Almost everyone has something that they like to collect. It might be anime, manga, action figures, or movies. Today, it’s all about collections and those items that we’re proud to display.

There are tons of things that I enjoy collecting. Games, strategy guides, and computer software are just a few. If I were going to put anything at the top of my list of prized collectibles, it would have to be cell phones. I have a weakness when it comes to those little gadgets. If it’s sleek and flashy with lots of buttons and features, then I have to have it. From the Motorola RAZR to the Cingular 8125, I’ve been going through cell phones like they were shirts.

I’ll rotate cell phones depending on my mood or where I’m going. If I’m running errands around town, then I’ll grab the Motorola RAZR or maybe the Samsung D357 for easy in and out of pocket use. If I want more of a professional look, I’ll whip out the Treo 650 or one of my Blackberries to have my email and internet accessible.

What’s your pride and joy? What is that you’ve worked long and hard on collecting? Let us know what you’re interested in. It gives us an idea of what you would like us to write or talk about in the future.

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All of you old school G4 TechTv fans may remember the days when that channel was actually worth watching because you’d learn something new on a daily basis. There were shows that taught you about technology and informed you of new and upcoming games hosted by people WHO ACTUALLY PLAYED THE GAMES and were at least FAMILIAR with what they were reading on the teleprompter. What does this little trip down memory lane mean for you? You guessed it. It's time for another one of Douce's Jewels.

Among the many knowledgeable hosts was one of my favorites, Laura Foy, who co-hosted a show call G4tv.com. They talked about games and technology and gave their input on what was worth your time and what wasn’t. The show was cancelled last year and Laura disappeared from the station. Since then, she has gone on to do other things like hosting an internet radio show and, well, music. You won’t find her being exploited on MTV. I’ve saved that pleasure for this very moment.

With all of the hype over the Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii launch, many have forgotten about the initial next-gen console, Xbox 360. Laura Foy has taken it upon herself to remind gamers of which system is the best buy as of right now and what better way is there to draw people together and get a powerful message out to the masses than with the power of song?

I bring to you the latest installment to my internet jewel collection which I’m calling Hey DJ, Bring That Back.



Enjoy!

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As we did earlier in the week for games, this issue of the ESH Daily News will focus on new reviews of Anime titles the Sistahs haven't gotten around to reviewing yet. Enjoy!

Basilisk: The Spoils of War (Vol. 2): Aaron Burkhart reports on Northern Light Online: "The animation is still excellent, and the music adds to the dark mood and action without overpowering the scenes. While the mature content isn't gratuitous, it is more intense than the last volume and might be best kept away from younger ones." Get it here.

Paradise Kiss, Vol. 1: Jamie S. Rich reports on DVD Talk: "As it stands, Paradise Kiss is a mature soap opera with individualistic characters and a strong sense of style. The first volume teases out just enough of the various romantic entanglements to satisfy viewers while leaving them anxious for volume two." Get it here.

The Castle of Cagliostro (Lupin the III) - Special Edition: Mark Hodgson reports for Blogcritics Magazine on this early Hayao Miyazaki film: "While there's action, a little slapstick, and some exaggerated face-pulling to please younger viewers, there's also a little blood, lots of gun-play, a little swearing, an under-age wedding, and several characters smoking like chimneys! Like Spielberg begging the censors not to cut Jaws and the Indiana Jones movies, Miyazaki has to push boundaries to keep both audiences happy." Get it here.

Saiyuki: Complete Collection: Jessica Severs of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports: "The high priest Sanzo, the half-human, half-demon Gojyo, Hakkai, the human who became a demon by slaying 1,000 demons, and the mysterious/mischievous Goku travel west to root out the cause of the demon uprising. It's part Wild West, part Far East, and all good." Get it here.

Speed Racer: Volume 5: Troy Rogers reports for UnderGroundOnline: "Although some hardcore fans have expressed their displeasure over the fact that the series on DVD has been split into several volumes instead of one complete set, Speed Racer is still a must-have for your collection." Get it here.

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Wanna see something purdy?

Looking through the email box, now that I had a moment to myself to collect my thoughts into a coherent block of text... nice of me to do huh?


I got an email from AnimeNation about a new Okami artbook they got in, and I have to say, it looks really interesting. According to the description,

This massive 296 page full color illustration collection archives the beautiful art of Okami, including early, prototype production design sketches, character and enemy monster designs, background art, and promotional illustrations.

Go on, give it a gander... and if you like artbooks, pick it up.

**Electric Sista Hood is an AnimeNation Affiliate**

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With Halloween coming up, it's natural to want to dig into your game collection and try to come up with something that will scare the BeeGees out of you.

The Associated Press has come up with a list of this year's releases designed to frighten you, so they're worth considering.

