed, Kyo Sohma was outside listening to them chat. One of the girls noticed Tohru holding a hat and particularly asked her why she still had it. Tohru then proceeded to tell them the story of the day she was chased by some boys when she was about six/seven years old. She was very scared and kept running, until she found herself lost. She cried all night until morning, then a boy appeared in front of her wearing the hat she has now. He stared at her and started to run, stopping once in a while. She followed him until he came to a stop and she realized he had lead her home. He gave her his hat and disappeared, she never even had the chance to give her thanks. Her friends told her it would be a better story if she met him again and fell in love… 

(I already have my thoughts in regards to the boy's identity.)

Later on, Yuki Sohma had to dress up as a girl because of his cute appearance; everyone wanted to see him crossed-dress and while helping the onigiri sale in the festival! Besides the chance of seeing a cross-dressing Yuki, two more members of the Sohma family arrived at the Festival: Hatori and the adorable Momiji. Hatori approached Tohru to talk with her and warned her that she shouldn't get involved any more with the Sohma family. Cute Momiji later on explained to Tohru part of Hatori's sad love story, which justified his mannerisms. Eventually we get to see the whole story at the end.

Later on, Yuki and Kyo had a fight with Shigure because they refused to go to the Estate (where the majority of the Sohma family resides).  Yuki would have had to attend because he’s part of the Chinese Zodiac and they are supposed to attend to the New Year's banquet. Will they attend? What will happen with poor, lonely, and hard-working Tohru Honda in the New Year’s celebration?

5/5

Thoughts: I really liked Hatori’s story.

     

   

Interview: Jason David Frank

By Geek Whale

The Puerto Rico Comic Con is finally here and the Geek Whale team is thrilled to bring you a quick interview with one of the guests, a well known MMA fighter, martial artist, and one of the best known Power Rangers, the Green Ranger himself Jason David Frank . The Geek Whale team was excited to learn he was coming back this year and had a mission to interview the Green Ranger. This is what happened!

Geek Whale: Your character, Tommy, is so popular that it has been brought back as different rangers after being the Green Ranger. Are there any plans to bring him back in the new series?

JDF: Right now, I haven't heard anything, but I love playing Tommy so I would always love to come back.

Geek Whale: When you first stepped into Tommy’s shoes, did you ever think that it would affect and continue affecting the lives of so many?

JDF: I never thought it would be as big as it is today. I have so many fans around the world that look up to Tommy and that is just amazing to me. I hear all types of stories about how Tommy helped someone get through tough times at home or school and it just makes me very happy to be part of something like that.

Geek Whale: How do you feel when you put on your Green Ranger suit for the conventions?

JDF: It definitely brings back memories. I love seeing how fans get when they see me in the suit. It’s like they are 8 years old again and it makes me happy to see that.

Geek Whale: You created your own martial arts system "Toso Kune Do", which means "way of the fighting fist". How is this system different from traditional martial arts? For those interested in Toso Kune Do, where can they learn this discipline?

JDF: Toso Kune Do is a mix of many different styles of martial arts. The mixture of the styles makes it easier for all types of people to train, whether they like kicks more than punching, or using weapons, etc. Right now, I have three schools in Texas and one in California called Rising Sun Karate Academy. I’m also working on a website, trainmejdf.com, where I will teach everyone from around the world Toso Kune Do virtually.

Geek Whale: On January of 2013 you became the Guinness World Record Holder for most 1‐inch pine board broken during free-fall. What was it like and would you do it again to break your own record of 7 broken boards?

JDF: I wanted to do something that included both of the things I love, which are martial arts and skydiving. It was a great experience to go up there and do the record. Of course, I would break my own record. The first record break was just for fun and I broke 7 boards.

Geek Whale: What are your thoughts in regards to the Power Ranger reboot?

JDF: I think this is great news. Power Rangers has been going on for 20 years and now it's just as popular as it was when it first came out. I have always supported and been very proud of being part of the brand so I think this is a huge step forward.

