God Save the Queen

So if any one watches the World Cup 2006, England has been eliminated in the quater finals. In a PK (penalty kick) loss to Portugal, England is sent packing. What a rip! I mean just what was Eriksson doing not using that third substitution in the second overtime?! Rooney was way out of line as well but you gotta give props to Terry and Beckham this World Cup.

.Hack//Roots OST

Yeah, it's kinda late to post about it but even BOAS isn't all knowing/all seeing! IT'S ALL ABOUT GOD DIVA! That about sums it up. And the other tracks are nice.

Honey & Clover S2 Eps 1

Memento has a full review of Honey & Clover Season 2 episode 1 and a preview of the Hachikuro movie trailer!

Source: Memento

One Year

Hey hey! It's the one year anniversary of Blog de La Flaga! Yep, we've been blogging nonsense since June 28th 2005. This is happy post 443 Woot Woot!

ANNA inspi' NANA ~ Rose

The single of the Nana anime OP has finally been released with a few extra tracks included:
1. Rose
2. Lovin' You
3. Ah Ah
I'll spare you the usual cover page, since it's not... pretty?

2 Manga Shorts

FateStay Night the Animation Original Soundtrack

Phew... That was a mouthful, yeah it's out. Pick it up!

Memento Summer Anime Preview

Garten over at Memento has a preview of the new anime due later this month, including Honey & Clover II! Also be sure to catch Binbou Shimai Monogatari.

Source: Memento

ARIA the Natural Drama CD I

BOAS has always liked Drama CDs if for nothing else then to really test one's Japanese language abilities; but ARIA has the wonderful x 50! (suteki) trait of being really relaxing. ARIA is really like nothing else in anime right now and it gives everything that's good in small doses--so it's easy to eat all up (so cute!). Anyway, have a listen to ARIA the Natural!

Anime that Binds

Together with Japan China New Century Association, the Beijing Films Academy has founded the China Japan Anime Manga Research Center in its school. This could be the thing that heals the old tension between China and Japan through anime and manga. Wouldn't that be wonderful?!

Source: ComiPress

The People's Choice: Maxthon

CNet reports a little-known-browser with a big following in China called Maxthon that circumvents certain aspects of China's Great Firewall.

Source: CNet
Source: Maxthon

Where have the AOTS gone?

Some people (meaning nobody) may have noticed that the link to Attack of the Show is no longer with LaFlaga. BOAS feels that this deserves an explanation: Who the F* is Olivia Munn and where has all the tech gone?

80% of Microsoft Employees Google

In an article published in the Inquirer (think what you will), it seems that 80% of all microsoft searches came through the Google domain. 64% of Yahoo staff and 100% of Google staff also Google.

Source: Inquirer

ストローベリー・パニック!

So just watched Strawberry Panic! episode 12 and heh... Don't forget to breath.

Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu Genki Chuu Kashuu

The new music inspiration that hit episode 12 of Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu has hit the stores. Pick up a copy and dig into haruism!
The tracks feature
1. God Knows...
2. Lost My Music
3. Koi no Mikuru Densetsu

Flagasphere Updates

New wallpapers added to
LaFlaga::[ A q u a ]::Galleries AIR & Shuffle!
Also, BOAS' own Animepardy Party Game!

Chinese Cheats

A recent Yahoo article describes the sometimes brutal methods Chinese student employ to go gold on their collage entrance exams. Really calls into question what the F*** is up with China?

Source: Yahoo News

The Manga Illiterate Japanese Youth

A recent phenomenon has developed in which Japanese Children are becoming Manga impaired in which their ability to follow even the concept of speech bubbles is questionable. In a world overloaded with electronic media, the written word is becoming less-and-less fathomable to today's youth. Is this the decline in culture, anime, manga, or god-help-us READING?!

Source: ComiPress

Bleach & Naruto Fonts

The good ppl at Keiichi anime have provided and provided links to install-it-yourself Bleach and Naruto fonts for your computer. Just move them to the Fonts folder in your Windows directory!

Naruto Font
Bleach Font

I've Become One of Them...

