[link]

Click the link.

Megamoth will be off the net until January 19th.

Mawwage is what bwings us togever...

Well it's been a long time since I posted anything, and I apologize, I am a wretched blogger considering all the blogs I have! But it's about bloody time. A lot of blogworthy things have happened, so let me ring 'em off:

Last blog I posted was concerning the DD, about which I am both grateful and slightly confused, the latter confusion mostly a side effect of blundering, lame modesty. But it really is awesome, and worth a quick note, which quite unfairly left out all the details of the adventure I had just recently returned from: Comic Con 2011.

This year's Comic Con was rather different from years prior in a lot of ways: one, I was staying in town. (Usually I stay about 30 minutes up the freeway from downtown San Diego, free of charge, with a very friendly and accommodating family of journalists.) More specifically, I was staying with MuYoung Kim and *jeffreylai, in a room we rented from Todd Lockwood. We stayed at the Holiday Inn at the Bay, which was a fine place, a little less than a mile from the convention center. The Con this year was its usual self, however with a different feel than what I had experienced in the past: even though all the people we met were super friendly and nice as usual, there was a little bit of angst in the air. Possibly the angst felt by a half a million people who have just realized "play" is more "work" than advertised, and long lines have somewhat lost their novelty. Despite all that, I still had a great time with some charming people, and made new friends! I got to hang out in the after hours and have dinner with Todd Lockwood, his wife and friends, which was really, really awesome. I had late night drinks with art directors, veteran illustrators and publishers, enjoying their war stories and wondering whether I should be promoting myself more. But I was there to enjoy these people as people rather than network connections. And, I also got to explain to Mr. Lockwood what "yaoi" was, which made me feel particularly special.
So many thanks to Mu, Jeff, Todd, as well as friends such as Eric from *Team4D and `yuumei, and `alexds1 (whom I'd love to talk to more but I feel I'd need more permission to be rightly called "friend" rather than "acquaintance" ), and Joe LeFavi, and Dave Marshall, and all those people I just met whose names escape me because I am lame and didn't write this blog soon enough. Especially the kind gentleman of Vertical Publishing who translates "Chi's Sweet Home." You are all awesome!

The one thing about Comic Con this year, however, is that its exponential yearly growth seems to have overwhelmed its facility and staff. Since this staff works so hard and so long to put these Cons together, I would like to refrain from complaining, but I thought this year's pre-registration was worth a mention. Now previous years, if one were to purchase a pre-reg ticket for the following year (which is the only way to get tickets other than fighting the masses online), one would simply sidle up to the booths at the Sails Pavilion (where one has checked in for their current pass), and, with no line or hassle, quickly enter some information in a computer, swipe a credit card and be all taken care of for next year's con. That's right, no line or hassle! At Comic Con! Too good to be true? Apparently! For this year, pre-reg booths were relocated to a hotel a block away from the convention center, where people had to line up at 4am in order to have any hope of purchasing a ticket. Huh? What happened?! This question I still do not have an answer to, though it still burns in my brain, as I was not a happy camper when I arrived on the marina Saturday morning at 4, to find a line that was already a mile or so long. The line was closed 15 minutes before the ticket sales were advertised to open! What this bodes for Comic Con I can only guess, but nonetheless I managed to just barely snag a ticket for all 4 days with preview night for 2012. However, this victory does not feel as glorious as I believe it should.

But on to bigger and much better things!

After I returned from Comic Con I had some pretty big fish to fry. Namely, marrying the wonderful illustrious Brett Grunig (~Kyngdok)!! It was a very, very long month between Comic Con and Marriage, filled with planning, deliberation, last-minute breakdowns and the like. Among these, I also managed to get some illustration done by some miracle (for the SF Olympians Theater Festival, see gallery). I did a large amount of artwork for the wedding, which I will probably, maybe post at some point. Well since I spent most of my quota on Comic Con and you are probably too bored to read this, long story short, as of last Saturday, September 17th, I am married. I am still Emily C. Martin, but Mrs. Emily C. Martin, a wife, with a husband, and a ring and everything. The wedding was fantastic and awesome and incredible and wonderful, and I owe that to a lot of fantastic awesome incredible wonderful people who made it happen. The weather was great, the ceremony happened ALMOST as planned (some hilarious anecdotes involving panic fit in here but you'll just have to ask me), but it all ended up going surprisingly smoothly. Also the food and catering was FANTASTIC. So were the flowers!! It all happened so fast, I suppose I will remember more things to talk about, but I suppose I am in a wee bit of shock. But mostly, right now, I am relieved that it has happened and I can get back to LIFE.
After the wedding I spent a day in the Guerneville redwoods sleeping mostly, and eating decadent food. Monday, I was back to the grind.

