Here it is then, the end of a season: to be more precise, I should say that another chapter in what is the (comparatively) small, yet incredibly energetic Japanese music scene of Greece, has come to a close. I suppose there are all sorts of mixed feelings about this development, from all sorts of different people. I myself have been one of the cogs of this peculiar machine, called Ordre de Ciel and then later, Le Ciel, at least to the extent allowed by my day job restrictions; more importantly, to the extent allowed by my sense of self.
Hm… reading back from the previous paragraph, it seems to me that it is one of the most careful introductions I have ever written. Does it look that way to you? If it does, you would be correct in your assessment. Most of you know I am at odds with [room302] (OK, that’s putting it lightly) over a great many things, but that does not mean I do not recognize the fact that he made an honest and dedicated effort to spread Japanese music, for more than half the time of the team’s existence.
This blog’s aim not being the analysis of social mechanics, dynamics, right, wrong and so on and so forth (insofar as it does not directly concern Japanese events, as was the case with BIOS), I will leave it at that. The irony is that this was the first event of Le Ciel I went to, after a month-and-a-half being cloistered away for work and it turned out to also be their last. It all happened on the last days of Carnival… On with the photos!
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(When I arrived around midnight…). “Heeeey Speeeeeedyyyy!”
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“Er… Hey there, Joker, Harley…”
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Actually, George and the Sweet, Tiger-tailed Lady…
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…wore two of my favorite cosplays ever…
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…even if they were not anime-related.
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(Speedy messing around in Photoshop.).
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What was extraordinary about George’s Joker, was the fact…
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…that he combined elements from all three most memorable Jokers…
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…a bit of Cesar Romero here, a bit of Heath Ledger there (even if this pose took him forever) and a sprinkle of Jack Nicholson.
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As for Harley Quinn…
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…she was the spitting image…
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…of the character, as she is portrayed in the Animated Series.
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Omedetou!
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Although I was momentarily distracted by my two favorite lollies…
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…I could not help but noticing THIS, heading the “GO!” train!
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Turns out it was a waaay drunken and annoying guy but more on that later.
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The next shock was Namida as Ash Ketchum (Pokemon), WITH a life-sized Pikachuu…
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…as well as…
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…well… *sigh*…oh, dear me…
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…Chiroto! (“Nyan!”).
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There was a multitude of great cosplays, such as…
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…this hand-made Kyouraku Shunsui (Bleach)…
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…Bulma (Dragonball), here talking with Stein (Soul Eater)…
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(I must confess, Elina had to tell me what she was dressed as).
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(My first thought was –CENSORED– and my second was Haruhi).
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Eri-chan finally broke tradition…
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…abd dressed as her own archenemy…
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…Light Yagami (Death Note)! Also amazingly cool.
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The party was also honored by the presence of…
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…Genya Arikado (Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow).
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(Not that I would know, mind you – the only Castlevania I have played was on Gameboy. The black & white one!)
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If there is one thing Roi-Mat definitely has over Underworld…
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…it’s the decent lighting array, as well as…
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…ample room to take pictures.
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Ed Elric (Fullmetal Alchemist) came over…
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…aaaaall the way from Salonika.
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This is where it gets funny…
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…as I was taking pictures of didi and Ayami-chan…
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…I noticed that didi was trying to move around and get behind me.
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In fact she was trying to put me be tween herself and the drunken dude (here to the left, but not showing)…
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For as long as the girls stayed at the party, they had me play…
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…the role of a Shepherd Dog, in order to move around safe from him!
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In this beautiful picture, he is in fact AGAIN to the left (and again, off screen), spouting bullshit!
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Most of the other usual suspects were also there…
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…such as Constantine and Mika-chan (at ease, soldiers)…
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…Flexxxy, rather moodier…
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…and manlier than usual (“Urgr!”)…
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…(he made up for it in Da Sein, horrible schoolboy!)…
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…as well as Atsushi Sakurai! (“A-chaaaan” voices in the background).
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Only real use of the drunkard: he made her actually make a convincing Sakurai face…
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…by harassing her…
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…and her friends (Malice Mizer’s Mana, to the right, was definitely NOT amused)!
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Besides modern Japan…
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…the 80s were also invited, featuring…
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…Evil Lolita…
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…Countess Bathory…
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…(first time I’ve seen the Countess wearing so much color)…
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…Emma…
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…(red and cheeky as an apple)…
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…as well as -WTF?!- Eric Draven!
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The party forged on with lollies (and… others) dancing…
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…and gazing off into space (I love this picture of Ayami).
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Whether cute (Louiza)…
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…sly (Milk)…
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…dangerous…
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…Visual (old school)…
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…or in cosplay, the faces of the people…
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…at the heart of these parties… err… guys…?
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D’oh, never mind! Buzzing off, TMI!
I saved this picture for last and post it here separately, since it almost seems like an epilogue, featuring Le Ciel themselves.
Left to Right: Yu-kun, Larva and [room302] (the Countess was off doing um… whatever it is people were doing in the 80s – I wouldn’t know, I was frigging watching Chojin Locke and Thundercats on Greek TV, in the 80s!).
As far as I know, there was another party planned after this one, but the club where it was supposed to take place closed down. Shortly after this party (4th of March), Le Ciel announced their cessation of activities, followed by an explanation. If interested, you can follow the links here.
That is all, I guess,
Speedgrapher
