All About Chemistry

I was saying how Kuninaka_Ryoko(top pic) resembles a MediaCorp Artiste (or vice-versa) and yup, i feels she does look like Fiona Xie. Granted the pose in the 2 pictures aren't exactly identical but i think the resemblance is fairly obvious (Fiona has a longer horsey-ier face though, and i don't really like her). Anyone disagree? Sorry Matt, i wasn't thinking of Yvonne Lim, and before i went to Google her i didn't even who she was also. Yes i suck for not knowing our local actresses.
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Made a bad mistake walking with D.Law down to the cookhouse today. Had to endure his whining about how much work he's been given since he came back. Obviously he's just looking for sympathy. Well he won't find it from me. Empathy? Maybe. Sympathy for the devil? Sorry, i'm all out. Try the Rolling Stones. And it does sound like he's boasting when he said he has a cough flu and fever and he STILL came to work! Wow-Wee! All that and he gets paid (humanely) as well!

Of course to top it off, he mentioned that he might have to call all on us back on Saturday ('fever' talk i guess) to move the department down to SBMC, and as such told me to keep my Saturdays free (as in no going overseas) to help. Now i believe i'm a fairly reasonable guy, but 1 month before my ORD and he's asking me to do give him my Saturdays is going too far. His exact words when i said this was, "what to do? bo bian right?". Bo bian my ass! His way of thinking is truly other-wordly to me. Anyway i think Bernard has more common sense NOT to arrange moving on weekends so i'll leave it to him to run the show. BEST case scenario: Move gets delayed till after June 8th. (And of all the nerves, 'he' had the cheek to ask me to come back after i ORD to help if this happens)
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Finally passed Bullet Witch on Hard Mode last night! Probably one of the more worthwhile games to play in terms of Achievement Pts/Time Spent. And thank goodness i ignored the reviews because the game was really fun to play. I think that those who rate games solely on their graphics (i'm often guilty of that *shame*) will often miss out on unpolished gems like this. And definitely i will not solely trust game reviews (Saints Row got a better review than this? HA!) before buying games. If the title interest (ie has a sexy VG girl on the cover etc) i will most likely try it out myself. And did i mention that while i was playing midway yesterday they released Alicia's Schoolgirl costume for download on Xbox Live? Man if i needed some added incentive to replay the game this is it!
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Just booked tickets for Spiderman 3! Watching it with my family on opening day May 1st @ West Mall. 2 good things about watching with my family: 1) No one talks during the movie 2) Movie is free! (Paid for by Dad). Looks like i'll be watching it twice in the first week, since we have a Ninja movie outing on 4th May as well to go see it.

Time Goes By..

Did my 2nd last duty yesterday! 1 more last Sunday duty before i lose another chunk of my NS obligations (my medical knowledge/ skills were the first to go). Was fussing over what to pack for duty (in terms of entertainment) and in the end didn't bring anything extra. Dennis introduced me to this fun flash game site GameGecko and that's how i blew my afternoon away.

Ended up watching Miss Singapore Universe 2007, a program that i would never normally watch while at home. But it turned out to be quite entertaining. Some of the contestants were downright...'unpleasant'. Call me biased against local girls (i don't think i am but the beautiful ones are few and far between) but hey, i call it as i see it. I was looking forward to the question and answer round because i thought there would be some funny stuff but suprisingly the girls were quite well prepared. Ok, some of the answers were crappy (and so were majority of the questions) but at least there was nothing cringe-worthy.

In the end it was down to Joey Feng (Kang Wei's pick) and Jessica Tan and the latter won. Personally i though Joey looked sweeter but as Fidelis expertly pointed out, the girl with the bigger boobs always win. And with half the contestants having smaller cup size than Kang Wei (or Dennis), it was not that hard to guess the winner based on his theory.

Well since it's over and done with i'm gonna refrain from further badmouthing our Miss Universe 2007 representative but i sincerely hope she does something about her hairstyle because it looked awful. Good luck (you'll need it) carrying the Singapore flag to Miss Universe 2007!

