All posts for the month June, 2017

Books: Surrender the Dark by Tibby Armstrong

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! I finished another book and you know what that means!

Title: Surrender the Dark
Author: Tibby Armstrong

Disclaimer: This review is based on opinion and observation of the lead writer! Please respect her thoughts and opinions on this book! Plus, not only spoilers might take place but it also contains yaoi, as in boys love, if you aren’t into it then don’t read unless you know someone who likes it.

Description: We meet Benjamin Fuller who is hunter born and hunter raised to kill vampires! While helping his uncle, he ends up going blind all thanks to a vampire in his uncle’s basement and the vampire not only escapes but kills his family as he does it. Now he has to fight vampires blindly and with a new sense which with this new sight he couldn’t see that the vampire that killed his family would come back and fall in love with him. On top of that, a war between vampires, zombies, and witches is about to happen and Ben, Tiziki (I am calling the vamp that) along with his friends, Akito and a witch named Nix must stop it unless Ben has to sacrifice himself to save it.

Thoughts: Oh man…. this book was awesome! At first I was like thinking, “Great! He is blind by acid! Book over!” But when I saw that Ben had a cane with a sword conversion that was when I was interested! I never expected that he would go Daredevil on vampires in this book since we do see Blade have sunglasses while fighting and Angel go badass in Buffy in vamp form but here! Here! We have blind guy go Zaruichi on vampires! I wished that he didn’t get his sight back in the book because it would’ve been a greater challenge in the final fight but when he meets up with Tiziki…why the nickname? Well, it is a Greek name and not sure how I would spell it from hearing how Siri pronounced it, Tiziki came to mind! Great, now I am craving for Greek food with the delicious Teziki sauce! Anyways, focus, that was when he could see again. What I found interesting was how not only he was able to see again along with seeing the auras a lot more in his friends and Tiziki, he was able to see the monsters for who they were and not everything is always beautiful once you see it. Such as when he first walked down the street with his sight back, Ben had his sunglasses off for the first time and he saw his reflection in a car window and saw the scars on his face and above his eyes which scared him. He was hoping that his scars were heroic but it was the result of having acid poured on his face.

Speaking of acid, I found it interesting with the vamps in this one that not only walking in daylight weakens them but acid and iron weakens them more which causes them to have more human traits such as eating food, drinking stuff, and have some blood to make them strong again. What is also interesting, since I mentioned zombies, they are created through magic and vampire blood that was collected to bring back the dead. They do act like vampires even which was what I got from reading this. Okay, basically the zombies are revanants created by witches which is cool in a way.

Speaking of witches, my fave character throughout this was Nix who is the daughter of Lord Morgan and Lady Morgana of the Fae! She may be small but she does have a lot of power even if she has a cuff that helps her from being found by her parents. Oh yes, she has mommy and daddy issues where if daddy finds her she is dead or mommy finds her then she is banished. Since it looks like a sequel may come up, she will be important in that since in this book she was not only able to make barriers to protect any onlookers and police from seeing anything supernatural but she was able to absorb magic from her father without being detected which shows that her talents can be used very well. I do like how she does have the motherly attitude towards Ben since they did meet each other as kids and did look out for him by helping him out with getting over hangovers and reading to him. If Ben and Tiziki were together then I would see Nix and him as a couple but I did see how she cared about Akito like that too even though he was gone in the end of the book. I am wondering how the next one will have him involved when it releases.

The romance, since it was balanced beautifully with the action, was very well written. At first Tiziki shows up and was supposed to kill Ben but couldn’t help by falling for him since Ben is a handsome guy as in blonde curls, muscles, and tattoos and piercings underneath. Not kidding! Tiziki was also described as very handsome and very bishonen-like. To me, I felt like I was reading Gravitation again with how the relationship was starting as in how both were kind of awkward and always fighting with each other until KISS! And…you know what will happen next…sorry! I am keeping my professionalism here! If you are into Grvitation, Loveless, and other yaoi (it means boys love in Japanese for anyone who is asking) then this is a book for you! Heck, I think my blush was glowing during the Epilogue last night and I did have lights off so…yeah…I was glowing in the dark! Hey Vivi! You should read this too if your blush glows! (Yes, I told her about this one!)

Rating: 5 Star Pawprints Out of 5! It deserves a 5 because it was a romance and action story written very well! As in, the action and romance were balanced and it was even more awesome with Ben going Daredevil on a vampire with a sword! Hoping with the sequel continues Ben and Tiziki’s story and see what happens to Akito next. I would also like to see more stuff with Nix since she is an awesome half-breed character. And yes, more yaoi!

Anyways, that is it for this review! I am reading another book on my Net Galley list of books! If you saw my Kindle shelf, you would be like “Damn!” I am a bookworm guys and I am glad Kindle is accessible with Siri. Anyways, we will try to get more MegaCon footage and make sure you check out the Nerdy Shique Universe channel since I did a makeup look using the new Maybelline Fairy Highlighter in Exclusive Purple! Until next time!

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by moonleopard85 on June 30, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in Books, Reviews

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 30, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/06/30/books-surrender-the-dark-by-tibby-armstrong/

Favorites: May and June 2017!

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! It is that time again and it is time for my bi-monthly faves for May and June. Damn, 2017 is almost overr and it will be Holiday Matsuri soon! Well, besides some fave moments from Mega, I do have one unfave!

Not-So-Fave: Press for MegaCon: I know I am bringing this up but you can read the story here and how it was done. Yes, we did our work but would’ve been better if we got the interviews with Stan Lee and Tim Curry, if not, at least voice actors because that is our strongest work here even on the channel. To me, addingg this to the things to be improved, would be great instead of using “Do you want to interviews? If so, what are the top two guests or stafff you want to interview?” For info gathering, do what Matsuri does and that is Google Hangout chats. This helps to get to know the press outlets that get chosen a month or two before the event. I am glad that Holiday Matsuri asked that on their form again, it was fun and I do get to ask questions and get them answered. Hey Omni, do itt too! Yeah, no more MegaCon for us!

Fave Item to Find In Vendor Room: Dahlic Earrings from Doctor Who: Even though I couldn’t go exploring more in the dealer room during Mega due to the walking between both concourses for panels and meeting voice actors, Nerdy Shirts and I did go exploring in the Artists Alley area and like before there were were pretty awesome items. Heeck, we found Dahlic cuff clips and knowing Gondras would want those when we get married if I brought them up. The item I wanted to get was Dahlic earrings. I was wearing my Tenth Doctor dress along with my orange high tops and leggings. I did wear my Sailor Moon broach to addd to the nerdness along with my Dr. Hooves plush (Yes, I have a push of that!) from My Little Pony . Anyways, I did find my earrings and they were fish hook earrings with little cut outs of Dahlics and they were really cute! I almoost got the single one with one earring saying, “Germinate” but the multi-colored ones got my money the most. I was happy to find these despite the entire Artists Alley being huge as it was. I remembered how big it was back in 2009! Oh boy!