Geek Whale: Will you be willing to open a dojo in Puerto Rico? - By Joel Rodriguez Ramos (community question)

JDF: I love it here in Puerto Rico, if I could I would definitely open a dojo here.

Geek Whale: How do you feel about participating for the second time in the Puerto Rico Comic Con 2014?

JDF: I had so much fun here the first time. Everyone showed so much love and enthusiasm, it blew me away. I can't wait to meet everyone again and feel that same energy.

Geek Whale: Early this year you called out CM Punk for a MMA fight. Is this fight going to happen?

JDF: Actually, I never called out CM Punk. He said during one of his Q&A that he would fight me and you just don’t say that in the fighting world. Right now, I haven't heard anything back from him. I would love to fight with him, since he’s a legit martial artist and I think it would be something all fans would love to see.

Thank you Jason David Frank and the Puerto Rico Comic Con for giving us the opportunity to make this happen! 

Cámara de Representantes presenta moción de felicitación/reconocimiento al Puerto Rico Comic Con

Domingo, 25 de mayo de 2014 - El Hon. Jaime Perellón, Presidente de la Cámara de Representantes del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, aprobó en sesión celebrada el jueves 22 de mayo, la petición del representante Luis R. Vega Ramos para extender una expresión de felicitación y reconocimiento a los organizadores del Puerto Rico Comic Con. La moción fue presentada hoy domingo por el Representante a Ricardo Carrión, productor ejecutivo del evento de entretenimiento.

Según la moción, "el Puerto Rico Comic Con es una de esas actividades de sana convivencia familiar que une a niños, jóvenes y adultos en el disfrute del mundo del cómic, la narrativa gráfica, las películas, series televisivas y literatura de súper-héroes y ciencia ficción, así como los videojuegos, entre otras. Es una celebración de una parte importante de la cultura popular global y contemporánea. Por ello, el continuo éxito y crecimiento de la misma merece el reconocimiento y la felicitación de la Cámara de Representantes y del pueblo de Puerto Rico".

Los productores del Puerto Rico Comic Con, expresaron sentirse orgullosos del hito, ya que supone una validación del evento y su rol como ente unificador en la comunidad de aficionados del entretenimiento. El Puerto Rico Comic Con es el principal y más importante evento de entretenimiento en la región. Ayer sábado recibió sobre 18,000 personas (evento "sold out") y hoy domingo se espera que la acogida sea de igual magnitud.

En la foto, de izquierda a derecha, Ricardo Carrión, productor ejecutivo PR Comic Con, Hon. Luis Vega Ramos, representante de la Cámara y Edgar Rosado, productor asociado del evento.

Useful Tips for Cosplayers

  By  Marjorie Morningstar of Cosplay +Sz

Here you’ll see a few tips for con attendees in their cosplays. You will find them useful for a smooth experience.  Concerning you:

• Be well rested. I know it's difficult to have a good sleep the day of the con. Between the excitement and the final touches for the cosplay we tend to sleep only a few hours. Plan ahead to have everything ready and sleep well

• Have a good breakfast. You don’t know how many hours you will spend at

the entrance line and you will need lots of energy so you can strike awesome poses. So eat before you get there and charge up for a day of complete fun.

• Be prepared. Have a bag with essentials like:

  o A bottle of water (you can refill at the water fountains) and snacks. o Sewing Kit. You can be a super hero, for yourself or any other with this amazing kit. But take only what’s necessary (thread, needle, safety pins, etc.)

  o First aid kit. You don’t know what can happen, and while you wait for the cons medical assistance team you can prevent blood stains on your cosplay with a Hello kitty band aid.

  o A change of clothes in case of a mayor accident or discomfort. Also, in case your cosplay is too revealing and you are asked to change clothes.

  o Girly things. To all my fellow female cosplayers, if Mother Nature has called, take some extra female napkins/tampons with you. You don’t want accidents happening.