(Dis)Honorary Awards:

Most Forced(fake) Smile: Cadenze Koh (MSU03): think she will have trouble returning to her normal expression after forcing that smile for the entire show
'Auntie' Award: Judy Lee (MSU18): it's a wonder she passed through the age checks prior to the compy (she pulled out of the finals due to work commitments...right..)
Ah Lian Award: Carol Chin (MSU05): she just has the typical Ah Lian look
Best Answer Award: Peggy Chang (MSU04): she had a perfect (ie exactly what i would have said) answer for the 2nd question round
Worst Figure Award: Angelina Tay (MSU15): she has broader shoulder than me! Brr! OR Christabel Campbell (MSU01): she's so tall that it's a little freakish, even Adrian Pang felt intimidated
Sweet Heart Award: Joey Feng (MSU09): Kang Wei has good taste, pity she didn't win

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Drama: Liar Game (Episode 2)

Just as last week, the raw + subs for the latest episode of Liar Game is already out! Episode 2 continues with more of Nao's foolishness and concludes Round 1 of the Liar Game.

Despite winning the first round, Nao gives up her share (50million yen) to Mr Fujisawa (her opponent) to help him with his debt. Shin'chi gives back his share as well, claiming that the deal was for him to get half of Nao's prize money (now 0 yen). Nao starts thinking that he's not such a bad guy after all and wonders why he became a swindler.

Nao invites Shin'ichi to her house to cook for him as a thank you gesture but they find another video tape inviting Nao to the 2nd round of Liar Game. Shin'ichi tells her to just ignore it and to call him if there's any problems. Next day, Nao meets a policeman who offers to accompany her to the meeting place of the 2nd round to formally tell them she wants no further part in the game. She calls Shin'ichi to thank him again and says she doesn't need his help this time.

Turns out she gets tricked again as the policeman is working for the Liar Game people and he only brings her there so that she will participate in Round 2. There's 22 people involved and at the last minute before the door closes, Shin'ichi walks in and declares he will take part as well. The 100 million yen this time is in the form of a diamond attached to the nametag of the players. Since there's 22 players, the maximum amount of money the winner stands to win is 2.1billion yen. The episode ends just as 'Jigsaw' is about to announce the rules of the game (something to do with Minority Voting) and with Nao looking worried (as usual).

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Caught Somewhere in Time

Spent my Saturday getting the Perfect Ending Achievement for The IdolMaster. Took me about 4 hours + to reach the end of my 52 week stint and then the hardest part was the farewell concert at the Dome. Failed 20 over times before i decided to sleep off my frustrations. Resumed when i woke up and passed it on my 2nd try. Hmm, I guess i would attribute the earlier failures to fatigue. That clears 20% of the achievement for the game. I have my eye set on at least 4 more achievements this week for this game.
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Drama: Kekkon Dekinai Otoko (The Man Who Can't Get Married) 1-12 (Finish!)

Wow~! This is definitely the most enjoyable (2006) drama that i watched this year. Abe Hiroshi gives a stellar performance as Kuwano Shinsuke (40), a nit-picking, cynical architect who enjoys being alone and can't understand why anyone would want to be married. His HR skills (or total lack of it), blunt and insensitive remarks and inconsideration makes you wonder why anyone would put up with him. (ans: he's a famous and highly regarded architect). It's not HA-HA funny but the subtle humour and interesting character relations make this a must-watch. Word of warning: If you are looking for a show with many Highs and Lows and twists, this isn't it. Most of the episodes are just re-affirmations that he dislikes social interactions and people in general.

Kuninaka_Ryoko

And did i mention that his neighbour Michiru (Kuninaka Ryoko) is really cute as well? I think she sort of resembles some MediaCorp artiste.
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Drama: Sexy Voice and Robo (Episode 1)

I'm very disappointed with this manga->anime->drama adaptation. Watched it cause Matsuyama Kenichi was in it but the first episode was a big disjointed mess. The first case feels really draggy and its hard to feel for the over-the-top Otaku(there are some funny moments though) played by Kenichi or Ohgo Suzuka as the middle schoolgirl who cares too much for other people. Especially after seeing Kekkon Dekinai Otoko i find it hard to swallow that someone would actually care so much for strangers.

I'll watch a couple more episodes before deciding whether to drop this series. Probably the only draw now is that 14-year old (born Aug '93)Ohgo Suzuka is extremely cute and sweet.

