Kyochuu Rettou (The Island of Giant Insects) Chapter 1 English Translation v1.5

Now, this is what I've been working on the side over the past few weeks. It even took a while to just transcribe all 54 pages on their own, but that and the 6+ hours of typesetting that I had to do and many other misc hours like SFX lookup, watermark removal on every page and such were all worth it. I'm liking the end result. Anyhow, the only reason why I did this was due to a request via email a few weeks back. He expressed his interest and that he contacted a few others but nobody wanted to translate it. However, I'm not one to be sour and not to clap for your two time tag team champions nor to not feel the power, so I said that I would do it since it actually interested me. As for why he asked me, he said that it was because I was translating Terra Formars since it also had bug stuff in it and that I might be interested. Just wanted to share that info, FYI.

Anyway, the plot of The Island of Giant Insects, or Kyochuu Rettou, or if you go by its kanji Giant Bug Archipelago, isn't very hard to follow. A plane crashes on a giant bug infested island, and everyone has to survive while getting horribly killed. Nothing spectacular or original, but the concept (people against giant bugs) is interesting enough to keep you entertained even if it has been done several times in the past. Empire of the Ants is one of them, and there was that MTV movie that I vaguely recall, or at least I think it was a MTV movie. Umm. Moving on. I'll be keeping this on the side so it won't be a weekly release like Terra Formars. However, seeing that only the first chapter was 54 pages, other chapters shouldn't take as long to translate. Now, all said and done, you can find the relevant links below like usual, so check it out, hope you enjoy, and please let me know what you think. See ya!

Download

Read Online

PDF Read Online

P.S. - I'm not dropping Terra Formars. I just wanted to get this out first so I'll be starting work on TF 140 right after this. Expect it sometime next week. Also, my PSD's for the first chapter alone is like 455mb. Yikes! Didn't expect that. Lastly, it's kinda funny because even though the author (Fujimi Yasutaka) has done bug manga before, he actually spelt Papilio maackii as Pooilio maackii. A stupid mistake if you ask me. 

Update
Oops. Made a little mistake on page 14. Corrected it and updated the download and PDF read online. Nothing major, though. Also, just FYI, this sentence, "You know, you really don't have to be so formal" on page 19 was adapted since it originally said, "You keep calling me Matsuoka-san, but I was wondering if you could stop that?". And since I removed honorifics, it had to be adapted. Just wanted to let you guys know that.

Update - 17th July 2016
Updated to volume scans. Fixed a few things, too. Links updated.

Terra Formars: Recent Developments

Well fuck me sideways. Seems that another group has started scanlating Terra Formars. And oh my god why is EVERY PAGE watermarked!? That aside, this totally came out of nowhere and they didn't even mention WHY  they started translating this series, and yes, I checked. I mean, is it fame? ATTENTION? Money??? Meh. I'm not too pissed or annoyed at this, but the fact of the matter is, this doesn't only affect me. I mean, I also work with two Spanish groups and a Brazilian group who receive my PSD's and clean images, so what'll happen to them? Not that anybody gives TWO SHITES other than myself and those involved. Anyway, in other news, it seems that ;display has finally released the previous volume (13) which I'm really glad to see. Thought they'd gone and died on us. However, things are smelling kinda FISHY with their release and Imperial Scans chapter 140 being released on the SAME DAY. Is it a deterrent against me, or am I reading too much into this miraculous coincidence and being unrealistically pessimistic? It's probably just a BIG coincidence. That said, I'll drop the link for their volume 13 release below, so please check it out for their sake. It took them a long time, and even though it is overdue, their constant work on the series since it started needs to be respected. Though if they needed help on anything, it's not like I wasn't open to lending a hand. Just sayin'. Umm, moving on.

Display None Terra Formars Volume 13

Now, to answer the question which all of you are probably asking yourselves: will I be continuing the series? Hmm. I don't know. You see, I'm a one man show, and Imperial Scans is an entire group of from what I see on their credits page 10 FUCKING PEOPLE (overkill much) who will be releasing weekly, and that's just something that I BY MYSELF can't compete with. I mean, I translate, redraw and typeset everything by myself, and the only thing that I don't do is transcribe, which in itself is the smallest part. More so, I haven't even started on chapter 140. So where does that leave me? Limbo? Meh. All said and done, I'm STILL going to translate and release chapter 140 since that'll be the end of volume 14. After that, I honestly don't know. I COULD start working on Rain Hard and translate that instead, but the quality and accuracy of Imperial Scans needs to be checked out. FYI, I don't like their style of translating, nor ;displays, but I'm sure that a lot of people say the same thing about me. Anyway, I want to wait and see people's reactions to recent events and if or not you guys or those on the net want me to continue. See ya, and I'll see you next time. Bye!

