Kartun loves playing Sims 2. Kartun also loves watching cartoons and anime. So I thought, “Hey! Why not create some anime sims?” So I tried my skills with the Sims 2 Body Shop and came up with the following anime sims. I started with some Dragon Ball characters first and worked my way towards some of my favourite anime.

Yah… You are right. This is Vegeta, Gokou’s formidable foe. Not bad, especially with the extremely toned body. I had to make him run countless number of times on the exercise machine to achieve that. I downloaded the hair from somewhere but I wasn’t satisfied. Can Vegeta look better with another hairstyle?

Oh!!! This is definitely much better than the fire spikes that he always sported!

Of course, I had to create Bulma, Vegeta’s wife to complete the family:

Eyes are a bit too small, but a pretty girl nonetheless. The hair colour is just right Liek the normal Sims game, they fell in love and produced Trunks:

What a hunk! More handsome than Trunks from the anime… haha! I can’t wait for his sister Bura to appear..

I should try to create more anime characters

Singapore is holding its first Night F1 race on 26th September 2008. That’s a mere 5 days away! The Marina Bay area is beautifully donned up, awaiting visitors and F1 lovers. Temporary seats have also been erected for the viewers’ pleasure. The last I visited the official website, over 95% of the tickets have been sold. The only ticket left is the 3 DAY ESPLANADE PREMIER GS -STANDARD, selling at S$2,588.00!!!! Hmmm….

No, Kartun is not here to promote readers to buy the tickets. But with the recent hype about F1, I cannot help but link the current situation to animes that revolve around car racing. But before I give you my opinion, what exactly is F1 and how did it originate?

How did F1 start?
There was no such thing as Formula 1. The first ‘organised’ car race took place from Paris to Rouen in 1900. The then existing vehicles were simply raced. 

The first F1
The world’s first F1 took place on   13th May 1950 at ‘Silverstone’ Tracks in the U.K. That’s more than 50 years ago!

Some known facts
F1 car engines have a capacity of 3.0 litres/19,000 Rpm. Nowadays, F1 cars can achieve an average speed of over 300 km/h. The highest straight-line speed recorded was 356.5 km/h by David Coulthard during 1998.

Typical F1 vehicle

Cool eh?
 

Now that we know somethings about F1, let Kartun show you some of her favourite car racing animes:

1) Initial D
This anime keeps me on the edge of my seat all the time! It’s fast paced and exciting. The main character, Fujiwara Takumi drives a Toyota Trueno AE86. So how is a Trueno compared to the F1 vehicles racers use?

Well… A typical Trueno is only 1.6 litres and can top the speed at about 193 km/h. That’s a far cry from F1. But Takumi doesn’t really care, does he? The racers in Initial D race down the hill most of the time, so skill is more important than speed

2) Speedracer a.k.a. Mach Go Go Go!

Full of action, technology and danger, this anime talks about Speed Racer (a.ka. Mifune Go), who fell in love with car racing. He usually drives the Mach 5 (Thus the name Mach Go – which is 5 in Japanese). So how Mach 5 different from the typical F1 car?

Unlike the normal F1 car, Mach 5 has a series of buttons. Button A - Auto Jack, Button B – Belt Tires, Button C – Cutter, Button D – Defensor, Button E – Illuminating Eye, Button F – Frogger Mode (when Mach 5 goes under water), Button G - Gizmo Rocket and Button H - Homing Device. All of these buttons will disqualify an F1 racer. But this is anime. It makes life more interesting.

3) GPX Cyber Formula

Car racing in the future – is that how it will be? Cyber Formula is a show about F1 in the future, when race cars are equipped with computer support systems called ‘Cyber Systems’. Cool eh? The star of the show, Kazami Hayato is a mere 14 year old at the start of the show. Imagine… car racing at 14! He drives an Asurada GSX in 2015, and is continuously upgraded throughout the series.

The Asurada looks like a typical F1 vehicle, with the exception of its cyber systems within. In fact, the Asurada GSX is the first car to feature the revolutionary a Super Nero Computer as the primary cyber system. Yay! I believe that’s the way to race in the future.

There you go – Kartun’s humble opinion on F1. I don’t know how car racing will revolutionalise in the near future. Perhaps we can really have a race car like the Asurada GSX! That will be exciting! F1 engineers must work harder!

Everybody knows that a doctor is supposed to heal. Supposed to doesn’t mean that he has to follow the rules of his profession. More ofthen than not, anime doctors do not follow the rules. And it is for this reason that we love them. Kartun did some research on Anine doctors that are out of the norm and came up with the following lists:

1) Muraki Kazutaka (Yami no Matsuei)

When I first saw him, I was like “What! He’s so good looking!” But do not be deceived by his looks. He is as evil as he is handsome. This man defies most rules of his profession. Muraki is what we call a practiced hypocrite - acting as a good doctor during daylight hour, while hiding his private life as a serial killer. Kartun chills at the thought… Oh yah.. he seems be attracted to people of the same gender

2) Tofu Ono (Ranma 1/2)

This has to be one of my favourite characters in Ranma. He has to be one of the funniest doctors around. Besides being funny, the doctor is also a klutz, especially when Kasumi is around. However, despite his clumsiness, he’s an established chiropractor and acupuncturist. Again.. do not be deceived by his behaviour.