So now I am very happy. I am looking forward to APE (table 639!) even though I feel that I ought to have more stuff of my own to sell. I also have some exciting prospective art work coming up. Oh! And if you're going to APE (October 1st and 2nd!) please come by the Cafe Royale on October 1st at 8pm for the SF Olympians gallery show!

I am excited for autumn.

Daily deviation. I can't believe it. I am pretty darn happy about that. Thank you everyone!!

Comic Con and other life related blog upcoming. Stay tuned!

Comic Con ahead! In the midst of July, everything has been so crazy busy, yet I still can take a moment and look forward to my yearly pilgrimage to San Diego. A few things are different this year, as I will actually be staying in town! However I won't get into that until I return. I have a few hopes and goals in mind for this year's Con, but I won't divulge just yet . No spoilers!!

In other news, like I said, July has been crazy busy. I don't think I have spent a single weekend at home since the 4th. Which is okay, because my 4th was mainly consistent of basking in the TV glow of Star Trek TNG in my newly cleaned house. The rest of the month has been spent filling in for my former retail job, trying to plan my September wedding, going to another wedding in Reno, competing and judging in a Tae Kwon Do tournament, and working on an illustration for Pathfinder (to be posted soon!). And of course, teaching. I am so happy to have so many awesome students! They keep me inspired during the long, hectic weeks... and they help me keep track of all the dreams that I am struggling to accomplish.

Anywho. There is more art on the horizon and this makes me very happy. Last week I spent most of my hours awake trying to master my apprehensions about digital painting and I am relatively satisfied with the result! I still have a long way to go, but I am excited and really relieved to know that I am truly happy working as an illustrator full time. Also, I have enjoyed the relatively mild weather here lately, with the wonderful marine air and fog layer keeping things from getting too ridiculously hot. I also finally set up this old bird feeder and the birds have eventually discovered it, which makes for excellent ambiance for my evenings working by the open window. So, life is definitely not too hectic to not enjoy the little things!

Heading off to #Kintoki-con today! I will be exhibiting at table #35 at the Artist Alley, so come visit! This will be the very first Kintoki-Con ever, so if you come you get super special bragging rights to all those young whippersnappers who haven't discovered it yet. I am actually really looking forward to this Con, since I know a lot of friends there, and it won't be too crowded and overwhelming to be really high stress. Well... it COULD be crowded. Either way it's a win/win situation.

Anywho, megamoth's life has been more busy than productive, BUT last week I taught my annual week-long comics class at the Schulz Museum and every kid in there was just so awesome, it made everything beautiful. I had some really great help too (~Acarron, *KillingTheMadMan, ~kirapants, ~Crazyfox, and a lovely young lady named Erica). The class went swimmingly, and I am hoping a bunch of those kids sign up for the Megamoth Studio classes.

Speaking of awesome and beautiful things, last weekend I went to one of my favorite places ever, Dillon Beach. It was really windy, but I got to explore the Elephant Rocks for the first time in a very, very long time (like ten years?). Also, I found out that there is still a trail to the secret beach, a really gorgeous, very isolated little spot in the cliffs where the Estero empties into the ocean. (You can actually see this beach sometimes in photos of Christo's Running Fence) I am certain it has been more than ten years since I've visited that place. It was very nostalgic and I am very happy I got to share it with my friends. The hike was long and the trail only slightly precarious, but my only regret is that no one brought a camera. We did, however, find an intact Pelican skeleton and one of my friends took the skull and breastbone as a souvenir.

In lieu of posting some legitimate illustrations and things I will be posting some sketch cards I've been working on for Con season. Sadly I didn't get as much done for Kintoki as I had hoped, but I am going to be doing the usual commissions there. Hopefully I will have some time to work on more cards for the table... although if I do commissions instead, even better! Like I said before... either way it's a win/win situation.

Last but not least!! An ENORMOUS Brofist of Gratitude to everyone who has commented on, watched, faved and collected my work lately! I am trying to get to all my watchers but time has not permitted... I still have almost 6,000 messages to sift through... more pages then there are in Homestuck...

I will be exhibiting at Fanime in San Jose with the Megamoth Studio students at the Fanime's Artist Alley, tables 283, 284 and 285! Come and check it out next week!!

Also, I will exhibiting at Kintoki Con June 18th & 19th, table numbers to be announced!

Also I just got a really awesome art job offer today!!! I am sooo stoked XD

That is all! Stay tuned!

