Well, here we are: the first column. This one's extra-long so that I could cover some of the more important questions. :-) I'd like to thank everyone who sent in a question. Don't worry if I didn't get to your question this time; I'm already formulating the next column! And, without further ado, let's get to the questions!

From reptile: Are you actually a female? =)

Um, last time I checked. :-) The Wanderer can verify that for you.
 

From BC: Is there any relation to LilyCat?

I guess I have to plead ignorance. If I knew who LilyCat was, I'd be able to give you a definite answer. The whole story of the LadyCat name is long and boring and has nothing to do with anime. Gomen.
 

From Vince Sosa: What did you think about Lain??? I loved the Bear sleeper!!! And the series looks very very deep and Introspective. What's going to happen to our dear dear Lain?

I love lain! The bear sleeper was really cool. I can't wait to see the next disc already. I don't want to even speculate on what might happen, since it still looks like virtually anything could happen. 'Course, I also really like David Lynch movies, so that kind of helps. But I think it's an excellent series. Anything that makes you think, and that you can talk about and analyze for days is good in my book.
 

From o.s. In the Tenchi OAV's, Universe, etc., why does Ryoko's tail keep on appearing and disappearing?

'Cause she's a demon and she can do whatever she wants. ;-) Seriously, I don't have a good concrete reason. I was wondering that myself the other day, and I still can't think why.

Update! This just in from Andrew. Check out this site and find out about Ryoko's Tail!

From Mara-chan Kotobuki: I was just wondering about some scenes I've seen in Magical Girl Pretty Sammy and Ranma 1/2 about the 'throwing down the sleeping bag' as a mistake in making a challenge. I assume it's a word play on glove/sleeping bag, but I don't have a dictionary that has a listing for sleeping bag.

OK. First off, let me give you the address for a really good Japanese to English/English to Japanese dictionary. You can look words up in English and romanji, search for words, names, and search by different criteria. It also gives you the kanji for some words (if the word has an asterisk, click on it and it'll show you the kanji).

Now, to answer the question. Well, kind of. I guess I'll have to admit that I haven't seen any episodes of MGPS. I also admit right off the bat that I'm not an expert on Japanese culture. I have picked up a few things, but this, unfortunately, isn't one of them. I did look up the romanji for sleeping bag (shuraafu or shuraafuzakku), and to wage war/issue a challenge (shikakeru) [I also looked up gauntlet (kougake) and glove (gurabu or guroubu)]. To me, they don't sound the same, or even similar. However, there could be another term that I didn't think of and didn't look up. The one thing that I would like to see is an online phrasebook. I'm guessing that that would probably be the place to find what you want to know. If anyone knows of a good online phrasebook, let me know.

From Otaku Densetsu: I've been dying to know what's going on with one of my favorite anime series Rurouni Kenshin. I know that Sony is releasing the series on DVD in Japan, but it seems like nothing is happening to the series in North America. I know of some fansub distributors who still distribute the Kenshin tapes claiming that no one has the rights to the show. So what is going on here? Does anyone have the rights to Rurouni Kenshin or has Sony totally lost interest in putting it out on DVD in North America?

I'm just going to quote Chris on this one, since he pretty much summed up all the scuttlebutt that I've heard:
"At present, nobody is claiming ownership of Kenshin. Sony sounded like they were pulling out at one point, but there have been rumors that one company has picked it up. It's been a mystery for many months. Sony has gone and asked previously that fansubbers stop distribution of the show."

LadyCat here again. Sony asking the fansubbers to cease and desist is probably what fueled the rumors that it was picked up. It's a logical conclusion, anyway. But, so far, all the "official" news there is is that there isn't any official news.

From Juan Arrecis: My query is in regard to show I used to watch back when I was a kid in Guatemala. I grew up with Speed Racer, Candy, Candy!, Matzinger Z, Kimba and others. Needless to say, the shows were all in Spanish and everyday around three to five in the afternoon I could be found glued to the black-and-white 19" TV. Happy memories indeed. Well, one show in particular keeps coming back to mind since I used to watch it with the whole family. The name translates to "Remi of the Alps". It's about a boy whose mother sends/sells to a traveling street performer because she is to poor to support him. The troop consisted of an older man, the master, a monkey, a dog, and Remi; the show follows the coming of age of Remi as he struggles with poverty, sadness, abandonment as well as happiness in his efforts to become a man and return for his mother. At the time I didn't know it was Anime but this show is my Robotech and holds a special place in my heart. If you know anything about it: LD availability, who made the show, how old is it, how many episodes (a lot is all I remember), fansubs, etc. I would love to hear about it. Thank you.

You have no idea of the unmitigated joy that I felt when I finally tracked this series down. Seriously. I looked all over before I finally found it. Here's the site where I found it: click me! The title that I found for it is actually "Remi the Homeless Boy". Rittai anime ienaki ko is the original Japanese title. The production company is Tokyo Movie Shinsha. Here are the vitals: Number of episodes: 52, First episode: 2nd October 1977, Last episode: 1st October 1978. There is also another version of it that's put out by World Masterpiece Theatre, but it's not as faithful to the book as this version (Remi is a girl instead of a boy, and a few other details are changed). Unfortunately, I found no mention of it being released domestically in any format, even a fansub. But I hope this helps a little, anyway.

And, of course, the final and totally wacky question . . .

From The Wanderer: How would you get yourself out of this situation. You are trapped in a small room with no means of escape. With you is Fatora and Mihoshi who is trying to eat some pudding. The only things in the room are a spoon (for the pudding) and a plush Ryo-Okhi!

P.S.S. for your information folks, she can't stand Mihoshi ;-)

Well, of course there's no way to answer this without angering someone, so here goes. (takes a deep breath)

First, I distract Mihoshi with the plush Ryo-Ohki. While she is standing there, with her gun trained on the space pirate Ryo-Ohki, I grab her and put her between Fatora and myself, which also effectively distracts Fatora. From there on out, it's just a matter of time and waiting for the gun to go off. Of course, I could always start digging with that pudding spoon. ;-)

Well, folks, that's it for this time. I'm starting on the next column, but I'm a little short on questions, so start writing!

LadyCat =^-^=

Wait, Wait!!!!!! One more question!

From Roger: Quick question off the top of my head. I know this has been discussed in the forum, but I was thinking maybe you need fodder for the column.

Thanks a lot, and I look forward to reading the column.

Well, I ordered mine from DVD Express, so I can't make a personal comment on the service from 800.com on this particular title. Of course, by the time that this column is up, everyone who ordered from 800.com will probably have gotten their copies already. The only thing that I can think of that would have contributed to the delay in shipping was that last minute bump of the street date. Or, there's always the possibility that they didn't receive their copies in time from Pioneer to make sure that everyone got their copies in a timely manner. Having worked in retail for a number of years, I must admit that distributors still make no sense to me. They seem to have their own schedules and ideas of stock that have nothing to do with the real world and/or the stores and people waiting for the products.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is that I have a bunch of theories, but no real concrete answers. :-)

Thanks for the questions, guys and catgirls. Keep 'em coming. See ya next time ;-)