Catalyst Castle

I've spent most of the day cleaning my room. It's amazing the things you rediscover when you open boxes you haven't unpacked in years. Here are a few of the interesting surprises:

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is a comic book series written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Kevin O'Neill, published beginning in 1999. According to Moore, the concept behind the series was initially a "Justice League of Victorian England" but quickly grew into an opportunity to merge all works of fiction into one world. There was a very loose feature film adaptation of the same name, released in 2003 and starring Sean Connery. I’m not recommending either the comic or the movie, because I’ve never read the comic and the movie was pretty lame. But the idea of assembling a team of heroes from various works of fiction really appeals to me.

The original League presented in the comics consists of Allan Quatermain (King Solomon’s Mines), Captain Nemo (20,000 Leagues Under the Sea), Dr. Jekyll (The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde), The Invisible Man (The Invisible Man), and Mina Murray (Dracula). The movie added the characters of Dorian Gray (The Picture of Dorian Gray) and Tom Sawyer (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer).

So, I got to thinking about this idea and decided to assemble my own League. Here are my picks and a little information on how they would contribute to the team.


Sherlock Holmes (The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes)
After the murder of Dr. Watson during the course of one of Holmes’ investigations, the brilliant detective falls into a deep depression and is completely overtaken by his cocaine habit. He becomes even more of a recluse, turning away all cases and calls for aid. Finally, in England’s most desperate hour, agents of Queen Victoria herself come to Holmes for aid in uncovering a conspiracy against the throne - a mystery that seems to have connections to the death of Watson. Eager to bring Watson’s killer to justice, Holmes pulls himself together and accepts membership in the League.

The unquestioned leader of the group, Holmes would use his logic and investigation skills to identify their opponents, deduce their plans and devise effective countermeasures.


The Artful Dodger (Oliver Twist)
The most notorious thief London’s ever know, there isn’t a place or a pocket Jack Dawkins can’t get into and out of without getting caught. That is, until he tries to steal the crown jewels. He is finally arrested while attempting to escape Buckingham Palace with enough loot to buy a small country. Rather than going straight to prison, the Artful Dodger gets an audience with the Queen herself, who is curious to meet the infamous young outlaw. Recognizing his good nature and considerable skills, she offers him a pardon if he’ll lend his services to the League.

The Artful Dodger is the team’s sneak, using his skills for covert missions to infiltrate enemy strongholds or misappropriate enemy resources.


Frankenstein’s Monster (Frankenstein)
Following clues from the letters of Captain Robert Walton, Sherlock Holmes tracks down the monstrous creation of Dr. Victor Frankenstein deep in the Arctic Circle. Weary of the miserable life he has led, the monster has gone there to die. Holmes finds that he sympathizes with the creature in light of his own depressive episode connected to the death of Watson. Through logic and philosophical reasoning, Holmes helps the monster to see the value of his continued existence if he turns his efforts towards accomplishing good. In the process, Holmes manages to reaffirm his own confidence and self-worth after the loss of his friend.

Frankenstein’s monster is the team’s muscle, using his brute strength to go head-to-head in combat with their toughest opponents.


Red-Handed Jill (Peter and Wendy)
On the eve of her eighteenth birthday, Wendy Darling yearns to escape pressures of growing up. To her surprise and delight, Peter Pan appears again at her bedroom window and whisks her away to Neverland. While this is exactly the escape she was looking for, she quickly finds herself disenchanted with Peter’s immature bravado. She soon falls in with the pirates, who are have been lacking a firm leader since the death of Captain Hook. Before long, she takes up her pirate name, Red-Handed Jill, and leads the pirates in a war against the Lost Boys. Peter is heartbroken by the betrayal, and Neverland begins to wither under the pirate onslaught. As the pirates and the Lost Boys battle to a stalemate, Jill realizes the destruction she’s brought to Neverland and feels remorse. She offers a truce, and as penance, leaves Neverland with the rest of the pirates, never to return again. Back in England, she offers the services of herself and her crew to Queen Victoria.

