31 Days / 31 Characters - AI WASHINDA

Here we are! The first entry for 2024's Otaku-inspired 31 Day Character Challenge and what game is more quintessentially Japanese Pop Culture themed than MAID? Well...hmmm. This might require some explaining. 

When MAID hit the American TRPG market in 2008 it became the first such game of Japanese origin to be translated into English. More of a curiosity that a smash hit, the game focused on a premise we don't see in mainstream Western fiction all that often but one which is prevalent in Japanese Manga, Anime, Light Novels, Computer/Video Games, and even live action Soap Operas (to a lesser extent). This is the Harem genre.

First coming into its own in the 1970s, a Harem story is one in which a number of female characters are all romantically interested in the same male character. Traditionally, the male character is one of the series' protagonists which one or two of the female characters share the spotlight. That is to say, while the premise sets up the possibility that the main guy and any one of his female admirers might get together, the story points heavily towards it being one girl in particular. 

Over the decades we've seen some very interesting and exciting takes on this genre. We have the Reverse Harem with a group of men all interested in the same woman, the Yaoi or 'Boy Love' Harem and other LGBTQ+ variations, and stories that change some of the key tropes and focuses. MAID itself could be considered a twist on the classic Harem stories as we see it from the girls point of view, with the male center of amorous attention really a background character. The games are about the Maids not the 'Master' of the house, as he is usually merely a plot device or catalyst for their adventures. 

It is also fairly common to see the genre crossed with other genres such as Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror. Regardless, the predominant approach for Harem stories is Romantic Comedy. Some of the most popular Harem Anime to have come out include classics like Ah! My Goddess, Ranma 1/2, and Tenchi Muyo to more modern titles like Date A Live, High School of the Dead, and Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?.

As with many aspects of Japanese culture, or any culture foreign to yours for that matter, if you get it you get it and if you don't that's not that surprising. It's a genre that has been around and extremely popular in Japan for roughly 50 years but it could be completely unfamiliar to you if you aren't a native of Japan or a fan of their entertainment.

If you haven't been exposed to it I could definitely see it being 'cringe' or just too weird as the subject of a Role Playing Game for most Westerners. I'm not certain I could or would want to run it as a campaign but as a fan of some of Harem Anime and Manga of the 1980s, I can tell you it was a blast to run as one-shots for those who likewise enjoyed such shows.  

On to our character...

Character: Ai Washinda (Ai is pronounced like 'Eye' or 'I')

AKA: NA

Player: Melissa (I believe. We're talking a Convention One-Shot fifteen years ago.)

System: MAID, The Roleplaying Game

 

Nature: Convention One-Shot: The Master of Halloween

Gamemaster: Adam Dickstein

Circa: 2009. I think. Pretty sure.

Origins: I forget where this took place but I believe it was a medium sized Anime Convention in New England. A fellow I knew on the convention staff had asked if I would be interested in running two sessions of MAID at the event. I said sure and created two different scenarios, one Sci-Fi and one Horror (both Humorous of course). I couldn't decide which I liked better so I brought both.

The first session went over quite well so I was pretty jazzed to run it again. My first group was all guys and I used the Sci-Fi scenario. My second group was all gals. Huh. Turned out a few of them were the girlfriends of the fellas in my first group and their boyfriends had told them all about the game and how fun it was. They convinced some of their friends to join in and signed up for session two. I felt I had to give them their own story, their own unique experience, so I went with the Horror scenario and it went better than the first and much better than I could have hoped for. 

Characters were pre-generated without names or much backstory. The players were encouraged to make all that up themselves (something I do often in these kinds of situations). This cool young lady with a 'goth' look about her chose this character and named her Ai Washinda (see Notes below). I only got part of the pun at the time.

Backstory: The player had Ai recall bits of her backstory as the game progressed. Sometimes things got a bit dark but Melissa never made it excessive or explicit. 

Ai was a Zombie who had been...um...living challenged... for about 16 years. She has only vague memories of her life before waking up in a ditch in the woods. Her main concern upon doing so was to not be late for her first day of work at a new job she really needed. She thought she'd applied for a janitor position but it was actually for a maid at the home of this really old, really rich, really eccentric fella who turned out to be surprisingly cool.

