First lines

Ran by Half-Price Books at lunch today and got rachelmanija another Joe Lansdale book, The Two-Bear Mambo, as part of my campaign to get her to read his Hap and Leonard mystery/suspense series*. Cracked it open while I was eating to pass the time, and was reminded yet again of rachelmanija's post on fabulous first sentences and why you should have them.

When I got over to Leonard's Christmas Eve night, he had the Kentucky Headhunters turned way up over at his place, and they were singing "The Ballad of Davy Crockett," and Leonard, in a kind of Christmas celebration, was once again setting fire to the house next door.

Does anyone here not want to read on after that?




* As you all should.

Engrish report: Saiyuki Reload Gunlock Ep. 5

Apparently what I called Ep 3 last time was really Ep 4. Ah well, no biggie.

Ep 5 doesn't have a whole lot of really funny Engrish in it, other than some hideously tortured grammar (that I won't put examples of here, since it has to do with plot and it's still following the manga Against the Stream arc, and would be possible spoilers), and some sentences where they sort of took a wild guess at the correct pronoun, including one passage where, I swear, there was not a single instance of "He", "I", or "You" used correctly.
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Random youkai holding a small child hostage: She is playing the flute?

I don't think this is a mistranslation per se, but it's such an ineffectual threat that it makes me laugh. The mother of said small child shouts at the youkai - who is, BTW, threatening to kill the child: "If you do anything evil to my children, I will never forgive you!!" Bzuh? As a threat, this really strikes me as on par with someone typing in all caps, "IF YOU HURT HIM I WILL DEFRIEND YUR LIVEJOURNAL!! AND I KNOW YOUR I.P. ADDRESS! !"

And then a bit later on the brother of said small child uses the exact same threat. Woo. Mindless youkai killing machine! You won't forgive him if he hurts your friend! OH GOD HOW CAN HE STAND IT?

Eye of Argon ending!

A millmilestone in history! They found the ending to The Eye of Argon!