Schools are getting hit hard by budget cuts. This is a threat I have gotten used to as I get older, but recently a lot of my students have been suddenly and shockingly affected. Many of my students attend a local art magnet program, ArtQuest, is threatening to cut its digital arts classes. Perhaps the decision has already been made. This has caused quite an uproar in the student body, and has been the source of a lot of conflict. From what I understand the programs at ArtQuest have been rather competitive, visual fine arts versus digital arts being an outstanding example. However, I don't think the impending cuts to the digital program have anything to do with this competition. Which deserves to stay? Digital or traditional art classes?

Despite what people may say, these kind of school budget cuts are generally NOT about whether digital art is any better or worse than traditional fine art.

The argument of digital art vs. traditional art is now deeply rooted in many areas of the industry, and thus has crept its way into education. So when one side takes a sudden blow, the battle is fought with renewed fervor. However while budget cuts often come disguised in such arguments, they generally have nothing to do with the "relevance" of digital over traditional media. Schools have simply overwhelming logistical problems when it comes to programs such as digital arts. Digital arts are relatively new; they require a more specific and rare skill set; they are constantly at the mercy of rapidly growing technology; they require TONS OF MONEY to keep. They don't exactly fit in the old fashioned (and frankly outdated) school system, and schools constantly struggle to maintain, organize, or even embrace any sort of digital communication in their classrooms. When you hear someone arguing that a digital program at school is no longer "relevant," it should not imply that digital programs themselves are irrelevant or unimportant--it means that that particular program is not teaching the proper digital media, most likely because it doesn't have proper funding. After all, digital media are pretty damn relevant everywhere else in life, so how can they not be at school? This should be all the more reason to enhance digital media programs in schools! But then, there is the inconvenient truth: it all costs so much money. To draw or write, you can buy a computer, a monitor, a keyboard, a mouse, a tablet, an operating system, and then finally, an art program, and even with educator discounts you're talking hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. Or, you can get a pencil and some paper.

However, like I said, digital communication is absolutely impossible to ignore. Our society is hopelessly entangled in it. Leaving it out of schools is just plain irresponsible and unfair to kids. However, technology changes so fast it's hard to find teachers who are sufficiently skilled in the techniques that are the most "relevant." Poor funding for schools make it difficult to supply "relevant" up-to-date hardware and software. I mean, if a school's digital arts program was simply teaching kids how to paint on the NewTek Video Toaster, obviously these kids won't to be able to apply their skills anywhere except possibly the year 1990.

The point is, a school could be trying its hardest to have a great digital program. But there is another basic problem here: when we say "visual fine arts," or "traditional arts," or "digital arts," what do we mean? When an educational program advertises itself as "traditional" or "digital," what does it entail? Well from what I've heard at ArtQuest, the digital program tries to grapple everything that can be done with computers: painting, graphic design, animation, 3D, vectors... all types of media that are so complex they have entire schools devoted to them, each with different programs that have entirely different interfaces. That's quite a lot for one or two teachers to cover! Teachers who, most likely, are working far more than they earn. But they care about getting the kids what they want--which sadly, is not enough for the school boards or government standards or whoever is calling the shots. Despite its best efforts, if a school program does not reach its expectation, then it's the chopping block for sure.

So, sadly, digital is generally the first to be cut. Even though familiarity with computers and art programs is a growing necessity for success in the art world. Another unfortunate example of the backwards way schools are forced to handle budget cuts. I am not blaming the schools--after all, they are trying their best. Even if a teacher may not be reaching the standard, odds are that, especially in art programs, they really do care about educating kids on what's important. True, there are a lot of teachers and administrators out there who have overstated opinions about the industry ( ahem ) who will argue vehemently for or against digital art. However, as opinionated as I may be, I think such an argument is irrelevant. Any art program should be fought for, no art program should be cut, as long as it is helping the students. And from what I can tell by the grief among my students in ArtQuest, ArtQuest Digital Arts is one of those programs.

So what do we do to reverse this backwards pattern? Raising money would be one thing. However I think depending solely on money is just as bad as depending solely on one medium of art. Any artist needs strategy to cope with change in their industry, and so do schools. In fact, schools could use more of this strategy in, well, their strategy. Teach students how to adapt. Teach students how to combine skills. Require that students learn a variety of media. USE media to keep them involved! However, I don't expect schools to do this by themselves, so I say to everyone out there who is distraught over their favorite, likely digital, programs being cut: think of ways that you can help your school make its programs better. Help your classmates adapt to different media and keep your teachers aware of what you want to learn. Ask yourself how your program can improve, and how can you help them get what they need to improve? These days, we have to teach ourselves a lot of things as the educational programs suffer. Share what you've taught yourself! And most of all, don't waste your time with pointless arguments about which media is better. I could stay up all night making points and counterpoints comparing digital and traditional media, but you know what: it all balances out. It's all the same thing. It's art. Every skill is important! So be inclusive, rather than exclusive, and don't be afraid to try new things, even if, for the moment, all you have is a pencil and paper.

