Dumpling Burp

I would like to tell you a story about a phenomenon called the "Dumpling Burp".

You have a massive get together to hang out and play some cards, eat snacks, and ultimately to have a enjoyable time with your friends. You have dinner at your favorite shop and order some pork and cabbage dumplings. You scarf down the 10-20 while dipping them in some soy sauce, hot sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil. Yummy. Mang, those were some tasty dumplings.

Scenario 1
You head over to the hang out spot. You guys order some drinks such as boba milk tea, green tea with rice balls, etc. You guys get a deck of cards or a chinese checkers deck out. You guys laugh it up while making fun of each other and telling each other how your work week was.

Scenario 2
You head over to your friends where you guys set up to play some texas hold em for the night. You got the guy that manages the chips, the other guy knows absolutely everything about texas. all the odds, strategies, etc. You guys talk it up and cut lose after a rough week at work.

Scenario 3
You head over to the movie theater and wait in line with the rest of the group to wait for the latest blockbuster movie. Its at least an hour away and you guys are just gonna chill and catch up after an intense week at work.

In all three scenarios, you start to feel something and let out a silent burp out. In all three cases, the reaction is the same, everyone within smelling distance of you runs for the doors. You've victimized all those you hold close and dear with your "Dumpling Burp". Those pork and cabbage dumplings rumbled away in your stomach and produced an awful smell if witnessed by another human being.

You may have been a victim before and you may be the one to have victimized those around you.

Please, for the sake of humanity, down a desert after your dumbling like a egg tart or almond jello cocktail mix.

For the sake of humanity!

Bullet and Brain - 神槍手與智多星

Bullet and Brain (神槍手與智多星) is a 2007 film out of Hong Kong. The film stars Anthony Wong, Francis Ng, Alex Fong, Eric Tsang, Andrew Wu, Tiffany Tang Yan, Liu Yang, and Liu Yuan-Yuan.

A triad boss makes a deal but has no money. The triad betrays his mentor to get his money. The mentor leaves the password code for the account in his granddaughters care. The boss kills the mentor and goes after the granddaughter. But the grandfather had 2 loyal assassins that have left the country. But at the request of the granddaughter, they come back to protect her. The police get in out the action as they find that the granddaughter is in danger.

This movie went beyond my expectations. I actually thought it was going to suck. As it turns out, the movie was very entertaining and surprising. Other than Alex Fong, all the doods are old. And the lovely ladies, all in their mid 20s.



Tiffany Tang Yu's acting may not get her an award, but she's a sight for sore eyes in this movie. I am looking forward to seeing her in more things. Liu Yang and Liu Yuan Yuan are the other 2 gals. But I was always waiting for the movie to shift focus back to Tang Yu.

The movie includes a lot of cheezy dialogue, action, and plot twist. You may not need a notepad to follow, but just remember that a gazillion people are in the movie.

米可,GO! - Mico, Go! on LA 44.6

44.6 started showing 米可,GO! (MICO, GO!) last week. MICO, GO! is a 2006 drama out of Taiwan. It stars Li Jia Ying and a dog 米可. I missed the first few episodes, but what I could piece together is that Shao Shiuan (Xuan) is blind now. But lost her sight only recently via a car accident. MICO will get trained to be a guide dog for the blind.

Shao Shiuan is played by the lovely Li Jia Ying (李佳穎). You may have notice her in Angel Lover, 一八九五, and 大愛劇場's 春風伴我行. Shao Shiuan's mother is played by the lovely Ke Shu Qin (柯淑勤). You may have noticed Ke Shu Qin in The Hospital.

It's on daily in LA's 44.6 for the next few weeks at 8pm. Each episodes goes for about 50 minutes. I've seen bits and parts of 2 episodes so far.

I can't be certain, but the background music seems to be by Sweety.

痞子英雄 - Black And White - First Thoughts

痞子英雄 (Black and White) is a Taiwanese Police Drama starring Vic Zhou, Mark Chao, Ivy Chen and Janine Chang.