Well BOAS is *proud* to present LaFlaga's Myspace page:
www.myspace.com/myflaga
;O;

06 Top Ten Anime Sellers

According to Nielson Vidscan, the top ten selling anime to date of 2006 (with 2006 release dates) are:

1- Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
2- Howl's Moving Castle
3- Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn
4- Karas - the Prophecy
5- Samurai Champloo V.7
6- Whisper of the Heart
7- Fullmetal Alchemist V.7
8- Fullmetal Alchemist V.8
9- Naruto V.1
10- Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig V.3

Source: ANN

Flock Flies into Beta 1

BOAS knows I've been over this again and again but hey it's in Beta 1 which should be a lot more user friendly and a lot more features too! That's right, correct grammer is how much Flock is worth; give it a shot.

Source: Flock

Shuffle! Manga

The manga version of Shuffle! is being scanlated by Kawaii Heavens for your MOE pleasure!

Source: Kawaii Heavens

PS2 Outsells XBox 360 still...

Sony's PS2 is still outselling Microsoft's 360 except for a slight lapse in March.

Source:/.

Tokyopop n'tha NZ

In a recent announcement Tokyopop is expanding their operations to cover Australia and New Zealand, being the first manga publisher to do so.

Source: ANN

Honey & Clover Season 2

Hachimitsu to Clover Season 2 is set to air June 29th in Japan! Thanks to Garten at Memento for this information.

Source: Hachimitsu to Clover Official Site

Songbird Linux Progress

The Songbird team have released a blog post on their progress on the linux platform. As you may know BOAS thinks that once it's downloadable, Songbird will be the #1 music file manager on the Linux OS.

Source: Songbird

Ask CLAMP

AnimeExpo has an online form where fans can ask a question to CLAMP via the internet at their panel on July 1st. Like, "what's with the arms in xxxHolic" or "which one of you is really yuri?", u'know usual questions...

Source: Ask CLAMP

Vista Beta 2

Windows Vista Beta 2 is available for download on DVD bootable format. If you're willing to wait ~4hrs at 3Mbps that is...

Source: Windows Vista Get Ready

Tommy Heavenly 6: I'm Gonna Scream!

TM6 has released another new single disc entitled I'm Gonna Scream. Megane ga Ii! (Glasses are good!)

うたわれるもの ト ヂスガア オスト

The Singles for Utawarerumono and Disgaea ending themes have been released, check them out.

Flagasphere Updates

New Bishonen Game page 5 is available on LaFlaga::[ A q u a ]::Fun!

Sit Up

Yahoo news is running an article on the side-effects of PC Posture that paralizes modern society.

Source: Yahoo News

The Pillows in SF

The Pillows who did the insert music for FLCL will be performing in San Fran. on June 28th; check ANN for details

Source: ANN

Flagasphere Update

New Navel All Stars gallery added to
LaFlaga::[ A q u a ]::Gallery!

ThePirateBay Raided by Swiss Police

ThePirateBay.org, long famous in the Bittorrent community had their servers seized by the Swiss Police according to Slyck.com.

Source: Slyck

Aarin Fantasy

Check out the wonderful world of *yaoi* at Aarin Fantasy!

http://www.aarinfantasy.com/

Lililicious Scanlations

Check out the wonderful world of *yuri* scanlations as Lililicious!

http://www.lililicious.net/

ARIA the Natural Due

ARIA the Natural Original Soundtrack Due has been released. Many people don't understand the appeal of ARIA but it has all the elements of a good anime not least of which is the music. The soft melodies and guitar riffs will have your ears in heaven or Aqua in no time.

アリア カンパニ

The Egg Came First!

Scientist have finally made up their minds (or so it seems) as to which came first the Chicken or the Egg.

Source: CNN

Google de-Boggle

In Google's recent summer of code event approxiamately 1800 acceptence letters were emailed to participants followed by a rejection letter 10 minutes later. Google explained it was a mistake and assured all the recipiants that they were indeed rejected.

Flagasphere Update

New pictures added to AIR gallery at
LaFlaga::[ A q u a ]::Gallery!