Fave Panel: Both Stan Lee Panel and Tom Wilson Panel: I bet you were wondering why isn’t an anime panel on here? Well,, besides anime panels, I did go to non-anime ones since I do some comic and sci-fi stuff.. The two panels that I enjoyed that weren’t anime based were Stan Lee’s and Tom Wilson’s panels since not only Stan Lee is the legend but this year is year is supposed to be his last convention appearance in Florida. So glad we did get the passes for this one because if I hadn’t gotten the re-consideration then we wouldn’t have caught the last panel he will do. You can see the video of that here and on our channel. While Tom Wilson, it felt great to hear how Biff has done other stufff after Back to the Future and great to hear the “Questions Song” for his FAQs. Speaking of panels…

Fave Anime Panel: Happy now? Anyways, I give this one to the Women in Voice Acting panel which featured Amanda Miller, Jamie Marchi, and Brina Palencia. I thought this was where a lot of the good questions were asked towards the voice actresses and I did ask about being Sailor Jupiter for Amanda Miller since she is my fave Sailor Scout and her voice did match very well. It was even funny knowing about the writing of the script in Panty and Stocking. That show is still WTF?

Fave Panel Moment: Troy Baker Saying He Wants More Accessible Gaming! I had to mention this bbecause Troy Baker announced at his panel with Nolan North that he wants to see more accessibility in gaming since there are new blind gamers rising. The interesting thing is I did write to Nintendo again about the screen reader and they did reply back that they are taking baby steps, which with the Nintendo Switch they added settings that allow you to invert colors to invert help with low vision folks. Now hoping a screen reader is next. Now back to Troy, I did thank him for it and got me to ask Ally Hillis and Jennifer
Hale during the Mass Effect panel which you will see sometime soon and they said that we are a time for more inclusion in gaming and there is tech for it. Which is true that the tech is there and all we got to do is put it together!

Fave Meet N Greet Moment: Meeting Linda Ballumtyne! Since you guys might have read my interview with Linda Ballumtyne via email all thanks to witter! After thanking her, she did say we should have a pic together and we did! Before it, I did give her a Sailor Moon themed lanyard and she did comment on the borach. I was afraid of being charged for a photo but when I introduced myself to her I did bring up photo with her and she did it with me! It is now my profile pic on Facebook. My actual profile btw! She did the Sailor Moon pose after she transforms. I wonder if Stephanie Sheh does it too. If I meet her, I will have to see!

Fave New Liquid Lipstick: Ethereal from Black Moon Cosmetics! Now into the beauty favorites and to start is a liquid lip fave! So, last month, Vivi got items for friends since one of our gal pals had her birthday in May and we were getting another into makeup and we did it as a girls thing for a day and they were items from Black Moon Cosmetics! I know the lawsuit between them, Manny MUA, and Jeffree Star, to me the logo could be easily changed. Anyways, Vivi not only got them stuff but did get me a very early birthday gift of one of the metallic lips in Ethereal! It is a metallic burgundy and it looked good on me like she predicted. Good thing was that it lasted long and I did use it duringg MegaCon where it did come in handy when it is hard to re-apply anything during a convention. I worn it Friday with the Tenth Doctor dress and Sunday where it mattched my Chocolate Bar pallet eye look! Perfect timing with this product and may have to get more!

Finally Got This: Echo from Kat Von D! Yes, I have this category in faves and that is: “Finally, Got This Thing!” It is where the item I have been eyeing on has been finally purchased and that is Echo by Kat Von D! Why it did it take so long? Well, Sephora’s site was sold out, I had cosplay and convention stuff to do, and many theer things which didn’t give me the time to go to Sephora until I got the lovely gift card through Shop Kick! This liquid lipstick was the one I eyed on and really wanted for the longest time! I almost got it last April but got Ion from the Studded Kiss lipstics to see how those were and like them too. Yes, it may be drying but I do always use lip balm and it does look good on me too! I will go back for Witches which is the black lipstick in the collection.

Fave Highlighter: Unicorn Highlighters from Wet N Wild! Next is favorite highlighters and this summer it is all about the rainbow and Wet N Wild has joined in with their Unicorn Glow collection! I did do looks and you can see over on the Nerdy Shique Univverse channel which were a Gothic Unicorn, a Colorful Unicorn, and a Smoky Unicorn look with all three highlights which were Bronze Over the Rainbow, Ever Glow, and Unicorn Glow which I refer to as Rainbow Dash! These were fun to play with and I had fun creating those looks with them. Maybelline did release their own rainbow one but I got the purple one to try out which that will be my next look so stay tuned on YouTube!

Fave Re-Discovered Item: Gwen Stefani Pallet by Urban Decay! I had to add this on here since it has been a while since I used my Urban Decay Gwen Stefani pallet which I got on sale last summer! I used this in my Colorful Unicorn look since the colors gave me Lisa Frank vibes especially with the pinks that had pops of gold and the blue which I was able to make a pretty ood look even with how it matched Bronze Over the Rainbow! I may have to try a different look with it with the Rainbow Dash highlight with this pallet or the Unicorns Unite pallet.

Fave Blush: Wet N Wild Lip and Cheek Tints from Spring! Well, I finally got my paws on the Wet N Wild Spring Season a Delivery Box, not kidding about that since it wasn’t in actual box when I ordered it. When I saw it was on sale after Mega, I said “Might as well!” And bought it! Yes, it came with the lip pallet, the shadow trios, the two highlights I had a hard time looking for, and a soft kabuki brush, but the items that popped out the most from this aside The Sweetest Bling were the lip and cheek tints! They are stick forms of lip tints that can be used as blushes. I found that this was too big for my lips so I tried with a brush and it was too drying for the lips even with a lip balm. So, I tried it on my cheeks and these are so soft and itt does take a bit to blend but they do turn to powder as you use a brush to blend ino the skin and they do blend even more easily after drying down slightly and puttingg highlight on top. I think they should’ve just left these as blushes rather than both a lip tint and cheek tint since they are too drying for the lips and easier to do blush due to how they fit my cheek bone area a lot more and all you do is swipe and there you go! I wish WNW would have these permanent since they can be handy with traveling cosplayers and they do stay pretty well on the face.

Fave Glitters: Wet N Wild Unicorn Glow Pigments! I know a lot of Wet N Wild this month since they did catch my eye the most. The thing is I love the Unicorn Glitter Pigments from the Unicorn Glow collection and they are in Pegasus Fluttter, Unicorn Wishes, and Unicorn Dreams. They are a lilac, a lavendar, and purle glitter pigments and they looked like salt and pepper shakers to me but I took off the sifters since that is easier for me to get at the pigments especially when I did my makeup looks! These are pigmented in my book since I had really good luck putting tthem on my lower lash line, my outer and inner corners of my eyes. I hope WNW makes more off these pigments because knowing people who may have purchased this set may want to see more ccolors unless the fall collection might have them? Hint! Hint!

Fave Mascara: Revlon Super Length! I wanted to get this mascara for the longest time all thanks to the tv commercials and YouTube commercials and that is the Revlon Super Lengthy mascara! I think this year is when I got the most mascara and glad to finally pick this up! I have to say with this one like a few others I like I am wondering why would anyone would need the false lashes!? This makes my lashes longer than they are and glad to to try a Revlon mascarra since I never did before!

