What is the Watercooler?
It's a haven in the middle of a harsh, 9-to-5 world. A place where you can gather with your fellow human beings and bond over a paper cup full of cool refreshment.
All sorts of randomness is welcome here. Post pictures, videos, special Chat information, or just discuss news and current events.
Want to be a guest poster? PM TimeChaser.
Banner by Red Tigress
In the journey from lion to lamb, we once again shift animals - but rather than a giant atomic turtle, we shift to...uh...deadly bees. The British sure are strange.
What is Movie Sign?
Every week, we nestle down in Chat and watch an episode of the cult TV show Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K for short) while spamming up the Chat box. We use episodes available on Google Video so that we can all watch simultaneously.
What's MST3K?
It's a comedy show about a man and his robots, stranded in space and forced to watch some of the worst movies ever made as part of a mad scientist's bid for world domination. To keep their (and our) sanity, Joel Robinson or Mike Nelson, along with 'bots Tom Servo and Crow, talk back to the films and riff on them. You can read up on the show over at the SoL.
Next Episode
We're hopping over the pond in our next film, The Deadly Bees. Pop singer Vicki Robbins goes on a mental therapy trip to Seagull Island, where she is to recuperate with a depressing and disgruntled old couple. But when weird things start happening - you know, like killer bee attacks - she starts to suspect something's up. Her snooping doesn't go unnoticed, though...
Host Segment Highlights
Previously, on the Satellite of Love...
One season ago, our own Mike Nelson destroyed not one, not two, but three planets (he's a trope namer for it). One of those was the planet of the Observers, a race of fey white aliens who hold their brains in pans, and guess what, our Brain Guy is one of them. We thought he was the only one to live, but alas, two of them are back, and they're pissed.
You know the date, so why not give it a go? Join us on Sunday and see what all the fuss is about! Movie starts at 8PM EST, room opens at 7:30.
The password for the room is: guyattheend. Get a head start on load time and find the video here.
MARCH MOVIE SIGN MADNESS continues on with:
3/22 - Episode 416 - Fire Maidens From Outer Space
3/29 - Episode 609 - The Skydivers (w/short "Why Study Industrial Arts?")
Next Meeting: March 14, 2009, at 10:00 PM Eastern
Next Episodes: Lovely Complex ep21-22 / Kurenai ep9-10
Chat Password: houzukiryuu
About the Anime Club
The Anime Club is a weekly room in theOtaku's community chat where we meet to have fun laughing, crying, heckling, and spazzing together while watching a few episodes of anime. Rather than watching mainstream shows, however, we pick out good, yet lesser-known anime as an opportunity for people to enjoy new shows. Streaming links are usually provided for those without a copy of the anime.
Current Anime
Lovely Complex is a 24 episode romantic comedy that follows the unlikely relationship of Koizumi Risa (voiced by Okamura Akemi), a very tall girl, and Ootani Atsushi (voiced by Nagata Akira), a very short boy, as they work their way through high school. It's one of the best series in its genre that I've seen, with top-notch humor, some touching moments, and plenty of unexpected twists.
Kurenai is a 12 episode drama/comedy series with some action sprinkled in here and there. It's about Kurenai Shinkurou (voiced by Sawashiro Miruki), a 16-year-old mediator whose job is to settle disputes between the client and other parties – even if it means getting violent – and his latest assignment of guarding Kuhouin Murasaki (voiced by Yuuki Aoi), the 7-year-old runaway daughter of the powerful Kuhouin family. While there's many different themes running through the series, it mostly deals with Shinkurou struggling to take care of Murasaki while the little princess also struggles to adapt to life outside the Kuhouin estate.
Click here to watch its opening.
Schedule
Date...........Lovely Complex.......Kurenai
Feb. 14........ep13-14.................ep1-2
Feb. 21........ep15-16.................ep3-4
Feb. 28........ep17-18.................ep5-6
Mar. 07........ep19-20.................ep7-8
Mar. 14........ep21-22.................ep9-10
Mar. 21........ep23-24.................ep11-12
Future Anime Voting
The nominations are in and it's time to vote for which anime to watch next. From the list below, pick two and post their titles either here in the comments or in the OtakuBoards thread to vote for them. The two anime that get the most votes will be watched starting March 28 and the results will be posted next week.
Bounen no Xamdou (Xam'd: Lost Memories)
Damekko Doubutsu
ef - a tale of memories
Ichigo Mashimaro (Strawberry Marshmallow)
Kannagi: Crazy Shrine Maidens
Kanon (2006)
Minami-ke: Okawari
The Vision of Escaflowne
One thing to note is that while Minami-ke: Okawari is the second season of Minami-ke, it's very episodic and doesn't require much previous knowledge of the series to enjoy.
Pierce the Fandom with Our Chat...?
Originally proposed by Kei a while back and respectfully shanghai-ed by me, the idea is basically to turn on the Sci-Fi Channel once a week and spam it up in Chat while watching the English dub of Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann.
What is Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann?
A twenty-seven episode anime, TTGL is Gainax's way of taking giant-fighting-robot anime and stuffing it with so much awesome, one can barely take it. The English dub originally aired last year, but due to immense popularity has earned a rerun stint in the former Gundam 00 timeslot. Fan-spazzing on theOtaku.com can be found over at Team Dai Gurren.
Episodes
We're starting from the beginning, where everything is set into motion. Simon is an odd outcast in the underground village of Jiiha who digs tunnels every day to expand the village. Kamina is the rebellious youth of the village, bent on following his father's footsteps and taking Simon up to the mysterious surface. One day, a large robotic creature and a beautiful girl with a huge gun fall through the village ceiling, changing the lives of Simon and Kamina forever.
So, feel like joining in? The chat room will open at 10.30 EST. The password is aniki.
(...and sorry to any others who were thinking about posting something like this. If I foiled your plans, I humbly apologize and am willing to work things out.)