I am half way through the series and must say that it is awesome. Overall, the production value is very high in comparison to the other stuff I see around. Can it match the production value of TV shows in the US? No, but that's not the point. You gotta take it for what it is. Taiwan and China are not up to par with say a CSI or Lost, but it will get there eventually. I think its a matter of $$ that the industry can get.

Ok, back to the series. The story has a similar feel to The Hospital in terms of internal politics. You can't have it black and white. There are way too may grey areas. Mark walks the white line. Vic walks the black line per se. You'll have to see the politics to fully understand.

For the female leads, I've been quite disappointed. They are both strong characters, but do not really impact the story that much. I really hope the second half is better for them.

I noticed that there are many many people in power that are influenced by many other factors. There's a sense of mystery that looms over it all. Vic's character has a background revealed. But Mark's does not. The mystery has a 24 type feel to it.

Hey, I am half way through and its a been a wild ride. It's lived up to and exceeded my expectations. I highly recommend it. Looking forward to the movie as well.

Fearless - 霍元甲

Fearless (霍元甲) is 2006 film out of China. It stars Jet Li, Collin Chou, and Betty Sun.

The film is is loosely based on the life of Huo Yuanjia. Its very loosely based. If you read the bio of Huo Yuanjia and THAN watch the movie. You would stay they were two different people. But hey, its the movies and you pay to get entertained! Throw the facts out the windows yo.

Huo Yuanjia is a trouble maker that loves to learn marital arts. In this case, the Huo family fist. But Yuanjia's father Endi does not want him to learn, but instead to study. Yuanjia is defiant and learns secretly. Fast forward 20 years and Yuanjia is now a renowned master. But he's not a very good master. Trouble seems to have followed him home one day. And insert coming of age storyline. Once Yuanjia is a restored man, he does his best to restore Chinese pride!

The movie was entertaining on many levels. I hear there are 3 versions. Cut, director's cut and unrated. I must have watched the cut version as mine didn't have Michelle Yeoh and the Thai fighter.

It's a throw back to the classic Jet Li films of the 90-94 era.

Naraka 19 - 地獄第十九層

Naraka 19 (地獄第十九層) is a 2007 film out of Hong Kong. The movie stars Gillian Chung of Twins fame.

Gillian and her 3 friends live in a dorm room that's been vacant for roughly 10 years. But horrors start happening. Reality is starting to be hard to discern.

The movie was crazy bad. Skip it. While I was watching, my DVD just stopped. I didn't continue after it.

Kobe - 2009 Tour of Asia

Kobe Bryant is doing a tour of Asia this summer. You can follow this via Facebook's Nike Basketball page.

Kobe's already been to Manila, Singapore, and Taipei.

Having grown up in the Magic and Kareem era here in LA, I was witness to the 5 championships in the 80s. But only really remember the 87 and 88 ones. I had those cartoon shirts back in the day. Some of my fondest members of my late grandfather was that we watched a lot of Lakers and UCLA basketball back in the 80s.

It's pretty awesome that Kobe is making Asia a focus. It would be awesome to see a Taiwan born player in the NBA, but it's very very unlikely. But you never know.

BruceLee.com Is Up

BruceLee.com is officially launched now. The site is run by official Bruce Lee people. One of them happens to be Sharon Lee, Bruce Lee's daughter.

The site isn't much in terms of depth, but I think it'll continue to get bigger and bigger as they add to it.

Seems to be a lot of Bruce Lee action these days. The museum, the vs. Iron Man stop motion, The Legend of Bruce Lee TV series, ping pong nunchucks, and now BruceLee.com.

敗犬女王 - My Queen

敗犬女王 (My Queen) is a 2009 drama out of Taiwan. The 2 main stars are Cheryl Yang and Ethan Ruan. The supporting cast is huge, but includes Jessica Song. Fish Leong shows up as an DJ.

Cheryl Yang as Wu Shuang, plays a 女王 (super women) at a gossip magazine. She's 32 years old and does whatever it takes to get the story. Ethan Ruan as Lucas, plays a handyman that's got a energy for life. They meet on Christmas Eve as Wu takes a bike that Lucas was giving to orphans. In a strange turn of events, Wu and Lucas continue to bump into each other. Lucas eventually becomes Wu's bodyguard and assistant.

