Blog Archives
What Do I Listen To While Writing Power Rangers Guardians of Gaia?
So, I’ve been writing my Power Rangers fanfic for a while now. Between the two ‘seasons’, the story is currently resting at 26 chapters long with 170,556 words. In other words, it’s the largest single project I’ve ever done, unless you count every article on my blog and add them all up together. However, one thing I’ve always liked to allude to is what I’m listening to while writing certain scenes. So, I’m here now to set the record straight as to exactly what I listen to as I write Power Rangers Guardians of Gaia.
Now, obviously, while writing action scenes, I listen to a lot of Ron Wasserman. If you’re unfamiliar (which you shouldn’t be if you’re an old school PR fan, but it CAN happen), Wasserman did a LOT of the classic songs for Power Rangers, including the original Go Go Power Rangers, and came back to do the Power Rangers SPD theme and a demo for Power Rangers Mystic Force. He also did a number of remakes of his classic songs, which he released as Power Rangers Redux. Luckily, a lot of Wasserman tunes work perfectly for certain scenes of my fic. For example, in Chapter 9, ‘Knight of the Wind’ (which is also a song I listen to sometimes when I write Patrick in action, FYI), when Pat is making his big comeback against the monster, this is pretty much the intended tune to play along with the scene:
When the Wizard Ranger, who has plenty of gold on his suit and fights a lot like a combo of the Gold Zeo Ranger and the Solaris Knight, leaps in to help the team, a lot of times I listen to this:
And so on. However, on top of a lot of those themes, there’s also a mashup produced on YouTube of one of Wasserman’s songs that I’ve become rather taken with and listen to a lot…
Also, just the instrumental of Welcome To The Family on its own is a great song for writing PR action scenes to. Oh, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t bring up one of my favourite things to listen to while writing people kicking ass, and in particular during the opening to ‘Guardians of Gaia, Awaken! Part 2’: The soundtrack to Metal Gear Rising Revengeance, specifically…
Or hey, remember the two part finale to Season 1, ‘Into Darkness’, when they charged the Blots on horseback?
I also sometimes listen to music from Super Sentai. For example, in ‘Sisters’, there’s a moment where Layla and Madilyn team up to fight a monster, and for whatever reason, this was what was playing in my head as I was writing and I HAD to put it on:
Then there’s that scene in ‘Always A Ranger Part 3’ where…well, I don’t wanna ruin it too much for anyone who hasn’t read it, but let’s just say that the Gaia Rangers band together with some new allies to fight a horde of monsters led by Dradarius himself, and I HAD to use this song. And you’ll have to forgive the quality, since there was never an official release of this, though there IS a piano cover on YouTube…
And during the fight scene that followed THAT up, I listened to THIS awesome mashup:
But enough of the action scenes, let’s talk about some of the other moments in the fic. Now, this is a case where I wish there was a lot more of the background music for the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers available, but unfortunately, for whatever reason, many of those were never released to the public. So, a lot of times, I gotta go outside the box with other stuff. Now, obviously, for moments like Dradarius sitting on the Dark Throne in the Abyssial Fortress, there’s only one theme that could fit the scene perfectly, which thankfully IS available, and has actually been covered and remixed a few different times on YouTube:
However, for other moments of the villains plotting or being menacing, particularly Walker and Darkea, I find myself listening to this more often than not:
And that’s not the only scene I’ve used music from Kingdom Hearts for. For example, remember that heart-breaking scene from ‘Sisters’ that I thought people were gonna kill me for? Well, here’s what I was listening to during that sequence. By all means, re-read that scene with this playing in your headset:
I actually use that for a lot of sad scenes, especially those centered around Layla and Madilyn. And remember in ‘Indigo Nightmare’ where the team entered the Well of Regret? Well…
Anyway, that’s enough of Kingdom Hearts. For other emotional scenes (not necessarily sad), like Drayden and Nikki’s talk in ‘Crying Out For Mummy’, here’s a nice little tune I like to pop in and listen to:
And lastly, for relatively silly moments, like when Madilyn is being…well, Madilyn, here’s a pretty on-the-nose song that I turn on:
So yeah, that pretty much covers everything, other than a few random songs I listen to here and there. Lemme know what you think about this unofficial soundtrack for my fic, as well as if you ever do the same thing while writing or drawing or the like. Ja né!
