Syk3

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by .h4ck [/i] [B]chibi gundams!!!! here katana take this pics, its kinda a chibi link, well link drawn in anime ^^ its kinda small, but a good avi size [/B][/QUOTE] Actually, the highest pixel size for avatars that we allow is 80 x 80, and this picture is clearly over the limits. An honest mistake, because I know you'd never upload a random image just to get it uploaded. :)

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Kyokokeiji [/i] [B]im not even sure what it is, her hand endedup like that so i figured id draw her holding part of a cape or something but it sure doesnt look like it lol [/B][/QUOTE] Please do not double post. It is against the rules, even to upload an image, and if it isn't, we encourage you to use the Edit button at the bottom of your posts. You have to be paccient and wait for others to post before you. :) [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Kitten Kisses [/i] [B]Very nice job. ^-^x I like the words on 'whisper' =^-^= [/B][/QUOTE] [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by the_fizz [/i] [B][color=royalblue] This one is really nice! THE FIZZ[/color]:wigout: [/B][/QUOTE] These are examples of not using constructive criticism. You really need to expand on what you like and dislike about the banners; get an idea by reading the sticky on this subject at the top of the forum. Thanks.

I think I should mention that if you would like to join, just attach your entry with your post. You only have until [b]November 21[/b] to get these banners in, so it is pointless to simply say that you want to join, and it could even be spam when you consider that all you have to do to convey that you want to participate is by posting your banner. On November 22nd, I will close this thread, at which point you know that the contest is over, and there will be another thread made for judges to post their opinions and make a final decision on the winners of each category. Oh yeah, have you thought about what you're going to give the winners?

As I expected.. this thread is getting out of control. I really do not believe that it was a good idea to advise everyone to post as many as they like, and take the last one for juding. Things will get even more confusing, so from now on, only post one banner, and edit your previous attachment if you enter a new one. [b]Everyone participating in the contest who has already posted their banner entry and has MORE THAN ONE, please go back and delete the posts with the attachments that you are not submitting. One per person for now.[/b] I've taken the liberty of going back and deleting some spamalicious posts, so the thread may look considerably smaller. I assure you, anything worth reading is still here. Also, I edited your first post so that people can see this right when they enter. You also need to edit it with a list of judges that you are going to allow, and how the judging will work (e.i. post opinions on the banners immediately or wait until the end). Nate, please go through some of these posts; there are a lot of people signing up and posting banners that should be added to the list in your first post. ;) Lastly, please outline exactly what category you are entering your banner for. Perhaps put it at the top of the post in bold. [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by .h4ck [/i] [B]i think that you should pm your final banners to the judge so its easier for him, theres alot of participants. [/B][/QUOTE] There would be no point making this thread if you just have to PM him with the final banner. Attachments could be an issue, due to the fact that you can't PM an attachment, and besides, he took responsiblity for judging by making this thread in the first place; he knew he had to do this when he signed up. [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by ARTommy [/i] [B]ok heres one try kinda plain but what ever *shrugs* [/B][/QUOTE] Please do not post BMPs. They rarely work, and when they do, they're no where near the quaility, low file sizes, and simplisticity of opening the attachments as something like gif, jpg, or png. [b]BMPs will cause your entry to be disqualified.[/b]