Wu is presented as a super woman at school and work. But not so super at life. As Wu hasn't had a boyfriend in 6 years and was "left at the alter" (figuratively). Wu has grown up as the "# 1" in all sorts of competitions. Wu has had the cover story at her mag and the majority of Wu's co-workers do not get along with her.

Lucas is 25 and tries to live life to the fullest and has a heart of gold. He makes a living doing handyman type activities as well as anything that you need. Kind of a handyman for life situations. Like dressing up as Santa.

The drama is very different in tone and has a more mature subject matter. There's a lot of screaming, yelling, and crying. Hey, what do you expect from a drama. The two main stars somehow, someway meet up when you don't think they would. When they're suppose to go their separate ways, they do not. Its drama magic for you.

I enjoyed the first 12 episodes and it went by real quick. Episodes 14-18 were a major chore to watch. The first 12 took roughly 1.5 weeks while, episodes 14-18 took me 3 weeks to finish. Because I started Chinese Paladin 3 and because I didn't like where the story was headed.

I do recommend this drama if you're in your late 20s or older. Some of the subject matter is totally going to be foreign to people in their 20s. And dating an older women with her biological clock on the other half is also going to be a subject matter that is foreign to those that do not think about it.

Towards the end of the series, when the 8 years of age different was the main focus, it reminded me of work. I am one of the older guys in my office and it's hard to relate to those that are a decade younger than me! A full decade, not even 8 years. So, the points brought up hit home a little. I do the daddy thing everyday now. There's no daddy vacation. Young people think about what's the next young thing to do. I can finally move on to Black and White.

I don't think this drama got the play of 命中註定我愛你, but it's rating average for the span of 21 episodes is very high.

Triangle - 鐵三角

Triangle (鐵三角) is a 2007 film out of Hong Kong. It stars Simon Yam, Louis Koo, Sun Hong Lei, Kelly Lin, and Gordon Lam.

The story revolves 3 men that are in serious need for money. Simon Yam plays Sam, who's a business man that's run out of money. Louis Koo plays Fei who seems to be in debt to seemingly everyone. Sun Hong Lei plays Mok, an antique shop owner who doesn't do good business. All three men need money, and need it bad. Gordan Lam plays Wen, a bad cop. Kelly Lin plays Ling, the wife of Sam. Ling and Wen are engaged in an affair. Ling becomes pregnant by Wen. Wen than seeks to get Sam out of the picture. Wen enlist Fei. Fei knows Sam. Sam knows Mok. Lots of tangled relationships.



The movie is intense and had a different feel as it progressed. I only realized that they had 3 directors after I watched the film. That explains the change in pace and style.

In all, it was a good watch and required a lot of thinking to keep everything straight. Some parts were movie magic at its very best. How does everyone from the movie end up in the same desolate location at the end of the film?

The last part also presents a type of "and the moral of the story is..." type ending. Which I thought was out there.

Mad Detective - 神探

Mad Detective (神探) is a 2007 film out of Hong Kong. It stars Sean Lau, Andy On, and Kelly Lin.

The movie is about Sean Lau as a expert detective with unconventional methods named Chan. Ho, played by Andy On is a detective looking to solve a mystery. However, Chan falls into madness and is no longer with the police force. Ho enlist Chan on the side to help him.

Along the way, they not only unravel the mystery, the stories of Chan and Ho are slowly revealed to us.

The movie also entertains us with the concept of multiple personalities all at play influencing our moves.

A must watch if you're a Sean Lau fan.

Be With Me

Be With Me is a 2005 film out of Singapore. The movie is split into 3 story arcs.

The first arc is a man with a convenience store. This man is alone now, as his wife has passed away and his son has moved out. This man starts cooking for Theresa Chan.

The second arc follows a lonely security guard that really really enjoys his food. The security guard gets grief from his family for his lack of success and is prone to fall asleep on the job. This security guard has a secret crush on Ann, played by the lovely Lynn Poh.

