As you have no doubt noticed, I have been under radio silence for the better part of a month: not a peep, nor a squeak, or even a feeble click. Some of you were concerned and even alarmed that I was not present at Akai Panda’s Christmas Special and I thank you all for your wishes. I really appreciate the sentiment. The silence and absence have a number of boring and depressing reasons, so I will refrain from tiring you with them. Suffice to say that priorities have been in a steady crash course for some time now and things will not get better before they get worse, so yes, it is very likely I will be in my semi-Houdini state for some time to come (do not fall victim to misconceptions: the complete Houdini state translates to complete vanishing for 3 or 6 months or even a year – it has happened before).

At any rate, that doesn’t mean I do not still have a bulky backlog of photographic material, so I will slowly endeavor to go through it. Today’s post is from the pre-party photo shoot on the 10th of October, initially Neuro’s idea, which – although not many people turned up – I believe substituted quality for quantity: a fine thing by my reckoning. I believe the meeting had been scheduled for 18:00 at Areos Plaza and at that time the only people present were Spirosk81, DJ Gaara and myself (Neuro arrived much later but in his defense, there WAS a problem with commuting on that day), while we were soon joined by Yo! Master dressed as Takahata Takamichi from an alternative version of Negima (I cannot remember the extremely head-numbing specifics, sorry). An hour, maybe an hour-and-a-half  later, an Alice in Wonderland ensemble showed up, featuring Wabbit as Alice, Epilogue as the Mad Hatter and Fireroses as the White Rabbit. By sheer coincidence, Evaofdawn’s choice of clothes made her a perfect addition as the White Duchess. Later still, Memole also showed up as Tifa Lockhart from the original FFVII (I think).

Well then, here they are, some 80 pictures in all: hope you enjoy them!

Right, ummm… since WordPress is being a fuckwit again and it lost my captions (yes, yet AGAIN), I am afraid you will have to do without. Besides, there weren’t as many as usual and it’s probably just habit that made me put them there. Right at the end, before we made off for Sakura Syndrome’ s party, we were joined by Kirenahana and KawaiiDobermann. You will notice that some backgrounds have been edited: that was because the street and cars were showing, so it was my way of showing the “Beyond the Mirror” effect, as if both realities were side by side but had a distinct barrier between them. In general, this is one of my favorite sets, not just because of the costumes and the in-character poses, but I think the colors came out really well and even the fast-approaching twilight worked to the advantage of Memole’s shoot.

Catch you later,

Speedgrapher

P.S. For those who might take the post’s title the very wrong way, let me clarify: I edited those yesterday.

Well, well… it’s that time of the month again, when the events of various teams have to be announced in order for the aspiring attendees to organize their time and cosplays. This month we have 2 events up north and one in Athens, so here we go:

First up is J.A.P 団 and Geek-Lover Productions’ Japan, Anime & Gaming Party on December 6th (that is to say, this coming Sunday), at the same location as their first party, To Kryfto (31, Valaoritou St., Salonika – see the poster for a map), chiefly sponsored by Byteme.gr. The party will feature, as last time, multiple contests in the following categories:

J.A.P 団 and Geek-Lover Productions' Japan, Anime & Gaming Party.

(1) Best Anime Cosplay.

(2) Best Gaming Cosplay: same as the well-known above, only with gaming characters.

(3) Best Photo-shoot.

(4) Best Role-Play Acting.

I believe the categories are self-expletive but if not, you can go here and read more details. Entrance is 5 euros including drink and for any and all information, requests etc., you can mail the team at japdan2009@gmail.com or visit their Facebook or MySpace.

Secondly, on Friday the 11th of December Sakura Syndrome are back with Christmas & Somnium’s Un-Birthday Party Special, combining Somnium in Tenebris’s birthday (which is on the 7th – many preemptive wishes girl!) with a Christmas Celebration, through Alice’s looking glass. This will also be a double release party in collaboration with Darkest Labyrinth, for Vanished Empire’s “Theater of Tragedy” (by DJ Chihiro and DeeLee, whom some of you may have met waaaay back with Gothika) and HimemaniK’s “I wanna be a figurine”. The party will also feature contests and other suprises. The party will take place at CoFiX (11, Lori Margariti St., Salonika) as usual and starts at 21:00. Entrance is 4 euros including drink.

"Why? Because each has 365 Un-Birthdays!"

