Comments on: Alter announces school uniform Haruhi, Shuffle’s Asa

By: rANDOM

rANDOM — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 11:46:10 +0000

they seriously need to fix up the asa or else its not gunna sell
i mean… look at it

By: Nyx

Nyx — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 08:26:21 +0000

I also agree with Hinsoog. While I definitely wouldn’t want to push Shingo into continuing if he’s not up to it (whatever the reason) there really is no substitution. To be honest, I truly miss the frequent updates and the invaluable info given to us English speaking figure collectors. Recently I have found myself scouring Japanese sites trying to make out the info using half baked translation tools.

I do wish there was something I could do to help. I can see how the stress or burnout could occur, but maybe with help we could make Heisei Demo active again. I don’t know exactly what I’d do but just offering in case it’s possible.

By: Y

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 23:19:19 +0000

Hinsoog I completely agree. Shingo and his site are peerless. I visited Choo once and couldn’t figure out what the hell he was trying to inform everyone about. That site is all over the place, with superficial posts and a layout that gives me aneurysms.

I wish my Japanese skills were adequate, I could at least help myself in getting more info or better yet collaborate with Shingo. I tried searching through 2chan for Hobby Japan previews and somehow ended up in their “guro” section – oh the horror!

By: Regal

Regal — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 11:56:15 +0000

heh, well said Hinsoog. I’ve only just discovered and delved into this site in the last month and the coverage is so extensive and in tune with my specific interests… it amazes me. I’ve been checking back every day of July to read more of the past news and reviews and see if Shingo is back in action.

AX may have took more of a mental toll on him than he originally thought. Hopefully he’s just relaxing with the summer. HD is an incredible site so I hope he revives his passion if that’s what flamed out ^^

By: the_pseudokings

the_pseudokings — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 11:33:00 +0000

HD, when active, is undoubtedly the best new figure news site I’ve found that is in English (Moeyo is the best of all, though I can’t read it and the pictures are kind of small, but they update constantly and cover things very well).

As far as WoW or burnout, I can see it happening. I know if I was in his shoes when Little Big Planet comes out people would be wondering what the hell happened to me, ’cause I KNOW I’m gonna be completely addicted to it:)

By: blacklotus

blacklotus — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 09:49:49 +0000

>> Hinsoog

I totally agree with your opinions about Shingo. He’s the 1 person who has identical interests/tastes as I have, and that’s so extremely rare. It’s like 1 in 6 billion.

And if he’s into WoW full time, I understand as well, cause I was once hooked too. Think 24×7x365 days. At work, I’m thinking of WoW. Sleeping, and I’m dreaming of it too.

Anyway, let’s pray he’s alright, and that’s he’s just taking an extended break.

Cheers to Shingo, and to all HD visitors too. 8)

By: Marvin

Marvin — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 09:14:44 +0000

@ Hinsoog,
Not as good as Shingo and not enough doujin but you can try http://www.dannychoo.com/figure/eng/ in the meantime.

By: Hinsoog

Hinsoog — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 07:39:08 +0000

NOTE: I posted this before, right before Shingo came back temporarily so no one probably seen it, and I want to paste it here because it looks like the thoughts are flowing.

But you know, in a post not too long ago, Shingo did mention that he was risking a case of burnout, so whatever can be read from that. Or hey, like Deibi said with being a bit depressed, I could certainly see that, I think I’m climbing out of my own case of it. And I think it is a bit of a climb that maybe comes with a media/hobby/figure-based lifestyle.

Well, I’d say I have been taking Shingo and his HeiseiDemocracy for granted but I know I haven’t. It’s been clear to me that for what Shingo covers for us English speakers really is peerless. Shingo you don’t seem to show it, but it’s clear to me that no one provides this sort of resource, and really is peerless for English speakers.

I mean, there are a handful of people like Danny Choo, but pfft, I’d say that what Shingo does for figure enthusiasts is beyond just a Danny Choo-like blog, it’s thorough and touches every figure I have a remote interest in, and has way more value considering his preferences alignment with many of ours. What Shingo does would be competent for a small team of journalists trying to cover the medium as it appears to me, and it seems to be mostly driven simply by his will and enthusiam, as proof by his recent burn-out and room to be abducted by WoW.

At times like these I wish Shingo did have more incentive to be giving us this resource, for example, I for one would definately pay for a subscription if needed. Shingo, the peerless and invaluable service you give to us along with the will and effort it takes to provide it is not lost on me.

Might I suggest a burn-out-resistant schedule that is much less packed than a Mainichi post and a bit less frequent, because really, I don’t think anyone has expectations as big as those Mainichi posts. I’d save that for if you did have a small team of journalists.

Oh, and when I say peerless I mean it. If Shingo quit completely, I mean really, is there a replacement? I haven’t found one.

By: DJnerate

DJnerate — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 06:44:44 +0000

Well, it isn’t the first time he’s gone on an extended break. And he’s been blogging nearly constantly for who knows how long, I can’t remember. Everyone takes a break from their hobbies once in a while.

Or maybe he really is hooked on WoW. Maybe working on new doujin (C74 coming up iirc). Maybe PC blew up or fucked up. He might even have been arrested. You can get held for 23 days without charge here. That’s pretty unlikely though.

By: Deibi Manabu

Deibi Manabu — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 06:27:23 +0000

That’s what makes me think it’s possible that it’s a lack of interest. Sometimes we get depressed and don’t even want to let people know anything.

Maybe he got sick just like that – if so, he couldn’t really tell us until he got better..

By: FS-fan

FS-fan — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 03:49:10 +0000

@Deibi Manabu:

As much as I hope that (a loss of interest) isn’t the case , if it were I would think the least that could be done would be a formal announcement that the site is on probation until further notice. At this rate, any returning visitors, such as ourselves, are completely left in the dark as to whether HD is still functioning or not.

By: Y

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 12:19:45 +0000

Maybe he got…married (gasp!)

By: Deibi Manabu

Deibi Manabu — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 08:35:12 +0000

Well, I suppose he’s not really as interested in the coverage of these things as he used to be. Happens to us all at some point. Maybe he’s just gone on a holiday at the last second – or maybe aliens got him? O_O

By: Steve

Steve — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 05:09:23 +0000

Well… What happened with My Opinion? lol

I said that.. Firts Of All, I hope Shingo Is Ok!…
Then I also want to see the Hobby japan Preview Scans!!!. The nes from MegaHouse :)

By: rishidan

rishidan — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 05:25:58 +0000

I had HD set as one of my browsers home pages and used to look forward to checking the site every night.