To IDE or not to IDE

Ah, the age old question facing all programmer hatchlings; slashdot your way over to their discussion.

./:IDE

And the answer is no.

Ars Technica Review MacBook

Ars Technica has an indepth review of the new MacBook and looks at how it stacks up against it peers and predecessors.

Ars Techinica: MacBook

'Get Ready!' Windows Vista

Microsoft has released the system specs for Vista "ready" machines which among other things include a D9 capable graphics card.

Microsoft: Vista

Manga Moe Moe

Two new mangas are available for your viewing pleasure, the first is the adaptation of the Canvas 2 anime and second it entitled No Bra. I think Canvas 2 needs no explanation if you've seen the anime, it's like that except more uhhuh.... Anyway, No Bra is about childhood friends who rediscover each other and discover the other's bishonen-ness! I've always had a thing for this type of manga, like "special interests"? Check them out ^o^

MangaUpdates: No Bra
MangaUpdates: Canvas 2

10th Aniversary for Evangelion

Yet another edition of Neon Genesis Evangelion will be released by ADV dubbed the "10th aniversary box set"; how many editions is that now? I want a rerelease of Kareshi Kanojo no Jijou! Just imagine BOAS in a nighty eating ice cream from the container while watching Karekano! *O*

ANN: 10th Aniversary BOX

WMP 11 Screens

For X/Z who's a total n00b, here are some early leaked screens of Windows Media Player 11 set to be released publically on wensday. *Cough*iTunes*Cough* Ahem...

Source: FlexBeta

Mimei Sakamoto on Moe

In an article which is to be published in Shukan Bunshun, Sakamoto-sensei a talented manga artist and self-professed Otaku ordains the true meaning of moe. Ripping on the current trend of Otaku posers, losers, and pedofiles Sakamoto tears a new one to all the fanservicers out there. She goes on to comment on the current state of the industry in terms of product development and marketing along the same evangelical lines of moe madness. This article is a must read for the "true" otaku, although I'm not sure a mid-aged, once depressed, mildly talented woman with a teary-eyed story that wouldn't move a feather is really a great example herself.

Source: Mainichi Daily News

Flagasphere Update

New ARIA gallery added to LaFlaga::[A q u a ]::Gallery section!

Rin'

So BOAS got wind of a new "traditional" japanese music band called Rin' and checked out some of their songs. I gotta say they're pretty good; mixing traditional japanese musical motifs with modern feel they achieve a unique sound. Not quite as hardcore as some Enka but definately not as-pop-feelin as Yuna Ito, it's nice easy listening.

Official Site: Rin'

New Ningen Wall

A stunning new wallpaper of Enma Ai Jigoku Shoujo has been released from Ningen's. Grab the full size from his website!

Source: Ningen

Lohan in the Moon

You know I almost don't want to report that ANN has a rumor that Lindsay Lohan was asked to play Usagi or Serena in the Live-Action movie of Sailor Moon. You know how in the live-action TV drama of Sailor Moon in Japan, Usagi was a cow and Tux. Mask was a lolipedofin? Well this is worse.

Source: ANN

Fiction Junction Yuuka Silly-Go-Round

The opening single for .Hack//Roots entitled Silly-Go-Round has been released and includes on and off vocal versions of Silly-Go-Round and Angel Gate.

Flagasphere Updates

New Chobits wallpaper added to
LaFlaga::[ A q u a ]::Gallery section!

E3 06

Well E3 came sneeking up on us once again with BIG news from Sony & Nintendo. First Sony has announced two price packaged versions of the PS3 for $599 and $499 respectively. The difference between the models ranges from larger hard drive to more features. In the Nintendo Wii camp there have been 27 playable titles announced that will be on the floors; but who cares! Finally, but definately not the last; Final Fantasy XIII has been announced exclusively for the PS3 with a trailer available at all your favorite game websites.