Fave Eye Shadow: Maybelline Mono Shadow n Vanilla! Like most people I do use a white matte shadow to set my eye primer and there is one from the drugstore I do use and it is from Maybelline. It is known as Vanilla which is a very white matte shadow from their Mono Shadow line. I know people don’t like Maybelline shadows since they aren’t as pigmented but this does set my primer very well and it is easy to blend and make my shadows stand out since I see it when I take my makeup off at the end of the night. I will make sure I get this more and more unless I have to search another white shadow.

Brrush Set: Coastal Sense Pearl Collection! Be glad. Didn’t mention Morphe since some companies that do make good brush sets aren’t being looked at as much. The one company I did start using recently is my Coastal Sense Pearl collection I got from Ipsy a long time ago. I like how soft this set is and how well it blends my makeup, especially the flat top kabuki brush that I use for foundation and the concealer brush as well. I wish they added a few more brushes since the leather case had more room to add a few ore to it. I did add my own brushes so I can use my white shadow to set my primer and two others for my setting powder and under eye concealer.

Fave Bookk: Leather Pants by. Mimi Jean Pamfiloff and Disenchanted by Susan Carool! A twofer for books! KFirst is Leather Pants from Mimi Jean Pamfiloff! This is the second book in the Happy Pants Series where we meet Taylor’s best friend Sarah who is a judge in San Francisco and ends up working on Colton’s case, who is a bad boy rockstar, and sends him to the Happy pants ranch by accident for community service days after having a bit of a run in with him on her birthday. What she doesn’t know that not only she is falling for him but that he has a secret behind a tragic accident that causes him to have memory lapses time to time and on top of that her career is in jeopardy due to a video was taken of their love session on her birthday to use against her. I did love this book and how the characters interacted more with each other and how it continued from the first with Tailored For Trouble. I did like how the cookie was brought to Sarah since Taylor did it for the happiness she wants for her friend and it did bring her and her husband together why not Sarah find lovve as well? Did Colt and Sarah end up with each other? Read the book if you hadn’t read my review. And the other book, Disenchanted, if you hadn’t read that review, it is a re-telling of Cinderella which was pretty interesting. We meet Ella who had her innocence whisked away when a minstrel broke her heart and then seven years after her father had died, she ends up getting an announcement of a ball where Prince Florian is looking for a woman to marry him and then her best friend, Malcom, convinces her to get a family treasure back from the king that he had taken from his grandfather years ago. Not only that, she starts falling for Horatio Crushington on top of it! Things go crazy until she finds out that her family had kept a secret before her mother and father had died and found clues but still wondered about it as time goes on all the way through the ball. I am hoping there is a sequel to this book because I am wondering about these clues too! I never thought a re-telling like this one would be one of the best since it takes some elements of the Disney version and mixed it with the Ever After version especially in Ella herself. Who knows if there will be a sequel but this has been a great story and you should check it out if you can!

Fave Movie: Guardians of the Galaxy 2 and Wonder Woman! Yes, DC and Marvel are both on this list with Wonder Woman and Guardians 2 because they started summer pretty well! I bet you are wondering how Wonder Woman got here is because this movie was done right! As in they didn’t have Zack Snider doing the writing for this one and it told Wonder Woman’s story very well from her as a little girl to where you see her in the present. Plus, Chris Pine was better in this than Star Trek, which if you give him a good script then he will do good as an actor! I am hoping they keep this going because DC needs to really catch up and Guardians 2, on the other hand, it did continue their story pretty well. The makeup effects were done pretty well and of course can’t help with Baby Groot bringing back a human toe making it even funnier! This movie also pretty much made us laugh from beginning to end and hoping with the next it will keep the comedy going since now they are bringing in another prominent character into the mix. Let’s see how that goes!

Well, that is it for tthis list of favorites! Yes, I know I have to move on from Mega’s baiting but I am looking forward to Holiday Matsuri and what it will bring. I am still working on Ranger Stop for this year. Hoping next list there will be a bit more beauty stufff to add!What is next? Hoping we get more videos up and soon! Until next time!I get a reply reply I got which they did start with set

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by moonleopard85 on June 29, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in anime, beauty, Books, conventions, Favorites, Panels

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 29, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/06/29/favorites-may-and-june-2017/

Books: Disenchanted by Susan Carol

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! Before I do my May and June Faves I have another book review for you! Don’t worry, I will make sure the faves go up this week! Let’s see what I got this time.Title: Disenchanted
Author: Susan Carol

Disclaimer: This review is based on opinion and observation of the lead writer of this blog. Please respect her thought and opinion in this review! Warning there might be spoilers!

Synopsis: This is no ordinary fiary tale where this story is based on the old Cinderella story except we meet a girl that has a hard time being swept off her feet.

We meet Ella Upton who lost her innocence at age 17 all thanks to a minstrel that had the voice of gold and charmed her heart until it was broken and never saw him again. Around the same time she loses her father and her mother at a very young age, at age 24 with a stepmother and two stepsisters, Ella has been through a lot in her life including financial hardships and have to do the chores herself until one day the Prince Florian is having a ball in order to find a bride and her best friend, Malcolm Hawkridge, persuades her to retrieve a very important orb that was taken from his grandfather who was court wizard before he was born. Before midnight at the ball, she has so many suitors which happen to be some of the royal brothers of Florian and Florian himself, along with Hiratio Crushington, she doesn’t know what to do except turn a blushing red as she waltzes around until she gets the treasure back for Mal in time for the clock to strike twelve!

Thoughts: This was a very interesting re-telling of Cinderella! I thought I never thought that I would like Ella since she is not so prim and proper that everyone expects. She is more of a person who speaks her mind with a lot of sarcasm. I did like how she took away the new hearld’s horn in the beginning of the book so she wouldn’t hear him blow it and then later he stands back so it wouldn’t get taken away from him on the night of the ball.

As I read, I almost felt like I was reading Ever After but what if the stepmother realized that they were broke and wants to marry off all three and not only that does consider all three girls’ feelings rather than just two of them like in every Cinderella story that gets told in book and film. Plus, this shows the characters more human such as seeing the stepsisters being disappointed when they are told they can’t go to the ball due to financial hardships to the stepmom wanting to have all three daughters to have a better life since she cares about them so much, and even Ella trying to sell off a prized possession to be able to afford tickets to the ball and how she actually falls for Horatio instead of a prince, which I did like in the end.

What bothers me is they didn’t explain much about Ella’s parents’ link with the king. I am not sure if there is supposed to be a sequel or not but I wonder as well why the king had pictures of her mother and what does she mean to the king really? They did explain it briefly especially with how the king was able to see her mother’s appearance in her and not only that wondering about the town’s pawn shop (I see it as one) owner knowing her father and wants to know more about the fairies that left, etc. If there is a sequel, I would like those dots connected since that got me curious after finishing the book since it did finish open ended.

What I did like the most is the gown not being the typical ice blue that you sometimes saw. I mean in the Disney movie you saw a blue ball gown and in Ever After it was a bit of a white or was it purple that Drew Barrymore wore as her character, Danielle. This gown was a transforming gown between white, gold, and silver and the glass slippers…well according to Mal they were supposed to have a Dorothy effect but never worked when she tried them. If there is another book that these shoes should be part of it.

