Movie Review: Rurouni Kenshin

It was a set date today, December 8, 2012, as I watched one of the movies I was very excited about: Rurouni Kenshin. I went with my bestfriend, Megan, and our partners. Before it was released in the Philippines, we decided to watch it together since the anime adaptation of this movie was the reason why we met way back our high school days.

Credits: SM Cinema

The movie revolved around Himura Kenshin, a wanderer who is looking for a peaceful life with a vow to never kill again. Before, Kenshin is the heartless assassin called Hitokiri Battousai. In his wandering, he meets Kamiya Kaoru, the head of Kamiya dojo, whom he saved a couple of times. She was aware of Kenshin's previous life yet supports him in his new outlook. Yahiko, a trainee at Kamiya dojo, brought along Takani Megumi, a doctor who ran away from the smuggler, Takeda Kanryu, who asked her to create opium. Sagara Sanosuke joined them when Kenshin decided to rescue Megumi who decided to return to Kanryu when the lives of the village people were endangered as they look for her. Upon fighting Kanryu's subordinates with the police, Hajime Saito, the killer who calls himself Battousai, Udo Jine, kidnapped Kaoru. Kenshin rushes to save Kaoru and decides to kill Jine for her. Kaoru asked him to stop as she told him that he shouldn't go back to killing again. The movie ends with Kenshin saying he's home with Kaoru and the others in the dojo.

I should say that the movie is a very good adaptation of the anime series. If you have no idea what Rurouni Kenshin is, the movie summarizes what it is about. But as for me, who is a fan of the anime series, I should point out that the sequence of the movie is pretty mixed up. Some characters in the anime didn't show up, like my bias, Shinomori Aoshi who should appear with Hannya, as Kanryu's subordinates. Also, I expected that Kaoru's kidnapping will be a dramatic like the one in the anime with Jine on a boat.

Since the movie is all about samurais and action, the movie showcased superb fight scenes. The part where Kenshin saved Kaoru from Kanryu's men as they take over the dojo was amazing. The stunts were smoothly executed and the sound effects complimented their moves. As for the movie's soundtrack, "The Beginning" by One OK Rock is a perfect fit the story's aura.

Whether you are an anime fan or not, Rurouni Kenshin is a must-see. It is not just about killing and bloodshed, but it is also about moving forward to change to a more meaningful and peaceful life.

The Gadget Story

I don't know if it's because I'm in a technology-oriented career that I have gained so much interest in gadgets. Back then, it was my mobile phone which I consider as the only gadget I own. It was not much back then since it is only used for calling, texting and free internet surfing via GPRS. But when I had my hands on an iPod Video last 2007 to which I call Ivysaur, my interest grew bigger.

Since Ivysaur, I convinced my dad to buy me a netbook, Aspire (because it is an Acer Aspire One), for my programming class in which I tweaked and optimized to my preferences. Thanks to my major, Information Technology. I am always into games so I bought a second-hand PSP to which I named NeoN-G as my Christmas present last 2010. Well, hello to PSP modding, I was able to play arcade and role-playing games even I'm in the van to the office where I had my on-the-job training. Then as a present for my graduation last 2011, I was given an iPod Touch 4G. By August of the same year, I bought an Olympus E-PL2 camera which I named Olee.

Now the yearning doesn't seem to fade. I wanted the apps, so I learned jailbreaking for RAIJIN, my iPod. I downloaded all the apps that suited my tastes like productivity, social, photography and of course, games. I also bought a new phone in December 2011, a Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini to experience the Android platform. The camera was superb. But my gadgets don't seem to last. Aspire died (the display malfunctioned), NeoN-G had a power failure and my Xperia Mini was having touch problems. So it was just RAIJIN and me. To make up for Aspire's loss, I bought Phoenix last April; an AMD-based desktop computer. I brought NeoN-G to a repair service but after a few weeks it malfunctioned again. Up to this time, it's still dead. As for my Xperia Mini, I sold it since I can't keep up with its problems and replaced it with a basic Nokia phone. For now, it is me, RAIJIN, Olee and Phoenix.

I still have needs though. I want to take pictures but I can't bring Olee along all the time. I want internet on the go but RAIJIN doesn't have a cellular capability for mobile internet. I want to update my social media accounts, but my phone is so basic. I found the answer for the internet and social media dilemmas with my Blackberry 9320. It was a plan under Globe Telecom and it has unlimited internet and a wifi hotspot. Undeniably, it sustained my needs. There's only one dilemma left: the camera. There's no solution up to now, but I guess I just have to bear bringing Olee along all the time.

The desire for new gadgets is still on fire. Especially now, when there are new releases that catch my eye. I guess I need to settle the budget and the need now since the list of wants is piling up fast. I plan on upgrading RAIJIN with the new Ipod Touch 5th Generation, buying a Samsung Galaxy Note 2 for reading e-books, NFC and camera and getting a new Aspire One for a handy PC. I'm also having thoughts on an Asus Nexus 7 or an iPad Mini.

Oh well. These are all plans anyway. Let the budget talk!