[color=teal][font=Verdana][size=2]Many thanks go out to all of you for your suggestions, and most especially to Solo Tremaine for helping me to revise my original copy and make it so much better. Our combined efforts helped to make this version at least ten times more creative and interesting than the original.[/size][/font] [font=Verdana][size=2]I have chosen to incorporate a few OtakuBoards members into the story line to give it some flavor, but I will also create an original copy with my own characters. Feel free to ask if you wish to see it once I finish with the three parts to my story.[/size][/font] [font=Verdana][size=2]The following OB members can be found in the final project: Syk3 [Greg], OtakuSennen [Nick], Mei [Rachel], and Shy [Josh]. There is also a possibility that I?ll be able to fit more people in, but they won?t have [b]major[/b] parts. :)[/size][/font] [font=Verdana][size=2]As said, there will be three parts to my original fiction. This is part One, clearly, and it is intended to provide an example of what is to come. The main character is introduced and you can see the rest of the story will hint on genres such as martial arts, romance, science fiction to an extent, and bounty hunting, as well as a few gun fights. I hope that you enjoy this, and I want to get started on part Two as soon as possible. One last point that I will make is that I will most likely write Three first, and then Two, so expect them to be posted very close together.[/size][/font] [font=Verdana][size=2]Enjoy.[/size][/font] [font=Verdana][size=2]----------------------------[/size][/font] [font=Verdana][size=2][color=black][b]Blood Red Cross - Part One[/b][/color][/size][/font] [color=black]It was late November. A heavy fog blanketed the city of South Boston, shrouding the light given off by the morning sun. The town was eerily quiet as a gentleman with a light, grey jacket took a sharp turn into a backstreet alley, warm air rising from his mouth against the bitter cold of the impending winter. The young man appeared to be in his late teens, standing just shy of six feet and sporting slight facial hair with a solemn look. He knew this was a bad neighborhood, but bounty hunting wasn?t exactly the safest job in the world, either. [i]There?s no place like home[/i], he thought facetiously, kicking an empty soda can from a pile of trash that had spilled onto the ground amid stains of dry blood.[/color] [color=black]Having dropped out of high school for various reasons, the man supported himself with what little money he could make as a bounty hunter. The greatest thing about going after bounties is that no one ever asks questions; you can go out there and get paid for doing your stuff without having to worry about resumes, impressing your boss, or any of that crap. You can work at your own pace, and it can even be a part-time job. This man?s partner was his brother, and they planned to outline the local crime Syndicate?s next move this afternoon. That?s where all the big bounty pay-offs were at.[/color] [color=black]The man followed the path of the can with his eyes, feeling drowsy from the early morning rise. In the distance, he saw the form of a young woman with tied back light brown hair, carrying a briefcase. He hadn?t noticed anyone and was stunned to see such an attractive woman traveling in this district unaccompanied.[/color] [color=black]For a second, he felt a rising urge to chase after her. Shrugging it off, he continued walking. He can?t let absurd feelings like that get in the way of his job.[/color] [color=black][i]I wonder how long this alley is, anyway[/i]. He had already been walking for quite some time. The ominous fog obscured his vision, making the end impossible to make out.[/color] [color=black]He looked ahead to where the woman had disappeared. The urge to run once again sprang from within him, completely captivating the young man. His legs finally gave in to the burning desire to catch up to the woman, still barely visible up ahead. Before he could resist, he was chasing after her.[/color] [color=black]?H-hey!? he yelled, more to his legs than anything. The brown-haired woman stopped for a moment and glanced over her shoulder, revealing affectionate green eyes that pierced through him like arrows to his heart. She turned back around and continued her relaxed pace.[/color] [color=black]The man?s legs were not satisfied, however. His jog turned into a run and that to a sprint, but no matter how hard he tried, the woman kept a constant lead on him, her bag swinging at her side. And with each step, she faded further and further until the fog completely consumed her body. He slowed to a walk.[/color] [color=black][i]What was that?[/i][/color] [color=black]Suddenly, figures began to emerge from the alley fog ahead of him where the woman had vanished. One, two...no ? six tough men with a look of distaste on their shadowed faces appeared like ghosts from the fog.[/color] [color=black][i]Pfft[/i], he scoffed. He wasn?t going to let a couple scrawny guys like these get in his way.[/color] [color=black]?The hella? you?? one man with a buzz cut and a headband asked him. The man next to him took a cigarette out of his mouth and flicked it to the side. ?Man, I?ve seen that ****** before. He?s a bounty hunter.?