The third arc follows 2 high school age girls. They meet online and begin a lesbian relationship. When one of them renegades on the relationship with a boy, the situation turns tragic.

The three are linked only in passing and via convenience. But they are linked.

I was a little shocked while watching this film. My impression of Singapore is that of happy go lucky people. This movie presented quite the opposite. Actually a lot of doom and gloom. Unfortunately, this movie may be remembered for the lesbian scenes and not the content.

Be prepared for some heavy subject matter.

Flash Point - 導火線

Flash Point (導火線) is a 2007 film out of Hong Kong starring Donnie Yen and Louis Koo. The movie is a martial arts action film that heavily used mixed martial arts.

The movie is about Donnie Yen as a police officer set on bringing bad people in named Ma. Louis Koo as Wilson is an undercover cop that gives tips to Donnie. They are onto a gang of three brothers. The chase is on and there are lots and lots of fighting. Not much else you need to know about the plot of the movie.

The action in this movie was quite amazing. Mixed martial arts isn't something you see in films much and they incorporated it into this film pretty well. The fighting is still classic HK action, but with the "kill" moves grounded in mma.

The version I watched was a China version from 2007. I will try to catch the Dragon Dynasty one in the near future.

Invisible Target - 男兒本色

Invisible Target (男兒本色) is a 2007 film out of Hong Kong. It stars Nicholas Tse, Jaycee Chan, Shawn Yue, and Jacky Wu (Wu Jing).

The movie is about 3 cops. All three cops have problems that they are trying to deal with. These three cops are explored a little more in detail at the beginning of the film. The three cops are played by Nicholas, Jaycee, and Shawn. Jacky Wu plays Tien, the leader of a mercenary group from China. They were part of a heist in the past and have come to Hong Kong to claim their half of the heist. They are ruthless and begin catching the attention of the cops. The three cops all have run ins with Tien's group and are all hurt badly.

Somehow they all get stuck in the police station and that's where the fun starts. Lots of people of dying and lots of fighting.

The movie features lots and lots of fighting. In some cases, the fighting is quite absurd. But its HK style and its quite entertaining.

2007 was an excellent year for HK cinema and this was one of those films.

Sparrow - 文雀

Sparrow (文雀) is 2008 film out of Hong Kong. The movie stars Simon Yam, Kelly Lin, and Gordon Lam.

The movie is about a group of 4 pick pockets working in Hong Kong. Simon Yam is the leader of this group. The film begins with a "day in the life" sort of preview of these 4 guys. Enter Kelly Lin. Kelly Lin is from the mainland and currently in a relationship with an wealthy old guy. It's never explicate that they are married. But this old guy has her passport and has his men watch her 24/7. Kelly Lin approaches these 4 guys to help her steal her passport back so she can go back to the mainland.

The movie runs a little like a caper movie with a few twist here and there. One thing I liked about this film is its heavy use of old colonial style buildings. It's as if Johnny To wanted to transfer you to the early 1900s. The backdrops contain the modern high rises, but the people live in the old style buildings.

The movie was quite slow and had me thinking the whole time. I don't think it did well at the box office in HK.

It is not your typical Johnny To film, so be prepared.

Chinese Paladin 3 - 仙劍奇俠傳三 - 仙劍三 - 仙劍3 - 仙劍奇俠傳之靈珠神劍

Chinese Paladin 3 (仙劍奇俠傳三/仙劍三/仙劍奇俠傳之靈珠神劍) is a 2009 wuxia fantasy series. The 5 main stars are Hu Ge, Yan Mi, Wallace Huo, Cecilia Liu, and Tiffany Tang. The series runs 37 episodes with each running an average of 42 minutes each. I got my copy via YesAsia. I would rank it as one of my favorite wuxia series. The story is based on a video game called The Legend of Sword and Fairy.