Shidou Nakamura makes an appearance in the first episode as well. Haven't seen this 2 in a show since Yamato.
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Bowl Of A Time

Finally after many unsuccessful attempts to go bowling, somehow we managed to the whole department (+1, Ian) together for bowling at West Coast Recreation Centre (21 games for $2/game before 6pm). Rates are really reasonable and the lanes are much newer than i remembered them. Probably renovated the place but it's kinda sad to see such a big place so empty. All the better for us bowling noobs to practice (minus Ian who is actually a above average bowler)

But the only thing that was really memorable to me was how Herbert kept falling down everytime he threw the ball. Reminded me of Otohime Mutsumi from Love Hina so i went to track down the manga panel. Keitaro's thought "And i still don't know why she falls" echoes my sentiments exactly.

Tag team bowling was more fun (and the scores closer) than regular bowling and thanks to a Ming Wei gutter ball on the 10th me and Ee Wei managed to win. Yay! Fanfare and three cheers for the inaugural no-prize-tag-bowling champs! Ok, it was not really a competition but if i didn't view it as such i probably would not be able to find any motivation to play.

Or gluttonise my food for that matter. Challenged Wee Kim to a KFC Buddy Meal speed-eating contest and also 'won' that. As usual, no prizes for the 'winner'. Just that i need a little bit of competition to be my driving force to do whatsoever, however insignificant (the more insignificant the better).

Guilty by Association

Finished watching 2 seasons (9+11eps) of Hana Yori Dango today! In case the title sounds vaguely familiar, it's the Japanese version of Taiwan series Meteor Garden (starring F4), which was in turn based off the manga series. Liked the comic when i read i back in poly but never watched Meteor Garden because i hated F4 back then. Was very undecided about picking up this series but the clincher was knowing that Erika Toda appears in the last 2 episodes of Season 2. So, loyal fool that i am, i started watching the whole drama from the beginning and suddenly i couldn't stop. Back that up with a cast of up and coming teen stars (Inoue Mao as Makino Tsukushi, Matsumoto Jun as Doumyouji Tsukasa, Oguri Shun as Hanazawa Rui, Matsuda Shota as Nishikado Soujiroh, Abe Tsuyoshi as Mimasaka Akira) and this is one of the better romance comedies i've seen this year.
Rich Kid/Poor Girl.
And of course one big advantage about watching HYD first is that i got used to Matsuda Shota's face, so i didn't have prejudices when i watched the first episode of Liar Game, which was much better than i dared hope for Erika's first lead role. She plays Kanzaki Nao, a much too honest and gullible girl (she went to the police to return a 100yen coin that she found on the ground; she fell for the same prank 42 times ..). Somehow or rather she get tangles up with the Liar Game(hosted by none other than Jigsaw(SAW) himself) and ends up getting swindled of 100million yen. Desperate, she enlists the help of swindler Akiyama Shinichi who is just released from prison and agrees to help her for half the share of the prize money (50million yen). Eagerly looking forward to Ep 2 airing next Saturday.
Toda Erika
Matsuda Shota
A very flustered Nao.
How did Jigsaw escape into this show?

Man with a Plan

Completely forgot that it was Brandon's birthday on Friday (13th). Only realised it when i saw him eating a strawberry cake (the whole cake by himself..) yesterday. Anyway he still owes me money and a chocolate bar so i don't feel so bad about this. Not that he cares anyway.

Went out window-shopping yesterday and bought Marvel's Civil War TPB. Great story and artwork. And while reading it i kept thinking of Gun n Roses 'Civil War'. Will buy Avengers Disassembled and House of M the next time i go back to Kinokuniya.

While walking to the counter to pay i saw Erika Toda on the cover of a female magazine, Seventeen. I had to keep circling the female magazine section till there was no one around before i quickly grabbed it and went to pay. But the magazine was worth it ($11.50), it had a insert booklet all about Erika (which i scanned here). The rest of the magazine i wouldn't even flip through cause it's all about female fashion. But for what it's worth, it came with a small cosmetic bag as well (black w/ pink polka dots..)

Went back to VivoCity and i have to say it's huge! But i walked through all the VCD/DVD, toys and game shops and didn't find anything of interest. (The open air park on the 3rd floor is a great idea though) There is a $2 Japanese shop on the top floor which is pretty interesting and i'll probably end up visiting it again to get some decorations for my room.

