Nehszriah

Dude... I know how that is. I've been going for the past four years and not all of them have been affairs where I get to stay for the entire thing for one reason or another. One day you'll make it! :D Have fun with the weekend anyways.

The Final Sacrifice is definitely one of my favorites. Jack Frost is also pretty decent, as far as being actually bearable to watch unMSTed. I would also like to add to the list: Hobgoblins, Time Chasers, Santa Claus, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians, Night of the Blood Beast, Gamera (their third-season shot), Manos the Hands of Fate, Prince of Space, Robot Monster, ALL of season seven and anything that Coleman Francis touched would be a good start. Off the top of my head, it's hard saying if I missed a really good one. A pretty sound list, with call numbers, can be found [url="http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MysteryScienceIndex3000"]here[/url]. I would also like to take this opportunity to introduce you to [url="http://www.rifftrax.com/"]Rifftrax[/url] and [url="http://www.cinematictitanic.com/"]Cinematic Titanic[/url], which is the same concept in different forms. Riffttrax often uses newer (and therefore more topical) movies and has a user-submit feature. Cinematic Titanic is a live show that goes around and performs at various venues. So... yeah.

So, yeah. Not this coming weekend, but the weekend after that is [url="http://www.youmacon.com/"]Youmacon[/url] in good ol' Detroit, Michigan. Is there anyone on OB who is considering attending? Any cosplayers? Panel-leaders? This is my fourth-straight year attending, [s]so I want to make sure I have something to do if the schedule fails me[/s] yet I don't think I've never met any OB people there that weren't also scheming with me on theO.

"Clean" is a relative term when it comes to contact sports, as I've found. After years of watching NHL zebras get worse and worse about calls and sticking to new rules (both for and against whatever team I might be rooting for), it's no wonder to me that the mentality has spread to the NFL. I understand that people want the players to be safe. Having rules at all ensures longer careers, longer athlete life-spans and everything makes for a better game. What most people behind the rules, rule-changing and rule-enforcing is this: football is a dangerous game. D-A-N-G-E-R-O-U-S. Helmet and padding innovations were not made because the game involves watching five-year-olds push each other into pillow mountains. Discipline is a part of it, yes, but we're also becoming a society where we're not allowed to hurt anyone's feelings and heaven forbid if we actually cause physical discomfort. Society of sissies? I'd like to think that will always be an over-exaggeration. What bothers me though is despite how the Detroit Lions were favored in pregame picks over Dallas, I barely detect any sort of enthusiasm for the Lions when it comes to how well they've been doing lately. Yeah, everyone has their favorite teams and yeah some people are probably not happy about the Lions' seemingly sudden ascent... but I'm talking about professionals that are being paid to be analytical and excited about a game no matter what. When you're paid to be impartial, you sure do sound like you're not cool with Dallas losing. It makes me facepalm. Being 4-0 this season scares me. It's such unfamiliar territory.

Congrats, Al. You got me to log into OB. :P I remember one time waaaaay back there being a different football thread where I declared my loyalties to the Lions. Man... that feels like ages ago. Probably because it was. It feels so good to be able to say the Lions have won the last seven in a row, going into last season (eleven if you count preseason). It seems to be ticking a lot of people off. That's what I can tell, anyways. I could go on FOREVER about it, but I'm still trying to calm down from a Tigers-Lions-Red Wings trifecta of wins. Next week's at Dallas though, so I sense that we'll be really put under the microscope now. I hope we tear up the Cowboys, no offense Texan people. Detroit's needed to be taken seriously for a while now. [s]Besides, cheerleaders are pointless and dumb at the professional level. It's not even like you can hear their chanting.[/s] Speaking of those new rules though, they feel a lot like rules put in little league football to protect the 85 lb. kids from the 145 lb. kids who happen to be the same age: superfluous and restricting. I *also* feel like they're being used to pick on Ndamukong Suh, but whatever. [img]http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lqib4pLphF1qkz0d0.jpg[/img]