Rating: 5 Star Pawprints Out of 5! This book took the Cinderella character to make her more of a regular person, as in taking the maid idea and make her more sarcastic due to losing the old self and having guys go after her at the ball. Which reminds me, I do like how she and Horatio interact with each other throughout the book by seeing her as trouble at first and then getting to know her and rescuing her from a trollish guy and then the romance starts from there. I am hoping there is another book because this was something I really liked. With magic, on the other hand, it does blend into the actual world but you have to have a license which sounds fair in a way! I did write my own Cinderella story but it does take the bit of what if the main character was a guy. I will tell you guys more in September when it releases. So, good one from another good author!

That is it for this review! Hope that next post will be the May and June faves as promised! Until next time!

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by moonleopard85 on June 26, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in Books, Reviews

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 26, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/06/26/books-disenchanted-by-susan-carol/

MegaCon 2017: Woemn In Anime Q&A Panel from Orlando!

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! Time for another video from MegaCon!

Women in Anime!

This was an interesting panel because it deals with voice actresses in anime and of course we do love our sexy male voices like J Michael Tatum, Matthew Mercer, Chris Sabat, even Liam O’Brien but we never thought about the female voices! Like the males, female characters also drive the story and we have strong female characters in anime and video games and the ones who voice them drive that story. This panel during MegaCon Orlando features Amanda Miller, Brina Palencia, and Jamie Marchi, which Amanda Miller is the new voice of Sailor Jupiter, Jamie Marchi is Kana in Fairy Tail, and Brina Palencia is the voice of Juvia in Fairy Tail and there was supposed to be Colleen Clinkenbeard according to the description for this panel but she wasn’t in the panel but hey we had fun and I did ask Amanda a question about being Sailor Jupiter.

The question was
“How does it feel to be Sailor Jupiter in the new Sailor Moon dub?” Which I was happy about that for Crystal and did love the re-dub of the original and it brought back so many memories being a teen in middle school watching five girls kicking monsters in the face each day on Toonami! I did wear the Sailor Moon broach I had for years from Hot Topic when they sold so many items from the show and they still do today.

I think my fave question to them was what was the most embarrassing thing youhad to say in the booth which Jamie Marchi talked about Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt (Yes, that is the title) where she had to write the most ridiculous things in the script and when I interviewed Chris Sabat during Omni Year 1 he did like recording for that since he had to say the most ridiculous stuff in the booth. If you haven’t seen it and the age of 21+, go ahead and see it and if you are schweemish then you have been warned that brain bleach might be needed.

Well, that is it! Not sure what videos will be next since Nerdy Shirts is still doing his best getting them up and he should get some major applause doing his hardest as the videographer here and doing school, work, and his and his brother’s channel, Super Reaction Bros. Which you guys should check out and that includes their E3 footage where me and Gondras had appearances.

I will try and do my faves of May and June this week since July is right around the corner! Damn, it is already about to be July! Stay tuned!

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by moonleopard85 on June 25, 2017  •  Video  •  Permalink
Posted in anime, conventions, Panels

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 25, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/06/25/megacon-2017-woemn-in-anime-qa-panel-from-orlando/

MegaCon 2017: Mike McFarland Q&A Panel from Orlando!

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! I am back again with more MegaCon footage! Sorry for the delay but we are trying to get the videos up as much as possible. Which one is next?

Mike McFarland Q&A!

This past year at MegaCon Mike McFarland as a guest! You guys have seen me interview him during Omni Expo 2015 talking about Attack On Titan and how, like Lauren Landa, kept telling us to ask Bryce Papenbrook about what had happened in the booth with him.
/watch?v=V8kOeCoj7Fk[/embed]
This time it was a Q&A panel with Mike since Dragonball Super is out and he repirses the role of Master Roshi. He is also Haruhi’s dad in Ouran High School Host Club, Estonia in Hitalia, which all thanks to him I want to see it for myself since Todd is hilarious as Italy in that. At least with this panel, besides anime, we got to know what is his fave doctor from Doctor Who both the old series and modern.

Well, what is next in the footage? The Women in Anime Panel from MegaCon which is next! Hoping we get more panel footage up as fast as possible since we haven’t put up Brina Palencia’s panel up yet on here. Also, you can still watch our interview with Mike McFarland from Omni 2015 here by searching here or go to our YouTube for that! Also, if you haven’t bought my book, The Blind Perspective: Convention Stories From the Dark, Chapter 1 talks about how he was the first one to sign the FullMetal Autograph when I first got it in 2006! (Available on Amazon for Kindle and Barnes & Noble for Nook.) Until next time!

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by moonleopard85 on June 24, 2017  •  Video  •  Permalink
Posted in anime, conventions, Panels

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 24, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/06/24/megacon-2017-mike-mcfarland-qa-panel-from-orlando/

Music: Top Ten Songs of June 2017!

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! It is that time again for my Top Ten Songs! Let’s get into it!

