Dagger

OOC: Good question, Terra. I was thinking that the King of Maurii could ask the peoples? help? or, alternatively, something really big and disastrous could happen, so that our characters can?t avoid getting involved. Maybe we ought to start heading toward Ma?Uriith?. or toward Feurith, to get more information about the curse and such. I?ll leave it up to you guys. ^__^ *********** Anubis eyed her for a few moments before extending his hand. Leile resisted the urge to step back, and waited to see what he would do. The mage smiled?though his eyes remained guarded?and watched her reaction as several [i]very[/i] valuable coins appeared in his upturned palm. He tossed them lightly, seeming almost not to notice that they were multiplying midair, spilling onto the ground in a glittering rain of gold. ?Every human being has his price,? he said quietly. ?What is yours?? ?That has nothing to do with anything,? Leile snapped. ?Just answer the question.? She knew what she was seeing was nigh impossible, and it unnerved her. Some people were frightened of magic, but she?d always been comfortable around it. She?d thought that Aissa?s singing was really marvelous. And yet?. Anubis snapped his fingers, and the coins vanished. ?Hmm.... very good. You?ve passed the first two tests.? Aissa rubbed her temples, sighing heavily. This was turning out to be quite an unusual day. ?Tests?? ?You?ll see,? he replied. The mage turned away from them, and began sketching something in the air with his index finger. The digit left a softly glowing white trail. Leile tilted her head to the side, squinting so as to see it better. He appeared to be drawing a rough map of Laeth E?Thae. ?It all comes down to magic,? Anubis told them. ?Why do some people have it, while others do not?? He glanced at Aissa. ?Why can you draw power from the earth? And why now, when magic is beginning to fade from this world, has a new power begun to descend upon the city of Ma?Uriith? ?Here.? He pointed to the capital: a bright white dot, like some kind of daytime star. As he touched it, it turned first gray, then black. ?Here. And here. And even?. here.? Anubis tapped Uthmae, then Feurith, and finally Tal?Ebot. All grew slowly dark. Aissa shivered, in spite of herself. [i]What could this possibly mean.....?[/i]

I would never have thought of that..... it's definitely an interesting idea, and I really hope to see Aeris somewhere in Advent Children (how could they NOT include her, if only through flashbacks?). But it's probably too early to judge who the person in the wheelchair is, or the identity of the guy who battles Cloud. Still, speculation is fun, no? ~Dagger~

Wow.... am I the only one who enjoys school? Sure, it's not always easy, but the workload isn't half as bad as everyone makes it out to be. The majority of teenagers have a [i]terrible[/i] work ethic. Even though I suck at math, I still enjoy the feeling I get when I finally understand how to do a certain problem. And I love English and science. Sure, I'm not fond of waking up early. At the same time, most adults have to wake up at least as early, and they generally don't complain about it half as much as we do. My school has a really relaxed social atmosphere, so there's no worrying about cliques or gangs or whatnot. Everyone just basically gets along. I guess I have it pretty good, ne? ~Dagger~

Vash's girl, you'll probably appreciate the movies a lot more if you read the books. Try reading them again sometime in the future. Isn't it interesting how many of the cast members (Orlando Bloom in particular) were relative unknowns before LotR? And I'd say that the casting was great because they're all excellent actors. Although it has its flaws, Gollum really made the second movie worthwhile for me. I'm excited about seeing him in Return of the King. Plus, Aragorn leading the army of ghosts should be quite a sight. ~Dagger~

Ah, thanks for the explanation. In that case, a straight DVD/movie would probably be far better. I've seen stuff about it being an interactive DVD on a several sites.... but none of them are incredibly reliable, and heaven knows how many false FFVII rumors have been circulating all these years. So chances are that it won't be an interactive DVD. ~Dagger~

