Monster Movie Muzak!

Monster Movie Muzak!

For a while I've had some You Tube compilations of various assorted title music from a number of my favorite creature features from the '50s and '60s. I noticed a few (Lost Continent, Angry Red Planet, etc.) were missing from the selections.

On searching for them I decided to You Tube the whole film, Lost Continent (Lippert, 1951.) just for the opening credits music. I noticed the composers' name, Paul Dunlap, in the creds and decided to use the You Tube search option in the hopes I could get the isolated opening score. Much to my delight I found two compilations of Mr. Dunlaps' music, the first of which started off with the very selection I was looking for.

Below are links to the various Sci-Fi movie music compilations I've downloaded. If you want to save these selections (Or anything else from You Tube!) to your hard drive then go to savefrom.net and follow the instructions. I've found it to be a VERY handy online site for grabbing stuff from You Tube and Dailymotion.


Giant Monster Music here.

Classic '50s Sci-Fi themes here.

Classic '50s Sci-Fi themes pt. 2 here.

Film Music of Paul Dunlap pt. 1 here.

Film Music of Paul Dunlap pt. 2 here.

Why Highschool of the Dead Is Better Than The Walking Dead

I find this character much more intriguing than
that sullen creature on The Walking Dead.

Why Highschool of the Dead Is Better Than The Walking Dead


Off the Top of My Head ...

First, let's get this straight. NEITHER show is treading new ground. IT'S ALL BEEN DONE BEFORE. The recently dead rise, walk the earth and eat the living. DONE TO DEATH AND BEYOND. I really don't understand the popularity of such shows except that perhaps "zombies" are comparitively cheap to portray than other monsters and thus dough is saved in making this krap.

I only have THREE, yes, three such movies/shows in my collection. The original Night of the Living Dead from '68, Return of the Living Dead (Funny AND disturbing and I'm not talking Linnea Quigley!), and High School of the Dead. An ... Uh oh! ... ANIME!

I don't need any more. The rest is garbage ... Including The Walking Dead.

High School of the Dead, yes again, an anime, is the latest I have. You Tubed it before and picked it up on impulse as a used copy at Half Price Books. Certainly wasn't going to pay full price for it. It was the combo of the genres that got to me.

The fan service? Admittedly, that had a part. It's so exagerated and over the top that I'm still deciding wether to take THAT seriously or not. Is it meant to titillate or satorise? Probably both.

As for it being better than The Walking Dead, here goes ...

1. Brevity - HOTD is 12 half hour episodes. That's it. TWD is an hour each, into it's 5th season and never seems to end. Shoot! Tell your dang story and move on!

2. Character development - In HOTD you have just enough of it without getting into a Marvel Comics treatment/analysis. Also the "main" characters stick around and aren't killed off just after you've gotten attatched to them as in TWD.

3. Lack of "message" or agenda - HOTD being a product of a monoracial/monocultural society, reflects that. Unlike TWD, it doesn't have a "polite", PC/diversity driven, pro-feminist undertone in an effort to appeal to the masses of asses.

The problem with most mass media sci-fi/horror made here is that it's nothing more than stories about todays social issues "set in outer space" or whatever fantastical backdrop the show is trying to depict.

4. HOTD doesn't take itself seriously. - Or rather its fans don't. I've run into TWD "believers" who think "theirs" is GOSPEL.

Seriously. Folks who scoffed loud and long at me when I was into the survivalist movement back in the '80s are now giving me "tips" on staying alive ... Tips they got from TWD!

I comment that anyone going around eliminating opponents, undead or otherwise, with a sword or a Black 'n Decker, get what they deserve. If you're close enough to touch someone, they're close enought to touch YOU. If they're within arms length, you have failed to defend yourself. Shoot 'em!

"OH NO!" They chide. "The object is to survive. You must save your ammo."

The time to "save" your ammo is when you're out shopping at the hardware store, NOT when you're fighting for your life. THAT'S the time to "waste" ammo (It's not waste when you make every shot count however.).