P.S. - I rant on stupid things. Don't take anything I say too seriously or at face value. Also, I just randomly put emphasis on words just because. Don't take much by it, either.

Terra Formars Manga Chapter 139 English Translation

Sucks, because I really wanted to use this (yes, I am that insane) for this week's credits page, but it turns out that the transcriber doesn't want her name on something like that (not that I blame her) and wouldn't send me anymore JP documents if I used it. So, I settled for "aids for mars", and yeah, I know that's like choosing getting raped in the mouth over gangrape. If you're into that sort of thing. Still, I TOTALLY understand because OH my fucking god is that what I think it is? Hee hee. Anyway, I'm really glad to have this chapter done since I can now work on that SUPER secret manga project I have in the works. And guess what, it's a secret! Bye!!! Enjoy the chapter!!!! Also, check out Bruce Campbell on page 18. If chins could kill!

Chapter 139 Download

Chapter 139 Read Online

Chapter 139 PDF Read Online

P.S. - For anyone wondering. I don't hold a grudge or anything of the sort for those who may think otherwise. I just like to post about shit related to the scanlation of this manga. And that's all, folks. Actually, I didn't bother to redraw the rest of the Chinese (where the scans come from, FYI) text on the first page like last time. Found it hard and it looked really bad when I attempted to redraw so I just left it in. Removing their group's logo is enough, anyhow. In others words, I got kinda lazy. Ah ha ha ha ha! Again, the "five landing rotation method" is some kind of 5 step landing technique which I could only find info for in JP, so my bad if that lines comes off really awkward. And lasty, (what's up with me, can't I end a post normally?) I couldn't read the JP for "in the next chapter" so I just made something up. Umm, bye.

Saikano: Saishuu Heiki Kanojo English Translation Project (PS2)

Now, this is just something I’ve been having on the side until I finished translating just the prologue of the game, which wasn’t that long ago. However, I don’t want to TL any further since I may or may not even get help to hack the game and rip the graphics nor be able to implement a translation of what I’ve done or if I translate any further. And now we come to the reason for this post. I just want to put out there that if somebody has the know-how of hacking PS2 games and making changes to their respective font files, then please contact me as soon as possible so that progress can be made. I really want to translate this PS2 game, but I don’t have the technical know-how nor the contacts to make it happen. However, translating is my game and that’s what I do, so obviously somebody else has to help out and do the rest.

Chise, what did they do to you?

Anyway, here’s a little about the game from what I’ve seen. It’s a visual novel, obviously, has path routes, granted, has dialogue choices, granted again, multiple endings, granted again again, and mini game dialogue choices and various other minigames? Okay, that one I didn’t expect. Now, at certain points in the game you have the ability to drag your cursor and pick something that you can see on screen, either that be planes in the sky or Chise’s face or clothing and the like. However, you only get one choice most of the time so choose wisely as it does affect the following scene, a few lines of dialogue, or your relationship meter with Chise. Kinda odd since I’ve never seen that in a VN before. Interesting. (FYI, talking about the cursor minigame.)

Riveting, isn't it?

Furthermore, the cursor pick mini game isn’t the only one I’ve seen as there are also a few others. First up is some weird minigame where dialogue flows around the screen and you have to hit a key to select one of them, I think. Anyway, it affects the following scene since what you choose is what you say, again I think. I haven’t bothered TL’ing the minigame parts or their tutorials, was lazy. Moving on. Second is some character card picker minigame which first appeared at the end of the game's first chapter, and from what I can tell, whoever you choose gives you either a bonus or minus in your relationship with Chise. The characters are Chise, Akemi, Atsushi, Fuyumi, and Tetsu, and their respective increase or decrease are as follows:

• Chise + 1
• Akemi + 0
• Atsushi + 1
• Fuyumi - 2
• Tetsu + 2

Moving on. What I like about this game is that it actually gives you the chance to change events in the story. You can stop the world from ending, save Akemi from dying, end up with her or Fuyumi, and that’s actually a great appeal seeing how everything ends in the anime. Hubba hubba. Also, I don’t know if this always happens or not depending on your choices, but it seems that Take doesn’t die during the bombing of Sapporo, and instead lives. Interesting. I wonder what else this game has in store. Anyhow, the music is actually pretty good and I am liking it. And while the graphics may not be the best thing in the world, it manages to maintain the artstyle of the anime which is a major bonus that I really appreciate. 

What? Don't judge me.