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Zeos [/i] [B][SIZE=1]Oh, I had no idea he was that old.. Your parents must be over protective.. Well, the only OTHER thing I can think of is this: Your parents make the rules as long as you live under there roof. That's what my father says anyways..[/SIZE] [/B][/QUOTE] I'm a girl. :P But other than that, Mitch is absolutely right. It's true that your parents make the rules as long as you live under their roof. However, some parents tend to go a little overboard. And though their intentions are good, their actions may end up having more negative effects than positive ones. All I'm saying is that it's a bit ridiculous to use parental controls on older teenagers. Generally, the kids will be more technologically intelligent than their parents, and will probably figure out how to disable the software. Plus, although the parents may simply be attempting to protect their children, it's pretty naive to think that they can still moniter their lives as closely, once the children have reached a certain level of independence. ~Dagger~

Interesting. How did you relate the FLCL article to health? I would have said something about the alleged mental effect of television violence on childrens' minds.... or whatever BS occurred to me at the moment. :P ~Dagger~

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by James [/i] [B][color=#707875]The fact that they are even doing anything with FFVII is a good thing. I say that we be pleased about what we [i]are[/i] getting and try not to shoot down the effort so quickly.[/color] [/B][/QUOTE] Exactly. I'm amazed that they're following up on FFVII at all.... though perhaps I might have preferred a game, I'll take what I can get, thank you very much. Who's to say a movie won't be just as enjoyable? Besides, rumors indicate (though we know how reliable those are) that it won't be [i]strictly[/i] a movie.... something more like an "interactive DVD." Whatever the hell that means... Anyway, for the moment, I'd rather be optimistic about this. I think it's pretty courageous of them to make a sequel, especially considering the possibility that everyone will hate it. I'm sure they'll put a lot of time, money, and creative effort into making it as good as possible. ~Dagger~

I read To Kill a Mockingbird for English a few years ago. It's such a wonderful book--very different from what I expected, and surprisingly suspenseful. The characters are all memorable and sympathetic, particularly (as Molleta said) Atticus Finch. I especially enjoyed following all the subplots and watching the characters face complex moral dilemmas. ~Dagger~

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Mitch [/i] [B][size=1] I totally hate these things. They have me rated under the "13-year-old" category on it, which isn't "Mature Teen," but the level below that. So because of this, it blocks some people's blogs, my own livejournal at times, and other random crap that shouldn't be blocked at all period. This isn't the worst part at all to me, really. The thing that really annoys me is they put the newer AOL timer feature on it. I get two hours a day...which is fine with me. It's just really annoying, you know. I like to do things when I feel I want to do them...not be restricted to having to go on at some certain time span elapsing two hours a day. I don't know...they don't seem to trust me at all. But I guess I live with it. It isn't too big of a deal, I suppose. I live with it. But man...when they were using this program that let them see [i]EVERYTHING[/i] I did online, that was scary. And I do mean everything. It let them see each and every website I went to...each and every AIM conversation I had (in full), each and every thing I typed up, each and every e-mail I checked, each and every little thing I did online. That's just going too far into my personal life in my opinion. I mean, seriously. My Mom was coming up to me, asking me why I'd told this person online that I loved them (it was Ginny, heh, I haven't talked to her for quite some time, though), asking me, after reading this conversation I had with Tony, why I had been arguing about "OOtok Boards," as they say, and my Mod position there. It's just a really paranoid feeling, thinking that each and every thing you say online, your parents will hear. To me, that's just taking this too far. They don't seem to check that progam any longer, thank God. But now they have AOL Guardian on it...just so they can see every website you go to and how many IMs I send. At least it doesn't show everything I do, though. So now I feel more safe and like I can actually use the internet for what I use it for. My Dad seems to think I do nothing on the internet and considers it mostly a waste of time on my part, and often says I'm "like a drug addict with it." It doesn't even compare in my opinion. And yes, the internet is often a waste of time, but I've met some really good people on it, and I've also learned a lot of things and been able to discuss a lot of things that otherwise I wouldn't really have the gall to do. I'm just really timid towards things.[/size] [/B][/QUOTE] Talk about irony.... before I turned it off, Net Nanny blocked me from returning to this particular thread. One of the most frustrating things about parental controls are their sheer imprecision. I have no idea what aspect of this thread might have caused it to be blocked.... I agree. Timers are INCREDIBLY irritating. It's not as though I'd spend every single free hour onling anyway.... like you said, it's not a big deal, but as small things go, they're pretty aggravating. My parents used to check my email and Internet history on a regular basis... which really creeped me out, to say the least. I mean, I'm old enough to drive. It alarms me that they don't seem to trust me to manage even the most basic details of my personal life. My dad says the same thing about being online. He claims that I'm addicted to it--a rather laughable statement. Not to sound cheesy, but I think that the Internet provides some amazing opportunities for learning and growth. Most teenagers should have the intelligence necessary to avoid doing anything too extreme. ~Dagger~