10. “Birdhouse in Your Soul” by They Might Be Giants: I know this is a repeat but the reason is that it was still in my head! It has a really catchy beat and it is hard to get out of my head, which that is the new rule for any songs that get repeated like on TRL “If a song can’t escape your head and you keep listening to it in a particular month then it will be on a list!” I am also starting to sing along with it. For those of you who don’t know who these guys are, remember the cartoon Tiny Toons Adventures? They did two music video segments where they had two songs played by They Might Be Giants which were “Particle Man” and “Istanbul” which are very catchy as well! It’s even funnier seeing the Summer Wars review where the song “Particle Man” was used during the fight between King Kazma and Love Machine after Oz gets taken over. But “Birdhouse In Your Soul” gets another slot on this list.
9. “Break Free” by Ariana Grande: Wait a tick! ::takes out Sonic Screwdriver and pushes button until a sideways five shows up as song starts:: Universe Renegade Power! MakeUp! ::transforms into Sailor Universe:: Yes, if that were actually real I would use it as my transformation music because the music video deals with a space station! This song has been my favorite Ariana Grande song since it was released back in 2014 and I do like my rave sounding pop music and I do love the chorus. It did make me happy that she did perform this song at the Love Manchester event to help riase money for the victims of the Manchester bombings that took place recently outside her concert. I did watch a good part of it and a lyric did say, “I’m a lot stronger than I’ve ever been before!” Which is true for any girl including a Sailor Scout!
8. “Arrow” by Gackt: Next is a song by a fave singer I have cherished since my WHeeaboo days and that is Gackt! The song I chose for this list is one of his newer songs from 2015 and that is known as “Arrow!” I always knew Gackt as the prettiest man with the prettiest songs and this one is one of them! I love the rhythm of the song and how he sings the lyrics it does bring me to the days of his many other songs like “Fragrance,” “Last Song,” and “Miserable.” I bet this song would sound even more amazing if it was played just on piano.
7. “Oasis” by Do As Invinity: I know this is a rare entry on here since DO As Infinity hasn’t been doing anything new as much as they did when they were together. I know they had a reunion concert that you can watch on YouTube but the song that really caught my ear the most is “Oasis!” I know everyone has remembered this band when they did the song “Deep Forest” for InuYasha but I did find other music back when I had one of those music cownload programs and saw this song. This is a very good song if you get a chance to listen to it! It shows them being different from just doing anime music and gives them more a edgy rock sound as well. I would say give it a listen if you have a chance!
6. “Right Now” by S. R.-71: Dammit Todd in the Shadows! Another song that got into my head all thanks to another due from Channel Awesome and that is “Right Now” by S. R.-71 who was a band from the tail end of the 90’s into the beginning of 2000. Todd does have a point that a lot of bands have numbers on the end of their name. When Gondras told me that this was the song he did on One Hit Wonderland I was surprised since it has been forever since I heard it and the lead singer did write a ton of songs you may have heard including a fave known as “Heart Attack” by Demi Lovato. I still blame Todd In the Shadows for this entry since Gondras couldn’t stop singing it along with the MST3K theme.
5. “The Way of Katz” from Tales of Zisteria: Yes! Another repeat and that is “The Way of Katz!” I can’t help it because whenever I think of kitties I always think about this song! Plus, I sometimes “nyu” it on my own or along with it. I have to find a way of getting it on my phone and whenever I do my cat persona for conventions that is when I pull the song out. Now I am hearing Vivi cackle if she was me at any convention and hears me playing this song too. Too many kitties!
4. “Sad Machine” by Porter Robinson: Again on my Top Ten is “Sad Machine” by Porter Robinson. Since the season of Electric Daisy Carnival is back, that means techno music is in the air in places like Tokyo, Las Vegas, heck even Mexico had their EDC already a month or so ago. Bnyways, this song got back into my head since I do love the lyrics and the beat of it. I have found him on I Heart Radio as well and I do like that version since there is some added instruments and it was a bit extended there. If I ran a rave, I think it would be the most chiilest rave since the techno I tend to listen to is more low key.
3. “Clarity” by Zedd: This song came into my head just right about now as I am writing this. All thanks to the Porter Robinson radio this also popped up. It is “Clarity” by Zedd which I do like this song and it is very catchy. I do like Zedd’s music since she is also in “Break Free” by Ariana Grande but when she is solo she is pretty good! I do like one other song by her but it will have to wait and see if it is on a later list.
2. “Pen and Paper” by the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus: Now for another pop punkish song and that is by Florida’s own Red Jumpsuit Apparatus and it is known as “Pen and Paper.” I know “You Better Pray” has been popping up on I Heart Radio a bit more but I like this one better than that song because it shows the sweeter side of this band like of their much slower songs. I also love the lyrics in it too and shows more of their personal side. I wish I caught them at Warped Tour back in 2007 but we missed them as we got into the concert. Always next time! At least they still make albums!
1. “Hurt Like Hell” by Mr. Bella: Finally, the song that tops this list is by Ta fave local band known as Mr. Bella and that is known as “Hurt Like Hell!” Good thing is that they have this band on I Heart Radio and this song always likes to pop up on my Favorites Radio and at first I wasn’t into the song due to how the tempo changes from slow to their signature hard rock sound but it did grow on me. They also do a fabulous job performing it when they come to the House of Blues! Congrats Mr. Bella, you are this month’s Number 1 song!

Well, that is it for this list! I had a hard time knowing what would number one be but hey I at least I got it done! What is next? My favorites for May and June! Stay tuned!

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by moonleopard85 on June 23, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in Favorites, Music

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 23, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/06/23/music-top-ten-songs-of-june-2017/

Books: Trying It All by Christi Barth

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! I am back with another book review! Let’s get started!

Title: Trying It All
Author: Christi Barth

Disclaimer: This review is based on observations and opinions of the lead writer and producer of this blog~! Please respect her thoughts and opinions on this book! There might be spoilers by the way!

Synopsis: This is the fourth installment of the Naked Men series which I should talk about the first three books since I haven’t reviewed any of them here.

The Naked Men series is a book series about five guys who went through a major accident while in high school and survived while playing soccer in Europe. The bus they rode in ended up falling off a cliff and killed their bus driver and the bus went up in flames charring their belongings leaving four of them stranded and one of them help the French rescue teams rescue them. Well, they did come out of caves and shown that they were able to survive the accident in a mountain range.

Now fast forward where the guys end up falling in love with girls that met up with them which Griffin fell for Chloe, a survivor of a deadly college shooting who wants to feel safe but willing to risk anything to be with him, Knox meets Madison, a girl who came to D. C. to not only be with him but also find the brother that she wanted to meet her entire life, and Logan, Madison’s brother, who catches up with long-time high school buddy Brooke, who has a secret about her job that she is willing to move on and show that Logan can be able to give everything up for love and get closer not only to him but also him closer to his sister and father.

Now we are onto Riley Ness, the control freak of the bunch, he is always the guy with the plan and knowing how to survive danger when it comes to it. He always has this notion that danger should be predicted to get over his anxiety from the accident that almost cost him and his best buddies their lives many years before by working for the NTSB. Even though he is a pain to a lot of people including his buddies but he knows that he needs to tame the fighty and sexy Summer Sheridan, who is also a college shooting survivor with Chloe from the same college they went to and owns a clothing boutique, has to help him loosen up and able to try to live. Even though Riley wants to feel like she shouldn’t risk her life by trying everything, he wants to show that he wants to save her in the name of love while she wants him to loosen up for it and enjoy life.

Thoughts: I felt that this book was a really good continuation of the story. Ever since I read Risking It All, the book that started it all, it took the idea that Lara Adrian did by having each character meet the one they fall for and shows the ups and downs of the relationship while they are dating to lead to the full on conclusion of them being together forever and it does continue those relationships in the kanon. For instance, Risking It All ended with Griffin letting Chloe to be the one asking to marry him if she wants it and it continues into the next in seeing how their relationship continues and how Knox, the braniac and millionaire overnight of the group, ends up with Madison which he felt that she was pushing onto him and doesn’t want her at first but then Chloe helps Madison with advice along with Summer and Anabeth, Madison’s roommate and who works at the expensive bar the guys like to go to, in how to get Knox’s heart and agree to marry her. Then it moves into Giving It All which Logan leaves his world saving gig in order to meet Madison after her revealing herself to him over a satellite call and then ends up on an island as a hurricane hits and runs into an old high school friend and has to help her get over a tragedy that happened and thought she was responsible by saying, “It wasn’t your fault!” And then it moves into Trying It All where all the girls and guys help Summer and Riley get together with advice in how they have to handle each other since Riley is afraid of falling in love and losing Summer while Summer is afraid of living life to its fullest even in love! Forgot to mention with Giving, it does show how two have to give it all up for being with each other which that was another bit of advice with Trying. So yeah, the narrative was able to blend with each other as the series progresses. I wished that Barth gave a preview of the next book because I have a feeling that Josh is the last one unless she is planning to do one for their butler. (Which would be interesting.) I can’t wait to see what may happen with Josh since he is the only guy among the Naked Men that is left.