Well it's been a month since I posted, so I thought I ought to.
What has been happening in megamoth land? Let's find out:

-WonderCon was awesome. Saw old friends and made some new ones. Also, go to talk extensively with Larry Marder and Wendy and Richard Pini. (Squee!!!) Saw Neil Gaiman at the Doctor Who panel.

-Officially got 3 tables at the Fanime Artist Alley. Thank you fine folks of Fanime!!

-Hosted a fundraiser at the Megamoth Studio Classroom. Thanks to everyone who attended and donated!!

-Held a special workshop at a wonderful little shop in Fairfax, Revolution 9. If you are ever in Fairfax, it's a great town, and this store makes it even greater!

-Visited Skywalker Ranch, big thanks to my good friend Derek!! It was so, so beautiful out there!

-Finally saw some movies and shows I have been meaning to see (Casanova, Coraline, caught up with Doctor Who, etc), and thoroughly enjoyed them.

-Working on comics, sketch cards and other goodies for Fanime at the end of May.

-Became active on tumblr (megamoth.tumblr.com! Follow me! )

Thanks again to all you wonderful favers, watchers and commenters out there. I am slowly getting up to speed but seriously I am planning on getting back to you. Thank you!!!

I promise to write a better entry next time...

Why hello... just popping my head up from my WonderCon prep to say that yeah... I still will be exhibiting at WonderCon. Table AA #90. Selling prints, comics, shirts and other assorted goodies. Commissions as well! Come, stop by, and have a talk-o.

Other news: Fanime tables are pending. Fanime's registration system this year is new and different, as I am sure many of you devious deviants are aware. Once that matter is settled updates will be posted.

Also: Lots of new stuff on the horizon. I am excited. And a little scared. Several events coming up for Megamoth Studio in all its incarnations! Classes, demostrations, new conventions, fundraisers for our neighbors near and far... and more. On top of that I am planning a website overhaul over at Megamoth.net this May. So check it out... and don't worry, I'll remind you

I also want to say a big huge THANK YOU to everyone who has stopped by the page, commented, faved and watched... I am unfortunately way busy so I am behind on my replies. However I have noticed that I have quite a few watchers from many parts of the world and this makes me immensely happy. One of the many reasons I love DeviantArt! I want to learn every language and visit every country... just so I can shake all of your hands.

You are awesome.

There is a lot of craziness in the news that I, among many, have lost a lot of sleep over.

However in my constant search for information I found some important stuff about the Japan disaster and everything that goes with it. I will share it with you here:

NHK World:
[link]
NHK World is an English language counterpart of the NHK News system, which included the NicoNico Live feed that I posted in my last journal. Not as much coverage as NicoNico Live in Japanese, but NHK World has the most current information about the aftershocks, relief operation and the Fukushima Daiichi power plant crisis. The coverage is not as comprehensive or explanatory as the BBC or NYTimes, but it is a lot faster.

NISA- Nuclear Industrial Safety Agency:
[link]
Here you will find detailed PDF files containing the press releases that TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company) is reporting concerning the Fukushima Power Plants. Every day or so they upload a new one. It has the most specific information, although there is a lot of legal and technical jargon, but the basic ideas are pretty clear. It also describes specific times of events and their countermeasures.

Japanese Red Cross:
[link]
Pray for Japan... and pay if you can! Donating to American Red Cross, Americare, etc is great, but if you want your money to go DIRECTLY to the victims in need, this is where to do it.

Last but not least, Reactor Boy's Tummy Ache:
[link]
A lot more lighthearted, simple explanation of what's going on at Fukushima Daiichi, to assuage irrational fears of fallout and contamination. Don't panic everyone, it was only a fart!

The news this morning was a shocker. I woke up to several text messages about Japan's earthquake and tsunami. The various videos I found on the net brought tears to my eyes... tiles falling, water engulfing land, a floating minivan, rear bumper up, its lights still on and rear wiper pumping. Camera speakers were cutting out due to the noise of the earthquake, shaking streets and offices.

A lot of my life revolves around Japan, directly and indirectly. I have friends and family who are from, in, or in love with the country. Japan's pop culture has a huge influence on who I am and what career path I chose. When I heard the news, my thoughts jumped immediately jumped to the people I knew. For all of Japan's mystery and awe that it inspires in my heart, my heart is now more than ever involved with its people. What with all the friends and family I know, there are thousands more that I have never met, that are just like me, who have been affected by this. My heart is with all of them. It's overwhelming.

