Dogasu's Backpack (07-04-2009)

"Hypno's Naptime"
July 4th, 2009

Dogasu @ 15:25 JST -- When you read the comparison for "Hypno's Naptime," please note that I'm not actually ranting angrily like some deranged fanboy. I actually think the episode is hilarious, for the reasons I get into in the actual comparison, but that may not come across so well with all the cursing and lack of emoticons.

This comparison is a perfect example of why I'm choosing to go back and redo all of these old Kanto comparisons instead of just going in and doing the ones that I never got around to doing. I know I've said this before, but those old comparisons just flat-out suck. Take a look at this paragraph from the original "Hypno's Naptime" comparison, for example:

You know the part when Satoshi looks at Hajime's (Arnold's) mom and is reminded of his own mom? Well, the flashback is a flashback to Episode 18, which, at the time of this episode's broadcast, had been cut out. It's kinda funny, seeing a flashback to an episode that hadn't been broadcast, but I guess 4Kids didn't feel like cutting it out. I'm surprised 4Kids didn't replace it with scenes of Satoshi's mom from the first episode, as it would have been easy to do, but at the same time I'm relieved they didn't. Maybe 4Kids thought it wasn't significant enough to bother changing? Or maybe they had been planning on dubbing Episode 18 all along?

That, ladies and gentleman, is the reason I'm redoing these old comparisons. Because of completely made-up bullshit like that. I don't know what the hell was wrong with me when I last revised that page (March 2002), but I was pretty horrified when I dusted off that old page and found that little "gem" hidden in there. Gah.

Anyway, enjoy the new, correct, not half-assed comparison for "Hypno's Naptime." And feel free to leave feedback and all that. I plan to update the Recycled Characters page soon, so be on the lookout for that early in the week.

Weekend Round-Up
June 29th, 2009

Dogasu @ 17:43 JST -- I just wanted to update a few things real quick.

One, the List of Anime Episodes has been updated with one new Japanese title (the first episode to air after the premiere of the Arceus movie) and a new English title. Whee.

I've also updated the Video Games section to include HeartGold / SoulSilver's release date. For reference's sake, FireRed and LeafGreen came out on January 29th, 2004, the same day that AG 061 "The Entrance of the Masked Coordinator, 'Phantom'!" ("Disaster of Disguise!"). Haruka got her Fushigidane (which is one of the, if not the, first bit of promotion for the Generation I remakes) thirteen episodes later. So what about the Generation II remakes? How long do you think it'll be before we start to see promotion for the GBC remakes start to trickle into the TV series?

The DVD Guide has been updated with listings for Volumes Three and Four of the Pokémon Elements DVDs. There's no word yet of what episodes will be included or why the hell Viz is still bothering with these. Guess there' s an audience for these somewhere.

Finally, Amazon has updated the listings for the various CD releases related to Arceus - To the Conquering of Spacetime. So, I went ahead and put the cover art and the track listings for the CDs up on the Soundtracks page.

I can't wait to go into the CD store and try to avoid the cashier's gaze as he or she wonders why the hell a 26-year old man is buying a couple of CDs that aren't really aimed for anyone over the age of ten. Being an older fan is fun sometimes.

I've already watched "Hypno's Naptime" and have taken down all the notes for it, so I'm slowly getting closer to finishing it. In the meantime, check this funny comic I found while surfing around the Internets the other day. It's funny because it's true.

"Pokémon Fashion Flash"
June 25th, 2009

Dogasu @ 23:40 JST -- So it's been exactly two months since my last Kanto episode comparison. So, why not have another one?

Here's "Pokémon Fashion Flash."

So some of you will notice that I skipped over "Hypno's Naptime." I had originally planned to do the Episode 027 comparison and then do a big review of that first Kanto DVD box set (since that's the last episode on the set), but my copy of the Japanese version of the episode was having some playback issues. So, while I was busy re-acquiring the episode in question, I decided to go ahead and work on the next episode in the meantime.

It also doesn't help that "Pokémon Fashion Flash" had twenty-two paint edits. Which means I had to take a ton of screencaps from both the Japanese and the English versions. And then I had to go and make a small "thumbnail" version in addition to the larger version. And the panshots were kind of a pain in the ass to put together, too.

Of course, you can always leave any feedback over in "Dogasu's Backpack" thread on Bulbagarden.

The way I see it, though, doing the comparison for "Pokémon Fashion Flash" was a nice little warm-up for the eventual "Princess vs. Princess" comparison.

Episode 028 is the first episode on the second Kanto DVD box set, so Viz decided to use a different picture for the first disc's menu. And...well...just see for yourself.

Hopefully, it won't take me two months to complete the "Hypno's Naptime" comparison o_O

"Kokoro no Antena" Lyrics...kind of
June 22nd, 2009

Dogasu @ 22:35 JST -- So I tried to find the lyrics to the ending theme for Arceus - To the Conquering of Spacetime, Kokoro no Antena. And, well...since the song has only been released unofficially at this point, the lyrics have also only been released unofficially. Which basically boils down to people on various blogs having to rely on what they hear when it comes down to the lyrics. So here are the lyrics to Kokoro no Antena, mondegreens included.

Of course, when the CD single comes out on the fifteenth of next month, I'll correct the lyrics I have up now wherever necessary. I'll also aim to post a translation of the song before the movie's July 18th premiere.

In other DP Movie 03 news, some new characters have been revealed via TCG cards and leaked character model sheets. Next to nothing is known about these new characters, but I went ahead and posted what I could find on the Movie Characters & Pokemon page of my Arceus - To the Conquering of Spacetime section. Those character model sheets, by the way, were originally found on #pocketmonsters, so big props to them for digging those out and sharing them with everyone.

I've also updated the List of Anime Episodes with some new Japanese and English titles. The Video Games section has also been updated with the titles of the new Pokemon Mysterious Dungeon WiiWare games coming out later this year.

Finally, I've updated the DVD Guide with images of the discs in the next Pokemon TV Anime Collection set that's coming out next month. There's also information about two recently announced discs that will be coming out on July 8th that contain two episodes apiece, bringing the total number of Diamond & Pearl episodes available on Japanese DVD to 50. It's kind of infuriating because the demand for a proper DVD release is obviously there - they wouldn't keep releasing new discs in this series if they weren't selling - yet Media Factory seems content to continue releasing these bare bones, sporadic discs. I guess they just don't want our money badly enough or something. In any case, I updated the So which episodes are available on DVD in Japan, anyway? page with the information from those new discs.

I'm about 75% finished with a new comparison, by the way. I hope to have that uploaded in the next few days as long as I can pry myself away from Melee! Pokemon Scramble (it's really quite fun), Super Mario Galaxy (I've got about 75 stars now) and Final Fantasy XII (hey, I found a copy for less than $10...I couldn't not buy it!) long enough to finish it.

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