My aim was actually to look around for furniture but after yesterday i'm forced to resign that i'll probably be going to get most of the stuff from Ikea. Not because of budget constraints (and i do know Ikea's quality sucks) but because all the other places have such boring designs. Kevin bought some design magazines from Tokyo and there are some really nice concepts in it. Going to try to adapt some of the ideas for my own room.

2 days of Firsts

Things that i've done for the FIRST time these past 2 days:
- Ate at Waraku on Thursday, thanks to Ah Chew for the treat
- First time to VivoCity! But no time to explore what i wanted to see. That's the problem with going with a big group. Gonna go back there someday to have a better look-see.
- Ate at Carl's Jr today, ate something that looked like an oversized BK Turkey Bacon Double, and tasted as such. Nothing special. Not worth it.
- Ate at Ben & Jerrys, can't believe i paid $8.90 for a chocolate milkshake. Taste like a sweetened version of Macs milkshake. Not worth it.

Went to Vivo for a mini Ninja Coy gathering. Suprisingly i managed to remember all the names of the people who came, considering i forgot one of the name of a girl in my class after a 1-month semester break. I really detest travelling with such a big group because simple decisions take so long to make. But it was fun for a while. And we agreed to arrange a bigger gathering to watch Spiderman 3 on Friday, May 4th. Gonna have to book very early for the tixs i guess. Well, such gatherings are fun once in a while (i guess..).

And back home (thankfully it ended at 9+), it was back to things that actually interest me. Started new picture folders for Miyazaki Aoi and Ishihara Satomi but i doubt that it will surpass my Toda Erika collection.

I'm on leave till Tuesday. Gonna enjoy a long slow weekend of slacking and most importantly, slacking without having to feel guilty. Thankfully guilt doesn't take away what i feel is now divine rights due to soon-to-ORD personnel to slack and sleep in camp while others are working. But i'll probably feel guilty if i Ah Chew goes ahead and nominates me for the Gold Practitioner Award, in which case i now pledge that i will use that $100 award to treat the branch.

And just because i feel a post feels bland without pics i'll just post 3 random pics i found today:

Miyazaki Aoi, here, there and everywhere

Just found that Miyazaki Aoi had another romance movie released just a month ago, Umidenohanashi. Couldn't find any English description of what it's about. The trailer also doesn't really show what the story is (the song is very very familiar in the trailer but i can't place the title..). I'll definitely keep an eye on whether there's any DVD release coming out in a few months time.

Re-armed myself with 50 new DVD-Rs today! Now i can continue moving all my drama and animes to disc. Also bought another movie on impulse, The Host (small review here). Just thought i would watch a Korean movie for a change, furthermore it's the best selling film of 2006 in Korea (13,019,740 in Korea watched it, compared to 6,847,777 for the 2nd top film). I seriously don't know what to expect, but since it's a creature-feature film my first thought is that it will be pretty cheesy.

Looks like a B-grade movie but its record speaks for itself.

Surpisingly All About Dogs (Inu No Eiga) was very enjoyable. As you might have guessed i bought the movie only because Miyazaki Aoi was in it. Nearly jumped out of my chair in shock when i thought the movie had ended and she had not appeared yet. Thankfully her cute face popped up for the last short story, albeit for too short a while. Oh and like i was saying, the movie was good. Funny short stories, adorable dogs and pretty good pacing (movie length = 96mins).

Why did Aoi have such a small part??

And because i'm still not quite over Tada Kimi wo Aishiteru yet, i found this interview video on YouTube. Tamaki Hiroshi ('Makoto') looks much cooler in real life. Not quite the idiot that the movie (and also drama 'Remote') makes him out to be. And as always, Miyazaki Aoi has both her eyes firmly glued to the floor while answering questions. Don't understand why she's so camera shy in public but it's cute. No subtitles for what they're talking about but it's on the lines of 'i'm very happy to be acting with so-and-so' and 'i like the character so-and-so very much' etc. Ai Otsuka (singer, ED song, 'Renai Shashin') also says a few things in the video.

Just can't get enough of Shizuru!

And one of the most important piece of news: I'm down to 31 absolute working days in the SAF! That's minusing all the offs and leaves i have left. FREEDOM is in side!