As for me, the scariest game I ever saw was Silent Hill. Mind you, it's the scariest game I ever saw. It was far too scary for me to actually play. What about you?

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In today's news:

• Gamers in a World of Hurt
• There's a sale at Penney's Toys"R"Us!
• Old School comes roaring back
• Sony Reader gets thumbs up
• Monsters, demons and detectives, oh my!

WoW expansion pack misses holiday selling season: Testing on the upcoming World of Warcraft expansion pack got started only this month, and as a result the package won't be available for sale until after the first of the year. According to an Associated Press story, "Gamers will instead have to wait until January to plumb the depths of Outland in The Burning Crusade..."

It's 3-for-2 time at Toys"R"Us: Through Saturday Oct. 28 at Toys"R"Us, buy two in-stock video games, get the third one free! Here are the weasel words: Free video game must be of equal or lesser value to the lowest priced item purchased. Limited quantities available. Sorry, no rain checks. Here are the online promotion rules.

Some gamers putting warp drive in reverse: In an age where a new video game system is close to breaking the $600 mark, some gamers are reliving the good ol' days, buying old game machines in pawn shops for a $20 bill and buying old games for a five-spot. "Maybe it's because they grew up on them," Jim McCauley, owner of JimmyJams Comics and Games in Winona, Minn., told the Winona Daily News. "A lot of college-age guys look at all the new games, but also the old Nintendo games. I see a lot of that. There's a lot of nostalgia going on." The big sellers? Games with Mario and Luigi. One customer says, "They're chick magnets."

Is the Sony Portable Reader squint-worthy? That's the question answered by Tony Salvaggio for Comic Book Resources in his review of the new portable device. Specifically, Salvaggio checked out the Reader for its ability to display manga titles. "Tokyopop has committed to releasing a collection of their Global Manga lineup for release at the launch of the Sony Reader (in fact, an excerpt of 'Peach Fuzz' should come pre-loaded with the Reader)," Salvaggio writes, "and I was able to take a sneak peak at the results."

Tactics, Vol. 2: Supernatural detective Kantaro Ichinomiya and his band of monsters and demons are back! This time, the team travels to Bride Island, Suzuku Temple and Asakusa in search of adventures, monsters and interesting journal articles. Sounds... like... fun.

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I know we talked about these TV show episodes a couple of weeks ago, but it just now dawned on me that I could link to your buying them through the iTunes store on this here website, so here goes.

First up is the South Park World of Warcraft episode. Why should you buy the episode? Well, even if you aren't a fan of Warcraft, you can appreciate the jokes the SP guys make about how life consuming the game is. I know, I've lost a member of my family to Warcraft. Rehab only works if you let it people.
So click on the image to be taken to the episode in your iTunes and buy it! It's like, less than two dollah!



Next, for your entertainment pleasure I bring you "The Coup" the episode of NBC's series The Office in which Call of Duty makes a huge appearance. While I suck at Call of Duty I LOVE The Office so do yourself [and myself] a favor and pick this episode up, fall in love with The Office, then, thank me.


Then we have, I think, one of my all time favorite music videos. I have loved OK GO for a while now. I actually heard about them shortly after they broke loose unto the unsuspecting music scene, and the fact that they make the music they want, with the music videos they want to boot is just awesome.


And finally, I just got turned on to this band, and I have to say I'm addicted. As soon as I heard the music, I searched out their band on Myspace and requested an add because, well, I dig them that much. AFI is rock passion. I don't know what else I can say about them. Their music just hits me and I can't turn away or not pay close attention.

Alright, that should be enough to add to your iTunes collection and slap on your iPod for fun. Maybe I'll do one of these a week... call it FRESHpicks or something? Suggest some stuff for your iPod that I have/enjoy/covet my own damn self.

Whaddayathink?

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Ok, I know that technically Sakura Wars isn't really all that old school, but it is the first mecha anime that I can recall watching... so that makes it old school in my book

In all honesty it took me a few episodes to warm up to this series. I found the part of the story where the mechas are powered by a combination of steam and spirit power to be very interesting. I mean it is no stretch of the imagination to create a mecha that is powered by electricity, or some kind of radioactive powercell, but it takes a special kind of creative imagination to come up with quasi-steam powered robotic units. Awesomeness! While I could breakdown to you what the plotline of the series is, who all the major players are, I think it would better serve you instead share with you some little known facts about Sakura Wars and then explain why I think it's a series that every anime fan should have in their collection.

Sakura Wars actually started out as a video game developed by Sega. It was originally called Sakura Taisen which caused some confusion in finding it when it was first licensed in the US. ADV Films licensed it here in the US as Sakura Wars and the confusion hilarity ensued. It took me a while to find any episodes on VHS [again, this was back in the day... circa late 1990's] because the video stores I would call didn't know what anime really was, and never had anything called Sakura Taisen in their store. No video game, no movies, and I should stop prank calling them... that's how all the calls ended for a few months. Then I realized I was looking in the wrong place for this stuff. I switched gears and started dogging my local comic stop and that was the ticket. But I digress.