By Thundara you guys like to whine. B( It's honestly making you sound a bit more like bratty ten-year-olds than I'm sure you lot are. Wait... didn't even read the chapter? Seriously, it's not [I]that bad[/I]. Is there something I'm not getting because this anti-flashback movement sounds like it's a little much. I mean, how can you say that we don't need it until it's either over or we've had some time to let it soak in? It's a flashback, not Oda finally snapping and ending the story in five chapters because he's sick of it. You got through 580+ of these chapters, I'm sure this won't kill anyone--in real-life anyways. I'd say to ditch the skirts and man up but, well, yeah... there's too many unfortunate implications with that. Try being constructive or objective or something other than whiny. Please? The fun of the thread's being sucked out otherwise.

...and to think, I'm [I]still[/I] liking the flashback. :P I am quite curious as to how Sabo ends up falling out of the picture whether it be by kidnapping, striking out on his own or, in worst case, death. [quote name='Ace'][FONT="Comic Sans MS"][B][I][SIZE="4"]SIR CROCODILE IS NOW IN CHARGE OF THE HIPPOPOTAMUS MAFIA.[/SIZE][/I][/B][/FONT][/QUOTE] That's just proving how subtle he is, because, he wants to take and beat men into line while using what's at the top of their children's Christmas lists. It gives the annoying ditty a whole new layer of uncomfortable. SEE? THIS IS A CHILD'S HAPPINESS. I HEAR YOUR DAUGHTER EMMI WANTS ONE FOR CHRISTMAS. NOW SEE WHAT THAT HAPPINESS DID TO FREDRICO. OH, SO YOU'RE GONNA TURN A BLIND EYE TO OUR BANANA CARTEL? I THOUGHT SO.

Uh, dude... seriously. Lighten up, man. Something tells me Oda doesn't do stuff for no reason at all. Whether I like an arc or flashback or not, it still doesn't mean that it won't be important later. We've already been introduced to a few characters that could drive future arcs and fuel gambits and whatnot. We aren't even done with the flashback, so we don't know what it all entails. The "Who the eff was Woop-Slap talking about in 440?" question has already been answered and more answers could be on their way. Maybe not now, but things have been shown to be important hundreds of chapters later. Have a little more faith. Besides, not only does Oda not have to conform to any sort of sense, because he makes it okay in the end by making it awesome... I can see plenty of ways for the rest of the Straw Hats to band together. Zoro has Perona to get him anywhere he wants after his few [I]days[/I] of rest, Nami refuses to be helpless enough to be stuck on Weatheria because that's just not her nature, Franky's fuel change doesn't mean he's stranded, Robin is capable of leading a revolution and procuring a ship that way, Ivankov or not... Sanji's gettin' off that island, Brooke having that cult makes him probably the most likely to get off his respective island exile and Chopper and Usopp... they'll have their ways. Also, I'm sure there's going to be a lot of paths that cross, so I'm sure if one person lags behind, there shall be more people to haul their sorry rears back. ...and do you really think the fandom will be able to not whine during a possibly three-year long (our time) trip around the world where Luffy and whoever are searching [I]blindly[/I] for his crewmates? He literally has no idea where anyone is. Do you really think he'll be able to find them instinctively without some sort of new Will of D side-effect going on? I don't think so. Come on... you know a double-page spread of the crew standing dramatically at Shakky's would be made of pure awesome. Don't deny it. o3o

I'm just gonna be over here then, enjoying the backstory. *points to corner* :D This new kid reminds me of the Artful Dodger for some reason and it amuses me. Yup... I'm a sucker. :D As much as I love the rest of the crew and kinda want them back together again, I just don't see it happening unless we get about a month's worth of time with either just Luffy or Luffy and a short timeskip for everyone to gather back together at Shakky's, because there's no way Mr. Let The Currents Take Me Where I Want To Go is going to be able to find the crew on his own and although Hancock would most certainly help her beloved, I don't exactly know how they would go about finding everyone. Besides, this is Oda we're talking about. The man is likely going to want to do an epic two-page spread of all the crew as they return for Luffy and then we're owed no double-page spreads for at least fifty chapters. >>'