Memento: Coverage of E3

Hinata

Quite possibly the weirdest thing BOAS has ever done!
頑張ります、お楽しみ！

La Flaga Flare

Announcing the creation of the La Flaga Flare group! Our portals are now known as
La Flaga::[ A q u a ] & La Flaga::[ T e r r a ]

Google Summer of Code 2006

Applications are being accepted as of May 1st for Google's summer of code 2006. This year more than 100 mentor companies are sponsored with names like KDE, GNU, and the BBC in the ranks! Have fun coding away the summer...
Google Summer of Code Website

Yuna Ito Precious

The new single from Yuna Ito who played Reira in the live action Nana movie entitled Precious has been released. Please everyone support Yuna Ito and her great voice; we'll forgive her line about Homer for now...

Shion no Ou

Hikaru no Go. I just had to put that out there; not that I should cause this is a manga about Shougi not in any way related to Go. Anyway if you like Bishoujos, bishonens, and everything in between playing Shougi as if it were life or death then pick up Shion no Ou. Plus Hug Hug HUGS )o(!

Tsubasa Chronicles S2

For a moment I thought Tsubasa wouldn't be airing this season against it's CLAMP counterpart xxxHolic but out of nowhere comes the second season of Tsubasa Chronicles. Despite the lack of fanfare it too is received in good company.

Explorer Destroyer

A proactive way to convert the foolish IE users of the world and earn a little change on the side. I'd sign up but I'm kinda paranoid... Go ahead, ASK ME WHAT THAT MEANS?!

Explorer Destroyer

Witchblade

A new late anime on the Spring scene; looks like an adaptation of the comic with a Oyako spin? Anyway check out the first episode.

Hachikuro Movie

Movie posters for the Honey & Clover Movie are lining the walls of Japan and Garten over a Memento was nice enough to share.

Memento

./news

1. The Nintendo Revolution has officially been renamed the Wii; weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
2. The Peoples' Laptop has been devloped in China for a price of $150 and running linux off a variant of the MIPS architecture. Suppossedly this thing compares to a pIII.
3. Cleversafe Dispersed Storage is an open source project that develops software for massive data backup based on the dispersed data algorithm that can reconstruct data from more than half the bits and pieces needed. Keep an eye on this one.

Singles Delight

Not much on the anime front today but a plethora of good anime singles released including Utawarerumono, Ah My Goddess Sorezore no Tsubasa, ARIA the Natural, and Soul Link. If not anything else please listen to Yoko Ishida-san singing Shiawase no Iro in Ah My Goddess; truly the voice of an angel.

Ayakashi Bake Neko Monogatari

The final arc of Ayakashi ~ Classic Japanese Horror is now available; with great style and cool voice acting this seems like an atypical but awesome end to the Ayakashi series.

Official Site

Suga Shikao 19 Sai

The opening theme single for xxxHolic has been released just after the PV which should is more properly an AV. Still, another great song from Suga Shikao.

Memento: 19 Sai PV

Advent Children

So, the U.S. release of Advent Children is finally on the horizon due for April 15th; what's really cool is that's it's on sale at bestbuy.com for $15 USD!

BestBuy

Chobot Seiyuu and Internationalityism

You know Jessica Chobot; yeah the chick that licked the PSP, well apparently she got the opportunity to do some voice overs for ADV! Also, I just saw a fansub in arabic; it's just nice to know that even terrorists love anime [just kidding XD ]

IGN: Chobot Blog

Memories Off 5 Togireta Film

The Memories Off series has always held a special place in my heart in a long series of characters with life and love. This installment features a half hour OAV of the Togireta Film game.

Jigoku Shoujo OST 2 地獄 少女 オスト ２

Jigoku Shoujo OST II has been released and if it's anything like the first OST then you'll be in for a melody of traditional Japanese compositions.

Second Episodes!

So now that the new season has almost settled it's a good time to review what's hot to watch:

Turn on: Nana, Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu, Utawarerumono, Ah My Goddess Sorezore no Tsubasa, Ouran High School Host Club, xxxHolic, ARIA the Natural, Strawberry Panic, Soul Link, .Hack//Roots, Kyo no Go no Ni, and Princess Princess.

Turn off: Joshikousei, Simoun.