Characters
Hu Ge as Jing Tian / Long Yang / Fei Peng (19 years old) - Stinky Tofu/Veggie Teeth
Yang Mi as Tang Xue Jian / Xi Yao (18 years old)
Wallace Huo as Xu Chang Qing (27 years old) - White Tofu
Liu Shi Shi (Cecilia) as Long Kui (1000 years old)
Tang Yan (Tiffany) as Zi Xuan (200 years old)



Jing Tian is a worker at a antiques pawn shop, but has magical dreams of grandeur. One night, while watching falling stars, Jing Tian is given a jade. This jade is the other half of a pair. You can make a wish with it. Tang Xue has the other pair and they are bound to become one. Xu Chang comes to Tang manor to investigate some "poison" people. Let the fun begin.

I think that's enough of a synopsis for you to want to give it go. Jing Tian is pompous, arrogant, speaks his mind and arguementative. If that bothers you, you won't make it through the series.

The story goes into roughly 5-6 story arcs. Each requires the group to accomplish a goal at each juncture.



So, having so much screen time for Yang Mi, Cecilia Liu and Tiffany Tang was great! These are 3 very beautiful women and they had mucho screen time. Tiffany Tang reminds me a lot of a younger version of Hao Lei. Yang Mi and Cecilia both show up in other Jin Yong wuxia series.

I want to thank the casting director for putting together such an amazing set of beautiful women together. I hope all three have long and productive careers.



In comparison to the first Chinese Paladin, this one seemed so much better. I made another atempt to watch Chinese Paladin I a few months ago. I had to stop after a few episodes. No matter if you throw Sweety, Crystal Liu, and Ady An at me, the characters and story were annoying. No eye candy can prevent that.

But Chinese Paladin 3 was so different in story, structure, and characters that I was instantly drawn in. The eye candy made it that much better.

You should make sure you watch this.

The production value was very high as well. Were there cheezy CG effects? Yes, but it's ok, it's fantasy wuxia much better than 80s/90s style TVB stuff. Will the CG stand the test of time? No way! But for 2009, you should watch it and enjoy it for what it is. The CG moves the story along.

The music is great too. I need to pick up the OST later in the month.

不能沒有你 - No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti - Upcoming

不能沒有你 (No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti) is a movie out of Taiwan set for release on August 14 in Taipei.

From the trailer, it looks like an pretty intense movie with a heavy subject matter. I am not sure if I'll ever get my hands on this in DVD form.

I have no idea where the title is from. Is it Spanish, Italian or Portuguese? Something else?

The translation of the Chinese title is rougly "can't live without you".

倚天屠龍記 - Yi Tian Tu Long Ji - Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre - 2009 - Upcoming - Part 2 - Trailer

倚天屠龍記 (Yi Tian Tu Long Ji/Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre) is set for release in December now. A 16 minute trailer is making the rounds now.



It's super early to release this trailer. Especially since we have to wait another 4-6 months.



I am not that happy with the female leads. From the trailer, some just don't fit.

But I am eagerly awaiting this. And I had a follow up about 2 months ago.



You can head over to Tudou to watch the whole thing. Some guy put it up on YouTube, split into 2 pieces.

December?! Seriously, release it sooner!

Eye In The Sky - 跟蹤

Eye In The Sky (跟蹤) is a 2007 film out of Hong Kong. The movie stars Simon Yam, Tony Leung, and Kate Tsui.

The film is about a division of the HK police force that does surveillance. Simon and Kate are on the police surveillance team. Tony is part of the bad guys. The chase is on to get Tony in the act. Surveillance cops are taught to observe anything and everything. Also to not get noticed.

The movie was awesome because it presented a division of the HK police force that always gets overlooked in other movies. It was a thriller and kept me on my toes the whole way through.

I highly recommend this.

America's Best Dance Crew Season 4 - Upcoming

America's Best Dance Crew Season 4 is up in about a month. The trailer is out and it looks like they are hyping the West vs. East match up. Let's be honest, the East and West thing is going to end bad again. 7 of the final 9 groups have been from the West.

I hope for Season 5 to be an All-stars reunion. The top 3 from each season going at it again.

But, let's stay focused on Season 4. From the teaser, I don't want to watch a minute. All those groups are whacked. If you're gonna give me Kaba, Jabba, Quest and Beat Freaks, I do not want to see stuff that so different, that its crappy.