She wondered if he liked Roller Derby? Wait...did she like Roller Derby? She did. A lot. Did she used to play? Whoah. Hard to remember clearly when you're dead. 

Sadly, the old man passed recently - and permanently it seemed, unlike herself - and now there's going to be a new boss. Huh? It's his nephew? Wow is that him? Not that I think he's cute or anything. Hmm. Maybe he likes Roller Derby.

Overview: Gerhard Graves, the eccentric and rich Master of Graves Manor passed away at the spry old age of 100 and in his will left everything to his great-grand nephew Garrett. There were some stipulations of course.

Garrett had to live in the house and keep on the butler, chef, and most especially the maid staff. Gerhard promised them they'd always have a home at Graves Manor. It was also noted that they would take care of whoever was the Master of Graves Manor but in turn the Master had to take care of them. Hmm. Oh yes, one more thing - each year on October 31st Master and Staff must participate in a local tradition to become 'The Master of Halloween'! Wait...he's arrived on the 30th! They only had a day to prepare!

As Garrett entered the estate he met the staff and wasn't at all ready for the peculiar situation he'd inherited. The Butler was bandaged head-to-toe as he was otherwise invisible! The chef was a hunchbacked fellow with wild eyes. The maids...the head maid was a Vampire, the groundskeeper a Merfolk, the maintenance and repair woman a six foot plus Werewolf, the housekeeping maid a Ghost, and then there was Ai. Her job seemed to be assisting any of the others but the Butler implied she was also security. 

After some getting-to-know-each-other antics, with under and overtones of romance and slapstick, the PCs got ready for The Master of Halloween annual event in which local rich folk compete to create the spookiest haunted house experiences for children in the area. The winner, voted by the kids as most frightfully fun, wins the coveted title of 'Master of Halloween' and gets visited by a Demon/Succubus* who will grant the Master of the House one wish.

This particular year one of the neighbors, Crowley Crookwell, went a little overboard and summoned some demons of his own with Black Magic and Occult Relics. The demons got out of control and the Graves Manor Maids had to send them back where they came from. It was a tough one, especially since they kept trying to serve the kids and their parents snacks and drinks and remain well mannered at the same time. Well, except Ai, who preferred action over etiquette.

The children all thought the Monsters vs. Demons battle was part of the show and loved it, unanimously voting for Graves Manor! When the very attractive devil woman showed up and offered Garrett his wish, he turned to his staff and asked if anyone wanted to be Human again. Ai (Melissa) almost started to cry but punched Garrett in the shoulder instead with a rousing, "Not on your life!" Everyone starred at her and burst out laughing. Instead, he asked if the succubus wanted to be free from this annual and eternal obligation (she'd been doing in for hundreds of years already). Completely taken aback she said yes and Garrett wished for her freedom. Everyone cheered!

Cut to Christmas time and the front door bell ringing. Ai, the Ghost, and the Werewolf race to answer the door only to find the Butler already there. He opens it to reveal the Succubus in a posh and sexy outfit with bags of wrapped gifts. Garrett shows up with the Vampire, both holding trays of hot cocoa for everyone (except the Werewolf - she's allergic and gets cider). 

-Fin-

The Highlights:

Ai's dialogue was one part tough-talking delinquent and one part flustered school girl and it was hilarious. She was a real ball-busting brawler but when any other character showed her any kindness she went pale(r) and said something like, "What? Cute? M-Me? Shut up! Get out of my face with that...that crap. Geez!" The player perfectly emulated a very particular Anime girl character type/trope and made it sound so normal and nature. 

Ai and the Vampire established that they were frenemies, really rubbing each other the wrong way. Polar opposites. An odd couple. This made for an amazing scene wherein the two of them teamed up to battle one of Crookwell's Demon Maids who was patterned on the sin of Wrath. The cold, calculated, unflappable Vampire wouldn't get angry while the always angry Ai was having so much fun it just frustrated the hell (heheh) out of the Wrath girl. She and Ai also had this awesome Martial Arts Anime staff-vs-sword fight with Ai using her Broom and the Demon Maid using a Fireplace Poker. Over the top, kinetic, and crazy cool.