Red-Handed Jill has a sharp tongue and a sharp blade. She also has a crew of loyal buccaneers at her command and a rogue fairy as her companion. Her flying galleon, the Jolly Roger, provides transportation for the League.


The Phantom (The Phantom of the Opera)
Searching for more extraordinary people to round out his team, Sherlock Holmes investigates the great fire at the Paris Opera House and rumors of the opera ghost that once haunted the place. Through an interview with a ballerina named Meg Giry, Holmes learns that the phantom was actually a deranged genius named Erik, and that he survived the fire and escaped Paris. Holmes pursues the Phantom all the way to Manhattan where the he now operates an amusement park called Phantasma. Holmes and his team are promptly captured by the Phantom after discovering that he intends to assassinate Queen Victoria. Through careful questioning, Holmes deduces that the Phantom is being manipulated by another villain who is holding the Phantom’s son Gustave hostage. Holmes convinces the Phantom to join the League and they’ll help him rescue the boy.

The Phantom’s cunning is almost a match for Holmes’, but his expertise lies in devising traps and ambushes for their opponents. He is also an inventor, a magician, and a ruthless combatant.


Those are my picks, along with some rough ideas about how each of them would end up joining this elite team of crime fighters. Just for fun, do you have any thoughts on this concept? What fictional characters would you choose for your own League of Extraordinary Folks?

Anime Music Videos (AMVs) are a cool fusion of two things I like - anime and music. AMVs are quite popular among anime enthusiasts. You can find a lot of them on YouTube and similar sites. AMV contests are rather popular at anime conventions, and my cousin even won a prize last year at a convention for an AMV she made. For no particular reason, I want to share some of the AMVs that have really touched me.


WARNING: These are very sad, at least to me. If you're not in the mood to cry I suggest you skip this video feature.


The first one is an AMV done with the anime 5 Centimeters per Second and the song From Where You Are by Lifehouse. I think it really captures very well the theme of the movie. This is a great joining of a beautiful song with a beautiful anime (one of my favorites, in fact).





This next one is done with the anime The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (another favorite) and the song She is the Sunlight by Trading Yesterday.





This last one uses an anime called Rumbling Hearts and the song Goodbye to You by Michelle Branch. I've never seen this anime, but the AMV makes me curious to watch it. This video also made me realize just how much more dramatic impact the word "sayonara" has than "goodbye". The Japanese language is awesome. ^_^





I hope you enjoyed them, even if they did make you a little sad. Personally, I think they're beautifully done. If you've got an AMV you really enjoy, post a link in a comment to this article. Thanks!

I recently discovered a manga published online by a friend of mine (Arcadia is her pen name). The manga's title is Mascara, and it has to be one of the most original manga I've read in a while. The manga's webpage sums up the premise nicely when it says:

As the smartest boy in school and a prodigy, everyone expects Ian to be a high achiever - a future Nobel Prize winning genius. But he doesn't want to be the next Einstein. He just wants to be a makeup artist.

The story is very well writen and filled with great comedy and drama. It centers around the main character Ian, who is living a double life. At school, and pretty much everywhere else, he is a nerdy bookworm. But secretly, he works a part time job as a makeup artist at the mall. In order to accomplish this, he developes a flashy, stylish, sauve, and confident alterego named "Dimitri". The thing is, "Dimitri" is actually more of the person Ian really is underneath his nerdy facade, and he's worried that his neighbor Addison will figure out his secret. See, Ian has had a huge crush on Addison for a while now, but Addison hates makeup, vanity, and "pretty boys". The story really does a great job of building the tension in this situation and keeps you clicking "next page" over and over.

While the art in the beginning of the manga is rather amateur, the story is well writen throughout. The heart of this manga is the characters. All of them are very well developed and believable in their motivations and reactions. Ian's insecurities and attitudes are realistic and make him a very relatable character.

If you like manga or highschool dramedy, check out Mascara.  b(^_^)d
(Start at the first page by clicking the link in the top-left corner.)