Man, I could not stop happy-spazzing while reading that chapter. While I too want to get back to the others soon, I'm also a sucker for backstory and find the ending of the chapter to be pretty fun. [SPOILER]Since we never really knew Luffy's relationship to Dadan, who Dadan was, what flippin' gender she was... anything... I like this. The reason she's cooperating with Garp is hilarious and I think it's interesting to see what kind of dynamics Luffy got to grow up with. Although we know a lot about Luffy in the present sense, we don't know much about his childhood and how he developed a brotherly relationship with Roger's son. In fact, I can see Luffy being a big reason as to why Ace ended up being the way he was, because Luffy seems to bring out the best in people.[/SPOILER] ...and poor Bepo. XD

Uh... am I the only one who did a total fan spazz at [SPOILER]ALL OF SHANKS'S CREW IN THAT SPREAD?![/SPOILER] It was such a huge YESDOWAAAAAANT that I'm surprised I didn't wake the dead. >>' Right now, I think Oda's just trying to transition into a decent wrap-up for the arc, so that everything is at least a little bit neater... kinda like how we had to have the Post-Enies Lobby arc. After all that went down in Enies Lobby, the after mini-arc, which didn't really feel like it fit with either the Enies Lobby or Thriller Bark arcs, didn't really seem all that exciting in comparison... unless you count Garp, Koby and Helmeppo showing up and Robin encouraging shippers. Which, I've been reading the [URL="http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/WMG/OnePiece"]Wild Mass Guessing page for One Piece[/URL] over on TVTropes and some of those theories are looking quite interesting/amusing. Lord help us all.

[quote name='Magus'][size=1][color=green]I like douches (Byakuya and Aizen are like the kings of douchery) but Akainu just comes off as a straight up ##### and he pisses me off.[/size][/color][/QUOTE] I'm thinking this might be on purpose, thanks to the [URL="http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BunnyEarsLawyer"]Sly One Oda[/URL] himself, trying to make a character that's such a jerk that there's no way to redeem him and therefore there be absolutely no [URL="http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/EstrogenBrigade"]estrogen brigade[/URL]... because I'm sure there's an estrogen brigade for each man (and possibly women) in the story with more than five panels of screen time. I mean, Aizen and Byakuya are at least [URL="http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MagnificentBastard"]Magnificent Bastards[/URL] in their own ways... Akainu has NONE of that. Shanks better go all [URL="http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheWorfEffect"]Worf Effect[/URL] on Akainu's rear... just 'cause gingers are effing magic. *shot*

Bellamy. Foxy and Bellamy. I have to agree with you. Those guys are just plain jerks... and Akainu. It's like, hell, I like friggin' Eneru. I like the One Piece version of Eminem... and I hate the actual man himself. HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN?! ODA MUST BE MAGIC. Edited now that I've read the new chapter and I don't want to double-post: [SPOILER]COBY HAS MANTRA COBY HAS MANTRA OMFG COBY HAS MANTRA[/SPOILER] YES YES YES YES YES YES [SPOILER]SHAAAAAAANKS[/SPOILER]

Then hold on while I set aside my pride and try again. *squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee* >8DD< Pretty much, your favorite list mirrors my overall one with the inclusion of [SPOILER]Shanks[/SPOILER], Wiper, Usopp and Paulie. I even have a little [URL="http://i404.photobucket.com/albums/pp128/Nehszriah/world%20content/100_3320.jpg"]Ace figurine/portrait/Idon'tknowwhyJapandoesthistome[/URL] that I had buried in my room under all the junk on my desk and I just found it and showed it off to Ace and yeah... I'm not quite sure why I like the characters I do, other than Paulie and his, eh, vocalness. XD One Piece is just so full of many different kinds of characters that it's hard to [I]not[/I] like a whole herd of them.