Anyways, head over to ABDC for the trailer or look below.

Yeo's and Kaba Modern

I caught a commercial for Yeo's green tea drink today. I wasn't paying too much attention. But the music was pretty hip so I looked up. Oh Snap! Kaba Modern is doing their thing in the commercial.



You know how much I like Kaba since they blew the country away in ABDC Season 1. Its too bad they're no longer on competitions, but Youtube has plenty of graining recordings where they show up.

I am hoping the Taiwan pop acts invite Jia Huang and Lawrence Kao back to the Taipei to choreograph some videos and dance groups.

敗犬女王 - My Queen - First Thoughts

I am finished up to episode 15 of 敗犬女王 (My Queen). With 6 more to go, I am conflicted. I don't like where the series is going and episode 14 and 15 were a major chore to watch.

With a stack of other series stacking up behind it, I don't want to waste another 7-8 hours on weak sauce stuff.

So, my first thoughts are that the first 11 or so episodes lives up to the title. They painted Cheryl Yang as a workaholic who's not smooth with the guys. However, Cheryl Yang is way to attractive. These challenges wouldn't come her way. They paint her as a 33 year old who's biological clock is now past 9. I get the concept. I get it. I just can get with it while Cheryl Yang is that person.

Ethan is a hot headed "hippie" type guy. He's enjoying life and making friends on the way.

The tone of the series is way way different than the 2 that preceeded it, 命中註定我愛你 (Destiny to Love/Fated to Love You) and 無敵珊寶妹 (Invincible Shan Bao Mei/Woody Sambo). Lucas and Wu Shuang yell a lot. Tempers flare a lot more. I had to turn the volume down seemingly every 15 mins or so because it would wake up my kids. I have to have the volume up to a decent level to hear while I wash dishes.

Should I bare and grunt my way through the next 6 episodes? I already know the ending, so there's no build up for me. Decisions, decisions.

The Mentalist - Favorite Show of the 08-09 Season

The dude is the man. His name is Tim Kang and is holding it down over at The Mentalist.



I've been seeing Mista Kang around the tube the last few years. First as a part of the Cingular commercials. Than to AT&T. Than Rambo 4.

But Tim's protrayal of Kimball Cho on The Mentalist is awesome. An Asian American in a normal role. Normal! Man! I hope they keep it normal for Kimball. Eventually, the back stories of the main 5 guys are going to be explored. I hope they don't mess it up with all those stereotypical Asian things when they do.

In the meantime, I've caught about 5-8 eight episodes this season and love it. You don't need to follow everyweek to know whats up. I had this same feeling about Bones when it first came out.

The Mentalist also features the extremely luscious Amanda Righetti.

Check out The Mentalist and Tim Kang!

Butterfly Lovers - 武俠梁祝 (劍蝶)

Butterfly Lovers (武俠梁祝/劍蝶) is a 2008 film out of Hong Kong filmed in Shanghai. The movie stars Wu Zun, Charlene Choi, and Hu Ge.

This movie takes from a classic Chinese story that is compared to Romeo and Juliet. The story is compared to because of the ending. However, the story that leads to the ending isn't very much like Romeo and Juliet. The original story doesn't include any wuxia elements. But this is a movie and a wuxia at that. So, throw in the wuxia elements.

Choi plays the only daughter of a rich family named Yanzhi. Sent to learn kung fu at a friend of her father's. Hu Ge plays Chengen, Yanzhi's long time and childhood friend. Chengen escorts Yanzhi to the kung fu school. On the way there, Zhongshan rescue's Yanzhi from local thugs. Zhongshan is a little tipsy during their first encounter. Off to school Yanzhi goes. Yanzhi finds out that Zhongshan is the 1st brother of the students of her generation. Yanzhi is assigned to take care of Yanzhi. All the while, Yanzhi is disguised as a dude. Zhongshan keeps thinking Yanzhi is a gurl and they strike up a bond. Chengen is secretly in love with Yanzhi and sets in motion a string of events to gain power and to take Yanzhi as his bride.