"OOOOO! But you can't shoot them! The sound will attract more!"

Now were sorta' kinda' getting in to the realm of "Who would win in a fight? Superman or Mighty Mouse?" Superman of course. He's a real person!

Sigh ... Both HOTD and TWD are FANTASIES. Neither one should be taken seriously. Neither one should be considered a guide to tactical combat or crisis management. As much as we like our shows ... zombies are impossible.

That and anyone taking their tactical ques from movies/shows and utilizing them in an actual street situation are asking for a world of hurt.

5. Honesty - HOTD is a cartoon that doesn't present itself as anything else. TWD is a pretentious load a' bull trying to pass itself off as some kind of existential tour de force.

Being honest with myself, I'll go with the former.

Jus' sayin ...


The Zombie Apocalypse That Never Was here.

Not so HOTD here.

"Trailer" to a nonexistant HOTD season 2 here. Actually a compilation of shots from the show.


Go to Jays' Tee Vee blog main page here. Any articles under this 'un, yer there already.

Girls und Panzer Abridged: A Review

The girls and their Panzer 4. L-R: Saori Takebe, Mako Reizei,
Yukari Akiyama, Commander Miho Nishizume and Hana Isuzu.

Girls und Panzer Abridged: A Review


Stumbled across this on You Tube. Give it a try!


Episode 1 - Miho enters her new school, meets new friends ...

Hana: "Hey look! It's the new girl!

Saori: "Why does she smell like vomit and shame?"

Hana: "Hey!"

Miho: "Oh look! ... A wild lesbian appeared."

Hana: "What did that b---- just say!?"


... is "persuaded" to pick "Tankery" (Why do I cringe when I hear that!?) as her mandatory elective ...

Anzu (In raspy, masculine voice.): "Awright! Listen up Maggots! We're starting up Tankery again ... You like tanks?"

Crowded auditorium: "YAY!"

Anzu: " 'Course ya do! Bitches love tanks!"


... and the new teams assemble for their first meeting.

Erwin: "Vait! ... Vhere are ze panzers?!"

Anzu: "Your problem Little Miss Hitler! Not mine!"

Anzu Kadotani. In the actual series, she says this in a MUCH nicer way.

Episode 2 - The girls find some tanks ...

Momo (On cell phone.): "-'Sup?"

Saori: "Yo! Bitch! We found a tank!"

Momo: "I'll get the illegals in the auto shop to pick it up."


... and receive hands-on training.

Miho: Wait ... Are you using live ammunition?"

Erwin: "Vell ja ... Ze intent vas to kill you, nein?"

Hana: "What? No!"

Erwin: "Oh scheiss! It vasn't? ... Oh vell. (Turns to gunner.) NOW KILL THEM!"

"I like how you guys took the idea of camouflage
and just ... threw it out the window."

Episode 3 - The girls prepare for their first competition ...

Miho: "I like how you guys took the idea of camouflage and just ... threw it out the window."

Erwin: "I wanted a schvastika, but neinnnnn! Havin' zese nazis vere baaaaad people!"


... practice further, receiving praise from Momo ...

Momo: "OK ... so ... Second day practice went well. I despise all of you a little less than before ... and THAT ... in and of itself ... is an accomplishment."

Unspecfied Team Member: "Who put YOU in charge!?"

Momo : "Anzu ... Go ask her about it ... She looooves being questioned."

UTM: "I withdraaaaw my question!"


So far, Gunmetal Stug has done only three episodes. The voices matched the characters better than Sentais' English dub! Definitely looking forward to the rest.

Preview for Episode 4:

Kay/Kei (Dub line of George C. Scott as Patton.): "Rommel!? ... You magnificent bastard! I READ YOUR BOOK!"

Erwin: "OH VUNDERBAR! Look everyone! Ze cowboy can reeead!"


Girls und Panzer Abridged episodes 1, 2, 3.