On a serious note, Garrett gives Ai a lily to put in her hair when one of the ones she wears is destroyed. The player saw an opportunity to role-play here and took it. Ai says she only wears the lilies to hide the smell of her being dead. She tears up but tries to hide it. Garrett says all he noticed was that they look nice on her and he leaves the flower in her hands. As Garrett steps away, Ai looks at it for a moment and then ties it in place with a look of grim determination. 

Game Info:

A few houserule additions:

Under 'Maid Roots' she has Debt. Debt in this case is more that she remembers being broke and desperate to find a good job as opposed to the rules-as-written 'her family owes money to the mob' or whathaveyou. 

Her version of Rampage is a kind of 'Berserker Rage', an unfocused whirlwind of hitting things. In the rules it seems directed at damaging the Mansion. Ai's more interested in hitting people. 

Notes:

Ai's name - Ai Washinda - translates to 'Love is dead', which would more properly be written Ai wa shinda. The player's Japanese was pretty good I recall. 

The other Maid PCs were:

The Head Maid was a Cool Vampire who ran the day-to-day of the manor and its staff. 

The Strong Werewolf had muscle mommy vibes. She did physical repairs and maintenance.

Our Sweet/Innocent Merfolk girl tended the garden, house plants, and koi pond. 

The Heroine Ghost covered traditional housework: laundry, making beds, etc. Paladin type. 

The Butler combined Batman's Alfred with The Invisible Man and the Chef was Igor as played by Marty Feldman in Young Frankenstein. 

The wish granting Demon/Succubus was revealed to have been charged with this task to atone for things she'd done in the past. As we learn that this is the 200th Master of Halloween event, we all kinda figured she'd payed her dues and didn't seem like a bad person.

The girls didn't really vie for Gerhard's affections directly but did sort of friendly flirt with him from time to time. More accurately they had little intimate moments with him where an audience could say, "Wait, do I see a spark there?" This felt perfect for what could have easily been the first episode of a Harem Anime series. 

The enemy Demon Maids were themed on the Seven Deadly Sins:

Envy who wanted to win because Crookwell was tired of losing every year. 

Gluttony who tried to steal and eat all the snacks.

Greed who sought to steal valuable items from the manor. 

Lust who sought to seduce Gerhard. I believe she hit on the Butler and Werewolf too.

Pride who just wouldn't stop telling everyone else how awesome she was.

Sloth who was lazy and couldn't be bothered to join the fray. 

Wrath who just wanted to fight the other maids. 

Legacy:

I haven't run MAID since these two sessions so...yeah...it's been a while. Thinking on it now, that's a shame. It really is a wacky and fun game. It's also, as noted above, pretty uniquely Japanese. 

Next we take a lap at full throttle as we enter the high-octane, heavy caliber thrill ride of Mobile Racer Championship and meet Mecha Driver AKI RUSH!

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Shinki-itten - A Fresh Start

Happy New Year dear readers and welcome to 2024!

Last year sucked blog wise. The only year with a lower post count was 2009, the year I started doing this. Several projects I was really excited to undertake ended up never coming to pass and many others were started but remain unfinished. That's not to say there weren't some quality posts, just not a lot of them. Certainly not enough of them in my opinion.

I had some personal issues last year that required my attention and took me away from the blog but rest assured they are now behind me. I am endeavoring to start anew in 2024, improving myself and my life both personally and professionally. This enables me to improve my blogging as well, which is something I really need for my mental well being it turns out. 

To that end...

It's Japanuary here at Barking Alien, with an entire month largely focused on Tabletop Role Playing Games inspired by, all about, or coming from Japan and Japanese Pop Culture Entertainment. We're going to talk about Anime, Manga, Mythology, History, Sentai, and much more, with an emphasis on how they can be gamed. From Mecha to the Meiji Era, from Monster Katsu to Tokusatsu, get ready for a wild ride. 