Love triangle? Yupe, except, Chengen is the man left out. Queue action, locked up parents, mis-communications. You've got the other half of the movie.

I was surprised to see Hu Ge as a villain. And a villain he is. Using any means possible to force Yanzhi to marry her.

Wu Zun and Choi did not have any chemistry in my opinion. The relationship that builds up between the two of them seemed forced and un-natural.

The movie had a 1990s HK wuxia movie feel. Was it good, no. Was it entertaining, for the most part. It received such bad reviews in general, that I was expecting it to suck really bad. Of which, it didn't. Sometimes, the hype that comes with a film doesn't do it justice. Wu Zun and Hu Ge will need another venture to break into the film world.

I couldn't find a trailer on youtube, but the film site has it. Who knows how much longer the film site will be up.

BOTY 2009 - Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan

BOTY Taiwan 2009 was held this past fourth of July in Taipei. The results were:
Semifinal 1: Top Coalition vs. Formosa
Semifinal 2: HRC vs. Hyper Kids
Final Battle: Formosa vs. HRC
Winner: Formosa
source

BOTY Singapore 2009 was held on May 23rd. The results were:
Semifinal: Radical Forze vs. Crest Fallen
Semifinal: Floor Techniques vs. Fuyo
Final: Radical Forze vs. Floor Techniques
Winner: Radical Forze Crew
source

BOTY Malaysia 2009 was held on May 30th and 31th. The results were:
Semifinal: Project Elementz Crew vs. Giller Battle Crew
Semifinal: Famous Crew vs. Wakaka Fever
Final: Giller Battle Crew vs. Wakaka Fever
Winner: Giller Battle Crew
source

BOTY Japan 2009 was held on July 5th. The results were:
Semifinal: Mortal Combat vs. Kaiten Ninja
Semifinal: All Area Crew vs. Body carnival
Final: All Area Crew vs. Mortal Combat
Winner: All Area Crew
source

Korea - July 12
China - July 17
Thailand - July 25

BOTY Asia - August 1 in Singapore

BOTY 2008, Formosa also represented Taiwan.

Japan and Korea have dominated this past decade. Let's see if the other Asian countries can consistently get to the final four.

Forever Enthralled - 梅蘭芳

Forever Enthralled (梅蘭芳) is a 2008 film out of China. The movie stars Leon Lai and Zhang Ziyi and directed by Chen Kaige. The movie is about Mei Lanfang, a famous Beijing Opera performer.

I remember growing up with Chinese opera on in the background on the radio and occasionally on the television. That's because my grandfather was a huge fan and liked having it on. I can't be certain if it was Beijing Opera or not, but it was a form of Chinese opera.

The movie starts with a early years of Lanfang. Which is not played by Leon Lai. By the time Leon Lai made it to the screen, it was 30+ minutes into the movie and I was bored as heck. I stopped. Didn't even see Zhang ziyi appear on screen.

I didn't finish the movie. I may pick it up again to watch when I get more time or am in the mode to think my head off.

I couldn't find a trailer, but just news clips on YouTube.

Death Trance - 棺材的傳說

Death Trance (棺材的傳說) is a 2005 film out of Japan. It's directed by Yuji Shimomura of Versus fame. Starring Tak Sakaguchi of Versus fame and Steven Segal's son, Kentaro Seagal.

The film is a mess. A bloody mess. Tak is on a rampage, killing or beating everyone up in his path. Seeking the ultimate fight apparently. News of a coffin with some special powers makes its rounds and everyone starts to look for it. Tak finds it and starts on a journal to find the ultimate fight.

The gore is lame and the fighting is even more so. I want my 90 minutes back.

紫玫瑰 - Reseate-Love - Upcoming

紫玫瑰 (Reseate-Love) is a idol drama out of Taiwan that's set to broadcast starting July 12, 2009 on CTS and eventually GTV. The drama stars Rachel Liang and Tender.