[/color] [color=black]?Call me Greg,? said the young man with a smirk spreading across his face. He was itching for a fight. ?Would you prefer to give yourselves up now, or am I going to have to pound it into your heads myself??[/color] [color=black]These guys weren?t just some random punks off the street; breaks in the fog illuminated sunlight into the alley from behind Greg, flashing the trademark cross scars that all Blood Red Cross syndicate members wear, etched deeply into their necks.[/color] [color=black]He shifted uneasily. One of the men in front tensed himself, and then bolted straight at Greg.[/color] [color=black]The man was fast, but Greg was more than ready for him. His eyes narrowed and he let his entire body relax; he wasn?t too bad in terms of Jeet Kune Do.[/color] [color=black]Drawing closer, the man whipped a switchblade from his jacket with his right hand and thrust it towards Greg. Greg turned his body left to avoid the attack, using his left hand to guide the attack away while bringing his own right arm across his chest and then making a fist with both hands. Greg stiffened and slammed his rock-hard hands into the man?s gut. There was a millisecond pause, and then ? [i]BAM![/i] The man?s back arched slightly forward. His eyes turned white, and a fetid mix of blood and mucus ejected from his mouth as he collapsed to a heap on the ground.[/color] [color=black]Greg straightened up and smirked at the rest of his opponents. He counted them in his head ? four more to go. [i]I can get the rest of them in one go, no problem[/i]. [/color] [color=black]?Tuh, if the rest of you can fall that easily why should I even bother?? he gloated.[/color] [color=black]The men?s faces contorted with anger and rage. One lunged at Greg, whirling a metal pole through the air while the others surrounded him on other sides. The pole-man?s muscles rippled as he raised the pole into the air and swung it as hard as he could towards Greg?s stomach.[/color] [color=black]He stood perfectly still, waiting for his opportunity to strike. When the pole swung at him, Greg raised his left arm and cushioned the end of the pole against his armpit with the upper half of his arm, then grabbed it with his free hand. Using all his strength, he lifted the pole up with the man still holding on to the other end, and then catapulted him straight into another of the men and slamming them both against the hard brick wall. [/color] [color=black]Sensing a movement behind him, Grew whirled round and cracked the pole into another man?s ribcage, pinning him to a wall. He kicked the other end into the ground, causing sparks to fly into the air.[/color] [color=black]As more footsteps approach, Greg stepped onto the now-horizontal pole and propelled himself in the air, avoiding an attempt to trip him, and turning himself around to kick another man?s face. As Greg landed on the pole, a sickening crunch followed the pole falling to the ground, blood splattering onto the side of Greg?s stern face.[/color] [color=black]Greg straightened himself and surveyed the fallen bodies. Slowly, his battle-hardened expression softened, turning into a near-smile. He reached into his back pocket and retrieved a high-tech palm pilot with the words ?Bounty Hunter Personal PC-v2.3.011? written above the small screen. His fingers zoomed around the screen as he entered his user name and password, after which he removed a bottom piece from the gadget and took the fingerprints of the fallen syndicate members. The words ?Receiving confirmation? appeared under each of the bounty head names before he shut it off and stuffed it back into his pocket.[/color] [color=black]He looked towards where the woman had walked off, and headed in that direction, breaking into a run. His pace quickened until he could almost see her through the slowly clearing fog. A smile appeared on Greg?s face, just as he was about to reach her-[/color] [color=black][i]BAM![/i][/color] [color=black]Greg crashed to the ground hard, wondering where the hell that arm came from. He could feel blood oozing from his nose. A man stepped out from the shadows, his arm still held out in a clothesline position.[/color] [color=black]Greg?s body ached, but the determination to catch that woman filled him with energy once again. He forced himself onto his back. Opening his eyes, he came face to face with the men whom he had thought he had just taken care of. The first man he?d hit gave him a steely glare, a trickle of blood running down his mouth.[/color] [color=black][i]Six men?[/i][/color] [color=black]?What the hell?!" stammered Greg, incredulously. He struggled to get up, but three of the men grab him and forced him to his knees, chuckling.[/color] [color=black]Feelings of revenge enslaved their minds. The taste of vengeance rose within them. They were going to enjoy this slow, torturous death of their assailant. [/color] [color=black]The sixth man picked up something from the floor, stood, and removed a pistol from his belt, its metal barrel glinting in the light.[/color] [/color][color=black]As he emerged from the shadows, Greg tried to make out the features on the man?s face. They were nearly invisible. The man circled behind Greg, his footsteps clicking ominously on the dirty ground. He heard the deadly ?click? of the pistol being loaded, and there, kneeling in the damp alley-way, the feeling of fear ebbed into Greg?s body. A drop of sweat trickled down his face as the man cocked his gun against his head?[/color]