Finally, just a week before Christmas Day, Akai Panda organize their last party for 2009 on Friday, the 18th of December, at the new MAD Club (12, Dekeleon St., Gazi). The party starts at 21:00 with free entrance and will feature Camus, Namida and… (?) at the decks.

Akai Panda's Christmas Cosplay Special.

Well, talk about a packed December and here’s hoping it all works out for the best.

Cheers,

Speedgrapher

It’s been a while and I still have not had the chance to edit the required quota of photos, plus all that ugly business at Anime.gr kind of took the fun out of it for a while. Oh, I will get to it eventually, but between work and all sorts of (rather useless, when you think about it carefully) information reaching me, I am seriously not in the mood at this time. At any rate, there is also much preparation to be done for COMICDOM’ s mega blog event, namely the Top 100 Comics of the ’00s (that is to say, the past decade), so the Japanese events stuff takes a back seat for the moment.

That said, I had a bit of time to catch up on some anime I have been downloading and storing with the prospect of watching “someday”. Well, Higashi no Eden (“Eden of the East”) caught my attention and has the added advantage of being limited to just 11 episodes. It tells the story of a group of NEETs (Not in Employment, Education or Training) trying to make their mark upon the world through their own company site and the crossing of their path with the mysterious Takizawa Akira and the Selecao (“The Chosen” in Portuguese) Project. It is an anime filled with rich dialog, conspiracy and the prevalent feeling that something is very wrong with Japan, which only a very select few know of. I must admit that one of the things that got me hooked was the opening sequence, featuring a great song by Oasis, “Falling Down”, which I am posting below for your enjoyment.

Higashi no Eden is a Production I.G. anime (of Ghost in the Shell, Blood+ and Blue Seed fame), so the feeling of mystery, foreboding, the unknown, coupled with weird psychology, are very prevalent. Having watched up to episode 8, I am worried about the story ending with 11 but there are also two movie sequels, Eden of the East: The King of Eden and Eden of the East: Lost Paradise, so I am keeping my fingers crossed for a delivery equally engaging with the story so far.

Check it out – it’s worth the effort,

Speedgrapher

It’s been nearly a month and the material keeps piling up, with Vegetasmate (a.k.a. Yasminblossoms) producing a new video with compiled photos from all three days, to the sound of “Dame!” (Rurounin Kenshin’s 7th ending from the TV series),  “Ready!” (BGM from One Piece), and the full (!) Saber Rider opening, which I heard in this video for the first time. Pay attention to the first couplet, when the song begins. Historical trivia: “Ready!” was the first song Vegetasmate ever asked me to play in the OdC days.

Enjoy!

As for me, I have gotten back to trying and empty the backlog, and I have currently edited around 40 photos from Day 3 of the Cosplay Café. Right now the target is 100, before I post for this event anew.

Cheerio,

Speedgrapher

Currently, the community’s creative urge is higher than a hormonal woman during the bloody moon (sorry if that brought a nasty image to mind – I was trying to be poetic). Therefore, here’s another two videos from from Friday the 13th’s uber-spooky (and mega-fun) party:

First up is Takara089’s Part 2 (Part 1 is over here).

Second feature, Vegetasmate Master Edit.

Enjoy the madness!

Speedgrapher

Hello then, hello. Back as I promised and I gather most of you are still asleep from being up until 05:00 in the morning. No matter – you will be roused from your warm bedding when you will and this post will be waiting for you. Friday (the 13th) ’s event went through quite a bit of turmoil before it turned into a success, first by having it canceled and then moved to its new location. Furthermore, the new location could not be properly communicated, some people got mixed up and then, those who finally got an idea of where the actual place was (in fact ridiculously close to Kerameikos Metro Station), were not at all sure they had the right building and so members of the team took turns standing outside to point them in.

One of our first mistakes was closing both front doors, so that people would use the (actual) side entrance, but I realized pretty early on that it was practically invisible, so we reverted to half the front entrance again. I must confess to being extremely nervous when there were only a very few people until 22:00, but at some point you started seeing each other (after the habit of standing outside, rather than going in – I realize that you may have gotten used to it due to the more tight past party spaces, but I cannot imagine how the cold did not motivate you quickly enough to enter the vastly larger Art House) and in time gathered a big crowd.

