Some November Pickups (2021)
I copped some Video Games and Garms, but what’s new? Well you’ll have to find out what else I acquired on this thankful month of November!
As we enter the thankful month of November, I just want to let everyone know how much I appreciate everyone who has taken the time to support me and the newsletter this past year and It’s been a fun and influential experience! You know the drill, here’s a good chunk of pickups that involve art and fashion books, clothes and a video game that’s been a fun time!
Persona 5 Royal (PlayStation 4)
My first experience with P5 way back in 2016 was one of the most enjoyable play throughs of a video game I’ve ever had and it cemented my love of the franchise even more than it already has. It was a long 90 hours of gameplay, but each minute contained engrossing character development, tight RPG mechanics the SMT studio Atlus is known for and the art-style/music is some of the greatest in gaming. Now, 5 years later, I finally picked up its revitalized successor titled “Persona 5 Royal”. This version of the game includes new social links, game mechanics, quality of life changes, music, revamped boss battles, a new dungeon and so many other small changes to an almost perfect game! I’m currently 70 hours into the adventure and have fallen in love once more with the franchise. I’m playing along with my significant other this time around and it’s been fun discovering all the new attributes to P5R we haven’t seen previously. I couldn’t recommend this game enough to anyone who either owns a PS4 or a PS5 and for 20$ I couldn’t resist!
Vintage Military Surplus AG-344 Wool Tropical Pants
Army surplus has been around for decades, having some of the most intricate and obscure functions, fabrics and silhouettes. I’ve been looking for more wide and dynamic cuts in my bottoms and these fit the bill at a reasonable price! I picked these up at the famous consignment store in San Francisco “Wasteland” and each time I stopped by, I’ve purchased at least one gem from the meticulously curated vintage/designer boutique. These pants are comprised of a poly/wool blend and feature darting on the front and back and have canvas striping on the sides, giving it a nice contrast in fabrics. These pair so well with all of my footwear in the wardrobe and I especially love them with boots or derbies! Always look to army surplus if you’re looking for a unique silhouette with quality fabrics at an affordable price.
A Couple of Art Books From Japantown
I took a trip to San Francisco recently for the Playboi Carti “King Vamp” tour with my GF and a homie and he told me we should stop by Japantown because they had a lot of manga and figures in the shopping centers, so we of course had to check it out! the book store we went to called “Kinokuniya Books” had two stories full of Japanese imported goodness that we could only find online and It was such a pleasure to look through so many books featuring some of my all-time favorite illustrators I’ve seen create some great anime. These are the books I chose to take home with me to admire for years to come!
“FASHION ILLUSTRATION BOOK: The Art of Tanaka (Japanese Edition)” by Tanaka
Having no prior knowledge to Tanaka’s work, this book caught my eye due to the various outfits on the cover and I’m of course a sucker for fashion illustration. This book goes from Words A-Z and each word is a style category that includes outfits suited to the style. If a book can provide me inspiration for what I love, I’ll gladly cop it for what I like to call my personal library!
Sushio is responsible for illustrating and animating my personal all-time favorites like Neon Genesis Evangelion, Gurren Lagan and Kill La Kill! He got his start at Studio Gainax in 1995 as an animator and eventually moved to Studio Trigger in 2011 to take part in establishing the company. the transition illustrations for each episode of Gurren Lagan are cemented in my head that had the memorable “ GO GO FIGHT THE POWAH” chant included and all the character designs of Kill La Kill are some of my favorites. This book also features artwork he did for various events, celebrities and even an ode to another GOAT in the industry “Katsuhiro Otomo” that features Tetsuo in Sushio’s image, which was approved by Mr. Otomo himself! Skimming through this thick book of nostalgia always brightens my day and makes me appreciate the hard work these illustrators produce time and time again and I can’t recommend it enough!
Blind Box Figurines
There’s nothing better than opening up a good blind box figure! Taking a look at the box design, what you can possibly get and deciding which one’s you want and don’t want the most, It’s surely a rush of serotonin in a box. I purchased these at Woot Bear in San Francisco, which is always a stop me and my GF go to for figures since we started our relationship. These are the ones I picked up!
POP MART X Vita Super Band Series
Combing through Woot Bear’s selection, I stumbled across this neon green box with an art style similar to Nintendo’s “Splatoon” that featured a Rockstar girl and her Rockstar dog. The figures you can get in the series range from different characters that play different instruments and their respected dog that’s included. I got the orange-haired drummer girl and her orange-haired dog that joins her with a drum kit included, sticks and all. A very fun series no doubt.
Medicom Toy BE@RBRICK SERIES42
The famous BE@RBRICK series from Medicom is still going strong 20 years later and with their 42nd collection, there’s a whole new set to collect! I had to get two of them to increase my chances of getting the ones I wanted. I ended up getting a Minion and a water droplet patterned variant in the two and they will make a good addition to the mini bearbrick collection!
Your fellow Rick Owens fanboy is at it again with something that isn’t clothing, but an illustration book featuring the lovely Rick Owens and Michele Lammy and their respected namesake brand “Rick Owens”. This massive book features imagery from past collections, famous quotes, and excerpts from interviews of the past that gloss over their lengthy career in the fashion industry, personal philosophies and their relationship with each other. The duo has become my personal favorite brand and now I can add that love of Rick Owens in book form, along with my Yohji Yamamoto book of the same publisher. I got this book for a steal on Amazon and compared to the 100$+ it was going for, I copped it for 35$!
Secret Heart “Black Stones Tour” Nana Hoodie
Hoodie season is in full effect and this Nana inspired hoodie keeps me warm and rebellious! Secret Heart released a capsule a couple months back that featured designs that came from the underrated “Nana” manga series. It’s a story about two girls name Nana who meet in Tokyo and live different lives that’re full of love and uncertainty. This hoodie is based on the band Nana Oosaki is a part of called the Black Stones and features the band’s faces in front, Nana on the left in a fire fit and a Vivienne Westwood necklace on the right. The way I discovered the series was seeing screenshots of the anime on twitter and noticed that the lead vocalist was wearing some Vivienne Westwood jewelry. Unfortunately, I still haven’t given the manga or anime a chance, but I’ll definitely consider it now that I have this awesome hoodie!
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