Spam evolves. Etherfreak grinds teeth.

I can't help but notice a plethora of unwanted comments in this column from obvious spambots. Spam advertising is a viral scourge that we all deal with every time we sit down at our computers. I think that whomever thought to create a blogger script that would randomly serve ad-links under the guise of an interested comment is evil. Smart, and I hope well paid, but evil nonetheless.

DOLL HOUSE - kigurumi

*shudder* uhm... sometimes you learn things about the world, and then you wish you could un-learn them. Ignorance really is bliss. Kigurumi is the Japanese ah... art? Fetish? of dressing up like a doll/anime character. It's usually men under there, in true kabuki tradition. I'm going to go hide in the fetal position for a while now.
DOLL HOUSE

Cruising the Anime City by Patrick Macias and Tomohiro Machiyama

Cruising The Anime City: An Otaku Guide To Neo Tokyo is a guide written especially for hardcore Japanese animation fans, video game players, and the like who want to know what to expect if they visit Tokyo in person - or who just want to armchair travel and imagine shopping! A street-smart guide in plain English, brightly illustrated with full-color photographs throughout, Cruising The Anime City discusses where to get the best deals on Japanese comics, where to find collectible toys, how to avoid cell-phone scams when crusing games from pachinko to porno and everything in between, a guide to finding memorabilia relating to one's favorite idol singer, and much more. Though basic travel information (lodging concerns, roadmaps and the like) is deliberatetly left up to more traditional guides, Cruising The Anime City is a "must-have" for the collector who needs to know "the" hottest shopping spots in Tokyo!
Cruising the Anime City by Patrick Macias and Tomohiro Machiyama

Versus: Director's Cut

Now here is a movie that is easy to love. The Japanese are just so good at doing whatever they want to on film. In Versus: Director's Cut Tak Sakaguchi is Prisoner KSC2-303, a criminal who has just escaped from a maximum-security prison. After he heads to the Forest of Resurrection to rendezvous with some zany gangsters, KSC2-303's escape plan veers off course when an argument with one of the gangsters leads to death... Then it turns into a blood spurting fist-impaling good old fashioned zombie slasher. Woohoo!
Versus (2000/II)

Dining Hall 838 - Say Paxil?

Creative short by David Foote. Fun to look at. If you can figure out what it's about send me the synopsis.
Video

Alias - Photorealistic CGI music video

This is a really clever and creative bit of work called Sixes Last. The artist is known as Alias, real name Brendon Whitney. Brendon is part of a collective/label called Anticon records. Kudos to Brendon for all his hard work. It shows.
Alias - Music Video

Il Ciclo (The Cycle)

i'd like to take a moment to point out to all my readers out there (if you actually exist) that AtomFilms.com is a wonderful source for free independent short films. There is often times quite a good handful of unique quality work hosted there. Enough idle chatter! On with Il Ciclo! The circle of life was never this... horrific. In a dank, blood-stained room stands one man and a shotgun. What's inside the heavy plastic bag he holds? And what nightmare awaits? Spain's Victor Garcia presents a nine minute short film.
AtomFilms - Il Ciclo (The Cycle)

Take it Slow, Low Gravity and Super Slow Motion Videos

Epic Empire has a handful of fun footage here for anybody interested in seeing slow motion film. Take a few minutes and find one to call your favorite.
Super Slow Motion Videos - Epic Empire

Half Life 2 music video - Dutch hip hop

This is what all the dutch kidz are into these days. you know, making hip hop videos with their favorite gaming graphics engine, Half life 2. I actually kinda like the song. it's vicked veeerd. super cool, ya?
HL2 hip hop

Film Review : Ma vie en Rose

"Ludovic is a young boy who can't wait to grow up to be a woman. When his family discovers the little girl blossoming in him they are forced to contend with their own discomfort and the lack of understanding from their new neighbors. Their anger and impatience cave and Ludovic is sent to see a psychiatrist in the hopes of fixing whatever is wrong with him. A movie that addresses trans-gender and gender issues in general through the eyes of a child." IMDB summary
So French, so fun. Leave it to europeans to make coming of age gender issues movies without having to kill everyone and leave you aching. Ma vie en Rose was delightful and touching. Watch it with a girlfriend and win big sensitivity points. 5 out of 5 stars.
Ma Vie En Rose

jay is games: More fun flash than you can shake a stick at

Woah. There's like a million flash games for you to play here. All free, all unique. From point and click adventures, to classic shooters, puzzles, and more, this site is guaranteed to waste several perfectly good worktime hours.
jay is games

The new ipod nano - makes your mini look like a heap.

Great. Just when I thought I had a cool new gadget, Apple comes along and makes my ipod mini into a big old monochrome piece of junk. Now all the kids are going to point and laugh at me, lugging my big silver ipod mini down the street. Well, at least I'll pretend that's what they're laughing at.
ipod nano

Video » Kanye West offscript with Mike Myers

Albinoblacksheep jumps into the mix this week, hosting the Kanye West outburst. I'm not sure who I feel worse for, Kany for being so obviously upset and hurt about the whole Looting vs Finding thing, or Mike Myers, who has to stand through the whole thing, with this look on his face like, "oh, oh god." See for yourself.
Video » Kanye West offscript with Mike Myers

How to Bow - cute flash site

Rather in-depth site about the etiquette of bowing in modern day Japan. The information is useful if you are planning on going there, but otherwise it's just fun to watch the animations. The characters are cute in a semi-Downs syndrome way. Artwork by Nora Krug.
how-to-bow

Hitachi goes to 'da hood.

What? Oh god. No. NO nonono. I did NOT just watch ..... See it for yourself. I just kept thinking of all the little marketing monkeys bobbing they li'l headz to the beat in the boardroom. "oh! hahahaha! New Bring! Hahahaha!"
Animation