According to Wikipedia there is an official Sakura Taisen shop on the top floor of the Sega "GIGA" Amusement Center, located in Tokyo's Ikebukuro district. Called "Taisho Romando", the store sells only Sakura Taisen-related merchandise... so if you are in need of a Ri Kohran costume, toy models, artbooks, posters, wall scrolls, and even snack foods! [Sakura Taisen pocky anyone?] If you are a fan of collecting all kinds of knick knacks from your favorite series, Sakura Wars surely keeps you covered.

The reason I think everyone should have this series in their collection is simple: Sakura Wars is simply the best version of the bashful but strong girl who, through physical and emotional trials, overcomes her own weakness to become a strong leader. It is a great series for young girls to watch and learn that being smart and strong
are things to be valued, that the strength of real friendship is something to strive for in any relationship, and it's cool looking. [Plus the thin box set is under $30 bucks]

So look into Sakura Wars, you just might like it.

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In today's issue, find out if you can fry an egg on the PlayStation 3, find out if GameTap deserves so much ink, find out if a certain senator is thinking straight and find out just why you're suddenly feeling so old.

More Sony Woes: Two Wall Street Journal articles Wednesday expressed more bad news about Sony. In one article, the Journal revealed that Sony shares had fallen 5.3 percent during the previous week. The company closed down 2.7% to 4,600 yen ($39.09 in U.S. dollars) Tuesday, a day on which the Nikkei Stock Average was nearly unchanged. In a report issued by Macquarie Securities analyst David Gibson, PlayStation 3 units on display at the Tokyo Game Show suffered overheating problems and had to be reset several times. A Sony spokesman told the Wall Street Journal Tuesday that the company was unaware of any technical problems with the PS3. In another WSJ article, Fujitsu announced that it would recall 287,000 Sony battery packs from its computers. That brings the total in the Sony battery scandal to more than 7.6 million batteries. Here are the current recall numbers, as of Tuesday, Oct. 3:

Dell...........4,200,000
Apple..........1,800,000
Toshiba..........830,000
Lenovo...........526,000
Fujitsu..........287,000
TOTAL..........7,613,000

Is GameTap Evil or Just Stupid? That's the question asked in two different recent stories. Manifesto Games co-founder Greg Costikyan tells Gamasutra, "I'm skeptical that their business model is sustainable." Meanwhile, on his own blog, Costikyan says that while a $60 price for a video game is too high, $10 is just too low.

Senator Wants to Impose Government Regulations on Game Ratings: U.S. Senator Sam Brownback, R-Kansas, last week introduced a bill, The Truth in Video Game Rating Act, S.3935, that would direct the Federal Trade Commission to require that reviewers consider the full content of a video game before issuing a rating. Brownback's press release stated, "Currently game reviewers do not play the games before determining ratings, and their reviews are based on taped segments of the game submitted by the game's producer to the Entertainment Software Ratings Board. Such taped segments may or may not fully represent the game's content. The bill would prohibit video game producers and distributors from withholding or hiding playable content from a ratings organization." Brownback said, "Game reviewers must have access to the entire game for their ratings to accurately reflect a game's content." Want to comment to the senator directly? Just call his office at 202-224-6521. Tell him the Sistahs sent you.

Brings Out the 1986 In You: Just released, Voltron: Defender of the Universe Collection One focuses on five lion robots and their pilots as they defend the galaxy and planet Arus vs. the forces of King Zarkon and Prince Lotor from planet Doom. You're going to want to own this one, I bet.

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Having recently reread my entire manga collection, which is huge, I have decided what my favorite theme is for manga. Unfortunately for me it isn't a very common one.

Alright here it is. I love "demon love" manga. Not "Oh, woe is me. I'm a misunderstood demon who would never actually hurt anyone." but "I AM SATAN, LORD OF DARKNESS PHEAR ME!" I love seeing men who squish souls for a living get all lovvey-dovvey and syrupy.

The typical demon man just doesn't get it. "I love you. I want you. I would do anything for you, but I'm still gonna destroy your town and kill all your friends and anyone else you ever loved." Then he doesn't understand when the girl of his dreams is horrified, terrified and now hates him. "But I did it for you..?" just doesn't seem to cut it.

I have two such series in my collection, three if you count "The Forbidden Game" a trilogy of young adult books by LJ Smith that I've sworn to keep forever. "Seimaden" by Higuri You and "Bride of Deimos" by Etsuko Ikeda and Yuuho Ashibe.