I was just curious.... have anyone else's parents installed a parental control program on your computer? Alternatively, if you have AOL or another browser that enables parental controls, do your parents actually use them? My dad recently installed a program called "Net Nanny," which is intended to restrict which sites I go to (I believe it blocks those with excessive amounts of bad or sex-related language), and how long I spend online. It's a mild nuisance, since half of the sites it blocks are perfectly okay. I've never been interested in online #### or gambling or whatever, so I don't really see why parental controls are necessary. They're irritating, because it makes it seem as though my parents just don't trust me. Of course.... my dad didn't exactly get much bang for his buck, considering that if I want to shut Net Nanny down, I can just go to Windows Task Manager and click "end process." So it's really not a very big inconvenience. What do you think of parental controls? ~Dagger~

Ahhh, so many books to choose from. Here are a few of my favorites: [b]Jane Eyre[/b] is a complex, beautifully written story about the conflict between love and one's principles. The characters are deep and memorable, and although it's an 'old book,' I still think the language is quite accessible. I also like the fact that Jane is strong but imperfect #######. Even though she makes many mistakes, you can't help but root for her. [b]Andrew Lang's Blue Fairy Book[/b]. You're never too old for fairy tales. And Andrew Lang's series of Fairy Books encompasses so much more than what's found in Grimm, Hans Christian Anderson, or the Arabian Nights. These stories are entertaining and surprisingly dark. Many retain their gritty, ironic tone--not to mention the blood, gore, and sex--which has been edited out of most fairy tale collections for children. [b]The Beekeeper's Apprentice[/b] is a clever, original story about a young woman who meets Sherlock Holmes. It's funny, well plotted, and surprisingly historically accurate. I would recommend this book and its sequels to just about anyone. And of course, there's always Lord of the Rings. ~Dagger~

I recently saw all 12 episodes of BP and was extremely impressed. It's one of those series that requires a lot of thought--but the plot actually makes sense, and it's really rewarding to figure everything out for yourself. The two things that struck me first was the show's amazing use of sound, and its unique visual style. All of the episodes but the last were shot through a sepia-tinted lens, which adds a certain darkness to the images. I thought that the dub was adequate, but I'm now watching it again in Japanese..... and I'll probably watch the director's commentary after that, just so I don't miss any details. Boogiepop Phantom is incredibly well plotted; details that seem insignificant in the first few episodes turn out to be vitally important later on. Overall, BP is an amazing and original horror anime. It's been compared to Serial Experiments Lain numerous times. Since I loved BP, I'm now interested in watching Lain. If you've seen both shows, how do they compare? And if you've seen or are planning to see Boogiepop, I'd like to hear your take on it. ~Dagger~

Um..... SARs ceased spreading because health officials worldwide were working around the clock to stop it. I'm not exactly sure what you meant to say, but I thought I ought to clarify that. The hype usually dies down because the disease itself has been controlled. Also, anthrax isn't technically a disease. It's a biological substance. ~Dagger~

Heh, sorry. I'm new to the whole banner-making process, so just putting those together was a rather big accomplishment for me. I know it's not hugely dazzling or creative.... but I did put effort into it. I wouldn't have posted it if I hadn't. ~Dagger~

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Semjaza Azazel [/i] [B]It sounds like you guys are expecting way too much from a film that has to compress an epic novel into two hours. It was as faithful as I think can be expected, although it obviously omitted some things and moved others so they'd actually work as movies. Some things in books just cannot be translated well, and you don't exactly want to end a film with a death either. Good film writing and good novel writing are very different things, I'd say. I think they did well with what they could do. They have to somehow please fans of the books as well as the general movie going public... and that's not exactly an easy task. [/B][/QUOTE] I couldn't agree more. I enjoyed watching the first two movies, and I can't wait to see Return of the King. I'm particularly looking forward to [spoiler]glimpsing Shelob--and, of course, the destruction of the Ring itself.... from what we've seen of Gollum so far, I expect that scene to be absolutely dazzling.[/spoiler] ~Dagger~