A few disclaimers first:

I want to be clear upfront that I do not speak or read Japanese. I am not a trained expert on the subjects of Japanese history, culture, or Japan's TRPG market. I am merely an enthusiast who first became seriously interested in Anime and Manga some 35-40 years ago. I first discovered Japan had an active paper, pencil, and dice RPG hobby in 1989 and became absolutely obsessed with learning more about it. I've had numerous friends and acquaintances, including several of Japanese origin or living oversea who are more knowledgeable then myself and have been kind enough to indulge my curiosity.

Combining all this time, effort, information, and personal experiences running and/or playing these games myself, I hope to provide those with less exposure to the merest of glimpse into this fascinating world.

私と一緒に来てください /  Watashitoisshoni kite kudasai

Please come with me,

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My deepest condolences to the people of Japan at this time, especially those in the Noto Peninsula region of Ishikawa Prefecture. Today at 4:30 pm JST, a number of earthquakes struck, including one rated at a magnitude of 7.6. The earthquakes generated a massive tsunami measuring up to 1.2 miles along the Sea of Japan. My heart and thoughts go to those effected. 

Kineto Returns In...The RETURN of the RETURN of KINETO!

Let's finish up 2023 with the completion of my most popular series this year so that we can begin the new year fresh! Well...fresh-ish. Kind of fresh. 

Following the events of Kineto's encounter with the mysterious Faust, there was no sign of the Master of Motion for almost a year.

One morning the following Spring, the Monitor Room in UNITY New York's secret base (located in New York City's Central Park beneath Belvedere Castle - Shhh. Don't tell anyone.) alerted the team to a lifeform with a high Meta-Energy signature mere meters from one of the base's auxiliary entrances. Within seconds the sensors were able to identify the individual as Kineto.

UNITY immediately mobilized all the heroes they had on hand as well as more than two dozen heavily armed UNTIL Agents. Additional heroes and agents were placed on high alert. Leading the response team was Night Force (who had recently taken over field operations from Omni, the latter having been promoted to a more behind-the-scenes leadership position). As the Supers and UNTIL Agents popped out of hidden exits and quickly surrounded Kineto, recessed security systems aimed automated high-energy weapons at him. 

For his part, Kineto stood calm and still. He had a slightly irritated scowl on his face and he crossed his arms as if impatiently waiting for the fuss to subside. Finally, with all of UNITY and UNTIL's operatives in place, Night Force asked Kineto why he was there and what he wanted. 

Kineto went right into explaining that another Supervillain (sadly I forget which one but he was another upper tier threat) was concocting a plot to cause a disturbance to distract from stealing a thing. The villain intended on using that thing to destroy a place and hold an entire country hostage. Kineto gave as detailed a timeline for these events as he could based on the intel he had. When Night Force responded, "Why are you telling us this?", Kineto said simply...

"So you can stop him. You're Superheroes. Isn't that your job?"

With that he shot skyward at such an incredible velocity it was virtually impossible to determine the direction he took off in. Sensors on the ground and even UNTIL satellite surveillance completely lost track of Kineto within seconds. 

A few months later Kineto aided the heroes of UNITY, as well as those of two other Earths, in battling the machinations of three cosmic level threats: Dark Seed of Champions League Earth-Delta Ceti-1A, Dark Unicorn of Challengers Earth-Mu-1A, and Dark Seraph of Champions Earth-Alpha Delta-1A. This 'Dark Trinity Event' saw these beings try to merge their respective worlds into one, killing billions in the process and absorbing their life forces to gain more power. Kineto played a key role in helping thwart their plans and saving the lives of a great many, including several Superheroes and Supervillains from all three dimensions. 

The Dark Trinity

Left to Right: Dark Seed, Dark Seraph, Dark Unicorn.

This becomes something of a trend; Kineto's subsequent appearances do more good than harm, assisting the good guys in roles ranging from support to direct intervention. One incident of particular note was when Champions Earth-AD-1A was invaded by 'Big Brother', a team of four superpowered teenage individuals from a seemingly utopian Alternate Earth.

When it appeared the heroes of Earth-AD-1A were going to lose to the invading Alternate Earth superbeings calling themselves Big Brother, Kineto threatened to destroy the planet rather than let it fall under the invaders' rule. He claimed he could absorb the motion and kinetic energy of the world turning - yes, the rotation of the Earth - and re-apply it in such a way as to send the planet out of its orbit.