I'm supposing you mean adding art onto myOtaku.com, in which case this thread would probably do better in the Suggestions forum, which is also a place to ask questions about the boards and site. Topic moved.

I absolutely cannot stand my younger brother. Trust me, I've tried to be resonable, but there's no getting around the fact that he's immature and makes my life absolutely miserable. To start off, I should say that I also have a strong dislike for my dad, which partly stems from the fact that my brother is his favorite out of the two of us, and he always takes his side despite how clearly the facts point to me being the innocent one. My brother can gang up on me with his friends right in front of my dad and try to say how obnoxious making friends on the internet is, as well as some of my other hobbies, and I'll say "Just shut up.." once and get in trouble for belittling him in front of his friends. My brother does not understand the concept of maturity. Despite the face that he doesn't like girls, tells our parents if he gets the slightest hint that I like girls, tells on me if I slip up and accidently cuss, is always running around and annoying everyone, is the worst movie critic ever ("Plot?! Who needs it?? This move has the coolest gun fights!"), and is a little too optimistic for this tragic world, he continues to insist that he is mature. Let me give you an example. I just had a talk with him the other day and outlined exactly what I wanted him to change about himself so that we could get along better. See? I tried to improve our relationship so I would be more apt to get along with him, but to no avail. Right after we got done talking about respecting my privacy and not telling on me for every little thing, he finds this comment that I made about having a gf, posts it in an IM to his friend, prints it out 10 times, makes about 20 copies, hides them around the house, and shows my mom. I swear, anything we had for that single moment is gone and I'm never trusting him again. -__-

Phew, okay, now this thread is getting somewhere. I opted against being the first to post in order to wait for a discussion to come up where I can specifically talk about whatever it was. [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by terra [/i] [B]Okay, I just saw it. I liked it a lot, though I still think they should've stopped after the first one. Regardless, I thought it was much, much better than the second one.[/b][/quote] While I agree that the first movie was undoubtedly the most original, and my personal favorite of the three, I do like how they expanded on the story by applying what we knew at the end of The Matrix and putting the characters into a situation where something would threaten even their new-found powers. When I first saw Reloaded, I was thinking the same thing about them ending the series early, but once I started to understand the story line a bit more and saw Revolutions, I'm glad they did so. The Matrix > Revolutions > Reloaded [quote][b][spoiler]I really liked the way it ended. One of the friends I saw it with said she thought it would've been much cooler if they all still ended up in the matrix instead of being freed, but I disagree. I would much rather end optimistically. I also wonder just what the peace between the machines and the humans will entail. The machines needed the humans for power, so are they going to cut back on their numbers? Or are they hoping enough humans are willing to stay in the matrix so they'll be supplied a decent amount of power?[/spoiler][/b][/quote] The end confused me a little bit, and I still don't understand a few things entirely. [spoiler]First, why did Smith die? I have two theories to explain this; either the power from Neo was too strong for his program to handle, since Neo was the anomally that recorded information on humans, and one could assume that there was just too much information, lol. Or this could be another fabrication of the Architect, whereas everything must balance out, which is why when Neo became the One, Smith gained a large amount of power after Neo's code copied onto his, and that because Neo was now gone, Smith had to go. Both of these are questionable, however. Next, where are they at the end, anyway? Is it the 7th version of The Matrix, created even more peacefully than before after the machines brought Neo's body to the source? Or..well, I was going to say that it might have been the real world or something where the machines fixed it up because of the peace between them and the humans, but as I've been writing this, the first sounds a lot more practical, especially with all of those programs there, haha. Okay, I understand now. I was so busy in the movie trying to figure out that question that I wasn't really paying attention to what they were saying. Referring to what the peace with the humans and machines will bring, I think it's fairly obvious that the Matrix will be improved better than ever with the machines not having to worry so much about people finding out about the real world. I think they were talking about this at the end, but as I said, I wasn't listening.