Girls und Panzer ... Finally! here.

I Want My Girls und Panzer ... NOW! here.

That Stupid Dance!: A Girls und Panzer fanfiction story here.

Girls und Panzerlied: A Girls und Panzer/Battle of the Bulge crossover fanfiction story here.

Girls und Panzer/Kellys' heroes here.

When Fun Is Outlawed here.

C V Fords' profile page and fanfiction story list on fanfiction.net here.

Fan Fiction.net here.


Go to Jays' Tee Vee blog main page here.

Girls und Panzer ... FINALLY!

Anglerfish team, the shows' principle characters, sitting atop the turret of their
 Panzer 4. L-R: Mako Reizei, Saori Takebe, Commander Miho Nishizumi,
Yukari Akiyama, and Hana Isuzu.

Girls und Panzer ... FINALLY!

by

Jay Agan


My Christmas present to myself FINALLY arrived on the day after: The Uninvited, a ghost story from 1944 starring Ray Milland, and the anime series Girls und Panzer. And something of a mixed bag it is.

Particularly Girls und Panzer. I had been waiting over a year to have this one in my hot little hands. I was initially attracted to this series as I'm something of a history buff and was always into the vehicles of World War II. The silly premise of "Tankery" (Tinkery, tankery, tock, the Maus ran up the clock ... Good Grief! Call it Sensha-do or Panzerfahren. Anything but THAT!) as part of a schools' athletic program screams ANIME(!) all the way. Having watched the show (Twice!) on Crunchyroll and viewed clips on You Tube countless times, I was ready for Sentai Filmworks to come out with the English dub here.

I'm somewhat disappointed with the English dub. Except for some of the minor characters, I didn't think the voices matched the characters well (Though I thought Hilary Haag, Yui in Angel Beats, was pretty good as Katyusha.). The "old pros" in the cast, (Monica Rial, Brittney Karbowski, Luci Christian, Tiffany Grant etc.) were definitely under used.

Riko "Erwin" Matsumoto: One of the series'
more interesting character designs

In Angel Beats, Sentai avoided substituting the original Japanese singing (Girldemo performances and the graduation song.) with English renditions. Here they didn't. The Anko dance singing in episode 9, sounded half hearted and clumsy as did the "snow march". The substitution of the Pravda girls singing the Katyusha in episode 8 with some kind of Russian "folk polka" music (I guess some copyright issues or something were involved.) didn't help the show either.

Being an old white guy who speaks English, I'm usually all for English dubs. In this case though, the original Japanese is far superior and I'll watch it in that in the future.

All in all I'm glad I now have this series on my shelf. Due to the "poor" English dub, I'm even gladder I got this at a reduced price through Deep Discount DVD (By way of Amazon.).


Article (only) copyright © 12-27-13 Jay Agan

Page 3, Chapter 3 from the manga. The characters seem out of scale. Should be
twice the size they are. Makes the Panzer 4 look like an absolute monster!

Wikipedia review of The Uninvited here.

Wikipedia article of Ray Milland here.

Wikipedia review of Girls und Panzer here.

Crunchyroll anime streaming website here.

Sentai Filmworks website here.

Wikipedia article on Hilary Haag here.

Wikipedia article on Monica Rial here.

Wikipedia article on Brittney Karbowski here.

Wikipedia article on Luci Christian here.

Wikipedia article on Tiffany Grant here.

Wikipedia article on Angel Beats here.

Deep Discount DVD website here.

Amazon.com website here.

The "switched out" Katyusha Girls und Panzer segment here.

Same as above but "full" version with extra footage here.

The Japanese dub "snow march" here.

Japanese Snow March here.

Girls und Panzerlied fanfiction story by C V Ford here.

Girls und Panzer "That Stupid Dance!" fanfiction story by C V Ford here.

C V Fords' profile page with list of stories on fanfiction.net here.

Two of my Girls und Panzer blog articles: 1, 2.


Go to Jays' Tee Vee blog main page here.