Big Brother

Left to Right:

The Harmonist, The Whimsy, The Revolutionary, The Anachronist

The 'leader' of Big Brother, The Revolutionary, could tell he wasn't bluffing (Kineto believed he could do this and would do it but they had no idea if Kineto actually had that much power). This made the four invaders reconsider their approach and objectives. They decided to return to their home dimension and let the people of Earth-AD-1A work toward a better tomorrow on their own. See the entry on Big Brother Earth-Alpha Delta-Z for more information

Kineto's actions over that year lead many to question whether his motives had changed. Was he still going full bore with his 'Manifesto' or had he returned to his Golden Age heroic ways. Night Force noted that Kineto's focus and objectives likely haven't altered at all. His actions are always directly related to his views, whether obvious to us or not. 

The next appearance of Kineto occurred a few months later in an incident that started small but escalated to epic fairly quickly. It all began when Tempus Fugit, a one time C-List Supervillain who'd worked his way up to B-List 'Mighty Mook', contacted Kineto with a proposition.

Fugit wanted to join Kineto's cause and said that if he was allowed into the organization he would share his latest invention, a 'device of great power and near-infinite potential". Normally Kineto would ignore this sort of person but the man's confidence and bravado intrigued him. While he took Tempus Fugit up on his offer to meet, Kineto also alerted UNITY New York to the situation so they might capture Fugit and any associates. Kineto's personal goal was to ascertain what this device of near-infinite potential was and could he use it to his advantage. However, he considered destroying it if he deemed its operation too dangerous. First he had to know what it was and if Tempus Fugit wasn't just selling snake oil. 

As the two parties - Tempus Fugit and his henchmen and Kineto - met in the sub-basement of an abandoned downtown watchmaking shop, a third group consisting of several UNITY heroes monitored the proceedings from hidden positions. Fugit attempted short and awkward pleasantries before revealing his invention...a gosh-dang-completely-legit TIME MACHINE! This was no small hand-held item. Rather it was a four-person circular platform with standing crossbars and spinning rings going around it. Imagine a mix of a playground roundabout and the prison rings that held Zod, Ursa, and Non in Superman II.  

As Tempus began to activate it and explain its operation to Kineto, a whirling vortex of white light appeared on the far wall and out of it stepped a metallic being calling itself Avatar-7. Speaking in the third person, Avatar-7 made it clear his mission was to destroy the device and eliminate Fugit. 

Avatar-7

The UNITY team came out of the shadows and sprung into action to protect and secure Tempus Fugit. At the same time, Kineto moved to the Time Dial (or Time Revolver) to deactivate it and see how to remove it from the area. Before he could complete his objective additional vortexes of light appeared, these surrounded by halos of primary colors. Two new individuals, a female named Era and a male named Eon, declared their intent on destroying Avatar-7 (who they identified as an Android) and obtaining the Time Dial platform. 

Chaos erupts, with everyone present essentially battling everyone else. The fight spilled out to the ground floor above and then eventually into the street. At one point, Eon struck a member of UNITY sending him flying, only to have the hero suddenly disappear.* Kineto fought the newcomers and Avatar-7 but tried to avoid engaging with the UNITY members. Fugit was attempting to hide for the most part, occasionally tossing a gadget into the fray to hurt or hinder Era, Eon, Avatar-7, and UNITY. Finally, as Avatar-7 attacked the Dial itself, Kineto countered, causing the temporal displacement effects of the platform and the Android to activate simultaneously and releasing a blinding blast of Chronoton energy. 

The explosive release of uncontrolled temporal power sent everyone present ('present' - see what I did there?) into different places in space and time. Tempus Fugit and two UNITY members ended up in Medieval England. Two other heroes and Era appear in Ancient Rome. Eon and two more UNITY members wind up in the American 'Old West'. It took time (*rimshot*), teamwork, and a host of period specific allies and enemies to figure out what was going on and how it all connected with Doctor Epoch, aka Father Time!