I did find it weird in this one that they didn’t show anything of the podcast or blog postings. Throughout the first three books we see how the guys perceive topics within the “Naked Men” blog and podcast they do in the series which the books are named after. This one had Summer become a guest and be on camera and wishing to see how that went when the other books shown the guys talk about the topics but not this one which was to promote a project to put seatbelts in buses. I even saw how the chapters were a bit like cliff-hangers as I read, I think Barth wanted to change it up since in the other books it shown how things were solved as the book went on even if the girlfriends/fiances are pissed at them and how they had to fix it like in a lot of romantic movies. This one, it just gave a summary of what had happened to show what happened in the next chapter in order to fill in the blanks from the previous one such as when both Riley and Summer got really hurt due to a storm while in a nature preserve and Summer locked up their phones in the car and he had to go and get help to get Summer from underneath a tree which it summed up in the next chapter that he kept falling while finding help through the storm and Summer gets rescued and brought to the hospital. I am not sure if she wanted the book to be slightly shorter since it was twenty something chapters long and just focus on the romantic bits. It is good but wishing it didn’t go that way.

Rating: 4.5 Star Pawprints Out of 5! All thanks to summing up the parts, it does take five points off because the last three books didn’t do the summing up and having a chapter be a cliff-hanger each time. I do like the characters of Summer and Riley since I didn’t expect Riley to be a bit of control freak. I always remembered him being a bit cheeky and always being a wingman. I didn’t know that he didn’t stand for Summer, it didn’t really show in the past few books actually. I wished it did since I did like Summer from the start of the series since she was the fashion lover and I didn’t see her as flighty. I guess Barth was waiting until this book to develop her more which can happen in a books eries with a ton of characters. I am hoping with Josh it will be even more interesting since he owns a food truck. I even came up with names that would probably fit such as “Taking It All,” “Betting It All,” and “Missing It All.” Unless she is writing something with their butler that is also some possibilities too.

That is it for this review! More books to come! Stay tuned!

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by moonleopard85 on June 22, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in Books, Reviews

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 22, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/06/22/books-trying-it-all-by-christi-barth/

Books: The Twilight Wife by. A. J. Banner

Hello Shiquers again and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! I know I just did a post like an hour or so ago but just finished another Net Galley title!

Title: The Twilight Wife
Author: A. J. Banner

Disclaimer: This review is based on thoughts and opinions of the lead writer and producer of this blog! Please respect her thoughts and opinions!

Synopsis: We meet Kira Winthrop, a thirty-four year old marine biologist, who doesn’t remember the diving accident that gave her a very complex memory loss and can’t remember the past few years of her life. She does start getting flashes of many things such as a man that she had remembered, remembering her college days, and even being on the island before meeting her now husband, Jacob. She wonders where are these thoughts coming from and what exactly happened during the accident and is Jacob really her husband or just a part of her complex flashes?

Thoughts: I never heard of A. J. Banner until I saw this title in an email among some science fiction titles and thought it was pretty interesting. This was more of a psychological thriller since Banner did write one called The Good Neighbor which was a big best seller on Kindle. I did try finding it on Bookshare but they only had this one.

I did like this book even though I felt a little confused in the beginning and starting to learn about Kira and start to learn about what she is going through. It started to come easily since it deals with someone trying to figure out what had happened to them and how it led to where she is now. It did take some interesting twists such as how she started remembering Aiden, the “husband’s” best friend and employee and wonders why is he always on her mind and if she was really with Jake in the first place. The dots do connect and they connect very well.

What I did like is how the use of tech was involved. It made the mystery more interesting since Jake was a huge software developer and he was using the internet and the computers in his office and in Kira’s office to his advantage to plant false memories and trying to take out the truth before her knowing what really had happened to her and Aiden during the accident. If you are into psychological thrillers, I would say check this out since this does show how someone can toy with not only your mind but wanting to keep the truth that you can’t trust the person you are with anymore. Also, it does make the island in the middle of nowhere idea very well since Mystic Island, which is where she is in this book, was a way of being away from it all and yet became her prison. It even got more interesting when she meets a fisherman that gets her confused as Jake’s mother but she finds out a little bit more about Jake even when she met Nancy and her husband, Van, which I felt like with how Nancy acted around Jake that she wanted him for herself and leave Van even after a scary event that took place during a dinner thing. I did feel how Nancy was a bit jealous towards Kira, that is how I saw it while reading. I even thought, If you want Jake so much, why not have him? But that would ruin the surprise towards the end of the book.

Rating: 5 Star Pawprints Out of 5! This book was a pretty good read! I did get confused in the beginning but it sometimes happens. The twists and turns were great and it did play the small island idea with a “Nowhere to Run!” idea when the secret has been found out. If I were to find a way of getting my paws on The Good Neighbor then I would give it a read. I hope I do find more titles in NetGalley by this author in the near future since so far so good as someone who already has a second book is doing pretty well.

That is about it for this one! I know it was another post so soon but it was fresh in mind! I am going to read a title by Kristy Barth but I have to read the book before it. Until next time!

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by moonleopard85 on June 19, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in Books, Reviews

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 19, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/06/19/books-the-twilight-wife-by-a-j-banner/

Beauty: FIrst MakeUp AntiHaul!

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! I know I wasn’t going to do a post but I thought I would do something all thanks to Kimberly Clark along with other YouTubers who have been doing antihauls! I know it I have never done this but I decided to do this and before I get into…

Disclaiemr: This antihaul is based on feelings behind the products I am antihauling. I know some people love these items but I am basing it on my own thoughts and opinions. Please respect my feelings on them.