• Bring a buddy. You can bribe them with an autograph from a special guest invited to the con or with noms (noms are good bribes). Bring someone who can help you dress up, hold your things while tacking pictures, and enjoy the con with.

Concerning your Cosplay:

• Get it done. The best advice we can give is to have your cosplay finished ahead of time. Try it on and practice posses to make sure the outfit and prop(s) holds.

• Be prepared. Keep every piece of your cosplay together including your make up, so you can get dress with less hassle. You can find bathrooms outside the convention hall where you can get dressed if you need to. If  your cosplay needs body paint, you will need extra time in the morning for
preparations. Be careful not to mess the facilities in the convention center. Try it out first, check for allergies and check if the paint runs.

• Make safe props. There are a lot of different ways to make props, be sure  to use the safest materials for your safety and that of others. Remember that there will be a sea of people and you have to make sure not to hurt yourself or others.

• Strike a pose. Practice your poses with and without your props. You can injure yourself by doing something you are not used to do.

• Enjoy!

So You Wanna Play DnD? Part 2: The Rules

By Hemlock (Jose Otero)

   You know how people say that they don’t like reading Shakespeare because it’s “Old English”? But in actuality Old English sounds more like “Hwät! We Gâr-Dena in geâr-dagum þeód-cyninga þrym gefrunon, hû þâ äðelingas ellen fremedon. Oft Scyld Scêfing sceaðena þreátum.” (From Beowulf) and Shakespeare wrote more like “Two households, both alike in dignity, in fair Verona, where we lay our scene, from ancient grudge break to new mutiny, where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.”? Yeah, that’s the usual misconception of how DnD rules work. You want to see complicated rules? I suggest you open a BattleTech book for 5 minutes and try not to get dizzy. DnD rules are pretty simple though some editions are more complicated than others. Before you go ask your buddies to join you for a rousing night of goblin slaying, you need to pick what rules you’re going to run your game in.

   First thing’s first: there are 6 distinct rule sets for DnD distributed in 4 editions. First edition, advanced first edition, second edition, third edition, 3.5^th edition and fourth edition. If I had more time and space here I’d walk your through all the important aspects and differences between these categories and explain some others that exist out there. Instead, I’m just going to give you the gist of these editions and what you should be aware of before investing a substantial amount of cash in them. First off, of course, is First edition and advanced First edition, sometimes referred to as Advanced DnD or just ADnD. These are the early rule sets and have… flaws. Some classes are overpowered, other classes aren’t worth playing and the more modules you get the more complex and nonsensical it becomes. Despite the fact that rules in both editions are complicated they aren’t impossible to learn but it’s going to take you some significant reading time.

   Second edition is in my opinion the most convoluted system of any DnD game. For example: let’s say you’re holding a shield. Now you have to declare which way you’re facing. After that you need to know in what hand you hold the shield and what hand you hold your weapon. You get full defense bonus on the shield side, some bonus from the front, very little on your non-shielded side and you actually get penalties for being attacked from behind. And that’s just shields, wait until you get to complicated things like climbing walls and throwing spears. Yeah… Second edition is for experienced players with a need for more of a challenge and a tighter rule set. Do not be mistaken! These aren’t bad rules and it’s not a bad edition but it is not for new players. Back in my day it was a rite of passage to play through a second edition game. And it was not easy.

   So then comes third edition and 3.5. I have to admit these are my favorites. The rules are simpler but not too simple and there is a lot of fun mythos to work with. Lots of types of dragons, weird monsters, demons, gods, angels, locales and the cosmology are all a lot of fun to play with. There are very big differences between third and 3.5 but, again, I can’t spend too much time on them. If you want to play one of these I suggest you look up the differences and pick the one right for your group.