Keep Considering: Disgaea, Himawari.

Flagasphere Updates

1. New Naruto and Neon Genesis Evangelion quizes added to
LaFlaga::[M a c A n u]::Fun
2. New FateStay Night gallery added to
LaFlaga::[M a c A n u]::Gallery

Beyond No Return

Maybe it's because I've been so busy recently and that's started to effect my mind in weird ways but BOAS may have crossed the final line of anime weirdness -- Shonen Ai. As much a confessional as another spring anime preview BOAS has viewed the first episode of Princess Princess and couldn't stop laughing. I'm not saying this is for everyone or anyone; but if cat girls, harem, shoujo ai, loli, etc. bore you by now then give this one a shot.

Children Can Be So Cruel

The BBC is running an article on cyber-bullying of children through their email, IM clients, and social friend networks. This is just another reason to keep your identity anonymous on the net.

BOASSAGTANS (online privacy)
Source: BBC

いそがしい だから 死にたい

How much does that suck; why it sucks a lot!

.Hack//Roots

Another installment in the .Hack universe .Hack//Roots appears to be a prequel even earlier than .Hack//Sign. Episode one aired recently and everything you love and hate about .Hack is back. With crisp art, exotic backgrounds, emo characters, and jargon that only technophiles really understand .Hack//Roots builds on good roots (no pun intended). The music is really what brings wow factor to .Hack//Roots; with vocals and strings in a melody of superb performances. If you're a .Hack fan then you should already have watched this one!

Flagasphere Update

New page added to The Bishonen Game at
LaFlaga::[M a c A n u]::Fun. Also new Ai Yori Aoshi Trivia page added as well!

First Episodes

Now that most of the first episodes of the new spring anime have been aired it's a good time to give BOAS' impressions.
1. Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu: This may well be the second best anime currently airing. With a good blend of slapstick, satire, and stupidity Suzumiya is like nothing else out there. The ending sequence itself is now legendary.
2. Nana ナナアニメ: The best anime of the new season, this brings back the comedy and joy that made the manga so so good. BOAS is absolutely in love with Nana.
3. xxxHolic: Redefining the length of limbs since 2006 CLAMP went a little too far with their proportions this time. Overall great anime with spot on voice actors and dancing Mokonas!
4. Ouran High School Host Club: There are just no words to describe the absolute weirdness of this anime. Something like a mix of an American chick-flick with good'ole bishonens and MOE added to the mix.
5. Strawberry Panic: Think cuter version of Maria-sama ga Miteru plus a very disturbing ending sequence. Still, who doesn't want to watch anime anime without guys in it?
6. ARIA the Natural: Calm, peaceful, but never dull ARIA returns skipping on its heals with more cute cute mock European atmosphere. I just like an anime where no one runs or needs to run.
7. Soul Link: Looks promising check back later, beyond that not too interesting...
8. Utawarerumono: I like to think that I didn't have a thing for cat girls before Utawarerumono; now that's all changed. There's just something so MOE about touching a girls tail without her permission.
9. Joshikousei: For an anime named "High School Girls" it's not that good. Centered on crude jokes and back physical humor this anime claims to describe realistic high school girl experience. Although I have no idea what that may be I seriously doubt anyone would sink that low as to shave there and not dispose of the remnants.
10. Disgaea: Don't let the look fool you this is pretty funny. With cliche characters, hypercute artwork, and decent voice acting this may well be a great satire into fantasy adventure.

China WOW

A new BBC article outlines the pandemic of online gaming in China's urban centers with the masses being addicted to the word of WOW instead of Mao. Just like other addictions the government has established treatment centers; serious stuff.

Source: BBC

Flagasphere Update

An new anime | manga | trivia section has been added to LaFlaga::[M a c A n u]::Fun! Currently serving the Nana fans; but with more to come!

Firefox Freebies

Will Langford has a great article on his blog about useful Firefox plugins and extensions. Check it out!