George Takei said this morning over twitter, "Today we are all Japanese." But I think that works both ways... the Japanese are all of us. The Japanese are people. Things are happening to people all over the world, which are shocking and painful, and its important to remember that they are people, just like you, and me, and everyone. Watching the news and weighted down by all the troubles of the world, sometimes one is tempted to become distant, and regard such disasters as some kind of unsettling science fiction. But this is the world, this is fact, and there are people out there, in Japan, out of Japan, everywhere who deserve support and love in a difficult time. It is not a time to harden yourself to the world's horrors--open your heart and feel sympathy. Keep it positive, keep a level head, and do what you can to help.

Sometimes staying positive and open is the most painful, difficult thing of all. I am going to try my hardest to do so. So my hopes, my love, and my support will go to Japan today--and to the rest of the people in this changing, mysterious and sometimes scary world.

Japanese NHK live Earthquake and Tsunami coverage:
[link]

I am just creating a post because the last one was out of date.

The Anthology proof is in: and it is awesome.

Full print run of the anthology is on order.

3 weeks until WonderCon.

Not sure how I am going to get all this done, but here goes...

Sooo yeah, at this point I probably should have posted the 100% complete cover for the anthology. The cover is pretty much done, but I am waiting for a few more details to be worked out. Once these are taken care of, we can finally say "ANTHOLOGY OFFICIALLY SENT OFF, YEY." Keep your fingers crossed, so everyone, that the first edition comes out like we planned!

There is something I would really like to share about this, however.

I've been working hard with all the students and artists who are part of Megamoth Studio to bring this anthology together, and make it like none we have ever done before. Sunday we had our final meeting, with a grand turnout and a lot of busy bees frantically working to get their submissions done and submitted. I am not gonna lie: on Sunday, I was feeling under the weather, and by the end of the day, I was feeling sore, worn out, burned out and tired (certainly not unlike many of the students who were there). My head was heavy with worries about getting everything together on time. Usually, this is the perfect formula for erratic, nightmare-filled sleep. Every night lately has been filled with some anxiety dream or another, mostly about failing high school classes or graduating (despite the fact that I am 11 years out of high school), although sometimes I have terrors about leeches or undead dogs. Pretty much every time, like clockwork, I wake up somewhere between 2:30 and 4 in the morning, sweaty and ill-at-ease, and it takes me about an hour or so to finally fall back asleep. It has become so regularly unpleasant that at times, I feel anxiety going to sleep in the first place.

But not on Sunday night!

Despite my cough, my worries, my late dinner and my draining day, I had some of the AWESOMEST dreams I have had in a looong time. They were nerdy to the point of ridiculous fanfiction, but they were so enjoyable that when I woke up I felt motivated and excited. I still woke up at 4 am, but I had no trouble returning to them, and getting my long-sought REST.
Since I imagine some of you might be curious (Although I am pretty imaginative at times ), I will elaborate a bit: The dreams involved some of my characters in Otherkinds (which is also an EXCEPTIONALLY rare treat--I seem to lack the coveted talent that many of my students have to dream regularly about my own characters and story) fighting aliens with a ton of GAINAX characters, as well as myself, and some close friends. At the end of the complex discourse that occurred between the dream's players, like a classic cinematic device the action transformed from "on camera" to panels in a comic book. I was then reading the dream that I had just experienced in a comic, and when I closed the book it had the very same cover as the Anthology.

Anyway, I suppose all this goes to show that I really, genuinely am excited about this year's Anthology collection, right down to the core of my subconscious. I feel really pleased and proud to be putting it together and promoting everything my students are doing. It has been a lot of work and we've pulled some long hours to get it done, but I have enjoyed every bit of it.


EPILOGUE
Speaking of studio stuff please check out the brand new (and very first) POLL! Yes, I am now participating in this popular element of the DeviantArt machine. Of course, it generally applies to students and members of the studio, but feel free to vote, whomever you may be .
(I would be putting this poll on the group but turns out I would need $60 to do so. So, I'm putting it up here.)

WHOOOOO!!!
A sigh of relief or gasping for air? A little bit of both, I think.

Currently in the midst of working on the Megamoth Studio anthology, collecting the works of my talented students, young and old.

There is a sample of the cover image, work in progress, here:   

[link]

Until next time!

Well, I am in the middle of projects, and there is a TON of stuff I want to write about in this journal... almost too much...but anyway I have too many things to do and I am under the weather. However I am excited for the upcoming Megamoth Studio anthology we're putting together for all of my students. We're going to be actually putting together A BOOK, a real book rather than good ol' Kinko's Press. ISBN number and everything! I also finally got my artist alley booth number at WonderCon! Come find us at Artist Alley booth #90 (same column as and WARP graphics ), where I will have the anthology and Otherkinds chapter 1, as well as a ton of other goodies for sale!!