Kenshin vs. Saitoh is definitely one of my favorites. It's possibly the best anime swordfight ever. Not only is the action amazing, but it also suceeds in being emotionally gripping and dramatic. I also like Kurama vs. Karasu in the final round of Yu Yu Hakusho's Dark Tournament. It's just cool to see Kurama's demon form unleash those killer plants. Plus, it's one of those rare fights in which a reasonable explanation is offered for the good guy being able to stay alive against all odds. ~Dagger~

Trust & Betrayal is the prequel to Rurouni Kenshin. Reflection is the sequel. Samurai X: The Movie comes somewhere in the middle of the series, and isn't really connected to the other OVAs. Trust & Betrayal and Reflection are drawn in a much darker, more realistic style than RK, which has more colorful, flamboyant character designs. For example, in the OVAs, Kenshin's eyes are dark brown. In the TV series, his eyes are bright purple. Samurai X: The Movie is stylistically similar to RK, and looks nothing like the other OVAs. The "Samurai X" label is something the American distributor just randomly tacked onto Trust & Betrayal and Reflection. ~Dagger~

OOC: Haha, no problem. ^___^ It makes for a much more interesting dynamic, don?t you think? Aissa would normally have been grateful to be in the company of another mage, no matter [i]how[/i] annoying he was. But this man? though his manner certainly infuriated her, her irritation only served to cover up a deeper unease. It was?it was almost as if he carried the same dark shadow as Muis-ka. Yet while that force had ravaged both Muis-ka?s body and mind, Anubis seemed to have made peace with it. Or perhaps he was simply powerful enough to stave it off. ?Aissa?? Leile asked, eyeing her worriedly. ?Are you alright?? She shook herself. ?Yes?. I suppose so.? Aissa turned to watch Anubis?s approach, and startled as she saw the empty street. He had just? vanished. A second later, someone touched her shoulder. She bit back a scream and stumbled into Leile, nearly knocking the smaller girl over. Aissa clenched her fists, seething. She didn?t have to turn around to know who she would see. Anubis was behind her?far too close for comfort. He was no longer smiling. This time, the mage?s face remained perfectly neutral, utterly devoid of emotion. Standing at Aissa?s side, Leile responded with an equally steady stare. Despite the rather significant difference in their heights, she refused to let this man look down on her. ?You,? Aissa said. She thought that her voice sounded remarkably calm, considering the circumstances. His eyes were an ordinary sort of brown, but they appeared strangely flat, and their hue was oddly uniform. It seemed as though they absorbed light, rather than reflecting and refracting it. Though the effect was only noticeable upon close examination, it made both girls blink. ?Me,? Anubis replied, still expressionless. ?What do you have against a simple street magician, young woman?? [b]Meanwhile?..[/b] ?Do you want me to kiss it and make it better?? For several seconds, he didn?t think that the girl had even heard him. But then, just as Luthian was starting to wonder whether he ought to repeat himself, she performed a rather violent double-take?a sudden gasp, followed by leaping back, tripping, and finally settling into a modicum of balance with the aid of some vigorous arm-flailing. [i]Heh, never had that reaction before.[/i] Maia finally straightened up, tugging furiously at her cap. He noted with some glee that she was blushing. It was quite obvious, despite the darkness and her attempts to hide it. ?What, is the thought of kissing me really that scary?? Luthian asked, grinning. He knew he should probably give it a rest, but she was too easy to tease. So much for the blade-waving tough girl act. Her only reply was a rather uninformative ?Mmrph.? She?d opened her mouth to say one thing, then changed it into something else entirely, as varying amounts of exasperation and embarrassment chased each other across her face. ?I?m Maia,? the girl finally muttered. She cast a quick glance at his face before fixing her eyes on the ground. ?I?ll walk you wherever you?re going. It?s not safe to be wandering around alone in the dark, y?know.? Luthian blinked, quite taken aback. Was Maia trying to pick him up? [i]Hmm?[/i] ?You?re offering to protect me?? he asked, struggling to keep a straight face. He had no doubt that she could defend herself, really, but there was something inherently amusing about this situation. She was young, potentially pretty, and obviously poor? under the circumstances, he?d be much more worried about the danger to her. Maia scowled and crossed her arms, leaning forward to look him in the eye. ?Anything wrong with that?? ?No, no,? he protested, laughing, and proceeded to sweep a deferential bow. ?Whatever you like, milady. My name?s Luthian. I was going to go home? unless you?d like to head back to the bar. After all, the night is still young.?