WillLangford.com

You Can't Be Punk While Wearing a Fanny Pack

With the Nana anime finally here BOAS just had to check out the live action movie as well. I'm not here to rant about it or anything and I'm just about the most rabid Nana fan you'll ever meet; but you just can't be punk while wearing a fanny pack. I'm of course talking about Oosaka Nana as played by Mika Nakashima in the scenes going to the Trap Nest concert. And the best part of the movie was when everyone stopped talking :p

Ouran High School Host Club

Another interesting Spring anime; haven't watched it personally but there seem to be a lot of guys in this anime and I really hope the girls aren't actually bishonens. It's okay if they are though as well ;)

Memento: Episode 1

Star Wars Kid Settles for $350K

The internet sensation Ghyslain Raza otherwise known as the Star Wars kid has settled in a law suit claiming cyber bullying with the families of the people who posted this video to the web.

Source: GlobeandMail

WinLix Virus

Kaspersky Labs is reporting a new proof-of-concept virus capable of infecting both Windows and Linux systems. Already with the myth that Macs are invulnerable shattered this new development casts suspicions over at least my distro's security >.<

Source: ComputerWorld

ナナ アニメ キヤアア！

It's finally here! Kyaaaaa! ;O;

Memento: Nana Episode 1

Soul Link & Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu

Two new animes which aired episode one recently,
Soul Link: based off the original game by Navel who also produced Shuffle!
Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu: student films, battling waitresses from the future? Good stuff.

Memento: Suzumiya Episode 1
Soul Link Official Site

Mac Boot Camp Beta

Apple has delivered up on a boot loader that will carry out the installation and booting of Windows XP on an Intel Mac. The boot loader Boot Camp Beta (for now) will handle partitioning and installation of drivers necessary for running windows and will install from a CD only format.

Apple: Boot Camp Beta
PC World: First Impressions

US Manga Magazines

BOAS has always liked them mangas but it's hard to decide which ones are good nowadays at least in the US market. Good thing there're monthly magazines that give you a good range of manga and anime.

NewType: Expensive! Included DVD? Whatever, skip.
Shonen Jump: Have been a suscriber for a while. Well worth the $30 per year. Included are Naruto, Hikaru no Go, and One Piece.
Shoujo Beat: I just caught a glimpse of this at a local manga store the-other-day and man is this good. With titles like Nana and Absolute Boyfriend this is great for the girls and guys ;_; A little more expensive than Shonen Jump though at $35 USD per year.

Utawarerumono

Thus the official spring season of anime has begun. BOAS somehow missed Utawarerumono in the previews but you know how you've always just had stuff from the series but didn't know which series it was from? Well, this is one of those moments, ah... It's Utawarerumono!

Memento: Review Episode 1

H & MC Gou Progressive

The new album from HIGH & MIGHTY COLOR titled Gou Progressive happened by BOAS the other day. H & MC are hardcore rock, like seriously hard on the eardrums, so it's not for everyone. But if you liked Ichirin to Hana i.e. the current opening theme for Bleach then some of their other tracks are equally as good. I really likes the fact that their vocalist is a girl; reminds me of Trap Nest from Nana, OMG Luv Reira...

Flagasphere Update

New Lamune gallery section added to
LaFlaga::[M a c A n u]::Gallery!

Bleach on Adult Swim

Bleach having been licensed recently will air on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim block.

Source: MediaWeek

Neutrino Mass Measured

The results of the MINOS experiment have measured a mass for the Neutrino particle. You might not think this is important but it has implications in everything from how the sun burns to the origins of the universe.

Source BBC

ナナ

Recent addictions: Chocolate, Cola, Nana... Some sites,

official anime site
nana-nana.net
loveNanaForever

Flagasphere Update

New Canvas gallery section has been added to
LaFlaga::[M a c A n u]::gallery section!

最後 の アプリウ フォース

Once again it's the worst day on earth in terms of good internet -- April Fools. Since nothing good is going on at PinkDot or anywhere else for that matter BOAS will just share some jokes. Though you should never do this, unless its to your own kids, one April Fools joke is to fake University acceptance letters seeing it is around that time for high school seniors. Just fake the letter and pop it in the mail, laughs... and laughs... No seriously, that's just wrong.