Here's hoping that I get everything done... and I can carve out some time for some real classic blogging. Until then, stay tuned...

EDIT! has been kind enough to feature my work here:

[link]

I am seriously honored to be mentioned, however there are a lot more people featured in this article that you should really check out!! And THANK YOU to *foowahu!!!

On to the original entry:


Why hello, everyone. Sorry I broke my promise to update my journal last week. So I shall update it now.

Brief updates, let's see:
Last weekend I went to see Evangelion 2.0 at the Viz Theater in SF Japantown's "New People" complex. Such a vague yet accurate, and entirely redundant name, "New People." It almost obliterates any curiosity concerning what, or who, the "New People" are. However, I will say this: the Viz cinema is one of the cleanest movie theaters I have been in, with stadium seating and a screen as large as those of the Roxy or any regular theater. They even have Japanese style bidet toilets in the ladies room! This may sound like too much information, but if you ever have the fortune to experience a self-cleaning toilet with a heated seat, you will know that it is a big enough deal worthy of blogging.
Oh yeah! And the movie. Well, I've written of seeing it before, but this time I got to see it with Brett and his brother, Will. I was uncertain that Will would enjoy it, since he has never seen any Evangelion before, and is not a serious anime fan. However, I was overjoyed (and a little proud) that, despite going in entirely cold, he really liked it! (This is also a blog-worthy deal since, as such a fangirl of Evangelion, I am still really satisfied when I can introduce it to someone.)

Anywho. I should also mention my trip to SF Japantown was not without its usual shopping experience. I was delighted to cross the following items of my list:

-Chi's Sweet Home Volume 4
(If you haven't checked this out yet, you should. It is so simple, so banal, and yet so gripping, because of its overwhelming cuteness. A slice-of-life comic much like Azumanga Dioh or Yotsuba, but with more of a plot (slightly), and with a kitten instead of little girls.)
-Full Metal Alchemist Volume 24
(Only a few more volumes left! Pretty exciting. One of my current favorites, and one of the best written comics I've read.)
-Battle Angel Last Order Volume 14
(More of a guilty pleasure this. I have a mighty need to follow this story given my interest in the original Battle Angel series. However I got a pang of nostalgia as [spoiler?] we FINALLY return to the scrapyard in this one, albeit briefly.)
-Ayako
(Still reading this. So far, one of Tezuka's more brutal stories. Something like Ode to Kirihito, but not as intense as MW. Only halfway through though, so that may change...)

Speaking of fangirling, I have had other distractions to help ease the stress. However, those will likely be addressed in the upcoming deviation. I am going to have to add another section to my gallery...

Anyway. Thank again everyone for all the faves, comments and watching. I really am not sure how llama badges work or what they entail, but apparently my llama is now albino and that is somehow special. So thank you for those too!

Holiday season: hectic. Crazy. It feels like it was a pretty hard December for a lot of us. A lot of awesome stuff happened in 2010, but all in all it was kind of a rough year. I would be less vague, but I don't want to write a novel. Generally, novels on a deviantart journal don't go over too well.

I do want to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who has stopped by the page, faved, collected and commented on my work here. I am going to attempt a big fat new year's resolution to keep up with the website stuff. So thanks to all my watchers for remaining vigilant through my low output. I should say that unfortunately I will no longer be able to comment and thank people who add me to their favorites or collections. Commentators and watchers: I will get to you!! ..eventually! T_T

I do have a few things to mention though:

Brett and I just returned from a silent auction benefit for our friend Natalie, who just recovered from having a large brain tumor removed. The event was organized by our former professor, Bob Nugent, and local artist Rick Cantor. It was AWESOME. A huge turnout, lots of great work for sale (some of it donated by Brett, aka ~Kyngdok, himself) and I got to see a ton of old friends and mentors. I don't know if any of them follow this journal, but it was great to see all of them and celebrate Natalie's recovery. It felt like a great new beginning to 2011. I even got to take some pieces home: one by local printmaker Shane Weare and another by Natalie herself. It was her first piece she made after the surgery, which was really inspiring because it was honestly a fantastic piece. I feel like it goes to show how much is possible no matter what difficulties befall you.