   Finally there’s fourth edition. Now fourth edition gets a lot of flak (A LOT of flak) for being very simple. Everything is streamlined, it’s more forgiving on the players and even the big sprawling mythos in past editions is simplified for new players eliminating some really cool stuff that was around in earlier editions. But I have to say teaching new players how to play fourth edition is a breeze. The DM does most of the work and the math is simple and easy with bonuses and penalties that don’t take hours to make sure you’re doing them right (second edition I’m looking at you). Learning the gist of the rules can take maybe an hour or two without getting into the really complex stuff which you can introduce slowly as the team becomes more accustomed to the rules. Is it the best? Probably not but it’s definitely the best was to introduce someone to the game.

   Before parting I have to point out there’s this new edition called DnD NEXT. I don’t know, I haven’t played it, I can’t tell you much about it except people tell me it’s… weird. Not as simple as fourth edition but not as complex as second with some oddball additions and bringing some old rules back that either make me happy or scratch my head. Once again I apologize for this very general description of the editions but it’s all about what’s right for you and your group and, of course, having fun.

Follow Hemlock and his crazy adventures in writing and DMing games on Twitter! @WritingOnHemlok

Puerto Rico Comic Con 2014 eleva los estándares del entretenimiento y espectáculo para toda la familia

Luego de haber estremecido el Centro de Convenciones de Puerto Rico el año pasado, el Puerto Rico Comic Con regresa este próximo 24 y 25 de mayo con la promesa de elevar la propuesta de valor para los aficionados del entretenimiento. Con más exhibidores locales e internacionales, un nutrido grupo de celebridades de Hollywood y de los mundos de cómics y videojuegos, el evento brindará una experiencia cultural sin igual para el disfrute de toda la familia.

Según Ricardo Carrión, productor ejecutivo del evento, “los fans pidieron más y así será. Este año el evento sobrepasará expectativas en todos las áreas del entretenimiento que atendemos – cómics, cine, TV, videojuegos, animación y arte, juguetes de colección, memorabilia, ‘cosplay’ (disfraces) y más. Como en años anteriores, tendremos una gama de actividades y ofrecimientos para toda la familia”.

Carrión comento además que el 2014 Puerto Rico Comic Con continúa expandiendo su rol como crisol de talento puertorriqueño. Para ello estarán presentes más de 60 artistas y estudios de cómics boricuas dando a conocer sus trabajos y compartiendo con sus seguidores. Entre ellos figuran Tico “Thousands” Jiménez, Franchy Morales, Soda Pop Comics, Dave Álvarez Studio, Días Comics, Algaro Comics, Cheo Pares, José Vega y Tom Beland. Este último tendrá disponible en el evento portadas de su más reciente trabajo, Chicacabra, creadas exclusivamente para el Puerto Rico Comic Con.

El cuadro de invitados especiales al evento fue cuidadosamente seleccionado para atender los diversos gustos de las decenas de miles personas que se espera llegarán. Entre ellos se destacan

• Michael Rooker: Veterano actor conocido por darle vida al personaje Merle Dixon en la serie The Walking Dead. Sus trabajos incluyen actuaciones en filmes como Days of Thunder, con Tom Cruise, y Cliff Hanger, con Sylvester Stallone. Próximamente saldrá en la nueva entrega de Marvel, Guardians of the Galaxy.

• Scott Snyder: Famoso escritor estadounidense conocido por su colección de cuentos cortos Voodoo Heart y su colaboración en historietas como American Vampire, Detective Comics, Batman y Swamp Things.

• Jason David Frank: Actor que hizo de Tommy, el Power Ranger blanco, además de ser un conocido atleta MMA (“mixed martial arts”).

• Maximiliano Hernández: Talento hispano que hizo del agente Jasper Sitwell en Captain America: The Winter Soldier y figura que está asumiendo mayor prominencia en el universo cinemático de Marvel.

• Steve Blum: Actor de voz estadounidense conocido por ser la actual voz oficial de Wolverine en las últimas animaciones y videojuegos de Marvel. También ha colaborado en series como Naruto, God of War y otros.

• Riddle’s Messy Wardrobe: Cosplayer profesional que le da vida a diversos personajes del mundo del entretenimiento.