Morphe Brushes X Jacklyn Hill pallet: First off is a Morphe item and that is the collab they have done with Jacklyn Hill. Reason being is that I am not interested in any of the pallets by Morphe especially with Jacklyn’s pallet. I feel like I can get pallets from other brands that are pretty good or even better than Morphe. I don’t get the hype behind this brand and I know it’s social media based but I may try some of the brushes since Vivi did say they are pretty good but do shed on one wash from the brush belt she has while the pallets don’t appeal to me.
Too Faced Candee Johnson collab and Glitter Bomb collection: I tend to like Too Faced but lately they haven’t been that great in their products from reviews. I am thinking of just getting the Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar pallet and that is about it since I do love those and do love the Grand Hotel Café and Merry Macarons sets from last Christmas. This year Too Faced had released a lot of items and some items that are coming up are the Candee Johnson collab and the Glitter Bomb Collection. I love Candee but the collab doesn’t seem to excite me as much as the Nicki Tutorials one did last year despite that was a major bomb. This collection is supposed to smell like candy but I am not up for it even though I love sweets. While Glitter Bomb, I do like some glitter shadows which NYX does make very well, but this collection especially the pallet doesn’t excite me ither. Somehow the quality with Too Faced is kind of not doing so well, especially when people are having trouble with pigmentation in the newer stuff. Heck, I am also admitting here that the Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara is horrible on me as in it flakes like crazy on me and it does nothing to my lashes so I gave my remaining sample size to Vivi. To me the Perversion mascara by Urban Decay works better along with the Photo Finish mascara by Smashbox curl my lashes better than the Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara. I think it depends how well it works on every person.
Jeffree Star Cosmetics: I know I mentioned how I am on the fence about Jeffree but my reason is way different from everyone who has talked about why they aren’t buying anything from him. I did say in one post how I was kind of scared of buying from his company for being treated badly by him even blocked by him on social media, my reason is that I am afraid of a foreign object in anything I order. I have been hearing about how people have gotten hair in their highlighters and now ants appeared in the Manny MUA collab. I am somewhat of a germaphobe and I don’t want to find hair or bugs in my items. I wouldn’t want my items to smell like drugs either since that heapened once. Also, I did try one liquid lipstick from Black Moon Cosmetics and it is pretty good!
Sunday Riley Skin Care: Next is a skin care line and that is known as Sunday Riley. I heard about these guys all over the place on YouTube and then I heard they are hella expensive! Yes, I know they are supposed to be good for sensitive skin but I feel like there are some limits on spending for that skin care should be made and plus I feel happy with what I use especially for years and that includes my container of Celestial moisturizer from Lush, Clean & Clear Morning Burst Hydrating face wash since my skin is mostly dry now, and Stridex to keep my skin from going nuts. Also my fave Garnier Mycellar water for makeup removal. Again, I am happy about what I use.
Glam Glow: I know, you guys are wondering “why!?” Well, I have tried two items by Glam Glow, one is a hydrating face wash and a mask, which I tried both and I get a weird tingle especially with the mask. I am sorry to say I am not a fan of Glam Glow. I know it is a popular brand with people but I think I would just stick to the skin care I am familiar with whenever I can get all my containers collected then I can get a free mask from Lush and include that container in my next cycle. Plus, my skin doesn’t get too tngly with any of the Lush masks, I mean with the Cup O’ Coffee one I hardly felt anything happen as in no burning, not an ithhy feel anywhere on my face, etc. The only one I am not trying from Lush is B. B. Seaweed because my skin can’t handle seaweed on it but I can eat it like a normal person. So, sorry about Glame Glow!
Storybook Cosmetics: I know I am a bookworm at heart but with this brand you have to pre-order for their products which seems annoying to me. I love pre-ordering my video games since that does get me the item especially Pokemon games but with makeup it seems like not the way to go. With the dragon themed lip products, I can actually get that from Surreal Makeup which I may get at the next convention they might be at.
Kiley Cosmetics: Okay, you know my reasons why I won’t get anything from Kiley Genner’s makeup line. As you know they don’t accept any returns or exchanges nor give any refunds. Plus, they are starting to really copy people even though I do like dupes but these guys take that and sell it for even higher prices. I have seen reviews on the highlighters, especially, and they weren’t good ones and I would kind of believe it. Plus, if I want something from the company that made Colour Pop then I would just stick to Colour Pop items and of course, forgot to mention, you have to be on a bit of a waiting list while ordering your products and if you can’t get to checkout then too bad so sad and I don’t want to go through that. As in, if I want to order my items I would order them and check out.
K. K. W. MakeUp: The final item is Kim Kardatian-West’s makeup line that is starting with contour kits this summer. Like with Kiley, I am wondering is it going to be another wait list? Will she copy other people? That is something to think about because I’d rather just get a contour from anywhere else if I decided to contour. Plus, will they start doing the cosmetics at the same lab? As in, will they be likeanother Kiley Cosmetics? Not only that, the over contour bit is something that shows there is too much and there is way way WAY too much like the pics Kim used to advertise her brand.And also, I did hear how Kardatian beauty is an okay brand in drugstores.

Well, that is it for this antihaul. I am a makeup lover but there are times when some things don’t rreally interest me and I can admit it. If you guys want to see more these posts, I will gladly do.

I will definitely bring you my Top Ten Songs next time!

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by moonleopard85 on June 19, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in beauty

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 19, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/06/19/beauty-first-makeup-antihaul/

Tips: How Not to Be a Wheeaboo!

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! Today, I am making a much lighthearted post this time. It deals with Wheeaboos.

I bet you are wonder, “What the heck is a wheeaboo? Why are you doing this post?” or “Not this again!” Well, the reason why I am doing this post is that it seems like some people are kind of including the usual anime fan in the wheeaboo category and it is kind of sad. For those of you who don’t know what a wheeaboo is it’s a person who is over obsessed with anime and/or denounce their culture wherever they are or what they were born as to say that they are Japanese and perceive what they see in most anime as actual Japan. Also, they tend to butcher Japanese especially mixing it in with normal speak like the pronoun “desu” or use the expression “ne.”

I do have to confess that I used to have these kinds of tendencies when I was with THEE X (I use this name towards him since he is the only ex-boyfriend I really only had and I named him this in the first book too.) It was all because he and his family lived in Japan due to his dad being in the military and was happy about that but things did get a bit rocky during our second year together especially when he got mad at me when I said I prefer the American version of Power Rangers over Super Sentai since I couldn’t get into it when he gave me episodes of Dekaranger which turned into SPD when it came to the states and I did see it when it got brought over and it was awesome and better than the Japanese version, heck Doggy Cruger was even better in the American version. Besides the point, I did grow out of it and did change while dating and being engaged to Gondras.

Lately with watching people’s stories with their encounters with Wheeaboos, I never thought that there were more out there and that people have met them or were friends with some of them and after watching a video that Ahki Deareest and Gaijin Gumba did together and talking about how anime fans are being looped into this group, this made me think and this post is a way of how to not only tell the signs but how to get out of it before it is too late! Heck, would help with the people you know who became one, especially the young ones who got into anime!