…Oh, and last of all, for the Lightless showing up in the next chapter…well… … …:)
Jyger’s Favourite 10?! – 10 Favourite Animated Women of All Time
Okay, same rules apply last time, only this time I’m looking at 10 of my all time favourite animated women. So let’s go ahead and kick this off with one I’m sure some were probably surprised wasn’t in the animated hotties list…
#1 – Wonder Woman from Justice League
Although I also count the 2009 movie version as tied with it, since they’re both different takes on the same character and are both AWESOME.
Wonder Woman from the 2009 Wonder Woman Movie
I don’t get why, given my love of dark-haired strong women, but I don’t feel physically attracted to Wonder Woman. Maybe it’s just because my love of the character in other ways just completely overwhelms that. She’s an inspiration among DC Superheroes, men and women, for her strength, honour, and compassion. What I don’t get is why that seems so hard for others to get. The worst example is the version that appeared in the pilot for the 2011 Wonder Woman series that, thank goodness, never came to fruition. Then again, as Lewis Lovhaug has brought up, she IS something of a walking contradiction at times, because while she IS the most compassionate and loving of the Justice League, if you wanna fight a war, you bring Wonder Woman. Still, if you want good examples of her, watch the 2009 movie or the Justice League cartoon.
#2 – Tish from The Weekenders
I know a lot of people really liked the show Recess, but I was always way more into The Weekenders, and Tish is easily my favourite part of the show. Intelligent, clever, witty, and also possessing the occasional hilarious quirk. I think my favourite is when she starts talking like cheesy old-school detectives for an entire weekend after having a marathon of detective movies…Just trust me, it’s funnier than I’m making it sound.
#3 – Yuki Nagato from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
Yeah, kinda saw this coming, huh? What with the character N. Harmonik played on my show basically being Yuki. I really feel like they should’ve done a spin-off show that centres around her. I’ve already reviewed one of my favourite episodes of the show, which really helps to show just why Nagato is so awesome. In addition to that, while they technically aren’t in canon with either the show or the manga, I highly recommend watching the episodes of Haruhi-chan that centre around her. They are some of the funniest things I have EVER seen, and while she occasionally breaks out of her usual character, she mostly stays true to it just enough to make what she does in the show all the funnier.
#4 – Dawn from Pokémon
I’ve mentioned this before, but Dawn is easily my favourite of the female protagonists from the Pokémon anime. First off, she wasn’t really so much a tomboy like Misty or May were before her, which made her a bit more fresh a character to have around. She was also quite clever with her moves in Contests, and as I’ve brought up before, she acted as a bit of an inspiration for Ash, her Contest moves giving Ash ideas for tactics to use in battle. And when she was down in the dumps and on her losing streak, you genuinely felt bad for her. I think my favourite episodes of hers was when they went to Veilstone City and Dawn helped to bring Maylene out of her funk with a Gym Battle, then went on to cheer both Maylene and Ash in their battle the next episode.
#5 – Raven from Teen Titans
Like I said before, Raven was just pure awesomeness on Teen Titans. A lot of times she acted as a foil for Beast Boy and his repeated failed attempts at being funny, which honestly I found WAY funnier than anything Beast Boy ever did on his own. The dark nature of her powers and, in turn, her personality, made her unique on a team that was usually pretty bright and chipper. But as time went on, you really saw just how much her friends really mattered to her, to the point where her sort of heel turn was only done so that her friends would remain unharmed, and even then it was the love for her friends and their love for her that brought her back to good.
#6 – Cybersix from…well, Cybersix
Huh, I sense a number 6 theme. Anyway, Cybersix is just awesome in every way. I mean really, can you get much more badass than a super-heroine who leaps from building-tops, getting the drop on mutants in a kickass costume she stole from a prostitute?…Okay, that little bit wasn’t in the cartoon, just the comics. However, seeing as how they never addressed where it came from in the show, I therefore consider it to still be canon in the cartoon. Also, in a nice twist on the old-fashioned cunning disguise of a pair of hipster glasses, she also disguises herself as a man to hide her identity…so that she can spend more time with her love interest…Okay, suddenly this turned kinda stalkerish. lol
#7 – Rika Nonaka from Digimon
Rika played an interesting position on the Digimon Tamers team, as the one with all the attitude on previous teams (and every team since) was a boy. Yeah, she kind of had a more antagonistic relation to the team early on, but as time went by, she came to accept the fact that they were a team and that these were her friends. Also, she was the most adept at DigiModifying in battle, and unlike other female DigiDestined to come before her, her partner actually reached the Mega Level, though admittedly one other female DigiDestined has reached the same achievement, and two of Rika’s predecessors reached the Mega Level in the Digimon Adventure game for the PSP.