Sigh of relief then and the party was on. There were lots of amazing costumes, lots of good cheer and humor and a crazed photography marathon. When it was my turn to take helm at the decks (I played the first half-hour from 21:00 to 21:30, then it was Namida until22:00, then our guest DJ, Force_Impulse until 23:00, then the almighty KrizD until 24:00, Namida again until 01:00) at 01:00, someone remarked to me that I had such a long face that it practically touched the mixer (I believe it was Ioli the loli). Truth be told, I was very tired, not from the party, but from a rather tough week and I will admit I have not been in my best mood recently, for a number of reasons pertaining to work and everyday problems. However, it is at times like these when taking pictures becomes most precious to me, especially when I see so many unabashed, careless smiles. More than once, I heard the remark: “noooo, take another, I am smiling like an idiot”. Well, this geezer believes the world (and if not, at the very least this poor, messed up, sad country) needs more people to smile like idiots, not masking their true feelings for the sake of appearances.

At the other end, people who are sour and spray bile on anyone around them (yes, I see those as much as I see my favorite “smiling idiots”) should give it a rest, take a deep breath and try to do something for themselves instead of concentrating their efforts on making others feel as shitty as they do. Trust me, it will do you a world of good. But look at me, getting all philosophical again at the wrong blog. You are here for the pictures and pictures you will get! The other half of the meaning “Blues” in the title refers to the three colored spotlights we had at Art House, among which the blue one was the most widely used, especially on Evaofdawn, Takara089, Vegatasmate, the Dinner Loli (a.k.a. Anna-chan) and in general that was where extensive photo-shoots took place.

I think you will enjoy some of the creative editing: lights out, curtains up!

Well, here was a first good taste, since it will take quite some time before I can upload the rest of the cache, but hopefully I have chosen some of the best moments over here, to keep you going.

Incidentally, my two lists were the following (thanks for the kudos Six Winged!):

Playlist – 2008-04-27 – Mini (yup, from way back when)

01 – Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai – Naraku no Hana (TV OP).mp3

02 – Weiss Kreuz – Velvet Underworld (TV OP 1).mp3

03 – Koi Suru Tenshi Angelique – Infinite Love (TV OP).mp3

04 – BGC 2040 (TV OP).MP3

05 – Bleach – Rolling Star (TV OP 5).mp3

06 – Fullmetal Alchemist – Ready Steady Go! (TV OP 2).mp3

07 – Gundam SEED – Believe (TV OP Final).mp3

08 – The Soul Taker – Soultaker (TV OP).mp3

Playlist – 2009-11-13 – Walpurgisnacht

01 – Hyaku Monogatari – The Flame (TV OP).mp3

02 – Kara no Kyoukai – Oblivious.mp3

03 – Hellsing – The World Without Logos (TV OP).mp3

04 – Gilgamesh – Crazy 4U (TV OP).mp3

05 – Vampire Knight – Futatsu no Kodou to Akai Tsumi (TV OP).mp3

06 – Higurashi no Naku Koro ni – Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (TV OP).mp3

07 – Buck-Tick – Muma  the Nightmare.mp3

08 – Anima Mundi – Dark Alchemist OP.mp3

09 – Final Fantasy VII – Dirge of Cerberus – Longing.mp3

10 – Mnemosyne – Alsatia (TV OP).mp3

11 – Onmyouza -  Nemuri.mp3

12 – Kaya – Kagami Oni.mp3

13 – Shion no Ou – Lady Love (TV OP).mp3

14 – D-Gray Man – Brightdown (TV OP 2).mp3

Keep smiling carelessly,

Speedgrapher

P.S. Many thanks to Wabbit for filling in many of the blanks! Great job, as always.

Well, the hype is still going strong as videos and photos pop-up left and right. For my part, I have edited just 30 of the 262 pictures I took but they are among my favorites and more importantly, very representative of the event. Those I will be posting in the morning, in order to sate your thirst for the time being. However, as I do not want to leave you hanging dry for the next few hours, here’s a video by Takara-chan (the party’s Visual Kei Blodied Zero from Vampire Knight) and a much shorter one that I took on a whim right then and there.

Hope you like them!  Talk to you tomorrow,

Speedgrapher

Hiya there fellow otaku! I am still reeling from our Halloween J-Party and very near fell ill from the alternation of hot-inside-Art House / cold-where-we-afterwards (not to mention my unbelievably sore throat from yelling all night long to even exchange a couple of words inside the club) and had to spend most of the day in bed. However, I am better now and extremely happy with how the event fared, as well as all the opinions expressed around the net.