"Seimaden" features Laures and Hilda. In a past life Laures sacrificed himself to the demons to save his love Elis, but the only way to save her from evil was for her to die. Now years later he has found Elis reborn in Hilda, and he loves her as much as he ever did, but he is now a monster that has spent the last few hundred years at war with other demons in order to claim the throne of hell. Unfortunately, by the time Laures found her, Hilda had fallen in love with Rodderick, the last of the Azeilles. So Laures seals Hilda's memories and takes advantage of her amnesia to earn her love.

"Bride of Deimos" is an older manga originally published in 1975, so the art is of an older style. It is about Deimos a young god who fell in love with his twin sister Venus. In punishment for their sins the king of all gods, Jupiter, turns Deimos into a demon and gives him the title God of Fear while Venus is consigned to rot in the land of the dead. The only chance has Venus is for Deimos to find her reincarnation. Enter Minako. Only problem is Deimos starts to fall in love with Minako and refuses to forcefully take her to hell. Instead he sets out to make her accept that she is his destined bride.

I highly recommend both manga, but out of the two I prefer "Seimaden". It is more modern and less of a horror manga. "Seimaden" is a lot less gory than "Bride of Deimos." It has genuinely cute parts, whereas "Bride of Deimos" is most definitely a horror manga and by no means cute. Laures spends his time showing his softer side, but Deimos chooses to convince Minako by threatening her and showing her all the horrors of the world. "Bride of Deimos" reads like a graphic novel of "Are You Afraid of the Dark" crossed with "The Twilight Zone." It is much more of an episodic manga where "Seimaden" has story flow from one chapter to the next.

"Bride of Deimos" is published by ComicsONE and has 17 volumes. I don't believe it has been entirely published in English yet, although the series has been completed.

"Seimaden" is published by CMX Manga, the manga section of DC Comics. Seven volumes have been published as of right now, but the series isn't finished yet.

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I got one of the last XBox titles in my game queue in this week called Samurai Showdown 5. I have been looking forward to this title being released because I'm still a 2D gamer girl at heart.

I have been playing Samurai Showdown since the original in the arcade and on the Neo Geo system. I had one [count em, one] friend that had a Neo Geo system when it came out, and I don't want to say that I was friends with this person because they had a NG system...but, you know.

The excitement that washed over me was palpable; I tore open that shipping envelope like a wrapped gift on Christmas morning. Bounding across the living room heading towards the XB360 I found myself smiling and gaining in anxiety at the thought of being able to play this game. Popped the disc into the system and, it wasn't compatible. Damn. My heart sank a little and would have dropped even more had I not already been in possession of an XBox system. TV video input changed, XBox started, game running, I darted back to my futon and assumed the game on position.

The moment the game loaded and that oh so familiar BGM started playing I was immediately back in my Sega Genesis days. I was going to grab Nakaruru [the girl in red and white with the Hawk] and commence to perpetrating some ass whoopins, but the character select screen was all wrong. Who were all these faces that I did not recognize? Where had they come from, and why were they in my path to righteousness? I felt so alone and out of my element. But I couldn't let that get in my way, Nakaruru and I were on a mission...a mission from Bob. Round one Engage!

The basic combos returned to me like the a-b-c's of riding a bike. On my third or forth match I was jumping, blocking, and commanding my hawk to attack with ease. Characters moved faster than I remember, and some how the visuals don't look as good either. I'm not sure how, but the movement of player characters just doesn't seem as fluid. My recollections of what transpired next are fuzzy at best, but I will try with all my might to report to you the events as I remember them.

I lost. I lost bad. I lost bad with my girl Nakaruru. What. The. Fuck?

I played for hours, getting better and better with each subsequent match, falling in love all over again with 2D gaming. Playing Samurai Showdown 5 with all it's faults and believe me there were plenty] was still enjoyable. To me, most 2D games are fun. Have you ever played Metal Slug? Holy crap is that thing fun. It's a traditional side scroller; kill all the enemies as you move horizontally across the level until you get to the final enemy and then take him out. You die, oh too bad fo u! You have to start the level over again from the beginning...they way Bob intended. What about King of Fighters? Personally, I feel this game is simplicity in it's entirety, and that's why I think 2D gaming refuses to die off in the 3D [wish it was 4D] era.

We currently live in the Prey, Gears of War, and Assassin's Creed era of gaming where the emphasis in gameplay is being placed on realism and accuracy. And while these are promising and exciting times, there is something to be said for simple joys, and I think that's part of the reason why 2D games still have value in the market. The other reason is that 2D game instantly remind you of looking at a comic book. The colors and character design style make the player think and feel like they are "playing" a comic book. They are given a character with a very short back story and an open playground to explore with that character.

So if you've never picked up a 2D game, I encourage you to go exploring. You might just find a new "go to game" for your permanent collection.

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