However, it does tend to borrow a lot from the anime itself which in itself is a little worrying. Event pictures and even backgrounds seem to have been lifted for use with the game, and a ton of anime clips, too. But! I think the reason they did that was to first be cheap, and second, to maintain the artstyle of the anime. And guess what, it worked! Unsure, but I wonder if any other anime VN’s did this. Kinda unique if you ask me. Also, 15 minutes of new animation was drawn for the game and that I was able to rip with help from the God of War himself, Kratos. You can find the video on Youtube, but sadly, the quality isn’t that very good since YT likes to crush vids into ugly messes. Still, I have the original video file and I always will. Hee hee. Lastly, as with many VN’s voice acting, it tends to be rather flat and uninteresting at times. However, it’s not the worst I’ve ever heard so it’s mediocre at best.

And now we’ve finally come to the end of this post. Aww, too bad. I was getting kinda excited. Still, I hope you enjoyed reading as this game is rather obscure. It was only uploaded on JP game sites in 2012 which is the time that I downloaded it, but it died not long after and the only reliable, working link that I know of is the one that I myself uploaded, and that’s worrying. Furthermore, there’s isn’t exactly much information about the game itself on the net, so if anyone ever comes to looking for info, I guess right here would be their first stop. Anyway, if anybody knows of PS2 hacking groups or anyone who has the skills to help me out, then please fire them my way or at least let me know. Thank you for reading, and see you next time.

P.S. - I’ve only played as far as the start of the second chapter, so I’m unsure what the rest of the game holds in content. But if you’re interested in seeing for yourself, then I recommend you to download the game off my blog and try it out. Have fun!

Terra Formars: Hentai Edtion & Update!

I’m unsure if you guys who visit and comment on my blog here know, but remember that joke hentai chapter of 138 I released not long ago? Well, it’s funny because that actually got uploaded and approved on batoto, and man oh man is that hilarious. Everybody flipped their shit in the comments section and that was a sight to see. Heh heh. Though one guy saw it as a “translator tantrum” and I have no clue what he’s talking about. I mean, he even thinks that the uploader of the chapters on there is me when it’s not, and that I did the hentai joke chapter because of him. Get your facts straight, buddy. To clear things up, my intention was to see if it would be mirrored across all online reader sites just to fuck their shit up. Anyway, among various other things, a few people also got pissy saying that what I did was childish. Well, all I gotta say it, come on, laugh a little. No hard feelings, eh? All in all, it got removed presumably a few hours later, but that was enough time for a lot of people to see it. Hee hee. What do you guys think of that event? Pretty funny, huh?

Anyway, now onto to something else. Well, you know the current situation with ;display, so are they dead or what? I mean, if they don’t put out the volume they’re working on, who the hell’s gonna be doing the volume releases? I don’t wanna do ‘em. I got enough shit to work on, and even a new manga series I’ll be translating. Though give or take a few months and we’ll see if they put it out or not. I hope they do. However, if they don’t, is there any interest in wanting me to pick up where they left off? Not trying to take anything over, just curious in what you guys think seeing how the volumes will be sitting on a to-do list for the entire series if ;display die on us.

P.S. - That hentai post was just a one off joke chapter, so I won’t be doing anything like that again, FYI. Hee hee. Though it was kinda funny.

Review: Iron Virgin Jun (Manga)

And this doesn't even happen!

Okay, next up is Iron Virgin Jun and then that’s more or less all the Nagai manga that I’ve read which I’ve reviewed, except the original Devilman and a few other things like Violence Jack since I don’t think I even need to review those. Anyhow, Iron Virgin Jun. Hmm. This is an odd one because I think that it actually had potential. Now, let’s give you a small summary of the plot. There is a rich family full of muscled women and people marry in and out for money and power. However, the daughter doesn’t exactly want an arranged marriage, and thus our story ensues into wacky adventures of her mother attempting to get her married. Simple enough. But! This is where it goes wrong because the way it is handled by Nagai was off by a long shot because if he actually stopped putting in so much goddamn weird crap, it could have been much better and actually passable. Let me explain. Okay, her mother wants her daughter to marry into companies for power and profit. Right, we got that.