However, this month there is more for the enterprising fan, since in just a 4 short (Thursday 19th of November 2009) days Ota.Con Project (Aristotlean University of Thessaloniki – AUTH – Otaku League ’s event team)  will be hosting their own event at the foyer of the Pedagogical Studies Department Tower. In a bout of originality, besides the well-loved fare of J-Rock, J-Pop and Anme OSTs, there will be free sushi and beer (the people organizing it are after my own heart – well done)! Entrance is also free and all attendees are welcome to indulge in cosplay, should they have the time and inclination and the best cosplay WILL be rewarded.

Ota.Con's Premiere!

The event is partially sponsored by Comics Cave, which provided the poster expenses, as well as the awards. The event starts at 21:00 and ends at 01:00. You can find instructions on how to get there by scrolling down over here.

Have fun everyone!

Speedgrapher

P.S. For anyone interested, the team’s blog is over here.

]]> http://otakulens.wordpress.com/2009/11/14/november-2009-eventts-update-3/feed/ 3 Speedgrapher 2009-11-19 - Ota.Con Project http://otakulens.wordpress.com/2009/11/13/cosplay-maid-cafe-fnac-%e2%80%93-the-mall-athens-%e2%80%93-day-2-part-3-%e2%80%93-maikeru-to-meido-tachi/ http://otakulens.wordpress.com/2009/11/13/cosplay-maid-cafe-fnac-%e2%80%93-the-mall-athens-%e2%80%93-day-2-part-3-%e2%80%93-maikeru-to-meido-tachi/#comments Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:06:26 +0000 speedxgrapher http://otakulens.wordpress.com/?p=3790 ]]>

Here I am yet again, this time with more of the promised photos from our 3-day event, finally concluding Day 2. It DID take a while and there is still Day 3 to go, as well as two more parties in the backlog. Wait a sec… Oh, we also have a Halloween Party tonight… I really need to start thinking about my retirement plan. All joking aside, I am yet again in a bit of a dai-pinchi, so you will have to bear with me (even Panda Bear if so inclined – oh God, that was REALLY bad joke, wasn’t it?). Anyhow, no more pointless rant from me. Enjoy the pictures and captions and as always, correct and fill in for me where necessary!

Have a care though. The last stretch of this photo set MAY prove a bit shocking! You are reading at your own risk!

See you all tonight,

Speedgrapher

What follows is the official press release from the three organizing teams of the Halloween J-Music Party, pertaining to the change of venue for the event:

Akai Panda, Nozomi Ongaku and Umi to Sora Events are teams involved in the active propagation of Japanese culture, focusing mainly on the organization of Cosplay and J-Music Parties. So far they have a number of such events under their belt, not the least of which was a hugely successful 3-day event at The Mall’s fnac, near the end of October 2009.

The next event was the scheduled Halloween J-Music Party at MAD Club, on the 13th of November 2009. However, for reasons unrelated and not falling under the purview of the organizing teams, this event has been subject to a number of changes, following the cancellation of the arrangement on the part of MAD. The aim of this press release is to explain the current situation, as well as announce the changes effected.

Initially, members from the organizing teams met with the event manager of the club, around the end of October 2009 and after the necessary discussion and negotiations, agreed upon the aforementioned date of the party. Following continued contact, the poster was prepared, approved, printed and hung inside the fnac’s forum space (the Cosplay and Maid Café, for the duration of the 3-day event, as well as posted all over the internet (MySpace, Facebook, fora etc.).

However, suddenly and without prior warning, all communication with the club manager was lost, while it itself remained henceforth closed. At the site, there was only a poster announcing its transfer to a new space, on the 20th of November 2009. During the only conversation over a 4-day san, we were assured that the event would take place normally, which assurance was later withdrawn.

The reason given by MAD Club’s event manager was the change of ownership, with the new owners demanding immediate delivery of the club and postponing and / or cancellation of all scheduled events.

The organizing teams were never informed of the possibility that there might be ownership issues, nor were they called upon to make their case. Although we do not believe in any way that this was done on purpose, this development is the sole responsibility of MAD Club, for making contradictory arrangements and even more important,for informing us unacceptably late.

Although none of these issues could be foreseen or resolved by the organizers, we feel we owe a sincere apology to the prospective attendees of the event. Following these events, we have contacted another venue in the immediate area and are pleased to announce that the party will take place as scheduled at Art House, situated on 46, Konstantinoupoleos St.. Gazi, again with access from Kerameikos Metro Station.

Halloween J-Music Party at New Venue!

We thank you in advance for your understanding and are still expecting you for the craziest J-Halloween ever!

Akai Panda         Nozomi Ongaku         Umi to Sora Events