The Planner Journey

Many of the well-known coffee shops today will be starting the holiday trend: get our 2013 planners. I bet every cafe has their own mechanics on how the public can grab one of the limited edition planners. Starbucks Coffee is famous with the sticker collection for the next year's planner. This year, Starbucks requires everyone to buy seventeen (17) drinks: nine (9) of their featured holiday drinks and eight (8) of their other core drinks. Their holiday drinks include: Peppermint Mocha, Toffee Nut Latte and Dark Cherry Mocha. Another coffee shop is Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (CBTL), to which instead of stickers, they are giving a stamp for each drink that you buy. They require their customers to avail four (4) featured beverages, one of the following kinds: their latest Red Velvet, Tea Latte, Espresso-based drinks and Ice Blended drinks. If they got these four drinks, they can choose any 8 (eight) drinks of their choice. That totals to twelve (12) stamps to own a CBTL planner. Yesterday, when I was on my way home, I passed by Seattle's Best Coffee and they have their own planner. Too bad I haven't tried it yet so I don't have an idea on how it works and how their coffee tastes. Maybe one of these days. Ü


I am actually a coffee drinker. It started when I was in college and I am required to stay up until the wee hours of the morning to code our programs. From there, coffee became my best bud. If coffee is unavailable, I drink tea. Tea is not only an alternative to coffee but also one of my diet friends. However, it was only now that I had the interest (and budget), to grab one of those planners. I already have the sticker book from Starbucks and the stamp book from CBTL. The former currently has six (6) stickers while the latter has five (5) stamps. So why two? It's because I'm still undecided on what to get. If I don't get the other, my sister can always have it. I'll just see which one I'll complete first.

Having said that, which planner will you suggest me to get? Ü Join me in my Planner Journey to 2013!

Disclaimer: Photos courtesy of Google Images

Anime Festival Asia 2012: It's A Go!

And it is confirmed!

I will be going to Anime Festival Asia 2012 (AFA 2012) to be held at Singapore Expo. This was merely a coincidence because we booked our flight to Singapore for November 9 to 12 last August and after a week of our booking I saw AFA's advertisement. I was like, YAAAAYYY!!

If going to Singapore is my first time to head outside the country, AFA is my first ever international convention. Not only that, it is a well-known gathering of otakus all over Asia and has amazing booths and programs planned for the attendees. This year, AFA was held also in other countries like Malaysia and Indonesia.

AFA is not only an anime convention but also a movie house and a concert hall. I Love Anisong which is dubbed Electric Groove is the musical event for AFA and it will hold three concerts for its three-day event starting 7:00 PM. On November 9, there is the Electro Stage for a solo concert of T.M. Revolution. The next day there will be the Jump Stage for FLOW, LiSa, BABYMETAL, fripSide and m.o.v.e.. On its last day, the Diamond Stage will feature May'n, Minami Kuribayashi, Sea*A and Sphere. Aside from the concerts, movies such as Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Naruto: Road to Ninja will be shown during the day. Separate tickets apply for all of the abovementioned.

Having all of these ahead of me, who am I to be not that excited? See you AFA and see you Singapore!

RA 10175: A Stand

I was eating breakfast when I heard on the radio about a certain cybercrime bill that the government is about to approve. I said to myself, "Wow, it's a lot better than RH bill", since right now cyberbullies and other forms of computer misuse exists. Then a few days after, I've encountered some posts in my Facebook news feed about liking or retweeting a post can have you charged for libel. I disregarded these until last Monday, when I heard that RA 10175, Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, is about to be implemented on Wednesday, October 3. So it was that bill I heard last week with the news on banning liking and retweeting.

Last Tuesday, while I was browsing my Facebook groups, a friend of mine posted something about an online rally against the Cybercrime act. That pushed me to read its full text since a lot were already sharing "No to Cybercrime Law" and other anti posts. I don't want to make a stand without analyzing what this act is really about. As I was reading, I really knew something was wrong with this.


Photo courtesy of Philippine Internet Freedom Alliance
RA 10175 contains the usual cybercrimes we are to encounter at present. Punishable offenses include illegal access, gadget misuse, hacking and identity theft. There were also content-related offenses like cybersex, child pornography and libel. If you are found guilty, you can be punished with prision mayor or fined at least Php 200,000.00.

Now what is it that the people are ranting about? It is the libel clause. There is no doubt that this act is to protect the public as well as the corporate industries from cyber attacks. But to suppress one's freedom of expression, it is a different story. One cannot simply comment regarding a national issue since he's afraid to be charged guilty of libel. For example, a congressman will run on the upcoming elections, as well as his son. Many whereabouts will arise from the public and these whereabouts will be released in their blogs; an online journal. Now, if this act is to be implemented, whoever writes against an issue is charged of libel.

But what they are tampering is public opinion. We are all entitled to speak our minds. Who knows if our understanding of the matter can be beneficial to the ones involved? Sometimes listening to others can make us grow and create better decisions. If speaking one's mind is a crime, how come we call this government democratic?

Another is the clause on cybersex. Have the authors considered that if a couple decided to do "it" with full consent due to their longing for each other, will that still be considered a crime? To what elaborate means does this clause pertain to? Maybe they should go after those who engage in cybersex with compensation; that is already considered prostitution.

There is nothing wrong with what the act is trying to do. Banish cybercrimes. We all want that. But to our legislators, please consider revising this law. What you stated here is only a side of the coin. Before you pass this, please think of what the consequences may be. Please look on all areas of concern before creating a law that might affect millions of people.

I hope the legislators who created this bill will hear our pleas. But as for now, I make my stand to not pass this until amendments are made. Remember that what you are trying to get into is social media. With just a blink, everything may change.

Think before you act. Think before you click. Think before you sign.