London EXPO

Hi there! This post is very late because, quite frankly, without a new manga chapter to spark my enthusiasm I couldn't be bothered to write a new update.

Yes, for all of you who are ignorant, there was no manga chapter released this week. This is a fact I am peeved about but willing to allow without complaint once in awhile. Kishimoto is apparently taking a week off to gather his thoughts, hopefully he'll deliver some more brilliant chapters soon.

So... What shall I talk about this week? Well, I guess I should focus on the fandom, which to me is half the fun of being a Naruto reader.

Yes, note that I now refer to myself as a 'Naruto reader' rather than 'Naruto viewer'. This is simply because I have come to prefer the manga to the anime, which I now see as rather bright and annoying for the most part.

Of course I'll still be watching Part Two when it begins but I've fallen in love and will remain loyal to the manga rather than the anime.

Last Sunday, my best friend Sasha and I went to the London EXPO - which is basically an media exhibition for fans of comics, film, video games, animation, science fiction and fantasy.

Despite almost getting lost in London's scary tube system, we made it in time to see loads of Naruto cosplayers and a few celebrities.

I bought myself a measly little Naruto keyring; it's cute but tiny and it cost £3! I'm not kidding, the stuff there was expensive. Sasha got herself plenty of stuff, including an awesome Naruto wallscroll. Heh heh!

There were also some of the robots from Robot Wars and the actor Christopher Lee (who plays Saruman in LOTR).

There was even a stand for the upcoming English movie Hot Fuzz, which is made by the guys from Shaun of the Dead - Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. Unfortunately, those two were only present for the Saturday EXPO so I missed them by a day. Damn, I would've loved to see them.

All in all, it was a great but tiring day. All that travelling and walking does get to you if you've worked through the day on nothing but a few sticks of strawberry Pocky.

Since everyone seems to be recommending animes to watch while waiting for the Naruto filler period to end, I recommend Last Exile. It's the story of two friends who fight through poverty and wartime in the Victorian-like society of the floating world of Prester. There are some amazing airship battle scenes.

The series is 26 episodes long and has brilliant characters that you really fall in love with as the series progresses. The story is great, the characters are brilliant, the animation is top-notch and the OST is too good for words. In short, Last Exile is a fab anime and you should definitely watch it when you have the time.

You can usually find the fansubbed Japanese episodes on YouTube. If not, then you can download the episodes from Anime Downloads. Personally, I've been watching the English dub on rental DVDs with my closet-anime-fandad (phrase copyright of Sasha). Heh heh!

Wow, this post has really gone off the topic of Naruto. See what a week without a canon episode or manga chapter does to me? I shirk all interest in a story until it's moving again.

Well, if you're desperate for some Naruto videos, then check out my YouTube page and visit my favourites list. I have a ton of Naruto videos in there and loads of other stuff too, some of which you're bound to find interesting.

I'll be back next week with my views on the latest manga chapter. Here's hoping it's a good'un!