November 18, 2017 : Bulma And Her Relevance
There was some sad news reported this week – the Japanese voice actor who portrayed Bulma passed away. I never knew of her (although it looks like she had quite the career, including Meryl Stryfe from Trigun); and this doesn’t really impact the version of DBZ that I watch, but it’s still a bummer nonetheless.
The news actually got me thinking of the character of Bulma, and her role in the Dragon Ball franchise. Nowadays, she’s relegated to comic relief or Filler Material (and has been for quite some time). However, she did play a much more important role when Dragon Ball first started. She was the connecting character that framed Goku’s unbelievable skills, helping enfold the world of Dragon Ball.
She became less relevant when the tournament Sagas began. As DBZ moved on, she stayed around to help advance the story through her technological prowess (allowing for space travel and quick Dragon Ball hunting). Her knowledge of Dr. Gero sped along the faster moving plot of the Android and Cell Saga. However after that, she remained on the show mostly to be an incubator for half Saiyans. Although one could argue she also acts as an anchor for Vegeta.
Overall, Dragon Ball does a good job of ‘discarding’ obsolete characters. They will do an occasional call back for nostalgia sake, but they don’t let them bog things down. Bulma seems to be the exception. She seems to still sticks around, probably for the reasons mentioned above.
It’s easy to dismiss Bulma. She doesn’t have any powers, which is what DBZ became and the focus of Dragon Ball Super – and we had to endure her dealings with Frog Captain Ginyu (insert shudder here). However, the more I think about it, Bulma is the strongest female character in the franchise. She might be annoying at times, but you can also say that about what Gohan has became after the Cell Saga.
So for that, I think I have a new found respect for Bulma. She was (and still is… sorta) an important character. More so than Krillin. Although, every time he dies, it angers a Saiyan – and the aftermath of that is pretty cool to watch.
posted by Pi Visuals at 11:40 pm
Tags: DBZ , Dragonball , RandomComment
June 11, 2011 : Cartoon Brew Stands Up For MoCap… Sorta
I recently read an interesting article from Cartoon Brew, which actually took a relatively pro-MoCap stance. It was in response to Space Jam’s Animation Producer, Steven Paul Leiva, who claimed Motion Capture isn’t animation. While the article shows a general dislike for the aesthetics of the technique, it still makes a solid argument that it should be considered animation… particularly when it comes Oscar time.
The article makes a lot of good points, and I think is worth a read. Most animator’s don’t like MoCap (they feel it’s a huge shortcut that demeans the industry), so that’s why it’s odd to see an animation site take it’s side. Still, it’s tough to argue with the article’s reasoning.
posted by Pi Visuals at 12:27 am
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November 13, 2010 : Graffiti Justice… Take That H&M!
Graffiti artists on the CTA have proven to be humorous in the past. I found another such example:
As previously stated, I don’t usually approve of graffiti – but how can you argue with a Zoolander reference?
Speaking of which, Ben Stiller still claims to be working on a sequel to this incredibly underappreciated film – with the help of Justin Theroux. Theroux co-wrote Tropic Thunder with Stiller. So even more reason to want this film to get made.
posted by Pi Visuals at 8:47 pm
Tags: Funny , Graffiti , Random0 Comments | Post a comment
January 16, 2010 : What Do I Talk About?
Wordle is a cool site that provides a graphic representation of words based upon their frequency of use. You can type in your own set of words or link to a web page to see which words are used commonly.
Below is the result for this page:
The site is also fun in that a lot of the settings are adjustable – including font, word orientation, and color scheme.
Plus, you get a cool representation of what you talk about most.
posted by Pi Visuals at 2:41 pm
Tags: Random , Wordle1 Comment | Post a comment
January 2, 2010 : Grammar Nerd
The picture below is of an ad on the CTA tracks downtown.
The correct adverb was not included in the original ad. Instead, the ‘ly’ was added by a studious graffiti artist.
I’m usually not a fan of graffiti; but being a grammar nerd, I’d be fine not citing the person that ‘proofread’ the ad.
posted by Pi Visuals at 2:37 pm
Tags: Funny , Graffiti , Nerd , Random2 Comments | Post a comment
December 3, 2008 : Raskolnikov Filibuster Deoxymonohydroxinate
Yeah, it’s been too long since my last post. Between the holidays and things being generally hectic, it hasn’t left very much time to post anything new. However, there have been a few cool things worth sharing.
- The Astro Boy Teaser does not divulge very much content, but it still looks like it could be good. While seeing Astro in 3D form does take some getting used to, it doesn’t appear to detract from the overall coolness of the manga/anime. Besides, Imagi Animation Studios was responsible for the 3D TMNT movie, which looked well done.
- The fourth (and potentially final) straight to DVD Futurama Movie, Into the Wild Green Yonder, will be released in late February. It should be pretty good, but it is worth mentioning because Seth McFarlane is supposed to do a guest voice. This is interesting since it seemed that McFarlane and Groening always had an odd relationship since the start of Family Guy. Obviously not as acromonious as McFarlane’s relationship with Trey Parker and Matt Stone, but there always seemed to be resentment or jealousy or something off. Apparently Groening and McFarlane have gotten past prior grievances.
- Bolt is Disney’s new animated movie (only their third 3D animated film). It received good reviews but fell flat during its opening weekend at the box office. This was disappointing since it probably was one of their better films in recent history. This most likely was also the first film that Pixar had some involvement with since their merger. The interesting thing is that word of mouth really helped turn this flick from a disappointment to potential success. Its second week at the box office actually saw a rise in weekend ticket sales. This is usually only seen with independent or lower-budget movies that begin in limited release and slowly expand to more theaters.
Soak it all in because now I’m spent. Later.
posted by Pi Visuals at 2:28 pm
Tags: Animation , Disney , Family Guy , Futurama , Matt Stone , Pixar , Random , Trey Parker1 Comment | Post a comment
July 10, 2008 : You Win Again Gravity!!!
This was too funny not to mention. Oh the things people look for (or offer) on Craig’s List.
Not only is it an homage to a great show, but this person picked a classic character to represent it. Feel free to click on the image to get a larger version of the Craig’s List Ad.
It cannot be all that difficult to complete the outfit – at least if you’re resourceful. Still, this guy definitely knows how to have fun on his birthday!
As a side note, other titles considered for this post include: The Velour Fog, The Zapper, Sexlexia… rest assured the list could go on for quite some time.
posted by Pi Visuals at 9:09 pm
Tags: Futurama , Random3 Comments | Post a comment