• y muchos más

El 2014 Puerto Rico Comic Con ocupará un espacio de más de 180,000 pies cuadrados para acomodar a los más de 300 exhibidores locales e internacionales y a las más de 30,000 personas que los productores esperan. Se celebrará los días 24 y 25 de mayo en el Centro de Convenciones de Puerto Rico.

“El acelerado paso de ventas de boletos nos indica que el evento atiende un mercado importante y de gran valor – los fans del entretenimiento – y que es un foro en donde compartimos todo aquello que nos apasiona en esta área”, dijo Carrión.

Para más información:

• www.facebook.com/prcomiccon
• www.prcomiccon.com
• www.ticketpop.com

Wacom participa en Puerto Rico Comic Con 2014

¿Qué? Wacom será patrocinador y expositor de Puerto Rico Comic Con 2014, el principal evento de entretenimiento en Puerto Rico en donde los entusiastas y artistas del arte manga, los comics, videojuegos, card games, animé y películas se darán cita en una celebración de dos días.

¿Cuándo? El próximo 24 y 25 de Mayo. Las puertas se abren a las 10:00 am hasta las 7:00 pm el sábado y de 10:00 am a 6:00 pm el domingo.

¿Dónde? Puerto Rico Comic Con 2014 se realizará en el Centro de Convenciones de San Juan. Wacom estará presente en el booth # 904 con exhibición y demostraciones de productos a cargo de José Rivera, Sales Support de Wacom y de Gino Quintana, Gerente de Territorio, para los interesados en proyectos educativos o nuevos proyectos.

¿Por qué? Desde los minoristas de cómics hasta los vendedores de animé, Puerto Rico Comic Con 2014 es un espectáculo único en su género con más de 5,000 fans, artistas y cosplayerslistos para dar a conocer y consumir recuerdos, juguetes , coleccionables, películas, ropa, videojuegos, juguetes personalizados, y card games. El evento es además la excusa perfecta para la gran reunión de Cosplay, con cientos de verdaderos fans disfrazados de sus personajes favoritos. ¡Es un evento para toda la familia y Wacom estará presente haciendo presentaciones de sus productos De la más reciente generación como es Intuos y Intuos Pro y la familia Cintiq.

¿Cómo? Para obtener mayores informes sobre Puerto Rico Comic Con 2014, visita: http://www.prcomiccon.com/ o hazte fan de Wacom en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WacomEspanol?fref=ts

Netflix Addiction: X-Men

By Dr.Sparta

 With “X-men: Days of Future Past” coming in very soon, I can’t help but think of all the different X-men shows I’ve seen. There has been, what my guts tell me to be, a thousand different versions, some way better than others. The one that always seems to storm my brain’s beaches is X-men Evolution. Truly I ask, why do a lot of people despise this show so much?

   My brothers and sisters, this show brought everything the X-men formula had to bring, yet again and again people did not approve of the story or the characters. Was it how the show was delivered? Was it because they were in a type of high school now? I don’t get it. The action was intense, the stories were BRUTAL at times. Granted it would get a bit on my manly nerves at times, but it couldn’t have been that since it only happened a few times.

   I am saddened whales and whalettes that this show didn’t get the recognition it deserved for being the entertaining beast that it truly was. Yet it stands up even now, almost a decade and a half later. Not remembering the horrible third installment to the film franchise “The Last Stand”, that movie was terrible and I cast it down to Hades where it UNGLORIOUSLY belongs. I remember this small, short-lived show that truly brought fun to everything there is to bring about people with special gifts and how people respond to them, before the public knew of their powers and after.

   This show gave a new perspective to the X-men while still getting the story lines and the relationships just right. I truly miss it and for it to be on Netflix gives me a very fond nostalgic breeze. I give this show 4 out of 5 shields, as it EPICALLY deserves. With that I take my leave whales, are you excited for the new “X-Men: Days of Future Past” film coming in? This is Dr. Sparta, giving a nice prescription FOR THE X-Men GLORY!