Japan in a nutshell

However, right off the bat the first guy we see trying to “woo” her attempts to rape her while she’s restrained (mother doesn’t want her to escape), and this isn’t the worst to happen. Second, her Aunt or something comes back from the Amazon and mentions to her “the romance of the jungle” and we see an image of her in a jungle surrounded by animals. Yeah, way to live up beastility, Nagai. Sheesh. Hmm, though I wonder if that’s a reference to that story Nagai wrote where a woman crashes into the Amazon and gets raped by everything in sight. Worth a thought. Also, Japan’s fucking weird! Nagai, too! Ahem. Moving on. Third, when she runs away from home her mother puts out an award stating that the one who rapes her gets to marry her and enter the family. Yes, that’s right, you can get paid for rape! Where do I sign up? Ahem. All that sexuality and stupid crap aside, the jokes and comedy present in Iron Virgin Jun is actually pretty good and very well done. For one thing, Akira and Asuka from the original Devilman make an appearance and it's very funny. Amenhotep made me laugh my ass off, and just the absurd style and course of events is ridiculously hilarious if you can get past the misogyny. And, no, I am not from tumblr. All in all, Iron Virgin Jun is an odd piece of work in that it had potential like many of Nagai’s works, but falls short due to its various mishaps and plot elements and scenes which hold it back. I’d say check it out, but don’t blame me if you don’t like it or if it doesn’t leave an impression. See ya!

Neon Genesis Evangelion: Girlfriend of Steel Special Edition English Translation Announcement

The greatest love story ever told

Heh heh. Yes, now I have my eyes set on the special edition of the very first Girlfriend of Steel. And while I know that there are only a few new scenes added and that everything else was translated back in 2003, I'm still gonna go ahead and check over the entire game's script to fix things up to become more literal and accurate to the Japanese script, fix those literacy errors, and make it more my own overall. In other words, it's a retranslation for the most part. However, that's not to say that you won't see some similar things seeing how aspects of the previous TL was pretty spot on for the most part, but only for the most part. Here's a few examples. The original TL is the above and my new retranslation is the below.

Don't go inside, you'll get scolded by the policeman.
If you go inside, you'll get scolded by a policeman.

With such a clear physical evidence, they still call it "a mysterious moving object."
Despite such clear physical evidence, they still call it "a mysterious moving object."

I don't want to be late so I'll go ahead.
Since we are late, I'll go ahead. 

Hey you, honor student! Where are you going!?
Hey, honor student! Where are you going!?

You're... Ikari-kun?
Ikari-kun... right?

It's pretty.
Beautiful, isn't it?

Now, while I know that more literal doesn't exactly mean better, I still think that it should be preferred rather than rewriting/rewording lines, and wording here and there. Here's a few more examples. Note how the previous TL is not totally off, but off by a bit. Furthermore, there is a complete lack of "ne" at the end of a shitton of sentences and that's a major glaring issue, as well as adding in questions despite the sentences being used don't have a "ka" or any related particle. Though the TL is from 2003 so I shouldn't be as harsh. Still, the comparisons are below, and note how Asuka is suspecting the new transfer student and not calling her strange. How did that happen? It's totally off.

Must be a strange person.
I'm quite curious, aren't you?

A new classmate is transferring in today.
A new classmate has come to change schools today.

Let's make friends with her.
Try to get along, okay?

I guess I'll have to give her a greeting.
Well then, guess I'll have to give my greetings.

If you don't mind, could you tell me your first name, Ikari-kun?
If you don't mind, tell me your first name, Ikari-kun.

In addition, note how they mention that the transfer student is a girl despite not actually knowing that. Kinda weird, huh? Well, that's because they don't say "her" since Japanese a lot of the time is like that and it's left up to interpretation in a translation. Anyhow, enough of me picking on the original TL. Mine won't exactly be God-Tier, but it'll be an improvement for the most part, or at least I hope. Now, I uploaded a short video to Youtube the other day as a test, but please take note that I will be making changes since I was working off a script and didn't exactly have visuals or context while I was translating.

The misc JP lies elsewhere and not in the exe, FYI.

Moving on. I also translated the setup utility so you too can also fiddle around with the settings beforehand. I hope people appreciate that. Anyway, what excites me about the special edition is that the game can go up to 1920x1080 and it actually looks pretty good, aside from the subtitle cut off that is. However, I fiddled around and found the best option for a widescreen monitor supporting 1920x1080 and the like is the 1680x1050 option. There is room for the subtitles if you use that setting. However, please take note that any or most lower resolution settings in windowed mode shouldn't have that problem. Furthermore, a recent Microsoft security updates disabled an old driver from Windows Server 2003 that allowed the game and many others to not run, and that is a major problem. However, I posted on fuwanovel and got an email from somebody not from that site who noticed my post and ran into the same problem not long after I posted informing me about the solution and what caused it since I had no clue why the game stopped running. Anyhow, that's just for reference since I know more people will run into that problem. Lastly, have a Mana, and I hope you are excited to replay the game with an updated translation, new scenes, and the game in general in higher resolution. See ya! Bye!