#8 – Sailor Mars from Sailor Moon
The most hot-tempered (and hot bodied, :3) of the Sailor Scouts, Sailor Mars is easily my favourite character of that show. Armed with the fire of Mars and the abilities of a Shinto priestess, Rei Hino served as the second-in-command of the team, and probably one of the more potent fighters of the group. As I mentioned before, she had a bit of an attitude problem early on in that she refused to acknowledge Serena as the leader, but put yourself in her shoes (which might be hard, considering I have NO idea how she runs and fights in those high heels, but whatever): You’re one of the strongest and most talented members of the team, and yet THIS klutz…
…is the leader. You don’t know why, you don’t know what she could’ve possibly done to deserve it, you’re just asked to accept it. Would YOU be okay with that? After the truth of Serena’s past as Princess of the Moon Kingdom was revealed, though, and more of Serena’s more compassionate side came out, Rei kinda chilled a little bit, and most of her issues with Serena afterwards was more friendly rivalry/teasing.
For me, Akiza is easily the greatest female character from the entirety of Yugioh. She has the sex appeal and raw Dueling talent of Mai Valentine and Alexis Rhodes, and when she realised that Yusei was trying to help her, she gained the appreciation for friendship of Téa Gardner without having to become a glorified cheerleader. She was also a Psychic Duelist, and could materialise Duel Monsters for real, an ability that saved their asses more than once. I do wish that she had gained an advanced Synchro Monster like Yusei and Jack did, but considering that by the end she was still able to kick some ass without one, she may not have needed it.
So yeah, yer thinking to yourself, “Go ahead, Jyger. We know who #10 is, so just get it over with”. Well, believe it or not, my last pick might just surprise you a bit…
#10 – Barbara Gordon from Batman: The Animated Series
Yes, I’ve gone on and on and on about how hot Poison Ivy is. However, the fact is, I find Barbara’s run throughout Batman: The Animated Series, as well as her role in Batman Beyond, to make her a bit more interesting character to follow. She started her run in the show as just Commissioner Gordon’s daughter and a love interest for Dick Grayson, which inevitably got her into trouble at times, but she eventually decided to don her own cape and cowl, becoming Batgirl. At first, Bruce and Dick weren’t all that pleased by her presence, but after a while, Bruce welcomed her onto the team, becoming Batman’s partner whenever Robin wasn’t available. At some point after the death of the Joker, she retired her position and became a cop, eventually rising to the same position her father had once held, which is admittedly very different from what became of her in the comics, but still makes sense from a storyline perspective. I like it. What I don’t like is the idea that her and Bruce were in a romantic relationship at some point…Ew…She was initially distrustful of Terry, AKA Batman Beyond, but after some time working together, they eventually came to have a similar relationship her father had once had with Batman in a sort of everything-old-is-new-again type of deal.
So that’s my 10 Favourite Animated Women of All Time. Now if you’re wondering why certain women aren’t on here, don’t worry, I plan to do a list of honourable mentions later, but for now, this is the list as it stands. Feel free to discuss below and also compile your own lists if you’d like. Ja né!
Jyger’s Rant – The Day of Sagittarius Review (Blip Version)
Another of my classic reviews where N. Harmonik makes her début, setting up for my first review of an episode of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.
Also, I apologize ahead of time if you can’t hear either of us all that well, this was back when my webcam was being a little bitch. lol
Images, video, and music belong to The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Star Trek, The Muppets, Yugioh, and as always, I Fight Dragons.
Oh, and once again, I remind that while the overall storyline I had back in the day is no longer canon, N. Harmonik’s character remains an android built by aliens.
Jyger's Rant 