Left to Right:

The Time Twins - Era and Eon, Doctor Epoch/Father Time, and Tempus Fugit

But this is a post about Kineto...so what became of him? Kineto was transported to the far future where he encountered the perfect utopian society of The Galactic Unity, defended by the Galactic Champions. Kineto was amazed by the peace that had been achieved in this distant era. Unfortunately, it would be revealed to him by members of the Galactic Champions that he, Kineto, had nothing to do with it. According to the information archived in their computers and the Museum of The Supernormal, Kineto was merely a footnote in history. His activites, cause, manifesto, and everything he had struggled to achieve were simply one of many curious stories on display in the 20th and 21st Century exhibitions. In fact, his actions as a young hero of World War II received much more representation. 

"My dream...my plans...Superhumans ruling and guiding normal Humanity to a better tomorrow. Surely that came to pass, yes? You have a utopia here." Kineto said.

The leader of the Galactic Champions, a Mandaarian**, replied, "Essentially. It isn't absolutely perfect. Nothing is or can be. It was achieved through finding harmony among all the peoples of Earth and beyond. Human, Superhuman, Aliens...we all worked together to get here and we got here on our own."

In the end, all involved were returned to their proper time and place. Tempus Fugit was arrested and the Time Dial confiscated by UNITY. Era and Eon trapped Dr. Epoch, their father, in a pocket of pre-time until they could find their mother (whose identify was unknown to them). Avatar-7 was very badly damaged and left drifting into a black hole (he would return eventually). As for Kineto, he appeared quiet and introspective. He thanked UNITY for there efforts and Fugit for giving him a glimpse into his possible future. Kineto then departed without any further incident and the heroes let him go. 

Finally...

Six months prior to now*** ('now' being the start of any campaign I run or have run in my version of my friend William Corpening's Age of Champions setting) the Earth was invaded by an alliance of alien species who were attacked by an unmanned, heavily armed space satellite/combat platform. That platform was constructed by Scaramangler Industries and posthumously activated by 'accident'. The alien species that were targeted had all been enemies of Humanity in the past and saw this as sufficient reason to eliminate the Earth once and for all. They dubbed their joint operation Invasion: Earth and the conflict has been dubbed the Invasion: Earth War. 

At one point in the fighting, two or three dozen starfighters were launched at Great Britain. Most of the British Superheroes were already battling the invaders on the ground but the Ultramarine, one of the world's most powerful supers, flew to intercept. As he reached the edge of the stratosphere he noticed a much larger starship just beyond the exosphere. It had clearly sent the starfighters and would provide support for them.

Just then he became aware of an object or individual approaching him from below at great speed. Readying himself, he saw that it was Kineto! When Kineto reached the Ultramarine he hovered some 50 ft away from the British Superman and the two stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. They had never met face-to-face. Kineto nodded upward, as if indicating Ultramarine should take on the larger starship. Cocking his head to indicate confusion, Ultramarine was surprised when Kineto looked at the oncoming small attack craft, then to Ultramarine, and finally giving a reassuring nod. Somehow, even though they'd never met, Ultramarine understood and returned the nod before rocketing to escape velocity. 

As Ultramarine shot past the starfighters, Kineto smiled (never a good sign). He snapped his fingers and all the fightercraft stopped dead in the air as if frozen in time. Their pilots...didn't. Didn't stop their forward motion that is. As the fighters fell from the sky and into the ocean below, Kineto looked up to see Ultramarine tearing through the Vilarian cruiser. He noted an interesting and remarkable similarity in Ultramarine's approach and powers to that of his own.

And that uniform...

Whew. Wow. Kineto's tale is finally complete. Until it continues that is...

Thanks for coming by in 2023. Hope you found something to enjoy. Looking forward to 2024 and all the new ideas it'll bring.

Happy New Year Everybody! 

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*This was hilarious. The character known as Eon punched a PC Superhero and that hero disappeared. The player was told that his hero appeared to be gone, vanished, undetectable. He opted to use an Alt (alternate character) until a week of real time later when the original hero reappeared in the same place he vanished from and continued forward, finally hitting the ground. Eon quite literally punched him into next week. 

**The superhero Omni, mentioned throughout these entries and basically the founder and head of Project: UNITY is a Mandaarian. 