Here ya go. Like I said on AIM, I don't know why it keeps missing the attachment, and why our direct connections arn't working, but here's the pic anyway:

Thread moved. As said, the Reuqest forum is for requesting banners and avatars, and the Art forum is for displaying them. ~_^

Those who can't make banners use another cool forum called Banner/Avatar Request. ~_^ And if they would like to learn how to make them themselves, there is a sticky for it at the top of this forum. Topic closed.

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by FirePheonix727 [/i] [B]!!!!!!!! OMG I've been wanting a banner for a while, and I made a request on the banner forum, but the guy who responded hasn't been on in weeks, so coud I ask you for one? Something..... oh I don, know... action- packed lol [/B][/QUOTE] If you would like to request a banner of Karma, I suggest you do so through PM rather than fill up this thread with anything less than commenting and critiquing their work. Thanks!

Photoshop and Paint Shop Pro are both great graphic editing programs to use, but PSP is probably best in terms of affordability. You can get the latest version of Paint Shop Pro for $100 or less, and the price goes down if you want to get an earlier version. Photoshop, however, is something like $200, though I'm not entirely positive.

It would be appreciated if you didn't bring back year-old topics, heh. This thread has been dead for quite some time.

If someone wants to request a banner from you, I suggest they do so through PM and save this thread for commenting on and critiquing the banners you make. Then once you make their banners, you can post them here to get feedback. :)

Man, you all are just making me think about how uncool my school is, lol. First of all, there is no 'Graffiti Wall' or anything. If we do anything like that, we'll most likely be suspended for three to ten days, and when someone did it around the time of last year's pep rally, guess what? The principle cancelled the pep rally. And this year, they were making us pay a dollar to get in (unrelated to last year). Tardy policy. Well, the first time is a warning, I believe, but after that..you get a letter home, then ISS, suspension, and then an extended suspension and recommendation for explusion. There's almost always homework, and it's very possible for me to get homework for every class except lunch, though perhaps not to the highest degree, but even so. Not fun for someone who enjoys getting on the inernet every night, like myself. -.-; Cussing seems to be the only thing that they can tolerate, for the most part. I've never exactly yelled something like that out in class, which would most likely result in the teacher asking me to go to the office, but you can cuss a little bit and they don't care. However, too much cussing after the teacher repeatedly tells you to stop, well...last year my friend got lunch detention for just that. Now, you have to understand that my school is very old and has some of the most ancient TVs a school can have. Whenever we want to watch a tape, the teacher has to borrow a VCR from the office, and I don't think the school even owns a DVD player. My anime club always has to bring in a PS2 to watch something. If we are absent for anything less than being sick or a death in the family or such, we get an unexcused absence. Sixteen of these babies and you're going to be taking the grade all over again. :) The dress code is probably the worst part about my school, especially for many of the girls. You can't wear anything more than 2 inches above the knee (which I hear the girls complaining about all the time), and really enforce everything very strongly. Eh, I never have a big problem with it, but some people are murderous over the whole thing. There are a hell of a lot of things you can't do in the way of dress. So yeah, that's why my school is [i]not[/i] cool.

My Christmas list is usually pretty long. Not that I'm not happy with what I already have, heh, I just like to provide a lot of suggestions that my family or whoever can choose from so that I can be surprised with whatever. :) This is also a good opportunity to consider everything that I may want for the upcoming holiday. An X-Box (preferrably used, not worth full price to me), (if first) Halo and Halo 2, Animal Crossing, Star Wars Rouge Squadron III: Rebel Strike, Tony Hawk's Underground, Viewtiful Joe, 007: Everything or Nothing, Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, Need for Speed: Underground, Witch Hunter Robin box set, a new computer microphone, The Boondock Saints CD, and money. I may edit this later. Good way to organize thoughts..

My little brother still denies until he's blue in the face that he likes girls. It's always been a sort of mindset of him to think of girls to have cooties or something, and then laugh/tell our mom when he gets the slightest hint that I like girls. I repeatedly tell him that if he's trying to hide something from me just because of this nature that has been going on for years, I could really care less and even think of him as being more mature, but he continues to insist that he likes neither girls nor guys. So, while on the topic of little brothers and girls, would you consider this to be normal for a 13 and a half year-old (8th grade) to not like girls yet, or even to still be denying it? I remember that I got my first crush when I was something like 10, lol.