3) Dr Hiruluk (One piece)

Formaerly a thief (he looks like a joker), this doctor excels and pyrotechnics and chemistry, but his expertise in the field of medicine is left to be questioned. He even uses some explosives to treat his patients. Ah.. too bad for the inhabitants of Drum Island. “Give me the Cherry Blssom drink!”

4) Dr Slump aka Senbei Norimaki

Do not compare him with the 3 doctors that I have mentioned. And it’s not because he looks like a potato. He does not practice medicine (although sometimes he dons the formidable white robe) but science! A genius inventor from penguin Village, he created Arale – a not-so-conventional lady robot. He’s also knwn to have made a time machine, an invisibility drink, a talking alarm clock, etc, etc…

5) Dr Tenma (Astroboy)

I must repeat – do not be deceived by looks. He’s not a horse breeder! This horseman invented Astroboy. Furthermore, he’s the Japanese Minister of Science and a genius in robotics. Unfortunately, he’s a bit cold-hearted, having kicked our beloved astro away when he found no use in the latter. But we can forgive him as he later helped astro by increasing his power and even rebuilt him

There you go, Kartun’s list of your not so conventional anime doctors. Come to think of it, doctors are always associated with white robes. I wonder what’s the significance of the white robe? Is it because doctors are supposed to be “angels” rescuing the common people from pain? Hmmmm… so much for the unconventional doctors

It’s almost the end of the year. Most of the young ones out there are busy preparing or are going to be busy preparing for exams, if I’m not wrong. Is exam all about studying?

Kartun knows the excruciating pain you have to go through in order to pass those papers – late night mugging, last minute revision, caffeine-infiltrated nervous system, exam jittery, etc, etc. As such, Kartun wastes no time to find out the most effective study methods of famous “smart” anime personnels. Let us all learn from them their secrets and how they tackle exams to pass with flying colours!

1) Light Yagami (Death Note)
Who can give a more intelligent answer than Light? This 17 year old aces all his exams until he is bored! Kartun slowly approaches Light to learn his secret…

Kartun: Good morning Light (sounds corny). Can you let us know your secret(s) to passing all your exams with flying colours?

Light: Exams? That’s so boring!! I have photographic memory. You’re disturbing my thoughts.. Is Kartun your real name (takes out his trusty black book)?

Kartun: Er… Thanks Light. Gotta go! (Kartun does not forget to grab her ID…)

2) Son Gohan (Dragonball Z)
Looks can be deceiving. This muscular hunk and part-time fighter scored full marks (yes!) for his entrance exam into Orange Star high school. Despite his busy schedule, he can still do it. What’s his secret?

Kartun: Hallo Gohan! We know how busy you are – working as a scientist, fighting crime and taking care of your family. Let’s get straight to the point – what’s your secret to scoring full marks for your exams?

Gohan: (Looking a bit shy…) Secrets? Hmmm… (Thinks hard)

Kartun: Yes! Your secrets so that all those out there who are suffering can learn

Gohan: Ok.. I do love to help people. Let’s see, first you need family support. My mom was always there to make sure that I studied and studied hard! Next, don’t forget to play too. I always sneaked out and enjoyed myself while she was not looking. Thirdly, you got to have a goal in mind. For me I had always wanted to be a scientist. So I worked towards fulfilling that goal.

Kartun: Wow! Thanks Gohan! I’m sure a lot of readers out there can learn from you

3) Shikamaru Nara (Naruto)
With an IQ over 200, Kartun is sure that this is the next person to dig those exam passing secrests. How else can he be the only junin that passed the chonin exam?

Kartun: Shikamaru san! Nice to meet you. I know you don’t like to be troubled, but I’m sure that your fans out there would love to learn your secrets to tackling those troublesome exams with ease.

Shikamaru: Shiken wa mendokusai! It’s too troublesome to take exams. I don’t like taking exams… (With that he walks away!)

Kartun: …..

4) Sailor Mercury aka Mizuno Ami (Sailor Moon)
This is not the kind of girl one would expect. Sailor Mercury boasts an IQ of over 300 (higher than Shikamaru!!). She’s good at all her subjects. She looks good. And she fights crime. The anime world is unfair…

Kartun: Ami, can you tell us all how do you ever keep a figure like that? (ok. Kartun side tracked)

Ami: Huh? I thought this is about exams? What figure? Maths? (kartun whispered a few words to her ears). Oh haha.. Hmm… Fighting crime keeps me in shape

Kartun: I see… (Kartun is thinking of switching career). Let’s get back to the main topic. How about exams? What’s your secret to scoring A’s?

Ami: Hehe… I really don’t have any secrets. I study, play and eat as per normal. Maybe I do have a secret: I fight crime as well! Oh no.. it’s supposed to be a secret… I should go, bye!

Kartun: Wait…. (Ami disappeared)

Despite 3 failed attempts to dig the secret out of these anime characters, Kartun won’t give up. I’ll try one last time with:

5) Arale (Dr Slump)
An ultra strong, ultra fast, ultra energetic little girl (ahem..) who seems to know the answers to many mind boggling exam questions. Kartun approaches her cautiously…

Kartun: (Catching a speeding Arale) Wait! Please share with us your secrets to answering the exams questions correctly!

Arale: (Spins around and saw Kartun) Oh.. stranger! Intruder! (Arale dashes towards Kartun and gives her a headbutt!)

Kartun: @#*@##

Hmmm… yah… there you have it, the smart anime personnels’ secrets to acing exams. Kartun is still suffering from Arale’s headbutt which has sent her flying in to space and back… Groan @_@