The title in Chinese is "Purple Rose". From the TV spots, it looks like a purple rose made of paper has stuff written on it or multiple roses on a daily basis. Tender does look a little older than Rachel. But that's how it normally is. Male actors can go into their late 30s and female actors lose their appeal once they hit their mid 30s. It's not fair, but that's how it is. There are exceptions of course.

I don't think this drama is high on my list of things to watch. But I like Rachel and wish her luck with her first major starring role.

300th Blog Post

Officially, this is my 300th blog post. About a year ago, I had just gotten roughly 20 posts in a matter of about one month. Which more than double all the posts prior to that. And it was pretty fun. But I still lacked a clear focus for the blog. You'll notice the shift to more of a review style with the last 200 or so posts. I am still getting the hang of this whole blogging thing. The focus now is mainly entertainment from Asia, specifically movies and dramas. Do I dive into other things? Yes, like Tammy and Victor's Amazing Race 14 run for the 1 million dollar prize. America's Best Dance Crew. You get the point.

History of Populasian
I would be lying if I said I came up with the term Populasian. It was actually a "project" that sprung to life in the fall of 1999, almost 10 years ago. A get together of a bunch of people that had grown up together from the late 80s through the mid 90s happened. We had all grown up, but now went to different universities and relocated out of the area. But, for some reason, we all got together that one day. As a result of that get together, we said, let's put up a website where we can keep track of each other and "write" stuff about the Asian American experience (much like what a facebook group does). Many names where thrown into the pot for the name of the website. I cannot remember the name I suggested. Populasian eventually became the unanimous winner. So, I happened to be the tech geek and set up the website. The website never came to be much other than me parking it as participation became like pulling teeth. Now, its resurrected as the name for my blog.

History of Populasian as a blog
Started September 2006 over on Xanga
Switched over to Blogger/Blogspot in November 2008
Started a mirror at Wordpress for my Taiwan posts in February 2009

Top 5 Most Viewed Posts
1. Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles
2. 敲敲愛上你 - Knock Knock Loving You - Upcoming Part 2
3. 痞子英雄 - Black & White - Upcoming
4. Cheer Chen-Immortal - 陳綺貞-太陽
5. Destined To Love You on LA 18 KCSI (命中註定我愛你)

I Recommended These 5 Posts To Get To Know Populasian
1. The Heights - Hacienda Heights, Rowland Heights, Walnut, and Diamond Bar
2. 天使情人 - Angel Lover
3. Amazing Race 14 - Tammy and Victor - Leg 12 - Finale
4. 倚天屠龍記 - Yi Tian Tu Long Ji - Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre - 2009 - Upcoming
5. Dance Of The Dragon - 龍之舞 - 龙之舞

Twitter - http://twitter.com/populasian1999
Drama Wiki - http://wiki.d-addicts.com/User:Populasian

Out of Control - 過界

Out of Control (過界) is 2008 film out of China starring Guo Tao and Li Xiao-Ran.

Guo is on the run and picks up the hitchhiking Li. They soon become a pair and explore the China countryside. Guo is on the run because he kills a guy.

The movie is whacked and I didn't understand it much. Maybe because I fast forward through a lot of stuff. I did try to understand it and give it shot. Don't watch it.

Bodyguard: A New Beginning

Bodyguard: A New Beginning is a 2008 film about the Hong Kong triads that toogles between Hong Kong and London.

The story is about a power struggle between Kai and Wong. Wong has been in power for over 40 years. Kai is a foreigner in Hong Kong looking to move into someone else's territory. Wong's son Yuen eagerly wants to take over for his old man. When Wong suspects that a secret may be in danger, he sends his best bodyguard to London to protect her from afar. They eventually meet as he rescues her and they get it on.

Back in HK, Yuen is secretly working with Kai to oust Wong. But Wong has eyes in the sky and knows all. Things turn ugly and everyone fights at the end.

The movie was interesting as it was mainly in English. There's Cantonese scattered in 30% of the dialogue, but there were subs to move it along.

In all, it wasn't bad and certainly wasn't good. But I enjoyed it as I fast forwarded through roughly 20% of the movie.

If you didn't know, Carl and Richard are real life father and son.