When refferring to extras and quality, it really comes down to what anime it is and how much you're willing to pay for it. If you get really cheap Hong Kong DVDs, for example, then you'll likely be getting only what you paid for, namely the series, with perhaps a few things such as creditless openings. But if you get it straight from the company, such as ADV, then you will pay a lot more (perhaps 70 dollars more), but get quite a few extras. Such can be said about FLCL; buy the series in 3 seperate DVDs each about $20, then a ton of extras are included, but if you get the one Hong Kong DVD for $20, it is only the series. On the other hand, it really depends what anime you buy, as well. My Hellsing Hong Kong DVDs are filled with extras such as creditless opening and closings, outtakes, art, Japanese packaging, action figures, and more. So yeah, if you're willing to put up the extra 40 dollars or something, then the DVD will have the extras.

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Mr. Period [/i] [B]So....how many times are you guys going to update this? Ya' know, I've heard of this awesome thing called the TV GUIDE!!! Sorry, but come on, 23 freakin pages!?!?!? (although i haven't read them all, so maby you guys talked about something over) [/B][/QUOTE] This thread isn't only about what shows are currently playing, while many people do come here to find that out, but also what has been announced to be shown in the coming months, and channels with anime that might not even be in the TV guide. In fact, some TV guides don't list the Cartoon Network, depending on where you live. Besides, why search through other TV shows in the guide looking for anime when you can find every anime that Cartoon Network has, as well as the times that they air, right here?

Not too bad, is the quote from anywhere in particular? It delivers what it promises, and that's the main thing you have to consider. Good choice of picture and placement, and the white text goes nicely against the black background, obviously. However, I do think that it needs a border. It doesn't have to be too fancy or anything, even a simple 1 pixel black border would do it wonders. The picture could be of a slightly higher quality, and the text looks a little pixelated; depending on what program you're using, you should try to make it smoother (on PhotoShop, for example, Sharp is a much better text property).

Wow, Rachel, I havn't seen any of your drawings before and this one really starts my impression off [i]very[/i] nicely. ^_^ I think the proportions are just fine; great, in fact, especially the upper body. Her head looks more like a Chibi due to the fact that she doesn't have a nose, but even then, I'm really not seeing the Chibiness (note the ear and individual fingers). You started off the shading good, as well. Just remember that shading helps to outline round shapes such as the arm, whereas you would start off with the darkest shading that you want and gradually get lighter. I think it could be even better with more shading and color distinctions. ^_~ While most of it is very good, there are a few things that can be improved. The girl's mouth is just a *little* too small, as well as her ear. Also, the angle of her head seems to be slightly off, but perhaps that's just because you extended her hair just a tiny bit too far past the bangs on the left of the picture. Again, I think this is a very good drawing, and it shows that you have a lot of talent. I want to see more pictures in the future. :) [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Mei [/i] [B][color=green]Now, to describe my actual character there. Pretty much a young girl, swooning over a cute guy of some sort. Hence the lips shaped in a "kissing" type of position, and the little heart hovering above.^^()[/color] [/B][/QUOTE] ...shall I quit while I'm ahead?

I tried my best to fix the first sentence. It was already on the highest opacity, as well as on bold, it's just naturally a thin font. See how it looks with more outer glow. I also apoligize for the 'blurring.' If it wasn't from the original picture, the animation program I use often degrades larger gifs.

Yeah, She requested that I make it go a little better with her posting colors, so I changed the background image a tad. I hope you like it just as much. ^_^

Well, she asked me for a banner, and I made one, heh. It's an animation, so the file might be sort of large, but I'm hoping that it will fit in her sig. The theme is basically the quote in her signature, and I think I did a pretty good job on it. ^_^ Comments? Critique? Edit: Gah, file too big. I had to cut out a few parts, so that's why it doesn't fade in the first text, and out the last text. ~_~ Edit again: File still too big. I made it short and sweet this time.