Meh. Trust & Betrayal has amazing action, and truly delicious amounts of blood and gore. The story didn't really draw me in, though, and the dub just about put me to sleep. Subtlety is one thing; utter lack of expression is something entirely different. Are the Japanese voices the same as those in the RK series? I own the director's cut, but I haven't watched it subbed yet, which is slightly shameful. Although Trust & Betrayal is more mature and realistic than RK, I find that RK (despite its many flaws) is simply more likeable. Or maybe it's just that the characters show a wider range of emotion. I plan on eventually seeing Reflection. Hopefully it'll make up for the TV show's incredibly crappy ending. ~Dagger~

I actually think that Seph looks better than Cloud... at least in the trailer. Seph looks all nice and evil, albeit slightly more feminine than before. I like the way they changed his hair--it's more realistic, but still has the same basic style. Cloud's crazy spikes don't work as well, in my opinion. *shrugs* It's really a matter of personal taste. Even if you don't find the new Sephiroth attractive, he definitely has that lovely malicious aura, ne? ~Dagger~

Yes, please! And I agree with everyone else, the font sizes should be capped--but only if it's not too much trouble. I strongly doubt that many people will use ridiculously large fonts. ~Dagger~

1) Highest rated artists This would basically help to separate the good from the bad. My only worry is that new artists might not have as much of a chance to get seen. 2) Recently updated artists 3) Recently updated anime categories Just useful to know. 4) Most popular anime categories 5) Most prolific artists I don't really care about these last two... particularly 'most prolific artists.' When it comes to art, most people look for quality, not quantity. ~Dagger~

Squaresoft certainly does have a LOT to live up to. But frankly, I'd rather have a movie than nothing at all. I think they're aware of how difficult it will be to continue the story of FF7, and I'm sure they'll try as hard as they can to make the final product worthy of its venerable predecessor. ^__^ ~Dagger~

Sorry. I couldn't resist. [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by AutoKill [/i] [B]Drix D'Zanth.... You just don?t get it do you. You are just a subject of human reasoning. Am sure that you have no clue what am talking about. Seeing that most Christians don?t have a original thought in their head. [/b][/quote] First off, certain generalizations are just about impossible to prove. I'd like to see you try to support that last statement. Anyway, what makes you believe that "most Christians don't have an original thought in their head?" And if you're of the opinion that Drix doesn't get it, please, for the love of all things good, explain why. [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by AutoKill [/i] [b]Every one seems to think 2000 years people were stupid. I will give you another example. People did not know if the world was flat or round. If any one 2000 years ago happened to look up at the sky they would see that the moon and sun formed a circle. And then a person used shadows to prove that the earth was round. The bible said that the world was round. The bible is full of these little things that prove to be right. So people go along with human reasoning at its the best. I image it would be hard to prove something wrong that has been added on to for 2000 years. Please Drix D?Zanth, try to give me a little more of a argument other then quoting every thing I say. You falter me to much by doing so. [/B][/QUOTE] I honestly have no idea what you're attempting to say. Your earlier posts made it sound as though you despise Christianity in general. Now I'm really quite confused. I won't even bother discussing your last sentence. Back to the topic at hand. I go to a Quaker school, and we have several minutes of silence before every class. I'm not particularly religious, but it's nice to have some quiet time. Some people pray, some don't--everyone ends up happy. ~Dagger~