***This story arc was the last one I was in as a player. Following the Invasion: Earth War  events, we all started college and didn't get to regularly play together. The campaign setting did indeed continue on with different players but this is the final major incident I was part of. As such, I view it as the completion of the campaign's history and therefore Kineto's history before adding anything to it with any new campaign's canon.

Love Letter to Japan

I've caught the Anime/Manga/Japanese Pop Culture bug again something fierce and you know who benefits most from this? You all! How? Well, once again I'm going to be posting some (hopefully) interesting Japanese Tabletop RPG ideas, insights, and information in the month of January 2024!

Planned highlights include:

• Ideas and thoughts inspired by the amazing Blue Eye Samurai.
• The release of the Delicious in Dungeon Animated Series on Netflix next month! So excited!
• Sentai is turned on its head by Go! Go! Loser Ranger!
• My newest JTRPG obsession Mamono Scramble, 'Slice of Life meets Chainsaw Man'!
• Convictor Drive and Metallic Rouge - Human sized Mecha explode with coolness!
• Horror and Humor combine in ZOM 100: Bucket List of the Dead and Undead Girl Murder Farce.

Additionally I'll be doing the 31 Days / 31 Characters Challenge but with an Otaku twist! Each of the characters presented will be from either a JTRPG I've played or run or an American TRPG I played/ran that was Japanese History and/or Pop Culture inspired. 

From the mid 1980s to the mid 1990s my Role Playing Game experiences were heavily influenced by Japanese animation and comic books. While not every game was a full on 'Anime RPG', nearly all of the games I ran [and lots that I played] during this time benefitted from our exposure to Japanese Fandom Entertainment. 

Get ready to see characters, both Player and Non-Player alike, from games and settings such as Blade of Arcana, Dragonball, MAID, Mobile Racer Championship, SATASUPE, Shadowrun, Space Battleship Yamato, Super Happy Sentai Hour, and many more! 

Additionally I will likely go over the particulars of making games feel 'Anime'.  

Grab some Pocky and a bottle of KIRIN Royal Milk Tea and join me for Japanuary here at Barking Alien!

Ja Mata Ne!

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'Twas the Starflight Before Xmas...

 

'Twas the starflight before Xmas and all through the ship,

All systems ran silent, there was barely a blip;
Barkley was nestled in the hypersleep bays;
While a bio-bed monitor counted the days;
And I in my sleepsuit on the bridge all alone,
Set the coordinates for our long warp jump home.

Suddenly on the outer hull there arose such a clatter,
I was sure we'd been struck by debris or space matter.
Away to the main screen fighting off shock,
I pressed buttons and touchscreens for a clear sensor lock.

.
And what to my intricate scans should appear,
But a sleigh-like spacecraft with tractor beam gear!
The next thing I knew the computer alerted,
That several security seals were inverted,

An airlock was accessed and that wasn't great,

So I picked up a blaster before it was too late. 

I crept down a corridor, the lighting was dim,

Chances of a peaceful encounter seemed slim.
When I entered the large crew lounge I was taken aback.

As we clearly weren't under attack.
In the room was a lifeform who seemed rather Human,

His smile was infectious, his laughter was booming!

His helmet transparent, his spacesuit all red,
White hair and beard surrounded his head.
He adjusted some gadget he wore on his arm,

As he considered and smiled I felt no alarm. 

It was than that he saw me and gave me a wink,
I honestly didn't know what I should think.

He pressed something down on the gauntlet he wore, 
And I wondered just what the man had in store.
Suddenly stars rained down from the ceiling,
With a brightness so powerful it near sent me reeling!

I covered my eyes to ward off the glow,

White sparks and gold lightning danced to and fro.

When I looked up again, the lounge was quite changed,

Presents and sweets and a tree were arranged,

The strange entity was nowhere to be seen,

What had just happened and what did it mean?

The entire chamber was holiday decorated,

And I found a note on a pad on a table that stated;

'To you and to Barkley, my best to you both,

Returning next year to fulfill your oath,

To engage, entertain, and write as you feel,

Seeing humor in life and yet keeping it real.

Peace and prosperity through this epic starflight

Merry Xmas to all and to all a good night!'

From Barkley and myself and all those who help keep The Barking Alien blog going, a very Happy Holidays and we'll see you soon!

Peace and love,

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