This weekend has actually been pretty great. The weather is almost springlike, and my fingers are no longer going numb in my cold, cold apartment. (Although, for those of you who have been here, you know it rarely ISN'T cold.) The weekend didn't start out fantastically, though--I had a procedure done on my poor, infected toe. (I don't know what exactly they did, as I refused to watch. I do know that they injected my toe with local anesthetic, while I had a borderline-migraine headache.) But! It is getting better now, finally! After about what, a month? I feel like I've been having Tae Kwon Do withdrawals, but hopefully soon I will be back on the mat and I can wear my boots again, and no more of this "socks with sandals" business.

Anywho. The rest of the weekend was spent looking at prospective wedding locations and houses. Great weather for it, too! Unfortunately, this may mean I will have a ton of realtors on my butt, but such is life. Could be a lot worse! Hopefully I will not have to spend another winter making etchings with the space heater right in front of my face. More news on that as it comes.

Finally, some less IMPORTANT stuff. XD I am excited for Evangelion 2.0 in the theater next weekend. I have been watching some Soul Eater lately, trying to catch up. I have suspended my game of catch up on Doctor Who because I have had multiple nightmares about David Tennant being replaced by Matt Smith. I have heard mixed reviews of Matt Smith, yet it doesn't change the fact that I will have to face the terrible truth someday. I just don't want to let David Tennant go!! However, like the British, I will carry on...

Also, Trent Reznor apparently won a Golden Globe tonight. That was pretty cool.

Until next time!

I hope everyone has a safe, warm and happy holiday. I want to thank everyone who has dropped by the page, favorited and commented. You are all incredible!! So you, you and you, (yes, YOU! ) all have a great holiday weekend, new year, and keep it goin' into the rest of the year. We are going to make 2011 awesome. AWESOME, I say! It will rock so hard. And we will all rock, together!!

I have been waiting to watch Evangelion 2.22: You Can (Not) Advance for about a year now. I have had it sitting around for some time, but I have not had the inspiration to watch it. But today, finally, after my back going out, being sent home from work and unable to do anything but lie around, I decided, hey. Let's get it over with.

So yeah, I watched it.

I will probably watch it again.

And perhaps, a third time.


I like Evangelion.

"You must avenge my death, Kimba... I mean Simba!"
When I saw this joke on "The Simpsons" many years ago, I thought it was funny, but I didn't quite get it. These days, many of us know about the dubious relationship between Disney's "The Lion King" and Osamu Tezuka's "Kimba the White Lion." Recently, I read about some Thai studio ripping off Disney's "Beauty and the Beast," and for some reason there was a bit of an uproar. So I decided, it's time we look back on my personal relationship with Disney, and it's self proclaimed "all-original story, The Lion King."


"The Lion King" came out in 1993. I was in 6th grade. Young, proud, and self-involved, I was compulsively illustrating my personal fantasies. From space-faring anthropomorphic cat people to complex fantasy religions to rendering every scale on a dragons back, drawing was second nature to me. When asked what my plans for my future were, I would answer, without skipping a beat: "I am going to work for Disney."

I'm certain I was not alone in my aspirations--the thought passes through many a young mind who so intensely enjoys Disney's beautiful animations. Animation that is so beautiful, in fact, that it is sometimes difficult for a child to consider watching anything else. Disney's track record was phenomenal during that time, too: from "The Little Mermaid," to "Beauty and the Beast," to one of my all time favorites, "Aladdin," I feel pretty lucky to have had such good films to grow up on. I consumed it all without a second thought. How could I not? I was 11, and even though I would soon embark on the great and arduous journey that would be adolescence, I knew I would never outgrow my love of cartoons. They're important for my career, after all!

So here comes "The Lion King. "

Despite my compulsive need to draw, at the time I very, very rarely illustrated human beings. I thought humans were "too mundane" (that being my excuse to avoid drawing something in which I had no confidence or skill to draw). So, I drew animals. Animals with human expressions, emotions, and voices. So here is a film, from my favorite animation studio, which cuts out all humans with which we were so familiar in previous features. This was a story about animals: beautiful, idealized, humanized animals that have human expressions and human voices. It was perfect. I did not consume this movie, it consumed ME. For months, I drew lions. I drew a comic about lions in the "Lion King" style, and while I excitedly told my friends about it, they joked about how I would get sued by Disney.

So here I am now, making comics still, illustrating still, and still just as involved with cartoons. Now, I am also a teacher. In my constant need of inspiration and education, I discovered Osamu Tezuka a LOT more recently. Well, I knew who he was a long time ago -- I learned about "Astro Boy" from a "Calvin and Hobbes" strip, and of course I knew the name from reading manga in high school. It was "The Simpsons" which introduced to me the Simba/Kimba conflict, but the connection wasn't made until much, much later. What I knew was academic, secondhand comparisons of the two properties. And now, this week, I finally made the decision to make this week to educate myself even further, and actually watch some episodes of "Kimba the White Lion," also known as "Jungle Emperor."