1. Learn the culture: First tip is of course learn the culture! What you see in anime is not always what it is in real life, yes there is historical fiction anime such as Rurouni Kenshin which is based on an actual samurai but anime like Naruto, Bleach, even manga like Chronicle of the Cursed Sword, do show some cultural aspects but understanding the actual history, the folklore, and the influences from other countries would help know the culture. Here is an interesting fact about anime that WHeeaboos hardly know and that is America actually influenced the Japanese in creating anime with how they drew their cartoon characters like Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse, etc. That is how come you see how much anime and manga is drawn by looking at them to get the idea of anatomy in characters and how to make them move, etc. Not only that, knowing the folklore with Japan is also important because when you visit the temples they do have statues that link to that folklore as well. I bet you’re wondering who you should watch on YouTube for more stuff on Japan’s history and culture? I would suggest CanadaJin3 who is a Canadian woman who lives in Japan and she goes to the many locations to talk about the history, especially with temples, the many hot springs in case if you want to visit them, and how to take the trains to the places, and etc. Also Charla In Japan is another person that does go around Japan even in Tokyo to different temples during holidays or just tourist attractions to show on YouTUbe. I also recommend an Asian Humanities course to help know the different parts of Asia before Japan since they also helped Japan in some of the language and food! Speaking of which…
2. There is More to Japanese food than ramen and Pocky: What do I mean by this? Well, I did use to eat nothing but ramen and Pocky when I was younger to fill my Japanese food need but when I met Gondras I was introduced to more of the cuisine. As in, I got to try other things outside of ramen since we had Japanese places that are amazing! If you are here in Orlando around November there is a Japanese festival and one place that does serve food for you to purchase is Ahki which is located near the Wyndham here in town, that was where we first celebrated our first anniversary together and I still remembered having Katsudon which is a rice dish with scrambled eggs, a kind of sauce, onions, and normally pork but they have other versions like Tendon which is Tempura veggies and shrimp which I had once and enjoyed but one thing I do love now is Udan noodles! And towards Pocky, there is other snacks to enjoy that is not just Pocky such as mocha which is a marshmallow like snack that is made when rice is mashed up and rolled over until its sticky and it is mostly found as ice cream which tastes amazing! There is also red bean cakes, buns, and stuff made with geen tea and taro, which is a sweet potato found in sweets. And of course, our beloved Hi Chew which is almost like taffy in a way. A good example of finding a lot of snacks besides the usual Pocky is either in Asian markets in your town or at the Japanese Pavilion in Epcot at Disney World.
3. Learn the language: This is one important tip to know and kind of obvious and that is learning the language. Yes, we know the simple words from anime but some people don’t use it in the right context of a sentence. I have seen it a lot in fan fiction and I can’t read it because of that since I did take Japanese classes in college. One big thing about a language is of course sentence forming and that was hard at some points and I did pass with B minuses but the language is complicated to learn like most languages. I do suggest taking a course if you are at a university or go the Rosetta Stone route. In case if you are wondering, “ne” is a way of agreement in sentences if you hear someone using it in English, it is the Japanese saying, “Right” at the end and goes the same with “desuyo” and “desu” is a form of “I am” which is normally at the end of sentences. (Was pointing back to earlier since those two words are the most used by a Wheeaboo along with kawaii and sugoi.)
4. When visiting Japan, know the customs of the country: This is a major tip because there are things different that people do in public in Japan versus how we do it here! I did see this one Wheeaboo story where someone went to Japan with an actual Wheeb and she was loud in temples, the subway, and was cosplaying while visiting which is frowned upon unless if you are going to an event or if it is Halloween. Some of these customs would include bowing, certain table manners like wait until the entire group gets their drinks before taking your first drink and even slurping your noodles loudly. (That is okay actually, I did hear it is a compliment to the chef.) Also, another interesting fact is that we as tourists do stick out like a sore thumb and I can imagine with a Wheeb it would be even more since Japan is always more about the group when we are more about the individual so I would read up on some customs before traveling and try to get your Wheeaboo buddy to read as well since they can get some dirty looks.
5. SHOWER! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! SHOWER! Yes, I put this in caps because in some of the Wheeaboo stories I have seen, especially with Vivid Barnacle, wheeaboos like most convention goers don’t shower either! One story that dealt with a group of university students met one really annoying one that turned extra crazy smelled like sweat and only went to brush her teeth in the communal shower rooms. I admit I smelled worse and had to spray the elevator with room refreshner spray when the stench of one student in Daytona was left behind. (Not kidding!) As we all know that showering is a major part of any routine especially while working at a convention or a normal 9 to 5 job. Heck, even deodorant and perfume is also important to keep that stench away. You shouldn’t be smelling like convention funk on a normal day since hygiene is very important.
6. We tend to use the same school supplies as Japan even if it has some cute stuff! I have to mention this one since one video had one story where someone meant a Wheeaboo that had a backpack with school supplies from Japan and was like, “Oh look! This is my Japanese eraser!” I know it’s nice to get school supplies even if it is Hello Kitty school supplies like I have before one of the Sanrio stores closed down in town and an art store stopped carrying it but there are times when a Wheeaboo just collected it and says it is better or gets it because it is Japanese. For instance MagicalPockyUsagi was trying to sell “Japanese pens” for thousands of dollars. Why the quotes is that people who commented on her video said they can get the same kind of pens at WalMart. I kind of agree because some of the pens I got came from Dollar Tree and when I used to draw, back to the eraser bit, I found a lot of my erasers at art stores and in WalMart and Kmart when we had it at the time. So in other words, we do use the same kind of school supplies that Japanese students use even if they have cute stuff on them. Heck, I even tend to use my Kerroppi and Kuromi pencil cases as makeup bags time to time to make it easier for storage or travel with my makeup.
7. Getting into other fandoms doesn’t hurt! What I mean by this is that a great way of breaking the Wheeaboo tendencies is that there are other things to enjoy besides anime and JRPGs. I will tell you other stuff I do like and that includes Doctor Who, Mystery Science Theater, Marvel, and of course since I am going into the career field of it, access technology. Heck, besides my Fiary Tail wallscrolls, I do have a Doctor Who print on my wall of one of Matt Smith’s quotes since I am a writer myself and it deals with stories. I think Clara did recite it in the last episode of Season 9 when Capaldi was talking about her. And can’t forget, I do love beauty stuff which it doesn’t hurt to like many other things outside of anime whether it is tv, film, books, etc. It kind of gives you more of a healthy balance in life to like other things and opens your mind to other things that might be out there.I admit I didn’t like the idea of podcasts at first but when I got my Victor Reader Stream I have over twenty of them I have subscribed to and let you explore and think when listening to them. Again, liking other things outside of anime and Japan doesn’t hurt, just give it a try.
8. Finally, listen to more music! A lot of Wheeaboos like to listen to a lot of anime music and Japanese artists. I did admit I went through this phase and had tons of CDs burned with the same song or two and listened to it in the car a lot! Then when I got my MP3 player, it was the same way, then IPod…now IPhone but I do have my fave artists from here in the states this time around and goes the same way as my I Heart Radio lists and my Top Ten songs! I am admitting that I have grown out that stage of life. My music taste does still have Gackt, L’arc~en~Ciel but I do love Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Hawthorne Heights, Sleeping with Sirens, sometimes I do listen to Barenaked Ladies, They Might Be Giants, and more! And of course, local bands from here in Florida do rock as well like Leaving Haven, Mr. Bella, and my boys of Soul Switch and Traverser. Like the last tip, listening to other artists new and old doesn’t hurt either since listening to the same thing over and over can be a bit boring at times and having something new to listen to can give a nice bit of variety.

Well, I think that is about it! If you guys want to hear some of the stories I mentioned above, I would suggest Mindless Gonzo for his Wheeaboo Horror Stories and Vivid Barnacle since people like to submit their own stories. If you have a tendency to go WHeeaboo, I would say blast some Avenged Sevenfold before you get trapped in it since it may help!

Well, that is it for this post! I would like to announce that I did submit a new panel for Holiday Matsuri. They haven’t announced press yet since I was glad they got my form a while back when they put up the form (gotta love it when they are early) and they did put up their panel form at the beginning of this month if you are wondering. It was an idea from Nerdy Shirts since I did mention my convention experiences in my first book why not talk about how I went from being an attendee to press and then an author? So, hoping this will be selected for this year but if not, there is always Omni after all! So, next post will be the Top Ten Songs of June and my faves of May and June! Until next time!

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by moonleopard85 on June 16, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in anime, Rants, Tips and Advice

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 16, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/06/16/tips-how-not-to-be-a-wheeaboo/

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