Click here to watch the first episode of Jungle Emperor in Japanese (English subtitles)

I am not going to go into the debate about Kimba the White Lion and the Lion King too much, mainly because, well, there really is no debate. I watched episodes of both the original "Jungle Emperor" of 1964 and the dubbed "Kimba the White Lion." I also watched some different versions of "Jungle Emperor 1989," and the dubbed  (and heavily edited) "Kimba: The New Adventures." There is no contest that every character, sequence, backdrop, every INCH of "The Lion King" has a counterpart in Kimba. So yes, Simba the Lion King is basically Kimba, with a color filter. For further information, look here:

[link]

Wait, is that a white lion in that presentation reel? Scroll down, and you'll see a quote:

'  During planning sessions for The Lion King, Simba started out as a white lion until one of the animators spoke up: "Not even OUR lawyers are THAT good!" '

Some folks would claim that The Lion King is not a copy, but a "homage." However, when you make an homage to something, generally you actually say what that something is. You don't claim you never heard of it when curious people start making comparisons. But this leaves me with the question: really, why does this movie exist? Was it really a huge scam, as many angry and disillusioned conspiracy theorists would imagine? Was it really a huge accident, as avid defenders of Disney would claim? Was Disney trying to make an adaptation, but didn't get permission? (The above quote would suggest otherwise.) Are we really supposed to believe that the most successful, highest quality, and richest animation studio in the WORLD would have never heard of a widespread, unique 1960's cartoon, which was the first color cartoon to be broadcast in Japan, and made television history? Much less its creator, who is known as "The Father of Japanese Animation" and "The GOD of Manga?"

Now, I don't want to create the impression that I am completely against Disney and I think the entirety of its staff were, are, and forever will be a bunch of scheming, underhanded hacks. "The Lion King" is a fantastic film. The animators who took part of this movie are all incredibly skilled. The songs are just as great and memorable as those in "Aladdin," "Beauty and the Beast" and "The Little Mermaid." (Well, all of the songs that were in the original theatrical release--a song was added in the DVD release, and it is abysmal.) This is not just nostalgia talking. I watched all of these movies last week, and if anything, I appreciated the skill involved even more. However, now that I am a little older and a little wiser, I know that every idea comes from somewhere. I can't blame awesome Disney animators for being influenced by awesome things--now that I have seen the sad bleached bones of "The Thief and the Cobbler" and the beautiful, haunting "Sea Prince and the Fire Child," it is quite obvious that Disney is no divine source of ideas. Disney is a corporation, and the artists comprise only a part of it. After all, we wouldn't all so readily recognize the venn diagram of Mickey Mouse without incredible--and vicious--marketing.

The greatest bone I have to pick with Disney over "The Lion King" is this: I didn't watch an episode of Kimba the White Lion until last week. I didn't really start reading Tezuka's comics until a few years ago. Given, a lot of this is my fault. But Disney, a highly respected, academy award-winning studio, which is considered the ultimate animation studio for film and television, had and still has a heavy hand in the upbringing in thousands of kids. It is a media giant, a corporate giant, and a staple of American culture. A lot of us seem to think, for some reason, that great power comes with great responsibility--but here I am, here we are, digging up gold that Disney has buried. Osamu Tezuka may have been one of the most influential artists in Japan, and many have proclaimed him the "Japanese Walt Disney." But despite Japan's past economic successes, the dollar value and international recognition of his properties can't hold a candle to that of Disney. Indeed, Tezuka was highly influenced by Disney... but wait a minute, he said so, didn't he?

So I guess the mystery here is, why didn't Disney just say that Kimba influenced "The Lion King?" Would Tezuka's foundation really have sued their pants off? Why was Disney so avid about denying their knowledge of a show that thousands of people grew up on, which really makes it statistically impossible that none of their staff had ever seen it? Was it complex legal jargon which caused such a baffling marketing stance? Or was it... dare I say... guilt?

Of course anything is possible at this rate. To conclude, I would like to say that Disney films are some of my favorite films of all time (although I have not seen a 2D film from them that I have been so satisfied with since "The Lion King," but that, however, may very well be nostalgia talking). I love those movies, but I am not going to allow that love to keep me from recognizing fault. Disney feature films have a lot in presentation, but depth is something they often lack. And depth is something Tezuka will blow you away with. His characters may look cutesy and dated, but they think and speak with a maturity and complexity that is almost baffling. His stories are as beautiful as they are tragic, with little attempt to sugar coat the consequences. So go watch Jungle Emperor--not the heavily edited 1989 English dubs, but the originals--and see what kind of narrative power simple cartoons can really have.